Chapter 13

Leaving downtown Trenton, Ranger was anxious to find Stephanie. Heading toward her place, he hoped that she would still be home. Calling first before showing up at her apartment would have been a great idea, but he was not sure if she would want to see him.

A surprise attack might work out to his benefit so Stephanie would not have time to think about how stupid he had been the day before. Ranger would like to forget all about that too, it hadn't been his best moment. He would be making that up to her - sooner than later, he hoped.

No matter the complications, Ranger just wanted to see Stephanie again. Even if only for a few minutes

He was so deep in his thoughts, the buzzing in his pocket with the call that was coming in nearly went unnoticed. Frustrated with himself for leaving the phone in his jacket, it took longer than he expected to extract the phone from his pocket and Ranger almost missed the call completely. When he looked at the caller ID, he was immensely glad that he didn't.

Mary Lou. Well, he thought, she had certainly taken her sweet time getting back to him. That may have irritated him earlier, but now that he had her on the line, it no longer mattered, just as long as he could get some helpful information out of her. He hoped that her own experience, with the kind of mystery box that she had been given, she might be able to shed some light on how that whole business worked. Any insight could be of help in finding the origin of the package that had been delivered to Stephanie.

After answering the call, Ranger listened with amusement at how nervous Stephanie's friend sounded. He knew that he had that kind of effect on some people. Okay, he admitted, on most of the people he met. He could be intimidating, even when he wasn't trying to be, but that wasn't going to help with this conversation so he tried to soften his tone to put Mary Lou at ease.

After thanking her for returning his call and engaging in the kind of small talk people often did about the weather and such things, Ranger could see that it had worked, Mary Lou calmed down after a few moments. Now he could move into the important stuff and he steered his comments to the mystery box in question.

"Yes," Mary Lou said. "I know about the box, Stephanie showed it to me last night."

That explained a few things and Ranger could not have asked for a better situation. Since Mary Lou already knew about the package, it would save him from unnecessary explanations on his part. He could get right to the questions that he had for her, and that is exactly what he did.

"I understand that you solved a mystery from a box of your own not too long ago," he said. "Can you remember where it came from?"

Mary Lou did not hesitate, she named the company that sold the specialty mystery adventures and even though there had been no return address, she had noticed the name of the city that had been postmarked on the box. The excitement in her voice told Ranger that she was definitely in her comfort zone now.

"When I first heard about the boxes I thought they were more of an escape, a fantastical story to experience," she said. "The librarian at the school told me it was a great way to get the kids into reading, especially because my boys were struggling, but you don't need to hear about that.

"I did some research and that is where I found out that they had boxes with actual mysteries to be solved. I was so excited, I told Lenny all about it, and then he bought one as a surprise," she said before suddenly becoming silent. Ranger waited patiently for her to continue. Her voice was different now, not nearly so excited, Ranger noted that Mary Lou sounded worried.

"But the box that Stephanie got was so different than mine was," she said. Her words had even slowed as if she had given this a lot of thought. "It is very specific Ranger."

Before he could ask why Mary Lou gave him the answer. "We kept finding clues, and no matter how subtle they were, so many things pointed to Mr. Phillips," she said. Ranger was surprised at that, he remembered the box being filled with what appeared to be a bunch of old junk. Granted the priority at the time had been to determine if the package was safe. By the time they had looked at what was in the box, his emotions had played with him and made him act like a fool. All he wanted to do at that point was get away. Now he felt like even more of an idiot. He should have paid closer attention. Ranger was lost in his thoughts when Mary Lou went on.

"Someone went to a lot of trouble," she said. "At first it looked just like a professional mystery box, I have to say that I was impressed, it looked as good as mine." Her voice reflected the wonder and excitement she had felt with her gift, a fact that Ranger did not miss. That it was up to a professional standard had to mean something. "I think that whoever did this really wanted to keep it from looking like they were trying to personally contact anyone," Mary Lou said, pondering.

"Why do you think they would do that?" Ranger asked. He had his own theories, but he wanted to hear what Mary Lou thought.

"Probably to get Stephanie's help," Mary Lou said. "But I don't know why. Why Stephanie?" Ranger had his own ideas about that too, but the remained silent while Mary Lou kept talking.

