Chapter 80

Brinley's eyes widened in horror as the car's nose dashed straight toward the guardrail, with only five meters left before the inevitable crash.

In a desperate instant, she released the handbrake and kicked hard at the lock of the passenger-side door.

The sleeve of her fireproof racing suit snagged against the steering wheel and tore,her arm scraping along the edge of the metal trim, leaving behind a hot,stinging pain.

She couldn't think about it now. In the fleeting seconds before the car spun completely out of control, her hand darted beneath the dashboard,searching frantically until her fingers hit the small hidden switch beneath the carpet.

It was a secret failsafe Jensen had installed for emergencies like this.

With a heavy bang, the passenger door blew open,and a violent rush of air slammed into the car.

Brinley clung to the wheel with her left hand while her right latched onto the door frame. Using the vehicle's momentum,she threw her body toward the passenger seat.

The moment she left the driver's seat, the front of the car collided brutally with the guardrail.

The impact blurred her vision. Her shoulder crashed against the frame, and the force nearly stole every bit of breath from her lungs.

Through sheer grit, she grabbed the wheel again,forced her body back into the driver's seat, and at the same time slammed down the engine kill switch.

The unbearable screech of metal grinding against metal cut off at once.

The white car lurched to a crooked stop at the edge of the safety zone, its front crushed and twisted,fragments of debris scattered across the ground.

Brinley collapsed against the wheel, gasping raggedly,her body trembling uncontrollably from the shock.

"Brinley!" a voice bellowed in panic from behind.

She snapped her head around and saw Austin sprinting toward her from his black Maybach.

His suit jacket hung open, his tie was skewed, and his usual composed demeanor was gone. His expression was raw and frantic, one she had never seen on him before. He reached the driver's side and flung open the distorted door, his eyes darkening at the sight of her sweat-soaked figure and the blood streaking her arm."Where are you hurt? How bad is it?"

Brinley tried to answer, but before she could, Austin scooped her up into his arms.

His hold was firm and urgent in a way that rattled her.

She struggled weakly against him. "Don't move,"Austin ordered, holding her tighter. "I'm getting you to a hospital."

"I'm fine... just scratches, bruises..." Brinley protested in a weak voice.

Ignoring her words, he carried her toward the Maybach.

As they passed the wrecked white car, he glanced coldly at the mangled front and scattered pieces. A deep scowl creased his forehead.

"Who was responsible for inspecting this vehicle?" he asked in a cold, stern voice.

No one in the pit lane answered.

Brinley glanced around. Bowman was nowhere to be seen. Jensen stood there, pale as chalk, a walkie-talkie clutched tightly in his hands. Once the Maybach pulled smoothly away from the track, the shock fully hit Brinley

For a moment back there, she had thought she would never make it out of the track alive

Her arm throbbed fiercely, grounding her in the grim reality of just how close she had comne.

Austin pulled the car over to the side of the road and retrieved a first-aid kit from the back.

His movements were rushed, even clumsy, yet when his fingers touched her wound, they were astonishingly gentle.

Brinley groaned as the antiseptic burned across her raw skin.

Austin froze, his hand stilling as his eyes met hers.

The dread lingered on his face, his Adam's apple moving as he swallowed hard. "Does it hurt badly?"

"Not too much." Brinley turned her face away, unable to meet his intense eyes.

In that split second of desperation, she had fallen back on Rosara's self-rescue moves without even thinking.Would he.

"Why didn't you just aim for the safety zone?" Austin asked in a low voice, breaking the silence.your speed, you'd have walked away with a scratch. Why risk everything like that?"

Brinley's heart pounded.

What? He saw the way she lunged toward the passenger seat?

She clenched the fabric of her clothes, scrambling for an excuse. But Austin didn't give her time. "When you shifted to the passenger side, your left hand was still adjusting the steering wheel's angle. That's not something a casual driver does; that's the instinct of a professional racer. Brinley, what are you not..."

"I... I learned!" Brinley blurted out, cutting him off,her voice trembling. "I picked up emergency techniques from friends before. Just theory. I never thoughtI'd actually use it."

Even to her own ears, the words sounded flimsy.

Could someone with only theory really react so precisely in a split-second life-or-death moment?

Austin didn't argue further. His focus returned to her arm, carefully wrapping it in layers of whie gauze.

The silence inside the car was stifling,broken only by the sound of their breathing. The tension congealed the air so much that it felt suffocating After a long pause, Austin spoke again, his voice weary this time. "Was this Milly's doing?"

Brinley's eyes snapped to him in shock. How did he know?

A cold smile slit Austin's lips. "She thought her bribery of a technician would go undetected. What she didn't realize is that Moore Group recently acquired the racetrack's surveillance system."

He paused, then stared deeply into her eyes. "Brinley,how much longer are you going to keep things from me? I don't understand why you insisted on racing,but now this sabotage is endangering your life. Can't you just be honest with me?"