Author's Note: Yes folks, finally an update. My apologies but once again life, in the form of a week long unexpected hospital stay interrupted the completion of this particular chapter, then I needed a week to recover from being in bed for five straight days which was like dying. But the promised reunion between our hero and his one and only is here and the next chapter will be a fluff lover's delight. And the invocation before the race was included as a salute to NASCAR, who begins every race that way so if you're offended…oh well. Thanks for your patience and support all readers and reviewers.

UP IN SMOKE

The field of cars lined up in their race positions, the starting grid determined by standings and race team and ownership provisionals as they waited for the call to battle. An area pastor, who stepped up to the mike, then announced the invocation.

"Let us pray. Oh Heavenly Father we come to you in praise for this glorious day for this competition. And I ask that you watch over each racer and each team as they drive toward the finish line and victory. Give each of them your blessings, oh Lord and keep them safe, we ask this in Jesus' Name, Amen."

A murmur of "Amen" came from the crowd in the bleachers in the parking lot and gathered on both sides of the street. Then the crowd began cheering as the singer of the National Anthem, a boy from the high school with a pure Irish tenor sang the patriotic song. After a flyby with some jets from the naval base in North Chicago, the most famous words in auto racing were boomed over the P.A. system. . .

"GENTLEMEN, START YOUR ENGINES!"

The roars of high-octane power erupted like a chorus of performance and speed restrained as the drivers revved their motors. In the Mach 5, Speed had finally got himself to the point of mental focus on the race before him as Sparky went over the course with him.

"Okay Speed, we've got to do the parade part of the course till we get out of Shelby and head toward Muskegon, it's there we can start racing seriously. Till then, we need to maintain our position as pole sitter."

"Yeah, I know." He glanced in the rear view mirror and was strangely comforted by the Shooting Star, just behind the Mach 5 and Racer X's masked visage behind the wheel.

Sparky studied Speed intently and asked, "You sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine."

Sparky sighed as he acquiesced, "If you say so. I'm gonna take you at your word. It's game time, pal, you need to focus."

"Uh-huh," his buddy agreed as he frowned in concentration, fighting the urge to glance at the Silver Streak, right by them. He was filled with a steely determination as he said to himself I'm gonna do all I can to win and the hell with Lightening and-- but he could not bring himself to curse Trixie even in light of her apparent betrayal of him and the Go Team. No matter how hurt Speed was he just loved her too much. The fact that she was with Lightening instead of with him was his fault anyway.

The line of cars rumbled down State Street as the citizenry hailed them with hearty cheers then the field began to travel down Shelby Road and US 31 where the real course began. Speed followed the pace car, a super charged '67 Mustang as it led the racers through the town. As they made the turn onto US 31, the Mustang picked up the pace, the road having been closed for the race as were all the other roads that mapped out the Rally.

Speed kept the Mach 5 at a neutral speed of about eighty then as the turn onto the route came into sight, the pace car turned off and the race truly began. Helicopters hovered above as race officials, safety personnel, and media reporters planned to follow the racers as they headed to the finish line in Milwaukee. Since the race was through four states, the Rally was slated to be a two-day event, with a rest stop in Chicago, and fuel stops in Kalamazoo and Racine.

Back in Shelby, Pops and the rest of the Go Team were preparing to head to Kalamazoo, packing and getting ready to load the chartered helicopter they hired when Inspector Detector came over to speak to Pops.

"Pops, you got a minute?"

"Huh?" Pops turned and saw the bearded police officer. "Inspector, what is it, did you find out something about the Dragonfire?"

Detector nodded as he replied, "Our forensics team turned up something from the investigation of the theft last week. And the detective team found a clue of the vehicle used that led to something quite interesting."

"C'mon, Pops. We gotta get to the fueling point before the Mach 5," the assistant crew chief reminded him as the chopper motor fired and the rest of the team boarded.

Pops was torn between wanting to hear what Detector had to tell him and getting to the first fueling stop. He said hurriedly, "I gotta get to Kalamazoo for the first stop. Can you come with me and tell me what you found?"

