Debutant. Chapter 11. A glorious adventure. Part 2

This novel is fictional; there is no need to look for intersections with historical events. This is a continuation of “Debutant” by Nikita Savelyev, the first readers of which were readers of F1News.ru…

Chapter 11. A glorious adventure. Part two

The night before the race

– I could go myself, it’s not difficult.

– You barely slept last night, you immediately fall asleep behind the wheel.

– I’ll get some coffee.

– What if it doesn’t help? Not the slightest desire to check.

-Georges? It’s his car.

– Offer it to him yourself.

– Shall we put Teddy behind the wheel? – Edward announced another candidate.

“No, really,” Sandra snapped. “He drives the trailer nice and slowly, but I don’t fancy the prospect of driving around with Teddy half the night.” Besides,” she lowered her voice, “breathing strong cologne is a dubious pleasure.” Henry can handle it just fine, right?

Henry nodded obediently. His own money ran out long ago, almost after he bought the car, and there were so many costs that Edward could only afford. And Henry again moved to the position of a dependent, limiting his modest contribution to the financial well-being of the team only to reaching the start. And admittedly, the race organizers didn’t spoil Baker with big payouts.

The question is: what is the need to go anywhere after the races on Saturday? The wheel bearing on Georges’ car had to be replaced. Adam scratched his head and said he would definitely die during the race. Usually the comrades in the paddock were willing to help their colleagues with spare parts, but this time they could not find what they needed. And Edward made an appointment by telephone with a workshop in Mainz, the nearest large city.

Sandra will handle the purchase. And through a simple search for driver candidates, the choice fell on Henry. One hundred kilometers there and back. They’ll be back after midnight, plenty of time to get some sleep. Fortunately, unlike training, the racing does not start in the early morning, but in the afternoon. Carlo Rinaldo was crossing the Atlantic Ocean at that moment by plane, having achieved an excellent first place at the start of the “Brickmaker”, leaving the entire paddock buzzing with excitement.

Lately, Henry has been a little shy towards Sandra, as much as possible in their miniature team. He tried not to be alone with her, but here he would have to spend long hours together. And there’s no way to get away.

Contrary to expectations, the road there went without any problems. Henry concentrated on the road; You can get good speed on the German autobahn, but the problem is that their battered truck is poorly suited for that. Henry tried not to lose face, so that no one would think that a pensioner was sitting in the car with a cigarette in his mouth and did not dare to stick his nose out of the last row. It took a lot of effort to keep the right pace in the evening traffic. Well, as we know, he showed off a bit in front of Sandra. But the boss’s wife was deep in thought, so the conversation along the way didn’t go well. All the better.

The second leg of the journey also went smoothly. Despite the late hour, they were expected in the workshop. Sandra negotiated very quickly and quickly had the necessary parts in house. When such an opportunity arose, Adam wrote down a whole list. It must be admitted that Sandra understood spare parts with unfeminine scrupulousness, so Henry could not use her at all. Do I have to drag my purchases back?

There was an outage at a gas station on the outskirts of town. There’s something wrong with the car. Lifting the hood, Henry quickly determined the cause: the alternator belt had fallen. The journey drags on.

– What are we doing? – Sandra quietly blew smoke, without paying attention to the proximity of the gas station.

“The work is trivial, they will help us in the workshop,” Henry wiped his hands with a cloth. – Shall we come back?

– Have you looked at your watch? They’re all gone.

“Let’s call, there’s a number and there’s a pay phone here.”

-Where should we call? Sometimes you seem like a smart guy, and sometimes… To the workshop? There are no other numbers.

– I will try to solve it with improvised means.

– What is needed for this? – Sandra asked interestedly.

“Something long and stretchy, like women’s pantyhose,” Henry looked at her legs.

-Are you crazy?

“A man’s belt would be fine too,” Henry grumbled.

– How reliable will your design be?

“We are going to try to reach the circuit.”

– I hear uncertainty in the voice.

– I am not a factory, I do not give any written guarantees.

– So we can stop on the highway at night?

– Hypothetically…

– Reject me from such a prospect.

– Are there options? – Henry was perplexed.

– Let’s look for a roadside motel for heavy truck drivers. We will spend the night, go to the workshop early tomorrow morning, fix it and continue quietly,” Sandra suggested.

-Waiting all night? Tomorrow is the race,” Henry hesitated.

– That is it. After all, you need to get some sleep. Who is our team’s most valuable asset?

She’s making fun of me again, isn’t she?

Henry was lounging on a battered iron bed in a small hotel room and was in sweet idleness. The only decoration of the room was a darkened picture in a shabby frame on the wall. With a racing flavor, strangely enough. The racer, tensely holding the steering wheel of an unknown snow-white car, rushes somewhere in a dashing bend, while smoke flies under the wheels, small rivals far behind. Judging from the contours of the car, this takes place before the Second World War. It looks like the guy is a ring man. And this created a bit of fun. It started to make me sleepy; the day had become eventful: first exciting races, then an unexpected journey, and the road was tiring any way you looked at it.

The door swung open resolutely, without even a hint of knocking. Sandra entered the room and critically examined the only chair that had probably seen the Great Depression.

– The situation leaves much to be desired. For me, though, it’s the same.

Sandra hesitantly plopped down on the shabby upholstery and entrusted her luxurious ass to the chair. From fatigue, I desperately wanted to remain in a horizontal position, but finally the hostess and Henry slowly got up from his chair.

– Do they smoke here? – Sandra flicked her lighter.

– The ashtray is not visible.

– Let’s assume that is so.

– Did you get through it?

“Yes,” Sandra exhaled angrily. – With difficulties. Do you know how many buyers this stupid machine has gone through? But it is good. Edward agreed to our plan, we will wait for him in the morning.

“That’s great,” Henry muttered. To be honest, my eyes were already closing.

“We can enjoy ourselves as we please and enjoy all the benefits of this beautiful place,” Sandra said cheerfully.

– Which? – Henry was genuinely surprised. “It doesn’t even smell like a bar, let alone a restaurant.” There is a roadside cafe nearby, but I noticed it is closed.

– My God, are there really alternatives?

– Certainly.

“I’m as tired as a dog, I want to drink and relax,” Sandra serenely stretched her legs.

Henry shrugged vaguely; he had no desire for alcohol under any circumstances. Still an athlete. Even if it’s half fake.

– Make the lady happy, even if we are in a hopeless hole and there are pedantic Germans around, but I don’t believe the situation is so hopeless. I really feel like having a glass of wine after all the experiences. Think of something.

What kind of experiences?! Were we stuck in a forest hut with a thin door at night, surrounded by howling wolves?

Trying not to show his displeasure, Henry put on his jacket and walked out of the room into the cool of the night. After all, he remained one hundred percent American and his natural ingenuity did not fail. The night porter’s feisty appearance left no doubt: he would get everything. The counter-guardian promised honestly: he does not guarantee ten-year-old wines, but so far no one has been poisoned. Henry assured that he understands all the difficulties and has no complaints about the quality. The receptionist sent the bellboy somewhere and within twenty minutes maximum, Henry found what he was looking for. True, there were squabbles over the cost of the coveted drink, which was several times disproportionately inflated even from the point of view of the inexperienced Henry. The receptionist noted that he was in fact a monopolist and had the right to impose whatever conditions he wanted, but Henry reasonably objected that he was currently not seeing an increased demand for the product and that it would not be better if the receptionist would do that. limit himself to the bird in his hands. The result was that both parties parted ways satisfied. Sandra, of course, like a woman, did not bother to provide Henry with money, and he impetuously shook almost all the money out of his wallet. What an expensive trip.

== To be continued…