CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
strike a match then you blow it out
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𝐀s they deliberated, Josephine couldn't shake off the nagging thought that lingered in the back of her mind━the truth she had yet to share with Brian. The revelation of her pregnancy weighed on her heart, adding a layer of vulnerability to their already complicated situation. She stole a glance at Brian, wondering how he would react when she finally found the courage to tell him.
"So what is that?" Brian mused, slightly turning in his seat to look at Dominic behind them. "A hundred million plus in cash houses?"
"That's how he keeps it off the grid," Dom stated.
The blond smirked ever so slightly. "I think it's safe to say that Reyes is smart to want this back. I mean, it's his whole network right there, just laid out on a chip."
"That's his first mistake," Josephine chuckled dryly, the guys scoffing in agreement as they looked at each other.
Then she realized something. It was now or never. This was her chance. So in that space, Josephine Toretto finally made up her mind. But as the words spilled out of her lips that often spoke unwise things and ill-ridden words for terrible people━those important words that could've changed the trajectory of their lives were drowned out by the sound of something clattering outside. Somewhere far off, a dog in the faveas barked, and followed by glass crunching underfoot.
Danger. Their eyes flickered to each other, alarmed, because following that noise were multiple footsteps nearing them. Within a second, they all made a haste decision to escape the impending doom. They'd found them. Hernan Reyes's people found them. Josephine thought it was getting so old how something kept interrupting her. So believe me when I say, she was pissed off.
Hernan Reyes's men burst through the front door, storming in the building, armed to the bone, and they had come to kill them. Bullets rained on just as Josephine managed to throw herself over the space atop a wall, Brian after her. She didn't stop and stare, but the minute Brian appeared next to her━they all bolted away from the warehouse, making a quick escape in the back as Reyes's men surged inside the place.
Dominic stayed behind, stubbornly enough. He left no room for argument, already warning Brian to not let Josephine come back for him. While his sister and the former agent ran, Dom fought the rest of the men who piled inside the warehouse to give them a headstart. He hoped Josephine hadn't stopped and beat up someone already. He needed her safe and sound, and he trusted Brian to make sure of that.
Josephine ran like hell.
The narrow walkways and stone steps of the favelas weren't easy to navigate, and her feet hurt, truth to be told. She kept her pace though, knowing the bad guys weren't far behind. Brian stayed close behind her, letting her lead the way. As they were just rounding another corner, two armed men blocked their way at the end.
Brian surged forward, kicking away the wooden gate, which sent the two men toppling over the ground. Then he went to surprise the other with a sucker punch in the face. His actions didn't cease and he wasn't hesitating. Not when they could possibly hurt Josephine who begrudgingly let him do all the fighting. Maybe if she wasn't possibly pregnant, she would've helped him with it, too.
Brian ushered her to run after he incapacitated the men. He didn't need to tell her twice. Her partner trusted her quick decisions as they turned into sharp corners and even more narrower walkways squished between houses built upon unconventional grounds. But the bad guys caught sight of them too quickly, and they knew the twists and turns of the favelas more than them.
Bullets flew but missed, hitting the concrete walls of the houses around them. Josephine aimed for the stairs as Reyes's men appeared in the alley next to it. Brian made sure they wouldn't be able to follow them before he went after her on the rooftop of somebody's home and they didn't stop running.
This was a bad call. Josephine cursed under her breath as she jumped onto another rooftop with ease. She shouldn't have brought them way up high ground. But she had no choice, knowing more of them were waiting around the alleys. She made the mistake of looking back, noticing that their pursuers were adding up like persistent flies. It didn't help that they had rifles and they only had━well, nothing but their fists and wits.
There it was. A dead end. Well, at least that's what it looked like. Because as Josephine abruptly stopped at the edge of the last rooftop, she found the next one way below her and the roof didn't look promising at all. Shit. Brian had caught up to her now, and he looked just as worried as she was.
A spur-of-the-moment decision was made. Brian and Jo didn't need words. With one look shared between them, Brian grabbed her hand and intertwined their fingers into a tight knot. She sent him one last nod which felt like she was reassuring herself more than him, and Brian squeezed her hand in his.
"Let's go." Then they jumped.
Jumping from buildings wasn't on her bucket list but she made sure to add it so she had at least one thing crossed off. They made a quick getaway after they landed on the ground, not taking any chance of getting seen. They escaped through the concrete storm drains where Dominic reunited with them, navigating the underground better than the favelas. Their footwear was soaked with water as it splashed on their ankles.
As they reached the end of the tunnel, light streamed in, the sound of rushing water filling the tense atmosphere. They had gotten away but the fight wasn't over yet. Josephine took a deep breath, her hand subconsciously hovering over her stomach as she stopped beside Brian. She hastily removed her flannel, leaving her in her tank top as she used the fabric to swipe the sweat on her face.
"They're going to be looking for the three of us together now," Dominic started. Josephine didn't start paying attention to him until his mouth spilled the next few words she didn't want to hear. "We need to split up." He pointed at Brian and his sister. "You and Jo head south, I'll lead them away."
