006 - Meet The Caplan’s part 3

They quietly watched the rest of the matches. Steven pulled her gi top off her shoulders, and massaged her shoulders and back. He could feel the tension in her, and even after he finished with a muscle, it remained tense.

Once the contest was done, Roxanne went to stand with her class as they received their awards. Most of her kids had already changed clothes. They started to leave once the match was officially closed. Roxanne then took her bag and went into the women’s locker room. Twenty minutes later she came out having showered and dressed in street clothes, smelling lightly of pain-rub. Roxanne was starting to limp a bit from a thigh-kick she had taken. She was embraced by her family, and they all went out to the car and truck. Alex and Diana squabbled about who would get to ride where.

“I get to ride in mom’s front seat.”

“But you got to last time.”

Back and forth it went, and then Steven joined.

“Who’s going to ride with me?”

And around it went again.

“Tell you what.” Steven said. “You two drive the truck, and mom and I will take the car.”

“No. That’s silly.” Diana said. “We can’t drive.”

Rox joined the game. “I don’t know. I like it. That way, I get to ride with dad.” She moved to the passenger side of her Camero as she said this, yawning. While the kids carried on a bit with Steven, she opened the door, and tossed her gym bags in the back seat. The kids were still arguing. But it seemed mostly they were just going on for the fun of it.

Steven ended the squabble. “Fine. Diana rides with me to go get dinner. Alex rides with me home from there.” Steven had the truck unlocked and open.

Rox turned and looked at Steven when he said this, about to say something then decided not to. She had not eaten either, and really did not want to cook. It was the middle of the evening, they still needed dinner, and home was most of an hour’s drive away. The kids agreed to this as Rox waved to one of her students driving away, waving his ribbon at her. Rox then climbed into her car, with Alex climbing into the passenger seat and tugging the door closed.

They put their seat belts on, with Alex adjusting the straps on the high back bucket seat to hold him. The four point harness held him a bit awkward, until the chest strap was in place. Rox checked his belts, and then put the key in the ignition. The truck next to her rumbled to life right then. She smiled at the sound, then pushed in the clutch and turned her own engine over.

The throaty growl of the Camero’s custom built supercharged engine easily drowned out the truck. Rox let the car sit in neutral a moment to warm the big engine up. While she did she watched the gauges, snugged her own four-point harness, and turned on the radar detector, and scanner. Alex all but shivered in tune with the car. Both of Roxanne’s children enjoyed riding with her.

Steven pulled out of the parking spot, and drove to the road, Rox following. She drove carefully, as she could break her wheels loose if she pushed her car at all. Once on Baring Blvd. they drove through the streets sedately, Steven leading until they got to McCarran. They turned left/south onto the road, and started toward the freeway. Here Roxanne took over.

Six traffic lights were between them and the on-ramp. Roxanne drove sedately to the fourth one, which crossed a local thoroughfare. Turn left at this one and go two miles and you find a police station. She had no desire to risk meeting them, and having a donation solicited by them, in reward for her driving as fast as she liked. Once clear of that light, the traffic dissipated, and Roxanne moved quickly through it, the lights in her favor. Steven plowed the truck through the holes she made, keeping back, but keeping pace. She right-turned onto the on-ramp to I-80, at the posted speed.

They were significantly above the posted speed the rest of the drive, Alex howling in delight the whole way. The freeway traffic was mostly long-haul trucks and she passed these easily. She coasted through the interchange switching from west bound I-80 to southbound 395. The southbound traffic was light enough that she only had to slow down to keep control, and not to evade other cars. She went south four exits and hit the fifth ramp just over the posted limit, having had her detector go off hard as she passed the Reno airport radar tower.

The Camero only got to fifth gear this time. Sixth would have to wait for the trip home. They had lost Steven just before the interchange, and did not see him again until he pulled into the lot to park. Roxanne and Alex were already walking into the Chinese restaurant.

Once dinner was done, they trooped back to the car and truck. Diana got into the Camero with Roxanne this time. Once back on the south bound freeway, they left Steven and Alex in the truck behind. They saw them briefly where the freeway ended and switched to a highway, bottlenecking traffic some.

Once the traffic spread out to wander through the next valley south, Rox commenced to test the speed traps. Nobody was watching them tonight. Over a long hill, into a larger valley Rox continued to pass the traffic. She wanted to find sixth gear, but was not yet able to without being reckless, or move to a flatter part of her power band. The road wandered a bit with the terrain, then headed south again in a long straight on the shore of a small lake. Diana grinned where Alex had laughed. The Camero launched down the road, and Rox found sixth gear.

They slowed to the speed limit as she drove over and down the hill into Carson. Driving through took a quarter of an hour. Once over the last hill and out of town, the highway shot straight south across a rural valley. Again Rox found sixth, and a few large bugs to wash off later. Again they slowed down at Gardnerville, and left the highway. Rox idled along the rural streets, to the house. Once upon a time she had roared down these roads, and nearly hit a kid riding a horse.

Rox pulled onto the gravel driveway for her garage and let the car idle. Diana was almost asleep. Rox set the parking break and got out to open the doors to the garage, which occupied most of a barn. Rox swung the doors wide, then pulled the car in and parked it, checking the gauges. Satisfied that it had cooled down enough, she shut it off.

Diana roused as the car moved again, and then parked. She unbuckled and got out, taking the gym bag for her mother. Rox took the gear bag and they closed the swinging doors. Rox latched and locked them. They went around the side of the garage, and through the gate into the backyard. The automatic lights turned on as the motion sensors were tripped. The dogs both bounced around the yard having been alerted by the sound of the car.

Diana and Roxanne were about halfway across the yard when Roxanne stopped. She looked up at the stars. The nagging feeling that had bugged her all day seemed to direct her to look at one particular star. That star had always been special since her grandmother had pointed it out, before Rox was Diana’s age. The neighborhood lights washed most of the sky out, but that star was barely visible.

Shaking her head to clear it, Rox got her house key out and unlocked the French Doors and let Diana and herself in. The dogs crowded each other through the door after Rox and Diana had gone in. One stopped and nosed the door closed. They then continued to jumble around the living room. Rox pulled a trophy from her bag, and set it on a shelf next to others in the living room. Later she would take it to her Dojo and put it with the others for her class there. Rox then followed Diana into the hall to the bedrooms. Here she unlocked her own bedroom door, and entered.

Diana dropped the gym bag by the laundry, and then went to her own bedroom. Rox had the bags emptied and the dirty clothes down the chute to the laundry room by the time she heard the truck pull into the garage attached to the house. Shortly Steven and Alex were in the house.

Rox closed the bedroom door, gathered her bathrobe, and went into the bathroom. She stood under the shower until Steven came in to use the bathroom prior to going to bed.

Steven lounged on his side of the bed, reading, as finally Rox left the bathroom. A few of the bruises on her were visible, and obviously sore as she dropped the towel, hung up the bathrobe, and put on her underwear and nightgown. He watched her slip under the covers. She was always sore for a few days after a tournament. He finished what he was reading, leaned over and kissed her lightly, then turned his light out and settled down to his own pillow, watching her.

A warm glow effused Rox briefly as her husband kissed her. She wanted to return it, but was too far asleep by then.