Again, thanks to JE for your characters we love to manipulate to our will!

Mostly great reviews. I got one that scorched me good. Could have been written by the New York Times. You know by those reviewers that make or break careers. It was snooty and the girl is in Australian. The first really rude reviewer I ever had on my first story was from there too. Makes me wonder if it was her. She said that she'd read me from the beginning. That was the one that made me pull my first story and reconsider writing, period. People really don't know how much power their words have. I can delete a rude guest review, but does it still bother me. Hell yes, it does and it does all the writers. Jeez. Keep in mind that I may have a book coming out, but I'm an amateur writer. I got lucky. I've been writing since November 2011. That's it. She blasted me for re-using several story directions. Big deal! I said I had done that at the end of the last chapter. It worked.

I took a little vacation and then my little 15 pound dog upset the whole household. He went nuts all of a sudden. His behavior changed every day for two weeks. I couldn't concentrate to write. He would tap circles around my desk chair, over my feet, rubbing my legs for hours. My chair sits on one of those plastic mats. Tap, tap, tap, tap. Wouldn't go out, hid under the bed, stopped eating. Then a couple days later that would change. He would just sit and stare at me like he was possessed. Stopped climbing stairs. Would just sit at the bottom and whine. He acted sometimes like he was scared. He's only about five years old. I couldn't concentrate to do a damn thing hardly. One friend said maybe we had a ghost now. I told her that I already had a leaky bladder, if I had a ghost I would never have dry bloomers. LOL

Anywho, took him to the vet. Couldn't find anything concrete. Vet thought he pulled a muscle or had a disc problem in his back. Gave me steroids I guess and something to relax him. That dog zonked out that night and yesterday he was just laying in his bed with his head hanging over the side drooling. I sat down and began typing. Ahh! The power of feel good drugs.

Alix33 depending on you to come up behind me and clean up my punctuation. Thanks girl!

Chapter 11

Ranger left the room after Stephanie went to sleep. He'd asked Tank and Lula not to tell anyone in the waiting room that Stephanie was awake yet. He had wanted to call her own psychotherapist, Dr. Ortiz, and give her an update on Stephanie.

He dialed her and the assistant put him through. "Dr. Ortiz."

"It's Ranger Manoso, calling about Stephanie. She's awake, but she has some memory loss."

"I'm not surprised at all. Her body was in essence restarted. Like a computer booting up, it takes a while for all the processes to hum in unison again."

"The doctor is planning to send her to a psych institution for a minimum of three days. I don't want that to happen."

"It's procedure, Ranger. After a suicide attempt there is a mandatory assessment and evaluation period required."

"To be evaluated by a doctor that doesn't know her? I don't think the last two years should be dropped on her by a stranger. I want her in your care and I would prefer that she not be told anything. That she remember on her own."

"Are you sure that's not what you would prefer, Ranger?"

"I'm not the patient, doctor. Stephanie had a saying in her more normal past when she was down, that at times, she needed a little happy. She would go to the beach or a salon, or go shoe shopping to get that. Maybe what she needs is a few days of happy to finish that reboot."

"That's a good point. I can't stop the transfer, but I can be her doctor since I was already treating her. I'm going to put her on antidepressants before she leaves, so she can better handle the transition back to reality."

Ranger would have to be satisfied with that and disconnected, then turned making his way to the waiting room. The Plum family had been waiting impatiently for the last twenty-four hours. Nearly thirty-five years of harm they had done to her, now they wanted her fixed in just a day.

Mr. Plum stood when he approached. "She's awake now, or she was. The doctor gave her something to help her sleep."

He looked aggravated. "Before her family got to see her? Why would you let them do that? Her mother is beside herself with worry."

Ranger was aggravated already. Yeah, they would have to go. "With all due respect, your wife is part of the reason she's here. If she's beside herself, it should be from her own guilt."

Mr. Plum shook his finger in Ranger's face. "Just a damn minute, son. I don't like your attitude and I want to know what the real story is and what your part in it was. I'm inclined to take my daughter home."

