Chapter 1 The raven dives

Agnes’ POV

A car shatters the air as it tears past me, a violent blur of dark green and I crane my neck to track the taillights. Down at the pit wall, a cluster of crew members in dark red suits are cheering, waving a digital board at the driver.

This season was definitely going to be interesting. I looked down at the laminated pass in my hand, taking a slow breath as I adjusted the heavy strap of my camera bag.

Team Corvus F1

That's a pretty interesting name, if you ask me.

The paddock gates were a few meters away, but I could already see the chaos both in and outside. People were flying between the glass-fronted hospitality suites and the open garages, moving rather aggressively. They threw hurried words over, not at each other. My brows furrowed. I had prepped for a highly controlled corporate environment, but this felt frantic and too rowdy

This was what I signed up for?

I stepped through the turnstiles and I was hit by that stinging smell of metal, something acrid, burning and perfumey, all at the same time. I walked in, bringing my camera out of my bag, ready to start my fillming.

My team had been delayed in Dubai due to some clearance issue, i was able to be cleared on time and i had to come here and cover for us. A couple of people stood in groups discussing in low voices wearing designer brands and perfumes that certainly screamed of luxury.

Sponsors

One of them smiles at me and I nod at him with a small smile and look ahead of me. There it was, the very infamous #7 car; dark forest green with lines of emerald green and that sleek architecture. A lot of people stood around it, testing, changing and comparing data.

I stared at the logo imprinted on the side of the car; a raven in a nose dive position. Their image was certainly well curated. I raised my camera and took a couple of shots of the car, fascinated by each one

I was certainly going to love this world I was stepping into.

I heard footsteps approach me and a shadow loomed over me. I brought down my camera with a raised brow.

And my eyes met his.

This wasn't your regular Starbucks guy, there was this aura around him I couldn't name. It was intense and almost suffocating especially with the way his dark eyes pinned mine.

He had this somewhat reddish brown curls on dark roots giving him this otherworldly vibe and I could see his muscles rippling from underneath his tracksuit.

It was also forest green and emerald, just like his car.

His lips curved into a small smile and he stretched out a hand. I could see that the smile didn't reach his eyes.

He was just trying to be cordial, probably never wanted me here.

What was worse, he literally towered over me. I had to look up to be able to match his gaze. I was no push over either.

“Ms. Tremaine”.

I shook his hand lightly, “Mr….

I didn't have time to research about him, this was an impromptu job for the agency but it was also a way of establishing cordial relations too.

“Ace. We use our first names here”, he replied coldly and this time I could see amusement dancing in his eyes.

I see.

“Agnes”, I replied and adjusted my camera bag. This was starting to weigh on me.

He looked at me for approximately three seconds, yes I counted it and dropped my hand abruptly. Something flashed across his eyes and I could swear I saw them turn amber.

“Did Dae brief you?” He asked, turning away.

I followed him as fast as he could. Where I took two strides, he took one.

“No one has said anything to me yet, well except you”.

He stopped, his back turned to me.

“Interesting”.

We're standing very close to the car now facing the open doors at 12 o’clock. I stared at the beauty of a machine, suddenly having the urge to run my fingers all over it.

“Dae would walk you through the full protocols”

I snapped back to reality, my hands quickly reaching into my camera bag on instincts and pulling out a notepad and pen. On second thought, I dropped it back and slipped out my tablet.

“Who's Dae?”

“My race engineer”.

“Oh okay…

“You can film anything in the garage except the steering wheel and dash display during a session”.

I looked up at him, his face was hard and eyes emotionless giving me the chills. I shook my head with a frown and made to speak.

“Why…

“If I'm in a debrief, you wait outside”

“Is that…

“When I say stop, you stop immediately”.

We both stared at each other in that silence. It was clear, he didn't appreciate me being here.

Our PR manager had tipped us earlier about this.

“Fine…anymore of these impossible rules?” I asked as I held my lightpen poised over my tablet making sure the sarcasm and cockiness in my voice were passed across.

He raised a brow, his eyes still trained on me.

“Dae would walk you through these impossible rules. Let's see how you keep up”.

I wanted to reply but I caught a movement at the door from the corner of my eyes.

A man was standing at the door interacting with one of the Corvus’ crew members.

My heart missed two beats and I narrowed my eyes.

“Is everything alright?”

I sighed, just realizing that my newest menace was still in front of me. I looked up at him, my lips set into a thin line.

“Yes, everything is fine”.

Even if I was lying, he had no business knowing anyway.

He looked at me, then turned on his heels and left. Soon he was swarmed by his team, everyone muttering what they understood.

I dropped my bags and opened one reaching out for everything I'd use to set up my camera stand.

I looked at the door. His eyes met mine briefly and he quickly slipped away.

Who was he? And why did he run?