Date:03/26/2009
Location:Albert Park, Melbourne, Australia
Matthew's luck is God tier. Not only is he getting to watch the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix, but he gets to actually be in the pit, without the mothering of Pepper or Tony to get in the way of his favourite thing. Let's not mention that he left Tony to fend for himself when Pepper found out about what he did with the mark 3 and about his few flings with a specific blonde report… again. He could only hope to at least have an alive brother when he gets back. No , he doesn't have to be in one piece. He just needs the capacity to make him an uncle, although at the rate he's going that may never happen.
On this trip he had his usual entourage:
The head of motor vehicular design, Alexi Calloway.
The head of race analytics, Conner Franks.
The head of his personal Stark publicity liaison, Ava Gilbert.
And of course , his strategist, Riccardo Alonso and his bodyguard, Rick Mason.
At first glance, this group of corporate drones seem rigged and a tad cold, but really most were big fans of the sport and who better to go with than the young stark that has obsessed over it since he could talk.
The air was soaked in engine oil, fresh tires and the nearby sea blowing a cool breeze of salt into the paddock. Not that he would be racing but supporting the teams that Stark industry is backing has always been one of his favourite things to do. Last year , he had to cut that short due to Tony's incident but now, he was happily anticipating the start of free practice.
He's never against getting a new driver on his payroll. Right now , he was eyeing a new driver by the name Nico Hülkenberg, from what Matthew gathered he is new to the F1 scene .Which means Matthew has a new maybe driver to scout for the next grand prix in 2010. The thought alone put a smile on his lips. Will he find someone worth sponsoring this year or will he be on the fence again like last year. Matthew wasn't the only one thinking this , most companies and corporations that invest in the motor and sporting department are having this exact same thought.
Which one of these stars will shine the brightest?
Who should they take and who should they drop?
And will they even get the chance before someone bigger and bad-er comes along and snatches their future away like a thief in the night?
These thoughts were normal for corporations ,a profit is all they seek . But not Matthew, Matthew does it for the thrill, for the friends he'll meet along the way. But in all seriousness , this race weekend was going to be the most exciting thing for him since that test run last year in Italy.
" Hey, stark!" A V.I.P. hailed him over, the conversation akin to asking the weather. The common place talks about current events that always seemed to go on and on. He wished to escape it , his mind feeling like a mix of sad elevator music and a hydraulic drill on concrete.
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POV Rick Mason
I stood five feet away from the target. It appears his annoyance of the constant influx of VIPs was manifesting around him. Below the drivers were arriving in the paddock , Stark motors being the main sponsor of at least 3 of the most prominent. That being McLaren, specifically for Hamilton, Ferrari and Mercedes , all top tear teams that constantly fight for podium.
He should have expected it, the moment the carts lined up the target's eyes looked onto the line up , his bright eyes staring intently at car number 44. When Matthew first started as the CEO of Stark Motors , he was sixteen and very much ready to drive in one of those torture chambers without a second thought. At the time I thought he was just being a kid for once, eager to play on the first thing someone tells him not to touch.
But the day he met his few friends, like Lewis Hamilton, and Riccardo Alonso was a day to remember. He had sneakily taken on of the test cars ,for the stark sports expo, on a joy ride, the car was worth around thirty-two thousand dollars at the time of launch and he had driven the thing around apparently nearly having a few accidents and coincidentally nearly mowing down the now 24 year old formula driver in the process.
Believe me , I myself didn't believe him till the man himself appeared inside the Stark Motors conference room signing on as one of their ambassadors on a five year contract. The entire time , the two spoke like they've known each other other their entire life.
The screen in front of us lit up with the view of the starters who were testing the track , a few speeding in corners at nearly three hundred km/h. Not even I myself had the guts to speed on a corner but these racers did. purple replacing timers next to each name, it was impressive and i can understand why Matthew was so interested in it.
The sleek burner phone, that was usually placed in my pocket for more of an accessory than an actual purpose, rang , not hesitating a second nor checking the caller id like a regular person, I answered it. The only people that had this number were those who knew what my little side hustle was.
"Go for Master" I answered , turning my body away from the target staring at the screen as if he'll somehow overhear the conversion over this sea of noise. The gesture was an act but that doesn't mean he didn't actually have to do it. One lip reading video two years ago was all he needed to know that the kid will know every word that comes out of his mouth at just a glance.
"Understood, it'll be done in two weeks." I hung up but his voice made me flinch instantly.
" You want a few days off, I assume."
Staring at him wearily he just waved it off dismissively and went back to watching the screens. I wouldn't be surprised if he already knew who I was, and that hydra was very interested in getting their toy back.