HEART RACING
Maryah
Even after taking all night and most of the next day to process what happened, I was still in disbelief. River asked me to be his girlfriend. Most girls would be walking on clouds and showing off the necklace to anyone who’d look at it, but I couldn’t even try it on.
My mother’s jewelry box sat on my dresser in front of me. Opening the lid and placing the necklace inside should’ve been easy, but as I reached for the wooden box, my skin prickled. I was scared to open it. Like it contained a dangerous secret, and if I unleashed it, my whole world would change. Don’t be stupid, Maryah. It’s just a jewelry box .
My fear disappeared after I forced myself to lift the lid. Some necklaces, bracelets, a few pairs of earrings, and several rings, were neatly arranged on the red velour lining. I took out each item, imagining my mother wearing them.
Tears ran down my cheeks. “Mom, I miss you so much.”
I placed River’s necklace in the box. He told me to take all the time I needed, and I needed more time.
Anthony and Louise were on a weekend getaway, and Faith and Shiloh were spending their Valentine’s Day doing couple stuff, but Carson and Dakota appeared in my doorway.
“We’re about to go four-wheeling,” Carson said. “Want to come?”
Normally, I would’ve declined out of fear I’d embarrass or hurt myself, but I needed a distraction from the River drama. “Sure, but I’ve never ridden a dirt bike before.”
Dakota tossed me a racing jersey. “There’s nothing to it. You’ll have a blast.”
“Meet us in the garage,” Carson said.
I debated leaving my ring on, but didn’t want to get it dirty, so I placed it in my jewelry box then headed outside.
Carson loaned me riding pants that were way too big, but I made do. I hopped on the back of his four-wheeler and the three of us rode out to a huge opening of paths and red-dirt hills.
Carson popped a few wheelies and peeled around in circles several times, stirring up tornado clouds of dust, but I loved it. After a Riding 101 lesson from Carson, Dakota offered to let me ride his bike on my own.
“You sure?” I asked.
He bent down to tie the laces of his boots. “Yeah, jump a couple hills or whatever.”
“Just be careful,” Carson added. “That bike is powerful.”
“Not compared to yours,” Dakota grunted.
“It’s not my fault you’re mechanically challenged.”
“When are you going to make mine faster? I told you I’d pay for the parts.”
Carson ignored him and knocked on my helmet. “I’d offer to race you, but it wouldn’t be much of a competition.”
“No, let’s do it.” I clapped my gloves together, sending up a puff of dirt. “I might be faster than you think.”
Carson and Dakota both laughed.
“Okay,” Carson climbed on his bike and pointed west. “See that rock formation that looks like a camel? We race to there and back. I’ll even give you a head start.”
The cliffs up ahead did look like a camel—with three humps. I nodded, climbed on Dakota’s bike and kick-started the engine to life. I was pretty sure I’d lose the race, but I didn’t care.
We lined up our bikes side by side. Dakota stood to the right of us with his arm above his head. With his fingers, he counted from five then dropped his arm. I hit the thumb throttle and took off.
The bike roared and I smiled at the initial lurch forward. I concentrated on Carson’s instructions, making sure I pulled the clutch and kicked the shift peg through each gear. The exhilaration of the increasing speed made my heart race. Even through my gloves, my hands had the pins and needles feeling from the strong vibration of the handlebars. I glanced back but Carson hadn’t moved yet.
By the time I reached fourth gear, I felt like I was flying. I made a wide left turn right before Camel rock. When I straightened out again, I stood up and kicked it into fifth. Driving in the opposite direction, Carson zoomed by me, waving like he was on a leisure bicycle ride, but he had given me such a huge head start. I could beat him. I just had to keep up my speed.
Dakota stood seconds away, swinging his arms over his head. The closer he got, the more confident I was that I could win.
I blew past him, and he jumped up and down. My laughter echoed inside my helmet. I did it. I beat Carson.
I downshifted, but nothing happened.
I tried again. Nothing.
I pulled my handbrake then remembered Dakota saying only the footbrake worked on his bike. I tried stomping on the brake, but my foot overshot the pedal. Something caught the bottom of my pants and yanked me to the right. I was stuck. I kept trying to free my foot, but I couldn’t. My hands were death-gripped on the handlebars as the force still tugged at my pants leg.
I kept kicking at the shift pedal, trying to get it into neutral, or to slow down, or anything.
I was gasping for breath. My helmet had become a sauna.
The bike felt like it increased speed. My heart beat a hundred times faster. I tried looking back at Dakota or Carson to signal them for help, but so much dirt had covered my helmet shield that I could barely see out of it. I was scared I’d get pulled off if I let go to wave my arms.
