The characters belong to Janet Evanovich, not me. Completely Babe. All errors, mistakes and mindless drivel are mine alone. In response to a Perfectly Plum challenge.

Only One Wish

Tank turned the SUV into her parking lot, and Steph couldn't hold back the weary sigh that escaped her. Every muscle in her body ached after the long night. She had been helping RangeMan with a takedown since Ranger was in the wind and took Lester and Hal with him. Tank was short on help and long on trouble, so she volunteered. If she hadn't been working on her shooting and self-defense skills over the past summer, he probably would have turned her down, but he was grateful for the help now.

The skip was tougher than expected, and what was supposed to be a swift capture outside of his apartment became a cat and mouse game through the warehouse district. Steph didn't think she'd ever climbed so many stairs or run across roofs in the dark in her life. The way her body was screaming now, she doubted she ever would again. At least, not willingly.

"Steph."

She opened her eyes to find Tank looking at her from the driver's seat, his face reflecting his own weariness. "We here?" she asked.

"Yeah. I'll come up and check things out for you."

"I got it, big guy." Steph reached out and patted his arm. "I still have bullets in my gun. I'll make the sweep and then give you a wave out of my window. How does that sound?"

A tired grin creased his face. "Like a plan. Thanks, Bombshell."

"Don't mention it." She eased her aching body out of the SUV and reached into the back to get her gear. As she turned around, a sparkling light in the sky caught her gaze. For a moment she stood and gazed at it, wondering if it was a jet passing over to Newark. It held steady though, shining with a fierce light unlike any star she'd seen.

"Something wrong, Steph?"

She blinked, but the star hadn't moved. "I was just noticing that star. I don't think I've seen any so bright."

Tank leaned over, his eyes sweeping the sky until he found what she was talking about. "It's the morning star, Steph. Since you don't get up until well past dawn, I'm not surprised you haven't seen it before." The smirk that accompanied his statement had her narrowing her eyes, but she couldn't begrudge him the point.

"Huh. So that's the morning star." Steph turned back to look at it, and as she did she couldn't help but wonder if Ranger was looking up at the sky wherever he was, and seeing it, too.

"Make a wish, Steph." Tank shifted in his seat, his arm braced against the back of the seat. "Every wish is heard and answered when wished on the morning star."

Steph thought about Ranger, far off and out of contact for weeks, then shook her head. "I'll let you have the honors, big guy. You and Lula deserve every wish coming true."

She shut the door and gave him a finger wave as she made her way up the sidewalk. Before she opened the door to the lobby, she slipped her Sig out of its holster and held it in a ready position.

There wasn't any reason to expect someone waiting for her in the apartment. Her docket of FTAs was clear, and she hadn't crossed paths with any nasty characters lately. Everything had been quiet, as if Ranger put the word out when he left and nobody wanted him to come back in a cranky mood to find out they'd crossed him.

She cleared her apartment in one fast sweep, and waved Tank out of the parking lot. She stood at the window to her bedroom and watched him drive off, then her gaze went to where the star shone. Impulsively, Steph climbed onto her fire escape so she could see it better. In spite of what she said to Tank, there was a wish hiding deep in her heart. As she stood alone in the morning light, Steph closed her eyes and sent it winging upwards towards that solitary shining beacon.

A knot of tension released inside of her, and she opened her eyes on a sigh. Maybe it wouldn't make a difference, but at least she knew that her heart was with Ranger. Steph ducked through the window and headed for the shower. A quick clean up later, she tossed her towel into a hamper and executed a full body dive onto her bed. The scent of Bulgari wafted around her as she took a deep breath and snuggled into her pillow. Before she released the breath, Steph was sound asleep.

The stars only came out in their full glory once day was spent. Seated underneath the canopy of brilliant lights dancing across the darkness, Ranger allowed himself a moment to absorb the grandeur. A moment was all he could afford; as soon as full dark settled over this barren and empty land, he and his men would be moving out.

A black light burned near the lone armored vehicle. The scouts were going over the route one more time, conferring with over flights regarding activity in the area. The rest of the group was either on perimeter watch or checking equipment one last time. Where they were going, there wouldn't be time to fix anything if it went wrong.

The radio in his ear crackled with a report: three natives approached the perimeter with the agreed-upon signal. Ranger barked a quiet order, and the activity around the vehicle ceased. Those going with on this mission put the finishing touches on their gear and stepped to the side. Those staying behind simply waited.

He glanced around. Lester was in the first group, his face hidden by his helmet and scarf. Hal was in the second, clearly unhappy about being left behind even as he accepted that his talent was more useful in extracting the team.

"Listen up. Keep your ears and eyes open at all times. The tribe may have made overtures for peace, but this is their first contact with our forces. The only military they know is from their experiences twenty years ago, and none of that was good. Professional, courteous, sharp. No mistakes."

There was a murmur of agreement, then Ranger spoke a quiet word to the perimeter. A quick hand signal to his team, and they fell in behind him as he strode into the darkness.

