Oxterionn: Of Love and Fast Cars

Albert had been in his London office when he happened to come across Mr. McLaughlin in April. His office was on the top floor, shared with the offices of none other than Tallon-Fyste Racing. There was a terrace on the west side of the building that the two offices both had access to, however hardly anyone went out there other than to smoke due to the wind. It might have been a bit windy and unpleasant, but Albert did not mind and preferred to watch the sunsets in person.

He was only in his London office every few weeks and often did not stay too long, so this chance meeting really was unexpected. Albert hardly ever saw anyone from the Tallon-Fyste office next door, and certainly never any of the drivers. The majority of the team was based in the countryside – this office was mostly for dull paperwork.

So exactly what Mr. McLaughlin was doing there, Albert could not work out. However, what he was planning on doing, leaning far over the railing, was quite clear.

"I hope you aren't planning on jumping." Albert said, taking care not to sound too interested. "We're up so high, some poor chap will have to scrape you off the pavement."

Red leaned back a little, but still kept his eyes on the ground far below. Albert remained where he was and continued to watch the sunset. He was busy and did not want to be tasked with talking someone off the edge of a building. Surely someone else will notice and come out to assist him.

But no one from the other offices seemed to care, and the two remained alone on the terrace. Albert sighed and took a few steps closer so he would not have to speak so loudly.

"I'm sure whatever it is can be worked out, and it really can't be worth ending your life over."

Red did not turn, but he lifted his face slightly so Albert could see him more. In the light of the setting sun he could see the unkempt beard, the deep circles under his eyes, the lines of weariness marking his face. It took him a second, but Albert realized who he was talking to.

"The thing is, my life is already over. I found out my long-term girlfriend was cheating on me when I tried to propose to her," Red started. "I might have killed or seriously injured my best friend, and I'm about to lose my dream job and the only thing I'm good at. If I go back in there they're going to fire me and pin the whole accident on me, even though it might have been a technical error."

"And you thought, 'I'll just jump off the building so I don't have to go back inside?' You know, there is another way off the terrace. You can just come through my office."

"And then what?"

"And then you can figure this out somewhere besides the side of a very tall building."

"What's there to figure out? I'm going to lose everything."

"Now you see here boy, that's where you're wrong. Growing up in the East End was hard for me and my family and I was so determined to get out of there. All I had was determination and a good head on my shoulders, as my mother would say, and now I'm here." Albert gestured back toward his office. "And this is just one of my offices."

"That's really great, but I'm not looking to become a millionaire or business tycoon. Although, I did just lose all of my money."

"Then it looks like you could use a job."

"What?" Red gave him a look that said 'I'm contemplating killing myself, don't offer me a job.'

"Nothing is worse than a man without a purpose or a mission. Let me give you one." Red did not say anything, but something in his expression changed, so Albert kept talking. "We're quite similar, I think. It takes a lot for someone of the likes of the East End, like myself, or like you from South Boston, to make it to the top. Dorchester, right?" He paused and Red nodded. "We could get along great, I think. I'm based in New York, but I have a vast network and many connections. I could sneak you through my office and out of the country. That would at least give you time to think things over some more."

Red was deep in thought as he considered Albert's proposal. It would be very drastic, but not as permanent as his current solution. At least he'd have the chance to come back once things blew over, if they did. He gave one last look at the doors at the other end of the terrace that led into the T-F offices.

"Okay. But we'd better go quickly before they start looking for me."

* * *

"Guess what?!" Kat glimmered with happiness as she hopped into the car after class. Red noted the deep vermilion colored shirt she wore hidden under a grayish cardigan.

"You got an 'A' on that exam you've been studying for recently?" Red guessed, and Kat shook her head.

"No, but that would be awesome if I did. I got you a meeting!!" Kat smiled, proud of her achievement.

"With...?"

"Oxterionn. You know that girl I had to do that project with last month? She came over a few times. Anyway, her dad works closely with the Oxterionn F1 team, and I casually mentioned that you were looking for a team to drive for next year. You should have seen his face," Kat smiled. "I thought he was going to have a heart attack. But he wants to meet with you."

"Having a heart attack in a good way or a bad way?" Red asked.

"Good." Kat grinned

"Oh, good. I was worried. When?" Red had always dreamed of driving at Oxterionn, like many drivers, but he also had a personal tie to the car, which he hoped to keep secret.

"This weekend."

This weekend? That was only a few days away; Red was not ready for that. But the season had ended, and teams were finalizing their drivers for the 2016 season, so he had to act quickly. He had to get into shape and practice (a lot) if he wanted to drive next season.

' ' '

Back in his London office almost a year later, Albert could not help but wonder if events might have been different if he'd left Red alone on the terrace. Of course Albert did not wish he had let Red go through with it (although he never thought he really would.) However, he was starting to wonder if he should have just stayed out of it. Let Red walk back into the T-F offices and sign whatever paper he had nearly jumped off a building to avoid. It certainly would have gotten Albert out of this mess with Katherine and Oxterionn, and his missing 20 million dollars.

He called Kat and left a message trying to explain the situation, but without telling her too much. In the end, he said he was disappointed things had not worked out between her and Callum. If they had, she never would have spent his money on Red.

Albert sat at his desk and stared absently at the mantel over the unlit fireplace. He had been there for hours re-configuring the numbers, trying to find a way out of this conundrum. But every time he came up short. Wayyy too short. Like, 20 million dollars short.

