Descent

by Julie Cannon

  “Shannon? Are you okay?”

  The concern on Caroline’s face was almost heartbreaking. She didn’t want Caroline to hurt over her. Not again. Never again. “I’m fine, just a little sore. And thirsty. Can I have some water?”

  “Sure.” Caroline jumped out of the chair, her robe gaping open even more giving Shannon a glimpse of what she had seen last night. She wasn’t that out of it not to remember how Caroline had looked standing naked in front of her. She had filled out into a beautiful woman, and no matter how banged up and battered she was, Shannon’s body took notice.

  “Here, let me help you sit up.”

  With Caroline’s arm around her good shoulder Shannon was able to sit but not without a lot of pain, her head swimming more than once. Her hand shook when she reached for the glass and Caroline wrapped her own around Shannon’s as she put the glass to her lips. The liquid was cool and felt wonderful filling her mouth and sliding down her dry throat. After several swallows, Caroline moved the glass away.

  “Not too much. Let’s see how this sits before you have any more.”

  “I’m just banged up, nothing life threatening.” Shannon’s voice was stronger this time.

  “I don’t care. You are banged up but that doesn’t mean you can act like it’s nothing. You might have a concussion.”

  “I don’t have a concussion, just a headache where my head hit a damn tree or something.” Caroline paled at her flippant remark and Shannon realized just how affected Caroline was by her spill. “Really, Caroline, I’m fine. Just a little tingle that a few aspirin will take care of.” She was rewarded by Caroline’s laugh.

  “Yeah, and I’m the King of England. Come on, Shannon, how are you feeling? Besides the road rash of course.”

  Caroline was looking up and down her body as if checking to make sure she really was all right. “Honestly, I’m fine. A little stiff and my arm burns like hell, but nothing that a little time and a new layer of skin can’t cure.” As much as she wanted to lie in bed all day and look at Caroline, she had other pressing matters that were demanding her attention.

  “I do have to go to the bathroom though.” She tossed the covers off and swung her legs off the bed. Slowly, she stood, careful not to move too quickly or cause too much to hurt. “No, don’t get up; I can do it,” she said quickly as Caroline started to help her. Bandages covered pretty much the entire left side of her body and she felt so bad she didn’t care that she was almost completely naked.

  When she returned to bed she didn’t know if she wanted the answer to the question but she asked it anyway. “What are you doing here? And in my robe,” she added pulling the sheet up to cover her bare breasts.

  Caroline sat back in the chair, gathering the front of the robe tight against her chest. She looked around the room as if searching for an escape route.

  “We were worried about you. You took a nasty spill,” she said weakly.

  Shannon raised the glass to her mouth, her hand steadier than a moment ago. “I asked why you were here.” Caroline’s eyes darted around the room again before settling on her hands now clasped in her lap.

  “I wanted to make sure you were all right. You needed some help getting into the tub…and…I…”

  “Thank you,” Shannon said quietly, ending Caroline’s awkwardness. “I appreciate it. I don’t know why, but I do appreciate it.”

  “It’s what anyone would have done,” Caroline said finally looking at her.

  Shannon held her gaze, branding the clear cocoa color in her brain before she spoke again. “But nobody else did. Did they?”

  Caroline stood, grabbed her clothes from the luggage rack, and disappeared into the bathroom. When she returned several minutes later, her hair was damp, her face freshly scrubbed. The bright blue jersey signifying her winning the previous race was smeared with dirt and sweat. Her bike shorts were tight and revealing and showed off her long muscular legs.

  Shannon knew Caroline wasn’t going to answer her question so she asked another instead. “Who won?”

  “Gertrude Brasille over Stephanie McClennen. By eight tenths of a second.” She buckled her shoes.

  “What about you?” Shannon asked. Caroline held the second place slot when she left the starting gate.

  “Third.” Caroline didn’t say anything else.

  Shannon nodded her understanding and Caroline turned toward the door. She didn’t want her to leave. “Where are you going?”

