Disclaimer: I am not making any money from this, I promise.
My grateful thanks to JE for her wonderful characters, which I hope I haven't damaged too much.
To all my readers and reviewers, thank you.
Sorry it's taken so long, but the time just gets away from me sometimes. But I promise to write when I can.
Valzie
Dangerous Ground Part 7
Ranger's POV
"Why did you run?" It was out before I had the chance to stop it. That wasn't the question I was going to ask. Shame I can't recall what that question actually was.
"I didn't want any more of my friends to die protecting me. Hearing you tell not just him but everyone, that you were going to kill him because he put me in danger. How could I stay? I'm not worth that" she looks up at me and then away quickly as if embarrassed.
That was something that I hadn't considered, that she would be listening and how it would seem to her. Judging by the dark looks that the men were casting me, she wasn't the only one who was wondering if I'd crossed the line into madness. But they still carry out my orders. At least until this crisis is over.
I needed them to think it was real, that Adam's death was somehow necessary. The others are soldiers; they're able to put their feelings to one side until the mission is complete and then grieve. But not her, she's different and I'd lost sight of that somewhere. Her tender, loving heart, the one that brought my own back from its chilly dormancy, the one whose welfare I put above all others, I would rather suffer a thousand hurts than cause her even one. The irony of it isn't lost on me. That to keep her safe I had to hurt her. And to compound my error, I just made her doubt everything, my feelings for her; her feelings for me and her place here. I turned her world upside down and expected her to act like a soldier. "Babe" My phone rang and just before I accepted the call I told her "You should have trusted me"
It was Tank "Bobby's back and he's frantic"
"I'll tell her" I end the call and turn to her "Someone wants to see you; he's waiting in the control room"
"Bobby won't be punished will he?"
"What for?" I ask amused.
"Letting me out of his sight"
"Babe" I tell her and she blushes, realising that the question was unworthy. "Before we go, I need you to remember that Adam's still dead"
"What?" she looks puzzled for a second and nods her head "Yeah" I watch as she composes her features, taking one deep breath and then another and she nods to me again. She starts towards the door and I follow on but she stops with her hand on the handle and turns to me. "Who's the woman and what does she want?"
"That's my girl" I tell her, knowing that she's going nowhere. All thoughts of leaving me have disappeared at least for the moment.
Tank's POV
I should get it tattooed on my ass, hell I should get it done right across my forehead backwards so I read it in the mirror every morning. Ranger is the exception, not the rule and I have to remember that. He had his chance at a Happy Ever After, but Steph is unique, there isn't another woman like her on the planet, one that can only see the good in us and doesn't seek to use us for her own ends.
Not like you, yes I can see your game now, using me to get access to us and our secrets and like the fool I am, I believed that you wanted me for me and not for what you could get from me. When will I learn?
I look over at you and you smile gently at me and I wonder what you are thinking behind that facade you wear. Does the woman I held in my arms in the dark even exist or is she just another role you play? Now that I know who you really are, I can see the family resemblance; you may have the face of your mother, but I can see your father's eyes. Cold, calculating and cruel, that's what you are.
The programme that I activated on your computer allows me to track your every move around the Rangeman systems. So far you've stayed within bounds, but wait there it is, that was fast, you made it look like you opened the wrong folder, but we both know better, don't we? And there is the conformation. Uploading the file to your PDA, you needn't have bothered, I know where it's going and who you sent it to and you may find that it isn't as much use as you think. I've made sure of that, shame you didn't pause to look at the timestamp on that document before you stole it.
Mel's POV
Mission accomplished, all I need to do now is to keep my head down and wait until the cavalry arrives. I look over at Tank and he's looking past me and I turn my head to follow his gaze and find the delicious Stephanie stalking ahead of a very pissed off looking Ranger. She's looking for someone and I see her relieved face as Bobby rises to meet her and she stops in front of him reaching out a hand as if afraid to touch him. With an oath he grabs her and gives her a gentle shake and with a sound of exasperation he pulls her into a hug his lips pressing into her hair, his dark eyes glittering with moisture. "Don't ever scare me like that again; I nearly had a heart attack when I found you gone"
"Sorry, I just had to go"
"What were you thinking; you could have been caught and killed?"
