The Great Plan

by Chase Wheeler

  Sparky grinned with pride. “Now the Mach 5 has Pops’s special grip tire system for mountain areas. How can you lose?”

  Then he frowned. “I forgot. We still don’t have a windshield!”

  The old windshield had shattered when Skull Duggery ran Speed off the road. Sparky could fix just about anything, but they’d need cash to replace the windshield—cash they didn’t have.

  “Let’s forget about it, Sparky,” Speed said. “I’ll just have to race without any glass on the car.”

  But that idea worried Sparky. “Don’t be foolish, Speed. You need the protection.”

  Speed glanced at the clock. They could probably dig up a used windshield in a junkyard, but that could take forever, and the race was going to start in an hour.

  “There isn’t time to go looking for one,” Speed said anxiously.

  “But you can’t race without a windshield!” Sparky insisted.

  Then Spritle and Chim Chim walked in, carrying a windshield!

  “Look! We found a windshield!” Spritle announced with a grin.

  Sparky slapped him on the back. “Nice going, Spritle! ”

  But Speed knew where that windshield had come from. He had seen it before.

  “That belongs to Pops,” Speed said.

  “Don’t worry about it, Speed,” Spritle told him. “We’ll take care of Pops! ”

  Spritle walked confidently out of the garage, swinging his arms. Chim Chimfollowed, swinging his arms the same way. Speed had to smile. With their red overalls and striped caps, Spritle and Chim Chim even dressed alike! Sometimes it felt like Speed had two little brothers.

  Spritle found a phone in the office of the garage. He called Pops at home.

  “Pops speaking!” he answered.

  “Hi, Pops,” Spritle said cheerfully. “Is it okay if Speed borrows your windshield for a little while?”

  “Why does he want that?” Pops yelled. Chim Chim jumped at the sound of his loud voice. “Where is Speed right now, anyway?”

  “He’s going to race at Sword Mountain—” Spritle began. Then he cringed.

  “Oh, no! I shouldn’t have told Pops that! ” he told Chim Chim.

  Pops was fuming now. “He took my windshield, huh? Why, I—”

  Spritle hung up the phone and shrugged. “I wonder what Pops is so sore about?”

  Spritle and Chim Chim walked back into the garage.

  “What did Pops say?” Speed asked.

  “He was very excited that you’re using the windshield,” Spritle replied, not exactly telling the truth.

  Speed shrugged. “Okay, Sparky. Let’s get that windshield installed!”

  Speed and Sparky picked up the glass and began to fit it into the Mach 5.

  Back in his office, Pops was still fuming.

  “I wrote all the designs in invisible ink on that windshield!” he fumed. “If that glass is broken, those plans will be gone forever! ”

  Pops heard a sound behind him. Ace Ducey was there—and he’d heard everything Pops had said.

  “Clever of you to hide those designs on the windshield,” Ace said. “It makes my job easier. To get them, all I have to do is take Speed’s car.”

  “You’d better not! ” Pops threatened. He lunged toward Ace, but the thug was ready for him.

  Bam! Ace conked Pops on the head. Pops fell to the floor with a thud.

  Ace snickered as he jumped on his motorcycle.

  Speed Racer was not going to finish that race at Sword Mountain—not if Ace Ducey could help it!

  9

  SWORD MOUNTAIN

  When the Mach 5 was finished, Speed headed for Sword Mountain. The race would begin on a professional racetrack, then veer off to an off-road course.

  Racing fans crowded the stands as the drivers lined up on foot for the race. They stood across the track, facing their cars. A bright blue sky shone overhead.

  Speed got stuck standing next to Skull Duggery. Duggery wore a red uniform and helmet to match his car.

  “I’m going to win this race, Speed, and those five thousand bucks will be mine,” Duggery taunted.

  “You better not count on them, Duggery,” Speed responded.

  Across the track, Spritle and Chim Chim peeked out of the trunk of the Mach 5. Speed didn’t know it, but his little brother and pet chimpanzee had stowed away! Spritle took after Pops and Speed—he loved a race. Just because he wasn’t old enough to drive didn’t mean he had to miss out on all of the excitement.