  Caroline hesitated before turning back around. “You said yourself you’re all right. I have to go. People are waiting for me.”

  Caroline didn’t mention any names, but she didn’t have to. Shannon had seen her and Fran together and she wondered what excuse she had given her girlfriend as to why she hadn’t come home last night.

  “Make sure she knows that I didn’t take advantage of you in my weakened condition. Tell her I said thanks for sharing you.”

  Caroline’s expression went from uncomfortable to confused to something Shannon couldn’t quite put her finger on in the span of a few seconds as her words sank in. “Take care” was all Caroline said as she closed the hotel room door behind her.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “What are you doing?” Shannon flinched in surprise at the voice coming from behind her and was rewarded with sharp pain shooting through her left biceps. Most of her road rash was healed due to several days of intravenous antibiotics. The stitches were still a week away from removal, but all in all, three days after her fall she didn’t feel too bad—considering. She concentrated on her movements as she took her bike out of the THS trailer, careful not to give any indication of her discomfort that would add fuel to the fire in Caroline’s voice.

  “Taking out my bike.”

  “Let me rephrase the question. What in the fuck are you doing?”

  “Same answer.”

  “You’re in no condition to race tomorrow.” They were in Schladming, Austria, just east of Salzburg for the next to last race.

  The nastiness combined with possessiveness made Shannon angry. “So in addition to getting a doctorate in, what was it again, astro-physics, you’re now a physician?”

  “Don’t be flip.” Caroline’s eyes glowed with anger.

  “Who do you think you are? You’re not my mother or my girlfriend. Even if you were you wouldn’t have any say in what I do or don’t do.”

  “I wouldn’t be your girlfriend for that and many other reasons. You wouldn’t care what I thought, what I wanted, or if I were scared to death of what might happen to you.”

  “You’re right on that one, honey. That’s why I don’t have a girlfriend. Because I don’t care. I’m here to win the championship, not worry about what people think.” Especially you, she thought.

  Caroline shook her head. “You know, Shannon, if you do win, do you know what the caption will be under your picture? Biker Babe Wins. Better yet, you’ll have some bike bimbo with big tits and no future draped all over you and you won’t even remember her name, if you ever knew it to start with. You fuck anything that looks at you twice. You’re more famous for the notches on your bike stem than what you do in the saddle.” Caroline moved as Shannon rolled her bike to the side of the trailer but she didn’t stop talking.

  “You know I don’t think people fundamentally change, but you’re the exception. There is not one shred of the Shannon Roberts I knew. I don’t know whether to pity you or envy you.” Caroline did an about-face that any drill sergeant would be proud of. As she whirled, Shannon could practically feel the euphemistic slap on her face.

  *

  Don’t cry, don’t cry, don’t cry, Caroline chanted to herself. She was good at holding her emotions in check but nothing could stop the crack from forming in her heart—again. Tears burned behind her eyes and choked her throat. She had been so angry when she saw Shannon unloading her bike she had gone off the deep end.

  It was a total surprise when she saw Shannon. The talk on the circuit and from the race sponsor was that Shannon wo
uld skip this week’s race. Since the championship was won by the total number of points earned in the eleven races, the other riders were thrilled, believing this was their chance to gain valuable ground in the standing with their number one competitor out of the way—at least for this race. Caroline felt just the opposite. She was worried that Shannon was more seriously injured than she thought. After a day or two of worrying herself sick she finally talked herself into thinking that Shannon was sitting this one out because she didn’t want to risk a more serious injury if she was not ready to compete.

  She had seen how Shannon gingerly handled her bike and saw how she was favoring her left arm and shoulder. The race this week was a single track course, the first half predominately uphill and scattered with rock and brush hanging over the track. The second half was all downhill with a series of switchback turns, some of which were 180 degrees over some of the roughest washboard trails on the series, made more dangerous due to the fatigue of the rider. One lapse of concentration or slip of a tire could mean disaster.