"I couldn't let any more of my friends die protecting me"
"Didn't you realise that's part and parcel of being a Rangeman? We'd all give up our lives to spare yours" he explained and I hated the squirming sensation in the pit of my stomach that his simple words caused.
Her shoulders curled in as her head lowered "I'm so not worth that"
"You don't get to choose, we do and we say you are worth it" Cal added as he came up behind her and she broke away from Bobby and turned to hug him "Sorry"
He laughed a little, but he sounded more scared than amused "Whoa, little lady, apology accepted" he looked down at the woman in his arms and gave a little surprised but happy smile as if this was his first hug in a long time and he wasn't sure he merited it. His eyes closed as his arms slipped around her and he held her for a second then he released her, his eyes popped open again, but a slight blush covered his cheeks. "I couldn't bear it if you got hurt" she tells him.
"Me neither" his answer is whisper soft, but she hugs him again anyway before letting go.
My information on her is wrong, we always thought they protected her because Ranger orders them to, but from what I can see, she is important here. And that requires another change to the game. She is the weakness we've been seeking. Just like in chess, the Queen is the most valuable piece on the board. It isn't only Ranger that can be manipulated by threatening her, although we have to be careful as they've demonstrated how far they are willing to go to keep her safe.
I look back to Tank and find an indulgent smile on his usually guarded face. I suddenly hate that I have to hurt him to get what I want. Something's changed, the fact that he has a heart, no, that's not it, I always knew he had one, I just thought he'd taken it out of play and locked it away where he never has to think about it, like most of the soldiers that I know. But her appearance on the scene has caused an unexpected and unprecedented change to these men. He told me that she was their heart and I thought he was exaggerating just a little, but no she is the heart of this place, she's turned a company into a family. I hate her for that, I can't stand that she inspires such loyalty, no I can't lie to myself, I don't want to have to hurt them.
I take a look around and the entire control room is listening to her as she explains her reasons for leaving to Bobby and Cal and how Ranger talked her into coming back with him until this is all over.
Ranger's POV
She's turned all my hard men soft and she did it right under my nose. I have to ask myself who owns a man? The one who pays him or the one who holds his heart? This one may be too close to call. Who am I kidding? She owns them, but since she owns me too, it's an uncontested victory.
I mean Cal accepting a hug from Steph? Never thought I'd see that. He was one of the few that really hated being partnered with her. He used to always trade it off for the most hated weekend nightshift surveillance or control room duties, so for her to be in his arms goes against the natural order of his Universe, but judging by his face, he may be enjoying it, just a little. Not that he'd ever hurt her, nor through his actions allow her to be hurt, he told Bobby that he just can't relate to her, he's no frame of reference for dealing with her. He doesn't know her limitations and fears alienating her by asking her to do something she can't or patronising her by treating her like an invalid. I've seen him face down an angry mob without an ounce of fear and yet he can't deal with one woman. No matter, I'm sure she'll teach him.
It's show time and I look over to Tank and catch his eye. He nods to show me he concurs and I feel a pang of regret that we couldn't come up with another way to do this. I walk over to him and clap him on the shoulder. "Want to grab a bite and get some rest?" I ask him casually.
"Yeah sure" he stretches out and I can see her in my peripheral vision and she runs her tongue over her bottom lip as if she can already taste him.
"Let me just show you a couple of things" he tells me and bends down over his laptop.
"Sure" I bend down and he taps in "How much time do you need?"
"Two hours, maybe less" I reply in kind
He keeps up a stream of information about the locations of the guys and I know it's just for show.
"Once more unto the breach dear friends" he types with a rueful smile.