Detector glanced briefly at Team Thunderbolt and specifically Flywheel Flatte who was overseeing their operation then answered, "Uh-huh. Let me radio my men to follow us." He spoke into his walkie-talkie and directed his men to the fuel stop in Kalamazoo. Once that was done, the inspector entered the Go Team's transport chopper and took a seat next to Pops. He began his report as the conveyance lifted and headed for its destination.

"During their investigation this week, my men have turned up the whereabouts of the Dragonfire and who stole it. The tire tracks taken in the gravel outside the garage told the story."

Pops' onyx eyes widened as he waited for Detector to continue. "And?"

The inspector took a deep breath. "They had been tracking down who either owned or rented a panel truck that met the description of the vehicle that had been seen by your night watchman on the night of the crime. They tracked one down as a registered vehicle to the Flatte Motorworks."

He went on, "They sent an undercover man in to do some observing and he spotted the engine being installed into Flatte's racecar, the Silver Streak."

Pops demanded, "But how did they manage to get into my shop? That part of the factory complex is off limits to most personnel, only myself, Speed, and Sparky are allowed there."

Inspector Detector continued, "Well, somehow we picked up another set of prints in the area at one of the windows, those of Gary Lightening. But he had an airtight alibi that night."

"Yeah," Pops said flatly. "He was at Trixie's birthday party." He scowled as he remembered Speed's morose mood and his coming home early from the party. He knew that Lightening was behind the trouble between his son and Trixie but figured he would stay out of his son's personal business. Then he realized that maybe the two incidents were linked somehow and his theory became closer to fact when he heard the inspector's next words.

"His prints were the ones the forensics team picked up beside the prints of all of you. And when the undercover man saw the Dragonfire being installed into the Silver Streak, we came to the conclusion that Flatte arranged to have the engine lifted."

Pops' face became mottled red with rage and then paled as he realized the truth the Dragonfire's in the Silver Streak now. I gotta warn Speed. He reached for the radio. . . . .

Meanwhile, Speed and Sparky were finding themselves in a fairly comfortable lead as they headed into Grand Rapids. Speed had succeeded in wiping all thoughts about Trixie and Lightening out of his mind as he concentrated on the race, a determined frown on his chiseled visage as he drove. Sparky kept his conversation limited to reading out landmarks and other navigational points as both men focused on the task at hand.

"We're pretty much ahead of the pack, Speed," Sparky observed as he consulted his map. "I don't see any of the rest of the field near us."

"Uh-huh. Just keep an eye out, Sparky, I haven't heard from Pops yet and we'll be refueling in Kalamazoo so they're bound to catch up to us."

"Yeah," Sparky agreed. He glanced in the rear view mirror and expostulated, "Huh?"

In the mirror, coming out of nowhere and gaining fast was the low slung Silver Streak moving as if it was jet propelled. In no time it was right on the Mach 5's rear bumper.

"Damn!" Speed exclaimed as Lightening's car came up to the left quarter panel and passed him in a silver blur. "What the hell does he have under his hood, a rocket?"

As if to answer, the radio beeped. Speed reached for the mike and spoke, "Mach 5 here. What's up, Pops?"

Pops gravely voice had an edge of urgency. "Speed, Inspector Detector is here and just told me that the Dragonfire was stolen by Flywheel Flatte and installed in the Silver Streak."

There was silence as Speed felt his heart plummet with the realization of his girlfriend in mortal danger. "What?!

"The Dragonfire's in the Silver Streak and both Lightening and Trixie are in trouble."

Speed began to break out in a cold sweat. "Y-you're puttin' me on, right Pops?"

Pops could hear the distress in his middle child's voice. He hastened to explain and at the same time, reassure Speed. "Son, listen to me. Lightening needs to be made aware of the situation. If he pushes it too hard, the thing will blow so if you get to him and tell him, you can prevent it from happening."

"Trixie's in there with him you know." Speed was still in an apparent state of shock and was absorbing the blow, thinking this all had to be a bad dream, it could not be happening. But it was.

Pops sighed, "I know, son. That's why you've gotta get to them before it's too late."

