“Hang on tight.”
That’s all the warning Rafael gets before they lunge forward.
Midtown blurs into streaks of neon and concrete. Wind whips across his visor, stealing his breath. They pass an HOV stop, and the bike lifts, rising higher and higher. Below them, InSite workers shrink to scrambling red dots.
His heart hammers, and they rocket down another block.
This is a million miles from his usual routine. He should be terrified. Yet beneath the helmet, he’s grinning.
“This is incredible!” The words tear from him in a half-laugh, half-shout.
A chuckle crackles through the helmet’s commlink. “Enjoying the ride? I hoped this wouldn’t be too much for you.”
“I guess not.” Rafael turns, watching the blur of buildings sharpen into recognizable shapes as they begin to slow.
A brutal, imposing structure catches his focus ahead.
Factura Headquarters. He’d recognize the manufacturing giant’s sharp concrete and orange neon anywhere.
As they approach, the air starts to fill with security drones, circling the tops of the buildings in perfect sync. One drifts closer, tilting fast enough for its scan-light to reach them. Kane dips the bike so smoothly that Rafael doesn’t realize what’s happened until they’re already accelerating.
Once they’re past most of the horde, he exhales slowly. His arms tighten around Kane’s waist, and he leans in, voice low through the commlink. “Is this yours? Or one from Wren’s team?”
“Her crew goes for the lighter, faster models,” Kane explains. “What Wren rode when she was aiming for the HOV circuits. Before an injury shut that door.” He taps the side of the bike. “This one was my aunt Tina’s. Got it after she passed.”
Rafael swallows. Before he can apologize, the man’s tone lightens as he adds, “Uncle hated this bike. Couldn’t stand the rigged-up sound. She taught me to ride it behind his back.”
He grins against Kane’s jacket. “Baking and HOV bikes? She sounds amazing!”
“She was,” Kane says. “Actually, she started as an up-and-coming racer before she married my uncle.”
“A professional HOV racer?” Rafael’s jaw drops. “That’s incredible!” While cyber gladiator games dominate Nova City’s sports scene, racing is a close second. Not that he knows much about it either. “Did she compete from Shreveport?”
Kane hums. “Nah. Met my uncle at a race, and that was it for her career.” His shoulders lift in a shrug Rafael feels more than sees. “Sometimes during competition season, she’d get this look. But she always said being with him was worth more than any trophy.”
Rafael stiffens. Would he ever give up Midtown for Kane? Would Kane leave his crew for him?
“Hey—let’s hit downtown.” Kane cuts through his thoughts.
Before he can answer, the bike’s engine surges.
Block by block, Midtown dissolves into lights and steel. Theskyline of downtown rises ahead, a place Rafael’s only ever seen from a distance—home to Nova City’s wealthiest and most famous. A place he’s only watched from afar or the V-link.
But downtown means twice the amount of corporate enforcers and NCPD patrols. His gut proves right the minute they pass the next block.
A trio of Premiere Corp enforcers appear in the rearview mirrors behind them, rainbow strobes atop the HOVs flashing off the glass towers.
“Are you sure it’s okay to be here?” He peers around Kane through his helmet.
Kane’s fingers tighten around his. “We’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
Worry still buzzes at the back of Rafael’s mind as Kane shifts the bike into another air lane and loops around the block. The enforcers don’t chase, staying in the opposite lane.
He exhales. Kane’s right. Despite everything, the man has always kept him safe. Downtown shouldn’t be any different. “All right.”
Kane’s laugh rumbles against his chest. “Glad to have your confidence. Now hold on to your—”
The screech of a vehicle rounding the corner cuts him off. A HOV appears between two others, careening down the street straight toward them.