Page 127 of Overtake
“I know.” His voice is gentle. “Petra, I know.”
“But it doesn’t matter what we know, does it? Not when she’s handed them everything they need to destroy us both.”
Another long silence. When he speaks again, his voice carries a weight I’ve never heard before. “We’ll figure this out.”
“Will we? Your career, your reputation... I’ve dragged you into this mess just by?—”
“Stop.” The word cuts through my spiral. “You didn’t drag me anywhere. I chose this. I chooseyou. Kelley’s interviews don’t change that.”
I want to believe him. God, I want to believe him. But the guilt sits like a stone in my gut.
“I should let you go,” I whisper. I’m not entirely sure if I mean from this call or from my life.
He interprets it as both. “Petra.Mi corazón. You and I are in this together. We’ve done nothing wrong. And we will be fine. The FIA knows your mother.”
“But Graham?—”
“I don’t give a fuck what Graham says, does, or thinks. He can suck my balls.”
It’s exactly what I needed to hear him say and I crack up. God, Nico’s so good at that. “You’re right. God. Yes. That man is such a fucking leech. I don’t know how you deal with him, Nico. I really don’t.”
“I often visualize running his ass over.”
I flop back on the bed. “I get that. Considering doing it to my mother right now.”
He laughs.
I sigh. “You probably have your own damage control to deal with.”
“Probably.” Nico pauses. “Petra, whatever comes next, I’m not going anywhere.¿Vale?”
“Yeah, Nico. Thanks.”
After he hangs up, I sit holding the green and pink worry stone, fury and guilt still warring in my chest. I’ve spent years building my career, proving I belong here, and in one afternoon my mother has potentially destroyed it all. Worse, she’s dragged Nico down with me.
The rage builds until I can’t contain it anymore. I hurl the stone across the room with everything I have. It hits the dresser mirror with a sharp crack, spider web fractures spreading across the glass.
“Brilliant, Petra.” I stare at the shattered reflection, multiple versions of my face broken into jagged pieces. “More fucking damage in my wake.”
A knock at the door makes me jump. “Pet?” That’s Dad. I get up and open the door.
He’s in his dinner clothes, worry etched across his face. “Claudia called me. May I come in?”
I step aside and he enters, taking in the cracked mirror. He retrieves the stone from the floor, then settles into the room’s armchair. “Talk to me.”
“She’s destroyed us, Dad.” I sink onto the bed. “In trying to help, she gave them everything they need to paint Nico and me as conspirators.”
“Did you and Nico conspire to steal technical data?”
“Of course not!”
“Have you ever shared proprietary information between teams?”
“Never.”
“Then there’s no proof because there’s nothing to prove.” His voice carries that steady certainty that’s anchored me my entire life. “Kelley’s interviews are speculation and misinterpretation. Facts are facts.”
“But the investigation?—”