Speed was unresponsive as the circumstance weighed on him like a thirty ton anvil and he felt a feeling of numb detachment, refusing to believe the words that were echoing in his mind bad generator, overload, could blow at any time. . . OH NO, TRIXIE!!

Pops was scared of his son's reaction and tried to snap him out of it. "Speed, are you okay? Speed!"

His voice wavering he finally spoke. "Pops, are you tellin' me that means that right now the Silver Streak has the defective Dragonfire installed in it and it could blow at any time?" Speed demanded a cold chill skittering down his spine as he shook his head in disbelief, drawing Sparky's attention.

"That's right Speed. Is it anywhere near you now?"

"Yeah, he's right in front of me."

Sparky cut in, "He just passed us like we were standing still. We're about two seconds behind and fading fast."

Pops replied frantically, "Listen to me the two of ya. Get as close to the Silver Streak as you can. Open up the Mach 5 and shift into turbo overdrive and get to the Silver Streak. At the rate Lightening's going, she's about to red line and then he and Trixie have had it."

Having snapped back to his senses, Speed answered with alacrity. "Got it, Pops. We're on it. Over and out." He handed the mike to Sparky and then popped the clutch to shift into overdrive. The Mach 5 shot forward.

Sparky's hazel eyes bugged out. "Speed what's goin' on? What're ya talking about?"

Speed's eyes narrowed and he floored the accelerator as he replied flatly, "The Dragonfire's in the Silver Streak, Sparky. She's got a faulty generator and the electrical system's about to overload. She'll go up like a Roman candle if we don't stop her." He tightened his grip on the wheel as his teeth grit, looking the very picture of determination but inside he was terrified and fervently prayed Please, please God let me stop them before it's too late, I can't lose Trixie and if that thing goes up she'll die. . . .

Ahead in the Silver Streak, Gary Lightening was exhilarated by the sheer strength of the awesome power plant propelling the racing machine and was almost giddy with excitement. He was barely a quarter down on the accelerator and the Silver Streak was flying better then his own plane. He grinned in pure maniacal enjoyment but over in the passenger seat it was a different story.

Trixie was studying the gauge monitoring the battery and generator and was uneasy with what she was seeing. The needle, which ideally should remain at dead center, was wavering and heading slowly toward the red limit, indicating a possible overload. She felt a growing concern and tried to point the situation out to Gary.

"Gary, the electrical gauge has been heading toward the danger area. I think we should slow down a bit so it can recover till we get to the pit stop in Kalamazoo."

He was not listening, too enthralled by the performance of his racer. "Huh?"

She tried again, "The electrical gauge is showing a problem. It's been moving towards the red area. We should slow down a bit till we can get it looked at."

Gary snorted in derision, "Nothing doing. We're in the lead and that's where we're gonna stay."

Trixie protested, "Gary, I'm afr--," but he cut her off.

"Save your breath, Trixie. I know you're still rooting for your boyfriend but I plan to keep him just where he is, a distant second."

Trixie sighed and said, "That's not why I'm concerned. I'm your navigator, remember?"

Gary continued to grip the wheel as he savored the ride. "Yeah, sure. I saw your face when we passed the Mach 5. You may be my navigator, but you're still Racer's girl." To himself he said this motor's amazing, it's like I'm in a jet, Whee!

Trixie bit her lip and turned away with a sniff, her trepidation growing as the needle on the gauge inched closer to the red area. . . .

Back in the Mach 5, Speed was gripping his wheel so tightly his knuckles were straining his gloves, his teeth grit in determination as anger and fear both swirled inside him like a twister as he said silently C'mon, c'mon Mach 5. You've always managed to get me through, please don't fail me now. Trixie's life is at stake.

He was shaken from his reverie by Sparky's comforting hand on his shoulder. "Hey pal you okay?"

Speed nodded and grunted, his attention on the silver car in front. "Yeah, just peachy. Man, that Dragonfire's amazing, it's like he's on rails. I gotta get closer, I'm gonna try the autojack."

"You think that'll get you closer? Isn't that a desperate thing to do?'

Speed replied grimly, "Desperate times call for desperate measures. Besides, have you anything better to suggest?" He turned his head to glare at Sparky.

