Disclaimer: I own no characters mentioned in this fanfic - damn shame!
Dom woke to a pounding sound in his head. It made his brains vibrate inside his skull, like his head was being smashed against a concrete wall continually. Tentatively, he touched his head; wondering if the strenuous past few hours with Letty had left him with a headache in the aftermath. Nah, it couldn't be that. They'd gone on longer and stronger before and he'd never felt anything like this, just total satisfaction that was simmering beneath the surface now. He found himself in a tangle of limbs, unsure where his ended and Letty's began. Her tousled head lay on the pillow beside him, a peaceful serene smile on her face. It was a while since he'd seen that look on her face. In fact he wondered if he ever had. As he smiled at her slumbering form, he realised something. There was harsh burning sunlight blasting through the generous windows, making him squint. It wasn't night. What the hell was the time? Then he registered the pounding noise again. Someone was knocking on the door. He was about to get out of bed when he realised an important fact. He wasn't wearing anything. A quick check told him Letty wasn't either.
"Wake up in there! I ain't afraid to come in and haul you both of bed!" an agitated voice yelled from the other side of the door
"Alright, gimme a second" Dom yelled back, frantically scanning the room for something to wear
He spotted his black pants hanging off a small table and quickly pulled them on, commando-style. Leon and Mia had seen worse. He and the guys often worked in the garage shirtless in the heat of the summer sun. He leapt lightly over the rest of the bed and pulled the door open. It revealed Mia, arms crossed over her chest and a murderous look on her face. It deepened as her brother emerged with a wide smile despite the savage wake-up call.
"I don't even wanna know what you've been doing in there to look like that though I got a pretty good idea" she started "do you have any idea how long you've been in that room?"
"A few hours?" Dom guessed hazily, leaning against the doorframe
"Yeah, it's five in the afternoon Dominic!" Mia's voice started rising to a dangerous level "you just wasted nearly a whole day while me and Leon were working our asses off"
Dom observed her through sleepy eyes. Her whole posture radiated disgust. He knew she'd have done the same if it had been Brian driving up in the shiny orange car. This all stemmed back to him. He couldn't be here. Probably never would be but Mia couldn't deal with that now. Dom and Letty had what she had and she wasn't going to take that lightly. Of course telling her this would be make her even more furious and defensive. Not a good cocktail to pour into his explosive sister. Impulsively Dom pulled his sister into a brief hug, releasing her before she could protest and ruffled her hair affectionately
"We'll be down in five alright? Thanks for leaving us for so long, appreciate it" he said with a smile
Mia looked at him slowly. He looked so happy. She sighed, all her frustration vented. She couldn't stay mad at him for too long.
"OK" was all she said as she uncrossed her arms and turned back down the stairs. Dom waited until she was gone before closing the door. He turned round to receive a hard slap round the head. One fact registered with him. Letty was awake. Now she was sat up on the bed, sheets pooling around her bottom half while leaving her top half beautifully uncovered.
"You woke me up!" she accused "and it was a great dream, I was winning races man"
"That ain't a dream Letty" Dom replied with a smile "that's your life"
"I know, but it was a good dream" she replied "we wanted downstairs?"
"Mia's got some dinner ready for us"
"Its dinner already? Man we missed lunch"
This thought seemed to spur Letty into action. She quickly extracted her black bra from the bed sheets and her black vest top from under the pillow before pulling them on over her head. While she dressed, Dom pulled on a short sleeved blue light denim work shirt with 'Toretto's' stitched over one pocket. He'd got it made when they'd set up the business so he could look partly professional when he wanted to. Which wasn't very often. Letty pulled her green cargos on as she wandered over to the window. She looked out at the dusky sky and delicate hazy landscape. It was gorgeous, even in late afternoon. Everything about Mexico was beautiful to look at. She smiled at it. Everything seemed ok now to her. She had Dom back with her, most of the team and a car to work on. Only things missing were Vince and a good race.
