Chapter 28 #2
“No, I didn’t ask anyone. It was even easier.
Chance had raced the day before during the qualifying round.
He had a pass. I took it from his pocket when he took his jacket off.
I used that to open the gates. Since the race had already started, the only security guard there was distracted watching the streaming on his phone, and when he saw I had a pass, he didn’t look at me twice.
The rest was easy. Calvin’s team paddock was deserted.
The team was watching the race closer to the track since Cal had decided that he wouldn’t change tires if the weather shifted.
I had changed into my own riding gear, the one that Atlas had bought for my birthday with the bike, but never got to use.
I had it with me because Atlas and I were planning to ride back from Bridgeport to Star Cove on his cruiser. ”
A clear picture of that day’s events is starting to take shape in my mind.
“You say you wanted to do a faster lap than me? Not hurt me?”
Heather nods. “Yeah, at first. But I realized pretty quickly that I wouldn’t be able to do it.
Atlas had taught me how to ride his own dirt bike and even his cruiser, but I wasn’t prepared for the power of a racing motorcycle.
It was so much faster and more responsive and harder to control.
I was furious that I wouldn’t get to look better and hotter than you; I’d look like an idiot.
I thought that if I couldn’t beat you, I could take you out of the race and that would take you down a few notches.
Maybe Atlas would rethink offering you a spot to race for him. ”
My next words sound as bitter as the taste in my mouth. “All of that was because you were jealous.”
The tears that had momentarily stopped, begin falling again when Heather confirms her motives.
“Yes. I was jealous. If you joined Star Arrows, you would always be around. You’d get to spend more time with Atlas than I did.
He was already so fascinated with you. It would have been just a matter of time before he cheated on me.
Again. So you understand, I couldn’t let that happen. I had to do something.”
Ares’s next words are spoken in a low, gravelly tone. It’s his angry tone, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard him and seen him so furious before.
“That’s why my brother died. Because you were jealous. You said you loved him, Heather. But you did this. You killed him.”
She clenches her fists at her sides, crying harder. “I know. But it was an accident; you have to believe me. I would have never hurt Atlas. And it’s all her fault.” She points her finger at me.
“My fault?”
“Yes. I was aiming for you, and if you hadn’t dodged me, I would have hit you. But you avoided the impact, and the tarmac was wet and too slippery. I tried to stop, I swear. But I slipped, and I overcorrected and ended up hitting Atlas.”
A shudder works its way down my spine.
I should hate Heather, and I do right now. But my heart also hurts for her. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been to live with this horrible secret, with this guilt for over two years.
“What happened then?” Lev asks. “All I remember is that you were there, and you fainted.”
“I drove right off the racetrack and just ditched the bike before leaving the racing area. Everyone was distracted trying to get the emergency services to Atlas. So, no one noticed me. I snuck into one of the teams’ trailers that was unlocked and ditched my leather pants and jacket that I was wearing over my little sundress.
And then I ran back toward the racetrack.
Atlas was strapped onto a gurney, and they were loading him into an ambulance.
I didn’t understand why they weren’t trying to resuscitate him. I…”
Ares yells at her. “Because he was dead. Atlas died on impact. He tried to avoid you and hit that concrete pillar instead.”
Ares
I’m going to kill Heather.
That’s the only thought that keeps coming to my mind, taking root and growing fast.
I’ve never understood what my brother saw in her. Her intensity was always a huge turnoff for me. And I saw straight through her nice girl act. I saw her catty, envious side and warned my brother about it countless times.
Guilt floods me at the thought that I should have been more convincing. If Atlas had listened to me and broken things off with Heather, he would still be alive today.
As I watch her cry inconsolably, I feel no warmth for her, no compassion.
“Quit the theatrics, Heather.” I bite out.
“Those are fucking crocodile tears. You took everything away from me, from my family. But you don’t care.
All I’ve heard you do since you got caught is make up excuses.
Blaming your unforgivable actions on others.
It’s all about you, as usual. If you had been truly sorry, you wouldn’t be here today.
On a dirt bike, trying to finish the job that already cost Atlas his life. ”
Chance agrees with me. “Ares is right, Heath. I’ve always defended you whenever he said that you were toxic. Zara has been your friend all this time. She trusted you. But you deceived her. You befriended her when you wanted to hurt her all along. Why?”
“Because she came back, and she took you away from me. Like she was going to steal Atlas.” She yells. “Don’t you see? We were in a good place at last. We were getting closer until she came back and ruined everything.”
Dad intervenes. His eyes are wet; he looks like he aged by ten years in the last ten minutes. “What do you mean? Zara hasn’t taken anything from you.”
“Oh, come on, Scott. A man of your age, someone who had the skills to play a proper sport, who built a multimillion dollar business when he retired and then started a successful political career, should be a little more perceptive. I don’t get it; it’s like you have blinders on.
These four,” she’s referring to me, Chance, Lev, and Zara.
“Have been fucking around right under your nose pretty much since you got married. And the illegal races had been going on for months, and you were none the wiser. Wake the fuck up.”
Dad’s jaw ticks. “Go on. Since I’m so slow, why don’t you enlighten me?”
“It isn’t that complicated. After I lost Atlas, I decided that Ares should take his place.
They’re identical, and if I have to be honest, I’ve always liked Ares better.
That brooding thing he has going on is so fucking hot.
I was dating Atlas only because Ares never really gave me the time of day.
I thought that I could change that with time.
That our common loss could bring us closer together.
