As the grenade struck the road, Jakob's foot hit the gas pedal. There was nothing he could do now but cross his fingers and pray that no shrapnel came flying through the window.
Eyes forward, he kept his grip tight on the steering wheel, taking the corner at high speed. The tyres lifted off the road only to fall back down, keeping traction as he shifted gears.
There was no way he could lose tonight.
Not to Dom.
Or the rest of his team.
Those who'd replaced the dead and the old. Who knew nothing of the bodies Dom had left in his wake over the years. The people and lives destroyed because of him.
Or the egos.
Braga. Tran. Verone.
Jakob had researched them all, even the Reyes crime family, in case he found Hobbs on his ass, and now...
Well, Hobbs wasn't presently on his ass, but better safe than sorry.
And then there was the long list of Dom's sins he carried around in his head. The ammunition he'd use to destroy the asshole and his family.
"You need to watch out," Luke said. "They'll come at you from all angles."
"I'm aware of how they work," Jakob replied.
He hadn't spent the past several months getting acquainted with their files for no reason. If worse came to worst, he'd take them all down. Destroy every last one of them.
Then he'd turn around and do the same to Cipher. After all, several billion dollars was a nice payday.
"That doesn't mean you know how to handle them."
"You want to shut up?" Jakob said. "Or should I let you drive?"
Luke chuckled. "This is all you, pretty boy. You picked this fight, you finish it."
"Cipher picked the fight, not me. I just jumped in the ring."
"Keep—"
Headlights turned on, dazzling him. Their source was less than ten feet away, forcing Jakob to turn and take the next street. As he did, his eyes landed on the car now behind him and its driver.
Dom.
He scowled, only for another set of lights to nearly blind him. Jakob gritted his teeth as the headlights of the Shaws' McLaren bore down on him once more, all while Dom's own lights reflected in his rearview mirror.
Now, he was trapped, or close enough, anyway. Hobbs gripped the roof handle, bracing himself for impact. But instead of crashing, Jakob swerved to the right, forcing the Mustang into the gap between the Shaws and the sidewalk.
In the Challenger, Dom's eyes were fixed on Jakob's tail lights, his jaw clenched in determination. He couldn't let Jakob escape. Not after what he'd done. Dom picked up his radio, adjusting his grip on the wheel as he tailed the Mustang. "You think you can just walk away from this, Jakob?"
Jakob smiled, his gaze cold, calculating. "I'm the only one who will."
The Dodge's wheels skimmed against the curb—the space between it and the McLaren barely wide enough to fit through—threatening to wrest away his control of the car.
Luke glanced over his shoulder, staring at Dom as he inched his way closer. There was nothing they could do but run, and pray. If Brian and the others cornered them, they didn't have a chance in hell of escaping. Every one of them bar Ramsey was a skilled driver, and if things got worse than they already were, he and Jakob would quickly find themselves behind bars.
Or worse.
The Shaws would want to know why Luke was now working for the enemy. As would the whole team. The Agency. on the other hand, wouldn't be so nice about it when they decided to start asking questions.
"Whatever you do in the next five minutes," Hobbs said, "you better make sure it doesn't result in them catching us."
Elizabeth's pretty boy barely looked at Luke as he spoke. "Let's get one thing clear: I'm more than happy to throw you under the bus for my own survival, but if I walk on that plane without you? She won't be happy."
"Which 'she' are we talking about?"
"Both."
Cipher wanting him alive made sense, but Elizabeth less so. Shaw had every reason to wish for his death, yet the words coming from the adjacent horse's mouth left him wondering why. If Luke disappeared, there'd be no one standing between her and the money, let alone Elizabeth and freedom.
Jakob must have noticed some hint of confusion on his face, because he turned into the nearest cross street and floored it, simultaneously saying, "Elle cares about the kid. By extension, that means she cares about you. She might deny it at first, but as long as your daughter is in the picture, Elizabeth will go to whatever lengths are necessary to protect her."
Hobbs wanted to scoff and look away. Pretend he hadn't heard the words coming from Jakob's mouth, but the truth was undeniable when he thought about it. Shaw had been showing him sympathy, or some approximation of it, during the last two days. Something that had only come about after his daughter's kidnapping.
"Anyone found Letty and Ramsey?" Roman's voice suddenly came over the radio. "The smoke's getting so thick I can't see shit."
"Nah, not yet," came Tej's reply. "They ain't answering their radio neither."
Maybe it was just him, Jakob thought, but something sounded off about how casually those two were talking. Almost as if they didn't have a concern in the world, let alone their girlfriend in danger.
He glanced in his rearview mirror, making certain there were still two sets of headlights behind them. Dom and the Shaws were still there, tailing Jakob as closely as they could, yet again, it didn't feel right.
It felt like...
