Sidewinder - Chapter Three

Zephyr waited an hour to make sure Six was sleeping deeply and easily before he got up and started to wander around the apartment, studying the bits and pieces of Six’s life. The cat followed him as he went into the kitchen and grabbed himself a beer from the fridge, meowing and running back and forth to its food dish. He found a box of cat food in the cupboard and dumped a liberal amount into the cat’s dish, then put the box back and browsed the cereal boxes beside it.

“You’d think someone worth millions would have more than cereal and crackers in his cupboards,” Zephyr muttered to himself. “What the hell does he do with all that money?” He glanced at the cat, who just lashed its tail and went back to eating. “Well, you’re no help.”

He left the cat to eat and checked out the living room, poking at the armchair in front of the TV with his toe before he sat down in it. His phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out to read his sister’s text message demanding to know where he’d disappeared to. Instead of answering it he turned the phone off and shoved it back into his pocket, stretching and wriggling his shoulders into the back of the armchair. The cat jumped into his lap and he stroked it for a minute before letting his eyes slide shut so he could slip into a light doze.

He woke again just before the morning lights would come on and groggily pushed himself out of the armchair to go check on Six. Six still slept, curled up on his side with his knees drawn up into his chest and his arms wrapped around himself. Zephyr still held two fingers to his throat to check his pulse, only leaving the room again when he was satisfied that Six was in no danger. He went to the bathroom to empty his bladder and decided to check the medicine cabinet after he’d washed his hands, thinking of the bottle of pills in Six’s kitchen. His eyebrows went up as he saw the row of bottles taking up the entire top shelf, and he was just reaching up to take one down and read its label when a hand appeared over his shoulder and slammed the medicine cabinet shut almost on his fingers.

“Morning, Six,” he managed around the shock that had catapulted his heart into his throat, watching Six in the mirror. Six glared at him, mouth set in an angry line, though the effect was somewhat spoiled by his sleep-mussed dark hair.

“Out.” He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “Now.”

“I was just—” Zephyr started, before Six pushed him bodily out of the bathroom and slammed the door. “Okay then,” he called through the door. “Want me to make you some breakfast?”

He waited for an answer then shrugged when he heard the shower start and went back into the kitchen to see what he could find to cook. By the time Six came back out, freshly washed and wearing clean jeans, Zephyr had managed to whip up a plate of scrambled eggs and pre-cooked bacon, accompanied by a mug of black coffee.

“Eat,” he said, pointing at the plate. “Where’s all your food? What, are you living on cereal?”

“Why are you still here? Take a hint and go home.” Six sat down at the table and curled his lip at the plate of eggs and bacon, though he downed half the mug of coffee despite its heat. “You’re like the one-night stand from hell, and we didn’t even fuck.”

“You dated my sister. I’m allowed to worry about you.”

“I don’t like you,” Six said with exaggerated slowness, as though he were talking to a small, dumb child. “I don’t want you here. You’re annoying, obnoxious, and more than a little pathetic. Get out.”

“All right, all right.” Zephyr held up both hands. “I’m out. At least try to take care of yourself, or pretty soon you’re going to be useless on the track.” He saw Six’s expression change from annoyance to real anger mixed with something that looked a lot like fear. “Hey, you okay?”

“Get your fucking ass out of my apartment.” Six didn’t raise his voice or even put down the mug of coffee, but Zephyr still felt the hairs rise on the back of his neck.

He got hurriedly to his feet and headed for the door, glancing self-consciously back over his shoulder to see if Six was following him. He saw nothing but the cat, which followed him to the door. He bent down briefly to scratch its head, then let himself out, quietly shutting the door behind him and jogging down the steps to the street. The lights around him began to steadily brighten as he walked towards home, hands stuffed in the pockets of his board shorts, and after a few minutes he began to whistle to himself.

The house was quiet when he got home, curtains and shades still drawn against the lights. He let himself in by the back door, going straight down the stairs to his basement room so he could strip down and crawl into bed. He fell asleep almost immediately and didn’t wake until Katia banged on his door and yelled for him to help her tidy up the living room before their parents came over.

“So what happened to you last night?” she asked when he finally managed to drag himself out to help her.

“I told you I was going to make sure Six got home okay.”

“It took you all night?” She handed him the broom, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, he had to yell at me, then I made sure he wasn’t going to die in his sleep and cooked him breakfast, then he yelled at me some more and I came home.” Zephyr swept half-heartedly at the wooden floor. “I think there’s something wrong.”

“With you? Yes.” Katia stuck her tongue out at him, laughing and ducking away when he reached over to swat her.

“No, with Six. He had all these pill bottles in his cabinet and I thought he was going to kill me when I told him he’d end up useless on the track if he didn’t start eating something other than cereal.”

“He’s always taken racing seriously. Think he’s taking steroids or something? He is pissed off all the time.”

Zephyr shrugged. “No idea. I’d ask but I kind of like my head where it is. Speaking of, you coming out to the track with me tonight?”

“Sure. I’ll see if Jian wants to come.”

“One day you should just super-glue yourselves to each other. It would probably amount to the same thing.” He grinned and handed her back the broom. “Good enough. I’m going for a shower.”