  “This is going to be some ride, Chim Chim!” Spritle said. Then he quickly closed the trunk so they wouldn’t be caught.

  The announcer’s voice blared from a loudspeaker. “All drivers stand by! When the flag is lowered, drivers will run to their cars and start. Racing positions on the track will be determined by quick starts and getaways. Get ready! The race will begin in exactly fifteen seconds! ”

  Speed got into position, his heart pumping. He couldn’t wait for the race to start.

  A man stepped out onto the track, holding a red flag above his head.

  Bam! A shot rang out. The man lowered the flag. The race was on!

  Speed charged across the track. He jumped into the Mach 5 a split second before Duggery hopped into his own race car. Speed and Duggery revved their engines and took off. They were the first to lead the pack.

  Speed took the lead, but Duggery was right on his tail.

  “Speed! Watch out for Duggery!” Sparky warned from the sidelines.

  A racer in a yellow car tried to pass Duggery. Duggery smiled and steered right toward the car, forcing it off the track.

  “Aaaaah!”the driver yelled as his car careened over the safety wall. Onlookers in the stands screamed and scrambled to get out of the way.

  Wham! The car crashed into the stands. The shaken driver crawled out of the car as medics rushed to help him.

  Duggery grinned. He wasn’t going to let anyone come between him and Speed.

  A driver in a blue car tried to pass Duggery.

  Bam! Duggery slammed into the race car. The blue car spun out of control. The driver behind him couldn’t stop in time, and the two cars collided.

  Speed watched the action in his rearview mirror and frowned. There was no room in the sport for a dirty racer like Duggery.

  The track opened up to the mountain road. The colorful stands gave way to a landscape of red rocks and dirt. Duggery caught up to Speed just as the road changed. The two kicked up red dust as they led the race, side by side.

  Ace Ducey waited patiently down the road. He had gathered a small army of goons to help him steal the plans for the Mach 5. He and his men were all driving black race cars. They idled their engines, waiting for the right moment to strike.

  Ace radioed his men. “Our target is car number five. We want its windshield.”

  Seconds later, Speed zoomed past. Ace and his men drove onto the road and entered the race. The road was crowded with the other race cars.

  “The other cars are in the way! Get rid of them ! ” Ace ordered his goons.

  A sharp spike poked from the hubcap of each wheel on the black race cars. One of Ace’s goons drove alongside a green race car. The smell of burning rubber filled the air as the spikes tore into the race car’s tire.

  The green car veered out of control. Bam! It crashed into another car, sending both cars spinning off of the road.

  Two more cars sped up, and Ace’s men struck using the same dirty trick.

  Slash! Slash! The spikes ripped the tires on the two cars. The cars spun wildly out of control and smashed into the rocky mountainside.

  Soon the road was a pile of burning, twisted metal. The drivers climbed out of their wrecked cars and shook their fists at the goons.

  Duggery watched the attack in his mirror. “I don’t know who’s driving those new cars in the race, but they’re looking for trouble,” he muttered to himself. “I don’t want any of them trying to wreck me.”

  Duggery swerved off the main road and headed down
a dusty trail.

  Spritle and Chim Chim heard all the commotion from their hiding place. They opened the trunk and peeked out to see a fleet of black cars advancing on the Mach 5.

  “Look, Chim Chim, we’re in for it!” Spritle cried.

  Ace Ducey had exactly what he wanted. Speed was the only driver on the road now. He pulled up alongside Speed.

  “You better do as I say, otherwise I’ll smash you right off the course! ” he called out over the roar of the engines.

  The other black race cars surrounded Speed.

  “All I want is your windshield. Give it to me or I promise you’ll never reach the finish line!” Ace shouted.

  Speed thought fast. He recognized Ace as the thug who’d tied up Pops, trying to steal the plans for the Mach 5.

  There’s only one reason they’d want this windshield, Speed realized. I bet Pops hid the design on it.

  Well, there was no way he was going to let Ace Ducey get his hands on those plans!

  “Come on! Take it off if you can!” Speed taunted.

  “That kid’s a fool!” Ace said angrily.

