"PIPER, PUT THAT PAINTBRUSH down!"

The mischievous squeals of the two-and-a-half year old girl travelled further and further away from Wren Jackson-King, who had various colours of dried paint smeared across her face and clothing.

Piper clutched the paintbrush tightly in her small hand, her squeals delving into giggles when she caught sight of her mother running towards her, arms outstretched and a soft, playful smile on her face.

Forcing her little feet to go faster, the toddler ran towards her bedroom, only to collide with a pair of legs. Piper let out a small 'oomph' as she tumbled to the floor, the paint-covered brush clattering on the hardwood and splattering blue across the planks.

"Woah, Pip, you've gotta watch where you're going." A warm, feminine voice chastised playfully, whilst gentle hands grabbed underneath the little girl's shoulders and set her steady on her feet.

Devon Jackson crouched in front of her niece, her dark brown eyes soft and round as she stared adoringly at the mischievous girl, who reminded her so much of her younger self.

When she had gotten the call from Wren, her older sister, asking if she fancied taking a trip to London for a week or two, Devon jumped at the chance to spend some quality time with her niece. The woman also helped care for Lukas and Leo King, the six-month-old twin boys who had been left in her sister's care whilst their mothers attended to some important family business.

Living in the States meant that Devon didn't get to visit all that often, and combined with her job as an OBGYN, the woman wasn't left with many free days to spare. Xavier, Wren, and Piper tried to fly over as much as they could, but between Devon's shifts, Wren managing her art gallery, and Xavier's jobs, the visits were scarcer than the family would've liked.

Thankfully, the woman had some vacation time saved up, and all of her patients were months away from their due dates and non-emergent, leaving her free to join her sister in London.

Piper had wanted to paint with her mom, and the group had decided to create some gifts for when their family came home ─ so, that's what they had been doing... well, up until the cheeky little girl had decided to take after her Uncle Nick and Aunt Devon by causing trouble.

"Auntie Devon!" The girl giggled, although the 'v' in 'Devon' sounded more like an 'f' with Piper's pronunciation.

Wren silently approached from behind, crouching down behind her daughter before tickling the little girl's tummy and pulling her small body towards her chest.

"Gotcha!" The woman exclaimed, laughing as her daughter squealed and giggled in delight whilst wriggling in her hold.

"Mama, no!" Piper gasped between giggles, before her mother decided to tickle the girl's armpits and send her into another fit of adorable laughter.

Neither woman would ever grow tired of that sound ─ it felt as though their hearts were melting in their chests, and the pair couldn't help the bright grins that were plastered on their faces. They only wished that they could enjoy it whilst knowing that their family was beside them and safe.

Wren's smile faded slightly at the thought of the predicament her family, her husband, was in, and gradually stopped tickling her daughter. She knew that they could all handle themselves, Xavier included, but her heart began pounding against her ribcage at the thought of something going wrong. Too many people could get hurt, and she knew that her family were all danger magnets ─ hell, she would need at least four hands to count every time that the King siblings alone were injured on a job (well, the injuries she knew about, anyway).

Noticing the way Wren's shoulders tensed and the corners of her lips tilted downwards, Devon decided to swoop in and gently grabbed Piper from Wren's hold, before painting a warm smile on her lips and placing the young girl on her hip. Devon turned her body so that her niece's back was facing Wren, allowing her older sister to take a moment to compose herself.

"So, who's gift are you going to make first, hm?" The younger Jackson woman spoke, watching as her niece's eyes lit up with a sparkle and widened with excitement.

"Auntie Nat! Ooh, and Decks!" Piper beamed, her mind instantly going to her godparents before circling to her father. "Daddy, too!"

Despite the fear and paranoia rattling in her mind, Wren couldn't help but smile at her daughter's clear favouritism towards Natalie, Deckard, and Xavier, and how the little girl had all three wrapped tightly around her pinky finger.

The woman took a deep breath and climbed from her crouched position, standing straight and allowing her worries to fade, even if it was only for a little while. She grabbed the fallen paintbrush and made a mental note to clean the floor later.

All three made their way to the living room, where Lukas and Leo laid contently in their bassinets, and various art supplies were scattered across the coffee table. Paint pallets had a variety of colours smeared and mixed on their surfaces, with a cup of paintbrushes standing next to it.

