Greeting from Patty’s Worlds
Some years back, while working with then sponsoring member Trish Hubschman, author of the Tracy Gayle Mystery series and other titles, I ran across the group, “DB Touch of everything” Who knew I’d end up needing them myself?
Now, I visit often and the following is from an author I respect highly.
Scott myself and others like us overcome a lot of challenges in our world but this concept of a blind race car driver is amazing.
Enjoy.
By Scott Stoffel,
(Reprinted from DB Touch Of Everything November 7, 2025.)
Note: This is part of “The Death-Blind Derby” series.
Bob removed his helmet, gulped some water from his bottle and then exited the car. His team had just won the Quad-Rod event, earning $200,000 for each of the four drivers on his team. It was their best haul of the year so far. He’d have to wait a few minutes for Cliff to come and guide him to the underground mall for the victory interview. That was okay. He felt good. He leaned against Blind Rage and listened to the noise from the stadium swirl around him like a sonic storm.
“Bob! Bob!” The excited voice came from the 5-foot drop-off from the track to the desert near him. He heard scrabbling sounds, as someone climbed up onto the track. “We won!”
He barely had time to straighten up before Maria threw her arms around his neck. To his astonishment, he suddenly found himself kissing her. She clung to him for several seconds. When she finally broke off, he discovered his hands lightly holding her waist. The snug faux leather suit defined a trim waist and round hips.
What was he thinking? Cameras had probably captured the scene. If Mandy heard about it, he’d be in for grief. He let go of her with more reluctance than there should have been.
She laughed. “Sorry, I got carried away. But we won! I knew I could do better with the right team. Eat my dust, Death Bouquet!”
Bob wondered if a TV camera had caught the shouted jab at her former team. He’d never witnessed her being so excited before.
“Yep, we won. You did a good job.”
“Thanks! The last part scared me. But I did what you said, didn’t I?”
“You did. It helped us win.”
Abruptly, she seized the collar of his silver racing jacket. For a moment, he thought she might kiss him again. “I did just what you said! Oh hell, I’ve never hit anyone going that fast before!” Then she let go.
Her behavior told him that she was pretty shaken from the high-speed collision. Worse, he felt disappointed that she hadn’t kissed him again. The faint whiff of her trademark perfume, Destiny of Danger, stirred him up in a way he had to subdue.
“Hey! Over here!” she shouted. “We won!”
“Way to go, Raging Four!” Cliff’s voice hollered back.
Of course, Cliff hadn’t needed Maria to tell him where they were. Blind Rage was the only car left on the track. She was new to the team and had previously never won a Stainless Steel derby.
Her shoes or boots smacked dully on the road as she walked away. Bob didn’t know what kind of footwear she wore with her driving suit. He knew that the suit was white with fake bloodstains all over it and a heart torn partially in half. Then she stopped. “Uh, are you coming?”
He was tempted to ask her if he could hold her arm. Deciding Mandy wouldn’t like that, he said, “I’ll hitch a ride with Cliff.”
“Oh, er, yeah, he’s coming.”
Once Cliff arrived, the funny feeling Maria had given him faded, replaced by worry. How much of her celebration had been caught on live television?
“What’s left of the Heartbreaker?” Cliff inquired, while they walked.
“I thought the whole front would be smashed in,” Maria replied. There was still a twang in her voice, like she was punch-drunk. “I hit him so hard! But it’s not too bad. I was surprised.”
“That car is built to take hits. Your old one wasn’t.”
“I see what you mean now. Heh. I think it’s me that got smashed…. Is that Lady?”
“That’s her, in a shouting match with one of the guys from the Crash Crew.”
“Only shouting?” Bob quipped.
“Hey, bloody baby!” a guy yelled from somewhere nearby. “How about goin’ for a drink? We’ll celebrate your win.”
“I can’t, have to do the interview,” Maria returned.
They encountered Raf near the entrance to the stadium. “Hola, amigos! Great night, Bobby-o! Fuiste magnifica, Maria!”
Based on the sounds of movement and someone’s whistle, Bob suspected that Raf received a kiss, too. He chided himself for feeling jealous.
“Come on, Lady!” Cliff shouted before they went inside. “You need to do the interview!”
“I’m not takin’ (expletive) from this dickhead!” Lady’s voice screamed back.
“They’ll bring you downstairs in a straightjacket and withhold your winnings!” When Lady screamed even louder, Cliff hurried inside.
“You figured out how to get her attention,” Bob remarked with a chuckle.
“Yes, but it’s dangerous.”
