Page 30 of Enter if you Dare: Part Three

“Ready?” Noa asks.

Vero gets into his best running stance, while Lach jumps up and down on the spot.

“Should someone count us down?” Vero asks.

“Good idea,” Noa says, looking around.

“I’m full of ideas, just ask me,” Vero replies.

Ellis steps forward. “Three . . . two . . . one . . . go!”

Noa and Lach take off at the same moment, cutting down the path with Vero on their heels. We all rush into the stunt arena to watch as they continue to run on the screen. Lach tries to trip Vero as he gets closer, and Noa laughs but keeps running. Noa’s mom is laughing hard, placing bets with her children on who is going to win.

They race through Sideshow Alley. Noa cuts between two buildings while Vero goes the long way. Lach follows his brother, and they shoot around to the graveyard where Noa has an advantage. We all watch as they circle through the cornfield, which is where the race gets closer.

All three men dart in between the trees at the same time, but we can’t clearly see where any of them are. Noa and Lach come out, side by side, both laughing, but Vero is nowhere to be seen. They keep running toward us when Valli spots Vero coming out of the cornfield, dirt on his knees.

Both brothers are neck and neck, but Noa reaches the stunt area first, with Lach hot on his heels.

Noa is still doing a victory dance when Vero finally makes his way back.

“You two cheated.”

Lach shrugs. “There were no rules stating we couldn’t.”

“Both of you coming at me at the same time is cheating.”

“Tom-ay-to, tom-ah-to,” Lach says. “The rules were that you could win by any means necessary.”

“Sometimes in life, when you’re competing against the best, you will encounter situations that feel unfair,” Noa says, placing his hand on Vero’s shoulder.

Lach straightens up after catching his breath. “It sucks to suck.”

Vero looks at Lach. “I want to run it again.”

“Absolutely not—all wins are final. There are no rematches,” Noa tells him.

“I will remember this, both of you. There will be another race soon.”

“I look forward to it,” Lach says.

Vero retreats to the bar when Brawley comes out to find him. Kelly comes over to Valli and me while Noa shows his sisters something.

“You’re quieter than I expected,” she says to me.

“Most people are quieter than Noa.”

She laughs. “Fair. He gets it from his grandfather.” That makes us laugh, and she looks at Valli. “He loves you a lot.”

“I feel the same way,” Valli says.

“And Cave, all of you actually. He talks about you all in every call.”

“Cave would find that mortifying,” Valli says.

“I just bet he would from what Noa has told me about him. I have faith that he will be okay when he gets home. He has too many people waiting for him not to be.”

My father joins us again, and we all watch as Noa attempts to teach the twins a new family handshake, one that has way too many steps for anyone to remember, all while Lach films them on his phone.