A full-sized easel stood tall and held a large landscape canvas, which only depicted a rough sketch at that moment, but Wren had ambitious and heartfelt plans for it. She had only started the big project the day before, and hoped that she could surprise her family with it within the next few months. It would take a lot of time and effort, but the woman knew it would be worth it and absolutely perfect in the end.

A few smaller canvases and pieces of thick card were laid out on the large coffee table, ready for Piper's little arts and crafts. There were also markers and colouring pencils spread across the wooden surface.

Some pieces of paper laid on the far windowsill, having been placed there so that they could dry. Piper had already taken her attempt at painting, and whilst the colourful mixes of random brushstrokes were treasured by her mother, the little girl decided that they didn't meet her standard of 'gift-worthy' artwork.

Devon carefully placed her niece down, allowing the little girl to run towards the coffee table and sit down on a nearby pillow. Wren followed suit, setting herself down next to her daughter and quizzing her on what exactly the toddler wanted to make (other than her typical blur of colours on a page).

The younger Jackson sister made her way over to the pair of wicker bassinets and couldn't help but melt at the sight of the two newborns.

Lukas and Leo King were the spitting images of their mothers, despite being adopted ─ they had dark brown hair, identical to Bianca's, and their bright blue eyes were the mirror images of Alice's. It was truly startling how similar the twin boys were to their mothers' appearances, but it was almost as though they were always fated to be Alice and Bianca King's sons.

Leo looked at Devon with wide and curious eyes, whilst Lukas was chewing on his own hand and drooling all over it.

"Hi, sweethearts." Devon cooed, gingerly picking Leo up and resting him against her chest. The six-month-old nuzzled his face against her soft, baggy top, and clutched the fabric in his tiny grasp.

He turned to look up at the woman with his gorgeous blue eyes, making Devon smile warmly.

"Hi, Leo." She cooed, earning some adorable and incoherent babbling from the small child.

Wren crouched down beside the woman, smiling at her sister's interactions with her nephews, before moving to lift Lukas from his bassinet. The baby was still chewing on his small fist, making Wren giggle.

She turned to Devon, who felt the woman's gaze and looked up from the child in her arms to meet the familiar brown eyes of her sister.

"Piper's figured out what she wants to make for the gifts." Wren revealed, glancing back at her daughter, who was scribbling on a piece of paper with a coloured pencil.

"Oh, yeah?" Devon asked curiously.

"And it involves these two cuties and some paint." Wren explained, her voice getting softer as she spoke, because she directed her words at the baby in her arms.

"Well, that doesn't sound good."

THE LARGE GRIN THAT Deckard hadn't properly seen for over a year graced the lips of his ethereal wife. Her skin glowed with a renewed energy that coursed through her body and radiated to those around her ─ Natalie was the sun, and Deckard's whole world revolved around the light she brought into his life.

Nothing killed him more than seeing his favourite light die out from the pain of the previous year. He did his best to protect the dying spark and coax a flame from the remnants, in hopes of being blinded by the radiance he always cherished.

After thinking that he was never going to succeed, it turned out that all he needed was some help.

A mixture of laughter and joyous voices reverberated throughout the old warehouse the group was waiting in. They had found some only slightly worse-for-wear furniture in one of the abandoned offices, which they had managed to move into the main open space.

Natalie and Deckard were sharing an old armchair, with the Shaw woman sitting in her husband's lap and an arm laid over his shoulders. Her free hand was intertwined with one of Deckard's and their joined hands rested against her thigh.

She eagerly chatted away with Letty, who shared a tattered couch with Alice, Bianca, and Finnick. The Ortiz woman sat on the end closest to the Shaws, whilst Finnick lounged on the other end, and the couple sat in between them.

Opposite to the group of four was another identical couch, seating Jakob, Nick, Zoey, and Hattie in that order, with the Toretto nearest to Natalie and Deckard, and Hattie on the other end of the furniture.

The Shaw sister conversed with Katya, who sat on an office chair next to the couch. Both blondes seemed to have a lot in common, and found that their conversations were flowing nicely.

On two more office chairs next to the Russian assassin were Xavier and Andromeda, who were quizzing Finnick on his knowledge of weaponry ─ the Briggs man was yet to get a question wrong, considering weapons was his specialty, and it annoyed the Kings to no end.