They met Dan, Shin and Marcel Dubois on their way to the stage near the food court. The latter congratulated Maria, especially, but she brushed him off quickly, citing the interview. Lady showed up shortly thereafter. Dan guided Bob onto the stage and stood behind him.
Interviewer: “Bob Yates, with tonight’s win, the Raging Four has the highest win percentage among Quad-Rod teams with at least seven derbies. How does it feel to be number one?”
Bob: “I’m very proud of our team. We work hard, and this is why we do it.”
Interview: “Maria Mendez, the Bloodshedda, or are you the Heartbreaker now?”
Maria: “We named my new car the Heartbreaker, but people have started calling me that.”
Interviewer: “You earned your first Quad-Rod win tonight. How is the Raging Four different from your old team, the Death Bouquet?”
Maria: “There’s more intensity here. Bob had us out there practicing a lot, made us do research on our opponents and study plays. He’s really good at tactics.”
Lady: “Oh yeah, Bobby’s great at playin’ Leader. But he nearly blew it bailin’ Bloody out.” Without warning, she pinched Bob’s earlobe and pulled his head to one side. “You were one inch away from losin’ this ear! Then your sunglasses would fall off. I’m lettin’ it go, see? But you’re buyin’ the drinks.”
The audience chortled.
Bob: “Somehow, I knew it would come to this.”
He got some laughs for the quip.
Interviewer: “Bob, does tonight’s success mean that Maria will permanently replace Mukondi Juma on the Raging Four team?”
Bob grimaced inwardly. This was one thing he really didn’t want to discuss. While he hesitated, Lady pounced.
Lady: “Like hell! ‘Kondi’s way better than her!”
Bob: “It’s… it’s not about who’s better. It’s a matter of who’s available.”
Bob felt Dan move around him. Dan: “That’s right. With Lady and Bob wanting to compete in championships and everyone else wanting Stainless Steel solo opportunities, we’ll have to do Quad-Rod events with who’s available. Mukondi is still very much a part of our team.”
Interviewer: “Dan Ricci, you’re team manager. So, you don’t see Maria becoming a regular member of the Raging Four?”
Dan: “I didn’t say that. We only have five drivers that qualify for Quad-Rods. Bidziil Tso is still Second Gear. So it’s just a question of availability.”
Lady: “Yeah? What if we’re all available?”
Dan: “You just won $200,000, plus all of those Knockouts, and your car was practically mummified in ad stickers. That’s over $300,000 for tonight.”
Lady: “This guy knows how to turn me on!”
More laughs from the audience.
Raf: “Chica Loca has a heart of gold, 24 karat gold.”
Laughter.
Lady: “Hearts break too easy. I go for the gold!”
The audience cracked up.
Interviewer: “Lady Poison, if you were in a Titanium Tire championship, would you object to Maria replacing you on the Quad-Rod team?”
Lady: “Naw, I’d love to see her play Striker. That heart’s gonna break real fast.”
Interviewer: “Rafael Ramirez, how do you feel about Maria being a member of the Raging Four?”
Raf: “I don’t mind havin’ Chica Hermosa around. After all, a team needs a heart, eh?”
Lady: “It’s not her heart you wanna get your hands on.”
Raf: “So we forget the hearts and just go for the gold!”
Maria: “Rafael!”
Lady and Raf had the audience rolling on the floor, albeit at Maria’s expense.
Interviewer: “Speaking of hearts, was that victory celebration out on the track more than just a kiss, Bob?”
Bob winced again. Why did interviewers have to call attention to things like that? “No. She was just excited about winning.”
Maria: “I was really worked up. It was just one of those spontaneous things.”
Lady: “What’d you do?”
Raf: “They went gold prospecting!”
Another round of laughs.
Maria: “And we struck gold! We won!”
The rest of the interview focused on things that happened during the derby. Afterwards, the team signed autographs and posed for pictures. Bob noticed that Maria mostly stayed near him, Dan and the engineers, while Lady and Raf circulated independently. Marcel tried to coax her into walking around with him without success.
Then they headed for their hotel. Dan politely invited Marcel to join them at the bar.
“I was thinking Maria and I might go somewhere private and talk,” the investor responded.
For all of her harshness toward Maria, Lady rescued her from this proposal. “Oh no, she has to drink with us tonight. It’s a team tradition. The Leader buys the rest of us drinks when we win.”
“And when we lose, you make him buy even more drinks,” Raf tagged on.
It was late, but the bar was open past midnight on weekends. They were given a big, round table in a corner. Maria claimed the seat between him and Raf. It left Marcel to sit apart from her.
Instead of his usual beer, Bob ordered a mint julep.
