Darkness in the Offing

By Dayoh

Chapter One

Stephanie sat in an air-cooled classroom, mentally counting down the days since she'd last talked to Ranger. Two weeks, two days, and three hours ago, Ranger had contacted her after his plane landed in Mexico. And he'd explained that once he started his assignment, the calls would probably be few and far between. Unfortunately, he'd been right. Sixteen days later, she was still waiting for a call from Ranger.

Stephanie was half listening to the instructor as he paced back and forth in front of the class, the monotonous tone of his voice lulling her into a trance-like state of mind. She'd been excited about starting her first week of classes, hoping the extra activities would help to keep her mind off Ranger.

She'd pursued FTA's during the day, and attended class two nights a week, using her free nights to study and complete class assignments. But, two weeks into the hectic schedule was proving to be a challenge, especially with Ranger being gone. Checking her cell phone every five minutes, fearing she'd miss a call from Ranger, Stephanie was too preoccupied with worry to give the instructor her full attention.

"Now, let's review chapter four," the instructor said, pulling Stephanie away from her thoughts. She glanced down at her text book, trying to recall what he'd just covered in chapter three. Flipping through the pages of the book, Stephanie felt her cell phone vibrate against her hip. She glanced at the caller ID, blowing out a frustrated sigh as Lula's name and number popped up on the florescent back drop. She sent the call to voice mail, knowing it was going to be a long night.

***

Stephanie walked into her apartment at nine-thirty. And while the hour was still early, exhaustion had settled in her bones, the long day finally catching up to her. Shuffling to the bedroom, she stripped out of her clothes and stepped into the shower, washing the day's grit off her body. By the time she'd dried her hair, and pulled on a pair of flannel pajamas, it was just past ten o'clock. Stephanie checked her cell phone and a wave of disappointment washed over her. Ranger hadn't called yet.

Padding to the kitchen, Stephanie tapped lightly on Rex's cage. The pet hamster popped his head out of his soup can, sniffing the air, hoping for a late night snack. Stephanie stuck her head in the refrigerator, searching for comfort food. She plucked a grape off a stem for Rex, and pulled out a pizza box and a beer for herself. The pizza was three-days-old, so she didn't bother to nuke it in the microwave. She took the cold pizza and the beer to the living room, sitting on the couch to finish her meal, her cell phone close at hand.

Grabbing the remote off the coffee table, Stephanie switched on the television, flipping from one channel to the next. Halloween was fast approaching and the cable channels were filled with late night horror flicks. One channel had zombies slowly ambling toward their terrified victims. And another channel had a madman wielding a chainsaw, chasing screaming teenagers through a house. Stephanie did not want to watch The Night of the Living Dead, nor was she interested in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. She had to deal with enough horror on the job; she didn't need to watch it on television.

Polishing off the last slice of pizza, Stephanie took a long pull from the beer bottle, belching loudly as the bitter liquid settled in her stomach. She decided that a classic rendition of It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown was more her speed as she relaxed into the cushions of her couch, her eyes growing heavy.

Stephanie did not remember falling asleep, so when she opened her eyes to find the living room bathed in complete darkness, and Ranger staring down at her, she hoped like hell she wasn't dreaming. A cold chill shot up her spine as she studied Ranger's face, a strange glow of light illuminating his features. His eyes, usually dark and intense, now held a vacant stare, as if he were looking right through her. And his skin, normally dark and smooth, was now pale, a lifeless hue of gray covering his hands and face. Stephanie opened her mouth to call his name, but words would not come.

Ranger didn't speak; he just hovered, staring down at her like one of the zombies that had graced her television earlier in the night. Stephanie's heart was pounding in her chest and she closed her eyes, squeezing them together tightly, praying to wake up. Hearing a distant ringing in her ears, Stephanie cracked open one eye, wondering if Ranger was still in the room. He was gone. The ringing was incessantly getting louder, the sound piercing through the darkness.

Stephanie jerked on the couch, the relentless noise pulling her from the nightmare. She gazed around the room, frantically scanning the space around her. The television was still on, showing an infomercial for exercise equipment, and the lights were burning bright. Stephanie blinked rapidly, her eyes focusing on the coffee table. Her cell phone was ringing.

She snatched up the phone and read the display. And then she blew out an anxious sigh, hoping the unidentified caller was Ranger.

"Hello," she said in a breathless whisper, still trying to recover from the nightmare.