  He sidled up next to the Mach 5, and Speed saw the sharp spikes protruding from Ace’s wheels. He quickly steered out of the way.

  They were on a rough stretch of road now. It twisted and turned like a snake. Guardrails were the only thing that could stop a car from falling down the steep cliffsides on either side of the road.

  “Whoa! Speed cried out. He expertly steered through the twists and turns. But Ace was right on him. There was only one way to escape Ace.

  Speed pressed the A button on the steering wheel. The hydraulic jacks lowered, then sent Speed soaring right over the guardrail!

  Speed had escaped Ace. There was only one problem.

  Now the Mach 5 was hurtling down the side of a rocky cliff!

  10

  TRIXIE’S WARNING

  The Mach 5 slammed into the rugged hillside. Speed quickly pulled back the jacks. The car careened crazily down the rough road. The wheels of the Mach 5 ground into rocky turf.

  Speed didn’t lose control. The bottom of the cliff ended at the bank of a stream. Speed steered the Mach 5 over a big log that crossed the stream. Then he sped off through a flat stretch of land at the bottom of a cliff.

  Ace and his goons watched Speed from up on the main road. They knew they could never follow Speed off the trail like that. Their cars would be crushed.

  “What a daredevil!” one of the goons cried.

  “He made it, though!” said another.

  Ace frowned. “Not for long! ”

  Speed drove across the dirt and back to the main road. Except for Speed, it was deserted.

  “No sign of Ace and his men,” Speed said. “Good. I guess they’ve given up.”

  Speed drove on. The scene around him became greener as he drove through fields at the base of the mountain. Houses dotted the landscape here and there. The mountain peaks surrounded the valley, their tops covered with snow.

  The sound of another engine drowned out the Mach 5’s roar. But it wasn’t a race car engine. It was a small biplane flying overhead.

  The radio in the Mach 5 crackled.

  “Trixie calling the Mach 5. Trixie calling the Mach 5.” Trixie’s voice came over the radio. “The designs are written on your windshield in invisible ink! ”

  “I know, Trixie,” Speed replied. “Don’t worry, I’ll be careful. But I’m going to finish this race and win the money Pops needs.”

  “But Speed, those men aren’t going to give up so easily,” Trixie said anxiously. “They’ll stop at nothing to get those designs. And if they don’t get them, they’ll make sure no one else does by getting rid of you and the Mach 5.”

  “I’ll be all right, Trixie, I promise,” he said. He looked up at her. “See you later!

  Trixie turned off the radio. “He’s in danger. Doesn’t he know it?”

  She couldn’t help worrying. As Trixie flew off, she wondered if there was some way she could help ...

  A feeling of pure energy coursed through Speed as he raced down the mountain road. He could see a group of race cars just up ahead.

  That meant his little detour hadn’t put him out of the race—not yet.

  Speed stepped on the gas. He easily overtook the cars in front of him.

  “Whee!” cried Spritle, still stowed away inside the trunk. “With Speed at the wheel, how can we lose the race? He’ll win!”

  The Mach 5 hit a bump in the road. Spritle and Chim Chim hit their heads on the roof of the trunk.

  “Aaaah!” Spritle yelled, but Chim Chim quickly covered his mouth. After all, the last thing Speed needed was to find out they were stashed in the trunk!

  Now that he wasn’t worried about Ace and his goons, Speed had his mind on the race. He forged ahead. Another pack of cars led the race in front of him. Speed passed one car, then the next. As he approached the lead it was just as he feared—Skull Duggery’s red car was in first place.

  “I’ve got to pass that car! ” Speed muttered.

  Duggery saw the Mach 5 in his mirror.

  “Uh-oh! The Mach 5!” Duggery said. “But Speed’s not going to win this race, not if I can help it.”

  Duggery shifted gears as the road grew steeper. That didn’t stop Speed. He was right on Duggery’s tail now.

  “I’ll try to pass!” Speed said.

  Speed sped up and tried to pass Duggery on the left. The road took a sharp turn. Duggery veered left at the same time, ramming his car into the Mach 5.

