Page 34 of An Uncertain Road

But then she looked up at him with wide, conflicted eyes, and he sucked in a deep breath. It was much easier to know he should keep his distance than to actually do so. Meeting her gaze, he tried to impart confidence through his words. “This is a short race, but it’s not easy. You need to focus on safe driving to reach the top.”

“If it takes less than an hour, there’s no time to waste on safety. I'll have to push hard to pass cars on that road.”

There she was, back to her usual reckless self, but at least she didn’t appear to be on the verge of tears as she had a few moments before. Jensen let go of her hand and threw his response out as he headed around the car to climb into his seat. “Attempt to use both, if you would.”

She clearly took his comment as a challenge. Settling in her seat, Flora started the car and drove to the starting spot they’d been assigned, not too far back in the field, but not at the front either. Jensen glimpsed Archie and Sam much farther ahead of them. How had they managed to snag that position? Knowing Archie, it hadn’t been anything good.

Jensen put Archie out of his mind, determined to focus on helping Flora during this fiasco. While they waited for the starting signal, Flora adjusted everything possible—her hat, her skirt, her foot on the pedal, her hands on the steering wheel. Finally, she looked over at him. “Do you think we can win this?”

If he said no, would she back out and stay safely here at ground level? Or would it spur her on and cause more recklessness? Either way, it didn’t matter. He couldn’t even try to lie to her. “You’re an excellent driver, Flora. You have every chance of winning.”

The smile that brightened her face was worth the chances they were about to undertake. More focused than ever, she turned her eyes to the front as the race officials shouted instructions. And then the gunshot signal spurred cars into motion for the most dangerous race Jensen had ever heard of.

CHAPTER 16

Flora let the warmth of Jensen’s faith in her driving ability push her through the nervousness that accompanied the start of every race. Those few moments sitting in readiness while waiting for the signal were always the worst. But knowing he was expecting her to drive them to victory made it infinitely less tense.

At the signal, the cars in front of her took off, and Flora pushed the gas pedal forward, trying to keep an even pace of acceleration. It didn’t do any good to lurch around as some of the drivers were doing. She had more control, more finesse than that. She knew from experience that the best course of action was to let the starting rush settle before trying to fight for positions. In a race this short, everything would be concentrated into a quicker time frame, but she still didn’t want to get caught up in a starting line wreck.

They began on a wide stretch of dirt road that sloped upward at a gentle rate. Easing around some of the heavier, slower-moving cars, Flora focused on looking ahead for spots to pass. Once they were on the winding part of the mountain road, there wouldn’t be many, from the way Jensen described the course. The road would be narrow with many sharp turns and steep drops. She would have to take his advice and use both wise driving and speed if she wanted to get through the entire course.

As the cars reached the part of the road that started to narrow, she could see what they were up against. Rather than curving around a tall spire as she’d imagined, the road began a steep incline as it cut through the long mountain range. It was marked with sharp turns and sudden rises that required quick acceleration to get up. In many places, the rutted dirt path clung to the side of the rock with a sheer drop mere feet from where the cars drove through. For a moment, her stomach clenched. How was she going to find enough places to pass all the vehicles in front of them?

Then Jensen nudged her arm and pointed ahead. “Watch those front cars. They’ve done this before.”

Without losing her focus on the road, Flora watched one of the leading cars come up on the outside of another as they approached a turn. The car trying to pass forced the inside car to either slow down or be crushed against the rock wall. She could do that. As long as she didn’t misjudge the space and get run off the road instead.

Easing closer to the car in front of her, Flora waited for the next spot wide enough for two vehicles. Then she swung to the outside—not too far, so that the other driver felt pinched, while she was in no danger of going off the side of the mountain. As they came out of the turn, she pressed the gas, sending them flying ahead of the other car.

She shot a grin toward Jensen, who looked rather tense but gave a good effort at a smile in return. She returned her focus to the road and repeated the maneuver, this time managing to pass two cars. With determination and intense concentration—along with a few drivers making mistakes that caused them to get stuck on the side of the road or spin around in the dirt—Flora moved up enough spots over the next fifteen minutes to get them into third place. They even passed Mr. Franklin and Sam with no trouble when the pair had to slow down to avoid an incapacitated motorcycle.

But the road grew narrower and steeper as it ascended, and the Decauville was not responding as easily, thanks to the increasing incline. There were fewer places to pass, and the drivers at the front knew what they were doing. The second-place car was able to block Flora’s advances through several turns.

Unclenching her now-sore jaw, she glanced at Jensen to see if he had any other tips. But his eyes remained locked on the car in front of them. She stamped down a rush of disappointment.

Despite the heat below, it had grown much colder as they approached the summit, and Flora’s fingers struggled to maintain a solid grip on the steering wheel. Now she understood why many of the other drivers had donned gloves before starting. No matter how she tried, there wasn’t a way to get around that car.

It wasn’t nearly long enough before the finish line appeared up ahead. A brisk wind had picked up, which the officials had warned the drivers about beforehand. In preparation for the tour, the Harrison Goods crew had lightened the Decauville as much as possible, usually a good way to increase speed. But up here, the lighter car was a detriment. Flora felt as if they would be blown straight down the side of the mountain if a strong gust hit.

That wasn’t her biggest worry, though. It was clear now that there wouldn’t be time to pass both cars ahead of her. Flora flexed her cold fingers and tightened her grip on the steering wheel. Maybe she could at least get around one and come in second.

Seeing her last chance on a short straightaway, Flora started moving the Decauville into position on the outside line. Without warning, Jensen’s hand shot out and grabbed the steering wheel, pulling them back into line behind the other car. Shocked, Flora steered them across the painted finish line in third place.

As soon as the car was parked in the marked area away from the road, Flora jumped out and rounded the vehicle, marching straight up to Jensen. “What was that? I had a chance to pass him, and you ruined it.”

Jensen took off the goggles he’d chosen to wear for the race and placed them on the passenger seat with deliberate slowness before meeting her eyes. His tone was infuriatingly calm. “I saved us from a certain crash. Didn’t you see him swinging out?”

Throwing up her hands, Flora let the adrenaline from the race take over. “How could I have missed it? Don’t you think I was taking that into consideration? I had room.”

Jensen winced, but Flora couldn’t believe he felt bad about his choice. “You didn’t, Flora. We would be careening down those sharp rocks right now if I hadn’t done it.”

Fury almost blinded her. “Did you do that on purpose?”

“I just told you I did.”

“No, did you make me lose the race? Did you think a failure here would make me stop racing altogether? That I would quit the tour and we could go home? That’s what you’ve been wanting all along, isn’t it?”

Once the words were out, Flora realized she’d been harboring that thought in the back of her mind since Sam mentioned Mr. Franklin’s accusation. She didn’t want to believe Jensen would do such a thing, but it seemed a little part of her did believe it.