Chapter 12 Music is the Answer.
"I don't like this one bit." Bill said leaning against his Corvette.
"Me neither." Amanda seconded letting out a sigh.
"They're bullshitting us." Bill said. "Except for that first dumbass driver the other two passed in the same general area. All that tells me is that at any second, at any point, they could have passed and taken the race anytime they wanted to."
"Yeah." Amanda responded. "How are we going to prepare for this, we don't know what they're really capable of?"
"We'll have to prepare the same way we always do." Bill answered his younger sister. "We'll have to be on top of our game."
"Right, well look at this." Amanda said as Takumi pulled his 86 up to the starting line next to Chris's black Honda Prelude.
"Jeez, an old Japanese hatchback, like that thing really stands a chance against almost anything made in the last ten years."
"Yeah, I know." Amanda responded, it looked like they were going to get to see that white RX-7 race as well.
At the starting line Takumi sat tensely in his trusty old 86. Next to him, thrumming away was the black Honda Prelude, the 2.2 liter VTEC motor not really hinting at the super high revs the motor could reach, but then neither did the radical 4AG residing under the naked carbon fiber hood that could rev into the stratosphere. Ryosuke had given him the same instructions that he'd given to the other members of project D, but he knew that was not in the cards for him, not tonight.
His eyes narrowed, this was the first race that he had been in since losing to Mike in Medway and now the very person who had bested him was watching from the sidelines. Takumi could almost feel the fire burning in the pit of his stomach, the fire to win, to show Mike that he was one of the best. He knew he was going to obliterate his opponent and put the whole crowd on notice that he was for real. The young driver wrung his hand on the steering wheel determinedly.
"So what are your plans for tomorrow?" Mike asked Ryosuke as both watched the starting line.
"It won't be a heavy day, maybe going over the cars, checking vitals like fluids, tires, and suspension. Probably start later in the morning after the late night of racing."
"Ah, how about we go to breakfast tomorrow morning, start your day off with a good meal."
Ryosuke thought about for a little while. "I think that would be alright."
"Good." Mike answered and to punctuate the sentence there was the scream of engines and Takumi's 86 launched hard into the night.
Outwardly Ryosuke didn't change, but inside his heart sank a little bit. Takumi hadn't listened to him. He seemed determined to ignore Ryosuke. The Panda Trueno and the black Honda stayed close for a few seconds and the trusty old hatch back came on cam and the gap between the two cars began to grow.
Takumi didn't smile as his lead began to grow on the black Honda, he just focused straight ahead listening to the engine scream out its high rev opera. The needle on the tachometer climbed towards 11,000 revs, and Takumi slammed home the shift to third gear. A quick dab on the brakes brought his speed down enough to take the turns going up to Taber's Takumi hit fourth gear as he screamed past the small hot dog and ice cream stand.
"Holy Shit!" Someone yelled. "Did you see how fast he was going?"
Chris watched from the driver's seat of his car, knowing that Takumi was on a whole different level, the taillights on the 86 kept getting dimmer and dimmer. Damn, that kid is fast. Chris thought.
Takumi pushed his 86 for all it was worth entering turns as fast as he could, getting on the gas at the soonest possible moment, pushing the little motor to its redline and a little beyond. He flew through the sweepers punched down the straight. Chris's headlights, mere twinkles in his rear view mirror. The young ace charged into the last turn, the 86 sticking to the banking like glue, the needle on the tachometer climbed higher, crept up close to the redline. . .
Something happened, the engine note changed, power dropped off. Takumi put the clutch in, knowing something had gone wrong. He felt something cold crawl into his stomach which suddenly felt as if it weighed 200 pounds. He went numb, he knew the steering wheel was clasped tightly in his hands, and the pedals were under his feet but he couldn't feel them. Takumi coasted across the finish line with the clutch in.
The black and white Toyota rolled to a stop at the end of the street. Takumi listened to the engine, and his heart almost stopped, it wasn't dead, but it wasn't right either, and he knew it. He slotted the shifter into first gear and nursed the car around the corner and parked it in front of Stevie's house.
