Thanks for the reviews! To clear up a few things: Mia does seem bitter towards Letty, but that's because she is, and has reason to be. Continue reading to find out why.
This story will include a lot of flashbacks, just because I feel like we get bits and pieces of info on their lives before Brian showed up, so I would like to expand on those moments.
"First off, I need you to know that for everything you and your family has done for me, I thank you. I'm indebted to you forever. You guys took me – virtually a stranger – in and made me feel like I had a home... like I belonged. You saved me from a guaranteed life of unhappiness, prison, or death. I'll never be able to put into words how grateful I am for the Torettos. But I think it's time for me to go. When I lost my memory, I lost myself. I haven't mentioned anything, but a few weeks ago some of my memory started to return. The first instance was in a dream, about the day after you left. I woke up terrified, screaming for you. You weren't there. It made me so angry. This probably sounds crazy, but the only memories coming back aren't painting you in a great light. I'm finding it hard to see you as the man you are today, and not the man who abandoned me in the middle of nowhere. When I say I love you guys … please don't second-guess that. I hope you understand. I will be back. I'm not sure when, but I will come back. Give everyone my love.
Love, Letty O."
Letty wiped the tears that streamed down her face and onto the letter before standing from the toilet seat. She gave herself a disappointing glance in the mirror before heading back into her bedroom. She shouldered her duffle bag and said goodbye to her bedroom. Letty tiptoed through the hallway to the room next door and paused. She reached for the knob, but quickly pulled away as if the offending object were on fire.
"Quit being a pussy," she whispered to herself before gently turning the knob again, this time slowly pushing the door open. Thankful that Dominic was asleep, Letty dropped her bag at the door before stepping inside, hiding in the shadows as to not alert the sleeping giant. She watched him sleep, amazed at how gentle and innocent he looked for such a masculine man. It made her getaway harder to see him so content, when she knew that in only hours his world would be flipped on its axis once again. Letty bit down on her lip to hold back her cries and slipped the envelope on his nightstand. She couldn't stop herself from leaning down and quietly pressing her lips to his bald head, the stubble tickling her lips and sending a shiver down her back. Letty hesitantly pulled away before turning her back and leaving the room, snatching her bag from the door and trekking down the stairs. She stopped at the door and glanced back at a place she called home for the past year. It was the first real home she had since waking from her coma, shared with the only people who had her best interest at heart. What Letty had with Owen and his crew was a life of hurting innocent people, not appreciating each other the way the Toretto's had.
She would miss this home, but she would be back. She promised him, and herself.
It had been a year since Letty left Dom in the dark of the night, and each time she recounted the letter she left for him, she suffered excruciating migraines. Though she knew it was more likely to be a side effect from the head trauma she suffered at the hands of Phoenix, Letty couldn't help but feel it was guilt eating away at her.
Weeks before she left, Letty began to remember the events leading up for her accident. She remembered waking up alone in the Dominican Republic, then running to Brian and the FBI to help find Dom. She remembered racing in the Mexico desert, and driving through frightening tunnels to help bring him home. Letty remembered doing everything she could to keep Dominic with her, but it wasn't enough. No amount of begging or convincing was enough to keep him from leaving her in the middle of the night.
Ironically enough, the more time she spent with Dominic, then more she wanted to be away from him. The horrified events of her past were flooding her brain on a daily basis, to the point where she couldn't force herself to stay with him. Sure, he was the reason she kept her freedom in London, and he saved her life that day on the bridge, but Dominic Toretto was no saint. He broke promises too, like the one he made the night of the tanker heist. He promised that he'd be there with her, that he would ride it out until the heat died down. But he didn't. He left.
So did she.
Letty fought hard to ignore the headache trying to inch its way in and remained focused on her last job of the day: replacing the brakes on a '99 Corolla. Thanks to the current heat wave blazing through Nevada, and the broken air conditioning unit in Bobby's Auto Repairs, Letty's headache and sour mood was there to stay. She just wanted to get to her house and crawl into bed with her sympathetic pup, and sulk in peace.
Letty gave a silent cheer when she tested the brakes and they responded accordingly. She cleaned her greasy hands on a cloth and looked up at the clock, noting it was 4:57 PM, the end of her shift at her day job.
