"What's the plan here, Carter?" Brooke hollered from the inside of the plane. After some careful negotiations, she was able to get Kelly out of the bathroom and into a more comfortable seat near the front. She was terrified and apprehensive - but who wouldn't be getting woken up out of your sleep dangerous kidnappers.
"I missed the days when you called me dad," Carter said back as he swaggered toward the steps, leaning against them casually.
"Well you haven't been a dad for a long time," Brooke replied flippantly.
Carter frowned, annoyed with his daughter's attitude, "I already told you, we wait for O'Conner, then we leave. You move all of the money to Argentina, then we disappear forever. Live happily ever after in our home country."
"You really think it'll be that easy? You think Dom and the others are going to just let you fly off into the sunset with two of their own?"
"Of course not. I know what kind of man Toretto is. That's why I know he'll be with Brian when he shows. And we'll be ready," Carter snapped his fingers and Timothy whistled for a dozen men who entered through a side door. Each man was decked out in a black suit and equipped with a handgun. "If Brian knows what's good for him, he'll show up alone. If not, well I'll convince Toretto to leave, one way or another."
"You better not miss," Brooke took the steps past her dad, "'Cause if you do, we're all dead."
She headed over to Roman, who was still dangling at the back of the plane. He was barely conscious, and Brooke knew he wouldn't survive much longer. She wanted to help him, to tend to his wounds, but she wasn't ready to catch a bullet from her father. At least not yet.
"How you doing, Roman?" she asked him gently.
"Brian," he mumbled softly, using the last of his strength to look at her.
"He's on his way, sweetie," she cupped his face softly.
"I knew you would never make it."
Brooke's head whipped around to her father, "Excuse me?"
"In this business, in this world!" he exclaimed, "You have a conscience, and compassion. Those are the two things that'll get you killed dealing with dangerous smugglers and traffickers. You're just like your mother. She was too hesitant, too chicken shit to lay down orders. She was afraid of handing out death warrants to men who wouldn't have hesitated to blow her head off if they got a chance."
Brooke felt her heart chip away as her own father bashed her dead mother. She kept her face hard, though she knew her eyes would gave her away.
She closed the distance between her and Carter, pointing her finger in his face, "You know what? I'd rather be like mom - who's dead by the way, in case you forgot - than you. You were a piece of shit husband, you're a piece of shit dad, and a piece of shit criminal. I mean for fucks sakes Dad, you got busted by street racers."
She grinned at the repugnant look on his face. His jaw clenched tightly as he stared at her with fire in his eyes. He quickly pulled his Desert Eagle from his waistband and put the barrel to her forehead. Her face remained stoic but on the inside she was terrified. Her father was unstable and drunk, and one wrong move could end her life.
"I should send you to join your mother, since you think so highly of her," his hand trembled while his finger licked at the trigger.
"But you won't, because you need me," she said fearlessly. "I'm the only person who can get you your money."
Carter screamed, dropping the gun from her head and pacing the floor. Brooke let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.
"Another peep out of you and I swear I'll forget all about that money," he turned to his assistant, "How much time, Timothy?"
"Twenty minutes, sir," he replied.
Brooke decided to test her luck, "I'll make you a deal."
Carter chuckled, "Why would you wanna make a deal with the devil?"
"Like you said, I have a conscience. And what have I to lose that isnt already gone?" she said as the memories she created the night before went up in flames. "If you let Kelly free, unharmed, I'll transfer one of your accounts right now."
He raised his gun again, "If you can do it from here, why isn't that already done?"
"Because I knew I would be dead the second the money was in your possession," she replied. "All I need is Tim's laptop to access the server."
"Why not Roman? I mean, he might not make it another twenty minutes," Carter asked curiously.
"Because Kelly is innocent. I get why you want Brian and Roman, betrayal, lies, blah, blah, blah. But that woman is innocent. Brian didn't come after me, or mom, or Nana. He came for you."
Carter's eyes watered as the gun waved in Brooke's direction, "Don't play with me, Brookie. Don't make me kill my little girl." He nodded to Tim, who hesitantly headed for the door. Brooke followed closely behind. They headed to the black sedan parked out front. While he popped the trunk for the computer, Brooke reached into her pocket for Oz's phone that she swiped on her way out the house. While keeping one eye on Timothy, she scrolled through Oz's contacts and found Dom's number, hitting the CALL button. When the trunk slammed and he held up the laptop, she shoved the phone into her jacket pocket.
