‘I can’t, by any stretch of the imagination, see Dallas hitting a woman over the head with a club and dragging her off by the hair to his cave. He’s much too gentle.’ Danni was amused. ‘And, besides, I don’t care for all that tough stuff either. There has to be a happy medium to be found somewhere. Anyway, how come all of a sudden you’re regaling me with Dallas’ virtues when a moment ago you had me all but married to Shiloh O’Rourke?’
Lisa’s brow puckered in thought. ‘Now that I come to think of it,’ she said seriously, ‘it has to be Shiloh O’Rourke for you. I’ve read all the signs and they’re written there on your face. You’ve never blushed over Dallas, neither have you become decidedly vague when discussing him or anyone else. Usually you’re sharp as a tack about even the most minute detail. With Shiloh O’Rourke you’re all fluffy-headed and distant. Yes, it has to be Shiloh O’Rourke.’ She gave Danni a studiedly direct look and then went off to answer the telephone.
The phone call was for Danni, so she didn’t have long to meditate over Lisa’s way-off-the-mark statements. Her heart began to thump painfully. Maybe Shilohâ? No, it couldn’t possibly be him. He would be in mid-air between Brisbane and Sydney by now. She took the phone from Lisa, who completely burst the bubble by mouthing that it was Dallas.
‘Danni?’ asked his familiar voice. ‘Hi! It’s me. Dallas. Sorry to disturb you at work. I rang you at home last night but couldn’t get you. What’s the arrangement for tomorrow?’
Danni blinked. Tomorrow? Oh, the races. How could she have forgotten? Until the last day or so the first motor races of the new series had been the focal point in her life. She had been practising and working towards these races for months.
‘Oh, the races, of course,’ she said absently.
‘Danni, that is you, isn’t it?’ On the other end of the line Dallas’s voice was filled with puzzlement.
‘Yes, Dallas, it is me. Who else?’ She forced a laugh into her voice. ‘Now, I’m working in the morning until twelve, so I guess you’ll have to bring the car down and I’ll meet you at the track at about twelve-thirty.’
‘Okay, will do. I hope you aren’t nervous about the races, Danni, are you?’ His voice held concern. ‘You don’t sound like you today.’
‘No, of course not, Dallas. I won’t be nervous until I’m on the starting grid. I’m sorry I was so vague. I had my mind lost in a list of books I was reading off.’ Danni grimaced as Lisa raised her eyebrows at Danni’s slight bending of the truth.
‘Well, I’m nervous enough for both of us,’ Dallas was saying, ‘but I suppose you’ll be as cool as a cucumber. You usually are. I don’t know how you manage it.’
‘If you keep telling me I won’t be nervous, Dallas, I’ll do an about-face and go completely to pieces!’
‘Hey, Danni, don’t do that,’ Dallas said quickly, all concern.
‘I was only teasing, Dallas,’ she took pity on him, wishing he would relax and let himself enjoy a joke occasionally. It wasn’t that he was stuffy or boring, but he never seemed to be able to laugh at himself. ‘I promise not to be nervous. Are you sure you don’t mind bringing the car down from Mallaroo without my help? I would have changed my shift with Sue, but she has her sister’s wedding tomorrow.’
‘No, it’s all right, Danni,’ Dallas hastened to reassure her. ‘I’m free in the morning, so I’ll take my time. One of the boys will give me a hand. Does your father know not to expect you home this evening?’
‘Yes. I phoned him as soon as I knew I’d be working in the morning,’ Danni told him. ‘I’m sure Pop will help you get everything ready as well.’
‘Good. I can have everything set up by the time you get out to the track. The first practice heats for the Formula Fords are at two o’clock, aren’t they? You’re number fifty-two, so I guess you’ll be in the second heat. There won’t be any need for you to hurry down.’
‘Thanks, Dallas, that’ll be fine. See you tomorrow, then.’ And he rang off.
Danni replaced the receiver on its cradle.
‘Poor Dallas,’ Lisa shook her head. ‘He doesn’t stand a chance, does he?’
A picture of Shiloh O’Rourke appeared vividly in Danni’s mind as she looked at the younger girl, and she sighed. ‘No, Lisa, I guess he doesn’t, at that.’
