Author's Note: Um... Okay, saying I'm sorry doesn't exactly seem adequate here. The only thing I can say in my defense, is that I truly believed that I had already posted this months ago. I only discovered that I hadn't when I logged in a few hours ago, intending to upload an In Plain Sight fic that has been nagging at me lately. So, I took a little time to read through the chapter once more, just to make sure there wasn't a reason I hadn't already posted, and now, it is finally up. I am so very sorry for the ridiculously long wait. I hope you enjoy it anyway, and would love to hear from you if you feel like dropping me a review afterwards.
For those of you who don't remember, this is the second part of my Without a Sound/Unsafe Speed story, the first part of which was posted in the previous chapter.
Unsafe Speed
When Sydney and Gage returned to work after his operation, things were different between them. It wasn't just that they felt closer to each other, although that was definitely true. They had spent almost every minute of every day together since Gage had been injured, and that had brought the already close friendship and partnership even closer.
However, it was also that they were much more aware of each other. Just as Gage had learned to sense when she was behind him in the hallway of the School for the Deaf, they now seemed to have a stronger sense of where the other was at all times, even when out of sight.
They also found that knowing sign language had made a big difference in their daily lives. Throughout most of their partnership, they had possessed the ability to communicate a great deal of information without speaking, either with a look or a subtle gesture. However, now, they could say anything they wanted without ever opening their mouths. Whether it be a warning in a bar where a fight was clearly about to break out, or a joke shared privately at headquarters, they would frequently use sign without even thinking much about it. While sometimes frustrating to those around them, this tendency had made them even more effective as partners than they had been before.
A week had passed since Gage's return to work, and Sydney and Gage had just finished doing research for Walker on crystal meth and a biker gang called the Raptors. A trucker named Boyd Scranton had killed a family of three when he had crashed into their minivan, high on crystal meth. The Rangers had arrested the man's dealer, Deke Trumbull, who had, under duress, revealed that the Raptor's had supplied him with the meth. Now, they were at Walker's desk, updating him on what they had learned.
"All right, the crystal meth the trooper took off Scranton is from the same batch of stuff that we took off Trumbull at the truck stop," Gage said.
Syd added her own comments, "And listen to this, the guys at the lab said that they've never seen anything so powerful. Ninety nine point forty four percent pure."
"Really." Walker sat back at his desk, thinking over everything he knew about this case. "What did you find out about the Raptors?"
Syd replied, "They're the toughest biker gang in the Southwest."
"Yeah, they're true one percenters, they're straight outlaws," Gage added.
"There's really no hard info on their criminal enterprises either because no one will testify against them," Syd informed Walker.
"Any idea where we can find them?" Walker asked.
"Most of them hang out at a bar called the Lonestar," Syd replied.
"And it is a nasty joint, Walker. I'm telling you, two Texas Rangers are going to stick out like sore thumbs," Gage told Walker, knowing that he was thinking that they should go to the Lonestar to investigate.
"Yeah, you're right," Walker agreed taking a moment to consider the problem. "But a couple bikers from out of town, won't."
Gage smiled, pointing at himself and Syd. "You mean... uh."
Syd also smiled, realizing that that was in fact what Walker had in mind. "I get my own bike," she said, playfully punching Gage in the side before starting to walk away. Gage groaned, closing his eyes for a moment then turned to Walker with a pained expression on his face. Walker threw up his hands defensively. Gage turned and followed Syd as she practically skipped out of Ranger Headquarters.
Sydney and Gage took their time doing their research and preparing to go undercover with the Raptors, knowing it would be dangerous if they had any holes in their knowledge of the gang. They then donned appropriate amounts of leather, picked up their bikes, and pulled up in front of the Lonestar.
"Okay, you ready for this?" Gage asked as he dismounted.
Syd responded, "You bet, I've done my homework, I now know more about crystal meth than most chemists."
Gage smiled at her and opened the door, holding it for her. They walked over to the bar, taking off their gloves as they walked.
"How you doin'?" Gage asked the bartender as he sat down.
"What'll it be?" she asked.
Gage responded for both of them, looking to Syd for her approval. "Uh, a couple longnecks?"
Syd nodded. "Yeah." As the woman grabbed a couple beers from behind the bar, Syd decided that the bartender was probably a good place to start establishing their cover. "Hey listen. We've been on the road for a while, do you know where I can score me a pick-me-up, a little boost?"
The bartender replied as expected, "I don't know you from Adam, all right?"
Gage turned to Syd, figuring that they might get more information if they split up. "I'll be right back." She nodded and watched him walk to other end of the room to a scantily clad woman dancing in the corner.
Before long, a man dressed all in leather walked up and grabbed Syd's jacket to turn her to face him. "You look awful lonely little sister."
Syd half smiled and looked over to Gage, wishing that what she was about to say were true. "I'm with someone."
The stranger followed her line of sight to Gage before turning back to face her. "He left you all by your lonesome. That ain't right. If you were my woman, you know how it'd be?"
Syd rolled her eyes and asked sarcastically, "No, how would it be?"
The man leaned towards her, whispering in her ear. From across the room Gage noticed the stranger invading his partner's personal space and felt an intense burst of jealousy. He didn't have to worry about staying in character as he walked quickly over to where she was sitting. He grabbed onto the stranger's arm, pulling him away from Syd, and spinning him around to face him. "She's with me."
The stranger looked from Gage back to Syd and then back to Gage again. He pulled up his arm and hit Gage squarely across the face. Gage didn't even flinch. Instead he looked at the stranger, communicating clearly that he would regret what he had just done. The man pulled back his other arm, preparing to hit Gage with his beer bottle. Before he got the chance, Gage broke the beer bottle with his bare hand, and then proceeded to deliver a spin kick to the stranger's stomach, watching in satisfaction as he fell to the floor.
Another man walked up, having seen what Gage had just done to his friend. Although he was considerably shorter and less muscular than Gage, he didn't hesitate to confront him. "Hey... hey... you're mine boy." He took out his knife and approached Gage slowly.
Gage took his jacket off his one arm, spinning it around his other arm, and began taunting the stranger. "You sure you wanna do that? Come on. Think so? Huh? Huh? Come on? Sure you want some of that? Come on. You want some? Come on." As he spoke, he made sure to show the tattoo on his arm to the man facing him. Syd watched carefully, ready to back her partner up if he should need her, but knowing that he could handle the man in front of him with no trouble.
