Late nights

XXI

Emily followed Tom around the store, while he got everything he needed. They got back in the car and Tom called Harry to start another stage of the plan:

- Hey Harry, how's your work going? - Tom asked.

- It's going.

- Alright. Listen, Harry, I have an offer for you. 5 thousand is a lot of money, so I'll give you a chance to pay it all off. A street race with 5 grand on the line. If you win, you pay all the money off, but if you lose, your debt doubles.

- Listen, I'm not listening to some i***t making me random offers. I'm the one who offers, not you. - Harry started getting heated.

- Okay. - Tom hung up the phone, even though Harry was saying something. 

Tom was looking at his phone, waiting for it to ring. He knew that Harry couldn't refuse that offer.

- Listen. I'll take the offer, but if you pull any trick on me I'll kick your head in. - Harry said.

- No tricks, just a race. 10 PM, at the redwood forest entry, the race ends where the forest does. - He hung up.

- You think you're gonna win? - Emily asked.

- That's the thing - I don't need to and I don't plan to. This part of the plan is a bit tricky, but let's hope this works.

- Thank god you don't plan to win because you would need a miracle to win in a Toyota Corolla.

- Hey, don't bash on it, it's not a bad car. 

Tom and Emily decided that Tom would race Harry alone. A Toyota corolla against a Corvette. Tom pulled up to the start of the forest and waited for Harry. Once he showed up, he didn't waste any time before trash-talking.

- You know you're not gonna win, - Harry laughed, - it's a statistical impossibility.

- A statistical impossibility is very rare, and in this case, it's not an impossibility. The most important thing is what's under the hood. - Tom smiled, knowing the car wasn't modified one bit. 

The race started and Harry blasted off. The only thing Tom hoped for is that he wouldn't slow down, and knowing Harry, Tom knew that he wouldn't. 

One turn after another, Tom could hear that Harry wasn't slowing down. Moments after, the sound stopped, and Tom had hoped that the plan worked. He kept driving at a normal speed, soon he drove by Harry - pulled over by a police car. Tom unsuspiciously drove by and calmly crossed the finish line. He came home, where Emily was waiting for him in the garage.

- Did it work? - Emily asked.

- It worked like a charm. The police were waiting for him.

- That means I called them at just the right time. That's perfect. So what now? His debt doubles?

- I'm not sure. Of course, that was the plan, but that's a lot of money. His permit will probably be suspended, if not revoked. Isn't that enough?

- Let's go for a drive and then we'll talk about it. - Emily said and walked to the car.

They got in the car and cruised around the city.

- So, he's gonna get punished, but ten thousand in debt is so much. - Tom said.

- At what price do you place cheating then? - Emily crossed her hands.

- What kinda question even is that? Listen, I understand that he's a horrible person, I totally get that, but two wrongs don't make a right.

- What do you even mean? I want revenge, I need revenge. - Emily was getting heated.

Tom was speeding up in the car.

- Is revenge right? That's the question, Emily.

- Is cheating on someone right? No, it's not. People need to learn.

- They won't learn by being in debt.

- They just might. - Both Emily and Tom were shouting at each other in the car.

Tom stopped the car and took a breath.

- No, yeah, you're right, - Tom opened a door, - let's continue with the plan, he won't learn otherwise.

- I'm sorry, I got a little heated there.

- It's okay, I didn't know the car went that fast. - Tom said just as his phone started ringing. It was Harry.