I know it took me a bit longer to update compare to how regularly I do update, but this week has been busy and the whole Paul Walker news really hit me, it's just so sad and surreal to think about.

R.I.P Paul Walker, you were an amazing actor and person!

In case you're wondering, I split this chapter into two because it was super long! I decided to post both chapters in one day only because the next chapter is a continuation and because I thought you all deserved it, to help ease the pain of Paul Walker's tragedy. Any who please enjoy the reading. The race is finally here!

Letty was sitting on her rocking chair and was knitting a light green baby sweater. She turned her head to the side at the sound of a soft knock on her suites bedroom door. She put her knitting basket down onto the coffee table and stood up. She straightened out her clothes before heading over to her front door. When she opened it, at her lovely surprise she saw her friend Mia standing on the other side.

Letty smiled. "Hey girl what's up?"

Mia smiled back. "May I come in?"

Letty stepped to the side, permitting access for her friend to enter. "Of course."

Mia walked inside the room and with her brown pair of eyes; she scanned the room and noticed Dom's absences. "So I suppose you heard about Hectors little escape?"

Letty closed the door behind her and offered her friend a weak smile. "Yeah... Dom told me."

Mia sat on the couch, crossing one leg over the other. She sighed. "Are we ever going to get a break from this life? Are we ever going to live a life without grudge? Without the need of revenge? Why are we still living this life?"

Letty twisted her lips and sat next to Mia. She looked down at the floor "People are bad." She spoke lowly.

Mia turned her head to the side and faced her friend. "What?" She asked

Letty sighed. "Since the very beginning, mankind has been known as a species that doesn't know how to work very well together." She turned her head to the side and met Mia's dark eyes. "People are bad Mia, and as bad as this may sound but we live in a dog eat dog world."

"Letty don't say that." Mia spoke lowly, in disbelief at her friends comment.

Letty shrugged. "But it's true. Mia I almost died because I wasn't ahead of the game. A lot of people have chosen to forget what sympathy feels like. They have chosen to give into their own selfish desires and therefore there's loss of human affection in the world."

"Well that's where you're wrong Letty; not all people are bad."

"Enough of them are."

Mia slightly nodded her head. "Well we're family, we stick together. We love and protect one another from bad people."

"Well you kinda just answered your own question. We're living this life to make justice to our lost friends. We're living this life to protect each other from the people who have done harm to our family."

Mia nodded and forced a half smile. "You're right." She then cleared her throat and placed a hand on Letty's flat stomach. "Have you told Dom about the baby yet?" She asked, trying to lighten up the mood and change the seriousness in the room.

Letty smiled. "Yeah he knows already."

"Aw that's great! How did you end up telling him?" Mia joyfully asked.

Letty bit onto her lower lip, and nervously glanced down on the couch she and her friend were currently sitting on, realizing that she and Dom had sex on it not too long ago. With hesitation, Letty stuttered. "Uh… well we…"

Mia chuckled as she turned her head to the side and looked away. She completely understood where Letty was going at. She already knew that when together, Dom and Letty were both very sexual beings. She shrugged. "Well that's one way on telling him I guess."

"Um… yeah and speaking of which, I would highly suggest you not to sit on this couch."

Mia gasped. "Oh my god Letty!" She abruptly stood up. "You guys are so dirty! Where haven't you guys done it!?"

Letty chuckled and stood up from her seat, deciding to ignore her friend's rhetorical question. "I told Dom last night before the whole Elena chaos." She walked over to the coffee table and from her knitting basket; she pulled out the baby sweater she had been working on.

Mia gasped amusingly. "Aw may I?" she held out her hand, waiting for Letty's permission. Letty nodded and smiled, placing the unfinished baby sweater into her friend's hand. Mia amusingly held up the baby sweater. "This is so cute. You made this?"

"Yup."

Mia grinned. "Letty it's amazing. Have you showed Dom yet?"

"Well technically that's how I told him about my pregnancy, except that it was a pair of baby booties that I have been working on. The sex was just a bonus, well more like a celebration to the baby news."

Mia rolled her eyes and chuckled. "Of course that's how you two would celebrate." She teased.

At that moment both girls heard the front doors censor buzz open. Dom walked inside the room and closed the door behind him. He furrowed his eyebrows, surprised at Mia's presence. "Mia? shit I didn't know you would be here," He exasperated as he made his way over towards the direction of the girls. "Brian is looking for you downstairs."