The man who had started the entire mess by hitting on Syd pulled himself to his feet, noticed Gage's tattoo and put out his arm to stop his friend. "Hold it... hold it... You a Demon?" he asked Gage.
"Yeah. Out of San Bernardino and Southern Cal," Gage replied, not yet letting down his guard completely, but beginning to relax.
"I thought the feds busted all the Demons for cooking crystal meth?" the stranger asked.
Syd turned slightly to participate in the conversation. "Obviously not all of them."
"A lot of brothers went down behind that, but some of us are still on the run. Ronnie here almost went up with the lab. She was our cook," Gage said, looking towards Syd as he spoke.
"You don't say?" the stranger replied, looking thoughtfully at Syd.
"Had the heat on us ever since," Syd said.
"I know how that is." The stranger leaned into Gage before saying, "Didn't know I was hittin' on your old lady, man."
"Don't worry about it. Name's Nail." Gage extended his arm to the stranger, who after a moment reached out and clasped his arm with his own.
"Bolger, Sergeant at Arms for the Raptors. Buy you a beer, Nail?"
Gage nodded and walked towards the bar with Bolger.
A little while later, Gage and Bolger were playing pool and Bolger was looking thoughtfully at Gage. "So you got the tat. Why aren't you wearin' Demon colors?"
Gage responded without hesitation. "Like I told you, most of my boys are in the joint. The Demons are pretty much gone now."
At that moment, Walker walked into the bar.
Bolger noticed him before Gage, saying, "Texas Ranger."
Gage looked over at Walker before turning back to Bolger. "I gotta get outta here."
Bolger nodded, pointing Gage towards the back of the bar. "Take your lady out back."
"All right." Gage turned and headed towards Syd, angling his head towards the back of the bar. There, they were met by the bartender, who led them into a separate room out back where they could wait for Walker to leave. They were too far away to hear what was happening, but they knew what Walker had planned. His little visit to the Lonestar in search of Nail and Ronnie was supposed to increase Gage and Sydney's credibility as felons.
A few minutes later, Bolger came to the back room, gesturing for them to come to him. "You two better come with me."
"Where?" Syd asked.
"Sanctuary. Come on," Bolger said, walking towards the entrance to the bar, looking back to see if Syd and Gage were following him.
Gage raised his eyebrows at Syd, pretending to be deciding whether to trust Bolger, before turning to follow him out.
Half an hour later, Sydney and Gage, along with five or six of the others from the bar pulled up in front of an isolated barn by a small pond. As Gage stepped off of his bike he took his jacket off, making sure that his tattoo was visible to everyone around.
The man who was obviously in charge stepped up to where Bolger was standing with Syd and Gage. "You bringin' home strays now, Bolger?"
"Grangus, this is Nail. That's Ronnie. They're on the run. I offered them sanctuary." Bolger held out Gage's arm, showing his boss Gage's tattoo.
"Well, I used to run with a couple a Demons back in the day. You know Clay?" Grangus asked, obviously less trusting than Bolger had been.
Syd rolled her eyes at the question. "Everybody knows Clay. He founded the Demons."
"Well, how's he doin'?"
"He's six feet under," Syd said matter-of-factly.
Gage laughed slightly. "Yeah, he's pretty dead right now. A cop put a slug in him when they raided our lab."
Grangus nodded, still not sure whether to trust them. "What about Billy?"
"Billy was in the lab when it blew," Gage said.
"They found his boot about a half mile away. His foot was still in it," Syd added.
"Well, you know what they say. You dance with the devil you're gonna lose a foot. What about Pokey Joe Tanner? How's he doin'?"
Gage looked at Syd, unsure of what to say. In all of their research, he didn't remember coming across the name. He glanced quickly down at her hand and saw her sign the letter 'n', indicating silently that she had never heard the name before either.
Gage decided to trust their research. "Uh, I don't think I'm familiar with a Pokey Joe."
"Well, hell, neither am I." Grangus laughed. "Welcome. Mi casa es su casa." Then he turned and walked away from Syd and Gage to talk to Bolger, leaving them to be hesitantly welcomed by the rest of the Raptors.
The next day Syd and Gage were walking around the Raptor's base camp, planning as they went.
"Listen, if we're gonna find the Raptors' meth lab, we're gonna have to get inside Grangus's inside circle," Gage said, knowing that Syd understood that meant they would have to split up. He would have a much better chance of getting in close to Grangus if she wasn't constantly by his side.
Syd nodded, looking down at her clothing. "Well all I know is, the sooner we bust this gang, the sooner I get out of this leather."
Gage looked at his partner, noticing the leather pants, black halter top, and leather jacket that she was wearing. It certainly wasn't her usual look. "Come on Syd, I think you look kind of cute."
As Syd watched Gage walk away from her, she smiled. Her partner, who didn't often comment on her appearance, had said that she looked cute. Her musings were abruptly cut off as someone threw a knife into the ground by her feet.
A woman came around the tree a few feet away and walked towards her. "Drop somethin'?"
Syd picked up the knife and threw it at the woman. The knife embedded itself in the tree just a few inches from the woman's head.
"You almost hit me with that, Girlie."
"The name's Ronnie, and if I wanted to hit you with it," Syd smiled, "you'd be wearin' it."
The woman smiled and said, "Name's Mona, Grangus's old lady, come on I'll introduce you to the other girls."
"Okay." Syd shrugged, glad to have been accepted by the female Raptor so easily. Still she knew that for her and Gage to truly be included in the gang business by Grangus, Gage was going to have to gain his acceptance. She just hoped he found it as easy to accomplish as she had.
After leaving Syd, Gage had walked towards the garage where he found one of the Raptors working on his bike. "Man, that's a nice old bike you got there."
He turned to face Gage briefly. "Thanks."
Gage walked closer to the bike, looking at what the man was doing. "That's sort of tricky though, you almost need three hands to get that axle through there."
"Yeah, I already busted a knuckle messin' with it."
"Well let's see if we can keep you from bustin' another one," Gage said as he picked up the bike, holding it for the other man.
