Disclaimer: I regret to inform y'all that I do not own the Plum universe...sadly, cause I could all kind of things with Ranger if I did.
Chapter One:
Stephanie Plum let out a soft moan while she stretched out in her bed, she knew it wasn't much, but it was hers none the less, and tried to relieve some of the tightness in her muscles. Her day had been particularly exciting for the accident prone bounty hunter. She had managed to blow not one, not two, but three cars during an apprehension with Lula, her partner in crime and best friend. She had been searching for the apartment of a skip when Lula shouted at her and pointed to a third story window where the man she was looking for was holding a molotov cocktail in one hand and a zippo in the other. The man yelled that he wouldn't be taken alive, lit the rag hanging out of what looked like a Jack Danials bottle and threw it at thier heads. Stephanie and Lula had had just enough time to clear away from her newish car before it went up in a blaze of glorious flames. Unfortunatly both women forgot that they had left Lula's handgun in the front seat, and were quickly reminded when they heard the shot ring out. The bullet caused just enough friction for the flames to engulf the gas tank and shoot the car fifty feet into the air, where it landed on a car nearby and ignited it, from there the fire had spread to a nearby motorcycle. The explosion knocked both women backwards into the building across from the where they had been standing, luckily Steph had landed into a pile of trash bags that were on the curb; not that it didn't hurt any less or make the scene that followed any better. As soon as the vehicles went up in smoke, Stephanie had heard the tell tale sound of the Trenton Police Department, and her on and off again boyfriend Joseph Morelli. Knowing that it wasn't going to end well, she climbed out of the trash pile and tried to stand up. Moments later, and covered in trash, she was surrounded by the members of TPD while they tried to figure out what had happened. She had tried to back away from the mob, only to be stopped by Joe, who demanded to know what had happened while he popped a couple of antiacids and tried to lower his blood pressure. While she recalled the events leading up to the explosions, she could see the vein in his forehead beginning to pulsate, and she knew that argument they'd had over and over was about to be repeated once again. She gave him her best 'burg glare and turned to walk away after telling him where to shove it, running directly into a large midsection covered by a black tee shirt. Her eyes traveled upwards to see Tank smiling down at her in what she could only assume was amusment. She had quickly decided she wasn't in the mood to deal with him and the merry men and stomped off towards her apartment. From there she had spent the rest of the afternoon trying to get the trash out of her hair and watching the Ghostbusters until she was so tired she crawled into bed.
As she lay in bed, she let her mind drift to the other man in her life. Carlos Manoso, also known as Ranger. He was six feet of cuban american deliciousness and badassary. Behind his back, Stephanie, Connie, and Lula all called him 'Batman', but she was sure he knew about it. In fact, there was very little that Ranger didn't know about, so she was sure that he would hear about what had happened earlier in the day, even though he was currently 'in the wind' as he liked to put it. He'd left about a week ago for some third world country on some secret mission that made her worry constantly. There were times before when he had been gone for weeks at a time, but this time her spidey sense was going off in all different directions. She wasn't sure if it was because of him, or something else. All this past week had been filled with odd moments filled with her spidey sense flaring and she didn't know what to make of it. Her apartment hadn't been broken into, she hadn't received any calls that consisted of heavy breathing and nothing else, and she was sure she wasn't being followed by anyone not wearing the typical rangeman outfit. Stephanie allowed her eyes to drift closed as sleep began to take hold of her, her brain finally stopping the many thoughts roaming through her head.
Just as Steph slipped into the world of unconsciousness, the screen of her window slid upwards and a figure slipped into her bedroom. The moonless night hid the intruder well as they made their way to the bed and stood over the woman occupying it. The shadow of a figure reached into his oversized pant pocket and pulled out a small rag and bottle, and after emptying the contents of the bottle into the rag he gently placed a knee onto the edge of the bed before swiftly rolling her over to face him covering her mouth and nose. Rolling her over had awakened her enough to become aware that she wasn't alone, which caused her to inhale deeply before attempting the muffled scream he heard. He held his hand over her face while she struggled, knowing that the drug wouldn't take long to knock her out. He needed her completely compliant for what he needed to do with her. He'd been ordered, and paid, to deliver her to a third party that wanted her for some fun, and not the good kind. He wasn't picky, he needed the money, and it was a bit of a pleasure for him anyway. She was involved with him, and he'd always wanted to get back at him for putting him away all those years ago.
He felt her go limp, and grinned. Oh yes, he was going to have a bit of fun before he dilvered her tomorrow night. Lifting her onto his shoulders, he swiftly, and as carefully as he could manage, carried her down the fire escape, making sure not to leave any kind of finger print behind. And just like that, Stephanie Plum vanished into the night.
Author's note: So after a horrifically long hiatus, I'm back and need some reader love in the form of reviews. They make my fingers move oh so much faster. Feel free to leave your thoughts, advice and just whatever you feel like in the review box.