The characters belong to JE, the stories are mine, with some borrowing from canon for authenticity.
Chapter 3—Getting Even
Stephanie's POV
Ranger, Bobby, Tank, and I travel to the precinct. I am going in to press charges against my fiancé, who I am supposed to marry on Saturday. I am still in pain. Bobby didn't want to give me anything stronger than Advil until after I make my statement. He has pictures of my injuries ready, copies of my x-rays, and other pertinent information. I am going to have to sit here and tell Joe's colleagues all the ways that he has been abusing me, physically, mentally and sexually. How can I ever look them in the face again after I tell them about the gangbangs? I know I'll probably have to talk to the cops alone, though I want Ranger with me. He's my rock, my support. I'm grateful he's back because I didn't dare to escape Joe. If he didn't return, I would be walking down the aisle on Saturday to my death, not physical death, but death just the same. How did I ever let it get so far? I should have told Tank when I found out what he did with my birth control before it got so bad. Stephanie, get a grip, you can't go back and change anything. Focus on the task at hand. We pull up to the precinct. The first thing I see is Joe's SUV. Fuck. He's in the building. Ranger sees the car too. He pulls me close to him and says "I won't let him touch you, he won't come near you. You are safe. He will NEVER lay his filthy hands on you again as long as I am with you."
My Merry Men escort me into the station and an officer Johnson is on the desk. He's new to the force, so I don't know him well. Just as well, he knows I'm Morelli's woman. It crazy, on Stark Street and in the seedier neighborhoods of Trenton, I am "Manoso's woman." But here, in the cop shop, I'm "Morelli's woman." Officer Johnson asks, "How can I help you?"
"I need to file charges against someone and get a restraining order."
"Who are you filing charges against?"
"Detective Joseph Morelli."
The air seemed to go out in the room. Every cop who was in earshot stopped moving to look at me. I had a huge bruise forming on my cheek which was the reason that I was obviously in pain. I think they were just shocked that it was Joe who I was filing a complaint against and not Ranger.
"I'll get Detectives Marconi and Russo. Have a seat." About five minutes later, both detectives came over and introduced themselves. I have seen both around but did not have much contact with either of them outside of a 'hello' or a casual conversation. I see that they are assessing me and wondering why I'm there with my Merry Men. Finally, they talk to me.
"Ms. Plum, I'm Detective Leo Marconi, and this is Detective Andrew Russo. Let's go to our office so we can take your complaint."
"Nice to meet you. Is it okay if Ranger and Bobby come in with me?"
"It is not common practice to have others with our witness. Why do you want them with you?"
"I need them with me. Just in the room. It will help me get through what I need to tell you.
I see the two detectives look at each other before agreeing to my terms. We follow them into their office. Once seated, they ask me for my statement. I went through everything that Morelli did to me for the last eight months. They said that they need to take pictures of my bruises and injuries. At that point, Bobby volunteered the all the pictures along with the x-rays that he took at RangeMan.
"We'll have a female officer look at your pictures then examine Ms. Plum to make sure that they are legitimate. We will take pictures to use with yours. We need a very clean chain of evidence. The accused is a cop we are talking about, one who was just honored last night as one of Trenton's finest." Detective Russo stated.
"I understand. But I want Ranger and Bobby on the door." I spoke up.
"Agreed." The detectives take me to a small, windowless room where Amy McKaren came in to take the pictures. She was two years behind me in school. I knew her from the neighborhood. When I took off my shirt, she winced. "All from Morelli?"
"Yes. And to think Joe loves me." I said.
She took all the necessary photos then waited while I got dressed before we walked out of the room together. Detective Marconi is waiting. "Stephanie, we're going to arrest Joe today. Chances are, given his name and prominence, he'll get released quickly. Be careful. He's not going to be happy. Even with a restraining order, he can still come after you. It won't be smart for him to do so, but a man as angry as he is doesn't always do the right thing. Do you have a safe place to stay?"
"Yes. I will be moving Stephanie to a safe location once we leave here. If you need to contact her, just call RangeMan. I will make sure that she will contact you. The only people who will know exactly where she is are my core team. No one will harm her again." Ranger replied.
"Okay. Make sure to call us back within 24 hours."
