Three days later….
"Kendall, I want you to meet Letty's family." Dominic walked in, still in his black suit from the funeral. It had only been an hour and already the house was swarming with people. Kendall had been staying in the kitchen, busying herself with the coking and cleaning.
"Sure…" Kendall cleared her throat, seeing her cousin's rough stubbles form not shaving and the dark circles under his eyes, and tried to maintain her composure. She knew it was now her job to be the strong female of the house. Mia had slipped into a deep depression, barley talking to anyone and taking leave from her school.
"Nice to meet you." The Latino woman that was rather aged misled, puling Kendall into a hug, almost choking her. She could tell that family values ran strong in Letty's family. "Dominic is so lucky to have you around, our Letty loved him so." The woman smiled as she reminisced, tears forming in her eyes. Dominic pulled the fragile, older woman away from Kendall and into his strong arms, sighing.
"I am going to take Mia some soup." Kendall flashed Dominic a look and headed upstairs, thankful Dominic was being so strong. She really admired him, though she knew he had locked his feelings away and was on auto pilot.
"Kendall! The phone's for you this time." Brian intercepted her halfway to Mia's room. He was holding her cell phone and looking at it, giving her a look that clearly told her who it was.
"Did you answer it?" Kendall swiped the phone out of his hands, her eyes big in fear that he would blow her cover. He had agreed to let her do what she was planning to do, he wasn't happy about it and the two agreed to disagree.
"No, of course not. But I can read numbers." Brian shot back, shaking his head.
"Good for you, I have to take Mia some soup, unless you would like to." Kendall held out the steaming bowl of tomato soup towards him.
"Maybe I will." Brian nodded, though taking a deep breath. He knew he needed to help Dominic be there for all of the crew, but he himself was also having a hard time dealing with Letty's death.
"Good, I have a phone call to make, then." Kendall coughed, hating the uncomfortable seconds of silence that passed.
"You do that." Brian nodded, taking the bowl of soup out of her hand. They stared at each other for another awkward minute and both headed in opposite directions.
"Hello, this is Kendra." Kendall plopped on her bed so exhaustedly that it sent a wave of ripples to across the bed. She laid back, taking a deep breath, trying to psyche herself up to do the very unthinkable she was bout to do, feeling almost like she was disrespecting Letty.
"This is Lance, his cousin. He' s gone for a bit. Too bad you missed him. How about you come to the races tonight and surprise him?" Lance Tran, Johnny's cousin asked as Kendall kicked off her black stilettos and then fought her hose as she laid lazily sprawled on the bed.
"I might, just tell him to call me. It's kinda short notice for tonight." Kendall smiled, proud of herself for doing so well with little thought or rehearsal on the conversation she was taking part in.
"You can come for a little bit, can't you? I mean, he's a hot ticket and you know, he has lots of girls who would kill to be in your spot." Lance said, his smirk and daring voice coming in loud and clear over the phone line they two were sharing.
"Yeah, good for him. I'm not a racer chaser. I'm a racer." Kendall said, her tone flat and replied, not thinking about her reply. She scolded herself for letting the defensive side come out so easily. A few more of those slip ups and she would be found out and rather quickly.
"Nice, a girl with spunk. I'll tell him you'll be around so we can test those racing skills." Lance said, hanging up to not give any room for objection.
"Yeah, we'll see who tests who." Kendall threw her cell phone down in anger, her cheeks flushed as she threw her head back on her pillow. She drifted off into an uncomfortable sleep, her dreams circling the events of the past week.
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Kendall pulled up and looked around at the scene, taking in markers in case she would be in need of an emergency route. She was feeling bad about abandoning the crew, the first night the had ever forgone races due to Letty's funeral and she knew she had to be on point and have her game ready. She pulled in and got out, looking skeptically. These races were different than the ones the Toretto crew ran. There was all the tricked out cars like usual, but races were being ran one after the other, no one person being the star like her cousin was. It seemed random challenges were the usual on the unfamiliar race scene.
