THE PRODIGY

    The thunderous applause shot through her hundred pound body like the rumble of stock cars at the Friday night races. The smell of high octane gas was missing but that same rumbling in her bowels was there - even more pronounced. Who ever thought she would get this far - surely not her. Pushing yourself into something you don't want to do is bad enough but becoming a master at it to the delight of thousands of fans around the world can enslave every fiber of your being. Anyone looking at such a charmed life would envy the fame and notoriety. But they didn’t

 know. How could they? The majority of her eighteen years was spent away at boarding schools and practicing. Precious little time could be spent on what she wanted to do.

 

    Standing behind the thick red velvet curtain, she heard them chanting her name. Now the clapping started along with the foot stomping. Very uncharacteristic for these types of recitals but the youthful crowds attending nowadays were in the majority. The lights on the old stage cut through the dust shaken from the rafters causing the falling particles to change colors as if one was looking through a prism. Not unlike the fumes hanging below the stadium lights in the humid night air at the race track, she thought.  She remembered those nights well.

The drivers and mechanics all knew her. Before the races she would stroll down to the pits where the crews fine-tuned their machines inducing every foot-pound of horsepower possible. For her fourteenth birthday, he arranged for her to ride with a professional driver. It was a total surprise when a limo arrived at the house and took her to the track that Sunday afternoon. Upon arrival, she was led to the backroom where a birthday cake sat on a stack of racing slicks. And after singing Happy Birthday, she cut the cake.

    "You're on in 5 minutes," her manager said giving her a thumbs-up.

 

    Peeking out from behind the curtain, she looked for him knowing full well that he wouldn't be there. But her mother was there looking very prim and proper sitting in the front row with one of her new boyfriends wearing a high-neck gray dress with a string of white pearls which

accented her jet black hair. She came to all her concerts - mainly to ensure that the “Golden Goose” would continue to provide. There was no real animosity toward her but there was no real love either. And yet, in those rare moments, she could tell her mother missed him too.

    Walking on to the stage, the audience rose to their feet clapping and shouting bravos. Taking her seat at the piano, every performance started in the same way; she bowed her head and whispered, "I love you Dad. This one’s for you."

    Putting her all into the concert, she wowed the audience as any prodigy would. They responded with more bravos. Her manager and coach came on stage and handed her a bouquet of flowers. They bowed and left to a standing ovation.

 

    “That was your best performance yet,” her manager said.

 

    She forced a smile at him while watching her mother leave the auditorium.

 

    “Practice tomorrow at 7:00am sharp,” her coach said.

 

    Nodding politely, she headed to her dressing room to shower. Two security guards pushed through the crowds that gathered along the way. She was in no mood to interact with them. Once inside, nobody was there to greet her, just the dank musty smell of the partially

finished room. Letting the hot water pour over her seemed to wash away some of the anxiety. Once everyone had gone, she left the auditorium through the side door and walked out into the cool night air. Her warm body reacted with a tingle and she inhaled deeply. Knowing sleep was impossible tonight on the anniversary of the accident, she headed for the small park across the street from the hotel. You’d think she’d be over it by now. Reaching into her pocket she took out her only tangible link to him �" a lug nut from the front wheel. Closing her eyes, she envisioned his mangled body being extricated from the wreckage. But what hurt most was that there was little remorse from her mother - no words of comfort, no love, and no protection. Instead she was whisked away to boarding schools. She dealt with it by immersing herself into the piano.

 

    But that wasn’t cutting it. She needed more.

 

    It got ugly when they got together - mother and daughter on opposite sides of the table with their attorneys. But in the end, she gained control of her finances pretending that this victory was just what she needed while her stunned mother sat there crying.

 

    Showing up at the track two hours early, she waited patiently. And then it came - hauled down to the pit area by the sleek red transport with her father’s racing insignias emblazoned on the body.

    

    “She’s a beauty,” he said joining her as it rolled down the ramp.

     Walking over to the front of the car, she trailed her hands on the sleek lines of the hood.

 

     “This is what your father and I were working on before his accident,” he said.

 

    Getting into the car and closing her eyes, she put both hands on the steering wheel and imagined speeding around the track with her father beside her.

 

    “Now teach me how to drive this thing!” she said looking at him through the window.

 

    Shifting gears came natural to her racing around the track - sort of like feeling the music and knowing when to change the tempo. He clocked the stop watch.

 

     “That was awesome. You’ll be ready for competition in no time,” he said

 

    Removing her helmet and gloves, she walked towards him and smiled. The track was empty except for some maintenance crew. But down in the front row of the bleachers someone was watching. Squinting in the midday sun, she made out the figure of a woman �" it was her mother and she was alone!