He looked up at Gage while he was trying to slip the axle into the bike. "The Demons are a tough crew."
"Were..." Gage corrected. "There you go... there you go..." Gage said, setting down the bike after the other man had finished the repair. "Yeah, we heard about you out there, too."
"All the way out in Cali?" the man asked looking up in disbelief.
"Sure, man, you gotta know your competition," Gage replied.
The man chuckled. "Yeah... well, if Grangus has his way, there won't be any competition."
"Is that a fact?" Gage asked, feeling like he was finally making some progress towards getting the information they needed to take the Raptors down.
"Grangus has bold plans. We're taking the product nationwide."
The next day, Gage was in the garage working on his bike when Grangus and Bolger walked in.
"Nail," Grangus said, and when he realized that Gage wasn't going to be able to hear him, he walked over and turned off Gage's bike.
As the engine stopped, Gage looked up. "What's up?"
"Bolger says your old lady can cook crystal meth," Grangus answered.
"Oh, yeah, yeah, Ronnie's an organic chemist. She was our head chef before the feds busted our lab. As soon as I can get up another stake, man, she's gonna be my meal ticket."
"Well, you might not have to wait," Grangus said.
Gage's brow furrowed in pretend confusion. "What are you drivin' at?"
"Well, Ronnie can cook and that's what I need right now. And you've got muscle and you're not afraid to use it, sounds like a marriage made in heaven."
"What's in it for me?" Gage asked, seemingly reluctant to make the deal.
"Colors." Grangus turned Bolger around, pointing at the Raptor insignia on his jacket. "Raptor colors... I'm inviting you to prospect with the Raptors."
"Well, I already got a club."
"Not like this one, brother. Raptors are top of the heap. Besides that, you said it yourself, the Demons are just about extinct. It's a one-time offer Nail, yes or no? Yes or no?" Grangus demanded.
"Yeah, alright, alright," Gage agreed, smiling at how easy it had been to get the offer.
"Alright." Grangus smiled.
"You gotta be initiated like the rest of us," Bolger added, his first contribution to the conversation.
"Initiated?" Gage asked.
"Oh, I'm sure you can handle it," Grangus said. "Besides that, you know what they say?"
"What's that?" Gage asked hesitantly.
"No pain... no gain." Grangus chuckled, joined by Bolger.
"Right." Gage sighed, hoping the initiation would be something they could work with.
After Gage had informed her that they were going to be initiated later in the day, he had been called away by some of the other guys, and she hadn't seen him since. Now that it was time for the initiation, Syd was standing in the midst of a bunch of the Raptors, looking for her partner. She finally spotted him walking towards her with his arm around some other girl. The flash of jealousy she felt was probably unwarranted, but she couldn't help it. He must have noticed because he immediately took his arm from around the other woman's shoulders. He walked over to her, placing his arm around her shoulders instead. She didn't look at him, feeling a little embarrassed by her reaction, and instead focusing on all the people around them. Everybody was partying and drinking, while some of them were racing their motorcycles.
Gage turned to Bolger and Grangus who were standing next to them. "I thought this was supposed to be an initiation. Seems more like a party to me..."
"No, this is the initiation party. Now it's time for the test," Grangus explained.
"What kind of test?" Syd asked.
"You gotta prove you got what it takes to be a Raptor," Bolger added as he and Grangus started leading them away from the festivities.
"You gotta commit a felony," Grangus said, smiling.
"We've already done plenty of that," Gage chuckled as he and Syd followed the other men.
"But this time we get to watch. We're gonna ride into town and find somethin' real fun." Grangus looked at his watch. "And we're gonna roll in about ten minutes."
Bolger and Grangus walked away, leaving Syd and Gage alone.
Gage sighed, looking around to make sure they weren't being watched closely by anyone before signing, "Better tell Walker."
Syd signed back, "I know. Cover me," before leaving Gage to keep an eye out for anyone who might be observing them as she snuck off to make the phone call to Walker.
Ten minutes later, the Raptors, including Gage and Sydney, were riding into town for Nail and Ronnie's initiation. A policeman who was watching the highway pulled out after them, turning on his sirens and pulling them to a stop on the side of the road.
"Man, what's your problem?" Grangus asked as the policeman approached.
"License, registration, proof of insurance on each of you."
All of the Raptors laughed at the cop's request.
"Well first of all, what'd we do?" Grangus asked.
"I clocked you over the legal limit, and I can hear those pipes from two miles away," the policeman stated as he walked over to where Syd and Gage were sitting on their bikes. "License please. Yours too, ma'am."
Gage smirked at the man before replying snidely, "I must have left it in my other jacket."
Syd shrugged as the policeman turned his attention to her. "Me too, I guess you're gonna have to go fishin'."
The policeman looked closely at the two bikers in front of him. "Hey, wait a minute... I've seen you two before." As his recognition registered, the cop reached for his gun, but not quickly enough as Syd and Gage also pulled out their guns and shot him three times in the chest. They watched him fall before putting their guns away.
Gage turned to face Grangus. "Is that good enough, or do we still need to ride into town?" He knew they needed to get away from the body quickly before the Raptors realized there was a suspicious lack of blood on the man they had just shot.
"Oh no, that'll do," Grangus responded quickly.
"Good," Gage said, and they turned around to return to the Raptor's base camp.
"Well, there are not a whole lot of people with the grit it takes to kill a cop," Grangus said as he stepped off his bike.
"Yeah well, they'd have to kill me first before I'd let 'em put me in a cage," Gage said to Grangus, acting like it didn't bother him at all that he had supposedly just killed a policeman.
"Stuff happens, it is what it is," Syd said nonchalantly.
"Yeah well, it's all the initiation you'll ever need in this club," Grangus said as he handed Gage two Raptor jackets to the cheering of everyone around.
Gage turned and looked at his partner, seeing her smiling at their success. He would like to think that what he did next was to stay in character, but in reality the only thing that was on his mind at that moment was how beautiful she looked. He reached out and put his arm around Syd's neck, pulled her to him, and kissed her. The crowd's increased cheering was what brought Gage back to the real world and reminded him that he had a job to do, and he reluctantly pulled back from her.
