On my way to Hell in a hand basket; that’s where I’m at right now.
“Don’t you dare, Kaleb Reyes. You’re lucky I didn’t hit the damn pavement and hoof it back to Hazelwood the second you walked away from me. Can you not see how you’re fucking with my life? If we get caught, do you know what that means for me? I don’t go to juvie, Kaleb! I go to jail. Big jail. Adult jail. I’m eighteen for fucks sake.”
“And? I will too.” Stay calm, Rey. She’s reacting out of fear, not trying to pick a fight.
“What does that matter? Do you know what my dad will do to me if he gets a call from me because I’m locked up? Jesus Christ!”
“You think I don’t know? Huh? I’ve been here through the bulk of it, Nadia. Watched him verbally and emotionally abuse you for years. If you think that’s all he’s capable of, you’re sorely mistaken. So, yes. I know what he will do—what he’s capable of. That’s why you can’t go back, no matter how tonight pans out.”
Hate isn’t a strong enough word for how I feel about this conversation and the way I’ve made her feel—trapped.
“So…” She vibrates with disdain. “What’s the plan? How are we getting out of this without throwing our lives away for people we don’t fucking know?”
As shitty as it sounds, I’m thankful for the safer territory—this I can answer. We can deal with our shit later, right now we have to get through the next half hour, even if it’s by the skin of our teeth.
“I’m going to drive, you’re going to sit there and hang on. The drop is on Trail Street but we’re going to be several miles over on the county line, simply having some fun.”
“Fun as in?”
I smile, a full-fledged thousand-watt smile, when she asks. Her inquisitive stare meets mine and then her face drops.
“Oh no.” Nadia whispers.
“Oh yes, sweetheart. It’s time to drive.”
Pressing the clutch, letting off the gas, I drop a gear and the Civic lugs for a second before traction takes and my right foot slams the accelerator. We launch forward, sending the needle into the red zone, and bypass our surroundings in a wicked blur.
Clutch.
Release.
Shift.
Seven…eight thousand.
Clutch.
Release.
Shift.
“Rey!” Nadia gasps. As much as I want to look at her, see the excitement underlining every unsure flick of her stainless-steel eyes, I’m too far in the zone. Adrenaline has taken me captive, I’m a slave to its strength, following every command it barks as we dip and shift through a mirage of cars dotting the highway.
Everything I want out of life is sitting here, in my confident grip, breathing the same air I consume—giving me purpose and life all in one chaotic package.
Then I shift again.
The riders are nowhere to be seen, almost as if they never existed to begin with. Getting to the east side of Detroit was quick, the roads barely bending and twisting, keeping the straightaways open for me to rip down versus banking and feathering the break around slower drivers.
I don’t know how I’m going to do this, not when the cops only chase for a few blocks before peeling off—that would require them to do something other than sit and lean against the hood of their cruisers and pester citizens. The sad truth is, stories have come through the grapevine, telling of innocent people being attacked and how officers did nothing. They didn’t come to aid, tell others to stop or back up, even when they were questioned or forced to act—taking the victim to jail rather than the perpetrator.
They’re as crooked as a snake with the colic. Which makes it difficult to keep their interest, and their pursuit; especially withlow-payout crimes like reckless driving. I’ll have to get creative if I’m going to keep them on my tail, and a bunch of them at that—long enough for the riders to make their drop and disappear.
Leaving downtown, we’re almost at the county line when we zip past a barked cruiser. He flashes his lights briefly but flicks them back off when I touch the accelerator to lure him into a pursuit. Fucker doesn’t take the bait.
“Fuck.” I grunt.
“What? Can’t get them to play with you?” Nadia asks with as much sarcasm as I can handle. “Should have thought about that before you let whatever-his-name-is put you in this position.”
