Reborn to Claim Her: The Heir's Revenge

Victory before the Fire

“All cars get ready!” A voice echoed through the speakers.

All the racers adjusted their grip on the steering wheels. I inhaled slowly and kept my eyes fixed ahead. The track stretched forward, clear and open.

The flag marshall walked to the center of the road and raised the flag high. My fingers tightened around the wheel, but a sharp pain shot through my hand. I frowned for a second but ignored it. This was not the time to think about pain.

I focused.

The flag dropped.

I slammed my foot on the accelerator.

The car surged forward, and within seconds, I pushed ahead of everyone. The engine responded well, and I took the lead almost immediately. I could hear the other cars behind me, close and aggressive, but none of them were faster.

I stayed steady, keeping my line.

Then I saw him.

Gideon, my race rival and Elijah's sponsor

He moved up fast on my right side, his car edging too close. I knew his style. He didn’t care about rules. He only cared about winning. To him, the end justified the means.

He swerved toward me.

“Damn it.”

I turned the wheel sharply, avoiding the hit by a small margin. My tires screeched as I corrected the car and kept it on track. Gideon didn’t back off. He stayed close, trying again, pushing his car toward mine.

“Back off!” I muttered, even though he couldn’t hear me.

My grip tightened again, ignoring the pain in my hand this time. My focus shifted fully to the car.

I pressed the accelerator harder, but there was no response.

My eyes narrowed.

“This isn’t right…”

Gideon came again, even closer now, trying to force me off the road. I swerved to avoid him, but the car didn’t respond the way it should.

My eyes moved to the side mirror. The rest were also closing in on me.

I eased my foot off the accelerator for a split second, then pressed it again with more force this time.

This time, it finally answered me.

“Good… stay with me,” I muttered under my breath.

Gideon came in again from the side, trying to squeeze me out. This time, I didn’t fight him directly. I let the car drift slightly, giving him just enough space to think he had the upper hand.

Then I cut back in.

My tires gripped the road properly this time. The car jerked forward, regaining momentum. Gideon’s car lagged for a second and that was all I needed.

I pushed ahead.

The track curved sharply ahead. I reduced speed just enough to take the turn cleanly. The cars behind me struggled to keep up. I could hear tires screeching and engines straining.

The finish line was not far now.

My hand still hurt, but I ignored it completely. I tightened my grip and focused on the straight path ahead.

Finally, I crossed the finish line first.

“DRIFT! DRIFT! DRIFT!” People yelled as I slowed the car and brought it to a stop. My chest rose and fell as I caught my breath. For a moment, I just sat there, hands still on the wheel.

Then I stepped out.

The noise got louder.

They kept shouting my racer name.

“Drift, sign your name on my chest. Right here.” One of the fans said as she exposed her chest.

A sharp gasp escaped my lips.

I looked around briefly, then my eyes landed on Gideon. He got out of his car slowly. His face was tight. Angry. He kicked his tire once before turning away with his manager behind him.

A few minutes later, smoke rose up in the air as I was signing. My eyes darted to the building, watching as fire spread fast from the far side of the parking area.

At first, the crowd didn’t understand what was happening. Some people even cheered, thinking it was part of the show.

Then someone screamed.

“Fire! Fire!”

My head snapped fully toward it. The smoke grew thicker within seconds, turning dark as flames pushed up along the side of the building. Heat followed quickly, sharp and real even from where I stood.

My chest tightened.

This…

This was it.

In my past life, Blossom had told me a story of how she had gotten an ugly scar on her back. According to her, that day she almost died. Gideon had started a fire incident at the racing event she went to. A lot of people had lost their lives and the company had been suffered a huge damage.

Even with his crime, he still walked away with it.

“The fire department is here!” Someone screamed pulling me out of my thoughts.

I watched as some firefighters rushed into the building without hesitation. Others stayed outside, pulling long hoses and aiming water at the growing flames. The fire was already too big. It spread fast across the walls and up toward the roof.

People were running in all directions now. The earlier excitement was gone and panic had set in now throughout the place.

I glanced around trying to find her through the chaos.

Blossom.

Where was she?

I grabbed the arm of one of the firefighters standing nearby. “Where is Blossom? Did you see her?”

He shook his head quickly, trying to pull away. “I don’t know. Move back! It’s dangerous here!”

“I need to find her!” I snapped.

“Everyone is being evacuated,” he said, already turning his attention elsewhere. “Blossom is one of the best firefighters we have. Let us handle it.”

Handle it?

I looked back at the building. The fire had grown worse in just seconds. Flames pushed out through the windows now, thick smoke coming out of them.

I clenched my jaw.

Waiting wasn’t an option.

Before anyone could stop me, I ran straight toward the building.

“Hey! You can’t go in there!” someone shouted behind me but I ignored them.

The heat hit me the moment I stepped inside. It was intense. The air felt suffocating making it hard to breathe. Smoke filled the entire place and the fire made it difficult for me to see anything.

I pulled my shirt up slightly to cover my nose and mouth as I moved forward.

“Blossom!” I shouted.

No response.

I pushed deeper inside, scanning every corner I could see. The fire crackled loudly around me but I still moved on.

“Blossom!”

Minutes passed, but it felt longer. The smoke got thick making my eyes burn. I started to cough, each breathe becoming harder to take.

A loud crash echoed suddenly.

I barely had time to react before a door from one of the side rooms broke loose and swung hard toward me.

Just then, I spotted her.

“Blossom!” I yelled, kneeling down by her side.

Sliding my arms around her, I carried her onto my back and quickly turned heading to the door.

Just then, the fire exploded.

Heat slammed into me as flames burst across the room, knocking both of us to the ground. My vision blurred as I stared at Blossom beside me.

She still wasn't moving.

“Hel—” I tried to speak, but no sound came out.

There was no way out.