"Welcome, bro, you're a Raptor now, it's a whole new world!" The man whose bike he had helped to fix came up to him and shook his hand, welcoming him to the gang.
"You're scary, man, scary. You're family now, brother. Till death do us part," Bolger said as he came over to Gage, clasping his arm in welcome.
"Till death," Gage said, knowing that the other man's death might not be too long in coming.
"Yeah..." Bolger said before turning and walking a little ways away.
"Well, it's time to take a ride, I want you to see the operation," Grangus said, turning once again and getting on his bike.
"Sounds good to me," Syd said also mounting her motorcycle. She was amazed that her voice had come out sounding so normal when she could still hardly even breathe after that kiss. She was also relieved to have a good reason to sit, as she had barely been able to keep herself standing once Gage had let go of her. She'd had no idea her partner could kiss like that, and while she knew that he'd only done it to support their cover, she couldn't help but feel that something a little less earth-shattering would have done the job just as well. Perhaps he had enjoyed the kiss as much, and become as oblivious to the rest of the world, as she had and had gotten carried away. Either way, now was not the time to think about it, as she followed Grangus to the Raptors' drug lab.
Twenty minutes later they pulled up in front of a small cabin in the middle of the woods. Grangus and Syd went inside, leaving Gage and Bolger outside with the bikes.
Syd spent a few minutes looking at their setup before discussing it with the head cook. "Pseudophedrine is your precursor?"
"Yeah, it's from Mexico. It's not ideal, but they don't use additives."
"You know, you've got a bottleneck right here. If you reroute the coils, you could evaporate into a larger chamber."
"You stall out the chemical reaction."
"No no no, the vapor cools faster, but you could reconstitute the distillate into two vessels if you separate these right here," Syd said, pointing to the coils.
"Doubling the output without sacrificing quality."
"You are a super genius, Doc." Syd smiled and then proceeded into the other room, followed by Doc and Grangus. "Ah, look at this. Here's the other half of your problem right here. The trays can't breathe. What you need is a fine stainless screen, so you can draw the solvents off from the bottom, too."
Doc took a moment to consider. "Yeah we can do that."
"Make it happen, anything she wants." Grangus pointed to Syd. "You are in charge."
"Hey, wait a minute..." Doc started to object, giving in as he received a glare from Grangus. "Whatever you say."
"Give me a week, and I can quadruple your output," Syd said, looking around at the lab.
"I don't have a week," Grangus pointed out.
"I guess I better get to work," Syd replied. She sighed, not exactly looking forward to helping to make crystal meth. Her only comfort was that as long as she and Gage did their jobs correctly, none of these drugs would ever reach the street. And she and Gage had never failed yet.
Over the next few days, Syd spent a great deal of time in the drug lab, cooking crystal meth, and Gage spent a lot of time transporting that crystal meth. Now, on the day the deal was to go down, Gage was listening to Bolger and Grangus talking while loading some of the drugs into a bag on the back of his bike.
"Go ahead and take this batch down the hill," Grangus said to Bolger.
"Alright, you comin'?" Bolger asked.
"Nope. I'm gonna stay here and make sure everything stays on track," Grangus replied, before turning and walking back into the lab.
"Okay, man. Alright let's saddle up. Take all you can carry," Bolger said to the men around him.
Gage decided that it was now or never for him to find out where they were going. "Where we headed?"
"Rest stop out on Blue Lake Highway. You can follow me," Bolger said to Gage before walking away.
"Alright." Gage turned and pulled out his phone to call Walker.
Gage was helping the Raptors to load the drugs into the back of a van at the rest stop and listening in on Bolger's conversation with the dealer, Mr. Darby.
"Where's your girlfriend, Grangus?" Darby asked.
"Back at the lab gettin' the rest together, he sent me," Bolger stated firmly.
"Aren't we lucky?" Darby replied sarcastically.
"We got a lot of product, where's the dough?"
"You'll get that when I see the rest of the product."
Bolger spat at Darby and walked away.
Gage headed around to the other side of the van to talk to one of the other gang members. "Hey man, where's this truck goin' anyway?"
The response he received was not what he expected. "Nowhere. This is our little uh drive-thru service. That guy Darby, he has his rigs pull in, we hand them their order to go, and just like that," he snapped, "they're off to... wherever. And by this time tomorrow, there'll be Raptor crystal meth in every state in the union. Hoo-ha!" He turned and grabbed a vial of the drugs, handing it to Gage. "Here give this to that guy."
Gage put the drugs in his vest, walking over to the truck that had just pulled up. "Hey, buddy," he said as he stepped up to lean in the window of the truck. He handed the drugs to the driver and walked away, without ever really looking closely at the man behind the wheel. If he had, he would have noticed the recognition on the other man's face. He also didn't notice the driver stop to talk to Bolger.
"What? What is it?" Bolger asked the driver impatiently as he came to a stop near him.
"That dude back there," he pointed to Gage, "I've seen him before, he's a Texas Ranger."
"You sure?" Bolger demanded, knowing that he was going to be in deep trouble with Grangus if the driver was correct. He had brought Nail and Ronnie into the club personally, and if they turned out to be Rangers, he didn't even want to think about what Grangus would do to him.
"Yeah I'm sure. He busted Trumbull," the man insisted, and unfortunately, Bolger believed him.
Grangus was in the lab overseeing the clean up when one of his men walked up and handed him a cell phone. "Grangus, Bolger's on the line."
"Yeah, what is it?" Grangus asked impatiently into the phone.
Bolger reluctantly shared the information he'd just received. "It's Nail, he's a Texas Ranger."
Grangus looked at Syd who was standing on the other side of the lab. "You're sure about that?"
"Yeah, one of Darby's mules recognized him. What do you want me to do?" Bolger asked.
"You know what to do," Grangus growled into the phone.
"What about the girl?" Bolger asked.
"I'll take care of that myself." Grangus hung up the phone, considering his options for terminating his new cook.
A little farther down Blue Lake Highway, Trivette and Walker were pulling over the trucks and confiscating the drugs.
"I tell you what, it keeps going like this, we're not gonna have room for all these trucks," Trivette said to Walker, as they walked up to the truck that had just pulled up. "Shut it down!" he yelled to the truck driver. "Come on out."
