***All characters belong to Janet Evanovich with the exception of a few I've added in for fun.
The Real World
I made it into the office with little time to spare. After the events of this morning, I had quickly made my way down to the bakery on the corner to get me some happy. I needed to calm down. Even though this past year had changed me drastically, I was still a little scared of my gun, and a lot scared of shooting people. It had to be done though. He could have told the PuzzleMaker something that would have gotten me killed, and I was too close to bringing down that scumbag to die right now.
I pushed open the reinforced glass door and shifted my black purse over my shoulder, while scanning the office to see who was in. Noticing that most everyone was here already, only made me feel guiltier for being late. So I shuffled inconspicuously over to my cubical. James, the P.I. that works next to me handed me a cup of coffee and filled me in on the gossip of the morning. Apparently Don, the boss, and the man who had graciously given me a job even with my "special circumstances" of having 2 identities, had gotten a phone call this morning that had the normally bouncing man shut up in his office.
I glanced sneakily at Dana, his secretary to gauge if she knew anything. She beckoned when she saw that I had finally arrived. I shot James a look that clearly said "Oh shit" and he sent me a sympathetic smile in return. I really hope he didn't find out about my *ahem* side job. That was my own demon to fight. I made my way to Dana's desk and she immediately stood to show me into Don's office. Wondering what had the executive staff in such a state, I entered the office to find Don with an impassive face. Not good.
"Sit, Lizzie."
I sat there without a word. I didn't need to voice my curiosity for him to understand my question.
"I received a phone call this morning from your father. His cancer has spread and he's requested that you come home to see him one last time before he passes." I felt my eyes prickle as the tears started to rise and I immediately put on my blank face and straightened my spine.
My father and I had been keeping in contact with each other through Don, who turned out to be a very good friend of my dad's from his Army days. I had known about his cancer for the past 8 months, but he had told me that he understood that I needed to get away, and wanted me to stay here until it was his time. The emotions and memories of my old life surfaced in one large wave and I was overcome with memories of Dad helping me up off the ground when I jumped off the roof trying to fly, Dad letting me play in his shaving cream when Mom went to the store, and Dad saying "I'm proud of you" when he found out I'd left.
I needed to see him again. I needed to see the one person who was always proud that I was different from the Burg norm.
I nodded at Don and requested 2 weeks of leave, which he granted immediately. I passed back out of the door and grabbed my purse from my cubical. I half walked, half ran back to my loft, not caring what the people around me thought, nor was I paying attention to my surroundings. I stumbled through my door and collapsed on the floor in the entry way. I couldn't hold back the tears any longer. He wasn't even gone and I missed him immensely. I hadn't even seen him in a year! I felt like such a horrible daughter. After 2 0 minutes of sobbing, I was able to pull myself together enough to pack a suitcase and arrange a ticket with the airline.
As I packed my hair gel and mousse, I was struck with the fact that going home meant seeing everybody. It meant seeing Ranger and Joe for the first time in a year. That thought alone sent shiver through my spine. I wanted more than anything, to run back to Ranger and let him lock me in a safe house while he fought all my demons for me. This was a new me though, and the new Stephanie took care of herself and didn't let other people use her, except for the assassin network.
I pondered my current situation as I dropped my bags by the door and fished my passport out from under my bed. Upon arriving in Barcelona, I was broke. I had lacked the foresight of thinking to look for a job before moving. I had to find something, and soon, or else I wasn't going to be able to keep making rent.
I was sitting in a little café one day when a thin, handsome young man came and sat in front of me. We talked for hours. I don't know what it is that makes him so personable but I soon found myself spilling about my recent unemployment situation. He watched my face for a moment then began to whisper to me about an organization he was in that offered small jobs to be completed with large monetary rewards. I was immediately taken with his offer, readily accepting to come and meet with the boss.
That fact that the meeting was in an empty warehouse in a small warehouse district should have been my first clue that this was something that I didn't want to be a part of. The stupid half of my brain decided it didn't look too suspicious so I went in a met with the boss. After being briefed about what a "small job" actually meant, I freaked.
"You want me to KILL PEOPLE?" He looked irritated for a moment, then very smoothly slid a file out from underneath a stack on his desk. He slowly set his glasses atop his nose then began to read.
"Your name is Stephanie Plum. You were born in the Chambersburg section of Trenton, New Jersey, America. You have a mother, father, sister, two nieces and a brother in law. And, I saved the best for last, you have had relations with Ricardo Carlos Manoso-street name Ranger."
I sank into my chair, my mind whirring as I tried to figure out how it was that he knew who I was. He smirked at my obvious confusion and lent forward on his desk.
"You, Ms. Plum, are going to work for me. Yes. You, are going to kill people or else I will have to kill some people very close to you."
I left the meeting 30 minutes later with a folder for my first job and a sense of failure inside me. This is what I moved here to escape.
Since that night I had been doing the required jobs and collecting the blood money, all the while gathering information that was necessary to bringing this monster down.
Cringing at the crappy turn my life had taken, I zoned back into the present, taking a last look around my loft, making sure I didn't forget anything. With one last glance, I slipped out of my front door and made my way to the airport for my trip back home.