"Oh Katherine," he sighed and his eyes rested on the portrait of her over the mantel. It had been painted shortly after her eighteenth birthday when she officially became a part of 'A.K.E.' Had he known she would spend his backup money so carelessly on some boy, Albert would have left her out.

He had created A.K.E. as a tax reduced way to tie up his money, while looking like a family oriented guy. The name is of course an acronym of Albert, Katherine, and Elizabeth – something his business associate Briggsely had suggested. It gave Albert the appearance of caring about more than just his business and increasing the yearly profit. While that was not necessarily true, he was perhaps a little more ruthless and hard than some of his competitors.

But not with Katherine; he chose the more 'distant yet stern' approach to parenting. He knew Katherine's upbringing lacked in some areas because she did not have a mother. Albert had not dated anyone since Elizabeth died, never tried to find a mother figure for his daughter. Some thought it was because he was afraid of getting tricked again, into marrying someone who only wanted his money. But the real reason is far less complicated than that. He hardly talked about her, and he told even less people this, but he had loved Elizabeth and was heartbroken by her death.

She may have tricked him into getting her pregnant, but he fell in love with her of his own volition. The fact that she only started to show her interest in him after he made his first million showed what kind of a person she was. But they had that in common – they liked money. However, she was not interested in making money herself. She was not as terrible as it sounds, Elizabeth just preferred the freedom of not having to work. She was involved in many charities, and wanted to help others who were less fortunate. She also loved interior design, and had decorated all of Albert's homes. She always said she would have been an interior designer if Albert had not come along, and often said once Kat was older she might make a profession for herself in that field. However, Elizabeth never had a chance to do that, and Albert kept the interior decoration in their house the same in her memory, no matter how outdated it was.

* * *

Kat had lost track of time when Red emerged from the office with a few other guys, a smile on his face. She tried to push all thoughts of Callum out of her mind as she watched Red. He shook hands with them and nodded before returning to Kat with an unmistakably real and genuine grin – very unlike Cal's dazzling, well-rehearsed smile.

"I can't believe this, but I think they're actually going to sign me," he looked surprised and happily bewildered. Kat stood up and gathered her books before following Red out to the car. "Kat," he laughed, "We did it. I think we actually did it."

"We did it? No, this is all you; you are an amazing driver, no matter what happened this season. I barely had a part in this," Kat shrugged off the praise.

"Right," Red noted Kat's deflection at the mention of 'we' and reminded himself that they were not a couple, or anything else like that. Just friends, with benefits. Benefits like, occasional sex, and giving millions of dollars to a Formula One team in the form of a sponsorship so they would sign him. It is not a bribe, he reminded himself, and she is just trying to help. But it was a very uncharacteristic move for Kat; perhaps she was changing after her incident with Cal this summer, and most of the time, change is good.

. . .

"McLaughlin? Like Red McLaughlin?" Emme interrupted and sat up.

Jack smirked mischievously back at his sister. "Yeah, actually, Red is kind of at the root of all this. It's kind of hard to explain, but his girlfriend, or whatever, is loaded - or she was, until she spent all of her dad's money sponsoring Red at Oxter. Well, her dad is some snobby British businessman with a flair for mildly illegal transactions, and he promised that same money to none other than Mrs. Knight-"

"Mrs. Knight?" Emme interrupted him and burst out laughing. "Is that what we're calling her now? It's certainly better than how mum refers to her..."

"She had hoped to get the money she owed us from this guy, Albert Brice, but his daughter blew it all on Red McLaughlin to get him into Oxterionn." Jack grinned as his sister tried to piece together the story.

"So how does that get me to Oxterionn?" Emme asked as her patience with her little brother grew thin.

"Well.... Red's grandfather Andy McLaughlin was a big name in the mafia in his day, so when he heard Red's girlfriend had gotten herself in trouble trying to help out his grandson, he decided to use some of his influence to help her out. He asked around and ended up here. He and dad talked for a while, and they came to an agreement. Since the 20 million dollars Mrs. Knight owed us was accidentally given to Oxterionn, Andy convinced us to take that claim at Oxter and call it even. All we had to do was talk to the big guys at Oxterionn and...well, you're looking at one of the part owners of an F1 team!"

Emme was speechless and hit her brother one more time before finally cracking a smile. "You're shitting me, right? No fucking way is that true."

"I'm serious! If you don't believe me just wait. I can get you into one of those black Oxter cars next season. And Emme," Jack added seriously. "I think this is your year."

"My year?" She asked incredulously.

"You've been a little distracted this year, but you could be unstoppable in an Oxterionn. They have been working on the engine, so next season it should be properly fast. It'll be brilliant!"

Emme eyed her brother skeptically. "I'll believe you when I'm sitting in one of those fucking black and red American race cars."

"You should be hearing from them soon, but it's a done deal."

"Jack," she said quietly and leaned forward. "You don't know how much I needed this. After the divorce, giving up the parental rights of Alex and Leah to their real mother, that fucking whore surrogate Cara," Emme paused to spit on the floor and let a small tear escape her eye. "I need this; F1 is all I have left."

Jack nodded and held out his handkerchief for her to wipe her eyes. "I know. And if you want me to chop his balls off, let me know. I'll personally go to Georgia and take a rusty hatchet to his-"

"-If anyone is castrating my ex-husband, it's me." Emme interrupted him and grabbed the bottle of scotch before heading up to her room to drink her way to sleep.

Emme went to sleep that night dreaming of red and black cars with American accents.