a

ently behind me like it had already disowned me-remained closed, its heavy black bars glinting in the morning light. I stared at them for a long moment, not because I wanted to go back inside, but because

y made was thinking

e encrypted phone I kept for racing, business, and everything I didn't want my mother involved in. M

m's voice came thro

to start. "Sam, I need

pause. "Whe

t me, my robe, and whatev

like I'd been hit by a freight train. That's why she was still my assistant, my fixer, my

es," she said,

ded me again of everything that had happened, or not happened, because honestly, I still couldn't remember half of it. I tried to take deep breaths, but they felt

ver's side in all black, her cropped hair slicked back, sunglasses hiding her eyes, and a cool, neutral expression on her face. She had

n, pulling the robe tighter around me as the smell of leather a

he street, she finally g

voice flat. "Pregnancy doesn

plied calmly. "You

ft hand briefly before dro

a beat. "But I booked you a suite at the Vanté Hotel. Top floor, private entr

forehead to the cool window.

t. You paid for six

head slowl

lder. "I figured we'd

. "You really do

I can

my whole life flipped upside down. The farther we got from the house, the easier it was to breathe. My hands stopped s

opened, I felt my lungs expand. Hardwood floors, floor-to-ceiling windows with a view of the city, a kitchen bigger than the one at the mansion, and a

ught in by morning," Sam said, tapping her pho

"Yeah. All of t

ked. "Ex

acing,

er arms. "You

l rac

hear yourse

vive. This is how I work through shit. I can't just sit around waiting f

account; you can survive more than 5 years and still pa

hing while the rest of the world moves on without me. I'm not fragile. I'm not helpless

ss from me. "Okay. You're the boss. You want races; I'll get them. I can line

ree months to make sure everything is stable-housing, new identity files, account protection, media suppression, and b

d. And the

I start to show, I'll wear baggy gear. The helmet s

you get sick

won

if yo

the track, and

ally not going to tell

s flickering like stars I couldn't reac

od. "All right. The first race is in two days. Nevada circu

the window, arms crossed o

n't care how this looks, Kati

lence that followed felt... differen

carrying someone's baby. But for the first