Dom's strong arms wound around her waist and she found herself twisted around and then hoisted up into the air, looking down into Dom's shining eyes. She shook her head at him. She often wondered why she put up with him when his eyes so easily wandered to the skanks at the races and he was gone some nights without any explanation. Other times she knew why. Because he always came home to her. When she felt like she wouldn't see him again, when Mia had arrived sullen and angry telling Letty and Leon about Jessi, Brian and the Trans, Letty knew she couldn't leave him. Not ever. It was like imagining her life without racing or without the crew. It just wasn't possible.
She slowly slid down his body so that she was standing in front of him and then reached up and kissed him. He responded hungrily. It amazed them both that such a response could be possible after such a long love session before. But then, they were insatiable. Letty pulled away from him, earlier than she'd have liked to and smiled up at him. He saw that the solemness he'd noticed earlier had disappeared. His Letty was still there under the grief.
"Come on, ya big jerk, time for some dinner" she said playfully, grabbing a hand and dragging him towards the door
As if on cue, his stomach rumbled loudly. Letty laughed, a smile creasing her tanned facial features.
"Sounds like you need the food baby" she said
She didn't hear his quiet response
"Got all I need"
*
"Hey! They return at last!" Leon exclaimed as the pair appeared outside "got tired of each other's company?"
"Never" fired back Letty "he'd have no one to bitch about and neither would I"
Dom shoved her lightly in the back in response, causing her to stumble, curse and shoved him in the chest in return. Dom grabbed her, threw her easily over his shoulder and marched forward. Leon whooped from his position at the table he and Mia had dragged outside. Letty shrieked and beat on Dom's back with her fists
"Put me down Dominic Toretto! Now! Or what happened this afternoon is a one time only event!"
"How would that benefit you huh?" was his response
Finally after circling a large patch of the ground in front of the house, Dom deposited her on the hood of her car. She grimaced at him as he walked away, looking back at her over his shoulder grinning. Mia appeared in the doorway at this point, several platters balanced expertly in her hands. She smiled sadly at the couple's horseplay, not moving until Leon noticed her and hurriedly got to his feet to help her.
"There you go chica," he said, relieving her of two of the plates
Mia smiled her thanks as she carefully walked to the table and set the plates down. She went back inside for more cutlery and food before emerging to find that Letty had somehow managed to attach an old hose to an outdoor tap and was currently soaking both Dom and Leon with the freezing water. It was like being at home. Her heart thumped loudly briefly. No, it wasn't completely like being at home. There was no Jessi fixing cars or designing new ones; he was in a morgue somewhere. There was no Vince helping Dom wrestle Letty to the ground; he was lying in hospital. But most of all to Mia, there was no Brian helping her cook. God knew where he was. After helping out Dom, had he been caught, handcuffed and taken to a prison? Or had he simply apologised, explaining away his decision to hand Dom his car keys as a small moment of madness and returned to the force? She knew his love was real. She'd seen it in his eyes that night. The night that she'd helped him find Dom. The night that a million emotions had raced across Dom's face as Brian called for the police on his cell-phone. The night after Race Wars; when Jessi had bet his father's car against Johnny Tran and lost, when Dom's temper had been exploded for the first time since he'd come out of prison, when Letty had knocked out Lance Tran in one punch. The night they all knew. Everything had happened in one single night.
Dom, amid trying to wrestle the hose away from Letty, looked up to see his sister's expression. It looked like she'd seen a ghost. Her eyes were glazed, she looked totally shell-shocked. He quickly left Leon to fend for himself against Letty and the hose and slowly made his soggy way over to Mia. Even as he got closer, she never moved. Transfixed by what she saw. He gently took a plate from her. She started and looked at her brother in astonished pain. Tears filled her eyes delicately like they were meant to be there, enhancing her unknowable beauty. Dom paused, watching her.
"What do you see Mia?" he asked softly
"I see.....everything" she answered at last before depositing her armful on the table
Dom nodded silently. She could see the past, all that had happened to bring them to this point. She dared to bare open her tender wounds for the sake of remembering. It was more than the others could do. Leon had just managed to close up his wounds, the memory of Jessi evidently still a stinging pain in his mind. Letty didn't talk about the past. She was brutally honest but tight-lipped. As for Dom himself, there was way too much shit in his past for him to sift through to try and find the diamonds. Let Mia be the one to remember, even if it meant pain and heartache. There were some things he couldn't protect her from no matter how hard he tried. One of those things was her own memory.