"Is it true that we founded Race Wars?" Letty asked curiously, thinking back to a few days ago, when Dominic took her there in hopes of jogging her memory.

Natalie let out a breath as she thought back to her teenage years, and how Race Wars had only been up-and-running for about a year before she 'left'.

"God, I haven't heard that name in years." She admitted, her lips pulling into a small smile at the memories of racing in the desert for pink slips and multiple grand per quarter mile. "Yeah, Race Wars was something that we came up with whilst Dominic was in prison. Instead of just having a handful of races in the streets every weekend, we figured it would be better to go out to the desert once a month and host as many races as possible. It started out relatively small, but after a few months, it completely blew up ─ thousands of people would show up to race, show off their cars, and just let loose."

Letty felt a tug within her mind, almost as though a memory was trying to push its way through, but once again, nothing showed. Everything that Natalie had said felt so familiar, yet there were no memories to accompany or explain those feelings.

"We didn't set it up until after Dominic was released, though." The Shaw woman added on, thinking back to the circumstances that her brother had left her with. The Ortiz woman knew she probably shouldn't ask, but her curiosity got the better of her.

"Why couldn't we do it ourselves?" She questioned, figuring that they would've found a way.

Deckard looked at his wife's face intently, despite already knowing the answer ─ Natalie had told him the story years ago, and when he had heard it, it had made his admiration for her grow tenfold with every sentence. He couldn't believe how strong his wife had been throughout one of the toughest points in her life (that he knew of). In Deckard's eyes, Natalie Shaw was the most incredible, strong, and compassionate woman he had ever met, and he was the luckiest man alive to have the honour of spending the rest of his life with her.

"Uhm─ because Dominic was in Lompoc for two years, and Dad had just died, we were left to fend for ourselves. Jakob was fifteen when our brother was arrested, and Mia was only twelve. You had been kicked out by your mom, who was a mean, old bitch, by the way, so you stayed with us." Natalie sighed, remembering the night that she had opened the door to a distraught Letty, who had been soaked by the rain, with only a duffel bag of her belongings. "We also had the cafe and garage to take care of, and there was no way that we would let my Dad's shop slip away and end up sold to someone else, so we worked our asses off. The racing scene had died down for almost a year after Dominic's arrest, so racing for money wasn't an option for a while."

"Vince, Leon, and Jesse worked at the shop, fixing up cars, whilst you helped out with the cafe. Most of the time, the jobs would swap, so sometimes it would be Leon working the counter, or Vince, or me, on my days off. Even though the shop made us money, it mostly cost more than it earnt, because we had to buy the parts to fix the cars, as well as pay the rent and bills. So, I worked three jobs at a time to keep the lights on ─ I did part-time at the local grocery store, and after that morning shift, I would head over to a diner to wait tables during the afternoon rush. I'd get home in time to make dinner for everyone and help with any of my sibling's homework, before sorting everything out for the next day."

"After Jake and Mia went to sleep, I would go to Perri's bar for my night shift. It didn't matter that I was only sixteen, the owner knew I needed the work so she gave me the job. I'd get home around two in the morning, sleep, and then get up at seven, ready to do it all over again."

Natalie couldn't believe how different her life had been ─ living life day-by-day, hoping that she would earn enough to pay the rent for both the house and the shop, the bills, the parts and supplies the shop needed, and to buy enough food to feed her siblings, Letty, and herself. Now? Now, she didn't have to worry about anything like that, because Dominic had fractured their family, sending her straight into the warm, welcoming arms of the Kings.

"Even when the street racing scene started back up, we just didn't have the time or the money to make Race Wars a reality. It was just too big of a risk ─ we didn't know if enough people would even be interested, and it was just too much for us to organise by ourselves." The Shaw woman shrugged, gripping onto Deckard's hand tighter.

Letty couldn't believe how much hardship the eldest Toretto daughter had faced, and how much of it was at the hands of the woman's older brother. It just made her all the more certain that she wanted to stay with Natalie, and not Dominic, but she knew that the man wouldn't let her slip away that easily.

Before the Ortiz woman could begin to formulate a response, the shrill ringing of a phone pierced through the air, making everyone turn towards the noise.

Katya muttered an apology whilst pulling her phone from her jean pocket. She took one look at the Caller ID and immediately excused herself from the group, before heading towards the other end of the room.

