A/N: Before I forget again, I've got a new poll up on my profile page. It doesn't have anything to do with either of my current storylines, really, just curiosity. But please go take the poll!
Disclaimer: Bear, Angel, and the Babes bar are my creations, the characters you recognize belong to JE and are being used without permission. Again.
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Chapter 14 – Marking Time
It had been three and a half weeks since Stephanie pulled her disappearing act, and RangeMan felt more military than it had it years. Ranger was on edge, emotionally locked down, and seemed more like a Commanding Officer than he had since the Trenton office had first opened. Most of the original men didn't care for it much but they understood, and the new hires didn't know the difference.
Lester especially hated it. It just felt…wrong. And it seemed to be spreading like a virus to the rest of Trenton. Crime rates were up; there seemed to be some sort of alarm on one of their accounts nearly every day. The bonds office was too quiet. And going into the police station was about as entertaining as a trip to the morgue. He couldn't remember the last time Eddie joked with him, and Detective Morelli looked just plain grim.
Tank was working his butt off getting the new hires trained and up to speed, and he spent all his off time with Lula, who was dealing with depression along with her broken arm.
Something had to give soon. Ranger had officially called off the search for Stephanie -- but that didn't mean Lester couldn't look on his own time. Two more hours until shift change…
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The strident ring preset on the little phone jolted Stephanie awake, but it took her a moment to identify the noise. It took several more to cross the room to where it lay on the cheap dresser.
The called ID said Navarre, D.
"Hello?" Steph answered with her voice still half-asleep.
"Steph? This is Bear. Did I wake you?"
Bear. Right. Her new boss. She squinted her eyes at the little alarm clock and saw it was not quite eleven in the morning.
"Yeah, but that's okay. Is something wrong?"
"No, and I apologize for waking you up with the phone. I just have a couple of questions for you. Do you want me to call back later?"
"No, that's ok. I'm awake now." Steph moved to sit on the corner of the bed. "Ask away."
"The two men you say might show up looking for you. Is either one of them dangerous?"
Steph started to say no then hesitated. That wasn't entirely true, about either Ranger or Joe. "Yes and no," she finally said. "They can be, but not to me or anyone else unless there's a reason."
"Fair enough. I know you said you've been traveling – do you have much in the way of belongings right now?"
"No. I can carry everything I own right now."
"I thought you fit in real well at the bar last night, and you did a good job -- especially for a first night. Angel got along with you and we both think you can handle our usual customers just fine. The job is yours for as long as you want it."
Steph smiled to herself in relief. "Thanks, Bear. I really appreciate it. Are you sure keeping me off the books isn't going to cause a problem for you?"
He chuckled. "I had an idea about that this morning. There's a little studio apartment up on the third floor I've been working on – actually there are several, but this one is about done. If you agree, you can live there as part of your wages. I'll keep track of your hours, subtract an agreed-upon amount for the rent, and pay you the rest in cash and put you in the books as temporary help or day labor."
"No ID or social-security numbers?"
"No. I'll put a name in the books, but it doesn't have to be a full name. Usually when I hire day labor I only get a first name or a nickname, so it's no problem."
"That sounds like it might work out pretty well," she agreed slowly.
"Call me when you've had time to get dressed and pack up your stuff and I'll come pick you up. You can look at the place and see if it'll work for you. If not, no problem, I can drive you back to the hotel and we can work something else out."
Steph glanced around. "Actually, I can be ready in about ten minutes but I'll need to go settle up in the office, so… could you pick me up in half an hour?"
Bear agreed and verified the hotel. Steph hung up and headed for the bathroom.
She brushed her teeth, wet her hair and combed it down, and put on a little makeup before she packed up her toiletries. She took some cash out of the brace to pay for the second night on her room, then put the brace and fanny pack on and got dressed. It took only a few more minutes to repack her suitcase and make sure she had everything, including the charger for her little phone.
Bear pulled up in a dusty blue Explorer just a couple of minutes after she'd stepped out of the office. He came around to her and looked down at the little wheeled suitcase with surprise.
"You weren't kidding, were you? This is all you've got?"
"There was a fire in my apartment building right before I left. I haven't needed much since then."
He just shook his head and put the case in the back seat, and then opened the door for her. She climbed in.
The Explorer was a few years old and well kept, but not spotless. It suited what little she'd seen of the man so far.