"Your sacrifice is noted and appreciated" I pause and look at him "You OK with this?"
He looked at me and raised an eyebrow and with a sigh types in "Don't go soft on me now; I do this because it needs done"
"Doesn't mean I have to like it"
"We've all had to do things that we'd rather not do and this one's mine"
Mel turns her attention to Steph and her brittle smile makes me shudder. I can't hear her low voiced comments which mean we're safe to talk too. He looks up at me and then over at Steph who is leaning into Bobby's shoulder for comfort. "Can you forgive me?" he asks in a low tone.
"What for?"
"Being wrong about her" he looked grave "I thought I could trust her" he shrugged "And I put Stephanie in danger"
"There's nothing to forgive, you did it to keep her safe" I clapped a hand on his shoulder.
"Tell that to Adam" his voice is low and fierce.
"Pierre about Adam..." I start but he cuts me off
"I don't want to hear it, after this is over, I'm out of here"
My heart dropped into my boots and continued to plummet "I understand" I looked over to where Steph was still tucked into the protective curve of Bobby's arm.
"You're not the only one, I've lost her too"
"You can't blame her" he told me in a grave tone and my already hollow chest contracted further.
"I guess not. Can I ask for one last favour?" I looked to him and over to her and he followed my gaze "Keep an eye on her for me, drop in on her from time to time and let me know she's safe"
"I will" he shrugged "I would have done it even if you hadn't asked" he looked down at his mug, the one she had given him for his birthday and I remember the stupefied look on his face when she handed it over. "She's special to me too"
"Thank you" I stood back to let him up out of his chair "Get some rest old friend"
"Don't start the party without me"
"I won't" I promised.
I watched as he strode over to Mel and with a smile led her away.
I opened the tab on the computer where the internal camera feeds were routed as I knew he always left them running in the background, as it was something we all did in case of trouble. I watched as he pressed her against the wall of the elevator and a fraction of a second before he lowered his face to hers I watched his jaw muscles ripple with revulsion and wanted to run and catch him before he did this, but I knew that he did this not for me, but for Stephanie.
As soon as the coast was clear I asked them all to gather in the conference room.
I made a detour to my office and opened my lap top and with quick efficiency typed up the document I needed to write and sent it to the printer, as I did so I noticed a pile of mail in my inbox and scooped it up. As I read the front of first my stomach clenched as I realised what it was and sighed as I realised what this meant. I scanned through the rest and dumped them back, promising myself that I would deal with it as soon as I could. I quickly applied my signature and reached in to my desk and picked up an envelope and slid in the document and took something out of my pocket and held it up to the light for a moment before slipping it inside and sealing it. I held the letter to my lips for a second and sent up a silent prayer that should it be necessary that whoever was left would carry out my instructions to the letter.
When I came into the conference room they were all assembled. I started the jammer so that we could talk freely and started to explain the plan.
"Guys, I know today has been a strain and I want to say that I haven't gone mad, I promise" I look around the room at the wary and hostile faces. I dial my phone and wait till it's answered and say "I'll need your input too" before setting it to speaker and placing it in the middle of the table. "Understood Boss, anything I can help with"
I look around again at the expressions of wonderment and dawning truth. Lester is one of the first to catch on. "Ad man, is that you?"
"Sure is, you didn't think I was that easy to kill did you?" he laughed and the guys all let out a breath. "I'm currently chilling on seven and I want to say Boss that you may have trouble evicting me as this place is sweet" that caused a laugh or two and a few smiles.
"Does Tank know?" Ram asked me.
"I tried to explain but he cut me off, I'll do it when he gets back down here"
"Why go through this pretence Ranger?" this time from Binky.
"Adam, do you want to do the honours?" I ask as it's his tale and he should tell it.
He explained about Vlad and how he used to run with his crew and how the watch had the tracker in it and that was how they were led to the bat cave.