CHAPTER FOUR
The following afternoon Danni sat comfortably on a collapsible aluminium chair, reading her novel. She found reading the most relaxing way to spend the time waiting for her practice heats to be run. There was much activity all about and the activity was all automobile-orientated. The throb of engines hung heavy on the clear air in the paddock.
It was an ideal day for racing. The sky was blue, broken here and there by light fluffy white clouds, and the weather report predicted another fine day for tomorrow’s racing. A cool fresh breeze stirred the flowing green grass in the wide expanse enclosed by the track. The breeze lifted Danni’s hair as she sat in the shade of the tarpaulin awning they had erected out from the utility. She wore her driving suit, which was a bright shade of lime green, the reflected colours giving her eyes the turquoise shade of the sea less than ten kilometres from the raceway.
There was nearly an hour for Danni to wait for her heats on the track and Dallas professed the car to be ready to go. The car had been passed as safe and legally complying with the race rules by the officials, and at the moment Dallas was giving it a final check over. Danni smiled tolerantly at him as he fussed about the car like a mother hen. From the pocket of his light blue overalls he pulled a soft cloth and began to buff up the already gleaming paintwork. She shook her head, knowing his actions to be a release of nervous tension and pre-race jitters, which she surprisingly hadn’t yet begun to suffer. On the starting grid she admitted to a certain fluttering of butterflies in her stomach, but once on the track her thoughts and reactions were highly tuned to the race and her handling of her car.
She ran her eye over the Lola. The majority of the bodywork was painted a bright lemon yellow, which contrasted acutely with the black of the tyres. Both sides and the bonnet of the car bore a large white circle with the number fifty-two, which was Danni’s allotted number, clearly displayed. Advertisements for her sponsors were marked on the sides towards the rear and across the bonnet, Mallaroo Stud and a brand of motor oil which gave generous encouragement to a large number of amateur drivers.
Danni shifted slightly in her chair, her eyes returning to her novel. She was all ready to climb into the car, except for her headgear and gloves. Her father had made her a gift of her racing outfit, although she had a sneaking suspicion that he was not totally happy about her racing. However, he had sponsored her car, and taken Dallas on as a part-time hand at Mallaroo and part-time mechanic for the Formula Ford Driver to Europe series in which Danni was entered.
The fact that the rounds of the series were run in each state meant a considerable amount of travelling for Dallas and Danni. She had not wanted to throw in her job at the library, so she had worked out a rather tight schedule for herself. Dallas would drive the utility and the trailer carrying her car down to each racetrack and set everything up while Danni flew down on Friday night when she finished work. She would return by plane on Sunday night, ready for work on Monday. Fortunately, there were only four rounds in the series, stretched out over three months. During the rest of the season she would compete in the State titles run at Surfers Paradise International Raceway and at Lakeside.
Danni glanced at her wristwatch and then across to see Dallas, his polishing cloth back in his pocket, heading her way.
‘Time to get ready.’ Dallas joined her, handing her her balaclava and helmet. ‘You feel okay, Danni?’ he asked, full of his usual concern. ‘Not too nervous, are you?’
‘No, Dallas, I’m fine,’ she replied, slipping her safety helmet on to her head and adjusting the chin-straps. ‘Keep your fingers crossed for me!’
She slid
into the body-moulding contours of the cockpit and Dallas helped her fasten and adjust her racing harness. A voice on the loudspeaker crackled out almost incoherently and Dallas nodded his head, giving her the thumbs up. The engine roared to life and Danni returned his signal, grinning behind her helmet. Dallas’s face cracked into what he occasionally used as his encouraging smile before he gave the car a push to start her on her way. She idled the car out through the gateway and on to the track.
Surprisingly she didn’t feel at all nervous. This was the day she had been waiting for, and somehow it was a bit of an anticlimax. She had discussed her idea of being the first female Formula Ford driver to win the ‘Driver to Europe’ series, which was sponsored by a major airline, with her brother, and he had been enthusiastically all for it. It seemed such a long time ago now and suddenly she felt very alone.