"Why do you insist on disrespecting your father? Stealing from his accounts... I bet you thought you were so clever, changing the access codes so only you could use the money," Timothy said while pulling his laptop from the backseat. "He only caught the missing two million from his account in Boca Raton, but I'd bet you took a lot more, huh?"
Brooke ignored him as she began typing away, starting the process of an international wire transfer...
Brian, Dom, Hobbs, and Oz all stood around Hobb's truck, prepping their weapons for battle. Brian noticed the disgruntled look on Oz's face and nudged his arm.
"You don't look too good, man. You know you don't have to do this," Brian said to Oz.
"Probably just nursing a concussion," he muttered, "I'm good to go."
"Brooke hit a homer off his head this morning. Took off with his Suburban, his phone, and the 9mm under his front seat," Dom filled Brian in.
"Have you tried calling the phone?" Brian asked, feeling slight sympathy for Oz.
"She's not picking up," Oz replied sourly.
"I'm sorry, bro. About last night, too," Brian said, giving him a comforting pat on the back.
"No sweat. Let's get this done."
"Alright, Brian. Are you sure you don't want us to wire you up? I don't like the idea of being blind out here while sending a civilian inside," Hobbs said. "Former cop, or not."
"Nah, Carter's smart. He'll find it the moment I step inside the hangar," Brian checked his watch. "I gotta go."
Brian looked to Dom with a look that the older man could easily read.
"I got your back, brother," he said. Brian nodded and the two hugged.
"Good luck," Oz said, holding his hand out to Brian. Brian shook his hand before turning to Hobbs.
"Get that team ready for Mia," he said sternly and jogged over to the Camaro, firing her up and speeding off. Dom's Charger was right behind him where they'd be until Brian reached the dirt path to the hangar. They didn't want to be spotted by Carter and take a chance on Roman's life.
Dom was focused on the dangerous task at hand, but Oz was stewing - pouting, almost - in his seat the entire ride, and it was concerning. Dom chalked it up to his head injury at first, but he could see sadness written on his face. Sadness that could only be caused by a woman.
"You okay, Ozzie?" Dom asked.
"I told you I was fine, Dominic," he said grumpily.
"Well I know you're lying, that's why I asked again," Dom replied with just as much ice. "I know you liked her. I never seen you get close to any woman for longer than a week before you run her off. You did that with Brooke in a matter of days."
"Then she turned her back on me and everyone else. She's as dead as her father as far as I'm concerned."
"Come on, man," Dom said, "You can't mean that. You've been going to bat for her since day one."
Oz's guard finally dropped. He glanced out the window while taking a deep breath. As he opened his mouth to speak, Dom's phone began ringing.
He grabbed his cell off the dashboard, glaring at the screen with confusion.
"It's your phone," he said, showing him the screen.
"Brooke... answer it," he said anxiously.
Dom put it on speaker, "Hello?"
No one responded but they could hear people talking in the background.
"Accidental butt-dial," Oz said deflated.
Dom listened closely, making out Brooke's voice clearly. She was talking to someone, but he couldn't tell if it was Carter or someone else.
"You might wanna write this down," she said to the mystery man.
"Maybe not accidental," Dom said and reached into the glovebox for a pen and notepad. He jotted down the log-in information for the account as quickly as she rattled it off, all while keeping up with the Camaro.
"Last step - just enter the access code to complete the transfer: 86-19-45. See, all 5.8 million transferred into the Argentinean account."
"Maybe she's not turning on us," Oz said, "Maybe she's helping us."
"How stupid do you think I am?!" They heard a yelp on the other end that didn't sound like it was from pleasure. "That doesn't help if he doesn't have the right security code to access it. Brooke, I've done a good job keeping my hands off of you while your father was in prison, but after your betrayal, I'm sure he wouldn't mind letting me persuade you into giving up that code."
"Do what you have to do, but he doesn't get the code until Brian's mother is safe," she gambled, his grip on her hair tightening.
Timothy stared at her through cold, dead eyes, his face showing amusement and lust; he was getting off on her pain. He released his hold on her, forcing her back into the seat.
"Let's go deliver the news," he said, shoving open the door.
Brooke hesitated to get out. She wanted to regain her composure, mainly to show that Timothy hadn't gotten to her. He'd only try to terrorize, and she didn't think he father would call him off this time.
