Story: Nameless (chapter 1)

Nameless: The White Cat

It was that time of the year again, and word had been going around the streets for weeks now. The cops on patrol witnessed a record low amount of crime as the month of March rolled in, so much so that even parking tickets were rare. The garages all around down town suddenly opened shop all night long as sounds of busy tinkling and hammering could be heard from within the heavily shut doors.

It was that time of the year again and the nervous lull could only mean one thing: Burn Out. Three days of all out, everything or nothing pedal to the metal, crash the carburetor racing. For three hundred and sixty two days of the year, the streets of Miami prepared for this one event, the biggest assembly of cars from all over the country. Vehicles of all models and types all enhanced and tweaked at every point to ensure the ultimate goal. Winning the top spot and going home with a collective pool of money worth more than a million dollars.

It all started in the late nineties when the cops began cracking heavily on street racing of any kind. The one dependable thing about the street was adaptability; people learned to fit their routines according to the whim of whichever commissioner was in charge at any given time. And so Burn Out was born; the three nights in the year when all and every serious racer put their lives and their vehicles on the line.

Lupe Martinez squinted into the sky and blew a breath from between her teeth. It was the typical Miami summer day; hot, humid and dank. Her tan tank top clung to her damp skin and beads of sweat formed around her collarbone, trickling down and collecting on the hem of the skimpy top.

"Damn it's hot"

She swore softly and turned back to the task of waxing the creamy white bonnet of her car. Not more than ten minutes ago Lupe had let the water from the hose run down her whole body, not caring that it would ruin her braid, not that it mattered. In Miami the one thing no one could escape was the heat. She squeezed the rag in her hand tighter and ground harder into the metal sheet, and was rewarded by the sharp glint of the sun over the vehicle. That was the third successive process of wash and wax the car had received that day and it showed.

"Oye Lupe, get your ass away from that junket and over here."

A male voice called from the front of the garage and she swore again.

"Pendejo"

Her brother Javier called again and she scowled, dropping the rag impatiently on the grass as she stalked out to the front to confront him.

"Que te quieres?"

Javier took one look at his sister's disheveled state, her wild black her hanging in damp clumps around her face, the too tight tank top that clung to every inch of skin on her body, not to mention the fact that her shorts were way beyond short, and every protective brotherly instinct in him reared up.

"You looked at yourself in the mirror lately, huh? You look like a piece of crap"

Of course that was not true and the roving eyes of his boys, the other members of his team confirmed that as they traveled appreciatively down his sister's body. Lupe rolled her eyes and folded her arms in defiance.

"I said what do you want?"

Javier scowled more heavily at her tone. Ever since she turned seventeen it was like no one could talk to her anymore in the house. She hung out at the garage more than normal, not to mention constantly causing trouble among the guys and him always having to punch some loser for staring too hard at his sister. He just couldn't understand why Lupe couldn't be like the other sisters in the block and be interested in makeup and looking pretty. No his own sister had to be the one to fiddle with junk cars and cuss and wear short shorts.

"First you go in and change that junk you're wearing- you're a girl for god sakes act like one -and then bring the box that they delivered here yesterday out"

Lupe scowled at her brother's words but obeyed; Javier was the boss of this outfit and he enforced that in every possible way. Plus there was the fact that he'd taken care of her since their mom passed away and with their dad doing time in jail, he was practically the only family she had. Except for the numerous annoying cousins that never seemed to go away.
She returned several long minutes later, ignoring the impatient look on her brother's face, and put down the box. It was heavy, but Lupe was used to lifting heavy things; her brother owned a garage after all.

"Good now here's the baby, the packets we'll need for the extra edge once the Burn Out starts tomorrow. These aren't the normal types, I got this top secret all the way from Taiwan and they're even better than nitrous"

Eighteen pairs of eyes widened at that, including Lupe's. To think what just one of those things would do to her car. Javier smiled and ripped open the box, tossing one of its contents in the air.

'But it's even more dangerous than nitrous and we're only gonna use it for the final day, when the losers and wannabees have been cut off"

But Lupe was no longer listening; she was already strapped to her car, standing at the white line and revving, eating up the exhaust as the other cars burned rubber. She was releasing the beast little by little, making it purr just so, and then losing all control and revving the roar out of her baby....

When she blinked back to focus, the guys were already breaking up for the night.

"Hi baby"

Diana Vidal was standing at the entrance of the garage, amidst the catcalls and wolf whistles as the other boys filed out. But she only had eyes for Javier, who grinned and dropped the oil stained rag in his hand to embrace his girlfriend. She smelled so good, he mused, like coconut oil and something else he couldn't place. Her hair was done in a mass of telephone curls all around her face and her skirt wasn't the disgrace his sister insisted on wearing.
Diana smiled at the other girl just as her boyfriend scowled at her. Why can't Lupe act like his girlfriend for once? Get herself prettied up and stop acting like a thug?

"Javier I wanna talk to you"

"Not now"

He murmured as he brushed a kiss on his girlfriend's soft cheek.