"She will. Thank you, Detectives." We shake their hands and start to leave the station. By this time, it is 10 am. We were there for four hours. The events of the last 18 hours left me physically and emotionally drained. I want to curl up in a ball and sleep. I am in pain. Walking and breathing are difficult. I can't wait to get back to Haywood and go to sleep. We open the door to the parking lot and start to walk to the car when my heart stops.
"Cupcake, there you are! I was so worried about you when you disappeared last night. Come, let me take you home."
I feel all the blood in my face drain out of my head. My knees go weak while I start to cower in a corner. I felt arms come around me and lift me up. It was Tank. "Don't worry, Baby girl. He won't hurt you. I'll put you in the car with Bobby and Lester." Tank gently placed me in the back of the SUV. Lester and Bobby sit on either side of me; holding my hands. Outside, I see Ranger and Joe staring at each other.
"Morelli, I'm surprised to see you have the balls to talk to Stephanie after everything you did to her."
"Manoso, get away from my fiancé. She is coming home with me now. I don't know what sick games you play with her but give her to me."
"Detective Morelli, back away and leave Ms. Plum alone. She has a restraining order against you. You need to come into the station and speak with us." Detective Russo said.
Joe turned and looked at the other detective with daggers in his eyes. "What the fuck are you talking about; restraining order? Stephanie is my fiancé. Why would she have an order of protection against me? Are you sure she doesn't have one against Manoso? He's the one who is constantly interfering in her life."
"Joe, don't make a scene. I need you to give me your gun and badge. You are under an IAB investigation based on the statement that Ms. Plum gave against you. Let's go inside and take care of this." Chief Maxwell said.
"What the fuck did you tell her to say, Manoso. Why lies did you plant in her head. Why the fuck couldn't you just stay away one more week. You are destroying everything."
"Morelli, gun and badge NOW." Joe reluctantly hands them over to the chief and then is lead into the station.
Part of me is sad to see what is happening to Joe, but I know that it is his fault. I never asked him to do any of those horrible things to me. I don't know how I'm going to deal with it once it hits the Burg gossip line. I need to go to my parent's house and talk to mom, but I am not looking forward to it. She wants this wedding to happen. I don't know if I have the strength to handle her disappointment and ridicule. "Ranger, can you take me to my parents? They need to hear about this from me, in person, and see the bruises."
"Sure Babe. Whatever you want, but after that, we're getting out of Trenton. I already warned Vinnie and Les Sebring not to bond him out, but I don't know if they will listen."
Ranger's car pulls up in front of my parent's house. I see Grandma Mazur and Mom waiting in the door. I can see that my mother is not happy. Fuck. Ranger looks at me and takes my hand. "You can do this Babe. I'll be right next to you. Whenever you want to leave, just let me know. Okay?" I nod. He gets out of the car, walks over to my side, opening the door for me. He helps me out of the car before we walk up to the front door.
The closing of the door is the only signal my mother needs to start in. "What is this I hear that you pressed charges against Joe, for abuse, assault, and other nonsense? He is your fiancé. He can't abuse you. Your only job is to make sure he is happy. Now, he's under investigation. It's all your fault!"
I walk into the dining room and sit at the table. Ranger sits to my right. My mom and grandmother sit across from me. I sigh to steady myself before I began. "For the last six months, my life has been hell. Joe has been hitting me and forcing me to have sex with his friends. He keeps me locked in his bedroom every weekend. Last night, he gave me this bruise on my face along with two broken ribs before raping me. If it weren't for Ranger, I wouldn't be here right now."
"Please, Stephanie, stop the lying. There is no way that Joseph would ever lay a hand on you. He loves you. On Saturday, you'll become husband and wife."
"Mom, there will be no wedding. I am not marrying Joe Morelli. I'd rather be an old maid than a miserable woman."
"No wedding? You cannot call off the wedding. It's too late." Mom insisted.
"Mom, I am telling you right now. Joseph Morelli will NEVER be my husband. Don't you see this bruise on my face? Do you want me to show you all the bruises on my body? Ones that have healed under the ones he gave me yesterday? Do you want to see how I have tape on my ribs because he broke them, again? Why can't you be on my side for once?