"Thank God," Letty muttered and quickly began cleaning up her work area. She slipped out of her coveralls in seconds, stuffed them into her locker and grabbed her work bag before heading for the time clock. Letty punched her ticket and stopped at her boss's – Bobby Payne – office. "Can I get my check?"
Bobby gave an annoyed sigh and shuffled through a messy stack of papers on his desk in search of her money. He found the envelope and handed it over before diving back into his sloppy, greasy burger.
Letty thumbed through the cash quickly, realizing he was short, yet again.
"This is only three-hundred bucks. You owe me five, not to mention the two you shorted me last week. What the hell, man?" she exclaimed.
"Expenses, Ramirez. Whaddaya want me to tell you?" he grumbled through a mouthful of food, referring to the name she chose for her voyage - her mother's maiden name, Ramirez.
"Bullshit, Bobby," he stopped eating at her tone and looked up at her warningly`, "I need my money."
"And I have expenses to pay, tools to buy to keep this place running," he stood angrily, his stature toppling over Letty, but not intimidating her. She had battled the biggest, and beaten the toughest. "It's gotta come from somewhere, and you're not exactly high up on the seniority totem pole. Now lose the 'tude or take it somewhere else."
In a split second, Letty was reacting like old Letty. She grabbed the giant by the throat and by his package, staggering him up against the wall. He growled in agony as she held on by her nails to his most sensitive areas. Her adrenaline raged; Letty loved getting the upper-hand on anyone who underestimated her because she was a woman.
"Trust me, I'm leaving, but not without my money. Now I have an old friend with some connections in the FBI and I bet they'd be curious to know where you get your nice, new parts, huh?" When Bobby didn't respond, she tightened her grip on his throat.
"Alright. Top drawer," he grovelled, pulling a set of keys from his pocket.
"Open it carefully," she ordered and moved him towards his desk. Once it was open, Letty removed her hand from his throat and kept a tight hold on his testicles while reaching for the gun, two stacks of cash, and extra magazine clip occupying his drawer. She pushed Payne away and stormed out of the shoddy garage.
She wasn't satisfied until she slid in on the smooth, black leather of her beast. When she fired the motor up, Letty couldn't help but smile as her Camaro purred beneath her feet. If nothing else made her happy, this monster of a car did. As a birthday gift from Dom, she cherished the sleek muscle car, for it was all she had to her name.
Letty peeled out of the lot and drove the twenty minutes it took to get to her home. Pulling into the driveway, Letty smirked when she realized she'd just committed her first crime as a free citizen. She knew if Bobby's idiot thugs weren't already after her, the police would be soon. It was time to move on again. It would be her third move since leaving Los Angeles. She couldn't find anywhere that made her feel at home quite like Echo Park did.
Now, Letty was currently packing up her bedroom, shoving clothes and shoes anywhere she could fit them.
"Nicki?" Brooke called from down the hall. Letty cursed when she realized she would have to break the news to her friend that she was leaving. When the brunette burst in, she laid eyes on Letty's packed duffel bags. "What's going on?"
Letty sighed, "I think it's time I move on," the familiar words made her tongue burn.
"What do you mean?" Brooke asked, her voice spiked with emotion. "You're ditching us?"
"Brooke, this was never permanent, girl. I stuck around long enough for you to get on your feet. Now, it's time for me to go," Letty turned back to her packing.
"Go where?!" Brooke snatched Letty's bag from her attention, "You said you had no where else to go. No family. How am I supposed to do this on my own?"
"You're an adult, Brooke. You'll figure it out. I did."
"What the hell are you running from?!"
Brooke's words stung Letty, "I'm not running from anything! I just want to be alone! Is that so hard to fucking get?!"
Brooke was the one left stung by Letty's harsh words. She stormed out of the room with teary eyes, leaving Letty with her guilt. While she continued to gather her things, Letty could hear Brooke taking her anger out in the next room. Letty slumped down on the bed with her hand in her heads.
A loud bark from Ginger got her attention.
"You hate me, too?" Letty asked the pup. Ginger trotted over to her, whining as she nuzzled against Letty's feet. "I have to go, girl. Momma reverted back to her old ways."