"No," Josephine said quickly, a frown encasing her features.
Brian clenched his jaw and looked at her. "Dom's right... Look how lucky we just got. What happens next time? We have no choice but to split up."
"He's not right," Josephine argued. She glared at Brian and Dominic, shaking her head adamantly. "We're not splitting up, all right?"
The older Toretto sighed heavily, taking a step forward. "Josephine━"
"I'm pregnant, Dom," Josephine finally said.
The revelation hung in the air, momentarily silencing the tension that had built up. Brian's eyes widened, registering the weight of her words. Dominic's stern expression softened, replaced by a mix of surprise and concern as he turned to her. Josephine stood with defiance,. This was the quietest her boys had been and secretly, Josephine reveled in it.
"I already lost my family once," Josephine said hardly, glancing over at her older brother and her partner. "I'd be damned if I let that happen again. So no, we're not splitting up. No way."
Brian hadn't taken his eyes off her since she said those words. He seemed genuinely speechless, but all her doubts diminished when he gently reached for her and pulled her by the waist, his warm eyes glossing over her face. She stands here in his arms, and he hold her tighter than anything he'd ever held in his life. The way his love for her only continue to grow, and he knew he wouldn't want his current life any other way. Either he lives it with her or not at all.
"Are you kidding me?" Brian breathed, pulling her closer to him. His partner gave him a toothy grin, eliciting the same reaction from him as she laughed, "Nope."
His touch was reassuring, and Josephine felt the weight of the world lift for a brief moment. They stood there, inches apart, the unspoken understanding lingering in the air. Brian's thumb brushed against her cheek, a silent reassurance. And then, with a mix of tenderness and urgency, he closed the remaining distance between them.
The kiss was unexpected yet natural, a meeting of two souls who had weathered storms together. It was a quiet affirmation of shared joy, fear, and the uncertainties ahead. In that moment, the world around them faded, and there was only the warmth of the embrace, the taste of shared secrets, and the promise of a future they were determined to face together.
"I'm not going anywhere," Brian promised, giving her small nods of reassurance that made Josephine smile as she touched his chest. "Okay?"
Then her gaze drifted toward her big brother, an expectant furrow between her brows as she watched him stand there and stare at the ground beneath him, unable to meet her eyes. As if he was still soaking in the information that she had shared. Josephine pursed her lips, her hand gripping Brian's shirt with uncertainty.
"Dom," Josephine called. Promises were frail and she wasn't one to make them. But at this moment, she balanced on a tightrope between expectations and promises that might be broken. She needed her family together. "Promise me. No more separating."
Dom lifted his head. For a minute, he just looked at her. Then he said seriously, "I promise." He swooped them in for another hug, burying his face onto Brian's shoulder. He laughed and slightly nudged his head against Jo's. "Our family just got bigger."
The trio found themselves back in the favelas in the middle of the night, a bit further from their last location because of the possible threat around them. Dom kicked a gate open, leading them to a condemned apartment building among a hundred others. Josephine was itching for a shower and a good night's sleep. The exhaustion of running and jumping onto places had finally taken a toll on her body.
So the minute her back hit the small couch in the small dim-lit living room, Josephine was out like light. Curled up in a fetal position. Despite how uncomfortable she looked, the girl was too asleep to care. Brian walked toward her, a faint smile curling on his lips when he caught sight of her sleeping face. He unfolded the fabric he found and put it over her body, adjusting them until they covered her entirely.
He drifted toward the doorway leading to the balcony. For a minute, he just stood there, staring at Josephine from a distance as he leaned against the doorframe. A bottle of cheap beer in his hand. Something bubbled in his guts. He wasn't quite sure what it was yet. He tore his gaze off her, averting them on Dominic who was drinking his own beer by the ledge of the balcony.
"Hey, Dom," Brian said quietly, taking a seat on the balcony sill. He pursed his lips, his fingers fidgeting on air uneasily. "What do you remember about your father?"
"My father." The oldest Toretto leaned against the balcony, his features softening at the mention of the man who had raised him and his siblings. He looked at Brian, noticing the way he looked down like he was anxious. Maybe even sad. "He used to, uh... He used to have a barbecue every Sunday after church. For anybody in the neighborhood."
"If you didn't go to church, you didn't get any barbecue," Dom said amusingly, earning a small chuckle from Brian who listened to him. "Every single day he was in the shop, and every single night, he was at the kitchen table with the girls, helping them with their homework." Warm smiles encased the men's faces. "Even after they went to sleep, he'd stay up for a few more hours so he could learn the next chapter and help them the next day."
"I remember everything about my father. Everything."
Brian's face fell. He hesitated, briefly glancing down. "That's just it... I don't remember shit about my dad."
Dominic paused, the revelation new to him. It was funny because he'd been with Brian for many years now and the things he knew about him weren't a lot. He looked at Brian, trying to figure out what he was getting at. A slight furrow remained between his brows as the blond continued.