Sparky shook his head so Speed barked, "Then hang on!" He pressed Control A on the steering column and the Mach 5 catapulted into the air and jumped ahead the length of a football field, gaining on the Silver Streak.

Up ahead in the cockpit of the Silver Streak Trixie and Gary were there together in body but as far as mindsets they were as apart as east and west. Gary was hypnotized by the speed that the Dragonfire was giving the Silver Streak and oblivious to everything but the power surging at his fingertips. But Trixie was watching the electrical system gauge, which was dangerously near the red limit. She tried once again to be the voice of reason to the racer who appeared to be in another world.

"Gary, the gauge is showing near overload of the electrical system. We need to slow down, the stop in Kalamazoo is only thirty-five miles away."

Gary shrugged, "So we'll be there soon. Stop worrying."

Trixie lost her patience. When she navigated for Speed, he trusted her guidance and directions as she oversaw not only the course but also the gauges for the Mach 5 to make sure everything was running in perfect order. Gary Lightening was doing just the opposite. She opened her mouth to vehemently protest when her nose picked up the sight but unmistakable smell of insulation burning. Alarmed, she tried to alert Gary but to no avail.

"Gary, I smell something burning coming from the vents. And the needle on the electric gauge is in the red area. Something's wrong we've a power overload and we need to stop!"

Gary, who had his mind on the race and his main adversary Speed snapped, "Shut up! I'm not stopping so deal with it!" He scowled in concentration and glanced at his rear view mirror to see the Mach 5 coming up close. "Damn! Looks like we've got company!"

Trixie turned back and saw the dearly familiar white racer with the "M" on the hood gaining on them. Her heart leapt at the sight and she inwardly rejoiced but Gary uttered a curse and jammed the accelerator again, causing the Silver Streak to shoot ahead, the centrifugal force throwing them both back in their seats.

Behind them in the Mach 5, Speed and Sparky noticed the silver car slowly but surely pulling away.

"Damn that jerk! He's doing it again," Speed growled in frustration. "He has no idea what kind of danger they're in."

Sparky rejoined, "He's only concerned about winning."

"Yeah, well I'll be damned if I let him endanger Trixie. Hang on." And Speed shifted into the turbo overdrive, the extent of the Mach 5's immense power.

Sparky glanced in their rear view mirror and glimpsed at the yellow and black streak known as the Shooting Star. He informed his buddy.

"Hey, Speed guess who's joining the party? Your old buddy Racer X."

"Huh?" Speed glanced at the fast approaching low slung racecar with the masked racer at the helm. "Great, let me have the mike."

Sparky handed Speed the microphone and dialed Racer X's frequency. He spoke into the mike, "Racer X, come in Racer X. Over."

Racer X replied, "I'm right here, Speed. I picked up your transmission from your father earlier and I know the Silver Streak is in danger. What can I do to help?"

Speed said, "I've been trying to catch up to him and almost did but he's pullin' away again. I've gotta try to stop Lightening before the thing blows, Trixie's in there with him and she's in danger."

Rex heard the edge of despair in his kid brother's voice and hastened to reassure him. "I know, Speed. But you've got to stay calm and focused or you'll do her no good. Together we'll rescue her, I promise."

Speed heard the reassuring tone in Racer X's voice and felt a sense of déjà vu, like when he was a child and Rex was comforting him. He felt his older brother's presence and answered, "Thanks, Racer X."

Racer X sighed and continued, "Now, I think we can come up with a way to stop Lightening so listen,"….

In the Silver Streak, Trixie was nearly gagging on the strong fumes, knowing that they were near overload in the electrical system but Gary had totally tuned her out so she remained quiet. She was just watching the gauge and then alarm seized her as she saw the tongue of flame shoot up from the end of the hood.

"Gary, stop the car NOW! We're on fire!" she screamed.

"Huh?" Gary said dumbly then spied the flames licking at the hood. "OH NO!"

At the Mach 5, Speed and Sparky both saw the orange flames as fed by the airflow created by the velocity they grew experientially, sending Speed into an advanced state of panic and spurring him on.