"Afternoon, Rangers. Is there... is there a problem?" the driver asked nervously as he stepped down from his truck to talk to them.
"We need you to wait here while we search your vehicle, sir," Trivette said to the anxious man.
"Ranger Walker, he's carrying meth," the officer who was searching the vehicle informed them a moment later.
"Haven't I seen you before?" Trivette asked after getting a closer look at the driver.
Walker looked at the man again, realizing why he looked familiar. "He was at the truck stop when we arrested Trumbull. He saw Gage there!"
"Did you say anything to them about that Ranger?" Trivette asked the driver.
Walker grabbed the man's jacket, asking him again, "Did you spot him?"
"Yeah, yeah I did," the driver reluctantly admitted.
Walker and Trivette walked away, hurrying to get to the rest stop where Gage and the other Raptors were, before it was too late for the younger Ranger.
Gage was still loading the drugs into the back of the van when Bolger walked up to where he was standing. "Oh hey, you know what? It's gettin' a little thin on product here, you want me to ride up the hill and get some more?" Gage suggested, eager to be closer to Syd when they finally took down the Raptors.
"Yeah, you know I was thinking you and me should take a run up there together," Bolger replied.
"Right on," Gage said and started to walk away with Bolger at his side. Bolger then pulled out his gun and jabbed it into Gage's ribs.
"Hey... hey, what's this all about?" Gage asked, holding up his hands in a protestation of his innocence.
"It's about you dyin', Ranger," Bolger growled, emphasizing the last word. "I can't believe it, I saw you kill a cop."
"Can't believe everything you see," Gage said mockingly, managing to appear calm even though he was terrified. Not for himself, but for his partner. If his cover was blown, that meant that Sydney's was as well. And it would take him at least fifteen minutes to get to her, if he pushed it.
"I'm gonna see you die for sure," Bolger said and aimed his gun at Gage.
"Hold it!" Trivette yelled as he and Walker ran up to where the two men were standing. Bolger turned, giving Gage the opportunity to kick him, knocking the gun from his grasp. Gage then proceeded to hit him over the head with his own gun.
"Walker, we gotta get to Sydney. She's at the lab with Grangus," he yelled.
"I got this," Trivette said, moving to arrest Bolger and the other Raptors with the help of the local police officers who had just pulled up.
Gage and Walker ran and got on the two closest motorcycles and took off to get to Sydney at the drug lab.
Grangus waited until he had watched the last of the drugs loaded onto his bike before walking into the lab to deal with the lady Ranger who had infiltrated his operation. "I'm givin' everybody the rest of the day off, especially you, Ronnie," he announced.
Then he walked over to Syd and hit her across the face with his gun, watching as she fell to the ground. "Or whatever your name is... everybody out," he said as he took her gun from her and handcuffed her to the nearby table. It took only a few seconds for everyone to clear out of the small cabin, leaving Sydney alone with Grangus and unable to free herself.
"Life is a terminal disease, and you're gonna find out what it's like to be infected," he told her, then walked over to the other side of the room to two tanks on the wall filled with different chemicals. "Thought I'd give you a chance to think about it," he said as he pushed a button on the tanks, which then started to beep. "When these tanks empty, you're gonna find out what if feels like to fly," he said as he walked away, turning back to finish his statement, "'cause this place is gonna blow sky-high!" With that final comment that sounded to Syd like some sort of oddly deranged poetry, he left her with nothing to do but hope that Gage was alright and that he would come for her in time.
Walker arrived at the drug lab first, jumping off his bike and tackling Grangus to the ground. Gage pulled up a second later, barely sparing a glance for the fighting men as he jumped off his bike and started running towards the lab.
"Syd! Syd!" he yelled, panicked that Grangus had already killed her. He walked into the lab and looked around frantically for his partner. "Syd!"
"Gage, over here!" Syd cried in relief.
"Syd!" He ran over to her, brushing his hand over her cheek. "Are you alright?"
"It's gonna blow..." Syd looked over her head at the two tanks that were almost empty. Gage followed her gaze and realized that they did not have much time left.
"We gotta get out of here," she said, trying to get Gage's attention back on setting her free. He looked down, and checked the table leg, hoping that he would be able to shake it loose easily. Unfortunately, the table leg was holding firm.
"Come on... come on," Syd said impatiently, wanting to get out of there as soon as possible. If he couldn't free her in a moment, however, she was going to have to send him out without her.
Gage stood, kicking the stubborn table leg, careful not to hit Syd's arm as he did so. He was determined that he would get her free and out of there safely. There was simply no other option.
Finally, he felt the table leg give way. He pulled the leg loose and freed the handcuffs from it before turning to face Syd. "Give me your arm, give me your arm!" he said urgently, pulling her arm around his neck and picking her up. As soon as he had her firmly in his arms he ran out of the building. "Walker it's gonna blow!" he yelled as he ran, trusting that the other man would be able to get out of the way before the lab blew. He ran behind a tree with Sydney, setting her down gently and shielding her from the debris with his body as the building exploded.
After everything settled down after the explosion, Gage pulled back slightly from Syd, looking down at her with concern. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I've got a bit of a headache from when he smacked me across the face with his gun, but I'll be fine." She sighed, feeling like she was finally able to relax and enjoy the sensation of being in his arms.
It was only as she mentioned that Grangus had hit her that Gage noticed the dark bruise that was forming on her cheek. He reached out and brushed his fingers delicately over the mark. "Sorry, I didn't know I was made until Bolger pointed a gun at me, or I would have been here sooner."
"You got here just in time." Syd smiled, wondering if he realized that he was still lying on top of her. Not that she minded, not at all. He seemed to have realized the same thing just as the thought crossed her mind, and he pulled back from her completely and stood. She was surprised when he leaned back down, placing his arms under her knees and around her shoulders and lifted her up into his arms once again. She almost sighed in delight, but still felt the need to protest as he walked over to Walker with her in his arms. "Uh, Gage? I can walk, you know?"
"Really? I'm glad," he said, not making a move to set her down. She gave up without a fight, and settled further into his arms, resting her head against his shoulder. He walked over to where Walker was handcuffing Grangus and looked around at what was left, noticing that only two of the motorcycles had survived the explosion.