"Babe," Ranger said in a quiet voice. "I thought you'd never pick up. Were you asleep?"

Stephanie felt a relief so strong she could barely speak. "God, I'm so relieved to hear your voice," she said, her voice thick with sleep and worry. "I've been so worried about you, and I just had this horrible dream…."

"Slow down, Babe," Ranger interrupted, concern lacing his words. "I'm fine.

Are you okay?"

"The dream was awful," Stephanie continued. "You were standing over me, and you looked…dead…and I couldn't speak…and you wouldn't say anything."

"Take a deep breath," Ranger said calmly. "Your dreams are just a manifestation of your fears."

Stephanie stifled a sob, inhaling a shaky breath and letting it out in a rushed sigh. "I'll be okay."

Ranger was silent for a beat, contemplating the honesty in Stephanie's words.

"You don't sound too convincing to me, Babe. Are you sure you're okay?"

"I'm sure," Stephanie lied. She didn't want to let on just how much the nightmare had scared her. Ranger had enough to worry about; he didn't need any added drama. Quickly changing the subject, she asked, "What about you? How are you doing? Are you close to catching your guy?"

"I'm getting closer," Ranger supplied. "I know my target's regular haunts now. He'll be showing up soon."

"Are you eating and sleeping okay?" Stephanie asked Ranger.

"I'm getting enough sleep to function. And I'm eating enough to survive."

Stephanie laughed softly. "What? No health food stores in Mexico?"

"No. Not in the places I've been staying."

"I hope you get your man soon, so you can come home."

"I'll be home soon. Are you keeping out of trouble? No stalkers or serial killers at your door?"

"No. Just a zombie that has a strange resemblance to you," Stephanie teased, trying to shrug off her nightmare.

"Babe, you need to stop eating junk food before you go to bed. How's school?"

Stephanie yawned, rubbing her tired eyes. "School's fine. It's been an adjustment, but I'll do okay."

Ranger's voice was comforting, like a soothing summer breeze. "Hang in there."

Stephanie heard a car door close, and then the sound of an engine being started on Ranger's end.

"I have to get back to work now."

Stephanie felt her stomach drop. She wasn't sure why she was feeling so uneasy, but she didn't want Ranger to disconnect the call. So she remained silent.

"Babe?"

"I'm here."

Ranger gave a soft sigh. "This is hard for me, too," he said, as if reading her mind. "I hate being away from you."

Stephanie felt her eyes well up with tears, and she wondered what the heck her problem was. Why was she feeling so needy?

"Will it be two more weeks before I hear from you again?"

"I'll see what I can do," Ranger answered honestly. "I'm not always in a place with good reception. And I can't use my personal cell phone to call you. I don't want to risk my calls being traced back to you."

Stephanie was quiet again, afraid she'd bust out in tears if she spoke another word. She understood Ranger's dilemma, she really did. He was dealing with a dangerous organization and he was trying to keep her identity protected. The situation wouldn't be so bad if she could just pick up the phone and call him anytime, day or night. But she had to wait for his call, and the lack of communication was killing her. Her lifeline to Ranger had been temporarily disconnected, and she wasn't happy about that.

"I love you, Babe," Ranger said softly. And then he was gone.

***

The next morning, Stephanie walked into the bonds office at nine-thirty a.m., arriving a half hour later than her usual nine o'clock arrival time.

"Uh oh," Lula proclaimed, her eyes skimming Stephanie from head to toe. "You don't look so good. In fact, you're a hot mess! What's going on?"

Stephanie had not bothered to really look at herself in the mirror before she left home. She'd pulled on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, shoving her hair under a baseball cap. And she was pretty sure there were bags under her eyes. She'd tossed and turned all night, thinking about Ranger and the nightmare she'd had.

She looked at Lula, unfazed by her observation, and said, "Rough night."

Lula put her hands on her hips, inspecting her friends face. "A little make-up might make you feel better. Damn, spruce yourself up."

"No thanks," Stephanie said. "I'm too tired to bother with make-up today."

"Suite yourself," Lula said, returning to her filing duties.

Stephanie glanced at the black, spandex tube top and mini skirt that Lula was wearing over purple tights, black ankle boots completing the ensemble. Lula was the hot mess, but Stephanie kept her thoughts to herself.

Connie was sitting behind her desk shuffling through junk mail. She gave Stephanie a once over and asked, "Have you heard from Ranger?"

