Page 28 of Fighting For Light
I take a deep breath and roll my bike to the gate. Then, all of us fist bump and nod to one another. This time, a bikini model announces the start of the race as she saunters back and forth across the track. My dark goggles are on, and I stare at Cordelia instead. She’s not looking at me, she’s looking out across the track. I do what coach said and take a good long look.
The model finishes her strut, and the countdown ticker lights up. I can’t hear much through my helmet. It drowns out all thebraapyengines of the other bikes. The gate drops, and I take off down my line. Rollers hit us immediately, and I lift, slightly rolling with them like I’m in an ocean. A straightaway comes upand rolls to a large step up for a jump. I take it all in stride and rip around the track, watching my angles and holding my line so someone can’t cut me off. Checking my shoulder once, I spot Rafe at my back. Seething, I ignore him and push forward.
Almost thirty minutes later, I’m almost at the finish line. I see the checkered flag and know I’m on my last lap. I dig into the throttle and take the triple, one jump after the other, maintaining my speed to leave a gap between me and everyone else.
I take the curve to the finish line and plow through. Someone from another team comes in fast behind me, placing second, then Casey, Deacon, and Rafe come in after, sitting in third, fourth, and fifth place. We’ve now dropped in points.Dammit.
I drive over to our area and rip off my helmet. Throwing a glare at the guys, I start to open my mouth to ask what they were doing, but Reece storms up to us, and I snap my mouth shut.
“What the hell do you think this is? Are we in peewee now and riding around the track like it’s our first time?” he yells. “Deacon, you drove like a damn idiot because twenty-three cut you off. Either figure out how to use that anger to race better, or you can find yourself another team.” Deacon’s eyes widen, and his face gets red in anger. “Casey…” coach trails off and drops his hands. Then he takes his hat off his head and throws it on the ground. “Rafe, you are one of the most reckless riders I have ever seen, and that’s not a compliment. If I ever see you ride like that again, you are more likely to get yourself killed. I really don’t understand where your brains were at today. We’re lucky we got the places we did. Get everything packed up. I don’t want to be here another minute.”
“What about Kai, coach? You’re not going to chew him out?” Rafe snaps.
I keep a straight face and glance at Cordelia. She sticks her tongue out at me, and I wink at her.
“Kai is the only one that seems to know what he’s doing,” coach says, and Rafe scoffs. “You got something to say, Taylor?”
He swings his leg over his bike and stands up straight. “You are full of shit, and so is Kai—“
“Hey!” Cordelia yells. “Don’t—“
“Calm down, groupie. We all know you spread your legs for anyone now, so you—“
I don’t think. I act and slam my fist into his face. He lands on the ground, and I stand over him. “What did I say about how you speak to Cordelia?” I ask him. He wiggles his jaw back and forth and gets to his feet.Never hit a man while he’s down, so I wait for him to get up because I’m a gentleman, after all. He takes a second and swings at me. I duck easily and angle an uppercut into his jaw. He grunts in pain and stumbles back into Deacon, blinking quickly, trying to reorient himself.
Now he’s really mad and runs for me. I quickly cut out his feet and grab his wrist, pinning it behind his back while I hold his head in the dirt. I lean down to whisper in his ear because I don’t want Cordi to hear this. “Let me remind you. I said I would bury you and happily ride over your body. But because you disrespectedmy woman again, I’ll do you one better. I’ll bring you within an inch of your life over and over again, with various methods, until you arebeggingme to bury you. You’re fired. You’re off the team. If I ever see you again, I will choke you out with your own entrails. Do you understand me?“ I ask calmly. I lean forward while the side of his face is still in the dirt. The fear has set in now, sensing that I’m not bluffing, and he nods against the soil. “Good.” I release him and get to my feet. He launches to his, grabs his bike, and scurries away like the coward he is.
Deacon and Casey are silent. Reece stares me down with a blank expression, but his ticking jaw gives him up. “Alright, boys. Let’s get packed up. Looks like I need to make some phone calls and find a new team member,” he says as he walks awaywith his phone to his ear. The guys look at me one more time and shake their heads, walking their bikes away.
“Kai,” Cordi sighs. I hum and walk my bike towards my trailer. “That was a bit extreme. You didn’t need to do that. I can handle myself.” I flip my kickstand out and spin around to lean against my bike.
“Cordelia, if you are going to be my wife, not a single man will ever speak to you in that way. Period. If he does, I will put him in the ground. You will be a Coldwell, and I know you don’t know this yet, but it comes with certain things, one of those being respected. But honestly, you don’t need to be a Coldwell to demand it. You deserve to be respected even when people don’t like you, and I will not tolerate anything else.”
“Well, when you put it that way…” she says, pushing her sunglasses up the bridge of her nose. “So, does this mean you’re really going to let me know you?”
I shrug, and she rolls her eyes.
“You might run the other way,” I mutter.
“You can try, but I doubt it.”
I purse my lips. “I guess we will see then, won’t we? I’m going to get packed up since we’re heading out tonight.”
“Okay, I’m going to go change. I want to ride with you if that’s okay…we have some other things to talk about.”
“Yeah, that’s fine, but you know what?” I swallow thickly, and my heart beats roughly in my chest.
“What?” she asks with a hopeful voice.
“Get your stuff. You’re staying with me,” I tell her, leaving her no other option. She takes a step towards me and hesitates, so I decide for her and grip her chin, kissing her cheek.
“Okay, yeah. See you in a bit,” she whispers and walks to her trailer.
After I get my bikes in and tied down, I hop in the shower and change before hooking the truck to the trailer. Before I do,though, I call Mom to ask her for the ring I’m thinking of. I don’t know if she will want to part with it, but it’s worth the question. I didn’t want to ask in front of Cordi.
The phone rings, and she picks up on the second dial. “Hey, Mom.”
“Hi, sweetheart. How was the race?”