*
"What you gonna do? Make them take you back on the force asshole?" sneered Vince "You can't call no shots now that you're soiled goods"
Brian smiled. Vince hadn't worked out what Brian had been planning. That made Brian feel privately smug, he'd got one up on Vince again.
"No, it goes like this; the nurses don't know I'm a cop so they also don't know I've been thrown off the force" he explained laboriously "if you're ready to leave, I could tell them that I'm taking you for questioning, sentencing and prison - they wouldn't question it since I'm sure some cops have already been in to tell the nurses that that's gonna happen"
Brian could see the cogs working in Vince's head like a car engine. Vince was trying to work out if he could bear to be in Brian's debt a second time though he hadn't even acknowledged the first time yet. Brian didn't care; it was enough that Vince knew Vince owed him and the fact that Brian knew this drove Vince mad, hence the constant insults. Finally Vince looked at him with his piercing black gaze
"You want to bust me outta here so that you can see the Team again?" the way he said 'Team' confirmed to Brian that Vince didn't believe it was the whole team Brian was interested in "you want to give me freedom? Fine go ahead, I'll take you there"
Brian knew Vince wasn't convinced his plan would work or maybe he didn't want it to work so that he could see Brian fail and not be in his debt again. He also had the suspicious feeling that once Vince was out of the hospital; he might just take off and not take Brian with him. Brian had the distinct feeling that Vince was not a man who often kept his word when dealing with a person he did not like at all. It was a subject he didn't feel like broaching with Vince but since Vince was strapped into the bed and couldn't physically threaten him, maybe this was the best time to do it.
"I don't trust you Vince" Brian said at last, maintaining his distance "and you don't trust me, you don't like me either and I'm the last person on earth and in hell that you want to share a car ride with to God knows where to find the Team"
"Should have never given up the beat" interrupted Vince mockingly "got me all figured out"
"But I am your only hope" Brian continued before Vince could slide anymore insults into the conversation "I am the only way you can walk free for the next few years before your case comes up for review, otherwise you are going to take the rap for four people, possibly five if you count Jessi"
Vince gave a small, but visible, wince at Jessi's name.
"Now I am giving you the chance to walk free, if you take me to where the Team is so I can at least have the chance to explain to them ok? A chance for a chance" Brian said
He stood up and went to the door before speaking again
"I'm going to go to the lobby and ask them if its alright to move you, if they say you can walk without busting your balls too much then I'll come back and ask you again but if you can't be moved then I'll come collect my bag and leave"
Without another word, Brian walked out. He managed to conceal his wide grin until he was walking down the first set of stairs. He knew his pitch had been good. He'd learnt from the best; he'd learnt from Dom.
Vince steamed silently. He felt like punching a wall. Correction, he felt like punching Brian. The cop was right. Brian was the last person on Earth that Vince wanted to take with him to Mexico. Was there any other way he could get out of here without being taken out the front door in handcuffs? No. Then he was in a tight spot.
He concentrated on a spot on the ceiling as his thoughts rotated rapidly. What was his freedom worth? He'd be taking Brian back into the heart of the Team, right where he'd left off in better circumstances. He could remember in snatches Mia holding his head, Brian talking on a cell-phone and yelling instructions and Dom trying to spot the blood pouring out of Vince's chest with his t-shirt. He could remember the pain that reverberated through his entire body as his arm got intertwined with a thick metal rope as a pissed off lorry driver took pot shots at him with a rifle and his body hung limply towards the racing ground. He owed Brian big. Letty had been forced to crash off the road, Leon had gone back to rescue her and one of Dom's tyres was punctured. Brian had been his only hope with Mia at the wheel. Now, it was the same again. Brian was his only hope.
"Dammit!" he roared
No one rushed in. They were used to his tirades by now. The pain in his body had faded. Realistically he guessed he could be moved slowly at the promise he would rest once home. Brian could drive, Vince could direct. They'd both kill each other. Vince smirked. Life wasn't boring. Taking a road trip with the man he hated. Was it possible? For his freedom, anything was possible. He could always ditch Brian on the way. Yeah his freedom was worth it. That would be his answer.