  The encounter bumped the Mach 5 into the steel guardrail. A loud screech filled the air as metal scraped against metal. Spritle and Chim Chim bounced around in the trunk.

  “I’ll be glad when Speed gets on a straight road again,” Spritle told Chim Chim. “This race is murder! ”

  Speed straightened out the Mach 5. He and Duggery were side by side again. Then a cloud of dust appeared on the road in front of them. Speed gasped. The black race cars were heading straight for them!

  “Here come Ace Ducey and his gang!” Speed yelled.

  11

  A FLARE FOR DANGER

  Speed and Duggery slammed on their brakes.

  “Is there any way to avoid them?” Speed asked Duggery.

  “Well, there’s a road on the other side of that field,” Duggery said, nodding toward the field next to them.

  Speed nodded and took off, driving over the grass.

  “He’ll never make it! ” Duggery said.

  But Speed knew that tall grass was no problem for the Mach 5. He hit the C button on his steering wheel. Round rotor blades extended out from under the car. They spun quickly, chopping down the grass in front of the Mach 5. Once Duggery saw what Speed was doing, he turned off the road and followed the Mach 5’s path.

  Ace Ducey and his goons weren’t worried.

  “Lucky for us he went that way,” Ace told his men over the radio. “In a few minutes he’ll be a sitting duck. Let’s go!”

  The black race cars steered off the road and followed Speed and Duggery across the field. Blades of grass kicked up from the Mach 5. They flew past Duggery’s car, and right into Ace’s face!

  “I don’t mind somebody’s dust, but this is ridiculous! ” Ace complained.

  The field emptied out onto a mountain pass. Two large cliffs rose up on either side of the narrow road. Speed and Duggery raced ahead of the black cars, but Ace’s men were gaining fast.

  Spritle and Chim Chim peered out from the trunk.

  “This doesn’t look good ! ” Spritle said, worried. “Speed better do something while he can!”

  The road opened up to a wide canyon. Speed and Duggery were able to break away from the black cars.

  It wasn’t much of a lead, but it was enough for Trixie to spring into action. She had been following Speed the whole time. Now she swooped down from the sky in the biplane, nearly grazing the heads of the drivers. The goons gasped in surprise.

  Trixie pressed a button in the
cockpit, and a door in the bottom of the plane slid open. Several black canisters dropped out.

  “Aaaahhhh! Bombs! screamed one of Ace Ducey’s thugs.

  The canisters hit the ground and rolled, releasing clouds of blue gas. The race cars skidded to a stop, and their riders raced out of the cars, searching for cover.

  “Get down! ” Ace yelled.

  Ace’s men dropped to the dirt and covered their heads, waiting for the explosion.

  It never came.

  “Huh?” Ace wondered.

  The canisters continued to spit out clouds of smoke. Ace and his men coughed and wheezed.

  “!t was just a trick! ” Ace said, stomping his foot. “They’re only smoke flares! ”

  The men jumped back in their cars and continued to race after Speed. But Trixie wasn’t about to give up. She kept hurling smoke flares in front of the cars. The thick blue smoke threw the drivers off course. The thugs screamed and stopped their cars. One skidded right to the edge of a cliff!

  Ace had had enough. He took a road flare gun from his car. Most drivers relied on the burst of bright fiery light when they needed to call for help. But Ace had something else in mind.

  “I’ll take care of this,” Ace told his men.

  Ace aimed the road flare right at the plane’s engine.

  Bam! The flare set the engine on fire. The plane quickly went up in flames. It wavered in the sky for a second, then crashed into the rocky mountainside.

  Ace let out an evil laugh.

  “Now we’re even! ” he called out.

  12

  INTO THE VOLCANO

  Ace’s cruel happiness didn’t last long.

  “Hey, look! ” one of his thugs cried. He pointed to the sky.

  Ace looked up to see Trixie floating safely to the ground on a yellow parachute. There wasn’t a scratch on her.

  Trixie grinned. “I’ve always wanted to find out what parachute jumping was like! ”

  Then she gasped. A team of black race cars was speeding down the road below. When she landed, they’d be waiting there for her!