Arlo & Aurora

chapter forty-eight

Amidst his shock, he nodded. I released a relieved sigh at the very moment the rough security man let me go, pushing me forward a little harshly. I glared at him over my shoulder, wiping off his touch.

The clanking of metal felt like it dragged on for an eternity as Tristan closed the small window and unlocked each of the apparent large collection of bolts and locks.

My pulse could be felt in my ears and my throat as I entered through the gap he made for me. I didn't even pay any attention to what was happening around me, my focus solely on finding Arlo and making sure he was okay.

"Is he okay?" I asked desperately as Tristan led me through the bikers teams lined along the trackside.

He looked over his shoulder, needing to also raise his voice in order for me to hear even a smidgen of the response I urgently needed to hear. "I don't know. They won't let me through."

"They?" I questioned.

"The medical team." He replied. "We have them here every race."

I nodded, and as we neared a commotion of people way beyond the threshold of the track, I knew that Arlo was somewhere within it. There was a barrier blocking anyone from passing through, and I was certain I'd have to put up another fight.

"Do you think they'll let me through?" My voice was a little panicky as we came to a mutual stop a few metres by the front of an unofficial medical van.

Tristan shrugged, gesturing for me to step forward. "You can try, but they're pretty harsh."

I jogged forward, closing the gap between me and a woman who was gathering something from inside the front of the van.

I rounded the open door and spoke pleadingly, "Excuse me. Can I be let through?"

The blonde middle-aged woman with a round face replied bluntly, "No, doll."

I followed her as she closed the door and walked around to the opposite side, walking in front of her as I attempted to reason with her.

"That's my boyfriend back there." She continued to walk with me trailing in front of her. "Please, I just need to know if he's okay."

The small woman stopped, her body weighing down with a sigh that suggested she wasn't up to entertaining my questions. "He got knocked down pretty bad. They're still seeing to him, so we can't let anyone through."

She resumed her walk around the front of the van, picking up miscellaneous objects and I following her every footstep. As she approached the barrier that supposedly only she was allowed to cross, I became increasingly frustrated.

Somehow, she successfully managed to squeeze her way past the barrier without me getting through. A lump formed in my throat as my worry became suffocating, her somber expression only heightening my extreme concern.

My voice rose in despair, "Please, I need to see him!"

"I told you I—"

My shaky breaths hitched at the sound of my name being called. The deep, bellowing voice sounding from several metres away, but I was too short to be able to see where it was coming from.

But I didn't need to see who it was that was calling me. Because I knew instantly.

It was Arlo's voice. Strong enough to echo through the thickness of the crowd.

The abrupt calling of my name faltered the woman's attention from me long enough to be able to push right past her. I successfully dodged her and many other's attempts to pull me back as I pushed my way through the crowd in my way.