He switched to NV as soon as possible to give his eyes a chance to adjust. With the enhanced light gathering, he picked out the three guides seated near the perimeter guards. The natives wore dark clothing, at odds with the usual white and bright colors of the town dwellers. When they stood up, Ranger felt his instincts shift to higher alert. There was danger in the way they moved, danger and a deadly skill. These were hunters and warriors, men who wouldn't hesitate to kill if they needed to protect their homes and families. The problem was convincing them that Ranger and his team were not in need of killing.

A soft word spoken in the local dialect brought the men forward. Ranger kept his interpreter close to hand, in the event he ran across idiom he wasn't familiar with. Otherwise, he handled the conversation himself, speaking in the language learned through grueling hours of full immersion course work.

Once they exchanged the formal greetings and codes agreed upon through weeks of tortuous negotiations, the guides moved away from the perimeter, and Ranger motioned for his team to follow. He would be taking point behind the guides. Lester brought up the tail end to guard against ambushes.

The rest of the team fell into line, their index fingers resting lightly alongside their gun triggers. They trudged across the plains under the blazing stars, heading for the dark shadows of the mountain range several kilometers off. The tribe's main village was hidden in those mountains; hidden so well that they disappeared for years without outside contact and lived as they chose. It was only with the advent of jet fighter over flights that they realized the outside world had changed, and sent men out to see what course the world had taken.

The walk took several hours. Ranger kept a sharp eye on the terrain around them as well as the native guides. A couple of times the column startled desert hares out of the underbrush, and once a wild dog stared as they passed, his lips lifting in a silent growl to warn them off his hunting range.

By the time they reached the mountains, Ranger could feel the burn in his legs. The guides made an abrupt turn to the right along the face of a sheer cliff, then dodged left, into a crack running vertically for several hundred feet overhead. Ranger shifted his rifle to the side and palmed his gun. He drew his knife with his left hand and dove into the crack after the guides.

The rock walls widened slightly the further in he went. An outcropping scraped skin off his arm and another snagged his rifle until he twisted free. He could hear echoes kick up behind him as the rest of the team followed him in, but ahead the guides were silent. The only sound from them was the occasional skitter of stones under their feet.

The crack ended after about eight hundred yards. At first Ranger feared a trap, then saw that it branched off in a T. The guides went left again and stopped several feet past the branch. Ranger joined them, his finger indexed along his gun's trigger as he waited.

A tiny groan breathed through the passage and the ground shifted underneath him. As he moved to regain his balance, the wooden platform hidden in the sand lifted upwards and drew them up the rock face.

"My men," said Ranger sharply. One of the guides made a calming motion with his hands and assured that the elevator would be sent down again. It could only carry four men at a time, and the village chief wished to speak with Ranger before allowing the rest of the team into the compound.

Ranger didn't like it one bit, but a hundred feet in the air was a difficult place to change direction. He kept his voice curt as he acknowledged the man's explanation, but made it clear he wasn't happy.

The primitive elevator reached the top of the shaft and Ranger stepped off into a small anteroom. He could feel the night breeze on his face and see the faint glow of starlight off to the right. The guides went that way and he followed with every instinct alert.

The compound was a collection of stone and brick buildings crammed underneath the rock overhang. The walls fell away to a mesa and he could see nothing but a dark shadow that seemed to stretch out into the darkness. One of the guides tapped his shoulder and indicated the mesa.

"Edge of cliff," he said slowly so Ranger could understand him. "Don't go there without a guide."

Ranger nodded his understanding. The man jerked his head and moved off to the center of the compound. After casting a glance back at the elevator, Ranger followed.

The elders were waiting for him in the square. A small fire burned in a shielded pit so the light it gave off was muted. Ranger stopped in front of the men lined along one side and gave a deep bow of respect. The oldest one inclined his head in response, and the negotiations began.

Hours later, Ranger was exhausted; his eyes were full of grit and his muscles were stiff and sore. But the elders had agreed to open formal relations with the military. Even now, his team was being ferried up the wooden elevator. They would be given a room in one of the houses to sleep in, and fed by the village families in turn.

Lester walked over as Ranger got up slowly. "Tough night, Boss?"

"Yeah, I'm heading for some sack time as soon as we're secure." Ranger checked his weapons. "Any problems below?"

"Quiet as a mouse in an empty granary," said Lester. He nodded towards a group of villagers. "Chet is bringing up the medical supplies. You want the clinic set up in this square?"

"Yeah. Coordinate with the elders and make sure they aren't left out of the decision making. We're still guests here." Ranger walked out of the square towards the open part of the cave. The dawn wasn't far off; he could see gold fire running liquid along the horizon as the sun neared. His gaze was drawn upwards to a fierce silver light still burning in the sky. The morning star was an old friend of his; it had watched over him during Basic and Ranger training, and often shadowed him during his early runs. As long as he could see it in the sky, he knew that all was right with the world.

I love you, Ranger.

The words leapt into his conscious, and his lips twisted into a smile as he identified Steph's voice. I love you, Babe, he thought back, sending it arrow-straight towards the morning star. Even though she wouldn't be awake when it rose over Trenton, he knew that she would hear his voice in the twilight between waking and sleep.

Ranger went back inside to help the team set up. With any luck, Steph would hear his voice for real in only a few weeks. He meant to say many things that needed saying, and 'I love you' was only the beginning. For both of them.