"I knew that Vlad wouldn't stop until he had killed me and I couldn't allow you guys to be taken out with me, so I had to die to protect you all" he told them, his voice sad, yet resolute.
There were murmurs and a few curses as they realised that I wasn't the homicidal maniac they thought I'd turned into. "And now for our second problem"
I moved to the teleconferencing suite and connected the call. The familiar face appeared "General" I nodded as he came on line and I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the men all took a step closer together as if somehow seeking security in obscurity. I stifled a grin and addressed the man on my screen. "Thank you for your help Sir"
He waved aside my thanks "We've been keeping an eye on these bastards since they set foot in the country six weeks ago" He glanced down at the folder in his hands "According to our Intel they operate out of the one of the less friendly countries that came out of the fall of the old communist block and are trying to gain a foothold here." He dropped the folder and his eyes glittered with fury. "That cannot be allowed to happen" he tapped his finger on the desk.
"They are heading here, should be no more than 5 or 6 hours out, definitely within the next 8 as the target should arrive home in less than an hour and they will come for him" I inform him gravely "I'll take whatever you can give me" I tell him.
"I can help you, but my help costs" the slightest smile crosses his face and I know he just about to wring what he wants from me.
"I'll pay" I tell him blandly.
"No" the voice comes from behind me and of all the times for her to find her voice, this may not be the best.
"Ahh Carlos, this will be the lovely Miss Plum" his voice developed a genial tone and I looked round and gave her a warning look as she drew level with me. "I'm General Preston Openshaw"
"General" she inclined her head gracefully in greeting and her tone was light but I could see from her stance that she was furious.
"You are quite the beauty ain't ya?" he cooed at her and smiled a sweet smile.
"Why thank you General" she smiled back but it never reached her eyes. "But I think you will find that this won't this cost us a thing. You'll do this because of Adam, you didn't even try to help him and when he escaped, you knew he was a danger to us and you never even warned us. Yes, you'll help because you owe us" Her arms crossed over her chest, those sapphire blue eyes flashing like fire in her beautiful face. Dios! Does she know how gorgeous she is when she's like this? How it's taking every ounce of self possession I can muster not to cut the connection, carry her out of here and screw all that fury out of her? To see it transmuted into volcanic passion in my arms. She turned back to the table "Sorry Adam, I hate to talk about you like that"
"That's OK, You only told the truth. You brought me back from that bad place, I owe you" his disembodied voice sounded proud of her.
"You're a determined young lady" The general wagged his finger at Stephanie.
She sighed and shook her head at him "Cut the crap, you are a soldier, plain and simple. I know that it's against the law for you to be deployed within our borders, but you can supply us with all the intelligence you have and provide logistics." She held up a finger as he opened his mouth to answer "Wait" she ordered him and his mouth closed with a snap. "In return we hand these guys over to you and you can do what you want with them, but that's all. We owe you nothing"
"Then I want them alive, all of them. I can't protect you from civilian murder charges"
He's right and I know it but I have to register my complaint "That places us at a serious disadvantage as they won't hesitate to kill us" I interject.
"Then you'll just have to be better than them" he tells me smugly.
"We are the best General; don't ever think that we ain't. After all, when you have a problem you come to us for the solution, not the other way round" her back is ramrod straight, her head high and her belief in us is absolute and my heart almost bursts with my pride in her.
"Come and work with me, whatever he's paying you, I'll double it" He told her, his smile one of grudging respect and an edge of genuine amusement. He leaned forward and placed his chin on his interweaved fingers. "You are magnificent"
She smiled and turned her head slightly displaying a shy smile "I'll think about it Preston, if I may call you Preston?"
I swear I just heard a sigh from the General "If I can I call you Stephanie?"
She did the shy smile and the head turn again "Why of course" she turned back to face him "Will you help us?"
"Yes Ma'am I will" he smiled a true smile, something I had never seen in all the years I have known him.
