I hope you like this chapter. If the formatting seems a bit weird, I had to use my Mac for this story and the last chapter of Girl Team. I hope to get it straightened out soon.
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Chapter Seven - Determination
Speed stormed out of the house followed closely by Trixie. "You can't do this, Speed!" she exclaimed.
"Wanna bet?" he said as he opened the door of his midnight blue sports car. "Velosity is not racing today."
"Speed, please listen..." Trixie said as she lightly touched his arm. "This isn't your decision, it's Velosity's. If you do this, she'll never forgive you."
"She'll get over it once she realizes I'm right."
"Can you be sure of that?" Trixie ask him. "How would you feel if your father went and withdrew you from a race back when you were her age?"
He shook his head. "I never even got far enough to get his permission to enter because he forbid me to race. He said I was too young and inexperienced to be a professional racer. I was so pissed off at him for that. I sure as hell thought as I was old enough to race."
"Uh huh," Trixie said, "and what did you do?"
"Um..." Speed lowered his voice as if embarrassed, "I went behind his back and entered under an assumed name."
"Yes, and what a doozy of a name it was," Trixie said, "Happy Doodle."
Speed smirked. "Hey, it was off the top of my head. I had to think of something. It wasn't that bad."
"Really? Then why did you want me to keep it a secret from the kids? I couldn't put any stories in my scrapbook that mentioned the forbidden name. You even had to pay Spritle off to keep his mouth shut!" Trixie giggled.
"Don't remind me." Speed groaned. "I'm still payin' him back. Only now, instead of candy and baseball cards, he wants imported beer, plus the names and addresses of all my former girlfriends."
"What former girlfriends?" Trixie asked, crossing her arms. "I thought I was your one and only true love."
"Aw, you know I was only kidding, Trixie. Although... I did meet quiet a few hotties back in the day..."
"Hmpf!" Trixie pretended indignation. "We'll discuss this later. Right now we need to deal with Velosity."
"Speaking of which," Speed said as he sat down in the car and put the keys in the ignition, "I have to get down to the track before Los does."
"Speed..." Trixie said, trying one more time to get him to change his mind. "At least discuss it with her first, it's only right."
"No. She'll never listen to reason," he said. "She'd thinking with her heart instead of her head." he replied.
"Isn't that the same thing you're doing?" Trixie asked.
He shook his head. "If I was thinking with my heart, I'd let her be in the race." He took a deep breath for emphasis. "Don't you even care that our daughter's life is at stake here?"
"Of course I do!" she said, feeling her ire rise. "But I also know that Velosity is old enough to make her own decisions now."
Speed shook his head. "Even if those decisions could hurt her? So much for a mother's love."
"That was a low blow. I don't appreciate your questioning the love I have for my daughter."
"If you truly loved her, you'd be coming to the track with me."
"Damn you, Speed!" her voice now rose as her anger towards him grew.
"The truth hurts, doesn't it?" he sneered.
Velosity walked out the front door, a scowl on her face. "What's going on here?" she demanded. "Where's Dad going?"
"Your father has decided that he doesn't want you to be in the race, so he's going down to the track to withdraw you," Trixie said, glaring at her husband.
"What?" Velosity exclaimed. "I don't understand..." She turned to her father. "Why are you doing this, Dad?"
"Los, I..." Speed was at a loss for words. "Oh this isn't easy...Honey, the last thing I want to do is take you out of the race. But, I've got no choice."
"You don't have any choice? I think you mean that you've got no say in the matter. I'm the one racing today, not you. You're retired, remember?"she cried. "You're not a racer anymore, you're nothing but another burned-out yuppie living your life through your children. You're pathetic!"Her words stung. Los knew that more than anything that he wanted to race. That if it wasn't for his family, he'd gladly risk his life to be on the track again. He had given it all up for them, for his love for them.
"Yes, I know I'm retired, that my best days are behind me." he responded, his voice sounding very sad and far away. "Every damn day of my miserable, rotten life I know that."
Los closed her eyes, wishing she could take back what she'd said. "Dad...I'm sorry, I didn't mean it." She blinked back tears. Why were things so difficult between them lately? "I was upset because you want me to drop out of the race."
