Battle of The Gods

Trentadue

Toto could feel his heart thumping loud in under his ribcage, the blood pulsing through his veins faster than a rocket ship. He could hear a very faint whistling sound as he felt like steam was shooting through his ears. His face felt hot like lava, his hands tight in a fist, with the phone in his right hand getting closer to cracking in half. He was sat staring in blank space, his mind becoming a chaotic world as he tried to process every word Lewis told him, whilst being reminded that Alessandra used him for a sort of ploy of dominance he could not understand. He thought he knew her, after all these years at the paddock, and the last few weeks. He's never felt so much betrayal, it was making him sick.

"Toto," Lewis called out on the other line for the 20th time, "Toto, are you still there?!"

Somehow, the team principal managed to register the voice of his former driver, finally getting out of his wrecked thoughts, clearing his throat, followed by a deep breathe as he tried to get his head straight.

"Yes Lewis," the Austrian replied, "I'm still here. Was there anything else you needed to tell me?"

"No, that was it," Lewis answered, a silent sigh slipping from his lips, "Good luck for the season Toto, I'll see you in the paddock."

"You too, Lewis," Toto said, "good luck on your new adventure." Toto pulled the device away from his ear, hung up, and put it on his desk. His movements were aggressive as he ran a hand through his hair, slightly tugging onto it as he pushed himself off the chair.

He started pacing round the room, his mind going through every detail of every encounter he had with Alessandra, trying to see if there were any signs of Alessandra using him. He didn't want to believe it, but his own mind had convinced him that she indeed used him and played him, his thoughts were fuelling the flaming rage. The only logic that made sense for Toto was that Alessandra had motive for sleeping with him. She wasn't really interested in him like she claimed she was, it was her way of showing him that she's not only won on track, but she actually managed to take his champion, his team's most important asset, and to top it all of, she managed to get him wrapped around her finger so easily, and she got satisfaction from that. That was her motive.

He was consumed by anger, which was getting mixed with hatred, having no control of his actions as he stormed back to his desk, grabbing his phone, seeing red as he searched for Alessandra's contact to call her.

The group at the Dolomites had returned back to the cabin after Alessandra and Andrea did a short snowboarding session and Charles, Antonio, Joris and Antoune skied, all in laughter as Antonio told Alessandra about how him and the rest of the World Endurance drivers greeted Mick on his first day training with them with a welcoming prank. Andrea went in the kitchen to prepare some proper breakfast for everyone whilst the rest went to take a warm shower. They had a couple of hours before they were heading out to start their training so they were all dressed in sweats and hoodies when they returned to the kitchen.

"So," Joris started, turning to Alessandra after handing her a cup of coffee, "only 2 hours until the news comes out, how do you feel?"

"A little bit nervous, but really excited," Alessandra admitted, a wide smile on her face as she enjoyed the warmth of the coffee as she sipped it, "I never expected that in my first year as a team principal I would sign 7 time world champion Lewis Hamilton. All of us thought he'd retire instead of being anywhere else than Mercedes!"

"It's a legendary move," Antonio joined in, "the partnership between him and Charles will be great, and imagine if the team wins the WCC this year, Lewis would have contributed to the Ferrari history!"

"The team needed it as well," Charles said, glancing up at his boss with a proud smile, "we haven't had two world Champions since Kimi and Seb, but it had been a while since they both were crowned champions. Lewis's last championship was 2020, and mine was just a few months ago, so quite recent for both of us!"