"We knew him," she said. "He was our music teacher. Mr. Phillips left in our senior year of high school. We thought he was dead, so why would anyone be looking for him?"

Mary Lou hesitated, Ranger could hear the deep breath that she sucked into her lungs. "I think we need to find out everything we can about Mr. Phillips," she said, her voice wavering slightly. "Steph always said you had ways of gathering up all kinds of information. Is that possible now?"

She could not see the way his lips almost turned up into a smile. Obviously, she did not know that Stephanie had already gone that route, but Ranger was impressed that she would have the courage to ask him. Most of all, he could appreciate the fact that Stephanie had a really good friend in Mary Lou.

Another incoming call broke into his thoughts and Ranger glanced down at the screen on his phone. Sunlight reflected off of the smooth surface forcing him to tilt it to read the name displayed there. He had not expected this, but there was no way he was going to miss this call. Making his apologies to Mary Lou, he promised to call her right back.

Then he took a deep breath of his own, hit the button and put the phone to his ear.

"Stephanie?"

. .

Spring 2006. Trenton, NJ

Why hadn't he thought of this before? Jeffrey Phillips stared down the road from his hiding place between the alleys on Stark Street. Working with informants (or their "sources") was the bread and butter for good reporters and after another lead had brought him down here, Jeffrey could see that a new story was developing.

Sure drug dealers had been setting up shop in these old buildings for years, not much of a secret since everyone in Trenton knew was what was going on in and around the neighborhood. Jeffrey had already written a few articles about the problem, but that was not what had him sneaking around in the shadows tonight.

If he could confirm what his informants had been telling him, he could blow the top off of the biggest crime ring in the state. All he had to do was identify the kingpin and that was what he was doing here right now. All of the rumors going around, he was told, had something big going down tonight. Something so big that the boss himself was going to be here.

Jeffrey could feel it, this could be his big break, the story that truly launched his career as a journalist. Every nerve was on high alert and his heart was pounding so hard he could hear it in his ears. He clutched the camera in his clammy hands as he fumbled to get it mounted on the tripod. His whole life had brought him to this moment. He was ready.

Wiping his hands on his jeans, Jeffrey took a deep breath. "Okay, Phillips," he whispered. "This is it!" Focusing the lens one more time, he snapped a shot just to see how it looked. Adjusting the shutter speed only took a second, another click, another shot. Good.

Shadows were at play across the way. The soft breeze, that cooled the sweat beading on his forehead, ruffled through the flaps of decaying awnings above the doors up and down the street. Sickly yellow light flickered from the only functioning street lamp on the street adding to the illusion that something was moving across the road. Jeffrey blinked his eyes a few times before staring again at the door that he had willed to open more times that he could count.

He had been here for hours. Every movement had him ready to jump right out of his skin. None of the information he had gathered could narrow down the time frame of this meeting. If it took much longer, though, Jeffrey would have to wonder if he had gotten it all wrong.

It would not be the first time and certainly, it would not be the last that his informants proved less than one hundred percent reliable. That was just part of the business and the main reason why he put so much time into his own research. But, he reasoned, if you didn't take any chances you would never know what you could uncover.

Determined, he kept his hand poised on the camera. Several times he clicked, to be sure it was still working. What he never did was pull out his phone to check what time it was. Proud of his incredible restraint, he stifled a small chuckle. Wouldn't that be the height of idiocy, lighting up the alley with a phone and giving away his position? No, unlike some of the rookie reporters he had run into, he had learned how to be stealthy.

It didn't really matter what time it was, though he figured that it was probably way after two in the morning by now. He was here for the duration. Only the rising of the sun would get him to leave his post. With a small internal pep talk to keep him going Jeffrey rolled his shoulders and steadied himself. It would all be worth it in the end. He had to believe that.

A white slice of light shot toward him as the door in question finally opened. Automatically his finger twitched on the shutter button. Click, click, click... taking a rapid succession of photos of the men walking through the door. Could this be what he had been waiting for?

After staring into the darkness for so long, this sudden glare had blinded him enough that he could not see any of the men clearly enough to identify them. Suddenly, shock stabbed through Jeffrey's gut. He didn't need to see one of the men, he knew exactly who it was. He had heard that voice before.