He looked away, not wanting her to see his own tears. "It's okay...I'm not angry...You were only telling the truth." He straightened, forcing himself to get back on the subject. "You don't understand about the race...about who is going to compete today."
"Dad, I know all about who I'm racing against." Her eyes narrowed. "Don't you think I'm good enough to compete with them?"
"Of course, I do! You know better than to even ask such a silly question. It's just that this morning late entrants into the race were announced."
Los noticed the look on his face, the fear, the anger and something more. "Who are they, Dad?" she asked.
"The Car Acrobatic Team," he said.
"Oh. " she said brightly, her sapphire eyes sparking with excitement, "that should make the race even more interesting,"
"Deadly is more like it," he said, his voice serious. "Do you remember what I told you about them? How they've had a vendetta against me for twenty years? When they find out who you are, they'll try to kill you and they'll stop at nothing to do so."
Los rolled her eyes. "Dad, stop being so melodramatic, nothing's going to happen to me."
"You're damn right about that because you won't be in the race. They're not going to get the opportunity to carry out whatever plans they have for you.
Velosity stood her ground. "No, Dad. I practiced hard for today's race, there's no way I'm dropping out now." She took hold of his hand. "Daddy, I know how much you love me, that you'd never want any harm to come to me. But, I'm not a little girl anymore. You can't protect me from the world. I have to race today. I can't run and hide, I know you sure wouldn't. Heck, you stood up to them, you weren't scared."
"The hell I wasn't. I was petrified!"
"Maybe you were, but you didn't back down. And I'm not gonna either. Dad, I've got to race today, if I don't then that means that the Car Acrobatic Team has already won. I can't let that happen."
He gazed at her, at the expression of sheer determination on her face. He smiled in spite of himself, she was so much like him. "No...I guess you can't."
Velosity took a deep breath and stood tall, "There's one other thing that the Car Acrobatic Team had better realize: I learned to drive from the best, my father. I'm Speed Racer's daughter and nobody messes with me!"
"They'd better not!" He hugged her. "I love you, Los. Now get out there and kick some Acrobat ass!"
"I'll make you proud of me, Dad," she said.
"I already am," he replied, not wanting to let go of her. "I wish I could stop you from going, keep you here, protect you from harm," he thought as all too quickly, she pulled away.
"See you at the track, Dad!" she called as she bounded away from him...and safety.
Trixie watched out the window as Speed walked dejectedly towards the house, not looking behind him as Los drove off.
He opened the door and grimly entered. "I hope I'm doing the right thing by letting her race," he sighed as he tossed his keys on the coffee table.
"You had to let her go." Trixie stood behind him massaging his shoulders. "She has to race today and you know it. She's got racing in her blood," she said softly, "just like her father.
Speed managed a small smile. "I guess you're right, as usual."
"Hey, Mom," Dash interrupted them. "Can we have breakfast, please? Go and me are starving."
"Go and I," Speed corrected him.
"See, Dad's hungry, too!" Dash giggled.
"Very funny," Speed said.
"Alright boys," Trixie motioned them towards the kitchen, "go sit down, I'll be right in." She turned to Speed. "Are you sure you're going to be alright?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'll be right in to join you, okay?"
"Sure." She gave him a quick kiss before leaving the room.
Speed took his keys from the coffee table and went over to a little hutch that sat in the corner of the living room. He picked a small silver key from the group in his hand and stuck in a keyhole in the top drawer of the hutch.
He took a quick look around before opening the drawer. A handgun lay inside. He picked it up. "Trixie'll kill me when she finds out I have this on me. But our daughter's life is in danger..." He opened another drawer and removed a box of bullets. He filled the chamber of the gun. "Nobody messes with my family," he said coldly as he stuck the gun in the pocket of his jacket.
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That's it for this chapter.
Be sure to check back because next time, Velosity will finally meet Torturina Terror!
Thanks for reading this and please, please review!
Be sure to read all the other wonderful Speed Racer stories, and of course, review them if you get the chance.
