Another update?! My muse must be happy with me! Here is the next chapter, fresh off the press for all you lovely readers, and I want to thank you all for the favs and follows and the reviews. Seriously, they make my day every time I read them. Again, all the errors are mine, so I apologize before hand. This chapter damn near wrote itself so I hope it's as smooth to read as it was to write.
Disclaimer: I own nothing of the Plum universe.
Chapter Ten:
24 hours after visiting the burnt building
Ranger sat at his desk, pictures and reports laid out in front of him, and let out a frustrated growl. This was a mess. The investigation into the burned building had been half-assed, at best, and he really didn't like the picture it was beginning to paint. According to the original report, the severely burnt body of a woman had been found at the scene, but there wasn't a follow up report from the morgue indicating that an autopsy had been done. There wasn't even a mention of a body in the final report done by the fire marshal.
Something wasn't right.
Ranger pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes closed, attempting to block out the emotional tidal wave that threatened to crash over him. Trista had said that she heard someone fire a gun, and with the mention of a female body being found was enough to make him feel like a lead weight was being pressed into his chest. It couldn't be his babe. He refused to believe it.
The sound of his office door opening made him snap his eyes open and turn his attention in the direction of the interruption. There were only a handful of people brave enough to just walk into his office, and he liked it that way. As he focused his glare on the intruder, he found himself surprised to see Trista's social worker walking towards him with determination. Her mousy frame and brown hair tied in a bun made it easy to dismiss her as a push over, but he knew better.
"Manoso." Her voice was quiet, but firm as she came to a stop in front of his desk. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and sent a glare in his direction.
"Lidia." He shot back in a bored tone. He was too drained to deal with whatever the woman had on her mind.
He must have looked worse than he thought because he saw her soften slightly and lean forward onto the desk.
"We've been friends for a while, and I know that you're hurting and angry right now. I also know that you want nothing more than to tear the country apart to find Stephanie, but right now there is someone else that needs your help. Someone right here." She told him softly, and Ranger felt himself deflate slightly. She was right, and he knew it. He wanted to find Stephanie, but until the feds were able to locate Vincent, and he was able to figure out the burned body incident, there wasn't much he could do.
"How is she?" He asked after a moment.
Lidia straightened herself and sighed heavily.
"She keeps trying avoid calling her family." As the words left her mouth, Lidia rubbed her hand over her face, as if trying to rub off the exhaustion of the past few days. "I know you called me as a favor, and at first I was willing to go along with her requests, but I have to do my job." She continued firmly.
Ranger leaned forward, his elbows resting on the surface of his desk and his hands folded in front of him as he listened to her. They had grown up together and had been close friends until she had lost her parents in car accident. After that she had been put in the system and bounced from foster home to foster home until she turned eighteen and joined the Army. She'd become a medic and had just happened to be assigned to his ranger unit, and after her contract was up, she put herself through school to become a child advocate. This wasn't just a job for her, it was her calling and he knew that it was what was motivating her now.
"I'll talk to her tonight, I promise." He responded calmly.
"I'll give you until tomorrow afternoon before I make the call to the investors on her case." She nodded once and then turned to leave, glancing over her shoulder at him as if to say something, but thinking better of it she walked out and closed the door behind her.
Ranger waited a few minutes before getting up from his desk. He shuffled the papers on his desk around until they resembled a semi organized pile before heading towards the door. He left his office, closing the door behind him, and headed towards the rooms his men were staying in while they were in Boston. As he walked through the halls, he lost himself in thought. He knew all too well what Trista was trying to do. It was something that he and his men had tried to do over the years when they had become injured during an assignment. She didn't want her family to see her as broken, and the only way to accomplish that is by not seeing them. She had been through hell and survived, but he knew that didn't feel like an accomplishment when you're still trying to process it all, not to mention the survivor's guilt. If you let it, it could destroy you from the inside out, and he knew that she felt guilty for being able to get away when she had seen so many unable to do so.
After a few minutes, he found himself standing outside the apartment he shared with his core team, listening to the sound of voices inside. He could hear Lester, Bobby and Trista talking inside and let a smile grace his lips. He knew she would be here. Other than there not being a whole lot of places for a teenage girl to go in the building, he knew she had grown very close to Lester and Bobby, looking up to them like brothers. In return, they had grown protective of their pint-sized hero and were always close by when she needed them. While she had been in their care, her injuries had started mending and he knew that she would physically heal, but now it was time to make sure she would heal psychologically.
As gently as he could, he knocked on the door, opening it as he did so. As soon as he peeked his head through, he saw the three occupants sitting around the common area, playing a card game. He stepped fully into the room, leaving the door open, and crossed his arms casually.
"So, this is what I'm paying you over time for?" He commented, teasing his men. Playfully, he gave Trista a wink. "I hope you are robbing them blind."
"My poker face is on point, so of course I am." She answered him.
"Hey, Rangeman, could I get an advance on my next paycheck?" Lester joked as he turned to look at his cousin. Lester saw the look on Ranger's face and instantly grew serious. "What's up, Cuz?"
"Trista, could I have a word with you?" He asked, ignoring his cousin. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his men stiffen and gave the girl a reassuring smile. "I promise, it's nothing bad, and the boys can even come to."
Trista nodded and unfolded herself from her chair, making her way towards him. He turned and headed for the open door, knowing that his men would follow them. Once them left the apartment, they made their way towards the building's gym. Ranger opened the doors and held them open for Trista and his men, gesturing her for her to head towards the waist high shelves where the dumbbells were kept. Slowly, the girl made her way over them and turned to look at him. Ranger could see the confusion on both hers and his men's faces and joined them.