Ginger took off through the door again, but soon returned with her leash dangling from her mouth. She smiled shamelessly, positivity shining in her amber eyes for their future. Ginger allowed Letty to drag her anywhere she wanted. She never judged, and never questioned why; just wagged her fluffy tail and smiled.
Letty shouldered her bags and leashed Ginger. She stopped at the photograph on her table, and without even glancing at it, tucked it under her arm and headed for the door. The home was now silent, without a peep coming from Brooke's room. Letty wouldn't dare insult her with a good bye, so she instead slipped from the home and out to her car. Once there, she was surprised to see Brooke stuffing her own bag in the trunk of the Camaro.
"Just because you had a bad day, you are not running out on me," Brooke murmured as she yanked Letty's bags from her arms and shoved them in the trunk as well.
"You make us sound married," Letty teased, though she knew it wasn't time for jokes.
"I cook, I clean, and neither of us are getting any – we might as well be married. Let's go," she demanded as she slid into the passenger seat of the Camaro.
Letty shook her head with a smirk before opening the back door to allow Ginger to jump in. She fired up the ride, and with one final look at Brooke for confirmation, tore out of the driveway. Letty used her knees to steer while opening the picture frame, removing the family photo and tucking it on her dash.
They drove in silence for an hour, and Letty couldn't have been happier. She wanted nothing more than to drive without a game of twenty-questions from Brooke. But on the other hand, her silence only meant she was thinking of questions to ask. It didn't take long for the first one to come.
"Where are we going?" Brooke asked.
"No clue," Letty shot back, "Wherever the road takes us, I guess."
"So when are you gonna tell me about them?" Brooke lifted the sacred picture from the dash. "About the people in this picture that you keep so close."
"Nothing to tell," Letty closed up, her eyes dancing over the photograph in Brooke's hands.
"Bullshit. You say you have no friends, no family, but you cling to this damn picture harder than I've seen you cling to a man. Who are they?"
"Old friends from back home," Letty gave in, "People I grew up with."
"What happened to them?"
"Things didn't work out. I left them," her voice cracked. It was harder to say aloud.
"Why?" Brooke pushed.
"Brooke. Enough questions," Letty begged, snatching the picture from her friend's hands.
"Was there a man involved?"
Letty's eyes traveled out the window to the busy traffic zipping past her car, "Isn't there always?"
"Well whatever it is, it's obvious you miss them, or you wouldn't keep that picture for so long. Whatever it is keeping you from your friends, you need to squash it. I made the mistake of letting a man take me away from my home and friends. Don't let the same happen to you, Nick. It sucks to have one friend, and she tries to take off when you're not looking."
Letty felt bad for Brooke; as friendly and sweet as she was, she didn't have any genuine friends. No one came to visit, no cards on her birthday. All she had was Letty and Ginger.
"I'm sorry, B. I snapped at Bobby's," Letty murmured, lifting her shirt to show off the pistol tucked in her waistband.
"Oh god! Did you kill someone?" Brooke panicked, "If you did, let me out of the car! I can't be an accomplice!"
"Relax, Brooke. I didn't kill anyone. The asshole was pinching my checks. So I took what he owed me, and then some," she nodded to her purse. Brooke opened it to find several large rolls of cash sitting in clear view.
"Holy shit," the brunette whispered, "You robbed him?!"
Letty chuckled, "Yeah, I guess so. The gun is his. I didn't want to give him a chance to use it on me, so I took it."
"You're crazier than I thought," Brooke murmured, but left it at that.
Letty was shocked by her casual response, "That's it? No lecture?"
"I was ready for a change anyways. I was sick of that bar," Brooke smirked before nuzzling into the seat. "Can I trust you won't kick me out of the moving car if I take a nap?"
"Shut up," Letty smirked; as annoying and stubborn as Brooke was, she had become the only friend Letty had left in the world.
"I know you're afraid to open up, but you shouldn't stay so closed off. It's not healthy. I hardly know anything about you or where you're from," Brooke mumbled sleepily. "We'll talk more later, Letty."
Letty's eyes shot over to the girl, who was now snoring loudly.