"Brooke, can you hear me? Say something!"
Brooke looked down at the phone, quickly putting it on speaker.
"Ask Billie to tap into the Argentinian account, the code is 840912," she said before ending the call and shoving the phone into her pocket.
"Move your ass!" Timothy said back to her as she stepped out.
"So, what are you saying? That Billie Ramsey doesn't exist?" Leon asked Tej after he rattled off everything he found on Billie, or rather didn't find. He, Letty, Leon and Mia were gathered around Tej's laptop while Rosa occupied the children in the backyard.
"I'm saying whoever has been working with the boys at DT's for the past two years, her name isn't Billie. I can't find anything on her, her parents, or her half-sister 'Bree'. Why haven't you guys ever checked her out before? You haven't met her family?" Tej asked.
"Not really. I mean I spoke to her mother a few times over the phone, and we emailed Bree on several occasions... at least someone I thought was Bree," Mia paced the room, pinching the bridge of her nose nervously. "This is my fault. Dom wanted to check her out, but I stopped him. I told him we had no reason to be paranoid anymore. If we weren't doing anything wrong, we didn't have to worry about undercover cops or intruders in our lives anymore."
"This isn't your fault, Mia, or Dom's. But we need to find out who she really is," Letty said.
At that moment, a knock came at the front door. Mia moved to answer it. She was surprised to see two armed men in tactical vest and badges.
"Can I help you?" she asked politely.
"Yes. I'm with Diplomatic Security Services, Agent Joaquin Suarez, this is my partner Agent Frank Graham. Are you Mia O'Conner?"
"Yes. What can I do for you?" Mia began to panic. She didn't like cops coming to her home. Last time, it was to deliver the news of Letty's death. "Is Brian okay?"
"Your husband is fine," he smiled a bit, "Ma'am, our superior officer, Agent Hobbs, sent us here to drive you and your son to Washington, per your husband's request."
"Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not going anywhere without knowing what's going on with my husband and my brother," she declined.
"No disrespect, Mrs. O'Conner, but I'm not asking. I'm under strict orders to make sure you two arrive to Seattle safely, and to look after you until your husband is done with his mission."
Letty approached her rear, "Mia, he's right. The further away you and Jack are, the better. If Carter has enough balls to go after Brian's mom, he wouldn't hesitate to come after you."
"I'm not running away, Letty," she said sternly. She turned to the agent at the door, "You're more than welcome to hang out here, but I'm not leaving this house until my husband walks through that door."
"I understand," Suarez said with a small smile. He and his partner plopped down on the front porch.
"Stay here and find out what you can on Billie. I'll call when we're done," Letty said, nodding Leon after her. Letty stopped on the steps and turned back to Agent Suarez. "What if I told you I might have a lead on someone working for Carter? Someone who set all this up?"
"I'd say you should tell me what you know," he replied.
"I'm not sure what I know yet, but we could use some backup if you can spare it."
He hesitated for a moment, then reached for his radio, "Johnson, come up here," Another armed agent jumped out their Humvee and jogged to the house, "Stay with Graham. I'm gonna check on a lead."
Leon and Letty headed out with Agent Suarez riding shotgun in Mia's Charger. After a few quiet miles, Letty grew annoyed with Mia's car. She wanted her Camaro. Letty knew Brian's track record with vehicles and she didn't want her precious baby to fall victim to his wrecklessness.
"So what is it you think you know?" Suarez asked. "Because I could lose my job for leaving my post."
"So why did you?" Letty asked.
"I want Verone dead," Letty was surprised by the bite in his words, "Monica was a good friend. I've known her since we were kids. We went through the academy together. She was family."
Letty felt sympathy for the agent; she knew exactly how he felt.
"One of our friends..." the word burned her lips, "A woman we thought we knew might be working with Verone. She headed up to Barstow last night after we found out Carter kidnapped our friend. She's been inconsistent about her identity, so we tried to find something, anything that told us who she was and where she came from. Billie Ramsey doesn't exist."
"Well, do you have any proof? Anything tangible?" Letty's jaw clenched. "You can't just accuse someone because you think they're suspicious."
"I know she's suspicious," Letty said. "Who lies about their name? And their parents?"
"People running away from their past?" Suarez said with a smirk. Letty thought about her life in Vegas. "If you really think she's working with Carter, I'm all for taking her down. But you need to get me tangible proof before I can act."
