Title: Finding the Strength to be Yourself
Pairing: Steph/OC
Rating: T
…..
Chapter 4
The following two weeks had went by quickly. Stephanie's mother, Helen, was all "Why me?" and wondering how she had ever given birth to such an ungrateful daughter and had Joe Morelli putting the full court press on Steph. Finally her Dad who was good friends with Joe Juniak, the former police chief, now Mayor of Trenton, and if all went well in the next few years, future Governor of Jersey. Juniak had a talk with Morelli and told him to leave his goddaughter alone unless he felt like being bounced back to traffic duty instead of being a detective. Steph really loved her Dad and his friends. A big going away party had been held for the curly headed brunette in Mary Lou's back yard since Helen said she was not helping her daughter in any way in her stupid plan to leave the 'Burg. A lot of people showed up throughout the evening and night. Family, friends, former skips, cops, Merry Men, and more all came to say farewell to Stephanie Plum, the Bombshell Bounty Hunter. Steph would miss her friends, but knew she was doing the right thing for her.
Now however, it was time to leave the familiar and go after her dreams. Steph looked around at her apartment one last time, she only had one large rolling bag with a pull handle and her purse. Most of her personal things she wanted to keep had been placed in a small storage unit by her father, who had arranged it under another name in Newark. There hadn't really been much Stephanie had wanted to keep. A lot of clothes, and bath and kitchen items were being left for her Grandma as was all as the furniture. She had sold her latest POS for what she could get out of it, and emptied out her bank account before closing it. The brunette also cancelled all of her credit cards. She wanted to make it as hard as possible for Rangeman or anyone else to track her.
Taking one last glance around Steph left the apartment locking the door behind her before taking the elevator down to her father's cab. Her Dad took her to the cab company first where a friend of his who was helping was waiting for them. All of her belongings were quickly scanned for trackers and other devices that could be used to trace Steph, once all were found they were zipped into a gallon storage bag which was placed in the front of the cab. The brunette and her father were in an empty mechanics bay at the cab company. There was room enough to work on two cabs at once in the bay. Another cab was parked beside Frank's. Her Dad's friend was an old Army buddy from back in the day.
Frank had told her stories that she was never to tell anyone else. Stories about him and three of his closest friends and some of the things they did in the Army and for the government. Frank had been known as Night Fox in his Army days, the man who was there helping him now was his partner, Shadow Cat. Shadow was a big man with white gold hair that she was told used to be reddish blond. He had been able to move unnoticed anywhere like a shadow. Shadow Cat was going to help Steph disappear from Trenton without a trace, while Night Fox put out a false trail.
It would not be too long before Stephanie would be meeting with the other two men who had made up Frank's black-ops team. Coyote and Black Hawk would also be helping Steph get the training and opportunities she wanted in life. The men had all met the little Wonder Girl when she was a child and had heard lots about her over the years. Frank and the other three men looked forward to seeing what Stephanie could really do when she escaped the oppression of the 'Burg.
After pulling her hair up into a ponytail and putting on a baseball cap Stephanie turned to her Dad. "I'm going to miss you Daddy." She hugged her father tight.
"I'm going to miss you too Pumpkin, but we will keep in touch."
"Please watch out for my friends for me. Don't let Vinnie mistreat Lula and Connie or let Mom talk Val out of going to Beauty School with Mary Lou. Those four are going to have a rockin' salon someday soon and fly in their own way even if they do stay in the 'Burg."
"I'll watch out for them. You are encouraging your friends to fly just as you're going to go fly yourself. You're an amazing woman and I am so very proud of you, Stephanie. Now you better be on your way before your false trail shows up. She doesn't need to see you or Shadow here." Frank gave his baby girl one last hug before she climbed into the back of the other cab and laid down in the seat.
Shadow Cat turned to him. "I will watch out for her and get her away safe and sound. She's in good hands, Night Fox."
Frank only nodded unable to speak around the knot in his throat. He watched as the other cab pulled out driving off out of sight, briefly wondering when he would see his baby again.