A set of headlights suddenly came to life in his peripheral vision.
Ah, there they were.
This was an ambush, albeit a poorly planned one. If they thought they could pull one over on him, they were sorely mistaken. Jakob looked at Luke and nodded. "Take the wheel."
Luke did without hesitation. He reached across, grabbing the steering wheel and keeping the Mustang steady as Jakob reached for something stashed in the space behind his seat. Whatever it was, he slipped it around his neck. Then the driver's side door was being pushed open as the car began to slow, allowing Jakob to bail out while Luke climbed across the centre console.
"Hobbs, can you hear me?" Pretty Boy's voice came from a small earwig jammed into Luke's right ear. "Keep leading them away. I need to get a vantage point."
"Sure." Not that Luke wanted to, but what other choice did he have? "Any particular direction?"
"Take them on a wild goose chase." That wasn't a hard task, was it? As long as Dom and the others weren't paying attention to him, Jakob could do what he needed to do without any interruptions. "Hold them off for ten minutes. I'll be done—"
From the smoke and darkness came a foot, sending Jakob crashing to the ground.
"Did you really think we'd follow you around for half the fucking night?" Deckard chuckled as he approached, staying far enough out of reach that when Jakob kipped up, there was still a good four feet of space between them. "You're done. This is over. So do us both a favour and choose the easy way."
Jakob frowned. Had Shaw made the same switch as himself, or had something happened that even he'd missed? Was Owen lurking around here somewhere, too? If so, where the hell was he? And how far up shit creek had Jakob paddled?
"Can someone go get me the princess?" Jakob said, turning away from Deckard. As pleasant as the easy way seemed, he'd never been one to turn down a fight. "I've got a dilemma on my hands."
A few seconds passed, then that familiar voice came through his own earwig. "...No, you can't kill my brother."
"That's not my question."
"Having a chat with your girlfriend?" Deckard said, giving Jakob a mocking smile. "I bet Cipher loves having you around. So which is it? The easy way or not?"
"Then get to the point." Elizabeth didn't sound impressed. Actually, she sounded irritated; like he'd just interrupted her during a spa treatment. "Please."
"Do I have your permission to beat Deckard within an inch of his life?'
"...Make it two."
"Okay. Before I forget, do you want me to tell him you said hi?"
"No."
Too bad. The words had begun to leave Jakob's mouth before Elizabeth had even replied. He smirked and sized up the nearly middle-aged former soldier, standing there as if Deckard even had a chance. "Elizabeth says—"
The sudden sound of footsteps was his only warning of the ambush. Jakob pivoted on his feet and swung his left leg up in a kick. His foot met Owen Shaw's stomach, sending him falling backwards.
At the last moment, Shaw caught himself and turned the fall into a roll. Owen sprang to his feet again, rushing at Jakob. There was nothing but hatred in those eyes, and sadistic glee. The look of a man who enjoyed violence.
No. Scratch that. A man who loved it.
Jakob dodged the first two punches and parried the rest. The flurry of blows that followed drove him backwards towards Deckard, who quickly joined in the fight. Jakob stepped left and turned, dodging Deckard's first blow, forcing them to approach him from the front.
This way they couldn't sneak up on him, or try any other little tricks.
"You go low," Deckard said. "I'll go high."
"Fine." Owen barely blinked as he stepped forward, closing the distance between them yet again. "Did he say what I think he said?"
"Yeah."
Deckard kicked, his leg swinging up. Jakob danced backwards, barely managing to avoid the blow in time. The outer sole of Shaw's boot skimmed against his cheek, but before Deckard lowered his foot, Jakob seized his ankle.
He pulled Deckard towards him, throwing him off balance and delivering his own kick. The elder Shaw grunted as Jakob's foot struck him hard in the stomach, and he toppled back like a falling statue.
At the last moment, Owen caught his brother, so Jakob attacked again. No kicks this time. He aimed a punch at Owen's face only to whip his knee up, too, striking him square in the balls.
He groaned and released his grip on Deckard, now stable, and stepped forward. Owen feinted two punches, neither of which Jakob fell for, then slammed his forehead into Jakob's face.
They ducked and dodged in rapid succession, trading the occasional blow. For every foot of space he gained, Owen took it back, never relenting as they fought.
All while Deckard just stood there. Maybe he was waiting, but in the back of Jakob's mind, he knew it wasn't that simple.
Shaw was watching him. Studying him.
Looking for any hint of weakness or chink in Jakob's armour.
Unfortunately for them, Jakob knew their own weakness all too well.
"Elizabeth," he said between strikes, "he's in position. Take the shot and the money is yours."
Deckard seemed to falter at that. He turned his head, looking towards the nearby rooftops. Owen almost hesitated, too. In that split second, Jakob seized the opportunity and punched him in the kidney.
