Disclaimer: The characters you recognize as J.E. are hers. Any other character is a figment of my imagination and any similarities to real persons is merely a coincidence.

This story is definitely AU. The characters have the same physical appearance as in J.E.'s books; however I have changed ages of some characters. This will eventually be a Babe HEA and Cupcake fans may not be happy as Joe is not a good guy. Frank Plum fans may be upset as well, as he is not portrayed favorably, nor is Helen Plum. References may be made to any of the books in the series so if you haven't read them all, you may want to wait to read this. That said...

Chapter 25: The Plum's Final Mistake

Stephanie's POV:

When I got up Saturday I showered and got dressed before heading out to the kitchen. Ranger had left a little before 7 and I decided to sleep a little longer. I headed out to the kitchen and noticed yesterday's paper on the table. I picked it up and my eyes widened in surprise as I saw my parents picture on the front cover of the paper. I quickly scanned the article and read all about how the whole family suffered from food poisoning. Well, all except for Eddie and Shirley's family. I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. I could just picture her ranting and raving over the injustice of such a thing happening to her. I quickly ate the breakfast Ella had left for me and then grabbed the paper and headed down to Ranger's office. I knocked and opened the door.

He looked up as I entered. He noticed the paper in my hand and nodded, "I see you found the paper. Thought you'd enjoy that little tidbit."

"She's going to be furious. If she can make this my fault somehow she will."

"Babe, your parents need to be handled. I'm still furious about the message she left you. I'd like you to let me deal with them, but they are your parents so I'll respect your wishes if you want me to let it be."

I sat down on the sofa and bent my head. He stood and came over, sitting down beside me. "We learn from the time we're babies that we are supposed to love our parents and respect their wishes. Yet, for all my life I can't think of one time where they have shown me love and support. I can't bring myself to physically harm them myself. But if you're asking me if I care if someone else harms them, I don't. To me, they are no longer part of my life."

"If they leave it at this, I'll forget what I want to do to them. But if they come at you again, all bets are off."

I looked up and met his gaze. I nodded, "Fair enough."

Frank Plum's POV:

What a rotten couple of days this had been. First we all land in the hospital because Helen's Thanksgiving dinner had given us all food poisoning and now I find it's on the front page of the paper. All my friends had commented on the newspaper article and now I was the laughingstock of the neighborhood. Damn our luck that little monster Helen gave birth to was no longer coming around because if we could turn this around to be her fault then everyone in the neighborhood would think Helen and I were saints to put up with the likes of her. I had some ideas...I smiled, maybe before this was done I'd get to see the life drained out of that monsters eyes after all.

Ranger's POV:

I'd promised Babe that if her parents left things alone I wouldn't do anything. However, the information I'd just received was going to cost them more dearly than they'd ever thought. I stood and made my way down to the garage. I knew he was there even though I couldn't see him. I spoke softly, just above a whisper, "They're going down."

Soon I was joined by Tank, Lester and Bobby. It was pitch black when we reached their house. We got out and went to work. They wanted to see monsters...I'd give them monsters. My eyes hardened as I thought of what they'd planned for my Babe. I looked at their house and my eyes narrowed in rage. We'd done what we needed to...the rest was up to him. I smiled. I knew what he was capable of, and the biggest mistake they'd ever made was to try and hurt Babe. She was his little angel and he'd never stand for her being hurt. Just like the rest of us.

We got in the vehicle and headed back to Rangeman.

Helen Plum's POV:

It was dark out tonight, no moon or stars out. I thought I heard something outside and got up and went to the window. I saw shadows moving out on the lawn and I went back to the bed and woke Frank. I shook him as hard as I could but he didn't wake so I shook him harder. "Frank! Wake up. There's someone outside."

"There's no one outside, just go back to sleep."

"There is too someone out there. Now wake up right now and go see who it is."

"Helen it's the middle of the night now go back to be..."

