I was reading my story again and thought I should update it :)

Chapter Quote:"Your mistake is thinking you have a goddamn choice, boy!"~Luke Hobbs, Fast Five___________________________________________  

Chapter 7

Ember

I'd been racing in a different car for the past two months. I kept a careful ear on whether Lynch was in town or not because I didn't want a repeat of my last race with my Shelby when Jackson had shown up on his own terms. He'd done it more than once. Each time I'd had a warning right before he showed up so I was able to escape the area.

Whether I liked it or not, Jace kept an eye on me. Mainly making sure Lynch's crew stayed away from me and I from them. I didn't like him watching me but I had to admit, I like the warnings he gave me. Jace also made sure that people stayed far away from me so as not to find out who I was and who my family was because then it'd get back to my Uncle Dom and that'd open a big can of worms that I did not want opened under any circumstances.

Currently I was checking the tires on my Nissan when I heard someone walking up behind me.

"You're really pushing your luck you know," Jace said, leaning against my car. I shoved him off of it. I didn't like people sitting on my car. Only I was allowed to.

"You're really pushing my buttons," I retorted. "Look, I appreciate you telling me when Lynch and his crew are here but I don't appreciate you telling me I'm pushing my luck. I know I am. Now if you want to make yourself useful, check my car to see if it has any dents or scratches I need to fix when I get back."

"Ember," Jace said.

"What?" I turned around to look at him, mainly so I could give him my signature Toretto death glare that usually made people reconsider what they were going to do or say to me. Unfortunately, Jace was one of the people that was not intimidated by the death glare, at least not when it was coming from me. And another unfortunate thing was how he towered over me.

"Ember, are you ever going to forgive me for what I did or not? Do you want me to leave?" He queried.

"You're still useful to me, that's why I'm letting you stick around. Now like I said, make yourself useful and check my car. This is one of my babies you know," I told him firmly, not backing down from my position. He sighed.

"You have more babies? Are they more cars or are they some of his?" Someone questioned. Jace and I both looked at the person who stepped from the shadow of the building. He was flanked by two other men, men Jace and I wouldn't be able to fight even together.

"Whatever you want, I'm not interested so take your snarky mouth and your redneck Thors back to wherever the hell you came from. Got it? Good," I said, not breaking eye contact with the leader. He gave me a smirk, his blue eyes sparkled with amusement.

"Even if it means cash?"

"I make plenty of money racing and at my job. I don't need any of your money, especially if you make it illegally."

"How did you know we make it illegally?"

"You act like it. Besides, why else would you be asking me in the middle of the night in a secluded area with no witnesses other than you, your bodyguards, me, and my coworker?"

"Coworker? Is that what you two are? Seemed more like a quarreling couple."

I expected to Jace to make a sarcastic comment but when he stayed silent, an ominous feeling crept up my spine, making the hairs on my arms and neck stand up. "Who are you?"

He walked up to me. His two thugs followed. "Name's Jackson. This is Carter and Urian. What's your name?"

I let out a short bark of laughter. "Please, like I'm going to let Lynch know my name. I know exactly who you are and I know your group's tactics of intimidation. I know that when I leave this place, you'll probably follow me home. You'll probably run my address through a database you have and find out my name, age, birthday, where I went to school, and anything else you want to know. I know that because I said no that you're going to come after me and my family. But let me let you in on a couple things."

I started walking around them in a slow circle. "Number one, I am friends with multiple FBI agents and policemen. I have one on speed dial and I know he would love to take you in. Second, you'd have to catch me first to even begin threatening me and my family and Jackson, you know how that ended last time. It takes a lot more than speed to win a race. And third, Lynch does not run these streets. The Toretto-O'Connor family does. And if Dominic Toretto catches wind that you and your crew are causing trouble around here, you can bet your ass that he will be up here, taking you head on in a race. You think I can beat you? He'll leave all of you in the dust. So let me recap about what you've learned from this conversation: one, don't mess with me because I have friends in high places. Two, I can beat you any time I want to. Three, you do not and never will run these streets as long as the Toretto-O'Connor family is here. And four, you can shove that offer up your ass. I will not and never will join your team. I race because I love it. Not because I want to make money. Now if you'll excuse us, we're going to leave. Even if you don't excuse us and try to stop us, I will run you over with my car."