The big bay door had just closed when the small entrance door in the back of the garage opened and in walked a young woman that was the daughter of one of his Newark VFW buddies. She was happy to be getting paid to take a weeklong vacation in Vermont. She was dressed similarly to what his Pumpkin had been and her build was similar, but her hair wasn't. He gave her the wig which she took to the restroom to put on. She had a duplicate rolling bag to match Steph's as well as a matching purse. They tucked the bag with all the trackers into the suitcase and Frank handed her tickets and ID that had his daughter's name on them, but a picture of the girl made up to look like Stephanie. The decoy would burn anything she had with Stephanie's name on it once she arrived at his cousin's home and travel back from Vermont as herself. His cousin would keep the bag of trackers in his car so it would look like Steph was going back and forth to work at his firm and running around the area. Frank knew in time the men at Rangeman and maybe even Morelli would want to check on Stephanie closer, but by that time her trail would be cold and his baby would be gone with the wind.
Steph fell asleep while lying in the back of the cab and wasn't sure where they were when Shadow pulled into the underground garage of an old warehouse building where they changed vehicles to an older green SUV. Shadow Cat didn't talk much, but handed her a sack lunch with a club sandwich, chips, an apple, and a candy bar. He also gave her a soda and a bottle of water. They ate quietly together, both finishing up about the same time. Steph drank the soda saving the water for the trip.
"There is a bathroom there for you to use." Shadow pointed to the women's room on the far wall. He walked with her and disappeared into the men's room as she entered the women's.
When Steph exited the bathroom she saw that Shadow was back at the vehicles and had changed his shirt and hat. "Dad said you were pretty quiet. I bet that helps with all the Shadow Cat stuff."
The older man's eyes lit up. "I don't often talk a lot to people I don't know well, but my family thinks I do okay. From what I remember your Dad can be pretty quiet sometimes too."
"Yeah, like when my Mom is in one of her moods. It is best to either not be there or to just be quiet and keep your head down. Dad is an expert at both of those. But when it is just us he does alright like I am sure you do with your kids. So what's next?"
"You now give me everything you have in your bags that refers to you as Stephanie Plum. It shouldn't be much, your Dad told you to put that stuff in storage if you wanted to keep it."
"I did and all the other stuff with my name on it, like old bills and check books, and cancelled credit cards we tossed into the furnace at a funeral home and cremated it. I only have my driver's license and passport on me now and that was only for emergencies so I wouldn't be without some sort of ID if I needed it."
"Well it's time to destroy those as well." He pulled out a very sharp knife and began shredding the unused passport and her driver's license before he completely drenched them in lighter fluid and incinerated them right there on the concrete in the old parking garage. He stomped on the ashes breaking them up into fine bits before picking them up and tossing them into the light breeze that was sweeping through the garage. After that he pulled out a new California driver's license and passport.
The picture was her, the hair was lighter with blond and red highlights. Not a bad look for her. The name made her smile. Mica Stevi Constantine.
"Your Dad said that you had a close friend in college that called you Stevi so it wouldn't be too foreign for you and Constantine was your Great Grandpa Plum's brother. Your Dad said that you liked to hear stories about him and his world travels when you were a little girl, and Mica was the name of his true love and partner who he travelled the world over with. They lived how they wanted and didn't care what anyone said. Your Dad picked the name and said it was one that suited you very well. I have to agree."
Her smile grew and her eyes misted. "It is a grand name and I love it. I just may keep it when all is said and done." She remembered how much she loved when Jaq had called her Stevi.
"You are going to have to lay down some more for this next part of the journey, the very back is heavily tinted and I put a pad and sleeping bag down for you with several pillows and there is an Kindle for you to use to read, listen to music, play games, or watch movies. Just stay away from any other internet. Only use the accounts already set up on the device."
Mica, a.k.a. Stephanie, nodded and climbed into the back of the SUV and got comfortable for the next leg of her journey.
