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Chapter 14

Lula's POV

"Tankie, do you know where Steph is? I've been trying to call her all day," I asked him as soon as he picked up his phone.

"You know she's still not cleared for bounty hunting and look what happened the last time you tried to con her into helping you…"

"I didn't con her, I just wanted her to watch my car while Les and I went after an FTA. I can't help it if she got bad car karma. And speaking of cars, that's why I wanted to talk to her. My new car just arrived. Lester and I are picking it up in Port Newark tonight. I wanted to know if she'd be interested in coming along."

"I can't go into detail, but I can tell you that Steph and Ranger are out of the country for a few days…"

"Did they elope?"

"Not to my knowledge. How about I accompany you? I'm off at 6. We can give Lester the night off."

"But I think he's got all the paper work. The bill of lading…or whatever he told me it was called. I think we need that to prove it's my car?"

"I'll get it from him. Do you want to meet me here? Or should I pick you up at your apartment?"

"Well if Lester gotta give you the paperwork and he's my wheels this week, I guess I'm coming to Rangeman. Good. And then you can give me that tour you been promising me."

"Ok. See you in about an hour. Come to my office."

"I think Tankie just agreed to a tour of Rangeman," I told Connie and Lester once we hung up. "I heard all about monitor duty, but I ain't never seen it first hand. Do you know whose being punished this week?"

"It's regular rotations tonight. I think it's Manny and Hal…"

"Two of my favorites. Oh boy this is gonna be fun…"

"Lula, you can't interrupt them. Being on the monitors is serious stuff. They have to concentrate. Tank and I can point out the command center to you but you have to leave them alone…"

"Damn boy, you take all my fun away."

"I found you the car didn't I? A candy apple red 2017 Pontiac Trans Am. Original castings, modern most everything else…"

"Ok smart ass, so you knew where to find me a car."

"It's not just any car. It's a 2017 Outlaw Edition Trans Am with an Alpha Platform. Standard equipment includes a 6.2 liter LT1 direct injection with a 2.3 liter Magnuson Supercharger. It's been rated with 602 horsepower and 625 pounds of torque. It also comes with retro bucket seats and you ordered the old-school gauge package. You got the Snowflake wheels and Goodyear Eagle F1 tires…"

"Good thing I ain't going out with you. You're a huge pain in the ass…"

"You love my ass, Lula…."

"I love Tankie's better…"

"Ladies, please," Connie yelped with her hands over her ears. "I don't want to hear anymore. Uh, oh, and speaking of asses, here comes Morelli's."

I looked up and over to the front door and sure enough Officer Hottie was approaching. Bet he was looking for Steph, too. I reached over and opened the door for him, "To what do we owe this honor?"

"Lula, Connie. Santos. How is everyone today?"

"We're good," I told him, knowing he wasn't here for small talk. "What's up?"

"Any idea where Steph is? She isn't answering her phone."

"Tank just told me that her and Ranger are away for a couple a days. Of course, my mind went to a quick wedding in Vegas but Tankie told me, 'no'. He said they're out of the country."

"Ok, that agrees with what I've heard. Santos, you know anything about the Feds staying at Rangeman?"

"I may or I may not. It depends on how politely you ask me."

"Stop being a pain in the ass. Just answer me…"

"Sees, I just told you that you're a pain in the ass, too," I said to Lester. "He's got verbal diarrhea," I told everyone.

"Lula, please. I'd just like to gets some things collaborated. It seems we're all after the same man."

"Fugitive from Russia? Someone with a vengeance against Ranger? Yeah, I think we're all looking for him. Feds have been given a conference room and accommodations at Rangeman. Been there since last night. Our man Hector tracked Petryaev from Newark. He was on Stark Street around 11:30 but no one there speaks Russian. Hector thinks he's looking for a translator so we have men on the lookout in Millburn and Fair Lawn. Is that the collaboration you're looking for?"

"That's it. Thanks, man. And oh, is Rangeman sanctioned for this?"

"We're working with the Feds."

He nodded, turned around and left. Of course I had to admire his ass on his way out the door. "And Stephanie gave that up, why?" I said to no one in particular.

"Because he left her alone for 3 days with a broken leg and crutches that she couldn't get around on. He abandoned her, Lula," Lester told me.

"I wasn't askin' 'why' about anything but the ass."

"And that's why she left him. He's an ass."

I knew what he was sayin'. Grown men shouldn't act like that. Especially when they's supposed to be in a relationship. My Tankie would never do that to me. And I know Ranger wouldn't do it to Steph either. It's about respect.

"Sorry, just admiring."

"Not worth it."

"Yeah, I know."

"Are you children done?" Connie asked. "I have a business to run here and I just gave you three files…"

"Since when did you start soundin' like Vinnie? We gotta do some research first. These felons don't just appear like magic. Lester, can we use those Rangeman programs again? They tell me more shit than Connie's."

"I know. They're pretty invasive. But I understand you've got a date with a car tonight. Wanna start in the morning? You can drive. Pick me up around 8:30?"

"Yeah, that sounds good. Should we start making our way to Rangeman sos I can see Hal and Manny sweat as they watch all those monitors?"

"You won't see them sweat. That room is kept super cold. Helps them stay alert. A few of us even bring heaters in there with us, but I think Hal and Manny like it that way. Let's get going."

It was only a short drive to Rangeman from the Bonds office and Lester fobbed us through the gates and parked in a numbered spot.