•••
"Takumi won." The voice on the other end of the radio said, and Ryosuke immediately knew something was wrong. "I don't know what's up, but the motor doesn't sound right."
Ryosuke let out a barely audible sigh. Something had to change. In a few minutes Chris was back and the two teams exchanged handshakes.
"Good luck next weekend." Chris offered as he shook Ryosuke's hand.
"Alright. We'll see you guys next weekend." Bill's voice boomed over the crowd. "You'll know where to find us." He turned back to his Corvette and drove off, his brothers and sister following.
•••
"What's the status Matsumoto?" Ryosuke asked his chief mechanic.
Matsumoto stood up from under the hood of the 86, rubbing his hand with a rag. "One of the valve springs on the intake side of number two has broken."
"Hmm," Ryosuke said. "How bad is it?"
"It could have been worse." Matsumoto said. "The pieces were big enough so they didn't get sucked down the intake port. The valve spring and valve need to be replaced. The good thing is that there was not damage to the cylinder wall or piston."
"How long will it take you to fix it?" Ryosuke asked.
Matsumoto pulled a face. "I don't know, given that this spring failed we need at least that one, but I think we should do all of them, just in case it's a defect with the springs. I don't think it is, but this is a competition."
Ryosuke nodded, "Alright, do it." Ryosuke said. A few minutes later Mike walked through the door from the house and down the steps.
"You ready for this?" Mike asked.
"Yes." Ryosuke responded, thinking about heather it was the right decision to still go to breakfast, but he had said he would go the night before. Ryosuke plopped down into the black leather passenger seat as the 3.0 liter V6 settled down to an idle.
"Alright, you ready for this?"
"I didn't think breakfast was something you had to get ready for." Ryosuke said matter of factley.
"This breakfast you might have to, but that's not what you need to be ready for." Mike paused as he got the Taurus SHO underway. He pulled the grubby old Red Sox had down lower and Ryosuke wished Mike wasn't hiding behind those reflective aviator sunglasses. "From what I know about you and your team things don't really add up. I could never imagine going to Florida looking for street racers to challenge, let alone another country. Yet here you are with the rest of Project D in tow. You told me you didn't race, but it sure as hell looked like you wanted to last night." Mike paused. "I'm not gonna pretend that I understand you totally, or your culture, but it looks to me like you're running from something, trying to escape something. Just give this a listen."
Mike hit the play button mounted to the steering wheel, the speakers throbbed with the distinctive opening bass riff of The Who's Real Me. Neither man talked much as they made their way towards Dixfield. Ryosuke listened to the music, at first giving it a critique, picking out the distinct feature, the guitar, the heavy use of synthesizers on Quadrophenia, how part way through there seemed to be a shift in the music, but as he listened to the lyrics the music began to speak to him. Just before the first CD ended Mike pulled the SHO into a small dirt lot next to a house that didn't look like it was a restaurant.
"Was that the end of the CD?" Ryosuke asked.
"Oh no." Mike said. "There's a whole other CD, How do you like it so far?"
"It's not what I usually listen to, but it's clear that this is a very talented group. I've never heard drums like that. He doesn't play a really conventional style." Ryosuke gave a rather clinical view of the music.
"Yeah, come on let's eat." Mike had seen a little something in Ryosuke's face, maybe it was working.
•••
"Here you go boys." The waitress said as she placed the plates of food down on the table.
"Alright Ryosuke, forgive me if I'm being to forward, but what's the deal, you used to race right? And from what I've heard you almost all your races, why quit?" Mike asked he knew that Ryosuke wouldn't give him a straight answer around the rest of Project D, he also didn't know for sure that he was going to get a straight answer away from the team.
Ryosuke didn't flinch, running through the possibilities in his mind. If Mike had been asking the team members they would have told him. That meant only one thing.
"You know someone in Japan." Ryosuke said, knowing Mike might not give him a straight answer.
"Yes I do." Mike said. "She used to be part of our team but here family moved to Japan. She contacted me a week ago after she checked the Project D website and found out that our teams had raced."
"Yes, I used to race." Ryosuke said after swallowing a mouthful of food. "I was the leader of the Akagi Red Suns before I formed Project D."
