Chapter 37
Ashley-age 14
I’m standing with Rush, behind my dad’s lime green nineteen sixty-eight Ford Mustang GT/SC fastback. We’re all at the Palisades Del Ray, my dad has a big race tonight, and the abandoned community is crammed full of spectators, excited for a great race. My mom and Austin are next to my dad as he prepares for the race, checking his car over, and making sure everything is in working order. They’re talking in hushed voices, something’s off with them. My mom is whispering to him, her body is shaking. My dad stops what he’s doing and pulls her in for a hug, rubbing her back gently. She tucks a few pieces of blonde hair behind her ears and gives him a small smile.
“Everything will be OK. I promise.” he says to her. He runs his hands through his dark hair and proceeds to check his car. She gives him a small nod and puts her arms around Austin, watching the crowd. There’s fear in her green eyes when she sees who dad’s racing against. My mom fears no one, she’s one of the strongest, most dangerous people I know.
Austin is two years younger than me and his shaggy blonde hair is falling into his brown eyes that match mine. He spots me standing next to Rush and comes over, leaving my mom and dad alone.
“Hey kiddo,” Rush says, messing up his hair.
“Rush, stop. There are girls around, I’m not a kid anymore. I’m almost thirteen and I have to play it cool for the ladies to notice me.” Austin states, with a serious look in his eyes. I laugh at his comment, he will be such a ladies man when he gets older.
“Austin,” I say with a smile. “None of these girls here are worth your time. They’re not good enough for you.”
“Well, you’re here. So, does that mean you’re not good enough for any guy here?” Austin asks.
“No, actually it means no guy here is good enough for me either, squirt.” I explain. “We have to keep our standards high, make them work for our attention.”
“Keep our standards high, make them work for it.” Austin repeats my words back to me. “Got it. What are you guys doing back here?”
“Just talking,” Rush answers. His black eyes find mine and gives a small shake of his head. He’s still in a lot of pain from the other night, but he’s trying to hide it. We don’t need to tell Austin about the information I found out today, who hurt him so badly, but it’s like Austin has a sixth sense for what goes on in our heads.
“Did you find anything out yet?” he asks.
“No, not yet squirt. Why don’t you go back to mom and watch dad race? I’ll be back here with Rush.” I answer. I hate lying to him, but this is for his own good.
“Ok, but if you find anything out, I want to know. No one deserves to get away with what they did.” The seriousness of Austin’s voice, causes my blood to run cold. He’s seen just as much as I have in this world, even when I try to shelter him from it.
“I will,” I respond.
Satisfied with my answer, Austin walks back over to my mom. He puts his arms around her waist and gives her a tight hug. We both can tell something’s wrong, but our parents won’t tell us anything. They think we’re too young to understand the dangers of this business. My mom’s long blonde hair is blowing in the breeze and she pushes it out of her face. She’s wearing a light blue summer dress and a matching sweater over her shoulders. She’s so beautiful and strong, I hope someday I can be just like her. She smiles at my dad and he gives her a wink. They share such a tight bond with each other, you can see it when they're together. They don’t need to say anything to each other, just a look and one knows what the other is thinking.
My dad gets into his Ford Mustang and straps his harness on. Rush and I walk up to his door before he pulls away. I lean in the window and give him a hug.
“Good luck out there, daddy,” I tell him.
“Thanks, kiddo. I’ll see you when it’s over. We need to talk to you.” He hugs me back tightly and kisses my hair.
“Good luck Anthony,” Rush says, holding out his hand.
“Thanks, Rush. I need you to stick around too, Liz and I need to talk to both of you.” My dad replies, shaking Rush’s hand.
“Ok. I will.” Rush answers. He looks at me and I shrug my shoulder. I have no idea what they want to talk to us about.
My dad puts his car in first and takes off to the faux starting line. The three other racers are already there. One I recognize as Marcus Dual. He’s glaring at my dad with a menacing look. I watch what he’s doing, carefully. I’ve never liked Marcus, but his son Ian isn’t so bad.
