Chapter 5
Levi
I wake up Saturday morning to the smell of coffee, and I smile.
What’s the point of frowning? I feel good. I’m in the light.
For the record, being in the light means I’m not depressed. Being in the dark is what I call depression. There are many stages that I go through. I’ve learned through the years how to cope, but it’s never easy. It takes work. It takes hard work. It takes heart and a lot of determination. It’s a learning curve. When I feel like I am in the clear, that’s when I know that I better be watching out.
Depression is a sneaky piece of… crap.
I’m not depressed this morning. I’m good. I’ve got coffee in the kitchen. I won some money last night from the race. I’m not thinking about the text that I got from that jackass before I went to bed. I have work to do, and I got a lot of good sleep last night. Today is going to be a good day. Plus, I leave tomorrow to go see my family for a few days.
Throwing the blankets off me, I reach down for my pajama pants, pulling them on, I snatch my cell up from the night stand, and I see a text from Micah. I light up immediately. This woman can read my mind. I’m sure of it.
Micah: When are you coming home? I miss you.
I smile. I miss her too.
I miss Z. I miss Chance and Kelly. I miss all the kids. I miss Macy. I’m not sure if she’s going to be there when I’m there. She has a huge murder trial coming up, and I know she has been buried with that.
I make my way to the kitchen and pull the only coffee mug I own out of the drain. What’s the point of having more than one or two of everything when I’m the only one that is living here? I have no intention of changing that anytime soon either.
I shoot a text off to Mi. I know that she is going to want to talk so I add a few words to let her know that I will catch up with her and give her more details later.
Me: Leaving out in the morning to head that way. I’ve got to get to the office to get things squared away. I’ll call later on. Love ya.
I immediately get a text back. She’s a ninja with that cell phone. I don’t know how she does it.
Mi: You better not forget to call me. You know I can kick your butt. Love you too.
I laugh out loud. She isn’t playing either.
I chug my coffee down and rinse the mug out. After taking a quick shower, I throw on a pair of jeans and a team racing shirt.
I get through my morning routine and make my way out to my car, my love.
I just bought a 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon. It is my baby. I’ve been eyeballing this car since Dodge dropped the hint they were coming out with it. I have watched countless hours of videos online about it. I couldn’t get enough. Before I saw it in person, I knew I had to have one.
When it was finally revealed, I lost my shit. I was like a kid on Christmas morning. I did hold myself back and waited a couple months before buying one, though.
I had to make sure everything was going to check out with it. A buddy of mine at the dealership knew what I was looking for; we talked for days and days about everything to do with it. Once I finally sat in one, it was all over.
It’s everything I was hoping it was going to be and more. I picked an orange one. The official color is Go Mango. Go big or go home is my moto. Why not stand out?
I pull up to the office and park in my usual spot. After killing it, I grab my cell and slide out.
Ron is waiting on me inside the office.
“What you need me to do today? I have the contracts on your desk that you asked for. Why, again, am I feeling like a secretary? And why in the hell am I in here on a Saturday?”
I punch him in the shoulder as I make my way to my office. Sitting in my leather chair feels like pure Heaven, I roll up to my desk.
I look up at Ron standing in the door. “You feel like a secretary because you’re special old man.”
He laughs. “Good think I like you, boy.” He turns and walks back to his office.
We have a small office space in the middle of town. After learning there are sponsors that like the office atmosphere over talking in the shop, we found this place. I never wanted any of them to come to my house anyway. I do whatever anyone needs, to keep me on the track. Well, almost whatever they need. There are some things I don’t do. At the end of the day, my name is on all of this. I have a brand that I want to keep, and I make sure to do that, at all cost. I want to know that I can lay my head down at night and be at peace. It’s been a goal of mine since the shitty beginning I was given.
I look over the contracts that Ron left for me and leave notes for him. He will take care of everything while I’m gone home.
I always have a say in all the deals. He made sure to give that to me from day one. He always said, “you are the one on the bike, boy. You’re the one who’s life is in the balance. You are the one that holds all the cards, from every angle. Be involved.” So, I was and I am.
“Ron-o, everything on these contracts are ok by me.” I get up and make my way to his office. He’s hanging up the phone when I take a seat on the opposite side of his desk.
“Everything’s ok, you said?”
“Yeah. Everything seemed like it was on the up and up. When you meet with them, patch me in on video and I’ll trust you on the vibes.”
“Like always,” he replies. This is how we do it. I try not to meet with the sponsors in person at first. They all seem to want to kiss my ass and over give when I’m around. I don’t like that. Just be real. Ron picks up the vibes and we consider those in our decisions.
We talk through a few more business things before switching gears.
“So, has Micah text you yet?” Ron says, giving a chuckle while leaning back in his chair.
“You know it. First thing this morning. I told her I’d call her later. If I don’t, she’ll kick my ass as soon as I pull up. She’ll probably do it with a kid on each hip, too.”
Ron gives a big, deep chuckle. He knows exactly what I’m talking about.
After going over a few more things that he and Dale will need to take care of next week, I leave it to him.
Pulling back up to the house has me excited. I feel good. I’m ready to see my people.
I unlock the door and pull my phone out. I’ve got a lady to call.
After a couple rings, a raspy voice answers. “Hello?”
“Mi?” She doesn’t quite sound like herself.
“Yeah, it’s me. Hold on a sec.” I hear some banging around, and I make my way inside, slipping my shoes off and pulling things out of my pockets.
“Vi?” Micah says after a few more seconds. She’s the ONLY person that can call me that.
Vi is a girl’s name. She won me over by saying… “It goes with Mi. Mi and Vi.” Who can say no to that? I sure as hell can’t. This girl.
“Yeah. I’m here. You ok? You sound weird.”
“The twins didn’t sleep last night. They weren’t feeling very well. I was all good this morning, but they haven’t napped either, so now I’m losing my mind.” I scratch the back of my neck. She’s spinning out of control, and I’m too many hours away.
“Where is Zant?”
“He’s out of town at the South shop.” She goes on about what the twins have been doing all day and I start throwing clothes in my duffle bag.
When she takes a breath, I hurry to get words in. “Micah, hold tight. I’ll be there as soon as I can. I’m leaving right now. In the next two hours, try to stay as calm as possible.”
“No Levi. Don’t come today. You know we are trying to surprise Nova, and if you come early, it will ruin the whole thing.”
My clothes throwing slows down.
“Yea. You’re right. I have a whole big thing planned. I really don’t want to ruin it. On a serious note, call Kel if you need back up before I can get there to help you. They should be coming in pretty soon.”
“Levi, I appreciate it. Really. I’ll call Kelly if I need to. Or mom.”
“Ok. Here’s the plan.” I throw my packed bag on the floor of my bedroom. “I’m going to plan on leaving earlier in the morning and get there sooner than planned. Is that ok?”
“Yes,” she says. “I didn’t mean to make you panic. You know I got this. These two rug rats can’t drive me nuts.”
I chuckle at her. She’s right. She’s one of the strongest women I know. We talk for a few more minutes and end the call.
I unpack and repack my bag with the things that I really need. While on the phone with her, I panicked and started throwing random things in my bag. I pull out a bike magazine and throw it on the nightstand. How would the latest issue of Motocross help Micah?