Debutant. Chapter 12. Scarier than a fairy tale. 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 12. Scarier than a fairy tale. Part two

– What must we do? – Henry stared at Stanton in confusion.

– Let’s drag him! Take your hands.

They both grabbed the injured pilot under the arms, but were unable to pull him out of the wrecked car. New attempt! Jeffrey groaned loudly in pain. Another failure.

“Pull,” Henry croaked. – He is stuck!

– Stop!

– What happened? We must continue!

– He’s covered in gasoline, can you feel it?! The tank is broken. The slightest spark – we will go up in flames.

Henry instinctively recoiled.

– Wait, I’m turning off the fuel pump now.

Michael reached into the inside of the car and rummaged around inside. Henry froze in confusion. A sense of the unreality of what was happening came over me. The twisted pile of metal and the people surrounding it did not fit in with the silent centuries-old oaks and the untouched nature. Although in a hundred years she would probably have seen something different.

“Everything’s fine,” Stanton leaned out, covered in fuel. – Clear his head.

Just pull down the goggles, but what about the helmet? Henry tried to pull the buckle off, but it didn’t work. His hands were so clumsy, his fingers trembled and slipped. Finally he decided to take off his gloves, the strap gave way immediately and the helmet flew silently into the grass.

It seems that Jeffrey came to his senses, his look took on meaning, he breathed heavily and intermittently, his hair, wet with sweat, stuck to his forehead.

– What happened to me? Spencer whispered.

“Nonsense,” Stanton replied with exaggerated cheerfulness. “It looks like my leg is trapped.” Move it!

– Like in a vice.

– Then don’t pull on it.

– We have to get out!

“Take your time, we’ll figure out how to get you out first.”

Henry carefully examined the damaged car, the entire front end had turned into an abstract sculpture. Sure enough, the metal inside was so deformed and twisted that the leg was trapped and could not be pulled out without outside help. Apparently the same thought occurred to Michael.

– You need tools, you can’t live without them. How are you, Jeffrey?

“Drink…” Jeffrey asked plaintively with dry lips.

-Sorry buddy, there’s no water. Be patient.

-Where is anyone? – Henry looked around. – Firefighters, office workers, just everyone. Are we all alone?

– Forgot where you are, dude? Stanton chuckled. “We are on the other side of the highway, in a deep forest, there is nothing to count on for quick help.” Let’s hope one of the pilots will inform the jurors about the accident.

-Where are the checkpoints? – Henry was surprised that when you are in the car, for some reason you don’t care at all how the track employees are positioned along the distance. But this is extremely important, who knew!

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Stanton waved him away. – There are only a few along the entire route. Run to the audience – ask something sharp and cutting, you will find out on the spot.

– And where to?

– Er, young people, you don’t know the area. There they stand in groups along the fence, about five hundred meters away. I will stay here. How are you, Jeffrey?

– Leg… it hurts like hell…

– It hurts – nothing, it means you feel it.

– This is bad?

“Better than broken bones sticking out.”

– Comforted…

– Be patient, friend. Henri, are you still there?!

About ten minutes later he came back. In fact, most of the time was spent overcoming the language barrier; the respectable citizens did not know a word of English, and Henry never thought that German would be useful to him in life.

“Here,” Henry held up a sturdy screwdriver, a pocket knife, and a serious cleaver and added breathlessly. – What we managed to collect quickly. He also asked to call for help. I don’t know if they understood me, but I shouted extremely convincingly.

“That’s enough,” Stanton weighed the tool in his palm. – Let’s get started.

A racing car is not an airplane, there are few parts in it, so it was quickly done with four hands. They bent the thin metal back and finally saved their comrade. They gently laid the groaning Jeffrey on the ground and collapsed next to him in the grass with relief.

Henry finally analyzed the situation soberly. The fact that he came to his colleague’s aid is certainly commendable. The noble Mr. Baker will appreciate it. But what is the result? Maybe Henry would have finished, scored points and built a reputation? Would he have been noticed in Monetti? Another race across the line. What happens to him? Immersed in the atmosphere of the racing brotherhood? Yeah, this brotherhood really doesn’t care about him. It’s time to learn to make an informed decision and not be guided by emotions. They won’t do any good.

“If you want to smoke, your ears will swell,” Stanton complained.

“I’d like your problems,” Spencer hissed.

“You better not move,” Stanton advised. “Who knows what you damaged.”

– The body is like someone else’s…

– Just lie down. It’s good – it remained intact, otherwise anything can happen after such upheavals.

“My car was running like crazy,” Henry complained.

“Someone had a leak in the engine and liberally sprayed the corner,” Michael explained. – Oil on the highway is like ice, you turn into a passenger. I hate this feeling. But you smeared it liberally with the wheels, and no one else got hurt. Everything is a plus.

-Are you joking?

– What remains?

– Jokers, I want to go to the toilet, but I can’t raise my hand.

– Lie still.

-Where’s the help?

– Soon.

“I can smell gasoline up to ten meters away.”

– So your sense of smell is not lost, be happy.

They continued to exchange meaningless comments and lazily watch the cars speeding down the highway, until a shabby van, not even a medical car, reached them. However, from there, a young doctor in a white coat jumped out rather quickly, ran towards them, quickly sensed Jeffrey and cringed in displeasure.

– Load it into the car.

– And the stretcher?

– Does this look like an ambulance? Place it directly on the floor, we will move it to the race track. Faster!

When the smoking van was out of sight, Henry chuckled:

“Let’s hope Jeffrey is in good hands.”

“God forbid, a broken spine,” Michael said seriously. – I noticed that he could hardly move.

– How can we get out? – Henry asked interestedly. – Imagine if we walk ten kilometers?

“It’s not all that bleak, it’s just a few things,” Stanton comforted. – There will be relative civilization there, there will be cars. I bet you haven’t walked in the woods in a long time.

Henry explained somberly and with the utmost clarity where and on what subject he saw this particular forest and others in particular.

“You know, the British Queen rewarded drivers who saved their comrades during accidents,” Stanton thought. – By the way, my country is a member of the British Commonwealth.

– Can we be rewarded?! – Henry was surprised. Is this a chance for recognition?!

– Why are you so upset? – Stanton looked to the side in bewilderment. – Unlikely. Then people showed heroism, ran into the fire, risked their lives, were burned in the flames and some died. There won’t be enough medals to reward everyone who quit. The situation you and I have is quite anecdotal, let’s go through the category of dark humor.

== To be continued…