Dom woke to a pounding sound in his head. It made his brains vibrate inside his skull, like his head was being smashed against a concrete wall continually. Tentatively, he touched his head; wondering if the strenuous past few hours with Letty had left him with a headache in the aftermath. Nah, it couldn't be that. They'd gone on longer and stronger before and he'd never felt anything like this, just total satisfaction that was simmering beneath the surface now. He found himself in a tangle of limbs, unsure where his ended and Letty's began. Her tousled head lay on the pillow beside him, a peaceful serene smile on her face. It was a while since he'd seen that look on her face. In fact he wondered if he ever had. As he smiled at her slumbering form, he realised something. There was harsh burning sunlight blasting through the generous windows, making him squint. It wasn't night. What the hell was the time? Then he registered the pounding noise again. Someone was knocking on the door. He was about to get out of bed when he realised an important fact. He wasn't wearing anything. A quick check told him Letty wasn't either.
"Wake up in there! I ain't afraid to come in and haul you both of bed!" an agitated voice yelled from the other side of the door
"Alright, gimme a second" Dom yelled back, frantically scanning the room for something to wear
He spotted his black pants hanging off a small table and quickly pulled them on, commando-style. Leon and Mia had seen worse. He and the guys often worked in the garage shirtless in the heat of the summer sun. He leapt lightly over the rest of the bed and pulled the door open. It revealed Mia, arms crossed over her chest and a murderous look on her face. It deepened as her brother emerged with a wide smile despite the savage wake-up call.
"I don't even wanna know what you've been doing in there to look like that though I got a pretty good idea" she started "do you have any idea how long you've been in that room?"
"A few hours?" Dom guessed hazily, leaning against the doorframe
"Yeah, it's five in the afternoon Dominic!" Mia's voice started rising to a dangerous level "you just wasted nearly a whole day while me and Leon were working our asses off"
Dom observed her through sleepy eyes. Her whole posture radiated disgust. He knew she'd have done the same if it had been Brian driving up in the shiny orange car. This all stemmed back to him. He couldn't be here. Probably never would be but Mia couldn't deal with that now. Dom and Letty had what she had and she wasn't going to take that lightly. Of course telling her this would be make her even more furious and defensive. Not a good cocktail to pour into his explosive sister. Impulsively Dom pulled his sister into a brief hug, releasing her before she could protest and ruffled her hair affectionately
"We'll be down in five alright? Thanks for leaving us for so long, appreciate it" he said with a smile
Mia looked at him slowly. He looked so happy. She sighed, all her frustration vented. She couldn't stay mad at him for too long.
"OK" was all she said as she uncrossed her arms and turned back down the stairs. Dom waited until she was gone before closing the door. He turned round to receive a hard slap round the head. One fact registered with him. Letty was awake. Now she was sat up on the bed, sheets pooling around her bottom half while leaving her top half beautifully uncovered.
"You woke me up!" she accused "and it was a great dream, I was winning races man"
"That ain't a dream Letty" Dom replied with a smile "that's your life"
"I know, but it was a good dream" she replied "we wanted downstairs?"
"Mia's got some dinner ready for us"
"Its dinner already? Man we missed lunch"
This thought seemed to spur Letty into action. She quickly extracted her black bra from the bed sheets and her black vest top from under the pillow before pulling them on over her head. While she dressed, Dom pulled on a short sleeved blue light denim work shirt with 'Toretto's' stitched over one pocket. He'd got it made when they'd set up the business so he could look partly professional when he wanted to. Which wasn't very often. Letty pulled her green cargos on as she wandered over to the window. She looked out at the dusky sky and delicate hazy landscape. It was gorgeous, even in late afternoon. Everything about Mexico was beautiful to look at. She smiled at it. Everything seemed ok now to her. She had Dom back with her, most of the team and a car to work on. Only things missing were Vince and a good race.
Dom's strong arms wound around her waist and she found herself twisted around and then hoisted up into the air, looking down into Dom's shining eyes. She shook her head at him. She often wondered why she put up with him when his eyes so easily wandered to the skanks at the races and he was gone some nights without any explanation. Other times she knew why. Because he always came home to her. When she felt like she wouldn't see him again, when Mia had arrived sullen and angry telling Letty and Leon about Jessi, Brian and the Trans, Letty knew she couldn't leave him. Not ever. It was like imagining her life without racing or without the crew. It just wasn't possible.