"You sound like you own this place," Jackson noted as I got in the car.

I didn't respond. I simply said, "If I see you or any of your goons following me, you're going to have the FBI on your tail. Good night and good bye."

Jace and I slid into our seats and I pulled away from the area. Jace kept a careful eye on the cars behind us but no one followed us. I pulled into my secret garage, quickly shutting the door. Getting out of the car, Jace said, "You do know Jackson and Lynch won't give up. You're going to have to tell Dom."

"Like hell I am. If Lynch and Jackson want to push their luck by going after me, let them. One phone call and I'll have Hobbs' boot on their throat."

"You are one girl versus a team of twenty men and women. Are you seriously thinking you can take them all on?!" Jace demanded.

"I'm not alone. I have you. You told me you'd be my eyes and ears. So do it."

"I'm not going to let you do this! It's suicide! I'm telling your mom and Dom whether you like it or not."

My nostrils flared. "Don't you dare take the one thing away from me that brings me closer to my dad."

"So I was right. This is about your dad."

"Don't talk about my dad," I snarled. "Go home. Keep your mouth shut about this. I can handle this."

Jace left without another word. I sank against my car once he'd left, wondering if I really was in over my head here. But I couldn't let my mom or Dom know that I was racing. It'd break my mom's heart and Dom would lose his mind if he thought his precious and only niece was putting herself into dangerous situations. I couldn't tell Hobbs because he'd tell my mom and Dom. I was alone on this with Jace. I could tell Brandon. He'd back me up. I'd have to tell him everything. I just had to hope that he wouldn't agree with Jace about telling my mom and Dom.
___________________________________________  

Jace

I began keeping my distance from Ember, a difficult feat considering we worked next to each other constantly. Brandon noticed it before Dom or Letty did but he knew about our whole predicament already. Ember must've told him. I had to admit it was nice having someone else in on the secret, someone who didn't hate me to be exact. It wasn't long though when Dom and Letty started figuring out Ember's hostility towards me.

"What happened between you and Em?" Letty asked me once everyone else had left the garage for lunch. I'd decided to stay and work on the cars.

"We just had an argument, that's all. We're both too stubborn to apologize to the other," I said.

"I see. What was the argument about?"

"To be honest, it's a bunch of little things that all came together to one big thing. I don't know how long it'll take for her to forgive me. I'm mad at her for a thing or two but not to the point where I don't want to talk to her."

"There seems to be another woman involved with this story," Letty noted.

I sighed. "That was... the catalyst of this whole thing. I flirted with Ember a lot."

"Yes, I know."

"What?!" I exclaimed.

"Dom didn't see it but I did. You were so worried about Dom finding out that I think you forgot about me. Don't worry, I haven't told him."

"Oh, thank you... I like your niece, a lot, and there's no point in lying to you about how I used to race after you saw that car I brought in the first time I came here. She told me she's not allowed to date racers and that she follows that rule very strictly. I thought maybe if I cleaned up my act, dropped out of the racing scene, she might change her mind. But she showed no sign of changing it long after I'd stopped. So one night, I took her and Brandon to a party. I got drunk and my ex was there and I remember thinking it there wouldn't be any harm if I got cozy with her again. I didn't think Ember had actually been considering dating me. She later told me that she would never date me because once a racer, always a racer. I kind of ruined my one chance with her."

"We're a family of second chances. You might just have to wait a bit before your second chance comes around. I talk to her. Put it in her head that she's allowed to date you. I won't tell her you told me anything." Letty winked at me before leaving the garage. I decided to let her go through with her plan. Besides, it probably was a good thing to have Letty Toretto on your side.

I continued working on the car. Ember and Brandon came back a few hours later. Brandon brought me some food. I gratefully took it. Ember went into the office to work on some filing. She even glance my way.

"Any news on Lynch and his crew?" Brandon asked.