“You’re really celebratin’ tonight, huh, Bobby?” Lady remarked at this. At least she’d ordered a glass of tequila, instead of a whole bottle. “Or is somethin’ botherin’ you?”
“Celebrating,” Bob lied.
“No quieres una Corona, Maria?” said Raf in Spanish.
“Not tonight. I’m celebrating too,” Maria replied.
Lady sniffed. “A strawberry daiquiri? Yeah, that’ll match your lipstick.”
“What drink matches yours?”
“Now there’s a poser,” Cliff joked. He leaned closer to Bob. “Lady’s wearing that hideous periwinkle lipstick of hers but no eyeshadow.”
“No eyeshadow or mascara when I’m drivin’, just the lip gloss. What goes with these lips?” Lady made kissing noises.
“A blueberry martini,” Dan suggested.
Bob noticed by the voices that Dan and Lady sat next to each other. He wasn’t aware of a relationship between them, though they often sat together.
“Let me taste that, Danny. I never had one.”
“There’s a drink you’ve never had?”
“Just for that….” She paused, and then an apparently empty glass hit the table. “I’ve had one now.”
Dan sighed.
Then Marcel steered the conversation in a different direction. “Regarding Maria’s participation on the Quad-Rod team, I do think she’s earned a spot.”
“Oh yeah?” Lady challenged. “She would’ve been knocked out, if Bobby hadn’t pulled her ass out. I heard it all.”
Dan tried to intercede, but Marcel cut him off, “I was sitting in her Virtual Ride, and I believe Bob may have overreacted to her initial difficulty.”
Dan more aggressively got between them. “As I said during the interview, it’s a question of availability. With everyone wanting shots at big paydays, I’m very sure we’ll have to shake the roster up frequently. Maria will get her chances at Quad-Rods.”
The investor seemed satisfied with this. “That’s reasonable. I just want to make sure she gets a fair deal.”
Lady started to make a comment, but stopped when a mobile phone buzzed. “Is that my phone, Danny? Who’s callin’?”
“It’s… Violet Black.”
“Gimme! Hey, Violet! You watch it on TV…? I know, you gotta be a (expletive) psycho to win at this game…. What…? Well, yeah, I’d love to. It’s just that…. Yeah, he’s here. We’re all havin’ a drink…. Seriously…? Hey, you guys, Violet wants me to put the speaker mode on, so you can hear this.”
The next voice Bob heard was that of long-time Death Derby sensation Violet Black: “Yeah, listen up, manager. I want Lady to do one with my team. She doesn’t have to go up against your team. I’ll tell you the sched. Keep your team out of that one, and there’s no problem, see?”
“Well, that’s true, Ms. Black,” Dan responded. “If we coordinate the schedule and can transport Lady’s vehicles to the location, there’s no reason she can’t drive with the Ultras one time.”
Violet said, “There! So, how ‘bout it, kid?”
“Hell, yeah! Do I have to be the (expletive) Striker?”
“That’s what the (expletive) psycho’s for, isn’t it? Or maybe I’ll let you be my Wing. Just remember, I’m the (expletive) Leader. We do things my way.”
“Hey, I play follow the Leader. Tell her, Bobby.”
Bob took the prompt, “She does, I’ll admit. But if Lady is going to do this, then I’m going to be there.”
“You really wanna go up against me, Bobby?” Lady sounded angry and maybe a little hurt.
“No. I want to ride in your Virtual and see who gets the most fines for excessive foul language.”
Laughter erupted around the table. But beside him, Maria’s laugh sounded half-hearted.
Violet spoke again, “Okay, so that (expletive)’s out of the way. I’ll get back to you on the sched.” She hung up.
“Transporting her cars will cost extra, unless the whole team goes,” Cliff pointed out.
“Ms. Black is based in Los Angeles. If she picks an event there or in San Diego, I could probably work the other drivers into events between the two stadiums,” said Dan. “We could possibly take Bidziil along, too.”
“You think like a businessman,” Marcel commented. “That’s part of why this team is so successful.”
“Danny’s great with the business stuff,” Lady chimed in. “There’s a reason I haven’t ripped these ears off, even when you get on my nerves.”
Dan sighed. “That’s the most hazardous part of my job.”
After more laughter, Marcel said, “Let me know if you’re coming to California, so I can make sure I’m not out of town.”
To be continued…
About the author…
Scott Stoffel is DeafBlind and a retired Systems Engineer. He is the creator of the Tactile Carnival, author of numerous books (mostly by S. M. Stoffel) and editor of DB Touch Of Everything free ezine available via email or Facebook.
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