She slowly slid down his body so that she was standing in front of him and then reached up and kissed him. He responded hungrily. It amazed them both that such a response could be possible after such a long love session before. But then, they were insatiable. Letty pulled away from him, earlier than she'd have liked to and smiled up at him. He saw that the solemness he'd noticed earlier had disappeared. His Letty was still there under the grief.
"Come on, ya big jerk, time for some dinner" she said playfully, grabbing a hand and dragging him towards the door
As if on cue, his stomach rumbled loudly. Letty laughed, a smile creasing her tanned facial features.
"Sounds like you need the food baby" she said
She didn't hear his quiet response
"Got all I need"
*
"Hey! They return at last!" Leon exclaimed as the pair appeared outside "got tired of each other's company?"
"Never" fired back Letty "he'd have no one to bitch about and neither would I"
Dom shoved her lightly in the back in response, causing her to stumble, curse and shoved him in the chest in return. Dom grabbed her, threw her easily over his shoulder and marched forward. Leon whooped from his position at the table he and Mia had dragged outside. Letty shrieked and beat on Dom's back with her fists
"Put me down Dominic Toretto! Now! Or what happened this afternoon is a one time only event!"
"How would that benefit you huh?" was his response
Finally after circling a large patch of the ground in front of the house, Dom deposited her on the hood of her car. She grimaced at him as he walked away, looking back at her over his shoulder grinning. Mia appeared in the doorway at this point, several platters balanced expertly in her hands. She smiled sadly at the couple's horseplay, not moving until Leon noticed her and hurriedly got to his feet to help her.
"There you go chica," he said, relieving her of two of the plates
Mia smiled her thanks as she carefully walked to the table and set the plates down. She went back inside for more cutlery and food before emerging to find that Letty had somehow managed to attach an old hose to an outdoor tap and was currently soaking both Dom and Leon with the freezing water. It was like being at home. Her heart thumped loudly briefly. No, it wasn't completely like being at home. There was no Jessi fixing cars or designing new ones; he was in a morgue somewhere. There was no Vince helping Dom wrestle Letty to the ground; he was lying in hospital. But most of all to Mia, there was no Brian helping her cook. God knew where he was. After helping out Dom, had he been caught, handcuffed and taken to a prison? Or had he simply apologised, explaining away his decision to hand Dom his car keys as a small moment of madness and returned to the force? She knew his love was real. She'd seen it in his eyes that night. The night that she'd helped him find Dom. The night that a million emotions had raced across Dom's face as Brian called for the police on his cell-phone. The night after Race Wars; when Jessi had bet his father's car against Johnny Tran and lost, when Dom's temper had been exploded for the first time since he'd come out of prison, when Letty had knocked out Lance Tran in one punch. The night they all knew. Everything had happened in one single night.
Dom, amid trying to wrestle the hose away from Letty, looked up to see his sister's expression. It looked like she'd seen a ghost. Her eyes were glazed, she looked totally shell-shocked. He quickly left Leon to fend for himself against Letty and the hose and slowly made his soggy way over to Mia. Even as he got closer, she never moved. Transfixed by what she saw. He gently took a plate from her. She started and looked at her brother in astonished pain. Tears filled her eyes delicately like they were meant to be there, enhancing her unknowable beauty. Dom paused, watching her.
"What do you see Mia?" he asked softly
"I see.....everything" she answered at last before depositing her armful on the table
Dom nodded silently. She could see the past, all that had happened to bring them to this point. She dared to bare open her tender wounds for the sake of remembering. It was more than the others could do. Leon had just managed to close up his wounds, the memory of Jessi evidently still a stinging pain in his mind. Letty didn't talk about the past. She was brutally honest but tight-lipped. As for Dom himself, there was way too much shit in his past for him to sift through to try and find the diamonds. Let Mia be the one to remember, even if it meant pain and heartache. There were some things he couldn't protect her from no matter how hard he tried. One of those things was her own memory.
