Author's Note: Mia makes her first appearance here! I hope you guys all enjoy and thanks so much for all the lovely comments! Enjoy

Chapter 6: Welcome Home

All my life I've been over the top

I don't know what I'm doing

All I know is I don't wanna stop

All fired up, I'm gonna go till I drop

"I Don't Wanna Stop" – Ozzy Osbourne

Hours later Dom and Leon had moved the truck to an abandoned factory and emptied its contents. Leaving their captive bound in the Audi, Leon had driven back to the warehouse to pick up Dom's car and they brought the two vehicles to a nearby hotel.

Now the three men were in the hotel room, which smelt vaguely of stale cigarettes and bleach. Their captive driver sat with his arms tied together in front of him. He looked tired and a little frightened. He had no idea what would happen to him when his failure was discovered.

"Okay," Leon said, flipping open the battered black cell phone. "From what our friend here has told us the person in charge of the runs here is a woman... named Gisele." He scrolled through the list of phone numbers. "But I get the feeling she's not really the head honcho, so I think she'll be looking to get those drugs back, or it will be her ass on the line."

"So we call her, and arrange a trade," Dom said.

Leon nodded and dialed the number.

0000

Exhaustion hung over them like a palpable force, like a dry taste in the back of their throats as the two women sat half-sprawled in the back of the truck. They'd been driving for hours now, and had been up longer than 24 hours. The air in the truck was stuffy and warm and they were silent in their lethargy.

"Apparently secret drug lord hideouts are out in the sticks," Syd complained, rolling her head so that her neck cracked the stiffness away. She pushed herself up into a sitting position, turning towards her companion. She was feeling restless and achy and idle worries danced at the back of her mind. Clearing her throat she bent her knees and tilted her head back. "So how long have you and Dom been together?"

Letty opened one eye, startled out of her half-asleep state by the question. She raked a hand through her hair, tugging it loose from its ponytail and yawned. "Long time. Well, officially... ten years or so."

"So like, before you were legal?" Syd laughed.

"Yup."

"My Dad would have flipped if I'd dated an older guy."

"Mine was already dead at that point," Letty said, turning her head away and closing her eyes again.

They were silent for a long time, both contemplating their own pasts, their own pains. "My Dad died the year after I went to college," Syd said, suddenly breaking the silence. "I wasn't there."

There was guilt and regret in her voice, and love as well. Letty glanced over at her, unsure of what to say. She wasn't really one to open up about anything, and the rare occasions she had it had only been with Dom.

"He was a military man," Syd continued. "Really devoted to his country and to his family. My mom had died when I was a kid so it was just me and him." Letty could hear the smile in her voice, even if she couldn't see it in the darkened truck.

"My Dad was in the army too," she answered after a moment, rubbing her fingertips idly over the denim of her jeans. "Messed him up though… in the head." She sighed then, biting down on her lower lip as if she'd said something she hadn't really meant to. "Shit, girl, this truck's been driving forever. Where the hell are they taking us?"

"No idea, but we're well beyond Sao Paulo by now." Syd replied. "I just hope the boys can find us."

"They will." Letty allowed herself a small smile. "Those boys are nothing if not stubborn."

0000

Mia pulled into the driveway and threw the car into park before climbing out. Grabbing her purse she yawned and trudged up the porch steps to unlock the front door. There was mail stuffed in the box and she fished it out with one hand while the other searched the depths of her purse for the house keys. She slid them into the lock and turned. The door swung open with a faint squeak and she stepped inside, moving past the stairs to drop the purse and the keys on a table.

Sorting the mail she made her way towards the kitchen. Nothing but bills and junk. With a sigh she dropped them on the counter and sighed. She felt weary after a long day at the hospital. She knew that she should go upstairs and change out of the pink scrubs but she lowered herself into a chair instead and buried her face in her hands. Some days she felt so lonely. Her family was gone.

Mia's head snapped up at the sound of a knock on the door. She wasn't really in the mood for company and considered ignoring it but the knock came again. She groaned and stood up, making her way through the house. She pulled the door open and stared, jaw dropping open in shock.

"Vince?"

He stood on the other side of the door and she hardly recognized him. That constant scruff was gone from his face and he bore a winding scar on his left arm. He still wore a pair of his old clothes, probably what he'd been wearing when the cops had come to transfer him from the hospital to the prison. That had been the last day she'd seen him.

"Vince, what are you doing here? How did you…?"

"They let me out." He finally spoke, his eyes never leaving her face. "I didn't know where else to go." His gaze drifted down and he smiled. "Finally became a doctor huh?"

She blinked, glancing down at her clothes. "Oh… yeah. I work in the Emergency Room. It's not really that glamorous." She stepped back then, holding the door wide. "Come in."

He stepped inside hesitantly, as if the house hadn't been like a second home for him for most of his life. "You're here alone?"

"Yeah." She nodded, easing the door shut. "It's just me now. Everyone else is… gone."

They were silent for a moment, thinking back to the days when things had been different. Mia looked at him. She wanted to ask him so many things. How had he gotten out so early? What had happened to him there? But she remained silent, watching him.

"Why don't you come into the kitchen? Want something to drink?" She turned to lead the way, needing a purpose, something to do.

He followed her back, watching the movements of her body in the simple cotton uniform. He remembered how she'd worn those low jeans and the tiny little tank tops all the time. Somehow these pink scrubs seemed sexier. Maybe because he'd seen nothing but other dudes for the past five years.

"You look good, Mi." He couldn't recall how many times he'd said that to her before. She'd usually ignored it.

This time she smiled. "I look like crap. I just got off a sixteen hour shift at the hospital."

"Nah, you always look good."

She went to the fridge and offered him a beer. He took the bottle, staring at the way the glass condensed in his hand. It had been so long since he'd even had a drink.

"I'll go make up the guest room for you," she said. "I'm sure you're tired."

He only nodded and continued staring at the beer as she left the room.

Mia started up the stairs, her thoughts drifting to the man sitting in her kitchen. He was so different. He seemed almost lost, and she remembered those terrible months after Dom had come home from Lompoc. Of course they'd had the others then: Jesse and Leon, Letty and Vince.

Now Vince had only her. But she wasn't going to let him down.