Page 91 of The Sound in Silence

The woman, now a blurred image through the front window, lowers the flag.

I’m shoved back into my seat with the speed the car takes off at. Erico moves the gearshift quickly, effortlessly, my hand in his control. The road around us blurs, becoming black. There’s nothing describable around me. As fast as rain pounds at the car, it’s sliding off the sides, speed rendering the wipers useless.

This feels fucking amazing.

I laugh.

This is why he does this. This sensation of flight, of freedom, it’s ethereal.

I don’t stop laughing.

Erico glances over, his expression wondering if I’ve lost my mind. The look doesn’t last long because he focuses again, his hand tightening around mine. “We’ll win together,la mia sirena.”

We’llwin. Inclusion. A simple but powerful thing.

I glance out my window, searching for his opponent through the heavy downpour. The front of the other car is in line with Erico’s back passenger side, which means we’re winning if our speed maintains.

He hadn’t said how long the race goes for, but I never want it to end.

We pass a cluster of buildings at the same time his opponent falls back. So far back, he’s behind us. Erico likely sees him in his rearview mirror, but I watch through the side mirror. It hadn’t felt like our speed increased, but maybe it did. We’re winning.

The headlights get closer, the other car speeding up. But he’s behind us. Not trying to go around us.

Erico, look in your mirror.It’s in my head, my words on the tip of my tongue. He looks too close, like he’s about to hit us—

“Mom…” I reach over, turning the music down. “Mom, I think someone’s about to hit us.”

Closer…The vehicle is white. A van. I can’t make out the driver due to the angles. Still not slowing…

“Mom!” —

He’s still not moving over. I focus through the headlights, catching the guy’s grin at the precise second everything in my head clears.

When my trust for Erico emerges, and the fear for his life consumes me. Forourlives. For something to ruin, to end, all the goodness we’ve been experiencing, and I can’t allow that.

An engine revving.

Crash!

Metal scraping against metal.

Tires squealing.

Erico’s car jerks, like it’s been bumped.

Metal scraping against metal.

Mom screaming—No!

New memories replace the other ones. New fears.

Everythingin my head shatters with the next flash of headlights.

When the car—

“ERICO!”

He immediately swerves to the left, narrowly avoiding the hit from his opponent at the precise second the other car slams forward and disappears down the road. Was it all a ploy to win and I just caused Erico the race?

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