"Thank you" she pushed her unruly curls back from her face and told him "I'll leave you gentlemen to make your plans" she nodded in farewell "Preston, Carlos"
He laughed a short lived bark as he watched her walk back towards the table. "By all that's Holy Ranger, you have your work cut out with that one"
I looked back over my shoulder to where she was and she met my gaze evenly "Yes I do Sir" I resisted a sigh "Though it may be the death of me" Especially when she leaves me, that's going to hurt move than any other wound I've ever had.
"Yeah, but what a way to go"
Joe's POV
So this is Rangeman. I don't think I've ever been past the front door of this place. Well, this is actually the back door as we just accessed the parking garage. But you know what I mean. I'm dressed in a tan overall and a hat to match and carrying a back pack and a tool box. The guys are dressed the same as me and we make our way to the elevator and they wave to the camera as we enter.
The doors open on to an office and I just stop and take a moment to get my bearings, this place is larger than I thought. The computers, desks and chairs are all top of the line; the place is efficiently set out. Then she rises from a cubicle at the far end and comes walking swiftly towards me. That smile, open, lovely and those crazy curls confined today at the nape of her neck, but some have still escaped to frame her face. "Joe" she smiles as she reaches me, "Good to see you" and she hugs me and I remember just how good she feels in my arms. I breathe her in, the warmth and substance of her, my eyes closing as I rest my cheek against hers. This is what home feels like, how could I have been stupid enough to let her get away? I keep her close as I open my eyes and look straight into Ranger's face. He has an eyebrow raised and he looks to be two inches away from drawing out his gun and shooting me.
"Detective Morelli, welcome to Rangeman. I assure you we don't usually greet our visitors so enthusiastically" he tells me with a sardonic smile.
"Ranger, it's good to be here" I let go of her and she steps back and I hold out a hand for him to shake and he takes it, his grip firm, his skin warm. "Thank you, for everything"
"You're welcome" He looks to Stephanie and she smiles up at him and something passes between them. I see how good they are together and how they are so in tune that they can communicate without words.
She nods and turns to me "Are you hungry? Can I get you some coffee?" She asks
"Coffee would be good" I tell her. Ranger looks back to where the guys are and calls out. "Sin, Flighter?"
"Sir?" They call out in unison and draw themselves to attention.
"At ease" he tells them. I introduce them "Stephanie, this is Sin and Flighter"
"Hi Guys I'll take you to the break room"
"Ma'am" Sin bows his head "It's an honour to finally meet you"
"Yep, what he said" Flighter indicated Sin with a pointed finger.
She smiled "Want to follow me?"
"To the ends of the earth my lady" Sin breathed.
She blushes a little and grins "Not quite that far, it's just this way. Let's get you guys settled"
"You know Joe, she's everything you said she would be" this comes from Flighter.
"But there is one thing you left out" Sin tells me accusingly.
"What?" I hold out my arms in surrender. I told them everything I know about her.
"That she belongs here. She looks good here" Sin says softly.
"Yes she does" I hate it, but I am forced to agree with it. She does look good here.
Tank's POV
This is easier than I thought it would be, although my heart is heavy, my body still works just fine and that's all she's interested in. She's sated and asleep, her exposed throat a few inches from my hand. I could snap her in two, but that would make me no better than she is.
I just wish that for once this could have been real, that I could have even a small part of what Ranger and Steph share. But that was never on the cards for me and I know it.
Until now, I was content to be the backbone of Rangeman, the dedicated wingman of the best in the business. But now I think I want more, I want what they have.
He pays me well to be his second in command, but the unpaid and completely voluntary part of my employment is being here so that they don't have to be. So that the relationship between them gets the light and space it needs to grow into something that will last a lifetime. I want that closeness, that feeling of belonging together that they obviously enjoy.
Listen to me; I'll be talking about my feelings next and spending the afternoons watching soap operas and eating candies.
Though it may be no more, with the death of her partner, she no longer wishes to belong and I will go with her. Strange how my loyalty has shifted, but he can look after himself, she needs me more than he does.