"Walker, why don't Syd and I share one of the bikes and you and Grangus can take the other? That way we don't have to walk all the way back, although I for one wouldn't object if you wanted to make Grangus walk." In truth, he wouldn't have objected if Walker had shoved the other man into the cabin just before it had exploded. However, that wasn't something he was going to mention to his boss.
"Good idea, Gage. Sydney, are you alright?" Walker asked, wondering why Gage was carrying Sydney. He hoped that she wasn't injured badly.
"Yeah, I'm fine Walker, just glad you two showed up when you did." She smiled, wincing slightly when her aching jaw protested the action.
"Okay, let's get going, I'm sure Trivette's wondering what happened to us." Walker said as he moved over to one of the bikes, choosing, rather charitably, to let Grangus ride with him. He started up the bike and drove off, leaving Syd and Gage behind.
Gage gently set Syd down before moving to straddle the bike. Once he was settled he turned to her, gesturing for her to get on the back of his bike. "Hop on."
She climbed on behind him, reaching an arm hesitantly around his stomach to hold on.
"Syd, you'd better hold on tighter than that, it's a pretty bumpy ride. Wouldn't want you falling off," Gage said as seriously as he could when really he just wanted her closer to him. He was delighted when she moved herself forward, putting both arms around his waist and pressing herself tightly up against his back. He found the feel of her behind him to be both reassuring and highly enjoyable. He grinned impishly, and turned slightly to face her. "You know, Syd? I kinda like having you on the back of my bike."
"Well, don't get used to it, I've got my own bike," she responded, looking over to where she had left her bike. She sighed when she saw the pieces that used to be her motorcycle. "Or at least, I did."
"Let's go. Hold on," he said and started up the bike, following the same trail that Walker had taken back to the highway. As they rode, Syd snuggled in even closer to Gage, turning her head and resting it lightly against his shoulder and closing her eyes. She felt safe knowing he was so close and was finally able to relax. Gage smiled gently, loving that she was so comfortable with him.
By the time they reached the highway, Syd was almost asleep. As Gage turned the bike off, she didn't even stir. He looked back over his shoulder and noticed that she had her eyes closed. He smiled at the fact that she had basically fallen asleep while riding on a motorcycle on a bumpy trail through the woods. He gently started to rub her arms which were still wrapped tightly around his waist.
"Syd. We're here," he said quietly. He felt her begin to stir and regretted the fact that she wasn't using him as a pillow anymore.
"Mmmm..." She sighed as she stretched, still without opening her eyes. She looked so adorable, and he realized that he would love to watch her wake up every morning. She opened her eyes, shaking herself awake as she realized where she was. Gage had stopped the bike about twenty feet away from where the majority of the policemen were, giving her a little privacy while she was waking up. She turned to face him and saw him smiling at her. "You make a good pillow."
"Glad to be of service. Now what do you say we get those bracelets off of you? They really aren't your style." He chuckled, watching her tug a bit at the handcuffs still attached to her right hand.
"Yeah, that'd be great."
They walked over to where Walker and Trivette were talking to a bunch of the Dallas Police Department officers. "Hey, guys? Does anyone have a handcuff key we could borrow?" Gage asked, gesturing to Syd's arm. After one of the policemen walked over and took the handcuffs off, Gage noticed that her wrist was raw and bleeding from her struggles against the restraints.
"We should get that wrist bandaged up," Gage said as he lifted her arm slightly to look at the damaged wrist.
"Nah, it'll be fine," Syd answered, having not even noticed the pain in her wrist until then.
"We don't want it getting infected, do we? I'll bandage it up for you later," Gage suggested as a compromise, seeing her nod of acceptance. "Hey, Walker? Do we need to hang around here for this? I think we're both pretty tired."
"No, Gage. We'll need you to make statements and fill out some paperwork, but that can wait. Why don't you both go home and get some rest, take tomorrow off, and we'll talk about all of this Monday morning."
"Great, thanks Walker. We'll just hitch a ride with one of the DPD officers. See ya guys." Gage waved goodbye to his friends, leading Syd over to one of the local police officers. "Can we get a ride?"
"Sure, hop in," the officer agreed gladly, holding the door open for the two Rangers to get in the car.
They pulled up in front of Gage's apartment a little while later, and Gage dragged Syd upstairs with him, ignoring her protests.
"But, Gage! I'm fine, I just want to go home and get some sleep," she said for what seemed like the hundredth time as he led her into his apartment.
"Come on, just let me bandage your wrist for you and then I'll drive you home. Okay?" He wasn't eager to leave her alone at her apartment. Not too long ago he had thought that she was dead. He was going to keep her within his sight for as long as possible.
"Fine," she sighed as he led her over to the couch and then left the room to get his first aid supplies. A minute later he was back and kneeling on the floor in front of her, carefully cleaning the cuts before rubbing an antibiotic cream into the wounds. Then he gently wrapped the bandages around her wrist.
She sighed looking down at her newly bandaged wrist. "Thanks, I have to admit, you did a better job than I would have."
"Anytime, now how about I get you an ice pack for that bruise?" he offered reaching up and gently brush his fingers across her cheek.
"I can do that when I get home," she said. She closed her eyes for a moment, enjoying the feel of his fingers on her face.
"Come on, just stay here and rest for a bit. We'll grab a bite to eat and then we'll put on a movie or something and just relax. I'll even let you use me as a pillow again." He grinned teasingly.
"Oh well in that case." She smiled back at him, making herself more comfortable on the couch as he went into the kitchen to grab an ice pack. When he came back into the room he wrapped the ice pack in a thin towel and pressed it gently up against her cheek, brushing her hair out of the way as he did so. "Thanks," she said and raised her hand to replace his holding the ice pack to her face, smiling slightly as their hands brushed up against each other.
He turned away after a moment and headed back into the kitchen to find something for them to eat. He found some leftover pizza and threw it in the microwave before bringing it out to the living room. They were both rather hungry and the food was gone within minutes. After cleaning up after their dinner, he put a movie into the VCR, returning to the couch as the movie started. He sat on the other end of the couch and was startled when she shifted closer to him, resting her head against his shoulder.
"What? You said I could use you as a pillow," she said in response to his questioning look. He smiled and settled his arm around her shoulders, leaning back into the couch and finally relaxing.