Dom then smiled at Letty and she smiled back. He wrapped his arms around her lower waist and pecked her lips. "Hi." He baritone.

Letty chuckled. "Hi"

Mia rolled her eyes. "Alright I'll leave you two horn dogs alone." She put the baby sweater back inside the knitting basket and made her way towards the front door. Letty looked over at her friend and called out her name. "Mia go get Brian laid, you know, as a good luck charm before he leaves for the race tonight." She said teasingly.

Dom contorted his face. "Really Let?" He asked in disbelief. Dom really didn't want to think about his little sister banging his best friend.

Mia chuckled. "Thanks for the suggestion Letty" She teased back and with that she walked out the room.

Letty looked up at Dom whom just smiled and rolled his eyes at her. Letty chuckled and shrugged. "What? I did that for you this morning."

Dom nodded and sighed. "Yeah we gotta talk about that Let, about tonight's race," He grabbed Letty's hand and walked them over to the couch. He sat down, bringing Letty down to sit on his lap. "I've done a lot of thinking and I want you to stay here with Leon and his family."

Letty furrowed her eyebrows and nodded, waiting for Dom to continue.

"When Leon found out that Elena left, he volunteered to be the extra driver, but I can't let him do that. Leon has to stay and protect his very pregnant wife and Liam. I can't take in any more guilt if something bad happens to Leon or to his family. They deserve better, we brought them into this mess when they're doing just fine back in Tokyo. Letty I can't take the risk of putting your life in danger either. If you stay, then Leon will protect you."

"Hells no, I don't want to be a burden to Leon. What? You think I can't take care of myself?"

"I know you can, but you're pregnant now."

Letty amusingly raised her eyebrows at him. "And that makes me incompetent now?" She asked sarcastically. "Are you seriously going to give Leon the weight to watch over three women? Two of them being pregnant, one on her third trimester, the other one on her first trimester, then there's Mia, and then add in two toddlers? That's a hell of a responsibility you're giving to Leon! And I'm telling you right now that I don't need anyone to rake care of me."

"I know that, but as the father of your child, you're my responsibility now. I can't bring you with me; I can't put your life and the life of our baby in danger."

"But Dom who's going to be your partner? With Elena being gone, we're left with an odd number."

Dom shrugged. "Then I won't have a partner."

"But everybody needs a partner," Letty flipped over, so she was now straddling him. "Let me be your partner."

Dom shook his head. "No, not a chance." He said in a stern voice.

Letty rested her hands on Dom's shoulders. "I have to be, you can't be alone, I won't let you be alone."

Dom gently rested his forehead against Letty's forehead. "Letty it's not safe." He said lowly.

"What makes you think I'm any safer if I stay?"

Dom sighed and nodded, understanding that moments like these, there was no such thing as safety. Even with a Special Forces agent such as Hobbs at their side, their safety was not guaranteed. Hobbs wouldn't be able to get outside support to aid the team on their mission because Hobbs was working off the books and his superiors were unaware of his involvement in Shaw's illegal race.

Letty stared deep into his vulnerable eyes. "Dom what was one of the many things you promised me when you brought me back home from London?"

"Let-"

"Tell me. What did you promise me on our first night back together?" Letty softly demanded.

Dom sighed. "I promised you that I wasn't ever going to leave you and I swore I would never walk out on you again."

Letty forced a half smile. "Then keep your promise." She said lowly. "Take me with you. We'll protect each other if we're together."

Dom clenched a fist of her hair in his hands and pulled her in for a passionate kiss.

Letty wrapped her arms around his neck while he looped his arms around her waist and together they stay in their embrace for a long period of time until Dom finally spoke up. "Then we stick together."

MEANWHILE

Brian was downstairs at the lobby having a drink in the hotels bar. He sat on a high stool and felt a familiar pair of hands wrap around his waist. "Word on the valley says you were looking for me." Mia whispered softly into his ear.

Brian chuckled and turned his head to the side and looked at her. Mia smiled and kissed the other side of his neck. Brian chuckled. "Is that my girl?"

Mia nuzzled her face against his neck. "Mhm." She confirmed.

Brian smiled. He stood up from his stool and pulled out an unknown amount of cash from his jeans. He placed it down onto the counter and thanked the bartender. He then turned his body around and faced his girl. He grinned. "There's my girl."

Mia's smile broadened. "Here in person."

Brian wrapped his arms around her thin waist and she wrapped them around his neck. "So Dom told me you wanted to see me?"