*
"What you gonna do? Make them take you back on the force asshole?" sneered Vince "You can't call no shots now that you're soiled goods"
Brian smiled. Vince hadn't worked out what Brian had been planning. That made Brian feel privately smug, he'd got one up on Vince again.
"No, it goes like this; the nurses don't know I'm a cop so they also don't know I've been thrown off the force" he explained laboriously "if you're ready to leave, I could tell them that I'm taking you for questioning, sentencing and prison - they wouldn't question it since I'm sure some cops have already been in to tell the nurses that that's gonna happen"
Brian could see the cogs working in Vince's head like a car engine. Vince was trying to work out if he could bear to be in Brian's debt a second time though he hadn't even acknowledged the first time yet. Brian didn't care; it was enough that Vince knew Vince owed him and the fact that Brian knew this drove Vince mad, hence the constant insults. Finally Vince looked at him with his piercing black gaze
"You want to bust me outta here so that you can see the Team again?" the way he said 'Team' confirmed to Brian that Vince didn't believe it was the whole team Brian was interested in "you want to give me freedom? Fine go ahead, I'll take you there"
Brian knew Vince wasn't convinced his plan would work or maybe he didn't want it to work so that he could see Brian fail and not be in his debt again. He also had the suspicious feeling that once Vince was out of the hospital; he might just take off and not take Brian with him. Brian had the distinct feeling that Vince was not a man who often kept his word when dealing with a person he did not like at all. It was a subject he didn't feel like broaching with Vince but since Vince was strapped into the bed and couldn't physically threaten him, maybe this was the best time to do it.
"I don't trust you Vince" Brian said at last, maintaining his distance "and you don't trust me, you don't like me either and I'm the last person on earth and in hell that you want to share a car ride with to God knows where to find the Team"
"Should have never given up the beat" interrupted Vince mockingly "got me all figured out"
"But I am your only hope" Brian continued before Vince could slide anymore insults into the conversation "I am the only way you can walk free for the next few years before your case comes up for review, otherwise you are going to take the rap for four people, possibly five if you count Jessi"
Vince gave a small, but visible, wince at Jessi's name.
"Now I am giving you the chance to walk free, if you take me to where the Team is so I can at least have the chance to explain to them ok? A chance for a chance" Brian said
He stood up and went to the door before speaking again
"I'm going to go to the lobby and ask them if its alright to move you, if they say you can walk without busting your balls too much then I'll come back and ask you again but if you can't be moved then I'll come collect my bag and leave"
Without another word, Brian walked out. He managed to conceal his wide grin until he was walking down the first set of stairs. He knew his pitch had been good. He'd learnt from the best; he'd learnt from Dom.
Vince steamed silently. He felt like punching a wall. Correction, he felt like punching Brian. The cop was right. Brian was the last person on Earth that Vince wanted to take with him to Mexico. Was there any other way he could get out of here without being taken out the front door in handcuffs? No. Then he was in a tight spot.
He concentrated on a spot on the ceiling as his thoughts rotated rapidly. What was his freedom worth? He'd be taking Brian back into the heart of the Team, right where he'd left off in better circumstances. He could remember in snatches Mia holding his head, Brian talking on a cell-phone and yelling instructions and Dom trying to spot the blood pouring out of Vince's chest with his t-shirt. He could remember the pain that reverberated through his entire body as his arm got intertwined with a thick metal rope as a pissed off lorry driver took pot shots at him with a rifle and his body hung limply towards the racing ground. He owed Brian big. Letty had been forced to crash off the road, Leon had gone back to rescue her and one of Dom's tyres was punctured. Brian had been his only hope with Mia at the wheel. Now, it was the same again. Brian was his only hope.
"Dammit!" he roared
No one rushed in. They were used to his tirades by now. The pain in his body had faded. Realistically he guessed he could be moved slowly at the promise he would rest once home. Brian could drive, Vince could direct. They'd both kill each other. Vince smirked. Life wasn't boring. Taking a road trip with the man he hated. Was it possible? For his freedom, anything was possible. He could always ditch Brian on the way. Yeah his freedom was worth it. That would be his answer.