Owen hit the ground like a ton of bricks, gasping in pain. Deckard spun around but it was too late. Even as he looked at the gun in Jakob's hands and pushed off with his left leg, intending to dodge, Jakob squeezed the trigger.
The bullet hit Deckard's left arm, tearing through his bicep and lodging in the bone. Shaw yelled in pain, and the woman in his ear screamed.
"No!"
He shot again, putting a bullet in Deckard's shin. Neither injury would kill him, but they'd cause him immense pain. Enough to slow the both of them down.
"Jesus Christ. What the hell is going on, Jakob?"
Hobbs.
"I've dealt with the Shaws." Jakob fired once more, hitting Owen in the foot. Owen yelled in pain, all of it picked up by Jakob's microphone. "Lose the team and come get me."
"Board this plane again," Elizabeth snapped, "and you'll be dead the moment you step outside the cargo hold."
There was violence in her voice, and fury. The unbridled rage that only came from seeing or hearing your family hurt and being utterly helpless to do anything.
"Relax, princess," said Jakob. "I didn't kill them. They're only injured."
"You also said beat them, not shoot them!"
God, she was pissed. Jakob would have to review the security footage once he was back onboard and see the look on her face. Learn for himself just how angry Elizabeth became in that moment.
"...Hobbs." She took on a calmer tone, yet her anger simmered just beneath the surface. Jakob could hear it in the way her voice wavered as she spoke. "Lose your tail. You've got ten minutes to get out into the desert and meet the plane."
"Unfortunately, Princess, you aren't in charge. He doesn't follow your orders, and I'm not done with Dom."
"Unfortunately," Elizabeth mocked, "not only did you waste your opportunity, you blew up my other car. So if you want to get off that base without being caught, I suggest you start running."
"You got something to say about this, Cipher?"
"Elizabeth is correct. You have ten minutes to reach the rendezvous point or you'll be left behind."
Jakob scoffed. "Because I shot her brothers?"
"Because radio chatter suggests they're minutes from scrambling an F-35. I told you to lure Dom out and deal with him. Now this delay is going to get us all killed."
"Shit." The risk of that happening had been in the back of his mind, but it wasn't something Jakob had given much thought. After all, this place was meant to be a black site. Those weren't usually afforded military protection. "Hobbs, I'll come to you! Where are you?"
Between a rock and a hard place, Luke thought. More specifically, the north side of the base, with half the team on his ass. Dom and Brian hounded him from behind. Tej and Roman hugged him on either side, trying to box him in.
"The next street over leads straight to the north fence," Luke said, grunting as Dom's Dodge nudged his bumper bar. The Mustang howled as he pushed it to its limits, searching for any kind of opening that might put some space between the five of them. "Run as fast as you can. I'll meet you halfway."
God help him, he wasn't going to save Sam, was he? If he didn't get off the base and get onboard that plane, his daughter was going to disappear. She would be lost, forever. The very last memory he had of Sam would be her, scared and crying, telling him she loved him.
Fine.
Ten minutes? He'd do it in eight.
"Hobbs, whatever Cipher has on you, we can help." Tej's voice came through loud and clear once again, just as he'd been trying to get Luke's attention for the last several minutes. "Talk to us, man. We're still a team, ain't we?"
Luke glanced at the GPS mounted on the Mustang's dashboard, showing Jakob's location. The white dot was moving in his direction as fast as humanly possible. Though the street itself couldn't be more than three blocks away, there was still a hell of a lot of desert to cover before they reached the rendezvous point.
"I know you, cop." Dom. Luke's grip on the steering wheel tightened and he pressed the accelerator harder, as if he could push it through the floor. "You wouldn't be doing this if you had any other choice."
Dare he respond and say yes? Would Dom know what had happened based on a single response? He reached for the radio microphone, mind wavering back and forth between the possible scenarios. The hells he'd have to endure if Cipher or anyone else caught onto what he was saying.
"Blink once if she's done to you what she did to me."
He couldn't speak or say yes...but blink? That he could do, in a manner of speaking. Luke flicked his turn signal on for a brief moment, letting the light flash only once.
Then it was off, and he was finally at Jakob's street. Out of opportunities and quickly running out of time, Luke jerked the wheel hard, taking the corner at high speed.
The Mustang seemed to almost fight his control, but he didn't let go. Its wheels somehow stayed on the ground, with the high beams illuminating the smokey street and its dark corners. Tej swerved to avoid colliding with him, mounting the curb instead. Roman pulled away to give him space as the Mustang swung across both lanes before Luke corrected it.
Dom and Brian were still on his ass, not letting up for a moment. He'd have seconds to pick Jakob up, never mind get them off the base...assuming they managed to leave at all.
"You bringing Toretto to me, Hobbs?"