"No now, loser, I wanna talk about the Burn Out"

Javier rolled his eyes, already expecting what she was about to say.

"No"

"Hey you didn't even let me talk!"

"I don't care, the answer is no. There's no way in hell I'm letting you take that piece of junk out on the streets."

Lupe shook her head in her car's defense.

"It's not a piece of junk"

"Yeah whatever, the junk doesn't even have a make or model. I swear I got ripped off buying that piece of shit"

Javier complained to his girlfriend plaintively.

"I popped the hood and it's like a frickin' pot luck. No two parts come from the same car, it's like someone just ripped apart a thousand cars and put all the junk in just one car. It doesn't even have a symbol on the front."

Lupe rolled her eyes and stepped closer.

"Screw you asshole, it has a name. I call it Nameless"

"Well there you go. Listen I'm not letting you and that's final"

Javier hugged Diana tight and she giggled softly.

"Come on babe, let her bring it. It's not like she can race with it or anything, all your cars have been registered"

Lupe didn't know whether to be grateful or angry at the other girl's intrusion, but it worked and her brother relented.

"Sure fine, but if I see you anywhere near a white line, you're dead"

She wrinkled her nose and fled to the back without responding.

"Yes!"

Finally, the chance to be in the Burn Out
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It was the second night and the competition was higher than ever. Fifty-eight drivers had already been eliminated and there were twenty left to go. This year's race was taking place in a stretch of highway that was still in construction. Well still in construction because the crew had placed signs and obstructions on a perfectly functioning interstate road.

Loud music boomed from speakers in every corner, and from the backs of custom made sports car. Now and then a car would rev and shoot out jets of colored flames. Lupe stared to her hearts content at every single collection of steel carriage there was in the "lot". Cars painted in every single color imaginable, equipped with devices and appliances she'd never even dreamed of and that was impressive because her brother didn't run a simple establishment.

"Yo where've you been?"

Jose, yet another of the annoying cousins, appeared out of nowhere and she jumped.

"Idiota"

Lupe scowled and shook her head.

"Where does it look like? I've been touring the garages"

He shook his head at that.

"What! Get your ass back in the garage before Javier finds out"
She gave him the finger and walked away, quickly disappearing into the passing crowd. Lupe finally decided she'd had enough and turned back towards her brother's spot when she walked across yet another garage. There wasn't anything remarkable about it; no lights, no loud music, not even the usual entourage of people that hung around the racers. There was only one car in it; a black low slung sports car and at passing glance it looked like a regular old Koeningsegg GT, but then her eyes fell on the front symbol and Lupe realized that wasn't the usual symbol for a K. It was a silver grill with a crouched cat, definitely not the K. She frowned slightly and moved for a closer look, her eyes running around the sensuous curves of the black beast, squinting through the tinted windows inside.

The interior was done in bone white leather, which was odd because racers don't usually spend that much money on the seats. But Lupe got the sense that this wasn't just a vehicle for racing, race cars don't usually come with polished oak dashes, even though the usual equipment was fitted in but the owner was willing to forsake the passenger seat so as not to ruin the d‚cor. This was more than a race junket; this was the kind of car a person took care of like a lover. Lupe smiled, suddenly feeling a kinship with whoever owned this unusual car because it was just the way she felt about her patchwork nameless, the same feeling of more than just ownership but a close intimacy. Her fingers inched close to touch the cold smooth hood and she gave it a little pat.

"Good luck out there, not that it'll do you much good. My brother's going to win this thing"

"You sound so sure of that"

Lupe gasped and jerked around, nearly colliding with the girl standing behind her. She didn't even hear her approach. The other girl didn't seem to register Lupe's reaction but moved closer to rub an imaginary stain on the side of the car. She was wearing a black tee shirt over faded blue jeans and a baseball cap pulled over her eyes.

"Yeah, cos it's true. My brother is the best out here, has been for three years straight"

The other girl smiled slowly at that and shrugged.

"Well there's always a first time for everything"

She pulled out a rag from the back pocket of her faded jeans and extricated a small can of wax. Lupe watched as she began rubbing the top of the car in slow small circles, her arm working closer and farther and closer again until the top was covered in whitish cream, and then she brought out another rag and began wiping it off in short movements. It was as if the rest of the world shifted into the background the way the girl worked, her complete attention focused on the smooth black metal before her and Lupe could almost feel those hands working the top of the car as if it were her own skin.

It wasn't until she was done that the other turned to Lupe and smiled again.

"There, all prettied up"

She wiped her hands on her jeans and gave a contented sigh.
"The race begins in an hour"

Lupe nodded and leaned casually over the side of the car, its owner saw this but said nothing.

"Think you got a chance?"

The other girl looked down at her hands and so Lupe looked at them too. They were big and slightly calloused, with slender fingers that looked strong as well. There were patches of white wax around the knuckles but it didn't matter. Lupe stared fascinated by those hands as she remembered how they worked the top of the car and wondered how they would feel on her bare skin. She felt a warm flush all over at that thought and wrested hr eyes away. The other girl shrugged nonchalantly.