“Put on something other than shorts,” she called after him.

He gave her a wave and went into the bathroom to turn the shower on, cranking it up hot enough to send billows of steam floating through the air. His skin turned red almost as soon as he stepped in, continuing to tingle with the heat as he washed. He basked in it until it was time to get out and went into his bedroom to change into jeans per Katia’s request.

They spent a slightly strained couple of hours with their parents over a long lunch, keeping the conversation mostly to Katia’s mother’s burgeoning gardening business— and the troubles of growing plants underground—and Zephyr’s father’s construction company. The topic of racing wasn’t brought up other than a brief congratulations to Zephyr for passing the qualifiers. After they finally left, Zephyr sprawled across the couch and heaved out a big sigh.

“I love them but they’re tiring.” He waved a hand at Katia, who had begun clearing dishes from the table. “I bet they’re glad Six dumped you.”

“You’ve got Six on the brain, Zeph.”

“I do not.”

“Do too. Come help me clear the table.”

“No,” he said, but got up anyway and began taking plates into the kitchen.

They left for the track in the late afternoon, catching the shuttle bus directly to the entrance. A crowd had already gathered, waiting impatiently to be let in for the night’s race. Bookies did a brisk business in bets on who would place second and third; Six was racing tonight and that just meant everyone knew who would win first place already.

They went in through a side door open to all racers, regardless of whether they were racing that day or not, and made their way up to the VIP seats. Zephyr left Katia to save their seats and ran back down to the concession stand to buy drinks and snacks. He paused a moment by the racers’ holding area, nodding to the people he knew, but he didn’t see Six anywhere. Telling himself that wasn’t why he’d stopped, Zephyr made his way back up to the VIP area and presented Katia with her drink before flopping into the chair beside her.

The doors opened soon after they were settled and the crowds flooded in, filling the rest of the arena with a colourful moving carpet. Shouts and wolf whistles rang through the air as the racers began to warm up and Zephyr saw Evita pause to blow the crowd a kiss. He shook his head and glanced up as Jian joined them, sliding into the empty seat beside Katia with a breathless, “Sorry I’m late.”

“Did you see Six on your way in?” Zephyr asked.

“I thank the gods every time I don’t see Six.” Jian gave Katia a pointed look. “I see what you mean.” She tapped her temple, making Katia snort a laugh.

“Ha ha, you two are funny.” Zephyr slumped down in his seat. “I just like watching him race.”

“Yeah, I bet. All that sweat and muscle.” Jian ducked the handful of peanuts he tossed at her. “I guess if we could just find a way to permanently duct-tape his mouth, I’d agree with you.”

“Kinky.” Zephyr sat up again as the announcer called the racers into position. He spotted Six at the end, tightening one of his elbow pads, his gaze fixed on the track. Six dropped into position along with all the other racers until the gun went off, and then immediately shot to the front of the pack in a few powerful strokes.

“Six wins again, boring,” Jian muttered. “Evita needs to hurry up and kick his ass.”

Zephyr glanced across to where Evita was racing head to head against a big bruiser named Taz, who’d already gained something of a reputation as a hothead. Even as Zephyr watched, he attempted to trip Evita up, only to have her neatly avoid it and trip him instead, sending him to the track in a cloud of dust. The crowd reacted with both delight and boos, drowning out the announcer’s play-by-play.

Evita put on a burst of speed halfway through the race, flashing past the second-place racer and coming up hard on Six’s heels. Six glanced back then slowed slightly, allowing her to come up beside him. Zephyr heard Katia mutter, “Don’t let him do it to you, Evita,” but Evita didn’t seem to notice the trap set for her, her eyes focused on the upcoming finish line. For a moment they raced side by side and Evita seemed on the verge of passing Six, then Six casually shot out an arm and clotheslined her, sending her sprawling in the dirt of the track.

Six passed the finish line first and was followed a few moments later by a pair of racers Zephyr didn’t know very well. Evita came in fourth, after scrambling back to her feet and putting in a massive effort to pass the remaining racers just inches away from the finish line. Her body language said she was furious but she only brushed dirt off her shorts and lifted a hand to a group of teenagers screaming her name. Zephyr saw her twitch slightly as Six moved past her and could practically feel her wanting to trip him up, but she only crossed her arms and turned her back to him.

“Now where’s he going?” Zephyr pushed himself up to watch Six leave the track.

“Zeph, darling, you have a problem. Who cares where he’s going?” Jian punched him in the shoulder. “Good riddance.”

“Up there.” Katia pointed to one of the big-screen TVs hanging from the ceiling. Six had just joined his manager in what was obviously a pre-arranged broadcast, and stood facing a number of reporters.

“I’ve been approached by the Racing Commission about a one-of-a-kind race that will be announced shortly,” Six said into the cameras, his voice echoing through the arena. “I agreed to this race and I plan to win it.” He looked down for a moment then his eyes flicked back up, steady and calm. “It will be my last race. After I win, I will be retiring from the sport.” He nodded to the reporters and walked away, ignoring their shouted questions and his manager’s own shocked look.