When I looked forward again, I had to blink and force my eyes to focus. Up ahead, it looked like the earth dropped off into nothing. The edge of the cliffs were nearby, but I couldn’t be that close.
Rocks and pebbles flew up all around me. I turned hard and the bike skidded sideways.
I was that close. I was heading directly for the huge drop-off.
This was it. Death came to take me again. Not Nathan, not an angel—death.
As much I had begged for it, I couldn’t stop pleading, “Don’t let me die. Don’t let me die,” which sounded like a whisper inside the seclusion of my helmet.
For a fraction of a second, the wheels stopped rolling against the ground and spun against nothing but air. I braced myself for the long fall. The bike fell out from under me. My feet momentarily dangled in mid-air as my stomach flew into my throat.
I was flying. Falling.
Then, what felt like a steel claw, clenched onto my forearm.
My arm jerked upward so hard it should’ve come out of its socket. My hip and shoulder slammed into a wall of solid rock and I cried out in pain. Someone yanked me up again, and my feet hit flat ground right before they collapsed under me.
I opened my eyes to see a cloud of red dirt.
My helmet was tugged off my head, and through the hair hanging in my eyes I saw Carson. He took off his helmet. “Good gods, Sparky. How many lives do you think you have?”
I glanced behind me just in time to see Dakota’s bike explode against the rocks a hundred feet or more below us. Carson’s bike was beside us. I threw my arms around his neck, clinging to him for dear life.
“The bike,” I gasped. “It got stuck in gear.”
I wanted to explain the rest, but I couldn’t. I started bawling.
“Aw, man,” Carson groaned. But he didn’t push me away. He awkwardly hugged me back then lifted me like I was a weightless doll and carried me to his bike. I was trembling, and couldn’t stop crying no matter how hard I tried.
He climbed onto his seat, keeping me held against him with one hand and steering with the other. “You’re okay,” he shouted over the roar of his engine. “Trust me, I’d never let anything happen to you.”
I nodded against his chest, wanting so badly to be off his bike and back in the safety of the Luna house. The engine was too loud for me to hear what he mumbled after that, but I thought he said something about Nathan.
∞
We got back to the house after sunset, covered from head to toe in red mud.
Dakota helped pull my riding gear off while Carson made a couple icepacks. I shoved one inside the waistband of my shorts and gasped at the freezing cold against my hip. I gingerly placed the other pack against my shoulder. “Thanks again, Carson.”
“Stop. You already thanked me a million times. It’s not your fault Dakota’s bike was a P.O.S.”
As many times as I had thanked Carson for saving my life, Dakota had apologized to me a dozen more for his faulty bike. I felt horrible that I sent it flying off a cliff and exploding, but he didn’t seem to care it was destroyed.
“I still don’t understand how you caught up to me and snagged me off the bike in time.”
Carson shrugged. “Lucky for you, I think and move fast.”
“Car, seriously,” Dakota said. “That was the most impressive thing I’ve ever seen.”
I eyed Carson’s biceps as he downed a Vitamin Water. He didn’t look strong enough to pull off a feat like that, but I’d once heard adrenaline made a mother lift a car off of her trapped baby. People become superheroes in life-or-death situations.
“And by the way, I let you win.” Carson slid a Vitamin Water and two Ibuprofens across the counter to me.
I graciously accepted.
The front door squeaking open caused all of us to shut up. Carson and Dakota turned to look at me as he came around the corner—the one person who could single-handedly make my day even worse.
“Hello,” Nut Job hailed.
I sat frozen next to Carson, my drink bottle still lingering at my mouth.
“Hi, Maryah,” Nathan said softly.
If looks could kill I would’ve been locked up for murder. I set down my drink, dropped my icepack, got up, and limped off to my bedroom.
Why did Nathan have to show up right after I stared death in the face yet again? And why was he here on a Sunday night? Didn’t he have to be at school in the morning? I shook off my angst and grabbed a change of clothes so I could shower, but I gasped when I opened my door.
Nathan stood on the other side. “Carson said you were hurt.”
“I'm fine.”
He raised a brow then rubbed the back of his neck. “I’d like to apologize for what happened in Albuquerque, if you’d extend me that honor.”
Why did he speak with such good manners? It made me feel like I had to respond with good manners of my own—not that he deserved any.
“There isn’t much to say,” I grumbled.
“I assure you, I have much to say.”
I took a deep breath. My father always said people deserve a chance to say they’re sorry. I didn’t give my father that chance before he died. Listening to Nathan didn’t mean I had to forgive him, but slamming the door in his face might cause another maniacal mood swing. Plus, as much as I hated admitting it, he looked so unbelievably gorgeous that I didn’t mind looking at him a little longer.
“Fine.” I stepped aside and let him in.