This race is different from the street races we normally go to. We’re in an abandoned community near the airport and they have to race around an oval makeshift track. Instead of pavement to grip the corners, there’s dirt. This will be challenging for all of them since it isn’t the fastest in a quarter mile. They must pass around three times and there are no rules. Danger is at every turn.
The girl starting off the race stands between the two cars in the middle. She has on booty jean shorts, a tight white tank top and a bright green bandana tied around her neck She points to each driver, making sure they’re ready. Once she reaches my dad, she begins a countdown.
“All right gentlemen,” she announces with a smile. “On the count of three, you’ll race around three times. The driver with the fastest overall time wins the pot of eleven thousand dollars. Ready?” The crowd surrounding us is throbbing with excitement, their cheers and whistles are ear piercing. The flagger raises her voice louder as she continues. “One!" She removes the bandana. "Two!" She raises the bandana above her head. "Three!" She drops the bandana and all four drivers take off, spitting dirt up behind them.
Marcus instantly takes the lead in his blue Nissan Altima. He comes into the first turn wide and my dad takes the inside and the lead. He pulls away from the other cars once he moves out of turn two. Marcus is right on his ass when they arrive at turn three. He bumps my dad, forcing him to take the turn wide and takes the lead again. My dad doesn’t let up though, he stays right behind Marcus, waiting for a spot to pass. They go back and forth a few times until they get to the final lap.
I grab Rush’s hand and pull him away from the crowd, so I can talk to him, leaving my mom and Austin standing next to turn four. He comes with me, but he’s moving slow. Once we’re in the back away from listening ears, I turn towards him and cross my arms over my chest. I give him my best glare, but he isn’t budging.
“Rush, we need to talk about what happened.” I whisper-shout over the roar of the crowd.
“No, we don’t Ash, I’ll take care of it when I’m healed.” he states with aggravation in his voice.
“You’re not doing this alone." I yell at him, throwing my hands up in frustration.
“You’re not getting involved." Rush yells back, pacing back and forth. He runs his hands through his black hair. “Ash, I don’t want you involved. This is my mess, not yours.” He’s standing in front of me now, his hands resting on my shoulders.
“Rush, you don’t understand. They need to be dealt with. I’m not some innocent, naïve little girl. I can handle my own and can dish out punishment. I’ll be their worst nightmare.” I tell him with impatience.
“I know you can, but Ash, I don’t want you involved."
“Too late, I already am and you either include me in your plan or I’ll go about it my own way.” Determination in my voice. Rush lets out a long sigh.
“Fine, but we can talk about it later…” his voice trails off when he glances at the track. “Fuck."
I spin around to face the track and my heart drops to my toes. My dad is battling Marcus for the lead. I watch as Marcus slams the rear end of my dad’s car, but he pulls out of the spin before he loses control. My dad keeps the lead in the second turn, but there’s something wrong. His car is shaking badly. When he comes into turn three at top speed, he can’t slow down, and he’s headed right for the six-foot-tall, brick wall.
“NO." I scream just as my dad’s car strikes the wall, sending debris straight into the crowd in turn four.
I run towards the accident before anyone can stop me. I’m next to the wall when his car explodes, killing him immediately. I’m thrown back from the powerful blast; my ears are ringing as I attempt to stand up. There are people all around me as I struggle to get up on shaky legs and find my mom. Tears and blood are streaming down my face as I spot a group of people just standing in a circle, their heads are bowed, and no one’s moving. I can hear screaming through the roar in my ears as I push my way through the crowd. A set of strong arms wrap around my waist spinning me around toward them. Rush is blocking me from seeing what I know is on the other side.
“NO. NO. NO." I scream into Rush’s chest, punching and hitting him until all my strength leaves my body and I crumble to the ground.
I sway back and forth, numb to everything and everyone around me. Before I black out, the only thing I hear is the screams from my mom and suddenly silence. The silence is the worst.