Stephanie put her hand over her mouth, stifling a yawn. "Yes. He called last night. He's fine."

As far as Connie and Lula were concerned, Ranger was out of town on business. And Stephanie didn't offer more details than that. They had not been too surprised when she'd finally spilled the beans about her new relationship status with Ranger. In spite of everything, he'd made no secret of his attraction to her.

But, what had surprised her friends was the way Stephanie had tiptoed around certain details of Ranger's life. She wouldn't say anything about his family, where the Bat Cave was located, or what he really did when he left the country. Connie and Lula had been under the impression that Stephanie would tell them everything about Ranger, but she'd kept his secrets to herself. If Ranger wanted them to know his business, he would have to be the one to tell them.

"He called you last night, huh?" Lula asked. "Well, no wonder you're so tired. Phone sex can be draining. I swear, you almost use more energy than you would if the person was right in front of you. What, with all that moaning and groaning and dirty talk. You can get lost in that shit for hours."

Connie rolled her eyes at Lula, passing a stack of files to Stephanie. Stephanie's lips curled into a small smile, the thought of engaging in phone sex with Ranger relaxing her mind.

She admitted, "Phone sex would have been nice, but we didn't have a lot of time to talk. I tossed and turned all night. I guess I'm a little overwhelmed with my new schedule."

Stephanie's excuse for being tired was partially true. And she wished she could disclose what was really bothering her. She could have used a little support and guidance from her friends. But to tell them the whole truth would mean she'd have to spill Ranger's secret. And she didn't want to betray his trust.

"You'll get used to it," Connie confirmed. "Just think, within a couple of years you can leave the bounty hunter business behind and do something you really want to do."

This is true," Stephanie agreed, plucking a folder from the stack of files in her hand. "I'm gonna go after Old Lady Beasley today. Word on the street is she'll be showing up for Lunch Hour Bingo at Parellie's."

Lula sucked her teeth in disgust. "I can't stand Old Lady Beasley. The last time we tried to apprehend her; she took a bite out of my boob! I swear, I never thought fake teeth could be so painful."

Stephanie rolled her eyes in the top of her head. "You had her in a head lock, Lula. She couldn't breath!"

"Hunh," Lula grunted. "I ain't scared to fight an 80-year-old woman. She's lucky I didn't shoot her in the foot."

"Here's the deal," Stephanie explained. "I'll take care of Beasley by myself. But, I'll need your help with Cody Myers."

Connie looked at the file in Stephanie's hand. "Christ! Cody is a handful. Lula might have to sit on him."

Stephanie scanned the pages of Cody Myer's file. "He's been arrested three times for domestic battery, so he's violent, that's for sure. He works at Pino's, the evening shift."

"We should go and grab him tonight when he starts his shift," Lula suggested.

"Good thinking," Stephanie said, looking at Lula. "I'll go scope out Old Lady Beasley and try to nab her while she's playing Bingo. I don't have class tonight, so I'll pick you up here at the office around five-thirty. Cory starts his shift at six p.m.; we'll grab him before he clocks in."

***

Stephanie pulled in front of the bonds office at five-thirty five, and Lula bounced out of the front door with a bucket of chicken.

"I thought we might need some energy food," she said, squeezing herself into the passenger side of Stephanie's Jeep. "On account we might need extra energy, just in case Cody tries to act a damn fool. How did it go with Old Lady Beasley?"

Stephanie took a napkin from Lula and pulled a fried chicken leg out of the bucket.

"I got her. The senior citizens tried to run interference, but Grandma Mazur was there, she had my back."

Stephanie conveniently left off the part where Grandma Mazur had punched Mr. Tate in the gut. Old Lady Beasley was rumored to be dating Mr. Tate, and he did nothing to dispel the rumor. Nor had he been too crazy about Stephanie putting handcuffs on his woman and marching her away from Lunch Hour Bingo. Stephanie had stuffed Beasley in the back of her Jeep, listening to her cuss like a sailor all the way to the police station, threatening to break Stephanie's legs the next time she saw her.

By the time Stephanie pulled into the parking lot of Pino's, nearly half of the chicken was gone. Stephanie licked chicken grease off her lips and looked through the front door of the restaurant. Lula mirrored Stephanie's movements, wiping her hands with a napkin.

