18

McQueen

Leah and I hit the road. Leah swears she saw Adelaide. I never told Adelaide, Caleb, or Zachary about the place. It was there twenty-one years ago. It's been a while. Has time flew by like this?

Cruz and I were looking for Smokey. He taught Doc Hudson many tricks. Unfortunately, Smokey and Junior Moon passed away the day Adelaide came into this world. Adelaide will never leran about Thomasville or anything relevant to the place. It's just a place of devastation.

Cruz showed a letter to me when I got home with Adelaide. However, Louise and River wrote some bad news. Cruz started crying. We visited Thomasville a few months later, but we left. It's nothing but an empty track.

Leah and I traveled a million miles from Charleston hospital. How far was Charleston away from Thomasville? Probably about five hours and about three hundred miles. Well, maybe less than that.

We speed up the miles and yellow lines as we go. However, Leah taps on me with her tire. What does Leah want? Adelaide has always done that whenever she wants something or needs something from me.

"Hey, McQueen?" Leah asks.

"Yeah?" I say.

"I'm sorry for hurting your son. I didn't want to do it. My friend gave me the opportunity, so I could win."

"Leah, Caleb's doing alright now. You don't have to feel sorry for yourself."

"I mean…I always had to obey Sara and Henry."

Obey Sara and Henry? It doesn't seem right. Shouldn't friends understand each other? Shouldn't friends not manipulate others into such…nonsense. Well, Sara and Henry act…awful towards everyone. The way they behaved in the Charleston Five Hundred…

"Why?" I say.

"They're the only friends I had," Leah says.

"How long?"

"I've been friends with them since we graduated from racing school. Everyone was so focused on seeking their own dreams to race. I was the same way, but I met Sara Stephans and Henry Moore. They seemed nice and polite. They offered me to be friends with them. I needed to take the opportunity."

Leah definitely has the guts for things but…in the wrong place and ways. Is there another opportunity to jump to? The ones Leah took seem…wrong, awful at the least. I guess Leah and I might've had one thing in common, our foolishness.

"So you were friends with them?" I say.

"Yeah. However, they took their hate on the McQueens to a brutal level. They were also manipulating me to do things I'm uncomfortable with. They took those beliefs to another level. I didn't have a choice. That school taught racers that your peasant values aren't worth teaching," Leah says.

"Wait, why did you want to race?" I say, "Did I inspire you?"

"Technically, yes, but…it's your daughter's speech." Leah says, "She talked about the Hudson Hornet, you, and Cruz. Other than that, the biggest thing she said was that 'anyone can race if they work hard,' and she opened racing schools for free. I took the opportunity to go to one."

I can't believe Adelaide would inspire such racers. Well, Adelaide was pretty young when she said it to everyone. How long has it been? The last decade? Is that how long it was? However, it's been seven years since she presented it. Adelaide shouldn't have made those schools free!

"Then, the schools taught the worst of us?" I say.

"Actually, they skipped the whole history between you three. They believed that your 'peasant' values are useless, improper, uncivilized…that they dismiss your history as a whole," Leas says.

"Yeah, before we cut to the commercial break, Adelaide did not consider making those kinds of racing schools unaffordable for everyone. Sometimes, she can be a bit…"

"Overbearing?"

"Yeah."

Adelaide stands there in Leah's sad eyes. Adelaide has to be here somewhere! For the next few miles neither of us say a word as we continue in silence up the long stretch of roads and yellow lines. Adelaide's trailer zooms in and catches my eye. It has to be her.

Wasn't Adelaide at Thomasville? Did she finish visiting? It probably scared her. I was a bit scared when I came to Radiator Springs late at night without lights. Thomasville must've looked like that. It's been a long time, and its emptiness might scare everyone.

"Tanya, pull over!" Adelaide's voice bellows.

Tanya pulls over and stops. The trailer door opens, and Adelaide emerges out of the trailer. Adelaide mutters a few words. Oh no, she's lost it.

Isolation does not seem good enough. Doc Hudson had it against me and the racing world for half a century, all from his crash. Then, there was mine. I've been isolating myself for four months. Now, Adelaide can't take it.

I helped Doc move on from his crash, and my humility helped him even more. Good thing he coached me for a few years until he passed away. Sally and Mater helped me deal with my isolation. At least, I had a chance. Maybe Adelaide could have the same chance as Doc.

"Dad?! What are you doing here?! What is Leah doing here?!" Adelaide says.

"I was here to look for you, and Leah knew where you were!" I say.

"Yeah,…ok."

"Everyone's worried about you," Leah says.

She shouldn't have run away like this. How is this a good idea to leave without letting us know?! Caleb's been worried about you! He really misses you! Good thing Leah found out about Adelaide's whereabouts.

