Chapter forty-four Round 4 Race #2
"I don't care about Shannon or any other rider. I run my own race."
Angel stepped up beside him and tugged at his arm.
"Thank you," she said to the reporter with a curt nod.
She didn't have to try hard to drag him away from the staged area with the big Monster Energy back drop and mics and cameras.
Although every racer wanted to be on the podium at the end of the night, few of them enjoyed the rest of the media blitz.
"Come on," Angel said. "I've got a new Go-pro to mount on your helmet before the Main Event."
She thought having the camera mounted on him would discourage Shannon and Cole from beating up on him on the track. Davey didn't give a fuck. He had a better strategy for dealing with those clowns.
Tyler left the bike in Mickey's capable hands and headed off to the RV, still angry over Shannon's bullshit on the track and not thinking too clearly.
Half way across the stadium, he realized he'd taken off by himself, not waiting for Pilot, his assigned bodyguard.
The thought of being out in the open and exposed had him a little jittery.
He hated feeling scared. He had started hitting the gym years ago because he was small and easily picked on, especially when people knew he was gay.
He had refused to give in to the fear and did things to boost his confidence.
After moving in with Davey, he was in even better shape.
Tim had given him a lot of pointers on his workouts to get better results and it showed, not only in how he looked but how he felt.
Letting these threats get to him made him feel weak. He couldn't deal with that.
Tyler held his head up and kept walking. He might be small, but he could bench press well above his body weight. No reason to fear anybody in the stadium.
Then he saw Cole walking toward him with two other racers. Tyler didn't recognize them, suspected they ran in the 250 class. When they got closer, they spread out. All three looked at Tyler like they wanted to pound his head in and refused to let him by.
"Fuck off, Cole," Tyler snarled.
"I don't move out of the way for faggots, cocksucker." The other two riders laughed, as if Cole was the king of comedy.
Tyler put his hands on his hips and shifted his weight to his left foot, taking on a better stance for a fight. If Cole's little crew tried something, he'd be ready for it. "You don't need any trouble, man."
"Like you'd care about my trouble. Fuck you, Whitmore."
"Yeah, go suck a cock, faggot," one of the others chimed in. He was tall and lean, like most riders, with unruly brown hair and an ego bigger than his bike.
"Seriously, Cole. Leave me alone. Go worry about your own shit. If you did that, maybe you could win a race."
"You punk!" Cole balled his fists like he was ready to punch Tyler.
"I'm not fucking backing down, Cole." Tyler's voice was low and hard.
Apparently, the other two racers heard the danger there, or decided they didn't want that kind of trouble, or maybe they were just cowards.
Tyler didn't fucking care which. They grabbed Cole and dragged him off with little reassurances that Cole could whip the faggot's ass.
Tyler doubted it. In fact, he was certain he'd take Cole down relatively quickly if Cole pushed him too far.
The run in with Cole and his lackeys had slowed him down, though, and Pilot caught up to him. "Man, that's why you don't walk away without me."
"Fuck! If I can't handle that pussy, I should stay home."
"Maybe, Tyler, but next time he might not have his friends around or maybe he'll have a tire iron ready to smash your head in." Pilot was echoing some of the threats they'd received.
Tyler took a deep breath. "You're right. I know. I'm just tired of this bullshit."
"I know. Come on."
They walked to the RV in silence.
Davey once again lined his bike up at the gates. Tyler's run in with Cole had him pissed off. Worse, Tyler had suggested that he not race. Like that was going to happen—hell no. Davey would never back down and let those cowards win. Nope. He had other plans for the Main Event.
Ignoring Cole and Shannon and their obnoxious comments, Davey pulled his goggles over his eyes and adjusted everything one last time. He was ready to show everyone what Davey McAllister was made of.
The gates dropped and Davey took off hard and heavy, taking the holeshot easily, making it look like child's play. He stayed ahead of the pack, leaving all the other riders in his dust for the entire twenty laps.
After the race, the press and fans bombarded Davey as he drove down the access road.
People shouted his name, cameras flashed.
He handed the bike off to Mickey, searching the crowd for Tyler.
Broady walked right there beside him when he made his way to the podium.
Davey answered the questions like a pro.
Most of them were respectful, asking about the race and his bike.
Then, they started asking about Tyler. Davey opened his mouth but no sound came out.
He didn't know what to say. He still felt like he had to protect Tyler from this.
Angel saved him again. "We'll have a press conference before the race next week. We'll announce it. You'll be able to ask about Tyler Whitmore at that time." She shoved Davey's shoulder, nodding toward the back.
"Press conference?"
"Press conference. You're overdue and Apex wants Tyler with you," Angel huffed.
"I don't like that. I know what we agreed to, but I don't want to put his face out there with all the threats and shit." Protecting Tyler would always be his first priority. He didn't want any more incidents with Tyler and Cole or any other homophobic rider.
"You have to, Davey. This is not up for negotiation. Unless you want Apex to walk."
"No," he groaned. "I just want to protect him."
"That's why Pilot is on his ass."
Davey growled, "He better not be."
Angel swatted his shoulder. "Stop it. You know what I mean."
They made it to the pit area where Tyler and Mickey busily cleaned up the bike and packed up the trailer.
"Hey, listen up!" Angel barked out. "We have a major press conference before the next race. Tyler, you're expected to be there. The other news is that we solidified Tim for training. He'll meet us at the ranch over the break. Then, he'll stay on with us for the rest of the season."
"What about Brad?" Davey asked. He loved the idea of working with Tim, but he missed Brad. He'd become part of the family.
Angel looked at him with sad eyes. "Sorry. No can do. He can't get out of his contract with Princeton. They have him working with the guy that took your place."
Davey pulled at the goggles looped around his neck. "That sucks."
"Sorry."
"What about Stewart's contract?"
"They're working on it."
Davey couldn't focus on what they didn't have. "Okay. I've got to go change. There's more PR events set up; I have to go. Hey, I'm asking Tate to come to The Ranch over the break. It helps to have someone to push against."
"Okay, Davey," Angel said. "I'll meet you at the press box."
"Fine." Davey leaned over and kissed Tyler's forehead, amazed that his fiancé took everything in stride. "Don't go anywhere without Pilot. I mean it."
Tyler tilted his face up, offering his lips to Davey. "Later, baby," he said with another quick kiss.