Page 14 of Chasing Sarah

Excitement.

The flag is waved, and I quickly shift before slamming my foot on the throttle.

* * *

I won. Barely.

I didn’t bother to acknowledge Tommy or Ronny. The anger has dissipated, leaving the twinge of disappointment in my chest.

How could they have been so stupid?

Yeah, I won. But what if I didn’t? What did they expect us to do then? The money I made just barely covers the cost of the house.

“You did it, kid!” Xander’s proud voice flows over me, only to deepen the feeling of guilt I have.

I need to tell him what they did.

We need to be prepared to scrounge up more money.

The corner of my mouth lifts in a small smile as he pulls me into a tight hug.

Pulling away, I slip off my gloves and helmet.

My mind races with different ideas of how I can help them more than just winning this race.

There has to be a way I can make some money on the side since they won’t let me work an actual job.

I absentmindedly scan the crowd and pause when I see Damien – A guy from school – in the darkened corner.

It’s no secret that Damien is your man if you’re looking for some drugs. He’s four years older than me and has been in and out of jail for possession and distribution.

I don’t know how he keeps getting released, but right now, I’m kinda happy about it.

No one would suspect me as a dealer, and it would be easy money.

Our small town has little to do other than drugs, sex, and other illegal activities to keep us occupied.

Pocketing the little idea forming in my head, I turn to celebrate my win with my family.

Paige shrieks when I shove her door open, causing it to slam against the wall.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to push it that hard.” I cringe.

“What are you doing coming in here like that, anyway?” she pants, holding a hand against her chest.

“I heard some of the other workers at the bar mention a fight happening tonight. Let’s go.”

“Hard pass,” she says, returning her gaze to her e-reader.

She sits cross-legged in her hammock chair in the corner of her room, as she does more often than not when she’s at home.

I stride toward her and pull the e-reader from her hands. Shelooks up at me, slack jawed. “You did not just do that.”

I quickly lock the screen before tossing it on her bed.

“You’re really going to let me go alone?” I ask, raising my brow.

She rolls her eyes and then stands with a huff. “The fact that I can’t leave you unsupervised in public is concerning.”

---