" And Pierce in number 6 is neck and neck with Harvick in number 4. Behind them is Truex Jr. trailed by Hamlin, Busch, and Adams. The gap between the front runners and the middle section is getting smaller."
"That it is. Looks like Logano tried to make a pass and-Oh that has got to be the biggest wreck of the season."
"You can see in the replay as the front pack narrowly escaped the wreckage as the caution flag is up."
"You know Jim I wouldn't be surprised if they changed that to a red flag given the size of the wreck. But one thing is for certain. Joey Logano and Chase Elliot are out of the race."
~~~~~~~~~
Charlie tried to calm her breathing as the spotters talked about the wreck behind her. She and Harvick had gotten clean through but the next few had been very close to the wreck. Once the caution was out they prepared for a restart. She kept her ears open for any talk about which drivers were out for the race. One thing was for certain, she was going to watch that replay after the race was over.
"First red flag of the season," Enzo told her over the radio.
"How many involved?"
"I'd say about 50% of the cars. Some had to swerve in order to avoid crashing."
"How are our boys?"
"Truex Jr is right behind you. Hamlin got caught up in the crash. Took some damage on his front right tire."
"Is he out?"
"Nothing a little tape can't fix. He escaped the brunt of it."
"Who started it?"
"Aric Almirola. He tried to pass Blaney but got caught in a down burst. Took down a lot of people in the wreck."
While Charlie waited for the restart to happen the team of the BAU were in position. JJ and Prentiss were in the stands while Rossi and Morgan watched from the sidelines. Aaron was with the crew. He had seen just how close Charlie had been from getting caught up in the wreck. A collision at that speed could be deadly and maybe he wasn't prepared for this. There was no way his heart could take it. She put her life on the line for her job.
Then it hit him. It was exactly like him. Every case he took was a danger. He never knew what the implications were. Yet he kept doing it. It would be hypocritical if he judged her work when his had equal amount of danger.
Aaron continued to spectate. It seemed like this race would last three or four hours and he was getting a bit bored. The only redeeming factor was listening to Charlie talk with the crew over the scanner. His phone buzzed and he JJ had texted him.
JJ: Should I order dinner?
AH: That seems like a good idea
JJ: Any requests?
AH: Whatever you'd like.
JJ: I'll ask Rossi. He's the picky eater.
AH: Are we still in stage 1?
JJ: Yes we are. 34 out of 65 laps. Why?
AH: I'm not a big sports fan
JJ: I thought you watched football?
AH: NASCAR isn't something I watch for fun. I am clueless when it comes to cars.
JJ: Well were only an hour in. Depending on the amount of restarts we could be here late.
AH: Why do restarts take so long?
JJ: They just put out a red flag. The race has been halted. They're sending people to clean up all the debris. Some guys are talking about Logano and Elliot being out of the race.
AH: those were the cars that went up in flames right?
JJ: Yes.
AH: I think Charlie said they were fan favorites.
JJ: Clean up should take about 15 minutes or less. I'll order food once stage two is underway
AH: do what you'd like. Have Reid analyze the replay after the race. There could be foul play.
Aaron had never been a car person. Sure they looked nice but he never felt the urge most boys do to look under the hood and do mechanic work themselves. Maybe that said a lot about the person he was. He remembered how Sean and his father had bonded over cars. Maybe even watched a race or two. But if there was anything he did these past few days it was listen to Charlie rant on and on about wrecks. While it had been tempting to tune her out and just nod occasionally he had actually opted to listen. That was when she told him about a wreck that one of her competitors had deliberately done. It lead to her confronting them and giving them a swift punch to the face.
Now he was ready to jump in to stop a potential fight. He saw Charlie out of her car stretching as the crew cleaned. There were some cameras surrounding the racers. Mainly the ones who were out of the race. Then before he knew it they were doing caution laps before the green flag was waived once again.
The broadcasters continued to narrate the race as he listened to the radar chatter. Aaron was completely lost when it came to who was good but he knew the placement and Charlie was now leading with Harvick in second with Hamlin and Adams behind him fighting for third.
"Two more laps left in stage one. It looks like it's a battle between Harvick and Pierce."
"They're coming in hot. Looks like Pierce takes stage one by just a second."
"In NASCAR that's all it takes."
Charlie was driving at full throttle as her crew told her that Harvick and Hamlin were battling for second. She would most likely let Hamlin lead a few laps to save on fuel but when it came to it she would take the title.
"I want a tall cool glass of Coca Cola with ice after this," she told her crew. "It's getting hot in here." Enzo chuckled. "And some M&Ms. Although some nice barbecue doesn't sound half bad."
"Missouri or Texas?"
"Hmm, I'm feeling Texas today but I wouldn't say no to either."
Aaron chuckled as he heard the conversation between Charlie and her crew. It seemed the broadcasters even noticed since they talked about it. He wondered what she could be thinking as she did laps, but now he knew that in true foodie fashion it was food on her mind.
