The second the race started, I already knew something was wrong. It wasn’t just the loud engines, the new faces, or the tension in the air. It was the way the new riders moved. They were too stiff, organized, and too focused.

Gabriel and the mysterious rider were the only people I knew here. I gripped my handles tighter, feeling the vibration of the bike shake through my arms. My heart sped up, but not from excitement—more from this strange pressure in my chest that refused to go ...