"You were good." Mike smiled, "I've heard you were known as Akagi's White Comet. You helped put an end to the local domination of a group of semi-pro racers on their home course none the less, and that you only lost to Takumi two years ago."
"Well your friends certainly told you a lot." Ryosuke responded. "It's true, I didn't lose much. I did help stop the Lancer Evolution team." He answered modestly.
"Alright then, you're clearly a very skilled driver, you're also very intelligent, why stop racing?" Mike asked, a little apprehensive about whether Ryosuke was going to continue talking.
Ryosuke didn't respond right away, he took a drink of his coffee and looked back at Mike. "I have family obligations." Ryosuke said, and he paused. "I have to take over my families medical clinics. I've been studying for years. It's because of this that I had to stop racing and focus on helping my brother and Fujiwara excel. They both have lots of talent, but they each need to learn more and train before they are ready for the next level. Neither of them have the family obligations that I do."
"Right, so you're essentially living vicariously through your brother and Takumi." Mike said with a smile trying to keep the mood light.
"Essentially." Ryosuke responded. "But what about you?"
"What do you mean?" Mike asked, popping a piece of bacon into his mouth.
"I saw you race Fujiwara. I know your time around that course. You are also a very skilled driver, and mechanic, and you don't appear to have extraneous obligations that would prevent you from becoming a professional, and yet you run a gas station and race Populatic."
Mike looked across the table. "You know I've never really thought about it. You know I race because it's fun because I enjoy doing it. The thrill of speed, the wind in your face, the animal power of the engine." He shrugged. "I just think I would lose some of that by going pro. Besides, racing in America isn't what it used to be. NASCAR is king, Trans Am isn't what it was in the '60s and early '70s, we don't have anything like touring car racing until next year when the American Le Mans series starts. I love racing for the sake of racing."
"I can respect that. You would make a very good professional driver, though, many teams would be lucky to have you."
"Thanks." Mike responded, knowing that a compliment like that from someone of Ryosuke's skill and caliber. "You done? There's still a lot of Quadrophenia to listen to." Mike cocked that slightly crooked smile.
"Alright." Ryosuke answered, leaving his half of the bill.
The sounds of The Who's 5:15 set a quick tempo for the drive home.
•••
The members of Project D sat around the kitchen table. Ryosuke mulled over what Matsumoto had just told him. Nobody in America had the valve springs for the motor in Takumi's car. Matsumoto had contacted people in Japan and found out it would take at least a week to have the parts delivered to Maine. What was for sure was that the car would not be fixed in time for Takumi to get in any real serious practice time before next weekend's race against the Bow Tie Boys. He would either have to drive someone else's car, or not race at all.
For Takumi, sitting on the sidelines was not an option however. He needed to race to keep his skills sharp. Have to drive something other than the 86 would be a good learning exercise for him. It might even help the young Ace make the transition to the next step.
"I'm still going to race next weekend right?" Takumi asked Ryosuke.
"Of course." Ryosuke answered. "It's just a matter of what car you're going to be driving." Ryosuke said, quickly running through the options, Kenta's S14, underpowered, Keisuke's FD, maybe, it had more power and a good suspension, the FC, no! Nobody else ever drove the FC. Nakazato's GT-R? To big, it would take too much adjusting, the weight, the all wheel drive. "What would you prefer to drive?"
"I'm not sure." Takumi answered slowly, in that sort of spaced out tone of voice. "I think Nakazato's GT-R is to heavy, and I'd really not want to risk Keisuke's car. Especially since we prefer different settings, we wouldn't really be able to change those between races. So I'm not sure what I would like to drive."
"You can drive my car if you want." Molly piped up from the other room. "It would pretty much solve all of your problems." She said walking into the kitchen. All of the members of Project D looked at her. "You wouldn't have to worry about changing settings or extra wear. Its gonna be lighter then the GT-R, so if you'd like you could use my car."