It didn't take long at all to drive back to the bar. Bear turned down an alley and parked in a small paved lot behind the building. There was room for several cars, the requisite dumpster, and a slot marked for deliveries that backed up to the raised concrete slab that served as back door step and dock. There was an awning over the door and the stairs leading up to it.
They went in through the back door. It led into the back room Stephanie had been shown last night. Bear put her suitcase by the office door.
"I'll show you the place first. If you like it I'll bring your case up, okay?"
Stephanie nodded, and Bear led the way to the stairs.
"This building is old and kind of odd. My great-grandfather built it and originally the first floor was a store. The second floor was designed to be the owner's home, and the third floor was rooms for rent. My grandfather converted it to a bar when he inherited it. He didn't keep up the third floor, though. I'm trying to restore as much of it as I can and still have it usable, but its slow going."
The stairs ended on the second floor. There was a small open room used as a paper-products storeroom and a hallway that led past a locked door. "This is my apartment," he said as he walked by the door and continued down the hall. It turned a corner, then another, and there was another open doorway that held a laundry room with two washers, two dryers, a sink, and a clothes rod for hanging clothes.
"Don't ask me why he built it this way, I haven't figured that out," he said as he continued along two more turns and came out at another open area and another stairwell. "This stairwell runs down to the street door, and all the way up to the third floor. It was originally the front entry but my grandfather changed this floor around some. Maybe I'll eventually get it restored, too. Anyway, the apartment is up here."
The third floor had a hall that divided the building in half with windows on each end and two doors on each wall. Bear led the way to the far end. The doors had old script-style numbers on them, and the door he opened said number three.
As apartments go, it really wasn't all that small, Steph thought. It was just open. She stepped inside. Bear stayed just inside the door and let her look around.
The ceiling was higher than modern rooms and looked like stamped tin. The floor was newly-refinished hardwood. To one side of the entry door was a kitchen area with all the necessities including a small stove and refrigerator. There were cabinets, some counter space, a two-basin sink, and a small table with two chairs.
In the bedroom area was a twin-size platform bed with dresser drawers beneath the mattress deck. The headboard and footboard both had built-in bookshelves that faced outward. The mattress looked new but there were no sheets or pillows.
Across from the bedroom area, just past the kitchen, was a doorway that led to two other doors. Both were open. Through one was a walk-in closet. Through the other was a nicely modern bathroom. There was a sink in a small vanity with a large mirror over it, a toilet, and a garden tub with a shower. There was an open cabinet above the toilet with towels stacked in it, and plenty of floor space. There were even new electrical outlets.
On the far end of the open room was a small sofa, a slightly-worn recliner, and a small TV on a stand.
Steph turned to Bear with a smile. "This is nice. I'll be comfortable here."
Bear smiled back. "Good, I was hoping it would work out. And before I forget, strictly speaking it isn't up to code yet with fire escapes," he moved to the window on the side wall near the sofa, "but as you can see, the roof of the next building is an easy jump and there's a ladder on the other end of their building."
She looked out, mentally measuring the distance, and decided it was enough to make it unlikely anyone would try to come in that way, but getting down would be safe enough. The windows were old-fashioned but had inside locks. The screens hinged at the top and were secured with latch hooks. The window near the bed held a window air-conditioner unit, and the small window in the bathroom was too narrow to be a problem.
Bear was checking his watch. "I've got to make a run to get fruit. I know you don't have a car, and there isn't much around here close – would you like to go with me? I usually go to Wal-Mart a couple times a week. If you're short on money I'll advance you some, at least enough to get sheets and pillows."
"An advance isn't necessary, I've got some money. We can go now, if you want."
They took the weird route back to the back room and on out to the Explorer. The big discount store was on the south end of town, a good thirty blocks or more, and Stephanie was glad of the ride. Bear used the driving time to list off what was already in the apartment.
"There's a set of dishes and silverware, and a few pots and pans but nothing fancy. I put ice trays in the freezer. There are a few towels and I just put up a shower curtain. For cleaning, there's a broom and dustpan, and you can use towels and cleaners from the bar if you want."
"Bear," Stephanie broke in, "before I forget, do you have a dress code for working in the bar?"
"No, not really, just what you're comfortable in. I wouldn't recommend anything too low-cut or short skirts because the some of the guys can get unruly, especially on game nights."