Without even thinking, Natalie glanced at Zoey, whose face had almost completely drained of all its colour. She thinks it has to do with her brothers.

The Shaw woman could only hope that the Organisation would decide to leave them alone, but she knew that it was very wishful thinking. AJ and Oliver McAllister were only kids, innocent kids, who should not be forced to join their world of shadow governments, mercenaries, and underground wars.

Innocence doesn't bode well in their world ─ someone always ends up dead, alone, or traumatised.

When Katya came back into view, dread pooled in Natalie's stomach and weighed her down as though it was lead. The Russian woman instantly met Zoey's eyes and motioned for her to join Katya on the other side of the room.

The King woman didn't hesitate before meeting Natalie's eyes and repeating the gesture; Zoey needed her, more than ever before, and she needed someone to support her.

Natalie turned to her husband and brought her lips to his ear, resting her forehead on the side of his head as she spoke.

"I'll be back in a second." She whispered, before placing a delicate kiss to his temple and squeezing his hand three times ─ I love you. "Always."

The Shaw woman climbed from her seat, leaving Deckard mourning the loss of her warmth and utterly confused. He knew something was amiss, but he just didn't know what.

She gave Letty a warm smile before making her way over to Katya, who was trying to mask her shock that Natalie was approaching, alongside Zoey.

"I wasn't aware that anyone else knew." Katya spoke quietly, her Russian accent thick and tainting every word. The trio moved out of sight of their family, not wanting to worry them with what was going on.

"She only found out earlier today." Zoey croaked out, looking as though she was going to puke at any moment. Natalie grabbed her hand, clutching it tightly within her own in support, allowing Zoey to squeeze it as harshly as she needed to.

Seeing that her sister-in-law was struggling so much, Natalie took it upon herself to do the talking.

"What happened? Are the boys safe?" She asked in a hushed tone, her brows furrowed in concern.

Katya sighed, looking towards the floor for a moment before meeting Natalie's eyes.

"They are fine, for now." The Russian assassin admitted, though it only brought a small, momentary sense of relief. "Though, they won't be soon."

"H-how much time do we have?" Zoey sputtered, gripping Natalie's hand tight enough to cut off all circulation to the limb.

"Just under twenty hours." Katya confessed, nervously tapping her foot against the concrete flooring. The Organisation were going to kill an innocent family in just under a day, just to prove a fucking point. Natalie couldn't help but feel nauseous too as she thought of the McAllister family.

"But isn't the flight from Abu Dhabi to LA─" Zoey began, only to be cut off by the assassin in front of her.

"Sixteen hours." She confirmed, nodding solemnly. "We need to leave as soon as possible if we want to stop them."

Natalie sighed, rubbing a hand over her eyes as she tried to formulate some kind of plan that would give them some kind of advantage. If they were going to face the Organisation, they were, first of all, going to need a way back to the States, and second of all, they needed weapons.

Weapons.

The Shaw woman turned to look at her family, and caught sight of a certain weapons specialist in Zoey's former seat, talking to Hattie ─ well, more like bickering with Hattie.

They needed Finnick Briggs.

"WE NEED SHORT-RANGE WEAPONS, knives, and any gear that you have." Natalie said urgently after managing to pull Finnick away from the group. They both stood with Katya and Zoey, though the second woman looked worse-for-wear, which was very understandable considering the circumstances.

"Oh, not you guys too. Has Xavier got you in on his weaponry quiz as well? What─"

Katya, having had enough of the man's antics, grabbed Finnick's jacket and shoved him into the wall. Pinning him there with her hold, the Russian assassin's glare held hellfire as she locked eyes with a now-terrified weapons specialist.

"You are going to show us all of the weapons you have, and you will let us take whatever we need without a single sarcastic remark leaving your obnoxiously large mouth." Katya seethed, watching in satisfaction as the man gulped in fear before nodding. Though his face remained stoic, she could see the underlying fear in his eyes.

The man led them to a large military storage box hidden in the back of the warehouse, even further away from where the remainder of their group had begun to wonder what the hell was going on.

Flipping over a small piece of metal, Finnick revealed a biometric scanner before placing his thumb on it. The scanner glowed for a moment, before the box's lock popped open, and the man lifted the metal lid to reveal a very large assortment of weapons and gear.