"Stephanie, I don't know what your problem is. First, you were married to Dickie. You couldn't keep him satisfied. I've never heard of someone getting cheated on during the newlywed stage but you. You didn't do your job as a wife properly. Whatever your husband wants, you do. Now, you are looking to repeat the same scenario with Joe. If you would give him what he wants and stop protesting, everything will be fine."
I can't believe what my mother is saying. She's telling me that this is all my fault because I'm not making Joe happy! What about me being happy? Does my emotional well-being not count? Before I can respond, Ranger speaks. "Mrs. Plum, as a man, as a father of a girl, I'm disgusted by what you just said to Stephanie. A woman does not need to obey her husband. If a man loves a woman, he would never force her to do something that will make her uncomfortable. He would never go and seek another woman for his bed. He would never lay a hand on her and knowingly hurt her. Morelli and Dickie Orr were not and are not real men. They are abusive men who get off on control. Your daughter is a beautiful, caring, kind-hearted, stubborn, and independent woman who deserves someone that will allow her to be herself, not be the 'perfect Burg wife' which she doesn't want to be. Why can't you see that Morelli isn't the man for your daughter?"
"My daughter is a disgrace. No one else's daughter chases after criminals, or get shot at, or has stalkers. No one else has a daughter that rolls around in garbage and goes after good people. She needs to settle down and have a family. She needs to be a housewife and mother, that is the daughter I raised."
"Mom, I don't want that right now. I don't want to stay at home all day in my house. I would go crazy after two hours. I don't want children, especially not Joe's child. Remember when I miscarried several months back?" My mom and grandmother nodded their heads. "It wasn't a miscarriage at all. It was an abortion. I purposely killed that child because I didn't want to bring any child of Joe Morelli into the world. I hate myself for it, but I had no choice."
"You did what? Does Joseph know?"
"Yes, and that's when he started to abuse me because I tried to break up with him and call off the engagement. It was a mistake to accept his proposal, and now, he won't let me go."
"Stephanie, I don't know where I went wrong and why you aren't more like your sister, but I can't believe what you are telling me. Either you repair this relationship with Joe, drop the charges against him, and walk down that aisle on Saturday or don't bother ever returning here because unless you are Stephanie Morelli, I no longer welcome you in this house."
I stare at my mother. I can't believe she's disowning me. Ranger places his hand on my back for comfort. I take a deep breath and say, "Well, mother, then I guess you now only have to worry about Valerie. I won't come here anymore. In case you change your mind and want to contact me, I'll be living with Ranger. You can reach me by calling RangeMan and leaving me a message. I'll call you back. Goodbye."
With that, I get up to begin to walk to the front door. I open it up hearing my mother say "If you walk out that door, you are never welcomed here again. You still have a chance to make things better." I walk out and slam it closed. When I get down the steps, my father appears. "Pumpkin, I need to talk to you, alone." He adds.
I walk with him into the garage. He turns and looks at me, "Show me where Joe's been hurting you." I lift my shirt and show him the bruises. He looks at them. I can see the anger in his eyes. He touches my cheek gently. "Has he forced you to be with him?"
"Yes, daddy, he has. And to be with other men, too."
"I'm so sorry I didn't see the signs. I would never have allowed Joe to do this to you. Your mother is stubborn thinks that because she is happy in her life, that you would be too, but you have always been independent and different. Is Ranger a good man? Would he ever hurt you?"
"Ranger is the best man I know. His employees are like brothers to me, they all have my back. He would never hurt me physically."
"But he would hurt you in other ways?"
"Daddy, I love him. I think I'm in love with him, but I don't know if he feels the same way. I can't tell him how I feel because if he doesn't feel that way about me, then he will break my heart."
"Pumpkin, I don't think you have anything to worry about because from seeing Ranger interact with you today and in the past, and from all those pictures of him with you after one of your disasters, he loves you too. He probably just doesn't realize it. Stay with him and show him how you feel. Call me and let me know how you are. I won't tell your mother."
"Thank you, daddy!" I give him a hug and kiss, before leaving the garage to return to Ranger. My father says to him, "Take good care of my baby."
"I will, sir."
With that, we get into the car and drive off. We stop back at Haywood to get our bags. When we reach seven, Ranger finally asks, "What was that about with your father?"