"I don't know about you," Lula stated. "But I think I could use a nap. I guess fried chicken is a bad choice for energy."

"Yeah," Stephanie agreed. "I'm not very excited about this apprehension. We could come back tomorrow, when we have more energy."

Before Lula could open her mouth to concur, a blue, Honda Civic pulled in front of the restaurant and Cody Myers hopped out of the passenger side of the car. Cody stood well over six feet tall, and there was at least three inches of hair puffed out into an afro on his head. He was a solid wall of hair, muscle and flesh.

"Shit!" Stephanie spat. "That's him, and he's a lot bigger than I thought."

Lula glared at the man standing between her and a long nap as he ambled through the front door of the establishment. She said, "I suppose we'd be some pitiful bounty hunter's if we just let him walk right by us."

Stephanie pulled in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Let's go," she said, opening the car door and stepping out.

Lula pulled herself out of the Jeep, searching her purse for her gun.

Stephanie blew out another sigh and rolled her eyes. "No guns! There are kids in there."

"My ass!" Lula barked, pushing the gun down into the waistband of her purple tights. Did you see that man? Ain't no way I'm going after him without a gun. And if he gives us any funny business, I'm shooting him in the foot."

Stephanie pulled her hand bag over her shoulder, the weight from the handcuffs, pepper spray, and stun gun stretching her neck muscles. They marched into the restaurant, eyes scanning the large eatery for their target. Stephanie spotted Cory punching his time card behind the front counter and nudged Lula's arm, motioning her head in his direction.

"He's clocking in. Let's get him."

Pino's was packed, families talking and laughing loudly while eating their meals. Easing towards Corey, stalking their prey, Stephanie and Lula sidled up next to the FTA as he slid his time card in its rightful slot.

"Cory Myers?" Stephanie asked the man. He turned and looked at Stephanie and Lula, a few seconds passing before recognition set in.

"Oh, hell no!" Cory said, throwing his hands up in the air in disgust. "I ain't got time for this shit right now."

"You skipped out on your court date," Stephanie explained, even though Cory knew exactly why she was there. "You know the routine. Let's go."

Lula stood a few inches behind Stephanie, her hand resting on the top of her gun. Cory blew out a sigh in mock defeat, turning his back to Stephanie, waiting to be cuffed. Stephanie gave a side glance to Lula and reached into her bag for her handcuffs. The minute she looked down, Cory took off, racing towards the front door of the restaurant. Stephanie and Lula gave chase, pumping their arms like Olympic sprinters.

"Stop!" Stephanie yelled, breathing hard.

Cory had almost made it to the front door, but was inadvertently stopped by a patron walking back to his table with a large pepperoni pizza, and a cardboard cup holder with four drinks in it. Shocked by the large man running towards him, the patron froze like a deer caught in headlights. Cory slammed into the man, and they both crumbled to the floor, the pepperoni pizza and drinks flying into the air on impact. Not able to slow their momentum, Stephanie and Lula collapsed in a heap on top of the two men just as the pizza and drinks fell from of the air, landing on top of them.

Cory was trying to crawl from under the weight of Stephanie and Lula, and the man underneath him was turning blue. Stephanie screamed to Lula, "Grab your gun and shoot him!"

The patron at the bottom of the pile screamed loudly, "Don't shoot! For the love of God, don't shoot!"

The words 'gun' and 'shoot' spread like wildfire throughout the restaurant, and mayhem broke out. Men grabbed their screaming wives and crying children, shielding them from imaginary flying bullets. A stampede of people ran towards the front and back exits. But, there was one problem. Stephanie and her crew were blocking the front door, still piled in a heap on the floor, pizza and soda covering their bodies.

Stephanie had Cory in a head lock while Lula pulled her gun from her waistband. From Stephanie's position on the floor, all she saw was a massive sea of feet and legs running towards her. Removing her arms from around Cory's neck, Stephanie snatched the gun out of Lula's hand, raising it in the air. She closed her eyes and shot off a couple of rounds into the tiled ceiling, plaster falling on her head.

The stampede stopped short with the sound of the gunfire, turning and running in the opposite direction, trying to get away from the crazy lady with the gun. Some people hit the floor while others hid under tables and behind the front counter. Those that couldn't find a hiding place escaped through the back door, screaming for someone to call nine-one-one.

