He turned and started running into the field beside the dirt road. It was worth a try. His legs gave out with no warning, and he sprawled in the brush. The ground swayed as if he were at sea. He lay still for a moment, spitting out dirt and smelling dry weeds.

He couldn’t let them win. So what if his worthless teammates had stacked the odds against him? So what if the Tanks had sabotaged his car? He still had super speed. He would find a way to keep going.

Trevor got up and tried to run. His legs felt leaden. He shuffled along like an old guy who had lost his cane. Still, he kept moving.

Roman came alongside him on one side, Derek on the other. A strong hand clamped down on his shoulder. Only then did Trevor realize he was no longer in race mode. When had he slipped out of it? When he had fallen? It was hard to be sure.

Trevor stopped, his legs wobbly, and held out the guidestone on his palm. Roman claimed it and shoved him to the ground. Trevor felt no desire to rise.

Chapter Sixteen

The Resistance

Nate awoke to the sound of somebody tapping on his window with a coin. It took only a moment for him to realize that it must be an emergency. After kicking off his covers, Nate crossed to the window to find Summer outside.

He opened it. “What’s up?”

“We got the map,” Summer said. “The Racers lost. I’m worried about Trevor.”

“What time is it?” Nate wondered.

“After midnight.”

“Let me get dressed and I’ll come down.”

Summer nodded and walked carefully away from the window, shingles groaning and splitting under her augmented weight. She jumped off the roof and plummeted out of sight.

Nate changed into jeans and a T-shirt, then added a light jacket. He put on his shoes and glided out the window and down to Summer.

“What happened to Trevor?” he asked.

“I’m not sure,” Summer said. “We were out at some trailer park getting the map to the Protector, which turned out to be a little round rock called the guidestone.”

“Okay.”

“Trevor had the stone,” she said. “He almost beat us singlehandedly, even though his teammates messed up. But I guess he ran at his top speed for too long and wiped himself out. We didn’t get much chance to talk. Anyhow, we got the stone back from him. Both clubs had gone to the trailer park in cars. We had flipped the Racers’ car upside down to mess them up, but then we flipped it back once we had the guidestone, so the driver could take them home. The car was busted up, but it still worked.”

“Then what?”

“One of the Racers tried to steal the guidestone back, but Roman held tight, and she hurt her wrist. By the end, Paige had a sprained wrist and Claire had injured her leg pretty bad. It took the fight out of them. They went back in their car. But Trevor refused. He just took off into a field.”

“Probably smart,” Nate said. “Pigeon disappeared after his club lost.”

“Right,” Summer said. “But Trevor still hasn’t shown up at his house.”

“Wait, when did you guys turn in the guidestone?”

“Around eight o’clock. Afterward, I kept looking for Trevor. I just came here from his house. I’m worried he won’t ever show up. And I’m worried that we’re getting too deep into this without solving anything. I keep waiting for a chance to sneak into the secret parts of Arcadeland, and that chance keeps not coming. We lost Pigeon. We’re no closer to finding John. We can’t let Jonas White get Uweya.”

Nate patted her shoulder. “Maybe we should go talk farther away. I don’t want to wake up my parents.”

She looked at him like he was being ridiculous. “Haven’t you noticed?”

“What?”

“Our parents are all zombified. It’s just like with Mrs. White. They can’t get enough of that nacho cheese. He’s been targeting them with taco carts—Arcadeland Taco Fiesta. My dad brought some of their food home tonight.”

Nate thought about it. He’d been generally avoiding his family, partly because he’d been busy at the training center, and partly because he didn’t want them placing limits on his excursions. Nobody had raised a complaint about the long hours he’d been away. When he had spoken with them, they had been calm and easygoing. “I should have known,” he said.

“He’s had my dad in a daze for a couple of days,” Summer said. “Just one more reason we need to take him down.”

Nate nodded. “You want to go look for Trevor? Or should we wait at his house? How far away were you?”

“It was a pretty far drive,” Summer said. “Almost an hour. But as a Racer, he should have been back by now. I think we should talk to Mr. Stott.”

“That’s a good idea. We’ve gotten out of touch with him. So, you guys are going to be Racer Tanks?”

“Huh? Because we earned the racecar stamp?”

Nate held out his hand. “They have a lady who can blend two stamps so they work together. We’re all Jet Subs now. I can hardly imagine going up against Racer Tanks.”

Summer raised her eyebrows. “Don’t let my teammates get ahold of you. They play rough.”

“I believe you.”

“Will they be able to blend all four stamps?” Summer wondered.

“The lady told us she could barely handle two,” Nate replied. “I guess that’s the limit. You’ll find out about it when you go in to refresh your stamp.”

“Tomorrow morning,” Summer said. “Did you and Lindy meet with the Battiatos?”

“Yeah,” Nate said. “There’s no news on Pigeon. Nothing new at all, really.”

They walked to the candy shop and went to the back door. A light was on, so Nate knocked gently. Mr. Stott answered a moment later, a steaming mug of hot chocolate in one hand, eyes anxious as he glanced beyond them into the night. “Come inside,” he urged. “I’m glad you’re here.”

Mr. Stott closed the door behind them.

“We’re worried about Trevor,” Summer said.

Mr. Stott raised the mug. “I’m less worried now.”

“He’s here?” Nate asked.

Mr. Stott motioned with the mug for them to follow him. He led them up to the apartment, where Lindy greeted them. “This is turning into a party,” she said.

“Where’s Trevor?” Summer asked.

“He’s in my sanctum,” Mr. Stott said.

“Your sanctum?” Nate asked.