Along the wall behind the shelves was a mirror that spanned its length, giving them a view of their reflections.
"I heard you don't want Lidia to contact your family." He stated simply, his soft voice echoed in the quiet room. Trista's eyes widened at his statement and she wrapped her arms around herself, her eyes locking on a spot on the floor. "Can you tell me why?"
Silence.
Ranger stood still as he watched the girl in front of him. Her back was hunched, and her eyes had slammed shut at his question, as if she were trying to protect herself from the answer.
"From what you've said, you were held for almost a year, and I would think that that alone would make you want to see them as soon as possible." He mused, seeing Trista flinch slightly.
"Bossman…" Lester murmured disapprovingly. He stepped forward to put a hand on Trista's shoulders, but stopped when Ranger held up his own hand as he continued to look down at her.
Silence.
Silence.
More silence.
"Wh-what if…. if they don't love me anymore…. because of all the things I did?" Trista's voice was so soft that the men around her weren't sure they heard it at first. "The things I did…. I don't deserve to go back to them…." Her last word came out as a sob and Ranger felt his chest tighten. He had had those same fears for years, until he meant his Babe. She had shown him that no matter what you do in the name of survival, you were still human and deserve love. Trista's trauma was the other side of that same shame coin, but Ranger knew that he had to show her that she wasn't unlovable.
"Trista." His voice was soft, but commanding, and after a moment she looked up at him. He slowly reached out and took her by the shoulders and turned her to face the mirror. "I want you too look in this mirror and tell me what you see." He ordered. Inside the mirror, he saw his men watching them, their faces full of adoration for the teen.
"I see a mess…" Trista started, locking eyes with herself. "I see someone dirty…" Her voice grew in volume as she spoke and her back straightened. "I see a price tag." Tears began to fill her eyes as she continued to answer him, and she leaned forward to grab a dumbbell. Lifting it, she forcefully threw it at the mirror as she screamed. "I SEE A COWARD!"
The glass shattered and Trista collapsed at Ranger's feet. Instantly Bobby and Lester moved to comfort her, but Ranger stopped them by squatting down and turning her head to look at him.
"Do you know what I see?" He asked. "I see a warrior far too young." He carefully helped her stand and moved so that she could look at an unbroken piece of the mirror. "I see a girl whose smile is worth all the gold in the world." He continued. "I see someone who is so incredibly brave that she would put navy seals to shame." She scoffed at him but remained silent. "I see someone who took a chance on a complete stranger and was able to escape hell."
"I left her…. I didn't stop to make sure she was okay…" Trista started, but he swiftly interrupted her by turning her to look him in the eyes.
"Trista, I know Stephanie very well, so you can believe me when I say that she would have wanted nothing more than for you to get away and find your way to us." He told her firmly.
"Yeah, little bit, Stephanie wouldn't have cared about what happened to her, as long as you got away." Bobby chimed in as he came to stand beside her. "She wouldn't want you to hold that against yourself."
"She would be the first to understand." Lester agreed.
"Really?"
"Really." Ranger nodded.
Trista turned to look at her reflection again and wiped her eyes.
"Let's call them."
With a grin, Ranger led the four of them towards his office. Once they were inside, he sat at his desk, with Trista sitting on the edge next to him. He pulled up the program he used to do background checks.
"Full name please."
"Trista Kristine Hopper."
Ranger typed the name into the program and instantly found the missing persons report. Pulling it up, he read through it quickly and found the numbers of the lead investigators on the case. As he dialed the number in his cell phone, he heard another phone buzz and glanced up to see Lester leaving the room with his phone to his ear. Ignoring the interruption for the moment, Ranger put his own phone to his ear and waited.
"This is Detective Andrews." A gruff voice answered after a few rings.
"Detective Andrews, my name is Carlos Manoso, and I own a high-level security company, and I was wondering if you could help me with something." Ranger answered.
"What can I help you with, Mister Manoso?" Andrews answered curiously.
Ranger looked up at Trista and smiled.
"Well, Sir, I believe I have someone in my office building that might have some information about an old case of yours." He answered. "Does the name Trista Hopper ring a bell?"
"What information do you have about Trista?" The urgency in the Detective's voice gave Ranger the impression that he might have taken this case to heart and hadn't given up on her.
"Well, she doesn't have her parents phone number and would like to talk to them. Could she get it from you?"
"You mean….?"
"Yes Detective, she's alive and safe, and I will gladly fly you out to collect a formal statement from her, but right now she needs to talk to her family." Ranger stated firmly, wanting to keep the officer focused on his task.
A few minutes and promise to send the company jet to pick him and Trista's family up the next morning, the Detective gave Ranger Trista's mother's cell phone number. As Ranger hung up with the Detective, he looked over at Trista to see her biting her lower lip. She was nervous, and scared.
"It will be okay, little bit." He reassured her as he carefully dialed the number the Detective had given him. Glancing at the time, he realized that he was calling right around dinner time. It was after the fifth ring that his call was answered, and he immediately put the speaker on.
"Hello?" A feminine voice answered.
"Hello, Misses Hopper, my name is Carlos Manoso, and I am calling on behalf of client of mine." Ranger told her, looking up at Trista, who was looking at his phone like a drowning sailor looked at a lifeline.
"And just who is your client, Mister Manoso?" Mrs. Hopper asked curtly. Ranger saw Trista take a sharp breath as tears filled her eyes.
"….Hi mom…"
Alright folks! There it was, and my what a lovely way to end the chapter don't you think? Be sure to show this story some love by leaving a comment, concern, hope, assumption, or idea in the form of a review and I will try to put the next chapter up early next week. I feel like this story has really gained some momentum and is finally heading in the direction I want it to. Until next time, lovelies.