The sounds from outside scared both of us to the point we jumped. At least it accomplished something, Frank was up out of bed and heading to the window so he could look out the window. I watched as his eyes grew round with fear. I didn't know what he was seeing but it must have been bad because his face was taking on a sickly paler.

I slowly made my way over to the window and barely stifled a scream at what I was seeing. There was a person hanging in the tree in our front yard. I peered closer because the face looked familiar. Then the scream did pass my lips because the face of the hanging figure in our front yard was none other than Frank's. I turned to him, not sure what to think. "What does that mean Frank?"

"Hell, how would I know?"

"It's your face out there Frank."

"Don't you think I could see that Helen? I got eyes. I'm going downstairs and taking it down."

"What if they're still out there?"

"Well we can't leave it up. What if one of the neighbors sees it? They might think it's real."

"Just be careful."

"I know to be careful damn it Helen!"

Hector's POV:

I smiled as I watched them. Try to hurt my little angel will you? You won't see the light of day. This night has just begun. I turned to my accomplices. They too smiled. We knew just what to do.

Stephanie's POV:

I woke up when I felt Ranger sliding from the bed. I smiled and put a hand on his arm. "If you give me 10 minutes, I'll join you."

"Babe, should you?"

"As long as I exercise in moderation it will be okay. I won't do anything strenuous."

He leaned back over and kissed me, "Alright Babe. As long as it's safe for you."

I went in and brushed my teeth, brushed my hair and pulled it back into a ponytail, and then I quickly dressed in sweats. When I walked out to the bedroom, Ranger was waiting for me. He put an arm around my waist and led me down to the gym. I felt like I was so out of shape because I hadn't been exercising regularly since I'd broken my ankle. We entered the gym and I noticed Tank, Bobby and Lester were already in there as well as Cal, Hal, Woody, Ram, and Binkie. I smiled and gave them a finger wave. They returned the smile and continued with their exercising.

I sat down on the mat and did some simple stretches. I could feel Bobby's eyes drilling into my back so I turned and smiled at him, "I promise not to do anything too strenuous. I'm just going to do some simple stretches and then walk a couple laps."

Bobby nodded and everyone went back to what they were doing. I had made 2 laps around the track when I noticed the guys standing with their arms crossed across their chests and I knew without a doubt that if I tried going another lap they would become very verbal. I sighed and made my way back over to the mat. I raised my hands in surrender.

"I give up already. I know when I'm outnumbered."

I did a few more stretches and then stood to make my way back up to 7. I showered and washed my hair before drying off and dressing. It didn't take long to tame my hair and pull it back into a ponytail. I added some make up and went through to the kitchen to find something to eat. I had just gotten started when Ranger entered the apartment. He showered and dressed before coming to join me. I could tell there was something on his mind. I waited till we'd both finished eating before asking, "What's up?"

He met my eyes. "Do you remember the conversation we had about your parents?"

I nodded but waited for him to continue. "I learned something about them the other day and couldn't wait for them to act on what they intended. I made sure they were handled. I'm sure the police will stop by to talk with us at some point in time. I just needed you to know so it wasn't a total shock to you."

I nodded. "I meant what I said about not caring what happened to them. I know that might be wrong in some people's eyes, but after all the things they've done, I can't feel anything for them."

He pulled me into his arms. "I wish I could take away all the pain they've ever caused you Babe."

I looked at him with all the love I felt for him and let the doors open a little. I put my arms around his neck and let myself relax in his hold. Our lips met and he deepened the kiss. Within moments he was lifting me in his arms and carrying me through to the bedroom. Slowly he undressed me before stripping his own clothing off and joining me on the bed. When I went over the edge and climaxed, I felt like we were both flying as one into the horizons.

It was two weeks later when the police finally stopped by. Ranger had taken me to the doctor's office and not only did I get my cast off, but I also saw my OB doctor and had my first ultrasound. I cried when I saw our baby for the first time and I was very glad Ranger was beside me. When we got out of the Turbo, Woody called Ranger's cell and said Eddie was here to talk with us.