"Holy smokes, the Silver Streak's on fire!" Sparky exclaimed.

"I know," Speed snapped. He grabbed the mike and barked, "You ready, Racer X?"

"Whenever you are," came the reply.

"Okay. Sparky, hang on!" Speed said as he pushed Control A and activated the autojack. The Mach 5 leapt up and into flight as it hurdled over the speeding Silver Streak, landing about 500 feet in front of the now burning racecar.

"What the hell is that idiot Racer doing?" Lightening roared as he watched the Mach 5 soar over them and land right in the path of the Silver Streak. "AHHH!" he shrieked as he jammed the breaks and turned the wheel to avoid the impending collision.

"AHHHH!" Trixie screamed as the Silver Streak, with brakes locked, was sent into a wild spin as the fire at the front engulfed almost the entire hood.

Behind them Racer X pulled the Shooting Star right up to the spinning Silver Streak, boxing it in and guiding it to the shoulder of the road as the flames shot up from the hood and engine. The car was rapidly becoming a conflagration as it slowed and skidded to a jarring halt as Speed and Sparky sprinted over to the cockpit.

"We've gotta get 'em out of there before that thing blows!" Sparky yelled but Speed was way ahead of him and had his mind on only one thing.

"Trixie!" he screamed as he reached the passenger side. He wrenched open the door and reached in to cradle the unconscious slender form of the girl who owned his heart. He scooped her up and then in a dead run, headed to a ditch and shielded her with his body.

Sparky had managed to get the driver's side open and dragged Lightening's limp form to the ditch just as the sound of an explosion deafened them. The Silver Streak was completely afire as palls of thick black smoke billowed up and blackened the azure sky from the shooting flames.

Speed was oblivious to the spectacle as he pushed himself up off of Trixie. He gently removed then tossed the helmet aside, cupping her face in his hands as he patted it lightly and tried to bring her around.

"Trixie? Trixie sweetheart, it's me, it's Speed. Open your eyes and speak to me, baby, please." He was terrified by the bruise on her cheek and trickle of blood on her temple.

Her sooty lashes fluttered and her sea green orbs blinked and focused on the dark haired visage that was the man she loved. "S-Speed?"

Relief flooded him as he replied softly, "Yeah, baby it's me. It's all over, you're safe now." He wrapped her in his arms and hugged her as his heart pounded with the emotion and the fading effect of the adrenaline rush he had been under. She closed her eyes again as darkness came and claimed her again as she went limp against him causing a shiver of fear inside him.

Racer X came over to them and knelt down beside them. "You two all right?"

Speed took a deep breath and replied, "Yeah but we gotta get Trixie to a doctor as soon as possible. She's in bad shape."

"It's done. I radioed for the rescue chopper to come and they're on their way. Here." He took a blanket he had brought with him and spread it on Trixie's body as Speed kept her encircled in his arms. He glanced over at Sparky and Lightening. "How about you, Sparky?"

"I'm okay, I guess," he answered as he took his helmet off and wiped the sweat off his brow. He got up and knelt by Trixie. "How is she?"

Speed shook his head as tears were stinging his eyes. "Not good. She came to for a while then went out cold again. Where the hell is that chopper?"

As if in answer, the whirring of helicopter blades sounded as the IRC rescue squad chopper landed and EMTs came bounding over and leapt into the ditch bearing stretchers. The techs came over and addressed the group.

"Okay, guys. Let us through so we can get these two to the hospital." The men did as they were told as the techs knelt by the supine forms of Trixie and Lightening as they loaded them on the stretchers. The task done, the techs then lifted the stretchers up to transport them to the waiting craft.

Speed hoisted himself up and informed the EMTs, "I'm going with her." He turned to Sparky as he was leaving as said over his shoulder, "Sparky, you get the Mach 5 and meet me at the care center, okay? And thank Racer X for me."

"You got it," Sparky called out as Speed nodded and trotted after the stretcher with Trixie on it. He looked around for Racer X but both he and the Shooting Star were gone.

"Oh well," he said resignedly as he leapt into the Mach 5 and took off for the care center.

NEXT—LOVE AND WAR