Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, as much as I would like to keep Ranger, I won't. He, along with all other characters, are property of JKR.
A/N: Sorry it's been so long, but this one may have slow updating for a little while, because I want to finish up Shattered Images. I'll try to post one chapter of this for every two of SI. I will try to post one more for this one before returning to SI though.
"What?" Bekka screeched at me. "I think I must have misunderstood you, because, it sounded like you just said we were going to save Ranger." I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. My team knew all about why I had left Trenton, and were wearing a range of expressions on their faces.
"You know me," I said to them quietly, "and you know that I wouldn't leave him out there even if I could." I waited for the arguments I was expecting but they didn't come. I asked my secretary to take Tank to the vault so he could get everything he would need to take with him while I explained what was going on to my team.
"I talked to the colonel, we have a find and rescue mission. Target is Ricardo Carlos Manoso. He left on a government mission," I glanced at the quick notes I had scribbled while I was on the phone with the colonel, "Approximately nine months ago. Four months ago he was declared MIA. His last known location is in the Amazon about 200 miles Southwest of Coari. We're the last string, if we don't retrieve him, he'll be left for dead." I watched as they all nodded, even though a couple of them didn't like it.
"Before we go, there's something you need to know. The colonel didn't ask us to do this, I'm asking you. The government has already given up on him. I know you all know that I have a rocky past with Ranger, but the fact is I will always love him. That's why I'm going, I'm asking you to help me, but I don't want anyone to feel obligated. I'll understand if you don't want to go. As far as Tank is concerned, I know you may have a hard time trusting him, but he has a right to be there, and even after everything I still trust him with my life." I watched as my team looked around, reading everyone else's eyes and expressions. Finally Eve spoke.
"We'll go Steph, not because we're your team, but because we're your friends and can respect that this is what you want. Don't think it means we've forgotten why you left Trenton." Javier looked at me, and he was the only one whose face was hard as stone. He was my self-appointed big brother, and despite the closeness of my team, I always felt there was a lot we didn't know about him. It almost felt like he knew more about me than I did too. Annoying sometimes, but I loved him anyway.
"If he hurts you again, I'll kill him myself." I'm pretty sure it was Javier, but I could tell, because it hadn't been meant for me to hear. I shook my head, if we managed to save him I would be the only one allowed to kill him.
"So, what exactly is the situation?" I glanced over my scribbles again, and summarized the situation in my mind before speaking.
"Nine months ago he was called in to do a job. They wouldn't let him bring his own team, the government wanted to piece this one together themselves so they would have exactly who they wanted. Their objective was to find and take down a group of gunrunners, and to find and recover their weapons stash. The group in question distributes to New York, Miami, Seattle, LA, Chicago as well as multiple places in Mexico and Cuba. Somehow Ranger got separated from his team. The team was extracted and it was considered a failed mission, while Ranger was reported MIA. They already considered him lost, but when I talked to the Colonel I told him I was going in. After some incredibly persuasive language he agreed to send us in officially. He could only approve half our normal salary right now, but he'll work on getting the rest while we're gone."
"Are you sure this is just an extraction? We're not going to have to fix their failure right?" Ray spoke for the first time. He was the type of guy who would just go with the flow wherever it may take him, but he liked to know exactly where that was.
"This is an extraction only. From the way the colonel was talking we'll probably be contacted soon to finish it, but that will be a separate job, and probably not for a least a few more months." I sat at my desk and opened my laptop and after looking over the status report of the jet I sighed. It wouldn't be operable for at least twenty-four hours. They had been working on that jet for a week, it should be fine by now. Gritting my teeth I flipped open my phone and dialed the colonel again. A full day was too long to wait, I would have to get someone to fly us in.
Needless to say, the colonel was not happy, but we would have our jet. Not as soon as I wanted it, but sooner than ours could be ready. As I looked up from my paper I noticed that Tank was back, and he was talking to Javier. Neither of them looked very happy, but they didn't look mad at each other. It wasn't perfect but it was a start. I stood and walked over to them, thinking about what was going on.
"Have you checked-in yet?" I asked Tank as I came up behind him. He didn't turn, so I moved around to his side next to Javi.
"No." It was a crisp reply, but as soon as it came out he seemed to soften a little. "I'm just not sure what I'm going to tell Lester and Bobby." As soon as the words left his mouth my mind started forming ideas that I knew were bad ones. God, my team was going to hate me.
"They have eight hours to get here. Our plane leaves at exactly eighteen hundred hours, regardless of who is or isn't on it." He smiled a little and gave a nod before moving to the corner and pulling out his cell phone. Javier turned to me.
"The others aren't going to be happy about that many new people going. Especially ones that their hearts don't want to trust," he said, giving me a pointed look.
"It wasn't their fault." I replied evenly, even knowing that it was true my voice wavered a little, so I redirected the conversation before it became uncomfortable. "What about you? How do you feel about working with three unknowns?" His eyes flicked to Tank then back to me.
"They aren't unknown. I've worked with them before."