Three Years Ago
When she managed to peel her eyes open, she immediately regretted the action as blinding lights shone down on her. Her vision was blurry and her throat was scratchy from the obstruction lodged in it. She tried grabbing for it, but was convinced yanking it out wouldn't have felt any better, so she struggled to breathe calmly through her nose. She ached from head to toe, with her pulsating migraine overshadowing the other pain.
The worst part of her nightmare? Not remembering where she was, how she got here, or who kicked the crap out of her.
When her vision finally cleared enough for her to take in her surroundings, she realized she was in a hospital room. Lying on a brick for a bed, hooked to various beeping and blinking machines.
She tried hard to rack her brain for clues, but panic began to set in for her.
She couldn't remember anything.
Not where she was, or even what she was doing before she ended up here, but she demanded answers.
At that moment, a tall, fair-skinned man with barely any hair and blue eyes entered the room, clipboard in hand and a warm smile on his face. A little shock, as well.
"Well, it's nice to finally see the eyes of my mystery patient," he said while moving to the foot of her bed to read her chart. She frowned when the tube down her throat prevented her from questioning the happy-go-lucky doctor. He hurried to her side when she went for the tube again. "You don't wanna do that, dear," he advised, "Just take a few breaths through your nose and I'll get this out of your throat."
She tried to distract herself by reading the name on his badge – Dr. Mark Ambrosia, Nervous System Specialist – as he slowly pulled the plastic obstruction from her mouth. She clenched her fists tight and tried not to gag from the undesirable feeling the tube left, but the cup of water he handed would surely suffice. Letty chugged it quickly, and handed it back for a refill, but was denied.
"Take it easy, dear. You've been in a coma for a week."
Her eyes nearly popped out of her head at his revelation. She wanted to interrogate the doctor about her condition, but her throat wasn't ready just yet. Dr. Ambrosia seemingly read her mind and handled her a notepad and a pen so they could communicate.
She hurriedly scribbled on the paper and held it up.
"How?"
"You were in an accident on the outskirts of southern L.A, about ten miles from the border. An elderly couple found you in a ditch a hundred feet away from your burning car. No identification whatsoever. You suffered two collapsed lungs, several broken ribs, and a broken arm. You're worst injury was the one to your head, that's why they called me in. Bleeding and swelling to your brain, that's why we were forced to induce you. You were touch and go for a while. You've very lucky to be alive, miss..."
"Letty," she scribbled next and held it up proudly.
She took a moment to absorb the devastating news slowly, trying hard to recall such a tragic accident that could've easily killed her. The more she pushed her brain, though, the worse her headache grew. Letty turned back to her pad and scribbled again.
"What's wrong with my brain? Why can't I remember?"
Dr. Ambrosia sighed and pulled a chair next to the bed.
Letty knew more bad news was coming.
"We figured there would be some memory loss – you suffered quite a blow to your head. I'll ask a few questions and we'll see how far this memory loss goes, okay?" Letty blinked away the tears that were pooling in her eyes as the doctor placed a comforting hand on her leg. "It is tough, but you will get through this, Letty. I watched you die three times on a table, and fight back each time. You're very strong; I could tell without even having one conversation with you. The simple fact that you're awake right now, and communicating with me, shows me your perseverance."
Letty wanted to believe him, but lying in this bed with no memory or even a supportive friend, she didn't feel so strong. She felt lost.
"First a few simple questions, okay? Whenever you've had enough just let me know," Letty nodded. "Now, can you tell me anything about the accident? How it happened, or what you were doing before?"
Letty shook her head feverishly.
"Okay. Do you have a job, or a career?"
Letty once again searched her mind for an answer, but came up empty once more. She shook her head.
Dr. Ambrosia gave her a sympathetic look before continuing, "A best friend? Any friends from your childhood?"
At this point, tears settled in her eyes threatened to spill over as she once again shook her head.
"I don't know," Letty finally forced out through a hoarse, scratchy voice.
"What about a boyfriend? Or husband? Even a first love?"
Letty's chest ached at the mention of a boyfriend. Her skin crawled with goosebumps, and the machines hooked to her body began reacting furiously.
"I can't remember him, but I might've."
"I'd say; heart-rate and blood pressure are spiking..."