"Wow, you did make it. Impressive." Johnny Tran grinned, his tall, muscular figure standing inches away from her.
"Yeah, I wasn't too pleased how your friend thought he was being sly by hanging up on me like that, but whatever." Kendall looked around, wondering if she was playing it to cool or if she wasn't playing up to him as much as she needed to be.
"That's Lance. You're here now. Let's have a good time. Ill take it up with him later." Johnny put his arm around her. She wanted t o wince an pull back, feeling like his hands were tainted with Letty's blood but she fought the urge. She thought better and wet with the flow. She walked with him to his car and what seemed to be the front of the race and where all the action started.
"Nice car, yours?" Kendall remembered to not be so much like the real her and began to chew her gum, also tackily. Inside, she was shaking and wonder if what all Brian had told her about this guy was true and she felt herself loosing confidence.
Yup, they all are. I just let people race them to make money for me and it's a job for them, easy money for me." Johnny grinned, his cockiness matching her tackiness she was displaying in her body language.
"Nice." Kendall nodded, not saying much else.
"You told my cousin you raced. That so?" Johnny's steel gaze met her eyes, making her want to turn and run.
"I try and I do ok. I'm a lotta talk when I get irritated." Kendall squinted when a car's headlight's met her eyes, making her turn away.
"Well, Miss I do ok, let's see how you handle the blacktop." Johnny grinned, raising an eyebrow as he pointed to a neon orange eclipse that was parked and obviously for show.
"What?" Kendall shrugged, hoping against all hope he wouldn't expect her to drive it.
"Get in, we're gonna make a run against one of my boys." Johnny threw her the keys and she groaned awkwardly, to herself. He and his goons were so full of themselves, she thought grudgingly to herself. Her black boots with the heals made for a good excuse to not race, but she decided to not back down.
"I don't play nice to cars." Kendall warned, shaking her head with almost a truthful warning. She wasn't like Letty who treated her cars like kings and like they had a life to them. She did her racing and what she had to do to race, not sparing the feelings or the well being of the car.
"Is that talk all because you're irritated and feel like you gotta run game?" Johnny asked, catching Kendal off guard, she was quiet, not knowing how to respond. She pretended to not hear him, her mind wandering off into her own thoughts. "Kendra?" Johnny asked, leaning forward in concern.
"No, no not at all. Sorry, I told Lance I wasn't really up this tonight." Kendall looked down to avoid Johnny's what seemed to be sincere worried look.
"Aw, that's too bad. You can go. I don't hold people hostage." Johnny held out his big bicepted arms to prove his points, making her laugh as she mentally scolded herself.
"No one said you did and I never pass up a chance to race a car that's not mine." Kendall flashed her best smile and wondered if she should consider acting after this was al over and she either murdered this killer who seemed so normal or he was behind bars. She would make sure one or the other happened, thought she was not sure just how to do that yet.
"Good, I was hoping g that was the case. You seem to know what you're doing. I think you got an all around package." Johnny said, his grin almost making Kendall wonder if he was onto her.
"You don't even know me. You always pick up on girls so quick?" Kendall asked, starting the engine as the other car lined up at the start line.
"Nope, you are one of a kind. You said so yourself." Johnny looked out the window, laughing to himself.
"Man, I gotta be careful what I say, my words come back to haunt me with you, don't they?' Kendall asked as she lined up at the line, the driver, complete with a helmet looked over at her and nodded as Johnny waved. She forced straight ahead and revved the engine, not caring if she stripped his car or not. It would be little satisfaction in the grand scheme of things, though it would be a little piece of revenge.
"Go!" The guy counting off the two threw down his arms and yelled, both of the cars' tires squealing and leaving the smell of burnt rubber in the air. Kendall chose to not keep conversation and focused on the race. She trailed slightly, her edge on Johnny's boy gaining ever so slightly,
"You are intense." Johnny noted as she frowned, edging up on the bumper as the driver swerved to keep her from passing.