She turned her head towards the pits and there was Dallas’s red head shining in the sunlight. He gave her a quick salute and she felt immediately calmer. The roar of the other Formula Ford engines was almost deafening and the stewards waved the cars on to the track for their warm-up lap. Danni took the car at a steady pace around the circuit, under Dunlop Bridge and along Peters straight and back to the starting grid.
It was just after dark on Sunday evening when they finally locked the Lola in the shed and climbed wearily into the utility for the short drive up to the house.
‘Pity I couldn’t have made it a first instead of a second,’ mused Danni.
‘Your second was fantastic enough.’ Dallas’s voice was full of pride. ‘I knew Casey Jones was the only one you had to get in front of, and our tactics to get under him on Datsun corner really paid off. Ninety-nine per cent of the time he swung out wide there and if you hadn’t had to swerve around that spin out on Goodyear Casey wouldn’t have got that fraction in front. Another lap and you’d have had him. Anyway, second’s not to be laughed at at this stage. It’s a healthy start to the series. We’ll get him next time. I reckon you’re going to be the first woman to take it out.’
‘We’ll see, Dallas. I wish I was as confident as you are.’ And I wish it meant as much to me as it did a week ago, if only for your sake, she added to herself.
‘What made you invite that kid back today, Danni?’ Dallas grumbled. ‘Most of the afternoon Saturday and then today. Who was he anyway?’
‘Nathan? He came looking for me because his brother knew me. I, um. I met him the other day,’
Danni replied vaguely. She had been quite taken aback when Shiloh’s young brother came up to her.
‘Yes, well, I expected we’d have the time together, talk about the race, plan our strategy in peace. And instead we had to put up with his incessant chatter.’
‘Dallas, don’t be so grumpy.’ Danni half laughed. ‘Nathan’s a nice boy. Besides, you should be flattered. He thinks you know it all about cars. Second only to his brother, of course.’
‘Yes, this brother of his, this Shiloh, what’s he like? I mean, how old is he? And how do you come to know him?’ Dallas had turned slightly sideways on in the passenger seat and was looking at her watchfully.
‘He seems quite nice. He’s around about thirty. And I don’t know him all that well,’ Danni finished tersely, feeling suddenly inexplicably guilty under Dallas’s unsmiling gaze.
‘Shiloh?’ Dallas repeated sarcastically. ‘I guess it must be his real name. No one could make that up.’
‘Dallas!’ Danni began.
‘Well, how did you come to meet him?’ Dallas turned back to her.
She sighed. ‘He was riding past Mallaroo last weekend when I was practising and he stopped to,’ she shrugged, ‘look at the car,’ she improvised.
‘You mean he just walked in off the street? A stranger?’ said Dallas incredulously. ‘And you didn’t send him on his way? Danni, he could have been anybody, some crackpot or something.’
‘It wasn’t quite like that, Dallas.’ Danni felt her anger start to flare. Really, Dallas could be so possessive at times she felt stifled. ‘Besides, he was a friend of Rick’s,’ she added as she drew the car to a halt in front of the house.
‘He still could have been anybody. Look, Danni, I’m sorry.’ Dallas sighed. ‘I didn’t mean to put you through an inquisition. I just worry about you. Put it down to old-fashioned jealousy,’ he remarked, climbing out of the car.
‘Coming in for a cup of tea, Dallas?’ asked Danni’s father, who had walked out on to the veranda as they pulled up in front of the house. Jock Mathieson was a stockily built man, grey-haired, with leathery skin weathered by his years spent under the relentless Australian sun.
‘No, thanks, Jock.’ Dallas stifled a yawn. ‘I want to ring a couple of friends to let them know how Danni fared and then I think I’ll hit the sack early tonight. All that fresh air plus the excitement have taken their toll.’
‘Okay, then,’ replied Jock, going inside. ‘See you in the morning.’
‘After today’s effort I have a feeling you’re going to take the racing world by storm,’ Dallas grinned sheepishly at Danni, changing the subject after Jock’s interruption.