"None so far, but I know they're here. Jackson won't be deterred by a blonde with an attitude. She can drive and Lynch wants her on his team. I just hope they haven't figured out who she really is yet."

"Blonde with an attitude," Brandon laughed. "I like that. She has her mother's looks, her father's temper, and uncle's cockiness. She's certainly not someone to mess with."

"No she is not. She's racing again tonight. Want to come see?"

"I was already planning on it. I'll meet y'all separately. I have a friend I'm picking up beforehand."

"Braeden?"

"How'd you know? Wait, you never dated her did you?"

"No, I didn't," I chuckled. "I just know of her. She rides motorcycles and is damn good at it."

"Oh good. Then things won't be awkward. What do you say we get this car finished and then head back to my place and play some video games?"

"Sounds like a plan."

Brandon and I set to work on the engine and underside of the car. Ember came out and worked on the interior. She only talked to me if she needed me to pass a tool to her.

Dom and Letty came back about three. They worked on a different car but Dom called out, "Hey Ember, guess who's coming to visit?"

"Who?" she queried, poking her head above the car to look at her uncle.

"Hobbs is paying a visit to us tomorrow. Wanted to come say hi."

"Really? That's awesome! I can't wait to see him! What time is he coming over?"

"He said noon. We're going to close the shop the tomorrow," Dom told her.

A huge grin broke out on her face as she sat back down in the car. It didn't leave her face the entire rest of the day.

At nine, I went up to the races. Lynch and his crew hadn't been seen so we were risking tonight and going to the races. Ember was already at our meeting spot. Brandon was walking around her car.

"So you've known about these cars for how long?" he questioned.

"Since I was fourteen. Dad had me help him with the cars before he started teaching me how to drive at fifteen."

Brandon whistled. "These cars are amazing. Why doesn't my dad have a stash of secret cars that he hides from me and mom?"

"He does."

"He what?!"

"In an abandoned warehouse somewhere around where my dad has his. I don't know exactly where though. I never told you because I didn't think it'd be useful to tell you about it if I didn't know where it was. Sorry Brandon," Ember apologized sheepishly.

"One day, I'll find that stash of cars, and I will race you at the track. Stark, you're definitely coming. I want to see if Ember here can beat you."

I smiled. "I think she'd kick our ass to hell and back. You should see her race. She's definitely her father's daughter and her uncle's niece," I said. "Where's Braeden?"

"Had to cancel last minute. Family emergency."

"Okay, Brandon, talk to Jace about where he wants you positioned in case Lynch and his crew come around. He'll give you all the information you need. I have to go enter the next race. I'll see you later. Keep me updated," Ember ordered. She got in her car, the Charger this time, and drove off.

"Yep, definitely Dom Toretto's niece," Brandon remarked.

Laughing, I told him where to position himself and what to look out for. I told him I'd be opposite him. We had signals for each other depending on the situation. If we saw Lynch or his crew watching the races but not entering in them, it was a single waving arm from the roof. But if Lynch or his crew was actually racing, it was two waving arms and a call to Ember. I stationed myself on the roof where I had a perfect view of the crowd and the racers. There was no way Lynch could escape both mine and Brandon's watchful eyes. If he was here, we'd alert Ember.

The first race began. Ember smoked her competitors, winning the race easily. It was the same story with her next five races. When the seventh one began, Ember pulled away to the side, far away from the other competitors but still in sight. Brandon and I both went down there to see what was wrong.

"Everything okay?" Brandon queried when we reached her.

"I thought one of the racers looked like Jackson. I didn't want to risk it actually being him so I pulled out of the race, said there was something wrong with my car. Did you not see Lynch?" she asked.

"No, we saw no sign of him or his crew. I don't know how he could've slipped past us," I said.

"Because you're not the only one with surveillance." Jackson stepped out of his Shelby with another guy who I recognized all too well as Lynch.

"You're a hard girl to catch, you know that?" Lynch remarked. "All I've been hearing since you beat Lynch was about this girl that could drive like no other but every time we get here, you're not here. You're smart. I like that in a woman."

Ember made a disgusted face. "Well this woman isn't interested in anything you have to offer. I've already told you that."