"He is pissed off at what Joe was doing and is on my side. He asked me if you will protect me and I said yes. He's glad I'm walking away from Joe and wants me to call him. He won't tell my mother."
"He's a good man."
Mrs. Plum's POV
Why can't Stephanie be like every other Burg girl? Where did I go wrong? I don't get her. She's engaged to Joseph Morelli, a good Italian boy from the Burg who's a detective. He will give her a good solid life. And what does she do but throw it away. My phone has been ringing off the hook about how she was dancing with that Ranger and one of his men at the dinner that honored her fiancé. She made him look like a fool. Then, it's been ringing off the hook about how she brought up charges against Joe. Now he is on suspension and under investigation. No one will marry her now. She'll never have children. I can't take the embarrassment. Maybe when I tell everyone that she is no longer my concern things will get better. "Mom, where did I go wrong with Stephanie? Why can't she be more like Val?
Edna Mazur looks at her daughter and shakes her head. "Ellen, you did nothing wrong. Stephanie is just her own woman. She's a free spirit, and she has a love for life. She easily makes friends and is loyal to those friends. You did nothing wrong; she's a wonderful woman."
"How can you say that? I've been getting nothing but phone calls about all the crap that she's been doing these last four years. It's not proper."
"She's been saving lives and putting criminals behind bars. She doesn't give up."
"And, she's been hanging out with all of those strange and scary men. That Ranger. Whenever he's around, she gets into more trouble. "
"Ellen, she's in love with Ranger. She has been for some time. She is afraid to admit it because she's not sure if he loves her back. Though, I think he does. He's the one who is always protecting Stephanie and is there when she needs him. Joe has never offered to help Stephanie with getting a car or put security in her apartment to try and keep her safe. These are things that Ranger does for her all the time. When her car blows up, he arrives on the scene, asks her if she's okay, and hugs her. Joe arrives and starts yelling at her. That man you hate literally jumped off a bridge to save her life. Joe never did that. Instead, Joe's been hurting her while we haven't noticed. We haven't said anything about her weight loss or her withdrawal from us. We allowed this to go on for over six months. Ranger's been back for two days, and he's rescued her yet again. And you push her away."
"But, there is no way Joe did that to her. He loves her."
"Does he? You've seen the marks. Does he love her or is he's forcing her to change?"
My mother is making some sense. Could I have been that blind? But I don't get why she doesn't want to be a housewife and mother. Maybe she will when she meets the right guy, but no one I introduce her is the right guy. It does seem like she's attracted to this Ranger guy and he does seem to respect her but is that enough. If he does love her, why doesn't he marry her? Does he not respect her enough to make her respectable? I have some thinking to do.
"Ellen, we need to talk." What does Frank want? He never wants to talk. He enters the kitchen and sits down. "Why don't you believe Stephanie? Why are you turning her away?"
"It's not that I don't believe Stephanie, it's that she's throwing her life away. She's giving up on a good man who will give her a family."
"A good man doesn't put his hands on a woman, much less his fiancé. A good man doesn't make his fiancé be with other men. What Joe did to our daughter is reprehensible. I'm glad she dared to stand up for herself."
"Why does she have to run off with that Ranger. Why can't she find a nice boy from the Burg?"
"Because she's in love with Ranger. And from what I see, he loves her. Did you see the way he was sitting next to her, how he touched her when she needed his support? Do you see how he's always comforting her when she needs to be comforted? It isn't Joe."
"But he can't give her what she needs."
"It seems that he already does. Look, Ellen, he's successful. He owns his own business and several branches of that business. He has government contracts. He always drives a new car and a high-end car. He's given Stephanie multiple cars and never asks for her to pay for them or replace them when they get destroyed. Don't you call that love? He has the means to support her in a life which is much better than Morelli ever could."
"You like him?"
"Right now, if I must choose between Joe or this Ranger guy, I chose Ranger. Do I know him well enough to say I like him, no, but Stephanie seems to trust him. So, I only hope that in time, I will get to know him as well as she does. The question is, do you want to be part of Stephanie's life?" With that, my husband gets up and leaves the kitchen. I go to the cupboard and take a sip of my stash of 'iced tea'. Now what?