Attached to the inside of the lid were six black bulletproof vests, prompting Natalie to grab three of them. The women then began sifting through the rest of the box ─ guns, grenades, explosives, knives ─ everything they could think of was there.

Each woman packed a duffel bag with all of their chosen equipment, with Natalie packing her vest, various holsters for her weapons, throwing knives, pistols, submachine guns, amongst other things.

"We have to tell them, Zo." The Shaw woman insisted, but Zoey simply shook her head 'no'. "We can't just disappear with a shit ton of weapons, say "oh, don't worry, we'll be back soon!", and return bruised and definitely bloody."

The King woman sighed, dropping her head as she milled over her sister-in-law's words. Zoey knew that they had to explain where they were going, but she just didn't know how. And she didn't want to see the look on her husband's face when he found out that she had been keeping something so important from him.

"I know, I just─ look, I'll figure it out, okay?" Zoey conceded, rubbing her eyes as she spoke. Before she knew it, a familiar pair of arms gently wrapped around the woman's shoulders.

Natalie hugged Zoey from the side, allowing the blonde woman to rest her head on the Shaw woman's shoulder. They remained like that for a moment, with Natalie drawing soothing shapes on her sister-in-law's upper arm with her thumb, exactly like Deckard does for her when she's stressed.

Eventually, Zoey was the first to pull away, and when she did, she began walking in the direction of their family.

Time for them to know the truth.

AS SOON AS ZOEY was finished explaining everything ─ her past, the Organisation, her brothers, where she, Katya, and Natalie had to go ─ Deckard didn't waste a second before climbing from his seat and heading towards where he saw his wife go.

His heart was racing as he walked (more like power-walked) whilst his mind was overridden with reminders of what had happened the last time Natalie had to do a job without him. The rational part of his brain knew that the Shaw woman could handle herself perfectly fine, but the irrational part?

The irrational part was scared to death that she would go through the same trauma as last year, but wouldn't be as fortunate with the outcome.

Turning the corner, Deckard spotted the familiar figure of his wife crouched on the floor, zipping up a duffle bag. Upon hearing footsteps, Natalie rose to a stand and turned to face the sound, only to find a terrified-looking Shaw behind her.

"Deck..."

"Please don't go, Nat." He pleaded, coming to a stop barely inches away from his wife and cupping her face with his warm, calloused hands. The Shaw woman felt her heart practically rip in two within her chest as she stared into the brown, cloudy eyes of the love of her life

Gently grasping his hand in her own, Natalie pulled it away from her face and placed it on her chest. She used her other hand to cup Deckard's cheek and trace soothing circles over his stubbled cheek with her thumb. This routine had become a little habit between the pair over the past year ─ Deckard would panic about Natalie and her physical wellbeing, and the Shaw woman would calm him down by reassuring him that she was still there, still alive.

"See," She said shakily, trying to will the tears away, "I'm still breathing, my heart is still beating ─ I'm alive, Deckard, I'm okay... and I'll come back to you just like I am now: breathing, and alive."

Her heart pounded beneath his palm, whilst he felt her chest rise and fall with strong, steady breaths.

"I still don't want you to go..." He murmured, moving to wrap his arms around her waist and pull her as close to him as possible.

Natalie didn't hesitate to complete the embrace and encase her husband's shoulders with her arms.

"I know." She whispered into his shoulder before burying her head into the crook of his neck.

Deckard simply pulled her even closer, and hugged her as tightly as he could without hurting her ─ he never wanted to let go, and neither did she.

But they both knew that she had to do this — for AJ, Oliver, and for Zoey.

"I love you, Natalie Shaw. Always."

"I love you too, Deckard Shaw. Always and forever."

HAYLEY WRITES...
bit of a long chapter this week!
over 4000 words, so i hope you
enjoyed!

what did you think of this
chapter? hell of a lot to unpack,
and a lot to look forward to
next chapter, so please comment
your thoughts and predictions!!
i love love love reading them :))

how do we feel about zoey's plot
with her brothers, etc? i know it's
quite different and pulls away from
the canon movie, but do y'all like
it? i'm thinking of doing more side
plots like this in the future, so
please let me know if that's
something you'd like!

don't forget to click the little star at
the bottom of your screen to vote!

anyways, until next time :)