Yellow Flag by Robert Lipsyte

Author:Robert Lipsyte
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2009-10-15T16:00:00+00:00

TWENTY

Billy was collapsed in one of the two reclining chairs in the back of the Family Brands jet, his thick arms hanging limply off the sides, his number 12 cap covering his face. The cap inflated and collapsed with his heavy breathing.

Kris was in the other chair, pale and quiet, staring at a DVD of the race on a TV screen.

They looked like they were in the wreck, thought Kyle. He was sitting in the main cabin with Dad, who was talking to Mom on the phone. Besides the pilots, there were just the four of them and the flight attendant on the plane. Sir Walter and the suits had stayed in Monroe for a meeting. The plane would go back for them later. Jackman would drive the hauler home.

Dad put the phone down. He sighed and rolled his eyes. Must have gotten an earful. Mom could let things go for a while, especially where the Hildebrand family was involved, but once she put her foot down, she could be as tough as any of them. Without her, he never would have been able to quit racing.

She had known what “bring your shoes and helmet” meant and let it go because Dad promised it was a special situation. A one-time deal. Well, now the one-time was over. No more deals.

Kyle imagined her end of the phone conversation. No more racing for Kyle. Get another driver if Kris isn’t ready. Get Boyd.

Back to the quintet, thought Kyle. Focus on the trumpet. And Nicole.

He was free. He wondered why he didn’t feel lighter.

Dad picked up the phone again. He was calling Billy’s wife to tell her what time they’d be home. A doctor at the track had given Billy intravenous fluids and a sedative. He had pushed himself too far too fast. He’d be fine, just needed some rest.

Kyle had seen Jimmie only for an instant after the race, back in the garage area. She was helping the crew roll the car back into the hauler. The best he could do was raise his fist and mouth, “Thanks.”

She smiled back, and the way that seemed to light up her face, even light up her red hair, made Kyle’s stomach turn over. Then she was gone, and Dad was pulling him into the van.

He wanted to hear her voice.

When the flight attendant came by with a loaded tray, Kyle picked out a sandwich and asked for a beer, trying to sound casual, not even choosing a brand. Would she ask his age? She was right back with three different brands and a big smile. “Watching you come through that wreck, I tell you my heart was in my mouth.”

“You saw it?”

“We were in the Family Brands suite.” She was pretty, not that much older than Kyle. He had the feeling that if he asked her what she was doing tonight, she might say she was free. She doesn’t think she’s talking to a high-school boy, he thought, she’s talking to a driver. “Were you scared?”

“Too busy then,” he said.

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