While Stephanie was shooting the gun, Cory was making his way to the front door, crawling on all fours. Stephanie wiped pizza sauce out of her eyes and pointed the gun at Corey. "Move another inch, and I swear I'll shoot you in the ass!" Cory froze at the door, not wanting to test Stephanie's sworn statement.

Lula grabbed the handcuffs and shuffled over to Cory, locking the metal bracelets tightly around his wrists. Police cars were arriving in droves, reports of a psycho woman shooting up Pino's filling the airways of their radios. Stephanie pulled Cory to his feet, trying to catch her breath in the process. And then Morelli ambled through the front door, a knowing smirk covering his face.

He glanced around the war torn restaurant, and then he cut his eyes at Stephanie and Lula. "I heard the call come over the radio about some crazy lady shooting up the place. The description matched you perfectly. That's the only reason why they didn't shoot you through the window."

Morelli gave another glance at the turned over tables and chairs, the floor smeared with Coke and pizza. The scene was reminiscent of a modern day mob hit. "You sure know how to start a riot, Cupcake."

"It wasn't my fault!" Stephanie said as plaster tumbled from her hair. She gave Morelli a short version of what had just gone down, as the owner of the empty restaurant walked around, staring in disbelief.

Morelli grinned at his ex-girlfriend, picking pizza crust off her shirt. "Stephanie, I don't mean this in a bad way. But I'm really glad you're Ranger's problem now."

Stephanie narrowed her eyes at Morelli. "I'm nobody's problem. I can take care of myself, thank you very much!"

Morelli rocked back on his heels, giving the restaurant one last look. Shaking his head, he said, "You've destroyed a restaurant in five minutes flat. You're a walking disaster!"

"To hell with you, Morelli," Stephanie huffed, grabbing Cory by the arm. Lula had disappeared, as she always did when cops were around. Pulling her bag over her shoulder, Stephanie marched pass Morelli and a group of uniforms, scratching their heads at the catastrophic mess. Making it to her car, she stuffed Cory in the back of her Jeep, jumped in the driver's seat and peeled out of the parking lot, tires screeching on the asphalt.

Lula was waiting for Stephanie a few blocks from the restaurant. She jumped into the Jeep when Stephanie pulled alongside her.

"Boy, did we shake things up or what? You saved my life. I thought we were going to get trampled by all those folks. Did you see how many people were trying to get out that door?" Lula searched the Jeep for the chicken bucket. "I need more chicken. All that commotion got me good and hungry. Where's the chicken?"

Stephanie reached behind the back seat and grabbed the bucket. There were a few more pieces of chicken left.

She passed the bucket to Lula. "Well, we might have excited a few people," Stephanie admitted. "But, we got our man."

"Y'all some dumb ass bitches," Cory chimed in. "I could have gotten away if that idiot hadn't blocked my path." Cory stretched his neck and sniffed the air, the aroma of chicken and pepperoni invading his nostrils. "Yo, let me hold a chicken leg."

"Kiss my ass," Lula told Cory. This mess is your fault. You can hold a bullet. How 'bout that?"

"No more shooting!" Stephanie yelled, grabbing a piece of chicken, sinking her teeth into the cold, greasy meat.

Two hours later, Stephanie walked through the front door of her apartment. She marched straight to the shower to rid her body of pizza sauce, soda, and stray pieces of ceiling plaster. After the shower she checked her phone messages, taking a deep breath, knowing her mother had heard the news by now. Stephanie quickly deleted five messages from her mother, and then returned her call.

"Hey!" Grandma Mazur answered on the first ring. "We just heard you shot up Pino's.

Mr. Tate said you had a bomb strapped to your body, but I knew that wasn't true. He's still sore about Old Lady Beasley."

"It wasn't my fault! Just another chaotic apprehension, that's all."

"Your mother's ironing," Grandma Mazur said. "Hold on, I'll go get her."

"That's okay," Stephanie said quickly. "I wouldn't want to disturb her while she's ironing. Tell her I'm fine and I'll call her later."

Stephanie disconnected the line before her grandmother could respond. She pulled a baby carrot out of the refrigerator and dropped it into Rex's cage. Lifting the lid off her cookie jar, she retrieved Ranger's spare house key. Then she padded to her bedroom and threw some clothes into an overnight bag. She was all done in, and all she wanted to do was soak in Ranger's spa tub. She wanted to lay her head on his pillow and inhale his scent. Maybe then she'd get a good night's sleep.

TBC…