Page 44 of Tailwind

She’d used the same phrase as Theo.

‘It will never be fair though, will it?’ I tried and failed to keep the edge out of my voice. ‘Okay, if I buddy up to him and use him to train, I’ll be fitter and in better shape to race, but he still has his team behind him. They all do! I’m essentially flying solo while every other rider has half a Volitant team feeding them custom strategy and updates during the race.’

‘No. It will never be fair for you. As long as women are a minority within Volitant you will never be their equal. As long as the flight suits are designed by, for and tested on men you will always be at a disadvantage. Even then, if all the hundreds of big and small things that hold you back change, half the continent will watch and wait for you to fail.’

I closed my eyes against the truth I already knew. I didn’t need to hear it.

Josie was softer when she continued. ‘It sucks. That’s why we’re allowed to feel angry, sad or anything else we want, but there’s something they cannot take away from us.’

I broke our eye contact. I knew what she was going to say, but I couldn’t face the emotion in her voice, let alone her eyes.

‘We have each other, Lena. I’m not just talking about me and you either. There are a whole lot of women out there who want to see someone like them on dragonback, on the podium. Me included. For that to happen, to really happen, you have to accept help. You can start with me.’

She turned to her bag and began rummaging for something. I could feel my heart thumping against my ribs, panicking at how earnest she was. How everything she said resonated with me.

‘Save it, Josie. I know you’ve got plans for the next race and I appreciate it, but by the time I’m in the middle of the pack and have an arcan in my face I’ve forgotten everything you’ve told me.’ I hoped the complaining covered the shaking I could hear in my own voice.

Instead of pulling out more notes though, she pulled out a mess of copper wire attached to an arcanite – an augment.

‘This is a duplicate of the Kiestral comms augment, except it’s tuned into a receiver that I have.’ She tucked her sleek black hair behind her right ear and placed a second augment over it. ‘We’ll have to leave it on permanently so they don’t see you tapping in to speak with me, but this will allow us to talk strategy while you fly.’

My mind was sluggish. ‘You’re going to be my strategist? Live, during a race?’

A smile curled on her face. ‘Yes, and then you’ll start getting better.’

I opened my mouth, but she continued before I could even begin. ‘So it would be a shame to waste all my time, effort and expertise on a rider who won’t even go to the gym. You’re going to find Theo tomorrow and tell him you accept his offer. Then you’re going to train together. While you do, you’re going to get all the information you can out of him and repeat it back to me. When you next race you’ll be doing it properly with me in your ear.

‘Anyway, you don’t have a choice because I’m going to fit this in your helmet and you’re not smart enough to know how to turn it off.’

I struggled in arguments that didn’t resort to yelling or punching, but for once I didn’t actually want to resist. I had countless reasons to say no, but none of them could outweigh the one Josie had for saying yes.

‘Fine. If hanging out with Theo off circuit gets me—’ I forced myself to backtrack, I wasn’t alone in this anymore. ‘If it gets us closer to a win, I’ll do it.’

Josie tossed me a veggie parcel. ‘Then eat up. If he’s as annoying as you say you’ll need all the energy you can get.’

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

The sparse scrubbed hills of northern Gedeinia fled away behind the train. The side window in Gottyk’s carriage was small, only allowing a glimpse of the disappearing warmth as we sped south. The sky, however, was wide open above us through the glass roof.

I leaned against Gottyk’s shoulder, enjoying the residual heat against my back. We were well on our way to the next circuit aboard the train. After a decent night’s sleep I could move without wincing, which meant the last of my excuses were gone too.

‘What if I just didn’t do it? Josie wouldn’t know, would she?’

My ever supportive dragon was on the cusp of sleep and seemed in no rush to change the direction he was heading. I’d been using him as a convenient excuse to be busy. I’d brushed him down, fed him and even caught up on polishing his talons despite having already done it that week.

‘You’ve met him now, so you understand.’ I fiddled with the loose string coming from my vibrant Kiestral orange shorts – the last remnant of summer sun that I was clinging on to. ‘He’s insufferable.’

Gottyk huffed and shifted his weight, shoving me as he angled his head away.

‘Wow, okay.’ I sighed. ‘I guess I’ll see myself out.’

Dragging my feet, I left his cabin. I instantly missed the warm sulphur smell, replaced by the overly clean and fresh nothingness of the train’s cool filtered air.

Hands in pockets I wandered down the Kiestral carriages. The dragons had one each – they needed the space to sleep and have access to food and water during the journey. The gear for them and their riders was stored below. The other carriages were for the human team members. A shared one for the riders – though many opted to travel separately and in more comfort – and two more for everyone else.

I passed the quiet cabins full of bunks for those wanting to catch up on sleep, including the one I shared with Josie. After we’d finished debriefing the race the night before she’d stayed, not just leaving once the work had finished. It was a strange but not unwelcome change.

Next was the crew cabin with the cafe that promised options of caffeine and freshly made breads, pastries and, from the smell of it, soup of the day. Through the window that separated the corridor from the long cabin full of seating I spied my new bunkmate.