Chapter Thirty-Six: The Storm

Vince sprung up in bed, his ears automatically focusing on the tuner engine heading towards them. He could hear heavy footsteps running down the hallway in front of his room, worry lingering behind them. He lay still momentarily, drawing in a deep breath, letting the silence wrap it's arms around him. The calm before the storm. He sat up a few moments later, the front door opening as a car pulled up in front of the house. He heard Mia crying as he slowly climbed down the stairs, Letty sobbing hysterically by the time he reached the foot of them.

He sat down on the bottom step, jeans hanging off of his hips as he lowered his naked body towards the floor. There he stood, Jesse, in the open doorway. His shirt bloody, his face tear stricken, as Letty dropped in front of him, clawing at his jeans. Vince sat frozen, a hand over his mouth as he drank it all. Mia leaning against the wall as her body shook quietly. Leon hugging Jesse.

Vince swallowed the guilt that came with it all. He was hoping it would be Kai coming through that door. He never thought it would be Jesse. He never thought that it would not be Dom coming home. He felt guilty because he had made it back, but they hadn't. All the sound around him became a blur, as he was swallowed into a black hole. He could barely make out the words Jesse was crying out, as he announced the truth that they were all trying to avoid. Dom was in a coma.

The storm was here.

Jackie closed the bedroom door behind her, jumping slightly when she found Erin standing behind her. "Don't get involved, Jack. This is not your fight," she cautioned, stepping aside and letting her walk past her. Jackie shook her head, mostly at herself. "I can't just not help. I know what it's like to not have a real family. To not have a father, a safe place to call home. I gotta try to make this work, somehow, for them," she said, heading towards the front of the house.

Erin stood at the foot of the stairs and sighed, scratching the top of her head. "You can't get caught up in their mess, J. God forbid you get dragged into something and those kids lose you too. It's bad enough they don't have a father. You should be focusing on offering them stability and that safe place you call home," she argued. Jackie stood in front of her, throwing her purse over her shoulder. She nodded, facing her close friend and confidant. "I can't just sit back and do nothing. I have to at least figure out what I'm doing, how this all affects me. I will be careful, I promise," she said, holding her stance.

Erin nodded, and slapped her hands on her thighs. "Fine. If you don't come back in two hours, I'm calling Hector," she said. Jackie nodded, kissing her quickly on her cheek. "The kids should be up in an hour or so," she threw over her shoulder, as she shut the front door behind her. She walked to her car, her hands shaking slightly. It had been a while since she had done something so daring. Since she had put her own needs, thoughts, and feelings before the twins.

She had eyed the storm and walked directly into it.

Jackie stared the storm straight in the face, as she placed the picture back down on the tabletop. The waitress smiled at her softly, as she refilled her coffee cup. "You shouldn't be anywhere near this, Jackie," the man sitting across from her said, sliding another picture her way. She smirked, pushing the picture away. She couldn't stand looking at it any longer. This entire thing was making her sick.

In front of her sat Donnie, a childhood friend who had connections in the F.B.I., along with a stack of pictures and files. He was an assistant for someone or something important in the bureau, so he was able to swipe the files for her. She leaned across the table, placing her hand on top of his. She smiled at him, flirting enough to pave her way. "I know, but my friend is really torn up about this entire situation. Apparently, she and the guy were getting serious, and then he just up and disappeared on her. She's really heart broken about it all," she said, sweetly.

What she really wanted to do was roll her eyes at him and tell him to screw off, but she needed him, more than he needed to get into her pants. Donnie leaned forward, grabbing her hand and running his fingertips across it. "Fine, only because it's you, sweetheart," he said, before clearing his throat. Jackie pulled her hand back, leaning back into the diner booth they were currently sitting in. She was desperate, and knew that no one could trace Vince back to her. He wasn't on the birth certificate and they hadn't been an item for years. So she made up a fake friend and decided to reach out to him.

"This girl, Kai, is Vince's wife. Turns out the bureau recruited her right out of college," Donnie said, holding up a picture of Kai. Jackie could really do without the visuals, but she shook her head eagerly, and appeared to be intrigued. "She was an undercover agent for a while, when the bureau decided that she wasn't worth her paycheck. They cut her loose until they got word that she had been seen around Toretto and his crew. Toretto, major bad guy. He's been running a hijacking ring for years. Suits offer her back in, even give her a promotion and a raise if she can help nail Toretto and the crew. She gets knocked up, and the suits weren't very happy with that, so they sent someone else in to take care of it." At this point, Donnie is holding up another picture, this time a blond with blue eyes.

Jackie studied the picture, she had never seen this man before. "Brian O'Connor. The first agent to infiltrate the Toretto crew. Turns out, him and Mia were a thing. Until him and Kai became a thing. They gave the feds evidence on their heists, and when they went into to arrest them, they got away. Apparently someone fucked up along the way and they escaped. Kai and Brian held up their end, and since they can't go back to Echo Park, they got relocated to somewhere warm. I wanna say Miami. The entire division there is being restructured." She sat back in utter silence, not believing Kai and this Brian guy were the ones behind it all.

"Whose the guy your friend was involved with?" He asked, beginning to shove everything back into his folder. Jackie cleared her throat and shook her head, trying to snap out of her daze. "The blonde one with the green eyes. Leon, I think it was. Drove a yellow car," she said, reaching for her purse. She stood up and faced him, a fake smile on her face. "Thanks, Don. She's at home crying about this. The news doesn't really tell you anything useful," she said. She hugged him briefly, before turning away from him.