As the end credits for the movie started rolling, Gage looked down at Syd, smiling as he noticed that she was sound asleep. Careful not to jostle her enough to wake her, he leaned forward, switching off the TV. He leaned back again, brushing the hair back gently from her face. She was so beautiful, even with the large bruise that was forming over her jaw and cheek. He loved her so much and wanted desperately to kiss her. When he had kissed her the other day after their initiation into the Raptors, everything around them had faded, leaving her as the only thing in the world as far as he was concerned. When he had pulled back from her, she had looked up at him with a look he couldn't quite identify in her eyes. All he knew was that it was a look that he wanted to see again.
When he had arrived at the drug lab and saw Grangus leaving, he was terrified. He was half expecting to find Syd dead on the floor of the lab, and the relief he felt when he saw her alive was tremendous. He didn't know what he would do without her in his life, and he never wanted to find out.
He brushed her hair away from her face once again, before placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. As he did so, she started to stir. Moments later she opened her eyes, looking up at him. She raised her head slightly to look him in the eyes. Gage's eyes fell to her lips, now only inches away, and he couldn't resist the temptation. He lowered his head slightly, giving her plenty of time to pull away, before gently brushing his lips against hers. He pulled back slightly, seeing a pleasantly surprised look on her face, and then leaned forward to kiss her again. This time, she kissed him back.
They had kissed twice before, but both would consider this to be their first real kiss. It was soft and slow, and filled with incredible emotion. The kiss spoke of their love, without either of them saying a word. Neither one of them had ever experienced anything like it before in their lives. Time seemed to stop, and all that existed in the world was the two of them. When they finally pulled back from each other, they were both breathless. They simply stared at each other in silence, communicating without words everything that they were feeling at that moment.
Finally, Sydney broke the silence with a gentle smile on her face. "What a way to wake up."
Gage chuckled, leaning forward for one more quick peck on the lips. "Stay tonight?" he asked quietly, realizing his mistake as she pulled away from him slightly, looking uncomfortable. "Let me hold you while you sleep tonight?" He smiled when she looked up at him in mild shock. "You gave me quite a scare there earlier, I thought you were dead. I just want to hold you for the night. I need to know you're alright so that I'll be able to sleep tonight."
She smiled softly at him. "I'd like nothing more. You really do make a great pillow you know?"
"Yeah, well there's no one I'd rather have sleep on me than you." He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss before pulling back once again and standing. "Come on, let's go to bed." He reached out his arms to help her up off of the couch.
"Uh, Gage? I don't have anything to wear," she pointed out to him as he led her back to his bedroom.
"Exactly." He winked teasingly at her, throwing up his arms and backing away slightly at the glare he was receiving from her. "Okay, okay. Don't worry, I'll find something you can wear." He went over to his dresser, rummaging around for a minute, purposefully picking out one of his larger t-shirts and a pair of his boxers, before turning and handing them to her. He pointed her towards the bathroom for her to go get changed. When she returned his jaw almost hit the floor. The shirt was hanging off of her, and he had never imagined that seeing her wearing his clothes would be as much of a turn on as it was. He blushed slightly as she caught him staring at her. She smiled gently at him and he turned and headed into the bathroom to get changed.
As she watched Gage disappear into the bathroom, Syd found her attention focused on the bed. She was nervous. There was no reason for her to be nervous, this was hardly any different from when she had just slept in his arms out on the couch. But at the same time, it was different. She was about to spend the night in Gage's arms in his bed. It seemed like they were skipping a few steps. They had just shared their first kiss and now they were spending the night together. At the same time, they had been partners for three years and were best friends. They were closer to each other than to anyone else, so their relationship probably would proceed differently than if they were strangers. She was shaken out of her musing as he returned from the bathroom wearing boxers and an undershirt.
He was surprised to find her still standing where he had left her. He knew that she was aware of which side of the bed he usually slept on from her time living with him while he was deaf. He also happened to know that while he always slept of the left, she preferred the right. So he had to wonder why she wasn't already in the bed.
She smiled shyly at him in response to his quizzical look. Gage noticed then that she was nervous and walked over to her. "Syd, if you're uncomfortable, one of us can take the couch. I just thought that I'd sleep better if I could hold you, knowing that you're alright." He brushed her hair back from her face as he spoke, gently grazing his fingers over her bruise.
She smiled and placed her hand over his on her face. "Thanks, I think that was what I needed to hear." She rose up and pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth before turning and pulling down the sheets on the bed before climbing in. Gage turned off the lights before making his way back over to the bed. He climbed in next to her and opened his arms to her. She rolled over, resting her head on his shoulder and putting her arm over his stomach, and then tangling one of her legs with his. After a moment's shock for how she settled herself into his arms as if she'd been doing it for years, he wrapped his arms around her. It felt right to be this close to her. He turned his head, pressing a kiss to her temple before closing his eyes and falling into a deeply content sleep.
Syd woke up slowly the next morning, trying to figure out what was different. It was when she felt her pillow move that she realized what it was. She wasn't alone. She opened her eyes slowly, looking at Gage's still peaceful features. She smiled, remembering everything that had happened the night before. She rested her head back on his shoulder, not closing her eyes but just watching him. He must have felt her looking at him because before long he started to stir. She watched as his eyelashes started to flutter slightly before his eyes opened slowly. She watched as his brow furrowed in a moment of confusion before recollection dawned.
"Hey," he said quietly as he smiled gently at her.
"Hey." She smiled, raising herself up and placing a quick kiss on his lips.
"Mmm... nice way to wake up," he mumbled sleepily.
"Yeah... I'm gonna go see about getting some breakfast together," she said as she gave him one more kiss before pulling out of his arms and jumping out of the bed. She was gone before he could protest the loss of her warmth against him.
He got up a few minutes later, padding into the bathroom. After splashing water on his face to help wake him up, he headed back out to the kitchen. He walked over to Syd who was at the stove making omelets. He stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pressing a kiss to the side of her neck. "What's for breakfast?"
"Omelets," she replied, forgetting what she was supposed to be doing as she focused only on the feel of his lips against her neck. She sighed in regret when he pulled away from her a moment later, but realized quickly that she had been in danger of ruining their breakfast, and it was probably a good thing that he had moved away to get the drinks and set the table.
