As if the heavens hear my thoughts, the clouds open up. Massive water drops smash against the windshield. I engage the wipers without slowing down. Screw and I planned for the eventuality of a storm, opting for slick tires with the maximum amount of grooves to disperse the water faster. This first stage has become a grip game as much as a dance with nature’s wrath. Several of the drivers flanking us are already slowing down. The patter of rain is so heavy it sounds more like a waterfall than the usual ball bearing bounce.
Like the skies are recharging, the lightning strikes cease. I shift to third, not waiting for the next—
An earth-shattering boom interrupts my thoughts.
“RC, pull right,” Zamara yells.
Trusting her words without hesitation, I yank on the wheel. We skid right. The GT almost pitches sideways when we pass a group of cars clumped together. One of them must have spun out and caused a pileup.
“It doesn’t look like the cars are damaged.” Zamara cranes her neck over her shoulder as I correct the direction of the GT. “They just need to sort themselves out.”
I’m about to tell her that I need her to pay attention to her job when a massive lightning bolt punches into the ground directly in front of us. Cursing under my breath, I execute another spin. Unfortunately, I was in the process of passing between two cars. To keep from crashing into the both of them, I tap the bumper of the one to my left, causing it to join me in the spin. Zamara grabs at the straps running along her torso and screams. The high-pitched sound grates at my ears as I disengage the handbrake and punch the gas.
Sadly for the car I hit, its driver isn’t experienced enough to maintain control under wet conditions. He veers off course straight into another strike that burns through his tires. It’s safe to say he’s out of the race.
“Can I just say….” Zamara pants at my side. “This isn’t as fun as I thought it would be.”
That actually pulls a laugh out of me. “And where is the plucky navigator who waited until the last second to hop into my car? I thought you had more backbone than that.” I shake my head at her glare. “It’s only going to get harder from here on out.” I engage the highest wiper settings. “Holy racing gods, it’s really coming down.”
“Shouldn’t you be easing on the throttle?”
“Why?”
“Uh, maybe because we’re practically swimming through all this?” She gestures ahead of her with the binoculars, useless now since visibility is shit.
I turn on the lights but don’t bother with the hazard blinkers. No need to warn anyone of my current position. Drivers can easily use it to their advantage and hit me from behind. One little tap can mean losing control.
“But this is part of the race,” I say, leaning back into my seat and relaxing. I trust in the settings of my car. Tense muscles will only slow down my reactions. “Just imagine us cruising down a mountain path.”
As if to mock me, five bolts of lightning hit the ground. I zig left, then right, then left again. With each jerk of the wheel, Zamara yelps like a disturbed puppy experiencing its first rainstorm. I tsk and go for a calmer tone.
“As long as we don’t get hit—”
The racing gods really must have it in for me today because the second those words leave my mouth, a bright flash of light blinds me. I immediately let go of the steering wheel as a billion volts of electricity pass through the body of my car to the ground.
“RC!”
“Don’t touch anything!” I command, my eyes closed. The flash remains behind my eyelids. Zamara whimpers. I feel the GT slipping to the left, but I can’t grab the wheel just yet. I’m really missing my earpiece. Mac’s help would have been much appreciated. He and Screw must be panicking their asses off. I’ve got to get us out of here as fast as I can.
Allowing my driver’s instincts to take over, I close my hand around the gearshift and settle the other on the wheel. No shock comes from the contact. Since I can still control the car, it means none of the tires melted. Good. Those grounding rods I had Screw install worked. Shoving the reminder to thank him to the back of my mind, I open my eyes. And just in time too. I veer away from a stopped Gran Torino.
“Zamara, no matter what, just keep your eyes closed,” I say, keeping my own forward.
“No need to tell me twice.”
Imagining her face scrunched up, eyes shut, brings a slight smile to my lips. This is going to be a cakewalk. At least that’s what I tell myself. Gripping the ball of my shift stick, I power down until I’m in first.
“Why are we slowing—”
The sudden burst of speed that comes from quickly shifting through the gears shuts Zamara up. I block out the tiny cries emanating from her side of the car. I tighten my hold on the wheel, fighting to keep it steady as we speed past drivers distracted by the heavy rain. My gut twists as taillights glow ahead of us. I break, then slide to the side, passing the car like we’re playing hopscotch. My instincts are never wrong, but it can be exhausting to be this hyperaware. My gaze flicks from side to side like the wipers. Not only am I looking ahead, I’m looking at the side mirrors and the rearview.
Lightning bolts make landfall on both sides of us. A trickle of sweat