"I'm winning this thing"

Lupe stiffened at the casual assurance in her voice and moved away from the car to give it another glance. She smiled and looked back up at the other girl and their eyes met. Lupe found herself staring into the darkest, hottest eyes she'd ever seen. She simply couldn't look away from them, they seemed to sear into hers with an invisible flame, ripping apart the veils and bringing out to the open her deepest secrets and darkest desires.

"Oye Lupe, get your ass over here"

She jerked away with a gasp and turned to her belligerent brother, who was glaring at the other girl and her car. Lupe gave a half apologetic smile, though she didn't know what she was apologizing for, and stepped back.

"I gotta go- good luck in there"

"Thanks, not that I'll be needing it"

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"Okay people, this is the second round of the drive off and it's getting hot in there"

The Mc Gabriel yelled into his speaker and the crowd cheered in response.

"The money pot stands right now at three mil and twelve hombres are about to be shaved off like that"

He snapped his fingers for effect and the crowd yelled again. Lupe climbed over the shoulders of the nearest cousin to perch right beside a post, the elevated height giving her a bird's view of the area. Six cars immediately lined up as people scrambled to give way; no one wanted to be at the business end of a flaming exhaust. The starter girls, both dressed in white halters and extra short shorts, walked from opposite sides of the white line and waved their white hankies to the crowd. The air was quickly filled with smoke and the smell of burning rubber as the cars revved and charged. The girls let go of their hankies in tandem and six metal beasts leaped forward. Lupe held on to the post for safety as they flew past her, sending up a cloud of dust in their wake.

The highway circuit would take exactly four minutes to cover and only the first three would qualify for the next round of eliminations. By tomorrow night there would be only six racers left for the winner take all race, the main event that most people had come here for in the first place. And there were already a few names lined up; Javier's crew was a favorite, but so were the Ortiz brothers and Chrome. Lupe thought about the girl with the mysterious car and wondered whether she would be any competition. It seemed doubtful, her car had only the minimum equipment and her challengers were all sure to bring something extra. She thought about her reaction to the other girl back in the garage and felt her face heat up, luckily the roar of incoming cars distracted Lupe from any other thought but check listing the first three.

Another batch of six lined up to race and she spotted two of her brother's three cars among them. A tense smile tugged at her lips for a moment but Lupe shrugged it off. There was no way Javier wouldn't have at least two cars in the top six, not with the way he'd been on the crew's back for almost the whole year now. Not with the amount of time and care they'd all put into crafting the best machines and fitting them to specific drivers. All six flew once more out of the lot and Lupe waited a tad anxiously for their return. She was not disappointed to find that her brother's car came in both second and third places to qualify. The next batch of six also had one of her brothers in it, but this time it came in at a close fourth.

Lupe chewed her lip, wondering who was going to get it from Javier the next day but there was no time to ruminate because the last six soon lined up. She spotted her brother's last car as well as the black K that wasn't a K. Lupe found her self sitting up straighter in anticipation of this race; girl drivers weren't very common, in fact there were probably only five of them in the whole drive out. She wanted to see if the girl was everything she made herself to be. The cars roared out of the lot once more but this time Lupe trained her eyes squarely to their return path. The minutes seemed to be interminable and the din of the crowd suddenly became infuriating. Finally the gleam of light on glass signaled their approach and Lupe leaned out eagerly.

They were all going at breakneck speed but as she ticked them off as they whizzed by; right in the front was a camero with the Ortiz brother's symbol with the black K right at its tail. The next two flashed by and it took a moment for her to realize that her brother's wasn't one of them. It seemed like Javier would only have two riders in the semi-finals after all. Lupe watched the crowd stream to their favorites, noticing that the black K quietly eased out of the main lot and toward the garage. She frowned softly at that; the other girl had come second place, surely she deserved to gloat a little.

"Yo Lupe, get off from there"

She looked down sharply, ready to blast whoever was speaking and then noticed it was Diana. The other girl chuckled as her boyfriend's sister scrambled from the tall post and shook her head.

"Javier's sent people to look for you, good thing no one thought to check here"

They returned to an uproarious garage, with her brother both congratulating and castigating the winners and losers. He stopped when the girls approached and frowned at his sister.

"Where you've been?"

The latter shrugged vaguely and gestured toward the still cooling cars.
Javier followed her gaze and returned to his train of thought.

"So now it's crunch time for the semis, now we need the packet"

While he spoke, Lupe inched toward the driver in the last race and nudged him.

"You came in fourth"

He nodded and scowled heavily.

"Those guys were crazy as shit man, the way they were driving. I was lucky to come out alive"

"That bad?"

Lupe murmured sympathetically and he nodded.

"Listen, there was one black Koenig in your set-"

She didn't need to say anymore because his face tightened even further.

"That bitch is crazy as hell, you should have seen the way she kept weaving lanes. That aint no K, that's for sure, she didn't even boost up or anything"

At that moment Javier called all his drivers together and Lupe left the garage. Apparently she was wrong about the other girl after all.
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Chapter 1