"Well, let's go get it,."
Letty decided to push Mia's car to it's limits to take her mind off her own. She smashed the gas, speeding past Leon's import. He grinned as he watched the Charger weave in and out of traffic wildly. Realizing it had been a while since he satisfied his own need for speed, Leon decided to test the year and a half of rehab for his legs by slamming on the gas and the clutch, propelling the Nismo after her.
Letty rolled down her window, allowing the wind to lick at her skin while kicking at her ponytail. Mia's car wasn't half-bad; it reached 95 miles per hour in seconds and the handling was superb, taking every curve and corner with ease. She noticed Leon trying to keep up with her in the rearview and decided to test his skills. The two played cat-and-mouse as they entered on the highway, zipping past traffic at neckbreaking speeds.
There was no rush quite like this for Letty. The rumbling beneath her fingers sent shockwaves through her body and reignited a love that laid dormant inside of her for a while. Looking over at Leon, in an instant, she had flashes of riding alongside he, Vince, and Jesse back in their heyday. Memories of fiercly battling the boys she considered brothers went through her head. She always felt the need to prove that her tits didn't make her weak or scared.
That momentary loss of focus allowed Leon to take the lead, the yellow blur bringing out her competitiveness again and she gave chase to the Nissan. During their game of tag, Letty almost forgot about the government agent riding shotgun with her. Glancing over, she could see Agent Suarez holding on for dear life as she nearly missed a semi.
"You two do know this is illegal, right?" he asked, shocked at her gull to drive like a maniac with a badge sitting next to her.
"Only if you get caught," she smiled, shifting hard again to propel her car between two trucks just as they were closing the space between them.
On a ride that should've taken over an hour, Letty beat Leon to the exit in half the time. The adrenaline gave Letty a much-needed release before her confrontation with Billie. She knew any pent-up aggression could land her right back in jail, or worse.
"Alright, Leo. Where are you guys meeting?" she said into her cell.
"The Sunset, some little rinkydink diner a few blocks from here. What's the plan here, Lett? If she sees us together she'll know we're onto her. Not to mention your passenger," Letty glanced over at her passenger, who was a few shades paler than he was when he initially got in the car.
"I'll do a lap by the diner, see if anything is out of the ordinary."
Letty approached the block and cruised carefully by the diner. The place was buzzing with business, with families coming and going from the Mom-and-Pop diner. She spotted Billie sitting alone outside. Nothing appeared strange to her, so she gave him the all-clear. While Leon was pulling into the establishment, Letty lapped around again and parked across the street, hidden in an alleyway where she had a view of both Leon and Billie.
"What now?" Suarez asked her.
"We wait. Let Leon work. He knows his way around a tough woman."
Leon parked next to Billie's GTR, adrenaline still coursing through his veins from the wild ride there. His bad leg ached, but the rush overpowered his pain. He took a deep breath before stepping out, putting on a fake smile as he approached her.
"Hey you," she greeted, standing to pull him into a hug. Leon's body tensed up when she leaned up to kiss his cheek. He hoped she wouldn't noticed his apprehensiveness, but she did. When she pulled away, she gave him a side eye, "You alright?"
"Yeah, just a little sore. Putting these useless sticks of mine to use on the drive up. It's been a while since I drove like that," he smiled and took a seat at her table.
"Well don't overdo it. Your baby needs you," she said as a waitress came over with coffee.
Leon's first thought went to Kara and their unborn. "Excuse me?"
"Jess? Your daughter?" she clarified. She smiled strangely at him, "You okay, Leon? You seem tense."
"I'm fine," he waved off, "Just this whole thing with Carter. It's got everyone on edge."
"Well, I wouldn't worry; Dom and Brian will take care of it. I hear they're good at this kind of thing - search and rescue."
"I guess so." Leon wanted to test the waters about her big move. "So what time is your flight?"
Billie hesitated for a second, nervously pushing her hair behind her ear while checking her phone, "Soon. Around one, I believe."
"Wow. That is soon. How are you feeling about it?"
"I'm really hoping everything goes well. I'm ready to settle down, retire early on a beach."
"A little young to be talking about retirement, aren't we? And why move across the country to do that when California has beautiful beaches?"
"I have some money saved up, and I might have a huge payday coming up. I'm just ready for something new, something not stale."
"Oh really? How so?" he asked curiously.