"It's a very generous offer." Ryosuke said, working his way to a polite refusal, the whole time thinking about all the benefits. They wouldn't have to change settings, each driver would get the right amount of practice, and they didn't risk losing another vehicle. It also provided a unique opportunity for Takumi, he would be able to experience an entirely different version of performance car, a different way of thinking. And being someone else's car, especially someone from outside the team might reign Takumi in out of respect for someone else's machine.
"It's really no big deal." Molly said trying to ignore the foreboding knot in her stomach. She loved her blue Tiger and would hat it if anything ever happened to it. "We built it to race." She said, smiling at Takumi, "Just don't hurt her."
"Thank you, I won't." Takumi said, bowing his head slightly to the dark haired women leaning against the doorjamb. He was immediately a little worried, he'd never driven a foreign car before, he'd never driven a care with more than four cylinders or a displacement of 2.5 liters. He didn't know almost any of the specs on any Sunbeam Tiger, let alone Molly's modified car. Takumi knew he would have to adjust and it would take some time for that to happen, he also knew that he couldn't push a borrowed car the same way he would push the 86, they would have to start soon.
•••
Bill sat alone in his room, mulling over the events of the previous night. Those guys from Japan could be a serious test, they might be the best challenge to the Bow Tie Boys, they could be a serious threat. That was why he was alone in his room, starring at the ceiling trying to figure out what to do. After he quit his dad's racing team Brian had been making a bid to try and oust Bill. He kept pushing, he was arrogant young and bullheaded. Bill knew Amanda was behind him, but Andy seemed to sit on the fence. Any crack that Brian perceived he would try to exploit. Project D was a real threat.
As soon as the second race was over Bill knew what was going on. Project D was hustling them. The Project D drivers were not driving as hard as they could so as not to tip their hand to Bill and his brothers and sister. The first two drivers probably didn't realize it, but when they both passed in the same general area Bill knew for sure that they were trying to hide their talent. The only question that remained now was how good were they? The kid who drove the old Toyota hatchback had driven like a man possessed. When the little Toyota's motor screamed there was no doubt that the driver was top notch, the real question was how good were the other drivers? Two of them were driving what the Japanese sold as performance cars, and the driver who had shown the most talent drove the old worn out hatch? So the other two must have been very skilled racers, more so then the driver of the old Toyota.
It was going to be a huge challenge.
•••
Mike tossed his duffle bag in the back seat, and looked up to see Ryosuke walking towards him. "Come to see me off?" Mike joked.
"In a way, yes." Ryosuke said. "I actually wanted to ask you a couple of things."
"Sure, what do you need?" Mike asked.
'High octane gas for next weekend's race. I'll pay you of course."
"Of course." Mike responded. "How much are you going to need?"
"Four hundred and twenty liters or 111 gallons."
"Ah, I'll bring 155, I have 55 gallon drums to transport."
"I'd also like to ask a favor."
"Alright, what do you need?"
"I'd like you to bring your Cobra next weekend, after the race I'd like you to take Takumi for a ride, maybe let him drive if you're comfortable with that."
"I'll be here, the car will be here, and the gas will too, we'll see where it goes from there." Mike answered.
"Alright." Ryosuke said, knowing that Mike would almost certainly take Takumi for a ride.
"Here, borrow this for awhile. I'm sure you didn't come all this way without something to play CDs with?" Mike said holding out the double album Quadrophenia. "The booklets helpful."
"It's alright." Ryosuke said, trying to refuse politely.
"Listen, it's no big deal, I have a vinyl copy at home, and I know it's a lot to take in in one listening."
"Thank you." Ryosuke said as he clutched the plastic case.
"I love the guitar at the end of 5:15. I'll see you Friday night." Mike said as Ryosuke turned and headed towards the house.
A minute latter Molly was next to Mike while the SHO idled beside them.
"You're coming back next weekend, right?" Molly asked
"Yeah, Ryosuke wants gas, and he wants me to bring the Cobra. Says he wants me take Takumi for a ride."
"I don't want you to go." Molly said, making a pouty face.
"Oh come on, you know I have to run the shop, besides, I'll be back next weekend." Mike said, stressing the last part of the sentence. He knew she was just goofing around. He gave her a quick hug and a kiss before jumping in the SHO and heading for home.