"I'm gonna go see Hector on 2. You know where Tank's office is, right?" Lester told me, probably breaking some rules by letting me wander around unsupervised.

"Yeah, he's on 5. Make a right off the elevator, he's next to Ranger's office."

"You got it," he said opening the stairwell door and taking the stairs two at a time.

The elevator stopped on 2 and Bobby Brown and scary-as-hell Hector got on. The fifth floor was already pressed but I noticed Bobby fob the panel and hit 7. Alls that was up there was Ranger and Steph's apartment and access to the roof, Steph tole me one time.

"They're out of town," I told Bobby. "And Lester just went looking for you, Hector."

"Gracias, bonita," he told me with a big smile. "He'll eventually figure out where we are," he added in accented English.

"You got any leads on the Russian guy?" I asked, making conversation.

Suddenly Bobby was in my face. "What do you know about that?"

"Morelli came into the Bond's office trying to get collaboration on shit from Lester and I was standing right there. Didn't seem like a big secret to me."

Bobby pulled his phone out of his pocket. "Santos," he said, and not very nicely, just as the doors opened on 5. I had a feeling Lester was going to be in deep shit.

I tried to listen as the doors closed behind me but I couldn't hear anything. I really hoped I didn't get Lester in trouble. He may be a pain in the ass a good part of the time but I liked him. I'd call him later with pictures of my car and apologize. It really didn't seem like something that was being kept secret. Morelli's was asking questions in front of all of us. I tried to shrug it off as I walked down the corridor to Tank's office.

"Hi Lula, looking good," Cal told me as I passed him in the hall.

"Thanks Cal, you too. He in?"

"Yep. I think he's waiting for you. Hear you're picking up your new car tonight. I'd love to go for a ride sometime. That's quite a machine you're getting."

"Sure thing. I'm picking up Santos tomorrow morning at 8:30 if you want to go for a quick buzz."

"No can do. My shift starts at 8. But thanks."

"Lula? Is that you?" Tank's voice echoed through the hallway.

"Yeah, I'm here. Just talking to Cal. Be right there."

"You better go, he doesn't like to be kept waiting," Cal said stepping away.

"Don't I know it," I told him as we parted.

"Ok Big Guy, where you hiding?" I said continuing down the corridor towards his office.

He was sitting behind his desk grinning from ear to ear when I approached.

"Come on in baby and close the door."

Ooo. Ooo. That was his affectionate voice so I did as I was told. I closed the door and approached his big desk.

"Come over here. I've been waiting for you."

"I know you have. I tole you I was coming," I answered warily as I made my way around his desk to greet him hello.

He snatched me out of nowhere and pulled me close to him; an' before I knew what was happenin' his lips came down on mine.

"You want to know what I got planned for later?" he asked breaking from the kiss.

"Well if that was the appetizer, I got a good idea."

"Just making sure we're on the same page."

"Damn skippy, we are. Now are you gonna show me around this place or do I have to go back out and find Cal again?"

Tank had his massive arm around me as he took me around to say hello to anyone who was at their desk…AND to point out the control room. If people didn't know we were together before, they certainly did now. And it seemed we were both ok with it.

It was a little scary to me that everyone knew about my new car, and I mean everyone. Then I remembered that Steph said that her Rangeguys were worse gossips than her mother and grandmother put together. And let me tell you, you gotta be pretty bad to be worse than them. I could only guess that Lester told them, in that braggin' way of his, since he was the one who knew where to get me the car. It couldn't have been my Tankie, now could it? Only one way to find out.

"How does everyone know?"

"I guess I might have let something slip…"

"But I don't even know some of these guys?"

"That's ok, they know you."

Oh boy.

"I think we should get going; it's an hours drive to Port Newark from here. Erik is going to take us since I want to drive home with you."

"For a minute I forgot that if you took me, we'd both have to get back by ourselves. Thank you and thank Erik."

"Don't be so anxious to thank him. This is in place of monitor duty and Erik knows what he did."

"You mean I coulda seen him sweat the monitors but you chose driving for him instead?"

"Yep. There's more than one kind of punishment around here. And either of those two things are preferable to mat time with me."

"You wouldn't hurt that skinny kid, now would you?"

"It's all relative, baby. He's supposed to keep up his martial arts training. And you know as well as I do, that even a less built man like Erik should be able to throw a big guy like me if he practices."

"And if he don't?"

"Then he gets his ass whipped."

"Ah, now I see why he volunteered to drive us. He ain't been doing what he's supposed to."

"Among other things."

"You feel like sharing?"

"Let's just say he's got a big mouth."

"Bigger than Lester's?"

"This time, yeah."

Now what was that supposed to mean? Like, I really love Tankie and all that but he just doesn't let me in on anything. Like I'm really gonna tell people what Erik said? Well, if it was juicy enough, I might. But I'd only tell Steph and Connie and maybe Lester, seeing that they know who Erik is.

So while I was thinking all this to myself Tankie somehow led me downstairs to the garage and had opened the backdoor on one of them bad ass Expeditions they have sitting around. Not that I'd ever get one but they were big enough to live in, sos I could understand why Tank went for it. He likes being comfortable.

We were alone in the back while Erik drove and Tank kept playing with the fingers on my left hand as we negotiated the traffic on 95. It was almost like he was measuring. I may be a big girl but I do got dainty fingers, if indeed that's what he was doing. Maybe I should let it slip that I'm a size 6? No, I played tricks on him before and it damaged things between us. This time around I was going to let nature take its course.