"I don't remember him yelling. I don't remember him smiling," Brian chuckled dryly, shaking his head. He thought it would've been better if he remembered something about him, even if it was how bad his father had been, but didn't. "To be honest with you, I don't even remember what the hell he looked like. I don't remember. He just... He was just never there."
Dom stared at him. "You ain't going to be like that, Brian."
Not a lot of things scared Brian O'Conner, but the thought of failing his kid terrified the hell out of him. Fatherhood scares him. What if whatever he does, no matter how much he tries to be a good father, would never be enough? What if he was just like his dad? He didn't want to be like him. He'd die where he stands before disappoints his own child just because he wasn't capable of being a better person.
There was a moment of silence that they shared over watching one of the most important people in their lives. Josephine slept soundlessly, the blanket strewn across her body. In that silence, the two men found similar desires. To keep her safe. To give her everything she deserved. To give her a home that she would feel comfortable in while raising her and Brian's child. And the two men both recognized the truth, they needed to find a way before any of it gets worse.
"We can't keep running, Dom," Brian muttered. His head shook ever so slightly. "We got to get out. We got to get out now."
"You're right," Dom said hardly. He pushed himself off the wall and looked at him with a determined look in his dark eyes. Brian saw that same fire so many times in Josephine's and knew Dominic Toretto just made a decision. He took out Reyes's nav chip, fumbling them between his fingers. "Here's how we're going to do it."
Brian shifted where he sat, intrigued as Dom showed him the chip between his fingers. 'We're going to use this. We're gonna do one last job. We're going to take all of Reyes' money. Every dime of it, and disappear. Forever."
"New passports. New lives with no more looking over our shoulder. And we're just gonna buy our freedom."
"That's right."
"You realize we're talking about going up against the most powerful guy in all of Rio?"
"Yes, we are."
Brian's gaze hardened. "Then we're going to need a team."
The next morning held so many possibilities. Josephine, who had found her most needed shower, had changed into something more fitting and comfortable. She was back on her feet, more determined than ever. Brian and Dominic had filled her up on their plan to take all of Hernan Reyes's money. That seemed to put a bright smile on her face early in the morning which made the men slightly amused.
Nothing like a good old-fashioned heist on a dirty rich man makes her feel better. It's just a matter of time before the big bad man and his big bad clan would go down. Men like Hernan Reyes didn't deserve the luxury he had. The power he holds, only to use it to manipulate the game and will the people to bow down to his feet. It was a sick game where the wrong ones always think they're right.
Reyes made one critical mistake. He didn't realize he had dragged a bunch of wolves in sheep's clothing into his game.
"All right, let's run through the bases real quick," Brian said as they stopped by the railing of the abandoned parking lot on the second floor of the building. The position gave them a clear view of Rio de Janeiro in all its glory. The morning sun basked the seaside city with a refreshing glow. "Who do we got?"
"First we're going to need a chameleon," Dominic began, leaning over the rails. "Someone who can blend in anywhere."
"You know we got that covered," Josephine smirked, squinting ever so slightly at the open sunlight that shone on them. Brian glanced at her, raising a questionable brow. Dom imitated her smirk, both of them having the same person in mind. "What else?"
"A fast talker. Someone who can bullshit their way out of anything."
Brian scoffed in amusement when a specific person came into his mind. "I got that."
"This guy is going to have a lot of surveillance. We're going to need someone who's good with circuits," Josephine told them. Then she added with a small chuckle, "While I am perfectly capable of doing all that, I'd still like another set of hands and a brilliant mind."
"Whatever you want, lil sis." Dom shook his head, amusement betraying his tone. He nodded slightly, liking the idea of the small team they were putting together. "And with those circuits, Reyes is gonna have walls. We're gonna need guys to punch through those walls."
"Keep it coming. What else?"
"Utilities and weapons. Someone who ain't afraid to throw down. Someone to back up every position."
"Yeah, what else do we need?"
"Most importantly, we're going to need two precision drivers." Instantly, Josephine glanced at Brian, almost rolling her eyes at his reaction. But it did put a smile on her face. Dominic was just describing themselves. "Guys that don't crack under pressure. Guys that never lose."
Brian slowly cracked a grin. "You know we got that."
"You know I'm always here if you need a third one," Josephine said, a humorous tone in her voice as she raised her brows at her brother who mimicked her expression.
"Oh, we know." Brian chuckled, pulling her close to his side. He placed a gentle touch on her abdomen, a genuine smile gracing his lips and he playfully said: "Our kid's gonna learn how to shift gears before he can even walk if I leave you behind the wheel, Jo."
Josephine grinned at Brian, her eyes sparkling at his words. Dominic, witnessing the playful exchange between his sister and his closest friend, couldn't help but smile. As the trio stood under the bright glow of the sun, the morning held promises of both challenges and triumphs. The road ahead was uncertain, but with each other's support, they were ready to face whatever lay in store.