"You haven't even heard my offer," Lynch countered, taking a step closer to us. Ember took one towards him.

"I don't want to hear your offer. I want to race. That's it. I don't care about the money I win. I don't care about the money I could really make working for you."

"So if not for the money, why do you race the way you do?" By now a crowd was forming, watching the face-off. I could only imagine the bets being placed on which one of us Lynch would kill first if Ember said no to his offer again...

"That's none of your business," Ember retorted. I pulled out my phone behind my back, not liking where this conversation was going. No one saw me doing it thankfully. I pressed the number five on my phone without looking. It was the speed dial number for Dom. He, Letty, Mia, Roman, and Tej were numbers three through seven on my phone so I knew that even if it wasn't the correct number on my phone, I would still most likely get one of the others there and they'd alert Dom to what was going on and they'd be here. I'd rather Ember be safe and hate me than have her dead.

"Oh but it is my business. Here's your mistake sweetheart, thinking that because you've won a few races and haven't lost any, you run this place. That's not how it works. My crew and I? We run this place now. This is our scene. We're not going to let some punk like you think otherwise. So we're going to give you a choice: you join our crew or you pay the consequences. Your choice doll, but if you refuse, the first consequence will be your boyfriends here," Lynch warned.

Surprisingly, Ember let out a laugh. "How about I tell you what your mistake is? Out here, you earn respect through racing, not through fear. You run this place when you've beaten everyone here. You run this place when you've driven more here than in the real world. You're right about one thing. I, personally, don't run this place. But my family does. They always have, they always will. And we're not going to let punks like you take that away from us."

"Your family? Who exactly is your family? I would assume with the way you're dressed that you don't want people figuring out who you are." Lynch had a smirk on his face, knowing that he was right.

Ember took it in stride, pulling off her baseball cap. "Ask anyone in the crowd who I am. They've all been to the shop I work at."

Lynch yanked a guy from the crowd and demanded, "Who is she?"

"Ember O'Connor," the guy replied in a trembling voice, cowering next to Lynch. Lynch shoved him away.

"You're an O'Connor? As in Brian O'Connor's daughter?"

"Oh I'm not just an O'Connor. I'm a Toretto too. Do you remember Owen and Deckard Shaw? Two of the most wanted men by the FBI a couple decades ago? Do you remember how when Owen hadn't done anything personal to my family, that my family couldn't catch him? Do you remember how when Owen kidnapped my mother that he ended up caught and in the hospital a little while later? How about when Deckard Shaw killed Han? Blood or not, Han was family to us. Deckard's now in a max security prison. Now let me give you two options: you can either take your crew with you and go, leaving me and my family alone, or you can kill any or all three of us and have my family on your ass until you're dead or they are. And let me tell you, my uncle never lets a target get away."

"She's right," Dom agreed. Everyone turned to face the alpha Toretto. He was followed by Letty, Roman, Tej, Mia, and Gina. I saw Ember pale ever so slightly but she stood her ground.

"Dominic Toretto and family," Lynch said. His eyes rested on Ember. "You weren't bluffing."

"Who are you and what do you want?" Dom asked calmly, so calmly that you knew he was anything but calm on the inside.

"Your niece here is an exceptional racer. I want her to join my team."

"What kind of team?"

"Million dollar heists and the likes," Ember explained.

"I'm going to tell you once, and once only, I run these streets. You do not. Get out of my territory," Dom ordered.

"I'll be seeing you again, Toretto," Lynch said. He and his crew turned around. Jackson looked back at us with an expression on his face that I couldn't place. Dom barked at everyone to get back to what they were doing before facing me, Ember, and Brandon. I gulped out of sheer fear for my life. Anger burned behind the lead Toretto's eyes.

"The three of you get back to Mia's house. Now. We're all having a big talk."
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Ember, Jace, and Brandon are in deep trouble. Sorry for not updating for so long! I was updating other stories but I read this one for some reason while listening to the Fast Five soundtrack and decided to update it again :) The guy in the picture is Jackson by the way! Reviews would be lovely!