Sidewinder - Chapter Ten

“You’re getting slow in your old age, Six. I’m not even breaking a sweat to keep up with you. I’m practically cold.” Evita made a show of shivering without breaking stride. “I’m about to leave you in my dust.”

“Stop talking,” Six said, still looking straight ahead. His movements were strong but nowhere near the speed Evita knew he possessed, though they had both easily outstripped the rest of the pack.

“Need to save your breath? Understandable. I mean, after your last performance...” She pursed her lips and made a tsk sound.

“Shut the fuck up, Evita.”

“Did I hit a nerve? You never could take any comments on your performance. That’s probably why we broke up.” She grinned at his quick side glare. “That and it drove you nuts that I’m taller than you in heels. You need to be the big man, which is why I can’t understand this infatuation with Katia’s baby brother.”

“What infatuation?” he snapped, and Evita had to bite back a snort of laughter.

“Come on, Six. You’re like a little boy pulling Zeph’s pigtails. If you were broadcasting it any harder, you’d be lit up like a neon sign.”

“Did all that slutting around finally fuck up your brain? You’re seeing things that aren’t there.”

“Aww, so defensive,” she said in a sing-song voice. “That’s how I know I’ve scored a direct hit.”

“You wish,” he snorted.

“Good comeback. You really are off your game, aren’t you?” She took a moment to study him. “Actually, you do look kind of sick.”

“Your presence has that effect on me.”

“That’s a little better. So back to Zeph. Why? I mean, really, why? I guess he’s kinda cute, in the same way as some giant puppy covered in mud, thumping around and knocking things off the coffee table. I saw you smile just now, Six.”

“Why don’t you go use your mouth for something you’re actually good at, instead of running it at me?”

“Because bugging the shit out of you is fun. Though if you’d prefer, I can go back to find Zeph and—” She saw him move too late, her reaction time too slow in the face of his unnatural speed as he darted into her path and clotheslined her in the same move he’d used on her in the races. Her feet went out from under her and she landed with a hard thump, skinning her arm against the asphalt despite her pads.

“Fucker!” she yelled at his back as he took off, wincing as she picked herself up and examined the scrape on her arm, just below her elbow pad. She gave his dust the finger and moved to the side of the road to find the disinfectant in her pack, hissing through her teeth as she spread it over her arm. She slapped a band-aid on top of it and started skating again, muttering curses and promises of what she would do to Six when she caught up to him again.

It started to rain before she did, and she lost the trail completely when the fog descended. Disoriented by its thickness, she wasn’t even sure she was going the right way, and eventually she slowed to a stop and looked around, aware of how loud her breathing sounded.

“This sucks,” she muttered, just to hear the sound of her own voice. After a moment’s hesitation she turned back the way she thought she had come, the need to stop being alone in this creepy fog stronger than her desire to win the race. She could always strike off on her own again later, when the fog had cleared and she no longer felt as if unfriendly eyes were watching her from just past the fog’s barrier.

A shadowy figure loomed up out of the fog so fast that she nearly fell in her hurry to stop. She put her fists up automatically, balancing on her skates, then grinned sheepishly when the fog cleared slightly and she saw Jian giving her a raised eyebrow.

“Hey. Sorry.” She dropped her fists. “I thought you were Six.”

“That’s usually my reaction too.” Jian glanced around, wiping droplets off her cheek. “I don’t suppose you saw Katia?”

“No. Haven’t seen anyone except you since this damn fog came down.”

“I just looked away for two seconds, and when I looked back she’d disappeared.” She smiled a little and offered Evita a hand. “Buddies instead of competition, at least until we get out of this fog?”

“Please.” Evita took her hand and gave it a quick squeeze. “Though I’m not even entirely sure which way is up anymore.”

Jian pointed. “That way. I think.”

“Works for me.” Evita started off again, matching her pace to Jian’s.