  Caroline didn’t remember exactly what she had said to Shannon, but the remnants of her anger still smoldered inside. She had seen Frank Striker’s wife sniffing around Shannon and then when she gave every indication she was going to ride in a race she had no business riding in, it was too much for Caroline’s taxed emotions.

  She plastered on a smile when a man and woman approached asking for her autograph. He asked a few questions about her gear and bike but before Caroline had a chance to answer, his arm candy said, “Do you know Shannon Roberts? Have you seen her? Is she going to race this weekend? She is so hot in those tight shorts.”

  Her male friend jabbed her with his elbow and looked at Caroline as if to say “sorry” and looked embarrassed for both of them. Caroline simply nodded, too tired to say anything. He practically dragged the woman away from her, the questions about Shannon still spewing from her mouth. Several other race fans stopped and asked her questions or simply wanted a picture.

  Don’t cry, almost there, don’t cry, almost there. Caroline screamed in her head approaching the elevator door. One, two, three, floor after floor she counted. Five, six, seven, eight steps to her door. She fished in her pockets for her door key. Where in the fuck is my key, she practically shouted, grateful for the empty hallway. She finally found it in her back pocket and inserted it into the lock. The green light flashed, the latch clicked, and when the door closed solidly behind her, Caroline fell to her knees and wept.

  *

  Shannon watched Caroline walk away, stunned at the venom she heard in her voice. Who in the hell did she think she was, questioning Shannon’s decision to race this weekend? She was here to win the championship, not pussyfoot around over a few cuts and scrapes.

  And what in the fuck did she say about the caption under my picture on the winner’s stand? Biker babe wins? So what? It would be true. But that crack about the babe and the notches on her bike was a bit much. So what if the women she slept with didn’t have a future? She wasn’t looking for anything other than that night, maybe the next. She knew what she wanted out of life. She wanted to win.

  What would Caroline’s caption say? Practice makes perfect? Caroline was famous for her dedication to the sport. Shannon had a life and lived it every day. There was more to Shannon Roberts than training and riding. She had a life, and a very full one. What did Caroline have?

  And what is with that bullshit that people don’t change? She certainly had. Shannon was so deep in thought that her inspection of her bike and safety gear was more rote than real inspection. Caroline had graduated from Columbia University, one of the best colleges in the country, if not the world, not once but twice, with a degree in astrophysics. Shannon doubted she could spell it even with spell check. And she was going to be an astronaut. Shannon stopped suddenly, realizing exactly what Caroline had accomplished. But what had Shannon done?

  Sure she had won races, lots of them. But what would her legacy be when she was done? And she would be done, and soon. The competition was getting younger and tougher. At eighteen, nineteen, or twenty, they were fearless and healed a lot faster. When would they start whispering behind her back, “She’s embarrassing herself, she’s too old, too slow, not as quick as she used to be. She doesn’t have it anymore”?

  Shannon didn’t go to college. Hell, she barely finished high school because of the fiasco in Caroline’s room. All she had wanted to do was ride. Even without a formal college education, she had done well for herself. She surrounded herself with people she trusted who knew what they were doing with the money she earned and her inheritance. She was financially set, and if she were careful, could probably do whatever she wanted for the rest of her life. But what would that be?

  Shannon didn’t like what she saw in her future. She didn’t want to be a has-been that didn’t know when to stop, when the competition had passed her by in the fast lane. She wanted to go out on top and she would do it this year, with this championship. Starting with this race, she would have no greater pleasure than beating the sanctimonious Caroline Davis.

  Chapter Seventeen

  “Ladies and gentlemen, riding for Bellow and wearing the blue leader’s jersey, Caroline Davis.” Even with her third place finish the race before, Caroline still led the series with the highest number of points.

  Her concentration was so intense the only thing Caroline heard was the garbled muffle of her name being called. She didn’t hear the roar of the crowd or the ring of the starter’s bell but somehow knew when to shoot off the starting line.