No. That was merely an inconvenience. A necessary evil. They'd shake Toretto in the desert, provided he got there. Ignoring Jakob's words, Luke wiped his hand on his kevlar pants and said, "Shaw, you there?"
She made an assertive yet grumbling noise, like Elizabeth didn't want to be. Given what'd happened to her brothers, that came as no surprise. "Yeah."
"You want me to swing past?" Luke said, checking Jakob's location on his GPS. He was close now, but slowing down seemed like it wasn't an option right now. "See if those ugly sumbitches are alright?"
"…No." There was a crack in her voice. A waver. "You don't have time."
"Deckard took one bullet to the leg and one to the arm," Jakob interrupted. "I got Owen in the foot. Your brothers are fine."
"There are three arteries in the arm."
"And four in the leg from the ass down. I'm familiar with human anatomy, Princess, so trust me when I say they're alive. Might need some patching up but they'll live."
"You can't know that."
But he could. Luke reached for the radio clipped to his waist and switched it off. Cipher and the others wouldn't hear him now as Luke picked up the microphone for the Mustang's radio. "Dom?"
"Hobbs, what's going on?"
"Go to the end of the street," Luke said. "Turn left. The Shaws have been shot. They'll need an immediate medevac."
"What?"
"Jakob got overzealous."
It was the only way he could phrase it. A cheap tactic so he wouldn't beat Jakob to death before Elizabeth got to him.
"You want us to save that asshole?" Roman scoffed. "He killed Han. The other one almost took the rest of us out."
"You want this to end, Roman? You need those two alive."
"Hobbs—"
"Yes. Cipher did to me what she did to you, Dom, so until I get my baby girl back…"
"I'm sorry. I can't imagine—"
"Contact Deckard's mom. Tell her you need Hattie. She can help while those two get back on their feet."
"Hattie?"
Brian chuckled. "There's another Shaw, isn't there?"
"And she's a much prettier blonde than you are, O'Conner."
Luke slowed as he neared Jakob's location, but he didn't stop. The car rolled forwards, allowing just enough time for Jakob to run towards him, pull the door open and climb in. The second Jakob was inside and secure, Luke floored it. The tyres squealed, the two of them hauling ass as he spun the Mustang around.
It didn't matter if Cipher had heard all that. Frankly, he doubted she'd hold it against him. Her revenge against the Shaws required them being alive, not killed by Jakob's antics.
There was also a small—almost minuscule—part of Luke that didn't want to see the pain in Elizabeth's eyes if she lost her family while trying to save his.
"How long have we got?" Jakob said, looking at Hobbs. "Tell me you set a timer."
"Shut up and hold on!"
The Mustang's engine howled as they sped north towards the desert. If what Cipher had said was true and the Air Force was sending a fighter jet, they'd be dead before they reached cruising altitude.
Of course, there was always the chance Mr. Nobody and his men were bluffing.
But that was a risk not even Cipher would be willing to take.
"She said ten minutes, Hobbs. If we miss the window by one second—"
"We won't."
I won't.
He couldn't afford to. Surely Jakob knew that. Luke rapidly shifted from gear to gear until the Mustang's tyres hit dirt, kicking up a dust cloud that followed them out into the desert. Redlining, the tachometer's needle flickered back and forth over the edge of danger, like a bad reminder of what was behind them.
Roman, Tej, and a growing swarm of Jeeps.
Someone had called in the cavalry.
"We're almost there," Jakob said into his throat mic. "Where the hell are you?"
"Lose the army first."
"I don't think that's happening without cover fire." Luke checked the rearview mirror. "You don't have a machine gun that pops out of the trunk, do you?"
"No," said Jakob." Only my sidearm."
"Minus the three bullets you wasted." If he detected the pissed-off tone in Luke's voice, he didn't say anything. "As soon as we start shooting, they'll fire back. You can't miss or we're dead."
Jakob frowned, looking at the Mustang as if he'd married the thing. He sighed and popped open the glove compartment, revealing a black box with an LCD panel on it and a series of buttons.
"Bring the plane down, Cipher," said Jakob, somewhat reluctantly. "We'll board, ditch the car, and blow it up in their faces."
Luke eyed him but said nothing. As long as he was onboard that plane come takeoff—a plane which was still nowhere to be seen—he didn't care what happened to Jakob's goddamn car.
Or to Jakob.
"Hey! We're far enough out. Where the fuck is…"
At first, it sounded like thunder. A low rumble that gradually built up to a dull roar, then grew louder and louder until there was something flying over their heads. It screamed like a demon that'd just been unleashed; one hungry for blood, with unstoppable power.
The F-35.
Luke jerked the wheel hard to the left, swinging the Mustang around so it faced south. It seemed Cipher wasn't coming to pick them up.
Not anymore.
From this moment on, they were officially on their own.