They skated in comfortable silence for a while, until the fog finally began to clear to show the last rays of the sun. Evita exchanged a glance with Jian and without speaking they both turned to look for any sign of the other racers. The road both before and behind them was empty of everything but the last shredding wisps of fog, and it was so quiet that Evita winced when she shifted her weight and her skate scraped on the ground.

“This is creepy as fuck,” Jian said after a moment. “I say we find somewhere to spend the night. I don’t really feel like stumbling around in the dark.”

“Good idea.” Evita shaded her eyes against a lance of red-gold sunlight as the sun began to slip below the horizon. “I’m going to guess there aren’t many five-star hotels around here though.”

“Sorry, princess.” Jian gave her an amused look. “We’re just gonna have to rough it.”

Evita sighed. “Yeah.” She wriggled her pack to a more comfortable position and followed Jian down the road again.

It didn’t take them long to find a small house that looked in good repair, though they spent so long checking it out to make sure it was empty that it was full dark by the time they went through the door. Evita left Jian to fiddle with the lock and went into what must have once been the living room. She poked at the grungy armchair in the corner for a few minutes before deciding it was usable enough for her to sit and take off her skates. She flexed her toes in her socks and stretched with her arms behind her head, arching her body to try and loosen the muscles in her back. When she relaxed again she saw Jian was watching her with an odd expression, though it quickly became half a smile.

“Want to see if we can start a fire?” Jian nodded to the dusty fireplace at one end of the room. “If we don’t manage to suffocate ourselves or blow the place up.”

“I am a bit cold.” Evita got up and went to poke through the ashy remains inside the fireplace. “I thought things would be more wrecked up here, after twenty-three years. It almost looked like people were here recently.”

“You’ve heard the stories, right?” Jian put her foot through a flimsy latticework end table, making Evita jump at the sudden crunch. “About people who didn’t go below.” She brought the remains of the table over and piled them in the fireplace.

“Some of them. I heard they just left people in jails. So if there is anyone up here, they’re probably a crazy murderer.”

“Instead of just a crazy racer. I need kindling.” Jian went to go hunt through the house’s cupboards and drawers, and returned triumphantly with an armful of slightly damp magazines. Evita watched her with amusement as she produced a lighter and coaxed the flame onto the magazines. For a few moments it looked like the fire would go out, then the flames caught and began to lick along the pieces of the end table.

They ate dinner in front of the fire, sitting crosslegged with their packs behind them to lean on. It was cozy enough that Evita felt herself finally relaxing, though a nagging voice in the back of her mind still nagged at her about how dangerous it was up here. She glanced at Jian and was about to say something to break the silence when Jian spoke first.

“So if you win, what’s going to be your big prize?” she asked without looking away from the fire.

“Mmm... You’ll probably laugh.”

“Please don’t tell me you’ve decided to join the circus as a clown.”

“What?” Evita said, laughing. “No. I kind of want to open a school for girls. Where they can learn sports and stuff, and not just be judged on how they look.”

“You’re a good racer as well as gorgeous, you know,” Jian said dryly.

“I know.” Evita flashed her a grin. “But there still aren’t a lot of women racers. There’s what, a dozen of us up here? Only four women though.”

“The Racing Commission is run by a woman.”

“She’s a creep though.” Evita shook her head. “Whatever, I’m not here to preach or anything. I just think it’d be nice to open up my own school. So when I win, that’s what I’ll ask for.”

“When you win? Cocky much?” Jian shoved at her shoulder. “I’m not chopped liver here.”

Evita stuck her tongue out. “Prove it then.”

“Tomorrow. Right now I just want to sleep.” Jian stretched out on the floor, punching her pack into a pillow. “Night, Evita.”

“Night,” Evita said, though she sat up for a while to watch the fire die down. When it was little more than gently glowing coals, she finally curled up next to Jian, hesitantly leaning against her for warmth. To her surprise Jian snuggled up in her sleep, looping an arm around her. For a long moment Evita kept herself stiff and rigid, then gradually she relaxed and slipped into sleep.