Chapter 4

I went completely still.

Lucas kept going, like he hadn't noticed.

"You're getting married next year. You'll need to step back from all this eventually. Passing the bike to a new rider makes sense — and using this race to build Lina's profile is the right call. What exactly is the problem?"

"Nora. Be reasonable. Don't make this harder than it needs to be."

Something in me went very quiet.

I looked at him. Then I noded slowly.

"Got it."

I turned and pushed the backup bike toward the starting line.

Lucas visibly relaxed. He thought I'd finally given in.

But what he didn't know was that when the manager from the neighboring team — Shane — had messaged me earlier asking if I'd made up my mind, I'd already sent back a single word.

Yes.

The moment I rolled into the starting grid, the whole venue erupted.

People shot to their feet in stands.

"What is going on?! Why isn't Nora starting?!"

"Isn't that her championship bike?! Why is a rookie on it?!"

"They put the champion on a throwaway bike and gave the race machine to a newcomer — has this team lost its mind?!"

Someone screamed toward the team paddock.

"Give Nora her bike back!"

No one responded.

The starting gun fired. Every bike launched forward at once.

The roar of the engines swallowed the entire circuit.

The backup bike was rougher than the championship machine — wilder, harder to control. Engine heat climbed fast, and the temperature burned straight through the frame into my thighs.

I didn't feel it.

There was only one thought in my head.

Go. Push everything you have.

Corner after corner fell behind me.

My tires scraped the rock face on the cliff side. The frame dipped so low it was nearly kissing the ground.

The commentator's voice broke through over the speakers, pitched higher with every update.

"Nora is charging hard!"

"She's on a bike that was retired years ago!"

"Oh my God — she's already in the top five!"

"Second place! Nora has moved into second!"

Meanwhile, on the other side of the course —

Lina was falling back. Steadily, visibly.

A reporter's voice cut through the broadcast channel.

"Lina is crying!"

"She's crying while she rides!"

"She's clearly overwhelmed — the pressure has completely gotten to her!"

I didn't spare a thought for any of it. The only thing I could see was the tail of the first-place bike ahead of me.

One final climb. That was all that stood between me and the pass.

Then Lucas's voice came through my earpiece — low, tightly controlled.

"Nora. Are you done? Ease off. Now."

I gripped the handlebars.

"No."

Silence for a beat.

When he came back, his voice was ice.

"Nora."

"You are still a member of this team. If you refuse to follow instructions, I will terminate your contract. You will never work in this industry again — and you will owe us seven figures in breach penalties."

"And don't forget our engagement. Keep this up, and I will start reconsidering our future."

I fixed my eyes on first place. Closing in.

"I already said it."

"I'm done with the team."

"And I'm done with you."

"Lucas."

"You have nothing to threaten me with."

"This is my win. I'm taking it back myself."

A few seconds of silence.

When Lucas spoke again, he wasn't angry. He was quiet in a way that made my stomach drop.

"Nora. You're going to regret this."

My heart lurched.

The next second —

The bike exploded beneath me.

A violent, full-body shudder. The handlebars went haywire. The frame swung left, then right, completely out of my control.

The thought hit me like ice water.

Someone tampered with the bike.

I fought the bars with everything I had. Tried to hold the line. Tried to aim for the finish.

Even if it kills me — I cross that line first.

The bike hit maximum speed. The frame buckled. We left the track entirely.

The impact shook the whole mountainside.

I was launched. Airborne. My body hit the rock wall hard.

Blood floded my vision.

My thoughts started to come apart.

In the last second before everything went black —

Lucas's voice drifted through my earpiece. Soft. Almost tired.

"Nora. Why couldn't you just listen?"

Then the world went dark.