But it doesn't alter the worrying fact that Nura hurt me and she shouldn't have, she should never have got anywhere near my heart. I thought I'd learned my lesson years ago.
But when a certain crazy, curly haired brunette became a regular and much loved fixture in this place she blew open all the doors behind which our hearts were stored and shocked all of them painfully back to life.
I saw it with Cal earlier; he has a new spring in his step that he doesn't even know that she put there. And that is her magic; that is the way in which her female sorcery manifests. She may have been sent by the angels or by the devil himself, but she is, for better or for worse, the living, breathing heart of us.
Ella's POV
I have been asked to go to the Rangeman Manual and enact one of the prepared plans.
When I started this job I got a folder full of stuff that I simply labelled BS and never bothered to read. It gets updated now and again and I simply take the old pages out and add in the new ones as I'm told to. This may have been a good thing, as had I actually done so I'd never have dared to take the job in the first place. As after reading it I would have labelled Ranger, Tank and the rest of them as paranoid.
I'm currently following protocol Alpha 7- Siege Mode.
Yes, we have a procedure to follow in the unlikely event that we ever find ourselves besieged by hordes of enemies. I have instructions to check the food supplies and ensure that we have sufficient to cater for all the men currently in the building for a period of 72 hours. This, I am told is the maximum amount of time it will take to mobilise all the other Rangeman offices to come to our aid. With the arrival of Sin, Flighter and Detective Morelli, that gives us 31 souls and I have more than enough to feed us all.
My next job was to close the blinds in all the offices and any drapes in the apartments and to check that all unused office and storage spaces are locked and dead bolted.
With a grimace I can't hide I take my gun out of the safe and make my way down to the range where Ram is waiting for me. I settle down at the small table and quickly strip, clean and oil my gun and reassemble it. I nod to him and he hands over my ear defenders and with a sad smile of thanks, I settle them over my ears and take up my firing stance. I have never liked guns. I'm the housekeeper, if you like, the den mother for these wonderful guys, but I am still a Rangeman and as such I must be prepared to defend myself and my boys. I'm the last line of defence. I'm to get Stephanie out of here if Ranger deems it necessary. I've written and signed orders to drag her screaming and kicking if I have to and to knock her unconscious if that is what it takes to keep her alive.
My gun now cleaned and test fired I strap it back on to my hip and make my way to the control room to report in as ready.
Tank's POV
I didn't think I would be able to sleep, but I must have fallen into a light doze as the sound of my cell phone breaking the silence made me jump. I check the screen and read the text and realise that two hours have passed since I last looked at the clock. Time to get up, though Heaven only knows when I'll get the chance to sleep again.
Ranger's POV
The General has a satellite trained on us right now and he just reported movement in the target area. I let Tank know and get ready to dismiss the men to their different duties and posts.
I look up and catch the look on Steph's face.
"Babe?" I ask her.
"They're coming aren't they?" she asks.
I can't lie "Yes"
She couldn't suppress the shudder that wracked her frame and she hugged herself.
"Babe?" I ask again
"Why couldn't they leave me this at least?" she shook her head "They sullied the Batcave and they're going to pollute this space too and it's the only place left where I feel safe. I'm not a soldier; I can't shrug these things off" her voice trailed off as her eyes filled with tears.
Ram stepped forward "They'll be corralled in a place that they'll find it very difficult to get out of. There shouldn't be any fighting anywhere near the places you live and work"
"Thanks Ram" she reached for him and hugged him and he hugged her back and whispered something into her hair.
"Dismissed" I told them and watched as they all filed out, each one taking a few seconds to reassure her.
Every one of them has a task and a duty station and a sense of purpose. I hired only the very best and each one has rewarded me with something that money can't buy, loyalty.
I am reminded of a favourite quote from Sun Tzu's the Art of War
"Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys.
Look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death!"
I hope it doesn't come to that, but I will defend them with my life too if it comes to it.