Gage marveled briefly at how easy and natural it felt to be waking up and preparing breakfast with his partner. However, it only took him a moment to realize that not only had they always worked together seamlessly as partners, but they also had fallen into an easy routine while she had lived with him for the few weeks he had been deaf. The only thing that had truly changed since then was that they were sleeping in each other's arms and sharing kisses freely while accomplishing together whatever needed to be done. And that was a change that Gage was entirely comfortable with and could easily get used to, he thought to himself, as he stole another kiss when Syd came over to hand him his plate.
"Mmm... this is great," Gage said through a mouthful of omelet a moment later. They sat in silence for a few minutes, both simply enjoying the meal and the time spent together. When they were almost done eating their breakfast, Gage broke the companionable silence. "You know what? We never got around to that movie we were going to watch a couple weeks ago and you slept through the one last night. So how about we go for a walk in the park and then come back here for some lunch and a movie?"
Syd looked across the table at Gage who was smiling charmingly at her. She shook her head, realizing that he could convince her to do anything just by smiling at her that way. "Sounds good to me, but do you think you could drive me home first? I really don't think that I should go for a walk in what I'm wearing now, and I really don't want to get back in all that leather."
"Of course." He chuckled at the image of her walking through the park wearing only his t-shirt and boxers, but soon stopped laughing as he realized that would mean other men would see her dressed like that. "Yeah, we should definitely get you some other clothes."
After they had cleaned up the kitchen from breakfast and Gage had gotten dressed, he had taken Syd to her apartment for her to get changed. Once she was dressed comfortably in jeans and a t-shirt, they had headed over to the park for their walk. Most of the time was spent chatting about anything and everything, but they also spent a good amount of time simply walking in comfortable silence and looking at the signs of spring in the park around them. Partway through their walk, Gage had reached over and tentatively held out his hand to her. She took it in her own, and the rest of their walk was spent holding hands.
"Gage, that movie was horrible," Syd complained.
They had returned to Gage's apartment and had a nice lunch before turning on the movie. It had only been playing for a few minutes when Syd had started teasing Gage mercilessly, and she hadn't run out of ammunition for the entire two hours.
"Oh, come on, Syd, that's one of my favorite movies," Gage said defensively, nevertheless enjoying her teasing immensely.
"Yeah, next time, I get to pick the movie."
"Great, I'm gonna be stuck watching a chick flick." Gage groaned, pulling back from her as she punched him in the side. "Sorry, sorry."
"I watched your movie, now you get to watch my movie."
"Fine. How about we go get your movie in a little bit and then we'll watch it after dinner tonight? I'd love to spend the rest of the day with you." And another movie would mean another chance to hold her in his arms, which was fast becoming one of his favorite things to do.
There was that charming smile again, and Syd sighed in joyful surrender. "I'd love to." She was eventually going to be in real trouble if she couldn't figure out how to say no to that smile. However, for now, she just couldn't really bring herself to care.
As Syd settled into her bed late that night she sighed, feeling incredibly lonely without Gage's arms around her. In only one night, she had grown used to cuddling with him. Despite the fact that she had only said goodnight to him an hour ago, she already missed him. She knew it was ridiculous but after the weeks she had lived as his roommate, the time that they had spent together on this latest case, and then the past day and a half, she was used to having him around.
She sighed as she rolled over, pulling the covers closer around her, missing Gage's warmth beside her. She couldn't wait for work in the morning, when she'd be able to hear her partner's voice and see his smile. After lying awake for another hour, Syd finally realized that although she had no choice but to wait to see him, she could still hear his voice. Without another thought, she reached her hand out and picked up the phone. It was only after the phone started to ring that she remembered what time it was. She was about to hang up when she heard him answer.
"Hey there, Shorty. You know I never realized just how big and empty my bed was until you weren't in it with me."
"Well, I never realized just how uncomfortable my pillows were until you let me sleep on you. I miss you," she murmured quietly, feeling surprisingly self-conscious at the admission.
He smiled gently as he heard the shy statement, having never known his partner to be anything but confident. "I miss you, too. I'm starting to think this isn't going to work."
She bolted upright in bed, scared to death to know what he meant by that. But she had to ask. "What do you mean?"
When Gage heard the slightly panicked tone to her question, he suddenly realized how what he had said must have sounded to Syd and quickly set about reassuring her. "I mean that we've been apart for about two hours, and we're already going nuts missing each other. I mean that I'm starting to think that I'm never going to be able to sleep again without you in my arms. I mean that I don't think that living this far from the woman I love is going to work for me."
As Syd listened to his heartfelt words, she felt the relief flow through her. He wasn't doubting their relationship. She was so glad that she almost missed exactly what he was saying.
He took a quick breath and asked his next question with cheerful confidence. "So, Syd. My place, or yours?"
"My place or yours for what?" she asked, genuinely confused.
Gage smiled. It was so unlike his partner to be this slow to understand him. Usually she knew what he was thinking before he even spoke. "To live. Weren't you listening?" he asked, teasingly.
"Uh, Gage, are you suggesting that we move in together? After we've been in a relationship for exactly one day?" she asked, a little incredulously.
"Oh come on, Syd. We've been in a relationship for three years, we just didn't know it yet. And I'm not suggesting that we move in together," Gage replied emphatically. "I'm insisting that we live together." His suggestion had to do with a ring and forever, but that was not something he was going to mention over the phone in the middle of the night. "Look, it's late. We can talk about details of where we live and when we move tomorrow. Right now, all I need is a yes or no from you." He held his breath while he waited for her response. For all his apparent calm and confidence, he was still in uncharted territory and was scared to death she would say no.
She was surprised at how little thought was actually necessary. "Yes," she whispered, smiling when she heard his sigh of relief.
"Okay, then let's go to sleep. We've got to be at Headquarters bright and early tomorrow. You know, I don't think I've ever been this eager to get to work?"
She smiled, knowing she had just been thinking the exact same thing earlier in the night. "Me either. I love you, Gage."
"I love you, too."
It wasn't long after that the two partners were finally able to fall asleep, with smiles on their faces, love in their hearts, and phones pressed up against their ears.
The End