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.Whenhe arrived, one of the riders looked familiar.He d beaten him last time.Neil grinned.Thisguy had something to prove.The other two riders looked him up and down before theyturned their attention back to the track.The flurry of bets happening on the sidelines didn t surprise him or faze him.It was whyHector had invited him back.This time, a buxom blond crossed the line and took position twenty feet ahead.Herblue bra peaked out from the top of her shirt.That would have appealed to him twoweeks ago.But not now.With helmets in place, the four of them took position.The wind kicked up some dust infront of them and tiny pieces of clay clinked against his helmet.His heart thudded in his chest and he d give anything to be able to wipe the sweat fromhis brow.But he stared ahead, his hand gripping the brake, his foot just waiting for themoment to touch down.Blue bra held up her scarf.Engines revved on either side of him.He whispered a prayerinside his helmet and when the blue scarf came down, he took off.Three of them were neck and neck for most of the race.The rider to his right evenskidded closer trying to bump him out.But Neil punched it into a higher gear.His bike surged ahead thirty feet from the finish.His lips curled up in a smile as henoticed the riders were no longer in his peripheral vision.But his pre-celebration was cutshort when he rode over a divot.The bike wavered.He righted it in unison with a gust ofwind and he overcorrected.He spun out and hit the ground, the excessive speed scrapinghim across the red clay.His head bashed against the ground and Carson s tortured faceflashed before his eyes.And then everything went black.&Neil opened his eyes and didn t recognize where he was.Bare, beige walls.Itchy blanket.And& pain.He groaned. Good morning, asshole.He turned and focused on Cole sitting in a chair beside him. You re in the hospital if you re wondering, he said, flipping through the pages of amagazine. Almost killed yourself last night. He looked up. In case you were wonderingwhy you re here.He remembered.After his blow up with Carson he d hopped on his bike and rode out to the race site.Andhe d raced.And he d&  Did I win? He turned to Cole who shook his head with disgust.He remembered leading the race and then he spun out and then he woke up.Here. How did I get here? He didn t recognize his own voice. I m not really sure.Jack got a call from the hospital.Apparently someone dropped youoff.Whoever you re hanging around with is a great friend to drop you at the door andtake off.You should send them a fruit basket.He understood why.Too many questions.No one was going to risk a tangle with thecops.The door to the hospital room opened and Finn and Jack walked in. You re awake, Finn said, a warm smile curving at the side of his mouth. Are you coherent? Jack asked.Neil looked between the three of them and nodded. Well, good. Jack approached the end of the bed. Just want to know you ll rememberthe conversation when we tell you you re a fucking idiot. Jack? Finn said. No. He held up his hand. We re not doing this.We re not tiptoeing around thesituation.I knew something was up a year ago and I did nothing about it.Jack looked the most angry he d ever seen him. Sorry, Finn, Jack looked over and shook his head. But this stops now.King, you regoing to tell us what s going on with you.The truth.All of it. It s none of your  Business? Cole said as he crossed his arms over his chest. That s not going to flyanymore.They weren t his keepers.He didn t need a babysitter.He was the oldest, for fuck sake. Look, it s fine. He looked at all three of them, finally settling on Finn. I m fine.Finn hesitated before he spoke. What about your temper? The disappearing.Christ.Even Finn was against him. The bikes. Jack said.Neil let out a long, heavy breath. What about bikes? Finn asked. He s totaled six or seven.He s being careless.Neil let his gaze drop to the blanket that laid over him.They wouldn t let up.Not untilhe told them the truth.He might as well get it over with. I was racing. Racing? Cole s face gave away his disgust. As in street racing?Neil nodded. Christ Neil, you could have gotten yourself killed, Jack said. Do you know how  I know. He lifted his arm but quickly let it fall to the bed with a groan.It felt like aone hundred pound weight was attached to his wrist. I know exactly how dangerous it isand that was the point.He needed the release.He needed to let go of all of the anger.The guilt and fear.Ofnot knowing what to do with himself now that Vivian was gone. She wasn t supposed to die.Not so soon.Not like that.His brothers stood still, barely taking a breath for fear of startling him.They knew itwouldn t take much for him to shut down, let the guard fall back in place.But not thistime.This time he needed to man up and be honest, even if they couldn t fully understandanything he was feeling. I don t know what to do.I& I have all this anger.All this sadness.I didn t know what todo with it and one night I went for a drive.I was stopped at a light and a guy came upwith a bike and I knew what he wanted.He wasn t completely crazy that night.He had at least second-guessed the decision torace. Afterward, he asked if I was interested in something a little more dangerous. And thatwas the beginning.He eventually found Hector Diaz and the rest was history. Why wouldn t you say something? Why didn t you come to us? Finn leaned in, slowly,cautiously.As if he was some skittish deer on the side of the road.But he understood.Hewasn t the most approachable. We re all hurting. Cole got up from his seat and stood beside Finn.Jack kept his distance.His face a mix of fury and sadness. No more racing, Finn said. If you need to blow off steam we ll go to the gym or Neil scoffed. You want calls at three in the morning? Whatever it takes, Cole said.It had taken a long time for Neil to truly trust the three men standing around him.Heknew they had his back.But this was beyond anything he ever expected. I hate you right now, Jack spat. Jack? Finn punched him in the arm. No. Neil held up a finger because he couldn t lift his arm. Let him finish. You re so quick to judge everyone else and the mistakes they make.Always so highand mighty, King is always right. Jack gripped the bar at the end of the hospital bed. Bullshit.He was right.He never let anyone ever question his decisions.Until he met Carson.Shecalled him out on his shit from the very beginning. This racing is the worst decision any one of us has ever made.It s dangerous andstupid and&  Jack shrugged. You re just not allowed to do it anymore.Neil smiled [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]