Brian sighed. "Yeah it's about tonight's race."

Mia twisted her lips and pretended to ponder. "Let me guess; you want me and Jack to stay with Leon and his family again."

Brian cupped Mia's face with his strong hands and stared deep into her dark eyes "It's for yours and my son's protection."

"I know." Mia said softly and lowly. "But I'll let you know that I could perfectly well take care of myself."

Brian chuckled. "I know that, but do this for our son."

Mia grinned "of course I will," She nervously licked her lips. "but promise you'll return back safe to me."

"I promise."

Mia pressed her face against his neck and Brian tightened the grip from around her waist. They held in their embrace for an unknown amount of time, enjoying and savoring their last hours together. After a long but mutually not awkward silence, Mia pulled away from their embrace and grabbed his hand. "Come on." She said suggestively.

Brian furrowed his eyebrows. "Where are we going?"

"Letty suggested something very clever today." Mia winked at Brian and escorted them out of the lobby and into their bedroom.

Later that evening…

The big night had finally arrived and the team had stationed themselves at the elusive secret spot where Ian Shaw was having his race. The race was taking place at a large deserted island with a mixture of paved and unpaved roads that ran through deserts, forest, and a ghost town. Racers from different parts of all over the world made it to Shaw's annual tournament. Over 40 different racers, and as Hobbs predicted all of them were from harsher neighborhoods than the gang. Murderous thugs, smugglers, and cartel get away drivers, and each and every one of them was in the top of their leagues.

The first car to pull up was team Tej and Hobbs, followed by Brian and Roman and covering the rear was Dom and Letty. All three cars were heavily tinted to keep people from seeing them inside. The gang would communicate with one another with walkie-talkies that were cleverly and purposely installed into their cars.

All the cars were gathered in a baron flat desert area with tire tracks covering every inch of the surface. The cars were scattered across the field in front of a large white starting line that had been spray painted on the dirt with two large metal guard towers at either end of the line.

This was definitely not any ordinary race.

Suddenly the speaker on the guard towers turned on and there was an announcement: "Racers, the race will begin in five minutes please get into positions." The large crowd of drivers all excitedly jumped into their cars screaming and revving their monster machines in unison. Tej and Hobbs car drove over to the far left of the starting line with Tej behind the wheel and Hobbs in the passenger side loading his weapon. Brian and Roman moved to the far right of the finish line with Brian behind the wheel and Roman was peering out the window looking for Shaw with a pair of binoculars. Lastly Dom and Letty had to aggressively make their way to the center, for other cars tried to block them and would sharply turn in front of their way in attempt to cut Dom off, but Dom masterfully dodged and evaded the asshole drivers.

"Any sign of Shaw?" Dom asked speaking into his walkie-talkie.

"Not yet" Brian's voice muffled through his walkie-talkie.

"Nothing over here" Tej's voice muffled through his walkie-talkie.

Letty was loading the Blue shells into a special custom made cannon, thankfully provided by Tej. She turned her head to the side and looked over at Dom. She frowned as she studied the seriousness on his face. She began to rub his bicep. "You okay there big boy?"

Dom gripped the steering wheel. "I just want to get this done with and walk away from here with my girl."

Letty smiled. "You will, but just focus your mind on winning this race, alright babe?" Dom smiled back as he grabbed her hand and kissed the back of her palm.

From afar three heavily armored cars drove to the front of the starting line. Ian Shaw was in the middle driving his car and once again the speakers announced: "All racers make way for Ian Shaw."

Dom grumbled at the announcement and gripped his steering wheel tighter.

The announcer "Everyone start your engines now."

The loud thunderous roar of engines polluted the air and sparks and flames would burst out through the exhaust pipes.

Dom grabbed his walkie-talkie. "Alright guys this is it, get your shit together, its show time."

"Roger that." Hobbs voice muffled through his walkie-talkie.

Tej adjusted the setting of his Nitro boost and Brian shifted gears while Roman got his cannon ready.

The announcer began the count down. "The race will begin In 10…9…8…7.."

Letty turned her head to the side and faced Dom. "ride or die?"

"6…5…"

Dom turned his head to the side and faced Letty. "Ride or die" he confirmed.

"4…3…2….Bang!" Three flares shot straight up into the sky high in the air signaling the racers to fiercely ride through the starting line.

Letty excitedly began slapping her knees and shouting "GO GO GO!"

I'm spoiling you guys,

Next page: continuation of the race ;)