"Anyways, why were you here to look for me? I thought you'd be mad at me for Caleb's crash! You gave me the responsibility to be there for Caleb and Zachary! I listened! You said crashes are bad! Anyways, I'm just an awful sister and daughter. You're going to hate me. I would end up dead to you!" Adelaide says.

"Adelaide Cruz McQueen, do you think I hate you?" I say.

"Yes."

"I don't. I never did. Don't you remember anything I did for you?"

Adelaide stays silent. I'm not lecturing her again. Does she even know me? Does she even know who I am? Adelaide has weird tendencies, but they're fine. Leah approaches Adelaide.

Don't crowd Adelaide, Leah. Don't even. Adelaide has already had a bad day. I distance myself a yard away from Adelaide. Adelaide does not deserve this. She doesn't deserve it at all.

"Adelaide, are you alright?" Leah asks Adelaide.

"Please stay back," I say.

Adelaide becomes silent and anxious, Adelaide flinches, and Adelaide turns her back at us. What has Adelaide become? It's my fault. I swear it is. If I wasn't so harsh on her, then she wouldn't have been this way. If I wasn't grieving, it would've been different. We would've been happy. However, we're not.

The stars shine again. I'm starting to feel like grieving again, but I can't. I have to stay strong for Adelaide. My grief took over me for eighteen years, but I found a way to overcome it. Well, I've denied everything and pretended to be happy. Adelaide, Caleb, and Zachary don't deserve living in sadness.

"What things did we do?" Adelaide asks, looking at the ground.

"Well, I used to let you play around town, and you were racing with Cruz at Willy's Butte when you were small. I thought I lost you, but you like to be sneaky. I took you tractor tipping, and I took you to the racetrack. Well, that's been happening since you were six," I say.

"Anything else?"

"When you were a few months old, I brought you. I showed you to Cruz after she trained. She really liked you. She even wanted to train you."

"She did? Well, at least I gave her a favor, but everyone's hurt because of me. Even Caleb and Zach might not...want me. No one would."

Are you sure no one wants you? Everyone at home wouldn't wish that. They wouldn't. They loved her all around. Was it me? No, it can't be! I haven't wished a single thing about it. Yeah, Zachary might feel this way, but he's got to learn how cut Adelaide some slack. I've dealt with her a few times. He didn't need to make things worse.

"Actually, Caleb's worried about you. He misses you," I say.

"Really? I thought I killed him!" Adelaide says.

"Don't worry, he survived, and they were able to put him back together."

"Thanks for the relief, but can I tell you something?

"What?"

What does she want to tell me? Did she find something in Thomasville? Has she explored that old place and track? She seemedt…upset. It might not seem happy at all. It's probably seeing…

"Tanya and I found an old dirt track, but I was thinking about everyone. I saw them too, and they were talking to me," Adelaide says.

"Who?"

"Mom, Mater, Cruz, you, Zach, and Caleb. Mom and Mater reassured me that I was going to be fine, and Cruz asked if I was scared. But, you and Zachary weren't like that."

"Weren't what?"

"You and Zachary were mad at me."

What would I be mad at Adelaide for? If it's something about trying too hard for the legacy, yeah, it just…concerns me. However, Adelaide herself…concerns me more. I can't be mad at her, but I'm scared for her.

"Why were we mad at you?" I say.

"You were mad at me for ruining Doc's legacy. You were mad that I was an irresponsibility to the family. I hurt Caleb. I hurt everyone. You were going to disown me. Zachary didn't help either, his words-he called me a traitor," Adelaide says.

"And Caleb?"

"He was crying, and he parked next to me. I calmed him down. He always keeps me sane. Well, so does Mom…a little bit…and Mater. We're weird."

Adelaide's words leave me in shock. Does she even know me or not?! Why would I disown her?! I wouldn't, and I havent! They were silly, little mistakes. Sure, they were wrong. However, I'm not like that! Zachary might be like that, but there's no way I would. I'm a lot more grounded.

Zachary hasn't always been like that. This has happened for the last six years. Well, this happened a little longer when Adelaide had been more determined to be a racer in the Hudson Legacy. Zachary doesn't like how Adelaide was arrogant. However, he should give Adelaide slack. She's not bad, and she's not good. She's more in the middle.

"Hey, Adelaide?" Leah says, "I'm so sorry for disrespecting you and hurting your brother. I didn't want to. Sara made me!"

"She did?" Adelaide asks her.

"So she could win!"

"She didn't finish first."

"Well, she didn't want to hurt Caleb and get in trouble, so she made me do it!"

"That's awful! Dad, I think I need to go see my brother."

I head to Adelaide's trailer, and Leah drives outside and leaves us alone. We really should talk, Adelaide. You probably lost herself after running away. Poor Kiddo. Maybe, I wasn't enough for her. I was never good enough to begin with.

Good thing I could make up for anything now. This will work. Things will get better from here. I would do whatever it takes for her even though I have little hope. There should be plenty of hope.