All at once it was impossible to breathe. Shrinking back he tried to blend into the wall that had hidden him in the shadows all night. There was no way that he could be seen. Not by this man. His career would be over before it started if he was discovered.

Jeffrey strained to hear what the voices were saying, he doubted that the recorder he had going could pick up the now muffled sounds. Intently he memorized each word that he heard. His next step would depend on getting it absolutely right.

The sounds of footsteps and conversation retreated now, but Jeffrey remained frozen in place. Car doors closed, engines growled into life and gradually faded into the distance. Only when the commotion was completely over did Jeffery allow himself to gather his equipment and sneak out of the alley.

This is not what he had expected. He had been right, though, a story like this could be the big break he had been working for. Taking risks was one thing but Jeffrey now had to make the biggest decision of his life.

. .

Helen Plum moved restlessly between the counter and kitchen table. Phone in hand, she ended another unanswered call. Every time she had tried to phone her daughter, the calls had gone directly to voicemail and she didn't know what to think. Stephanie had left her a message earlier but it had done little to alleviate her worries about Edna. What was her mother doing at Stephanie's? Was she okay? Why didn't she just come home?

Suddenly, Helen stopped pacing. She set her phone on the counter. Almost of its own volition, her hand inched itself toward her favorite cupboard. It was too early, she knew that, but a little liquid fortification might be just what she needed. She snatched it back, folding her arms in an effort to maintain control. Her concern for her mother aside, Helen was just getting frustrated by the whole thing. These antics and the crazy behavior had to stop or she was afraid that Frank was going to insist that they make Edna move out.

A drink was sounding pretty good right now, and Helen nearly caved in to the urge when the phone started ringing. She lunged at it up to answer the call. "Hello?" she said, "Stephanie?" When there was a slight pause on the other end of the line, Helen realized that she had not checked to see who was calling. "Who is this?"

"Is my girl Edna there?" a strange voice said. Helen froze, unsure whether or not to say anything. Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. The person on the phone cleared their voice loudly. "I am looking for Edna Mazur, is she there?"

Fear gripped Helen's chest and she hurriedly punched the button on the phone to end the call. Her heart was pounding, who was that? Now Helen was more than worried. Whatever her mother had been up to last night, Helen was scared that her troubles had followed her home this time.

When the phone rang again, Helen dropped it on the counter and ran out of the room. "Frank!" she shouted. No answer. "Frank!" she yelled again. Her steps took her out to the garage, maybe he was working on something out there. All she knew as she pushed the door open was that she did not want to be alone just now.

He wasn't there. Frank's car was gone and Helen remembered that he was out playing taxi again. What a time for him to be gone. Despair was overpowered by anger that was then displaced with determination. She would get to the bottom of this and find out just what had happened last night.

Without another thought, Helen ran back into the house to grab her purse and the keys to big blue. She hurried to the garage again, and with shaking hands started the car. Her nerves were stretched tight but the sound of the engine as it roared into life served to calm her somewhat.

She headed straight over to Stephanie's. If her mother would not come home, Helen reasoned, she would go to her. One way or another, she would have an answer before any more strange people started calling or, god forbid, came to the house looking for Edna.

Finally satisfied that she was doing the right thing, Helen relaxed just a bit. The air was already heating up this morning and the open windows were her only air conditioner, but she did not let it bother her, she would be to Stephanie's place soon enough.

Not two blocks from home, however, the car started making a horrible knocking sound. Helen pulled over to the curb but before she shut the engine off, she noticed the needle pointing to the big 'E' on the dashboard. Helen felt a new wave of frustration wash over her, of course, the car was empty.

"What else can possibly go wrong," she muttered. She turned the key, pulling it out of the ignition. Reaching for her purse, the answer to that question came to her when she realized that her phone was still at home.

"Great, just great," she said. Anger combined with her frustration and she continued to talk to herself as she got out of the car. "Am I the only one who remembers to fill the tank on this monstrosity?" Helen slammed the door and headed back to her house. "Why does this always happen to me?"

A few minutes later her face was red with exertion, and the heat and her annoyance. She was just grateful that no one that she knew has witnessed her little problem here this morning. She was in no mood to speak to anyone right now. Helen lifted her head and continued on, focusing on what she needed to do next. Maybe she would be delayed but she would not be defeated. She would get her answers.