Chapter 2 - The Package
Panama City, Panama
1 year later
"A car is a like a child." Old Man Toretto used to tell his son when he was a young boy. He began teaching his son everything he knew about cars when he was just a little boy. Dom had learned these lessons early and soon, like his father, cars became his greatest passion.
Dom couldn't imagine himself doing anything else in his life that didn't involve working with cars or racing cars… but he'd just wished that that hadn't involved breaking the law.
Life hadn't been fair to Dominic Toretto in many ways, including the tragic death of his father. Because of his earlier upbringing, Dom had done everything he had to do to live his life with dignity. He didn't care about the consequences of his actions.
All Dom ever wanted to do was to protect Mia, his baby sister, and give to her a decent life.
At least, Dom hadn't failed in his promise to her. Mia wasn't with him now as she had her own house and a job. She was safe. However, Letty was another story!
It had been one year since Dom had left her in The Dominican Republic. In that time he hadn't received any news about her.
Dom had been very careful not to be found by anyone. Only Mia knew where he was hiding and she had strict orders to never reveal this secret to anyone… including Letty.
Dom had never stopped thinking about Letty. Not one single day! His decision to leave her, he'd felt, had been the best decision for both of them…he'd believed that deep down in his heart.
Letty was now free to continue on with her life without the complications of living with a man wanted by the law.
It was another routine morning in Panama City. Dom had been hiding there for almost ten months now. He'd spent some time hiding in a tiny little village in the Dominican Republic before leaving for Panama… so close but yet so far from Letty!
When Dom had arrived in Panama he had found work as a mechanic. He had rented a room and stayed there living a very simple and quiet life.
Occasionally, he would race but nothing big like in LA. He had to remain in hiding from the cops.
Dom didn't know how long he would stay in Panama… he only knew that his instincts would tell him when it was time to leave.
Dom was working underneath a car when one of his boss's children came running into the garage calling for him. "Tio!"(Uncle)
Dom had a good relationship with his boss and his boss's five children. They all loved Dom like an uncle. "Que pasa, niño?" (What's going on, boy?)Dom asked coming out from under the car.
At this moment, Dom realized that the boy was holding a medium sized package close to his chest. "What's this, José?" Dom asked standing up.
"Esto es para ti, tio!"(This is for you, Uncle) The boy said in Spanish. "Tiene tu nombre escrito." (It has your name written on it.)
Dom took the package and examined it. "Gracias, José." (Thank you, José.) The boy smiled and left Dom alone in the garage.
The boy was right. Dom's name and new address in Panama were written on the package. He suddenly became worried. The package had to be from Mia. She was the only person who knew where Dom was hiding. Something must have happened to her!
Dom hurriedly tore open the seal of the package with a knife. Inside the package was a piece of paper and a white teddy bear. Dom held the stuffed toy in his hand. He didn't understand what the package meant and there was no return address.
He read the piece of paper: "Go back to Los Angeles. I would like to discuss issues that might be of interest to you. You won't regret it - if you come back!" The letter was signed, Braga.
Dom frowned. This was all very strange. Who the hell was Braga? And how did he know that Dom was there? Could this package be a coded message? But from whom…Letty?
It could be a trap from the cops, too, but Dom had to figure out for himself what this package really meant.
Dom left the garage and went to the nearest public phone that he could find. It was located near a busy street full of people selling fruits and vegetables from tents.
Dom picked up the phone and dialed Mia's number. His sister would definitely be surprised to receive a call from her brother after all of these months!
"Hello?" Mia's soft voice answered the line.
"Mia… it's me!" Dom quietly said.
"Dom? Oh My God Dom! Is really you? I've been so worried. I've wanted to call you so many times but you said that I couldn't!" Mia excitedly exclaimed.
"I'm ok, Mia. What about you? How are you?" Dom asked.
"I'm good." She said. "But alone…"
"I know Mia…but you know it's best this way… for everyone! Besides, I don't want to talk about it. I didn't call about that, anyway. I wanted to know about you and…about Letty. Have you seen her?" Dom nervously asked.
"I haven't seen Letty for almost a year now, Dom. She was staying with me after you left and then suddenly one day she said she had to leave. She promised to call me and give me her new address but she never did. So, I thought she was going to meet you somewhere and didn't want me to know…" Mia sadly explained.
"Why would she come to meet me? Did you tell her where I was?" Dom worriedly asked.
"Of course not! Even after she begged me to. It was so hard lying to her, Dom." Mia said.
Dom looked at the teddy bear that he still held in his hands and said to Mia, "I'm coming back to LA."
"No! You can't come back! The cops will catch you Dom!" Mia desperately pleaded with him to change his mind.
"I need to come back Mia and find Letty. I'm worried about her. I'll see you in a few days." He simply said and then hung up the phone.
There was something strange happening in LA. Even if was a trap he'd take the risk to make sure that Letty was ok.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Dominican Republic
Letty took in a deep breath and counted the rest of the money that she had in her bag. Three thousand dollars…it wasn't nearly enough! With so little money she wouldn't be able to support herself for much longer in that country. Things were starting to get complicated.
She had decided that it was time to return to The United States and ask for help… even if she was afraid to go back there. The last time that Letty had been in L.A. she had been running from bullets and bad guys.
These same guys had stolen most of the money that Dom had left her. Letty sighed and set the money down on the coffee table in the small room where she had been living for the past few months.
She picked up her cell phone, a very old model…the only one that she could afford, and made a call. A female voice answered and Letty, speaking in Spanish, said, "Hola, soy yo. Tienes mi dinero? Como no tienes, mujer? Yo necesito este dinero. Quiero volver al Estados Unidos."
(Hello, it's me. Do you have my money? How come you don't have my money, woman? I need this money! I want to get back to The USA.)
Letty paused to listen to what the woman on the other end of the phone was saying to her and then she replied in a very nervous and loud voice. "Pero como tu quieres que yo regrese a mi país con este dinero de mierda? Yo no puedo, Soledad. Yo he trabajado duro para ti y ahora necesito el dinero. La niña necesita muchas cosas. Tu lo sabes! Oh, no, no te perdono!Por favor, ayudame…está bien, voy esperar que llames. Pero no tardes. Yo necesito regresar al Estados Unidos."
(But how do you expect me to get back to my country with this shit money? I can't Soledad. I worked hard for you and now I need the money. The baby needs many things. You know this! Oh, no, no I don't forgive you! Please, help me…ok, I'm going wait for your call but don't take too long. I need to get back to The States.)
Letty hung up the phone and felt tears form in her dark eyes. However, a loud and desperate cry shook Letty out of her despair and she quickly wiped her tears away and resolved herself to take care of what needed her attention most at that moment.
Letty quickly jumped up off of the bed where she had been sitting and went to check in the bassinette that was sitting in the corner of the room near the window. In it a baby covered by a soft yellow blanket was crying.
Letty smiled and picked up her little bundle. She gently rocked the child in her arms and whispered, "Don't cry, My Baby. Mama's here, Sweet Caterina…"
To be continued…