"You can't. She's being released into a psychiatric facility from here for a minimum of three days. And, there is a complication. She doesn't remember anything about the suicide attempt or about living in Newark. She thought she was in Point Pleasant."

He was silent a moment. Then he ran his hands down his face. "My God. Is she otherwise alright?"

Ranger nodded. "She's aggravated about the teeth marks in her legs. I think that we should just let her remember on her own. As I said before, I'm taking care of everything and she'll get the best care possible. Her own doctor will be seeing her at the facility where she'll be staying. After you see her, I think you should return home. She doesn't remember Angel, and they'll need some quiet time together. All of us need some quiet."

"You still intend to adopt that baby for her?"

"Yes, she loves Angel. I've grown to love that little girl myself and she needs my help and the care that I can offer her as well. I'll take care of Stephanie, sir."

"I know all of us have fault here. I couldn't leave in good conscience if I didn't know that you've taken care of her in the past. I expect you to treat her well now, and please don't just put her out like Morelli if things don't work out. You can send her home to us."

"I wouldn't do that. I initially planned to put her in her own apartment and help her get back on her feet. If that's what she wants, I'll still do that."

Mr. Plum looked at him intently. "She's not a young girl anymore, Ranger. If you love her, you should make a commitment to both of them. Just marry her and be done with it. A man wouldn't have spent so much time with another man's woman like you did unless he had feelings for her. You did conceive a child with her."

Ranger wanted to argue with him on that point, but he didn't have one. He had coveted another man's woman and he'd had her many times. "I can't argue and I did admit that I love her. Our situation is a little more complicated than that, Frank."

He nodded. "Thus is life..."

Ranger walked away. That conversation had gone better than he'd thought. He was surprised that the man actually entertained the idea of a marriage between him and his daughter, not knowing all the details of their past. He now had to make a phone call he really didn't want to make. Angel was scheduled to get hearing aids in two days. He couldn't take her for that without Stephanie. She'd want to be there for that. He had no choice but to move the appointment back for about a week.

Tank found him and told him that Lester had called for the plane to take them back to Trenton. He and Lula were going back with them. Ranger was fine with that and told him to wait for the Plums and they could all go together. Tank said that he would pick them up at the hotel in his rental on the way to the airport. Ranger then went to tell Frank that they had a ride waiting and the family needed to go on in to see Stephanie. He warned him that Helen Plum was not to upset her.

He arrived home that night to a pleasant greeting. His two girls met him at the door, both smiling. Angel reached for him and he took her, kissed her, and then kissed the top of Julie's head. Angel put her hand on his cheek and he made motor boat sounds on her cheek making her giggle. Julie started laughing. "Dad, you're so funny with Angel. You're like a different Dad."

That struck him as sad. He touched her head. "I'm sorry I wasn't a good Dad to you growing up, baby. I was young and selfish, involved in my career and business. You had a great substitute Dad and he raised you well. I'm proud of the young lady you've become."

Julie shrugged. "Mom explained to me that all adults aren't cut out to be parents." She gave him a cheeky grin. "Maybe you were just a late bloomer in the dad material department."

"A what?" He grabbed her around the waist and hefted her up off her feet and under his arm as she squealed. Then he dropped her on the living room rug and sat Angel down He attacked Julie, placing a noogie on the little cheeky monkey's head. Angel crawled over to them and right in the middle trying to imitate the noogie move. Then she tried the motor boat kiss on Julie, leaving a glob of baby slobber on her making him laugh.

This was what he wanted for his life now. Someone to come home to and a warm body in his bed at night. Not just any body, one that was familiar that perfectly molded to his. The problem was, there could be no familiar body without the mind. Stephanie would have to remember and get better, and most important, she would have to want the same as him.


Ranger conducted the meeting of his team and branch management from his office the next morning and after, asked Lester to stay on the line. Lester said, "Yeah?"

"I need to know that we're good, primo."