  Dig, dig, dig, she commanded her legs with each up and down stroke of the pedals. Stroke after stroke took her farther up the trail, her legs burning from exertion and her breathing heavy. Shifting eased some of the strain on her legs and she rose off the saddle, leaning over the handlebars for more traction and power.

  Up, down, up, down, she commanded and before she knew it, she was at the top of the hill. Not sparing a moment to enjoy the view, she crested the trail and started her descent. Shift, shift, shift, shift, the popping of her gears was in direct synchronization with the up and down strokes of her thighs. Concentrate, easy, shift, brake, shift, pedal, hard turn, keep it tight, keep it tight, shift, pedal, pedal, were the commands in her head transferring to her body. Suddenly, she was out of the last turn and in the final straightaway. Dig, dig, dig, she chanted, this time out loud, and the roar of the crowd as she crossed the finish line drowned out any other sound. Skidding to a stop and breathing heavily, Caroline felt light-headed. Breathe in, out, in, out, she chanted in her head and her well-trained body followed directions. She had beaten everyone’s time and the course record by an astonishing one point two seconds.

  Her hands were shaking so badly she couldn’t unbuckle her helmet strap. After a few moments, a familiar face was in front of her, and Fran’s steady hands were doing the work for her.

  “CD, you kicked ass, girl. If you keep this up, you’ll wipe out the competition and have them for lunch.”

  Fran’s all-access pass blew around her head in the breeze, almost poking Caroline in the eye.

  *

  The knock on the door was unexpected. Caroline was in her robe. Normally she and Fran shared a room but Fran had insisted on her own this trip. Debating on whether or not to answer it, she stared at the door as if she could see through it. She sighed and got up when the knocking continued with no sign of stopping. She peered through the peephole and quickly stepped back as if it were blistering hot. In a way it was. Shannon was framed in the oblong lens looking right at her.

  Caroline didn’t know whether she was up to seeing Shannon. She was exhausted and, considering her reawakening feelings toward her, she knew she needed to be at her sharpest whenever she was with her. She didn’t want to get caught up in the memory and say or do something she would regret later. Against her better judgment, she opened the door.

  Caroline’s stomach jumped when Shannon’s face softened and she smiled. Her smile, with the slight di
mple on her left cheek, had taken her breath away ten years ago and still had the same effect.

  “I hope I’m not bothering you,” Shannon said tentatively.

  “No, not at all.” Caroline closed the top of her nightgown when Shannon noticed the exposed flesh.

  “I just wanted to…uh…compliment you on your ride today.”

  Shannon shifted her weight from foot to foot the way she used to when she was nervous.

  “Thanks. I’m glad you’re okay.” That was the best she could do and even that was difficult. She was still pissed that Shannon had risked her life to race when she might not have been ready. She certainly wasn’t going to congratulate her for doing something stupid.

  It looked like Shannon wanted to say more and Caroline deliberated on whether or not to give her an opening. Silence hung in the air like fog before Shannon finally spoke.

  “May I come in?”

  A combination of excitement and uncertainty coursed through Caroline’s body. What did she want? What else could she possibly have to say? A dozen other questions popped in her mind in the second it took her to make up her mind. Opening the door was just as much a signal for Shannon to come into the room as it was for her to step back into her life.

  Shannon’s hair smelled like strawberries again when she walked by and Caroline’s hand shook as she closed the door. When she turned around Shannon was standing at the foot of the bed, looking at it as if it were going to swallow her. Caroline walked around her and opened the door to the minibar.

  “Would you like something to drink?”

  Shannon chuckled nervously. “I’d like a strong drink, but no thanks, I’m fine.”

  Watching Shannon’s body language, Caroline knew she was anything but relaxed. She was wringing her hands, and her gaze shifted around the room before finally settling on Caroline. Shannon was making her nervous.