~~~~~~~~~
They were now in stage three. Harvick had taken stage two in a three way between Pierce, Harvick, and Hamlin. Now they were almost finishing and Charlie was leading with Hamlin behind her. They were bumper to bumper and Aaron had a bad feeling about it. They neared a turn and he saw Charlie lose control of the car and crash into the wall. The crowd was in an uproar. From Aaron's perspective it looked like Hamlin had hit her at the corner and cause her to spin out of control and he was positive others saw it that way as well.
All ended peacefully when Harvick took first followed by Hamlin, Adams and Busch. Aaron waiter patiently for Charlie as reporters swarmed the racers.
"Charlie, do you have any comment on the wreck?"
"My buddy, Kevin Harvick, won the race and that's all I have to say," she told the reporters as she made her way to car 11.
Denny was there smiling. "Hey Char."
"Don't 'hey Char' me you jackass. You deliberately spun me out you asshole," Charlie snapped.
The smile on his face faultered. "I didn't mean to," he said.
"Like hell you didn't. You knew knew how close your were." Charlie was fuming and it was evident to everyone that there was going to be conflict.
Denny replied, "Why don't we move pass it? Shake hands as a sign of good faith?"
"Good faith? Not until you admit you wrecked me on purpose," Charlie seethed before turning around and walking away.
Hamlin put his right hand on her shoulder to stop her. Before he could speak she turned around and punched him square in the jaw. "Don't touch me," she growled.
Denny stepped back as he tried to recover from the blow. "What the hell Charlie?!"
She stared him down. "If you wanna fight then I'm not one to back down."
"I don't hit girls," he said as he inspected where she had hit him.
She scoffed, "Really? You pulling that bullshit excuse now you coward. Let's see if you keep up that smug attitude at Las Vegas because that's where we'll see a real race play through. Stop resorting to cheap tricks to win."
Charlie turned and went to walk away again. She could hear his steps approach her. She knew he would strike her from behind so she ducked and went to pin his arms back and to the floor.
"Cowards strike their opponents from the back," she told him as she let him go and pushed him to the floor. "Pull that shit again and we'll see a real fight."
Charlie walked away as his crew tried to calm him down. The media was all over her as she just refused to comment saying that they'd see a good race at Las Vegas. Charlie immediately went inside to the room where the BAU had set up camp. It was some conference room.
"Yo Aaron, what's for dinner? I'm starving," Charlie exclaimed as she took a seat next to Reid.
Morgan chuckled, "Italian. That was some badass stunt you pulled out there. I thought he was your friend."
"He was out of line," she bluntly replied.
Rossi chuckled, "You held no prisoners."
"It was a cheap shot. If you want a fight then don't strike your opponent from behind. Especially if the subject is about morals," Charlie stated. "There's probably already a Twitter war breaking out. I'm probably trending on Twitter."
Reid chimed in, "Wasn't he really unpopular with fans?"
"He wrecked Chase Elliot last year and now he wrecked me. He is truly in the dog house. Don't worry. He's all talk. Hides behind his crew."
"How so," Prentiss asked as she was intrigued because up until this point the confrontation had been the most exciting thing apart from the wrecks during the race.
"Well for one, the crew and the media were all surrounding us. If you rewatch the whole ordeal you'd see the crew inching forward in case things get physical obviously they didn't expect me to punch him and then him to try and hit me from behind. But after that they held him down. Then if you watch his fight with Chase, which I'd hardly even call a fight if we're behind honestly here, you would see that Chase took the high ground and Denny let his anger get the better of him. But their fighting looked like two freaking middle schoolers fighting. Cowards." Charlie couldn't help but laugh a little as she thought back to that. "Oh and his fight with Danica Patrick was hilarious. I was laughing so hard tears were rolling down my cheeks. Seemed like something out of Real Housewives."
JJ said, "Regardless of how serious the confrontation was he is a prime target for our unsub."
Everyone on the team agreed. "Best course of action is to head out to Las Vegas with your team and proceed to lure the unsub out," Prentiss said.
"Well like hell I am flying to Las Vegas," she stated.
In that moment Enzo walked in. "Charlie you're coming with the team on the plane to Las Vegas," Enzo stated.
"What if I fly with the team?"
"No. We'll get you a Xanax and that's final." Charlie raised her hand. "Yes Charlie? Do you have a question?"
"Can I sit with Martin and Kyle?" Aaron wanted to laugh because she looked like a little kid asking her parent something. Instead he kept his poker face.
Enzo sighed, "Yes you can sit with Martin and Kyle. Do you promise to stop making bets with Denny?"
"That depends."
"On what?"
"Are you going to make him wear the cone of shame?"
The team looked at them in utter confusion. Enzo explained, "It's a hat and some of the guys wear it as punishment."
"It was that or yell in public, I am a homosexual and proud," a Charlie laughed. "Obviously everyone else prefers the cone of shame."
"This has got to be the weirdest sport I've ever seen," JJ commented.
"Oh honey wait until you meet some of these guys. Then you'll see. Well boys, guess I'm going with Enzo to the plane. See y'all in Las Vegas."