Becca looked stunned and took a step back, long enough for me to quickly react and grab the arm that held the knife.
When the knife hit the floor, I looked down at it and that’s when Becca hit me in the balls and pushed me into Adaline. Ashley tried to reach her but tripped over Lola and fell to the ground.
Adaline grabbed onto me as I pulled her into my arms. “Baby, I have to go after her.”
Turning to run out of the bus, I heard Becca screaming.
“Let me go! Put me down! Help! Help!!”
Malcolm was standing there holding onto a kicking and screaming Becca as lights from police cars quickly lit up the area.
The police quickly ran up to Malcolm as he shouted out, “This is her!”
Two seconds later, the police were taking Becca away.
I watched as they brought her to the car and put her in as an officer began talking to Adaline, who was now outside.
Turning to Malcolm, I looked at him with a confused look on my face. “How did you know what was happening?”
Ashley walked up and stood next to Malcolm and said, “Oh, well I had run into Malcolm and was talking to him outside of his bus, when my friend Janet came running up. She couldn’t call because I had left my phone at the hotel.”
I glanced between Malcolm and Ashley. “Who called the cops?”
“I did,” Malcolm said. “Ashley saw you walking by and took off after you, so I called 911.”
This was insane. I couldn’t believe this was happening. One minute everything was fine and then next, some crazy bitch was trying to hurt Adaline.
Reaching my hand out, I thanked Malcolm. “Thanks for calling the police and grabbing her before she could get away.”
Malcolm smiled and nodded his head, “I’m just glad I was still here.”
My hand went to the back of my neck where I rubbed it back and forth. “Yeah. Yeah me too, you usually pull out pretty fast. I’m glad you hung around a little longer tonight.”
Malcolm gave me an awkward smile. “Yeah. Me too.”
I made my way over to Adaline and stood by her side. The next hour was spent giving statements to the police about everything that had been happening over the last few months. A vet came and checked out Lola, who was now awake and running around happy she was getting so much attention. I still couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that one of my sister’s best friends was behind all of this.
Adaline shut the bus door and turned to face me as I fell onto the couch and let out a long sigh. “Holy shit. What an insane day. Baby, are you okay?”
Adaline made her way over to me. She looked tired and her eyes still held fear in them. “I’m a little shaken up but at the same time, at least we now know it wasn’t Stephanie and the person is in jail.”
With a quick nod of my head, I agreed. “Yeah. I think I owe Stephanie an apology.”
Adaline chuckled. “I’d say we all do. Wow. Please tell me no other crazy women are going to show up like that.”
I was too tired and pissed off to even laugh at Adaline’s joke. I stood up and pulled her into my arms. “I want to take a shower and just lay with you in my arms, Adaline.”
Placing her hand against my cheek, Adaline smiled and said, “That sounds amazing. We need to find Hank though so we can get the hell out of here.”
It was as if Hank appeared by magic. A quick knock at the door and there he was. “Hey, guys. Congrats again on the win, Emmit!” Turning to Adaline, Hank’s face brightened. “And congrats on the pregnancy. I’m so happy for both of you.”
“Thank you, Hank,” Adaline said.
Hank slapped his hands together as he looked between us. “You ready to pull out? I figured with the win you’d be knee-deep in interviews, so I hung out and played some poker with some of the guys here from the track. I hope y’all weren’t waiting on me.”
Adaline and I both looked at each other. Hank had no idea what had happened. He must have been locked up tight in someone’s bus. Adaline and I busted out laughing. Hank stood there staring at us with a bewildered look on his face as I laughed like I hadn’t laughed in years.
“What is wrong with you two?” Hank finally asked.
I dragged in a deep cleansing breath and said, “Nothing, we’re ready to leave.”
Hank headed to the front of the bus to get ready to leave and Adaline and I headed to the back.
What started out as one of the best days of my life, almost turned to one of the worst. But lying in bed with Adaline in my arms and my hand over her stomach, it ended perfectly.
Two months later.
Adaline held my hand as we waited for the moment when I would crawl into the car. I knew this was stressful for Adaline, but she never uttered a word about her fear of me getting hurt while driving. She only stood by me one-hundred percent of the time.
Glancing over to her, I couldn’t help but smile. Each day she grew a little bit bigger and you could barely see the little tummy from under her shirt. We were four months pregnant and counting. The glow on my wife’s face said it all.
Life was bliss.
When the time came, Adaline turned to me as I placed my hand over her stomach. “I love you both,” I spoke against her lips.
“We love you back. Be careful, Emmit.”
With a wink and a quick kiss again on the lips, I said, “Always am.”
I watched as Adaline made her way back through the crowd. I knew she could easily go back to the bus and be comfortable, but she sat next to her father the entire race. In a way, she was my good luck charm since I’d won the Daytona 500 back in February and two races since with her sitting her sweet little ass up next to my crew chief. Who also happened to be her daddy.
Robby reached in to help me strap in and get everything connected up. “How’s the little one?” I asked.
Smiling, Robby gave me a quick nod. “Better than ever. Running all over the damn bus causing poor EmmyLou stress.”
I let out a laugh and said, “I can’t wait.”
Robby gave me a quick slap on the shoulder and said, “You’re all set. Give ’em hell, Lewis.”
“Will do.”
The rest of the day consisted of me bitching at my spotter and crew chief, then complaining about at least five different drivers, and one fan who threw a cup onto the track, which resulted in a caution.
“What in the hell is Wallace doing? Tell him to get the hell out of my way, Waldo, or I’m going to push his ass out of the way.”
“Let’s just get you safely into the pits and don’t speed,” Waldo said calmly.
I dropped down to enter the pits only to have Malcolm slam on his breaks, nearly causing me to hit him.
“Bastard!” I yelled out as my spotter started talking.
“Three, two, one.”
Slamming on the steering wheel, I yelled, “Get me out of here!”
Waldo’s voice came across right as I was about to start bitching. “Go! Go! Go!”
Hitting the gas, I maneuvered around the pit box in front of me and headed back onto the track. I was the second one off of pit road, and ahead of Malcolm sitting in third place.
I didn’t utter another word until we were three laps from the checkered flag.
My spotters voice filled the silence. “Two to go.”
“You’ve been doing good going high all day on those turns,” Waldo said.
I knew what I had to do. Number Eight was expecting me to go high on the turns; I was going to give him a little surprise on turn four.
“Emmit, you’re awfully quiet in that car,” Waldo said with a chuckle.
“You do your thing, I’ll do mine,” I responded.
“One to go.”
I couldn’t help but wonder what Adaline was doing this very moment. Was she standing and watching or was she watching the monitor? Smiling, I thought back to last night when she climbed on top of me and took me to our favorite place.
“If you’re going to do something, Emmit, now would be the time,” Waldo said.
Hitting turn three, I watched as the car in front of me drifted up into his normal blocking position as I went down and hit the gas. I cruised right on by him and into first position and finally taking the checkered flag.