"I'm not going to pretend that I'm happy about your association with her again, along with binding yourself to her with a baby that doesn't belong to either one of you. I can't fucking figure out if you're doing it out of guilt or if you really give a shit about the woman. And if you do, why?"

"Lester, that wouldn't be your business would it? I just want you to focus on your own personal life and your job. Get yourself prepared to leave for London."

He snorted. "Sí, Señor Manoso."

"Fuck you, Santos." Ranger disconnected and took a deep breath.

Stephanie was awake and agitated when he arrived at the hospital that morning. They had her up and walking on crutches. She said that her doctor had been in and told her he was waiting on another doctor named Ortiz.

He said, "Babe, Dr. Ortiz is your own doctor. You know her and trust her."

"I asked him if I could go home, I mean to your house today and he said no. He said they both needed to talk to me. You know how I hate hospitals."

"I know. You're likely leaving here, but you're being transferred."

She furrowed her brows. "To where? To Trenton?"

"No." He was saved by any further explanation by the arrival of the two doctors entering the room.

Dr. Ortiz said, "Hello Stephanie. I'm Dr. Ortiz and I've been your doctor for a while. I'm here to explain something to you. You suffered trauma to your brain. Plus, you have some added complications with the memory issue. You can't be released to go home with Ranger until you're properly evaluated, and deemed no danger to yourself or anyone else."

Stephanie's hand moved to the side of her head and she blinked a couple of times before squeezing her eyes closed. When she slowly opened them again, they were filled with tears and they moved to look at Ranger. She was quiet a moment and then said, "Okay..."

Ranger's brows furrowed and he said, "Babe? What just happened."

In a monotone voice she said, "What do you mean?"

Dr. Ortiz asked, "Did you remember something just now?"

Stephanie slowly shook her head. "No."

"You're going to be transferred to another type of hospital after lunch today. I'll be seeing you there. It will be for a minimum of three days," Dr. Ortiz said.

"To what kind of hospital?"

"It's a psychiatric hospital."

"Is it because I'm considered crazy and dangerous to other people?"

"No. You jumped off of a bridge. When most people do that, they're doing it to harm themselves. Since you can't remember and tell us what happened, we have to take precautions for your own safety. It's hospital procedure for all patients that are assumed to have made a suicide attempt. You're not being singled out and we would all feel much better if you were supervised for a few days because of the brain trauma. They had to give you a powerful drug to reverse some damaging effects. A drug that's used on stroke victims."

"Oh."

Ranger thought something was wrong and wondered if Dr. Ortiz had picked up on it. Her demeanor had drastically changed in minutes. He turned to look at her at the same time as her eyes moved to his.

"Stephanie, I'll see you tomorrow. Dr. LaRosa has ordered you a sedative for the transfer, "Dr. Ortiz said.

She walked out of the room and Ranger said to Stephanie, "I'll be right back, Babe."

Dr. Ortiz was there waiting for him. She said, "I'm certain she remembers and she's hiding it like she's afraid. She needs to be watched closely."

"I was thinking the same thing. I was hoping that I would have a little more time with her before she remembered all the shit that she's been through."

"Ranger, having a couple days with her like she used to be may not have changed a thing between you or her for that matter. I'm going to say again that it would benefit you to speak to Dr. Sacks for your own emotional health. Everything that has happened has had to be very stressful and difficult for you."

He nodded. "I'll consider it and I'll stay until they come to get her and then make sure that she's settled in. Thank you, again."

"You're welcome. I wish that I would have had the chance to meet her family while they were here."

He swiped a hand down his frustrated face. "One of the reasons she headed for that bridge was directly because of her mother. She's a real piece of motherly love, that woman."

"It's probably good that they returned home then. I'll see her tomorrow morning. Is Angel doing well?"

He smiled. "Yeah, very happy. She's with my daughter that loves her. I just hated that I had to postpone the appointment for her to get her hearing aids."

Dr. Ortiz smiled. "That would be a perfect occasion for Stephanie to feel some joy again. Definitely save that one, Ranger."

TBC -