Page 7 of Rush
‘I got lucky. I was sponsored by someone in the industry and my lessons were free. That’s no secret, the world knows that the CEO of this championship gave me the opportunity so many kids dream of. But my parents gave me the most important thing of all, their time and their love.’ Savi looked over at Gabriel Lopez, her knight in shining armour and the man who got her here. He was practically bursting with pride.
‘Hmm. No more questions,’ Schmitt huffed, sitting back down. It took a lot to shut that guy up once he got going, but despite his slight dig at her teammates, he didn’t haveany more to say to them. Probably didn’t want to contend with the potential legal issues that came with going after such a big racing team.
There were a couple of questions about Miko’s father’s investment in the team, and Kodie’s education, but they handled them well. On the outside, at least. Most drivers were good at coming across as balanced and level-headed on the outside, in front of the cameras and the media and in situations where it mattered, while their emotions worked overtime and they were fighting constant battles on the inside.
She could see it in her teammates; there was only so much they could take from the tortoise-emblazoned moron, listening to their friends and colleagues take hit after hit and try to defend themselves and the mistakes or choices they had made. Kodie looked particularly miffed as they got up from their seats, shuffling out of the room like the life had been sucked out of them.
‘I hate that guy,’ she muttered. ‘Just because my family has money, it doesn’t mean I can’t drive a fucking car. And I’m fast, too. Bet he drives a Fiat.’
Brett joined them as they reached the door, ‘He’s definitely a Smart Car kind of bloke. The kind who drives way below the speed limit and cries when he goes over a speed bump.’
She tried to engage, to laugh at their jokes and pretend what happened in there hadn’t bothered her at all. But the anxiety had well and truly set in, and Savi couldn’t get away from them fast enough. ‘I’ll catch you guys later, I’ve got some things I need to take care of.’
She said her goodbyes, barely giving anyone a chance to respond, and darted across the paddock, slamming the trailer door shut behind her. Her heart was beating rapidly, heat rising up through her body while she tried to stop her hands trembling.
She couldn’t stand this; the way she became detached from her body and had to claw her way back to reality. Her chest ached and she knew she’d lost total control over herself. This happened a lot, and it didn’t matter if she dealt with it alone or in a room full of people, it was never any less embarrassing. To know there was nothing she could do about it made her feel weak. Anxiety attacks, she could handle. The warning signs were there, and she had time to put a stop to them, focus on her coping mechanisms and ground herself before they took over. But the panic attacks? She didn’t know they were coming until it was too late.
She was mid-panic attack when Kodie and Miko flung the door open, worry etched across their faces as they studied her battling her own body.
‘Savi?’ Miko knelt in front of the sofa she was perched on and placed a hand on her knee, while Kodie put an arm around her, squeezing her tight.
‘What’s up, Sav?’ Miko smoothed her hair down for her, tucking it behind her ears so it didn’t get stuck to her wet cheeks.
‘I just hate talking about my family. It’s nobody’s business.’ And yes, that did unfortunately include her teammates no matter how lovely they were. ‘I don’t know why they can’t stick to questions about the job.’
‘He was a dick,’ Miko agreed. ‘But what’s this all about?’ She gestured to the mess Savi had made of herself in the few moments that she’d managed to escape an audience.
‘I get anxiety around interviews, because of questions like that.’ She was even uncomfortable now, talking about it. Her whole face was burning red, and the nausea was rising in her throat. Savi didn’t do this, ever. She didn’t break down in front of near strangers but here she was, crying to her teammates before the first race had begun.
‘Have you… seen the team therapist yet? Talked about this? Maybe bring it up to Jasper, too? He can have the moderator ban questions about your family, if that’s something you aren’t willing to talk about publicly,’ Kodie suggested.
‘You can talk to us, too,’ Miko added. ‘Don’t feel obligated, but we’re your teammates. Built-in best friends, sisters. Whatever this is, you haven’t got to bottle it all up. We’re sworn to secrecy, Savi. Promise.’
‘Thanks, girls.’ She swallowed roughly and reached forward for her water bottle. ‘I just honestly don’t know that I’m ready to disclose my family issues with anyone. It’s not just my story to tell.’
‘Oh… okay.’ Kodie squeezed her shoulder, sounding somewhat disappointed. ‘Makes sense. Do you need a second, or do you just want to get up and crack on?’
‘How’s my face?’ Savi sniffed and wiped her tears away, calming her breathing down. She didn’t want this to be her reputation in the team, she wanted to be reliable and strong and let Kodie and Miko know they could depend on her to take them to victory, that she wasn’t going to crumble. This wasn’t a good look so early on.
‘Flawless, as always,’ Miko smiled.
‘Well then, I’ll crack on. Thanks, ladies.’
Shaking herself out, she let Kodie lead the way out of the trailer, her hand not even on the door handle before it rattled, and she jumped backwards. ‘Who the f—’
‘Savannah?’ Marco’s head poked through the gap. ‘Can I have a moment alone with Savi please, girls? I fear I might have pissed her off earlier.’
Her teammates looked between his guilt-ridden face and her rosy, blotchy one and waited for her to give the go-ahead. She nodded, with an eye roll for dramatic effect. They hurried out and let Marco in, giving Savi about three seconds to pull herself together enough that he wouldn’t know anything had been wrong in the first place.
‘What’s up, De Luca?’ She crossed her arms, wishing she could just get a few minutes alone around here. She’d been at the track for three days and the only time she’d had to herself was when she’d been asleep. Even then, she’d be lying if she said Marco ignoring her for that short time after the Esme ordeal hadn’t kept her up at night. Her own emotions were proving too much today, she wasn’t sure she could handle his, too.
‘About the buddy thing…’ He was coming across as incredibly shy and much more like the Marco she had been witness to before that night at Julien’s. ‘I get it. You don’t want to be babysat. So, with that being said, if you want me to go to Jasper and tell him this isn’t going to work, that I have an issue with it, I will.’
She felt awful. Yes, it would be fun to have a bit of rivalry out on track, but that was possible without makingMarco feel like his help and guidance weren’t valued. Savi still had a lot to learn, and there was a lot she didn’t know about this championship and its inner workings. While she wasn’t the type to admit that, it wouldn’t hurt to let Marco in. A smidge.
‘One demeaning comment or mild insult and I’m kicking off. That includes about my cowboy boots.’ She was even wearing them now. Jasper hadn’t given them a uniform as such, just asked that they keep it work-appropriate and wear their race suits in the garage. So of course, for press day she had paired a red Revolution Racing shirt with a white, tiered miniskirt, her red boots, and a red bow in her hair.
‘As long as you don’t start walking around in a cowboy hat too, I will keep my mouth shut and try to remember that you do sort of know what you’re doing and have been behind the wheel of a race car hundreds of times before you signed with us, and won championship titles before, even if they weren’t quite as impressive as winning the International Endurance Championship.’
