My Fiery Finish

Half an hour?

By now, the fire was raging hotter than ever, and from under the hood came a second muffled explosion.

I knew perfectly well this car wouldn’t last ten more minutes.

Inside the smoke-filled car, I heard my own hoarse voice saying, “Thomas… you really want me dead?”

A light, mocking laugh came through the comms.

“One life to secure Mandy’s future. Doesn’t sound like a bad trade, does it?

“Come on, pretty racer, the cameras are all on you.”

Mandy’s voice followed, tinged with excitement. “Thomas! The sponsor just gave the green light!

“They said if Jane can drive blind for one minute, I can go straight into the team’s starting lineup!”

Thomas immediately turned to me, his voice bubbling with excitement he couldn’t hide.

“Did you hear that?

“Go on! Give Mandy one last hand!”

My heart sank completely.

So that was it. From the start, I had been nothing but a stepping stone for them.

The smoke burned relentlessly in my lungs as I forced the car around with all my strength.

Instantly catching the sound of my labored breathing, Thomas’ voice dripped with scorn and amusement.

“What’s the matter? Trying to scare me with the same ‘we die together’ act?

“Jane, you’re all talk about morals and virtue, but deep down, you care more for your life than anyone.

“If you really had the guts, you’d have crashed already.”

Hearing those few words, it was as if all my strength had been drained.

His understanding of me had, in that moment, become my death sentence.

“The car’s been off-track for so long. Don’t you fear the organizers will trace this?!”

I coughed up blood, each word squeezed from between my teeth.

The response was his careless laughter.

“Trace it? I’ve already reported everything.

“You’re the one who went rogue, trying to push past the limit into an undeveloped segment!

“Right now, all the cameras are just capturing your showboating.

“By the time they realize something’s wrong, you’ll be nothing but ash.”

My vision blurred in the smoke.

The last bit of my survival instinct forced out one final plea.

“Thomas, didn’t you say our daughter is waiting for me to come back?

“If she can’t see me…”

Mandy cut me off, triumphant. “Jane, your daughter was killed the moment she was born. Thanks for raising my daughter all these years.

“But my baby won’t be needing you anymore.”

My mind went blank. All I could hear was Mandy’s voice, filled with cruel satisfaction.

“Don’t worry. Once you’re gone, your sickly old mom will follow you soon enough.

“As for us, we’ll make sure to enjoy that insurance money of yours properly.”

Darkness surged like a tidal wave. At the edge of being swallowed, Thomas’s voice came again, and this time, he didn’t even bother hiding his contempt.

“Jane, at a time like this, shouldn’t you be thanking me? After all, when you’re reduced to ashes, you’ll have to beg me to graciously collect what’s left of you.”

My fingers slipped off the blistering steering wheel.

Just as my consciousness was about to cut out, a frantic male voice pierced through the comms.

“Thomas! Why hasn’t Jane’s signal come back yet?!”

It was the team manager!

Drawing strength from somewhere I didn’t know I had, I clutched the comms tightly and screamed with the last of my energy.

“Second stage, undeveloped sector! The car is on fire, about to explode!

“Requesting immediate emergency rescue!”