Bear looked at his watch again as they walked into the store. "It's twelve-thirty. I can give you an hour and a half without pushing it. I've got your phone number, let me give you my cell number just in case."
She typed it into her phone and saved it. "If I get done sooner than two I'll call you, otherwise I'll meet you here at these doors. Okay?" she asked.
"Sounds good. I'm going to check out the new TVs before I get the fruit."
They parted ways. Bear headed to the electronics department in the back of the store. Steph got a cart and headed for the bedding isle, making a quick list in her head. Sheets, pillows, a lightweight blanket, and washcloths went into the cart. She visited the women's section and found a couple of pairs of lightweight black Capri pants, some inexpensive tank tops in several different color prints, and two more bras. In the toiletries section she selected shampoo and conditioner, body wash, and a bottle of scented lotion. Then she headed for the grocery section.
Milk, cheese, lunchmeat, salad dressing, cereal, bread, peanut butter, some chocolate chip cookies, and several cans of soup went into the cart. She found bagged ready-to-eat salads up front and caught up with Bear in the fruit section. He was getting limes, lemons, and bananas to add to the frozen strawberries in his cart. She just got bananas.
They got back to the building at one-thirty. Bear carried his perishables in to the walk-in cooler while Stephanie ran up with a load of bags. She put her milk, cheese, salad and lunchmeat in the fridge and opened the sheet set, taking a minute to put them in the washing machine on her way back down. Bear went back up with her, carrying her suitcase and a couple of bags, and she carried the pillows and the bag of new clothes. Then he left her a set of keys and went back downstairs.
Steph unpacked her suitcase. Her entire wardrobe of clothes fitted in two of the under-bed drawers, which was handy because she'd forgotten to get hangers for the closet. She made a peanut-butter sandwich and ate it, drinking milk out of a coffee cup because there were no glasses. She started two lists. One for things she wanted to buy, the other for things she might get from Bear -- things that would be fine to leave for the next tenant of the apartment, like glasses or a coffeemaker.
She ran down to put the sheets in the dryer, and stuck the new blanket in the other dryer with a fabric-softener sheet. Back upstairs, she took the tags off her new clothes and gathered up the plastic wrappers from the bedding and pillows, and discovered there was no trash can. She used one of the shopping bags and added that to her lists.
At two-thirty she retrieved the sheets and blanket and made the bed, in the process discovering an opening in the back of the platform into the space behind the drawers. She decided to leave the brace and fanny pack there for now since she still had some cash in her wallet.
She changed into a pair of the Capri pants and put on one of the tank tops and was downstairs in time to help Angel set down the chairs as Bear opened the doors.
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Ranger got off the treadmill and picked up the small towel on the bench, wiping his face with it before putting it around his neck and heading for the elevator. His breathing was no longer labored but his legs felt almost limp. He hoped he'd tired himself enough to sleep tonight but knew it probably wouldn't be enough. Tomorrow marked the thirty-day point. Thirty days since Stephanie ran from Trenton. The longest thirty days of his life – and that was saying something.
He'd hired three new men, and had cleared two more for hire if Tank felt the need. Gates, Caine, and DeMarco all seemed to be working out well, and the original crew was accepting them. Gates had been a huge hit with Hector especially once he'd discovered Gates was as much a gadget aficionado as he was.
Tank had done all he'd asked even though he was worried about Lula, so he'd told Tank to assign someone to Lula as a take-down partner whenever Tank couldn't go personally. Tank was visibly relieved and tried to treat it as a personal favor, but Ranger had told him it was for practical reasons. Lula was trying to cover Steph's regular skips, especially the harmless ones, as well as the other low-bond FTAs to keep them out of the hands of the new guy working for Vinnie. The guy was into violence, and just yesterday Ranger had discovered he'd put Dougie in the hospital. Steph would kill Harris when she got back – and go after Vinnie for hiring him. Ranger grinned just thinking about it. Maybe he should get Lula or Mary Lou to let Steph know. Maybe she'd come home sooner.
As for himself, he was about to go in the wind. Officially he was just going out of town, but it was no secret that he intended to find Steph and make sure she was okay. He didn't intend to reveal himself. He just needed to see with his own eyes that she was alive and well. Anonymous text messages just weren't cutting it anymore.
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TBC…