Disclaimer: I own nothing. JE owns the characters.
"Ms. Stephanie Plum. It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
"Please. Just call me Steph," I said as I shook the hand of the older gentleman that stood in front of me in Ribisi's kitchen.
"Then you can call me Harry."
Harry looks a lot like Gene Hackman. Six feet tall. Two hundred and fifty pounds. BIG nose. A little round in the middle. No hair on top, but plenty of grey hair on the sides and in the back. Clear baby blue eyes with big bags under them. I'd place him in his early sixties. There's one scar on is right cheek that I was told was from a fight with his twin brother. Harry was the only one to walk away from that fight. That's how Harry came to be the leader of 'The Family' and how he got his nick name.
"I'm glad that you called me, Steph. I'm just confused as to why you did," Harry said as he looked down at Ribisi.
"I'm sorry, Harry. I need to make a quick phone call," I said as I moved into the dining room and punched a number into my phone. "I need to call Junior before every employee from RangeMan shows up here before you can get him out of here."
"Take your time."
I watched as two of Harry's goons removed Ribisi from the house while I waited for Junior to answer his phone.
"Steph?"
"He's not here," I said into my phone as I stared at Harry.
"Really?"
"Yep. I went in through the back and searched the house. There's no one here. He's got some clothes here though, so maybe we should stick a couple of guys on the house."
"It's worth a shot. I'll talk to Ranger about it when he comes down."
"Ten-four," I said and hung up.
"Did you just lie to someone?" Harry asked as a sly smile appeared on his thin lips.
"Yes. It occurred to me that you may have been helpful to us because you wanted Ribisi."
"You would be correct."
"How much money did he steal?" I asked as I walked out the back door with Harry.
"A lot."
"I want you to understand something, Harry," I said as I turned to the back door and used my tools to lock the door. "I want him to suffer."
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me Harry," I said when I turned back to Harry to give him my full attention. "If I would have called Ranger, I'm not sure that what he would have done would have satisfied me."
"And you think that I will?"
"I think that the money that you are looking for is sitting in two separate bank accounts under Ribisi's wife's name. I think that after you get your money back, you'll make Ribisi… disappear. Forever."
"Steph," Harry said as he draped an arm around my shoulders and gave me a warm smile. "You have a 'Family' mentality. I like that about you. If you ever need anything… I mean anything… Don't hesitate to call me."
"Thanks, Harry," I said as I walked him to his car. "What I'd really like is for you to send me a dozen white roses when the deed is done and I don't have to worry about Ribisi anymore."
"I can do that. Should I just send them to RangeMan?"
"That would be great."
"It truly was a pleasure meeting you, My Dear," Harry said as he shook my hand and gave me a small kiss on the cheek.
"I believe that in a matter of hours… the pleasure will definitely be all mine. Just make sure that the job is done completely. I don't need him coming after me."
"That's right. I recall hearing that you have a way of attracting the crazies."
"Like moths to a flame, Harry," I said with a huge grin.
Harry laughed as he got into his black Lincoln Continental. After I watched the car drive away, I turned around and started walking back to the bike. My cell phone rang as I climbed on the bike. Ranger.
"Yo," I said as I answered the phone.
"You can turn the GPS back on now."
"I might consider it. How's Junior?"
"If I were you, I'd be more worried about myself."
"You can't seriously be mad at me?" I asked. "Hold that thought for a second. I'm gonna go hands free."
I took a smalll cord out from the compartment under the seat and plugged one end into my cell phone and the other into the helmet. I clipped my phone to my pants and put the helmet on as I fired up the bike.
"Okay. You were about to tell me how pissed off you are," I said as I started to drive out of Ribisi's neighborhood.
"I'm pissed off that you handed my guy over to Harry."
"How do you know that?" I asked.
"Babe, you called him on your cell."
"Harry wanted Ribisi more than we did."
"What about the bond money? Vinnie's gonna be pissed."
"Vinnie will be able to get his money back when Ribisi's body is discovered in the Hudson," I said as I started driving aimlessly through Trenton.
"You need to come back to the office. We need to redefine you position in this company."
"You aren't going to ground me to a desk are you?" I asked.
"No. I'm assigning you a partner."