"Intense, No. Determined, yes." Kendall gritted her teeth, gunned the engine, shifted to her last gear and smiled lightly as she edged up evenly. The driver for Johnny hit his Nos and shot off like a rocket.
"Nice try, he rarely gets beat." Johnny shook his head.
"Neither do I." Kendal hit the button, preparing herself for a jolt of speed.
"This baby doesn't have NOS. I use this to test skill." Johnny nodded, his hand over his chin to hide his grin.
"Fine, then" Kendall tried to catch up on her own skill, though the lead was way to much. She peeled in not to far form the first place winner, but not in the place she wanted.
"AW, are you mad at me?" Johnny asked, giving her what seemed to be puppy dogs eyes.
"Would you really expect me to not be? I am not someone who likes to be embarrassed." Kendall held her head high as the two sat there in the car, the crowd not bothering either of them.
"Embarrassed form loosing? I wouldn't have figured you to be one who was embarrassed easily." Johan said, shrugging as though he was disappointed.
"No, it's, not from loosing. The fact you put me in a car and didn't bother to tell me you were misleading me to think it had NOS with the button and the race against a NOS stocked car." Kendall folded her arms.
"I am sorry, that was wrong of me. Let's do a rematch." Johnny looked at her , watching her reaction.
"No." Kendall sighed, truthfully tired and hating his sly mind games, whatever he was doing.
"Please? Consider it my mistake and please let me make it up to you?" Johnny begged, now he was the one looking worried and as though he had lost his cocky manner.
"One more race and I have to get going." Kendall sighed, not knowing what his deal was.
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"Did you have fun?" Dominic asked, sitting in the dark house when Kendall slinked in at three am. The time had slipped away without her realizing it and she was feeling guiltily now more than ever. Dominic waiting up for her was the last thing she needed.
"No, not really." Kendall tried to keep her voice light. The heaviness of the guilt for betraying the crew, the exhaustion of not sleeping since Letty had died, and the realization things were only going to get worse before better was wearing her down and she felt like she was going to crack. She wasn't as tough as she thought, she chided herself as a disgruntled Dominic stared at her, as though expecting an explanation.
"Yeah? Seems like it, being out so late." Dominic glared as Ma flipped on the lights.
"You okay, Kendall? I was worried sick." Mia admitted, a look of relief crossing over her face.
"Fine, thanks. I'm sorry guys, I needed some air." Kendall sighed, heading for the stairs.
"Air, is that what they call it now?" Dominic folded his arms, making Kendall spin on her heels.
"Dom, stop, she's dealing just like us." Mia slapped her brother as Kendall chose to ignore her cousin. She crept upstairs, the stairs creaking like she couldn't remember them doing before. Then she met a shirtless Brian standing outside his door.
"you do ok? He hurt you? " Brian asked, truly concerned at how rough and wore out she looked.
"If you call hanging out with him hurting me, yeah." Kendall replied dryly, fighting back tears. She wasn't even sure why she was crying. She thought she was all cried out, that she had cried till her heart and eyes had no more tears left in them. Brian went to put his arms around her, but she shrugged him off. "Just leave me alone. Please." Kendall held out her arm defensively, pulling away and rushing to her room. She tripped before making it to the bed she so wanted to hide in for the rest of her life and landed on the floor.
"Damn girl, you drunk?" Roman asked, not bothering to knock.
"No, I'm not."
Kendall replied, almost hatefully. She gave Roman an apologetic look and shrugged, her face down as she sat on the plush burber carpet.
"You need a hug." Roman sat on the floor beside her, massaging her shoulder s and making her smile slightly, still exhausted.
"I'm fine." she said, her voice light and soft.
"You can't fool me, I'm Romey Rome. Come here, girl" Roman pulled her into his lap with a grin at being able to make her laugh. She was asleep before she could even say another word.
