Shift

CHAPTER THREE

If there was one thing she missed while being locked up, it was street racing.

Alex missed the adrenaline of being out there and the exhilaration of winning. So, the first thing she did when she got out of there, was headed over to that side of town and slapped down a few hundred dollar bills to be in the race that night. Of course, Clark Bronwen was more than happy to accept the extra cash she supplied so she was guaranteed a spot.

At ten o'clock exactly that night, Alex was revving her 1967 Ford Mustang Fastback on an empty street. The car obviously had extra perks to ensure that she would win races, it was all about the speed and right timing. She was fortunate to now have both, physically and within the car.

The man next to her had a cocky smirk on his face. There weren't very many girls that participated in the actual races, but more hung off of the sleazy guys that raced. Some wore nothing more than underwear, like the girl in front of the cars with a makeshift flag in her hand to start the race.

What the man didn't know, was that Alex had been competing for years and had won hundreds of thousands of dollars in the past because of the streak of races she won. She wasn't overwhelmed, or scared, the money she had put in would double, probably even triple by the amount of people that were there, before it returned to her pocket.

As soon as that flag swished down, there was a cloud of smoke and they were off. It was to be a lap around most of the city and whoever returned first would win. Alexandra had done the track dozens of times and as long as she stayed (mostly) on it, she would remain in the set of the few rules.

She was barely a car lengths ahead of her opponent. In her rear view mirror, Alex could see the man trying to get a path ahead of her, however, she continued to swerve so he was unable to make a move. There was a constant switch between gears, something she had also mastered while being on the streets. She laughed, although no one was there to hear it. The thrill of it all was what she missed the most, going at a speed like that and avoiding to get caught.

Last time, she got caught and that was what lead to her capture from Barry Allen. The only reason that she got caught was because the person she was going against was a rookie and had no idea how to steer clear of the cops. But this guy was different, he was smart, not as smart as her. His mistake was underestimating a girl, a very pretty, blonde, girl.

Alex made a sharp turn, it was a short cut that only few knew about. The timing to get around the corner and down the back street had to be very precise. If one was even a second off, they would be crushed, with the speed they had to go at and the brick wall wasn't going to move. Alex had practiced that turn so many times, that it became nothing for her. She switched gears again after being able to return back to normal speed.

By the time she made it through the alley, her opponent was nowhere in sight and she was easily going to win that race. That one back street saved so much time, and technically was still on the path, or at least no one called her out on it. It was her secret, and the few others that were brave enough to attempt it as well.

Finally the last streak came into view and Alex switched to her highest gear for the last bit of extra speed. She did a U-turn whilst reaching a stop. As soon as her car reached a full stop, she jumped out and entered the crowd. It felt good to win again, a grin was plastered on her face as everyone around her was ecstatic by her win.

A lot of people knew her, although no one knew her real name. She swore to herself not to let her name into that system, there were a few people around that were smart enough to figure it out, but they kept their mouths shut which she appreciated. There were people there that didn't like her, and if they knew who she really was or where she lived, then her past might catch up with her. And that wasn't going to end pretty for anyone.