He kissed me the night of Atlas’s funeral after all, so I knew he must have been attracted to me. ”
She’s delusional. “I kissed you because I was broken. I was a mess. I had just buried my fucking twin brother. I thought you were the one person who understood how I felt, at least partially. But it was never about attraction, Heather. I’ve never felt that way about you.
Kissing you was a mistake; it didn’t make me feel any better. Remember? I told you that night.”
Heather shrugs her shoulders, unwilling to hear what I’m saying.
“I would have won you over with time, Ares. You were Atlas’s copy. You were supposed to be mine. And then I slept with Chance, and he’s so hot. He rocked my world. I thought that if I played my cards right, maybe I could have you both.”
Chance sets the record straight, like I’ve already seen him do once before. “Heather, I told you. Sleeping with you was a mistake. It felt wrong. I cared for you; I wanted to be there as a friend, but nothing else.”
She refuses to accept that she was never going to have me or Chance. That neither of us was Atlas, and that we had no intention of walking in his shoes when it came to her.
“You would have come around. Both of you. I just needed time. But then she came back and ruined everything.”
Now Zara is crying too.
My heart breaks for her. “Princess, it’s ok. You’re safe now. It’s over.”
I take one step toward her with the intention of wrapping my arms around her, but I’m distracted by the deafening noise of a motorcycle engine. It’s coming from behind me.
I barely have time to turn around before everything unravels. It all happens in the blink of an eye.
Chance’s MTT-420—that used to belong to Atlas—comes barreling out of the curve at breakneck speed.
It’s coming straight at me.
I was so distracted, trying to comfort Zara, that I react too late. There’s no way that I can move out of the way fast enough. It’s going to hit me.
I don’t even realize that I had closed my eyes, frozen in terror, waiting for the impact.
And the impact comes, but it isn’t as hard as I expected.
I hit the ground pretty hard. Someone pushed me out of the way.
“Heather!” Several voices around me scream.
Heather pushed me out of the way, saving me from Morelli’s bike.
She got me out of harm’s way but was hit instead of me.
Her body is lying a few feet away, tossed around like a rag doll in the hands of a capricious child.
I never saw it with my own eyes, but that’s how everyone who was present describes it.
Mason Morelli swerves, jumping off the bike and running toward me with a handgun pointed at me. “You ruined all my plans, you fucking pig. You don’t get in my way and live to see another day.”
It seems like today is my last day on this earth. I wasn’t destined to be hit by Morelli’s bike, but there’s no way his gun is going to miss.
A shot is fired, but it doesn’t hurt.
Maybe dying isn’t so painful after all.
There are more screams around me when a second shot is fired and Morelli crumbles to the ground.
Sheriff Pullin’s service gun is in his hand, and he’s hit Mason twice; once in the chest and once in the center of his forehead.
“Sir, lower your gun.” Two of the cops who were here as extra security approach him cautiously with their own service weapons drawn. One of them is my former partner Olivia.
The sheriff drops the gun, his hands trembling. “He killed my little girl. That motherfucker killed my little girl.” Tears are streaming down his face. “Heather is dead. You can place me under arrest. I’m not going to resist.” He tells the other two cops.
Dad comes forward, clasping the sheriff’s shoulder. “No. There’s no need. I’ve called an ambulance, and rather than the police station, you should be taken to the hospital. You’re clearly in shock. You need to go with Heather.”
Sheriff Pullin shakes his head, confused. “I would like to, but I just killed a man.”
Dad’s determined tone is laced with sadness.
“It was self-defense. He was going to kill Ares. I’ll call Lev’s mother, Rachel Reilly, as your legal counsel.
This will be sorted out by the end of the day.
Your wife and your daughter need you now.
I’m sorry for your loss, and my family and I will be there for you and Diane, whatever you need. ”
“How can you even look at me?” Kirk Pullin’s voice breaks. “My daughter killed your son. Heather killed Atlas.”
Dad nods. “Yes, she did. But it has nothing to do with you and Diane. You’ve always been good, loyal friends to me and my family. And you just saved Ares. Without you and Heather, I would be burying another son today.”
Sheriff Pullin’s eyes well with tears. “I… there’s going to be a lot of paperwork. I don’t know how Diane and I will be able to get through it. She’s at home, and if I go with Heather now, someone should tell her what happened… that Heather is dead.”
“I’ll go see Diane with Kelly as soon as you guys leave. I’m going to take care of everything. We’ll see you at the hospital.”
I don’t even see Zara coming close, I feel her arm wrapped around my waist and her warmth seep into me.
“Princess.” I murmur.
There’s no need for any more words. We stare at each other in silence, contemplating what we almost lost today.
Chance and Lev are by our sides in a matter of seconds, followed closely by Zara’s dad.
“Give me your keys,” John asks me once we reach the racers’ area in our paddock. “I don’t think any of you should drive right now. Let me take you home.”
Home is exactly where I want to be. My heart feels full and empty at the same time.
The first thing I do, as John insists that we need to eat something even if none of us is hungry, is call my therapist.
After what just happened today, I need all the help I can get. I hope Zara, Chance, and Lev are willing to talk to someone too. Atlas’s loss has taught me that we can’t overcome certain things alone and there’s no shame in it.
After that immense loss, I had let fear stop me from opening my heart to love. I was afraid of losing it again. But my brother wouldn’t have wanted that for me. Zara showed me that I have so much love to give and that I deserve to receive it too.
I look up to her. Courage isn’t the absence of fear; it’s the ability to recognize it and deal with it in the appropriate way. Thanks to my princess, I’m fearless.