The only stops that were made were in out of the way places and only when fuel and a bathroom was needed. Shadow Cat had a knack for finding places with outdoor restrooms and no one ever saw Mica. She went to the restroom and Shadow would hand her food and drink to eat on their way. Mica slept some and often wished she could watch the country side go by, but the risk wasn't really worth it. It would be stupid to ruin everything now after all she had been through to disappear. She did take the time she was given to finally begin reading the Harry Potter books. She had seen the movies at Mary Lou's with her and her kids and had liked them, but the books were so much better, they really drew her in. Reading and sleeping really helped the time fly by.
Mica had fallen asleep and was startled awake when the SUV slowed and turned off on a bumpy gravel road. They travelled for about twenty minutes when the vehicle slowed again and turned into a drive. Mica stayed low.
"Stay where you are until I pull into the garage. These people are friends and are valuable and trustworthy people in my network. Don't tell them anything about your history, your future, or your name. They will call you Jane as they do any females I bring her. Mother is going to help you get your hair lightened and make it look more like your new passport and ID, she is really good with hair. Tell her what you want your hair to look like and she will do it."
Once the garage door was closed Mica sat up gratefully. She never thought she would be one to feel like she had too much rest, but she certainly did at that moment. A headache was building in the back of her skull from lying down so much. Shadow opened the back hatch and she climbed out feeling stiff and sore. Standing and stretching had never felt so good.
"Please tell me I don't have to climb back in there for a few hours. I have a headache from lying down so much and a crick in my neck." Mica rubbed her neck as she moved away from the SUV.
Shadow Cat chuckled. "We will be here overnight and leave early in the morning. Mother will take care of your hair for you after you shower and eat." Shadow grabbed her bag out of the SUV and led the way into the house.
Inside was a man about Shadow's age in a pair of overalls and a John Deere cap sitting at the kitchen table and a plump salt-n-pepper haired woman was placing a big platter of fried chicken, and bowls of corn-on-the-cob, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, and homemade biscuits on the kitchen table.
Mica blushed as her stomach let out a roar at the amazing smells in the kitchen. "Sorry, it's been a while since I've eaten." She smiled.
The woman smiled at her walking right up to her while she wiped her hand on a dish towel before offering her hand. "Well you arrived just in time then. You can call me Mother and my husband there is Father. We will call you Jane. Why don't you go wash up while I finish putting dinner on the table? I have iced sweet tea, fresh lemonade, milk, orange juice, or water. Which would you like to drink with dinner?"
"Iced sweet tea sounds great. Thank you."
"You're very welcome dear. Now Shadow will show you where you can wash-up, but don't take too long or these men might have it gone before you get back." Mother teased before turning back to the kitchen.
Shadow Cat showed her where she would be sleeping and put her bag on the bed and pointed across the hall to the bathroom. "You freshen up in there and I will meet you in the kitchen."
Mica quickly used the restroom and washed her hands. She nearly shrieked when she saw her wild hair in the mirror. She went back across the hall and using the mirror in the bedroom brushed her hair as best she could and put it up into a pony tail to bring it into some kind of order before following her nose back into the kitchen.
As Mica ate she fought to keep the noises that she usually made during a meal at bay. She felt that was something that she needed to learn to control. A few still escaped, but not near as many as usual. The conversation revolved around current events and sports and was relaxed. Mica helped Mother clean up the kitchen and the men headed out the door to transfer things to a new vehicle for the next day.
After the kitchen was cleaned up Mother took Mica to a little salon room attached to the house on the other side of the garage. The TV was on some reality show that Mica had never seen before and Mother filled her in on the show as they transformed Stephanie into Mica to match her new identity.
Mica enjoyed sleeping in a bed that night and the large home cooked breakfast she assisted Mother with the next morning. Mother was a much better teacher in the kitchen than Helen had ever been, at least where Mica was concerned.
It was still dark out when Shadow pulled out of the barn and back out onto the road in what Father had called a Sprinter van camper. It was like a mini RV inside. The rest of the trip was much more comfortable although Mica still had to remain in the vehicle even when they stopped for rest along the way. Their trip to California was a meandering one that took the duo days longer than it should and was way out of their way before they finally made it to their final destination.
SP/SP/SP/SP/SP
Thanks for reading and to all of those who took the time to leave a review. I appreciate it greatly. I hope you enjoyed this latest update. Until Next Time…Holly