"I have this deal with a concept-car production company. Someone there saw my work and wanted to talk business."
Leon couldn't tell if she was lying, but if she was, it was impressive.
"Why haven't you told Dom about this? The job, moving to Florida."
Billie sighed, "Because he'll try to stop me. And I don't want to be the cause of any strife between he and Letty. A quiet exit is best."
"So you gonna be like him and disappear? That doesn't sound like something you would do."
"You don't know me very well, Leon. I know when I'm not wanted, and I can accept that."
"Right," Leon felt a little hurt at her words. They had made a connection, but now he didn't trust her. "Well it was nice to spend time while we could. Maybe I'll run into you down there, we'll have lunch."
"You're a sweetheart, Leon. I'm sorry we didn't have more time," she said, placing her hands gently over his on the table. Her hands were soft and her eyes inviting, and it took a lot for him not to fall under her spell again. He forced his eyes away, taking in the surroundings of the diner.
"How's your mom's car?" he decided to change subjects.
She shifted nervously in her seat, "Um, it's doing okay. It's an older Hyundai. Blown head gasket. She loves that thing, though. Won't let me buy her a new one."
Leon smiled, "I was talking to Letty and Mia earlier, just chatting about you. They said they've never met any of your family, why is that?"
Billie gave a nervous laugh, "I-I don't know. Mom's a pretty private person. And with my sister being in Texas, makes it kinda hard."
Leon sat back as his heart sank.
"I thought you said you were an only child?"
Billie froze, aware that she had messed up. She stammered, trying to think her way out of this one. Before she could, her phone rang.
"Excuse me," she said, relieved to pull her phone out for the distraction. "You mind if I take this? It's Dom."
Leon nodded and lifted his coffee to his lips, pretending not to listen. It wasn't hard to hear Dom's deep voice from across the table.
"Brooke's helping us from the inside. I need you to write these numbers down. Get them to Hobbs, hell know what to do with them."
Billie's face flashed slight anger before realizing Leon was watching her. She pulled the phone away, "I'll be right back, he wants me to run some things through my laptop."
Leon nodded and waited until she was at her car before pulling out his own phone to call Letty.
"What's going on?"
"Dom called. Said something about Brooke helping from the inside. He gave her a list of numbers to give to Hobbs."
"Leon, Dom doesn't know Billie's working with Carter. You cannot let her leave, or even talk to Carter. If she talks to him, Brooke's dead, and probably Roman, too."
"You need to get Dom off the phone!" Leon whispered harshly before ending the call, hopping up from the table to rush over to Billie. She was jotting down the numbers in a notepad with her laptop open and ready.
"Alright, Dom, I'll make the call," she said before hanging up.
"What's goin' on?" Leon asked, leaning in her doorway.
"Um, I'm sorry, Leon. I have to take off," she said, standing out of the car to face him.
"Why? What'd Dom say? What'd he want you to write down?" he asked.
"Just some coordinates for Carter's whereabouts," she placed her hand gently on his face, "It's been nice knowing you, Leon."
"You say that like you'll never see me again."
She gave a sad smile before leaning in to press her soft lips against his cheek. He pulled her in for a hug, feeling her body flush against his for the first, and last, time. He took in her sweet scent, wrapping his arms around her tightly. Billie closed her eyes and enjoyed the warmth his body gave off, relaxing in his arms. When she opened her eyes again, she noticed something strange across the road.
"Leon..." she trailed off.
"Hmm," he hummed into her neck.
"Why is Letty parked across the street?"
Leon's body tensed as his brain rattled for a logical answer. Billie pulled away to look at him. His mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, turning to look back at the Charger peaking out from the alley. As he turned around, he was unexpectedly decked by Billie, flooring him easily.
Leon grasped his pulsing eye, surprised by the pack in Billie's punch. He looked up with one eye as Billie was reaching into her car. She swiveled around with a pistol pointed down at him.
"So it's true... you are working with Carter."
"I really wish you hadn't said that," Billie said. Her face was stoic, but her eyes held regret. "I actually liked you, Leon. That's too bad."
"What is?"
"The fact that you were another one to fall into her trap. I don't see the appeal in Letty, honestly, but you like what you like," she gave a curt shrug.
The next few seconds went by in slow-motion for Leon. He watched as she pulled the slide to chamber a round, pointing the gun at his head. Leon squeezed his eyes shut and waited for the end. A second later, Billie pulled the trigger.