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Ranger dropped me off at the townhouse a couple of hours later. He claimed he had some loose ends he needed to tie up, and since I didn't especially care what those loose ends were, I cheerfully let him go. Things were getting entirely too intense between us. And with my heart in flux over the current state of our relationship, being with Ranger was proving not so helpful in settling it.
Once inside the townhouse I tossed my jacket and purse on a chair and headed to my laptop. After keying in my password and going to the RangeMan Dallas website, I flipped to the administrators page to check my email and was immediately flooded with alerts. "Fuck." They were all about Buck Wellsley.
Picking up the phone I dialed the lone number I had for Bucky and got his voicemail. After listening to his brief message, I left Buck a message of my own. "You know who this is. If you don't contact me within the next twenty-four hours the boy's and I are coming after you. You know you don't want that to happen. Let me help." And I disconnected.
If Buck had been really missing or dead, his voicemail would've been full, spitting out a generic message not allowing me to leave a voicemail. That had to be promising. Could mean Buck wasn't a cell phone guru and hadn't given his number to many. Or it could mean Bucky was screening his calls.
I was banking on door number two.
After scanning through my emails briefly I picked up the phone again and tried Buck's mother in North Carolina. She hadn't heard from Buck, and said if she did, she wouldn't hesitate in calling me. Another phone call to his best friend proved unhelpful, so I hung up and put the phone aside.
I hated this, all of it. I needed to be back in Dallas dealing with the situation. Trying to run Buck down from Jersey wasn't going to get my money back. I'm a hands-on type of girl, and if I can't get my hands on something – or someone – I slowly drive myself insane. It's not pretty.
Not wanting to reach that point I checked my watch, got up from the desk and paced. I had a dilemma. I could stick around and wait out the thirty-six hours like I'd promised, or I could jump a flight back home and deal with the situation immediately. My head screamed at me to book a flight home, my heart held me back.
Shaking my head I walked over to the window and looked down into the street. Sure enough, there was a black SUV parked two doors down. "Still don't trust me." I whispered. "Well, why disappoint you?"
Walking over to the desk I grabbed my cell phone and dialed Ranger's number. He answered on the first ring. "You alright?"
"No."
"What's wrong?"
"I'm not waiting the thirty-six hours." Silence. "I can't, bud. We've been busy with the homicides all day long, but now that I've had a chance to check in at home and sit a minute I'm going nuts over Buck."
"How much is the bond, Rachel?" I closed my eyes.
"Two hundred thousand." Silence. "I'm going back to Dallas. I've got my purse, keys and coat in hand. I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Wait a few hours."
"No. That would be the equivalent of torture for me and you know I'm not a patient woman." Silence again. "Please understand."
"You won't come back."
"You're just going to have to trust me."
"I don't." That was his problem, not mine, so I hung up and headed out.
When I got outside the goon down in the SUV was just picking up his cell phone. His eyes darted my way briefly before he said something and hung up. Not caring one bit what Ranger thought of my leaving, I got in the Highlander and headed towards the airport.
Well, that wasn't true. I did care what Ranger thought. I just didn't want to.
A quick call to Kathleen had her searching for an available flight out of Newark. I could've flown out of Trenton Mercer, but Newark was a bigger airport. My chances of getting out that day were better in Newark.
Kathleen got me on a flight at a little after six. It was three-thirty now so that gave me plenty of time to get there. Newark was only an hour away.
I stopped for coffee and a bagel, filled up the gas tank and headed out of Trenton. Quick checks in my rearview mirror proved that Ranger was staying true to his word. While I was in Jersey, I would be followed. He could be depended upon for some things, others? Eh.
Once I reached the airport and parked the Highlander in long-term parking, I turned towards the guy in the SUV and approached the vehicle. He rolled down his window and stared at me. "This where your journey ends?" He nodded his head once. "That's too bad. Make sure to tell your boss I said goodbye." More silence. I guess being conversational wasn't a prerequisite when you worked for Ranger. "Nice talking to you." I said shaking my head and walked away.
I checked in with the airline then headed on to security. I'd left any toys that might make me look like a terrorist in the Highlander, so I breezed through without incident. After purchasing a second cup of coffee I checked my time and headed for the gate. I still had at least an hour before boarding, so I wasn't in any rush.
Choosing a chair in the corner, I absently flipped through a magazine someone had left behind then spotted the newspaper. A part of me really wanted to see the front page, needed to know what had been reported about Stoddard and Lombardi murders, but left it alone. They weren't my problem right now. Bucky was. I couldn't worry about bringing Lafontaine to justice when I had Bucky's two hundred thousand dollar bond hanging over my head.
I tried to focus on the magazine in my lap, but couldn't. My eyes kept scanning the gate, looking for Ranger. A part of me believed he was going to show up last minute and muscle his way in, like he usually did.
Ten minutes before the gate opened I still hadn't seen hide nor hair of Ranger and felt slightly discouraged about him not being there.
Stop kidding yourself, Rachel. It's been seven years.
That didn't mean I didn't hold hope. I was still a woman in love, a woman who wanted to believe her knight in shining armor would always be there for her and come to her rescue. Unfortunately, my knight wouldn't show up until it was absolutely necessary. We were connected, but we'd learned to live without each other a long time ago.
As they called my flight I got to my feet, searching the gate one more time. My heart ached when still no Ranger appeared. Maybe I expected too much of him. Maybe he really wasn't capable of being the husband I wanted and needed. Maybe our love was just a dream, something that lived somewhere within us, but when thrust into reality, fizzled away.
Shaking my head I threw away my coffee cup and handed the flight attendant my ticket. After boarding and finding my seat I stared out the window quietly and attempted to put Jersey behind me.
Ranger had been right. I wasn't going to come back…