‘I don’t know about the world,’ she said drily, thankful to have the conversation back to more mundane topics. ‘Let’s just take it a race at a time. But thanks for everything and sorry we couldn’t win. ‘Night, Dallas.’
Dallas gave her the thumbs up sign before striding across to his small flat in the men’s quarters.
Slowly, Danni followed her father into the house, a frown puckering her forehead. It was already seven-forty. That gave her twenty minutes to wait for Shiloh to call. ‘I’m going to take a quick shower, Pop, then I’ll tell you all about the races. Won’t be long.’
‘Right, love. I’ll put the kettle on.’ Her father’s voice came from the kitchen.
‘The car went like a dream, Pop,’ Danni eagerly told her father a quarter of an hour later. ‘I think I have a better than even chance of doing well in this series.’
His daughter didn’t notice the slight stiffening of her father’s smile. He appeared about to make a comment, then decided against it and hugged his daughter’s slight figure against him before he put her cup of tea on the table and sat down opposite her. They chatted amicably for a while until Jock stood up to rinse his cup under the tap and set it on the sink to drain. He turned back to his daughter when the ringing of the telephone cut through the air.
Danni froze in her seat, her heart in her mouth as her father innocently reached around the corner and picked up the receiver. ‘She’s a bit early, isn’t she? Any problems, Paul?’ her father asked his young manager, and listened intently to the other man for a few moments. ‘Okay, lad, I’ll leave it to you. If you need me down there just give me a call.’
He replaced the receiver. ‘One of the mares is foaling early, but Paul can’t see any complications.’ He looked at his daughter and frowned in concern at the paleness of her face. ‘What is it, love? Don’t you feel well?’ He put his arm around her shoulders in concern.
‘I’m all right, Pop. The phone just gave me a fright, that’s all.’ Danni pulled herself together with an effort, waves of disappointment still washing over her.
Jock gave her a direct look and sat back down opposite her. ‘What’s the real trouble, love? Now that I think about it you’ve been jumpy all night, ever since we sat down here an hour ago.’
‘Must be reaction after the excitement of the day.’ Her laugh didn’t even sound convincing to her own ears and at the penetrating look on her father’s face she ran a shaky hand over her eyes. ‘It’s nothing earth-shattering, Pop, really. I was expecting a phone call and I thought that might have been it. It gave me a bit of a fright.’
‘I see.’ Her father looked thoughtfully at her. ‘This phone call, was it an important one?’
‘Oh, not really,’ she said nonchalantly, and felt herself blush. Liar! said an inner voice.<
br />
Her father’s eyes twinkled. ‘A masculine or feminine caller?’
‘Pop, you’re beginning to sound like a television panel game! Your next question should be “Is it vegetable or mineral?”’
Jock chuckled. ‘Judging by your cagey non-reply I’d take a guess at masculine.’
She looked at her father and laughed reluctantly. ‘Yes, it’s masculine.’
‘I’ve never seen you this uptight about a young fellow before.’ His face had sobered. ‘Do I know him, by any chance?’
Danni hesitated, undecided about mentioning Shiloh O’Rourke at this early state. It was too new, too fragile, too intense to be put into words.
`Danni!’ Dallas’s voice called as his footsteps crossed the veranda.
‘In the kitchen,’ called Danni’s father. ‘What’s the trouble?’ he asked as Dallas strode purposefully into the room, his face set.
‘I’ve just been talking on the phone to a mate of mine and I asked him if he knew of anyone in the racing game called Shiloh. All he could come up with was Shiloh O’Rourke.’
‘Shiloh O’Rourke!’ exclaimed Jock, his face paling as he seemed to slump back in his chair. ‘What’s this all about, Dallas?’
‘You’ll have to ask Danni,’ said Dallas, standing with his legs apart and his hands on his hips. ‘Did that guy you met on the practice track call himself Shiloh O’Rourke?’
Danni looked from Dallas’s set face to her father’s shocked one, a quiver of dread turning her legs to jelly. ‘He… That’s who he was. Shiloh O’Rourke.’ She paused. ‘Pop, what’s the matter? He said he was a friend of Rick’s. Do youâ Do you know him?’
Race For Revenge (Lynsey Stevens Romance) Page 6