Chapter 50 Five thousand dollar prize!
Chapter 050
RAVENNA
I woke up feeling refreshed.
I was actually refreshed in a way I had not felt since arriving at this academy.
The weight of what we had accomplished last night settled over me like a warm blanket. We had taken the first step in my revenge mission against Darius and his family.
And it had been glorious.
Samantha was already awake when I opened my eyes, sitting on her bed with her phone in her hands and a massive grin on her face.
"Good morning, Pike's headline girl," she teased, turning the screen towards me.
I could see the news articles. The headlines. All of them featuring variations of what had happened at the gala.
"Stop calling me that," I laughed, throwing a pillow at her.
"Never. You are famous now. Infamous, really. Everyone is talking about what happened."
"They are talking about Richard Pike, not me."
"True. But we know the truth." Samantha's grin widened. "Last night will forever be in my memory. Did you see his face? Richard Pike, standing on that stage, watching his entire reputation crumble?"
"I saw." I could not help but smile at the memory. "It was perfect."
"We should do more of this," Samantha suggested, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Keep peppering the Pike family and make their lives miserable."
"I agree. But we need to be careful. Darius already suspects us."
"He suspects, but he cannot prove anything. And that is what matters."
I got out of bed and started getting dressed. "I am heading to the rink to practice. I need to get my strength back before I heal fully."
"I will come with you," Samantha announced immediately. "I want to watch the expression on Darius's face when he sees you getting back on your feet. It will be priceless."
"You just want to see drama."
"Absolutely. Is that a crime?"
We got ready together, both of us in high spirits. As we left the room and made our way through the corridors, I felt lighter than I had in weeks,like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
But then I saw a poster on the wall in bright colours and bold letters.
UNDERGROUND BIKE COMPETITION. HOSTING TONIGHT AT 8 PM. PRIZE: $5,000
I stopped walking and stared at the poster.
"Raven?" Samantha noticed I had fallen behind. "What is it?"
"This." I pointed at the poster. "There is a bike competition tonight."
"Oh. Yeah. I have heard about those."
"The prize is five thousand dollars." My mind was already racing. "I could use that money to get a new bike. The school authorities still have not given me any news about mine. They think I should not be on one for a while."
"Are you seriously considering entering?" Samantha looked worried. "Raven, you are still injured."
"My ankle is healing. I can ride.and I need that money."
Samantha sighed, clearly not thrilled with the idea. "Where is the competition?"
I looked at the bottom of the poster. "An underground tunnel in the school building. Do you know where that is?"
"I do."
"Then show me."
We navigated through several corridors and down two flights of stairs until we reached a part of the academy I had never been to before.
The tunnel entrance was concealed behind what looked like a maintenance door.
I turned to Samantha. "You knew about this? About the underground biker club?"
She nodded slowly, guilt flashing across her face.
"Why did you never tell me?" The hurt in my voice was real. Raw. "You know I am part of a biker crew. You know how much riding means to me. And there is an entire underground club here that you never mentioned?"
"I am sorry," Samantha responded quietly. "I wanted to tell you. But the people who race here are dangerous and reckless. I did not want you getting involved with them."
"That should have been my choice to make."
"I know. And I am sorry. I was just trying to protect you."
I took a breath, pushing down my frustration. She had meant well. I knew that. But it still stung that she had kept this from me.
We made our way down into the tunnel. It opened up into a massive underground space. Bikes were everywhere. People were gathered in groups, talking and laughing. The energy was electric.
I found the registration point easily. A table set up near the entrance with a bored-looking attendant sitting behind it.
"I want to participate in the competition tonight," I announced.
The attendant looked up at me. "Do you have a bike?"
"No. I lost mine recently. But I saw on the poster that bikes are available."
"They are. We have a collection you can choose from. But you race on whatever you pick. No switching once you are registered."
"Understood. How many people will I be competing against?"
"Nine others. Ten riders total. The winner takes all five thousand pounds."
"And what are the rules?"
"No rules. Just get to the finish line first. Whatever it takes."
That made sense, underground racing was never about following rules. It was about skill and nerve and the willingness to take risks others would not.
"Sign me up."
The attendant pushed a form towards me, and I filled it out quickly— Name, age, emergency contact.
I hesitated on that last one, then wrote down Samantha's number.
Once I was registered, I turned back to Samantha. She looked worried in a way that made my chest tighten.
"Are you sure about this?" she questioned. "Your ankle is not fully healed. What if something happens?"
"I will be fine. I have raced while injured before."
"That does not make me feel better."
"Sam, I need to do this. I need to prove to myself that I can still ride. That the accident with Darius did not break me."
She studied my face for a long moment. Then she sighed. "Fine. But if you crash, I am going to kill you myself."
"Deal."
The attendant called my name. "Casmir! Come choose your bike."
I followed her to the back of the space where the collection was kept. There were dozens of bikes. Some looked brand new. Others looked like they had seen better days.
I walked along the line slowly, examining each one, testing the weight, checking the tyres, looking at the engine quality.
Finally, I settled on one that did not look too new or too old. It was well-maintained but clearly had some racing history.
The kind of bike that would not draw too much attention but would get the job done.
"This one," I decided.
"Good choice. That one has won a few races before."
"Then I made the right decision."
I wheeled the bike towards the starting area. Samantha walked beside me, still looking concerned but trying to hide it.
"You are going to be brilliant," she offered, attempting encouragement.
"I know."
"And I will be cheering for you from the stands."
"I know that too."
She hugged me quickly. "Good luck, Raven. Show them what you are made of."
"I will."
Samantha headed towards the spectator area, and I positioned myself at the starting line with the other riders. Nine of them, all of them looked experienced and ready to win.
But so was I.