Donnie reached out and grabbed her arm, dragging her back to him. He pulled her close to him, his hot breath invading her personal space. "So can I take you out sometime this week?" He whispered. Jackie clamped her mouth shut, trying to keep herself from throwing up. She nodded stiffly, smiling awkwardly. "I'll check my calendar, but this weekend should be fine," she said, before escaping from his clutches and rushing back home.

The storm had a name, and she had seen it's face.

She paced the kitchen listening to Letty breathe on the other end. "I can't believe this," she said, her heart breaking for Letty. She could only imagine how her best friend was feeling. The man that she loved was hurt. "There's a set of keys in my room. They can get you in the house, the store, the shop. You should take what you need for the kids. For yourself," Letty said, the connection crackling in Jackie's ear.

"It's okay, Let. We'll manage," she responded, sitting in an open chair. She stared out of the window, the sun setting in the backyard. "No, you should take what you need, Jackie. Get food, diapers. Take it one day a time, I'll be home soon," Letty said, quietly. But Jackie knew the truth. She could hear it as Letty spoke. She was back home, with them. She knew Letty well, she always helped a friend in need. "You should stay, Letty. Help them out. They need you more than me right now. I'll be fine, I've been on my own before," she said, listening to Letty stifle back tears. They sat for a while, in silence, neither one sure how to move on with the conversation.

Neither one sure if they could weather the storm.

There was nothing there for her, but she couldn't help but drive by the house. She couldn't stop herself from packing her trunk with groceries from the Toretto Market and driving to their house. She couldn't stop herself from putting the key in the lock and entering what she once considered enemy territory. Their house.

She could smell him, Vince, his cologne lingering in the air. A pang of jealousy hit her, as she walked through their hallways, into their bedroom. They lived comfortably, the walls lined with pictures, everything in perfect condition. Jackie sat on the edge of their bed, her eyes closed as she imagined what their marriage had been like. What their life had been like together. She allowed two tears to slip out, before standing up and mentally kicking herself for being so stupid. Jackie wiped her face, heading into Evan's room and grabbing some of his clothes. As she walked to the front of the house, she came upon their entryway table, a family photo album on display.

She hesitated, afraid her fingers would burn if she touched it, but she grabbed it. She slid it into the bag she had packed for Evan, wondering if he would ever see his parents again. If things would ever be normal for any of them. As her mind began to wander, full of her idea of normal, she shook her head and fled the house. She was running away from the memories she had, the memories she would have liked to made, and the memories she wish she could forget.

As she walked to her car in the driveway, she paused, turning towards the garage. In her haste to flee, she had blocked it all out. She had forgotten what he was, or who he had been. Jackie walked over slowly to the garage, and pulled the door open, her breath catching in her throat as she saw it. His car.

Jackie thought about the first time she had see him, after all those years. He was leaning against his car, the bright blue finish on his car bringing out his blue eyes. She sighed softly, leaning against the garage door and staring at it. This was Vince's baby, she could only imagine how hard it was to leave it behind, along with his actually babies.

She walked over to it, running her hand along the cool metal, missing him terribly. Even after all these years, she still wanted him. After all the hurt and the pain, she still hadn't moved on. Yeah, she had been on a couple of dates, but nothing stuck. She couldn't look at her kids without thinking about him. She couldn't move on, if they were her anchor to the past. To him.

Jackie looked out through the garage doors, her car glistening in the sun. She couldn't help but smirk, as she walked to the other side of the garage, and ran her eyes over a bunch of hooks that lined the walls. She spotted the key ring hanging there, and ran her fingers across it, before picking it up. She couldn't stop herself. She needed him with her. She climbed into the driver seat and turned the car on, his smell wrapping itself around her.

She drove off into the storm.

"Daddy!" Evan shrieked, as the kids sat on a blanket on the front lawn. Erin looked up, an eyebrow raised as a blue car pulled up in front of her. She smirked, as the car pulled into the driveway and Jackie climbed out of if. "Is this part of you keeping your distance and being safe?" She asked, taking Liana off of her lap and placing her down on the blanket. Jackie rolled her eyes, falling down next to her.

She sighed, kissing Evan on the top of his head before he ran off to play with the twins. She watched the three of them, climbing on top of each to use the tricycle Letty had bought them last Christmas. "I'm starting to finally accept the fact that Evan might be here for a while," Jackie said quietly, before turning back to Erin. She smiled at her, patting her on the shoulder. "Do you know how good of a mother you? You are making room in your life for a child that was abandoned, left behind with only a duffel bag of clothes."

Jackie smirked to herself, actually starting to feel better about herself. About this entire situation. "Letty told me to help myself to whatever they left behind. I went by their store and grabbed a bunch of food. Even went to Vince's house and grabbed Evan's clothes," she replied. Erin laughed. "And a car?" Jack nodded and shrugged. "It's bigger than my Honda. I can fit the 3 car seats in there, and the trunk is huge. I need to think for 3 now."

Erin stood up and stretched her body out, before turning to Jackie and helping her up. "You know I got your back, no matter what, girl. You and Hector, you are my family. These kids, even the adopted one, are my family. I don't want you to forget that. I made Hector a promise that we would look out for each other while he was gone and I intend to keep it," Erin said. Jackie stood up and hugged her, releasing a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

She was ready to battle the storm.