Chapter 11

It was time for another race, this one from Alex's hometown of Chicago across Illinois to Aurora. Alex was in third place now, behind Pandora and Peter. Alex knew they were about halfway to Auroa. He was nothing if not familiar with his own state! He watched as Peter activated his turbo mode. He clipped the front of Pandora's car, causing her to crash headlong into a bridge abutment.

Alex pulled over, running to her. "Sweetheart are you okay?" He said softly. He gently picked her up, setting her down and removing her helmet. She was half-conscious. As she opened her eyes, her car's engine caught fire.

"Alex…" she said weakly. "I… I love…"

He stroked her cheek, shaking her gently. "Come on, sweetie, stay awake for me!"

Soon, Penelope happened on the scene. "Pandora?!" She cried, screeching to a halt and frantically running over. "Oh my God! PANDORA!"

By this time, she'd fallen unconscious. Alex placed his fingers under her jaw and his cheek over her mouth.

"How is she, Alex? How is she!" When she saw Alex compressing her chest, Penny gasped. "SHE'S NOT BREATHING?!" She practically screamed.

"Come on Pandora," Alex said encouragingly as he placed his lips against hers, breathing for her twice. "Come on sweetheart!" He couldn't stop… he wouldn't! Every second that passed, he was a second closer to losing her forever!

Alex was still trying to revive Pandora a few minutes later when the ambulance arrived. As a distraught Penny talked to the paramedics, Pandora coughed weakly and started breathing again.

The paramedics soon rolled her into the ambulance, and a now trembling Alex got back into his car.

Bela cleared his throat. "They're taking her to Chicago," he said. "Don't worry, I'm sure she'll survive the trip, and recover just fine."

"Pandora… really messed up."

"Brother, that's not helping!"

Alex narrowed his eyes. "Ah fuck," he muttered. He saw that Penelope was in hysterics, talking on her phone to whoever she could.

When he got home, he called his mother, which he never thought he'd get a chance to do.

"Alex? Hey… you alright? Did you win?"

"Nobody won," said Alex thickly. "Pandora crashed into an underpass… she almost died."

Kelly gasped. "Oh my God!" She cried. "She… she'll be fine, right?"

"We don't know…" said Alex, "and no one can see her for three days."

"Honey… she's gotta make it. She will."

Alex and Kelly talked for a while longer, and shortly after they hung up, his phone rang.

"Alex? It's… it's Penny."

"She…" Alex took a deep breath. "She's fine, right?"

Penny started crying. "I wish I could say she was! Alex, she… they had to go in and operate, and…"

"And what?" He said as calmly as he could.

"She lived but… but…"

"Yes?"

"She's… she's gone into a coma…"

On the other end, after she'd hung up, Penny threw herself onto her bed and broke down.