Excerpt from #BLUR
(unedited)
copyright Cambria Hebert, DO NOT distribute, share or repost.
Hopper
He picked up his coffee, sipping at it while staring at me over the rim of the mug. Gamble was a formidable man; his presence alone exuded power.
I wasn’t intimidated by him, though. I wasn’t intimidated by much these days. When you go through hell and survive, there isn’t much that can inspire such a feeling.
“I’ve been keeping a close eye on the new team you’re building, and I’m impressed. I want your input on how it’s going.”
He called me here for a report? The staff could have heard this.
“It’s going well,” I said, going into a few details about the drivers, the cars, and getting ready for this spring.
“And how are they getting along? Any issues?”
“None,” I said, decisive. “I’ve made it abundantly clear no form of bullying, hazing, or discrimination will be tolerated. Plus, the fact they were all hired to replace those who didn’t heed that warning carries a heavy weight.” I paused, clearing my throat. “I’ve been making sure to pay closer attention. I’m focused on what’s going on around me.” Instead of what’s going on inside me. At least I think I am.
Sometimes when you wake up to reality, it’s a sharp slap in the face. Here you’d been going along, living life, and thinking you were handling everything—then BAM! You realize you’d been living in some fog, and all the things you thought you knew you didn’t know at all.
Except even waking up from the fog wasn’t enough to shake it completely. It was still a daily fight, still something I had to remind myself to be careful of.
My insomnia was worse lately. The fog was relentless. The more I fought it during the day, the thicker it became at night.
Gamble nodded as if he expected everything I said. “I’m glad to hear it because there’s something I want you to do.”
“Which is?”
“You’re aware I’m recruiting Arrow Ambrose, Lorhaven’s brother, to drive for me.”
Something in my stomach dipped. My attention sharpened tenfold. Not much had the ability to blow away the relentless fog over my brain, but he did.
It was something I didn’t like to acknowledge. In fact, I never did, except of course internally when just the mention of his name (or the sight of him yards away) made it impossible to ignore.
“Yes,” I hedged, wondering where this was going. “Pretty rare for you to offer someone a spot of their choosing on either your NRR team or your NASCAR team.”
Gamble made a sound. “So imagine my surprise when I can’t get the kid on the phone.”
I felt my eyebrows shoot up. “He’s not answering your calls?”
“He’s yet to return the couple I’ve made.”
Interesting.
“It’s been several months since he first auditioned for me. As you know, he’s been racing in a few minor races, building his name, getting more experience. He’s also driven in a few NRR classifiers.”
“He’s a good driver. He’ll only get better.” I agreed.
“I want you to find him, meet with him face to face. Figure out where his head is and which team he’s going to drive. I need his signature on a contract, the ink dry.” As he spoke, he pulled out two yellow envelopes, both sealed, and laid them across the desk in front of me.
Okay, whoa.
Back that ass up.
Slam the brakes.
Whiplash.
What the fuck was happening here?
- Ron Gamble want me to drive to the other side of the state. (And yes, I knew the town in which Arrow lived… because Joey spent a lot of time there. At least that’s the lie I told myself.)
- I was being tasked as an errand boy to get a signature on one of two contracts. Contracts any other driver would chew off their own arm to obtain.
- Clearly, Arrow was not “any other driver.” (That totally intrigued me)
And…
- There were butterflies in my stomach.
Not to mention the obvious. “I have to say,” I observed coolly, not letting on that the inside of my brain was suddenly humming with thought, “the fact that Ron Gamble would chase after anyone to get an answer is surprising.”
“Some people are worth a little more effort.” He stared at me meaningfully, and I couldn’t help but wonder if it was me or Arrow he was talking about.
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