We made our way to the conference room where Eddie had been asked to wait. When I walked in he stood. "Stephanie, I'm sorry to have to meet with you under these circumstances, but I need to tell you of your parent's disappearance."

"They've disappeared?"

"Yes. According to everything we've pieced together they disappeared two weeks ago. There is no clue as to what happened to them or where they might have been taken. I'm sorry."

I shrugged, "Eddie, I can't find it in my heart to really care what happens to them. After what they've done to me and how they've treated me, I just don't care to know."

"I thought that might be how you'd feel. Still, I felt I needed to let you know. I already stopped and talked to your Gram before coming here. Shirley went over to be with her."

"That was very kind of you. Thank you for that."

Edna Mazur's POV:

I sat at the table talking with Eddie's wife Shirley and wondered what had happened to Frank and Helen. On one hand Helen was my daughter and I was supposed to care. But after everything they'd put my Stephanie through, I hope they roasted wherever they were. I found I wasn't troubled at all by the fact they were missing. As a matter of fact, I'd be really disappointed if I found Stephanie's Ranger wasn't behind their disappearance.

Stephanie's POV:

I woke up early today and made sure I was ready. I'd dressed for the day in blue jeans and a tan sweatshirt. I had my hair pulled back into a ponytail. We were going on a field trip with Eddie's three boys and I was so excited. It had been a long time since I'd been to Adventure Aquarium and I just knew we would have a great time. I was surprised to learn that not only was Lester going with us, but so was Ranger. We made it to the school in plenty of time and found the boys with no problems. Ranger and I sat in one seat with Eddie and Davie ahead of us and Jamie and Lester in front of them. We got to the Aquarium in no time and Lester and Ranger took the boys into the bathroom while I went and freshened up myself.

When I met the guys, I noticed Jamie had a pout on his face and Lester was wearing a smug smile. Ranger raised an eyebrow as our eyes met and I grinned. Looked like Lester had back up this time. We had a wonderful day. At lunchtime I went up with Ranger to order to make sure I didn't get stuck with a salad and also to make sure the boys got the right balance in their meal to insure we continue to have a wonderful day. When it was time to get back on the bus, we took the same seats we'd had earlier. I leaned into Ranger feeling tired after our day. When I was finally roused from sleep, we were pulling into the school. I noticed the smile on all the guys' faces and wondered what had happened while I was asleep.

Eddie Jr.'s POV:

We had a good day. Not as exciting as the Zoo trip, because then we'd gotten Lester back for being mean to Stephanie. We'd had more plans for him this trip because no one was mean to Stephanie without getting dealt with. We planned without accounting for Ranger. Man that dude was scary. No matter what we had planned he was 10 jumps ahead of us. I had to shake my head and finally told the guys we'd have to give it up. He was just too good to beat.

We got on the bus and I'd turned around because the guys and I really needed to tell Stephanie what we'd done. We were a little scared someone would find out and we'd be in trouble with the police for all those people getting sick. She was sound asleep. I saw the way Ranger was holding her and I got a squishy feeling inside. His gaze met mine and he asked, "What's up?"

I debated whether to tell him or not but knew we had to tell someone because the longer this wore on the more scared we got. Then with Uncle Frank and Aunt Helen disappearing we felt we were somehow at fault. I met his gaze and took a deep breath. "We sabotaged the Thanksgiving meal."

I didn't think he took me serious because he gave a small smile. "Why don't you tell me about it."

"Well, one turkey we doused with whiskey and set it on fire, putting a glass of whiskey beside the pan because we figured the person would throw the first thing to hand at the fire. The second turkey we dumped 2 cans of pepper all over it, and the third one we turned off. Then with the hams, the first one we put red hots all over it, the second one we added Mayonnaise, Italian Dressing, Peanut Butter, Ketchup, Mustard, and Lemon Juice, as well as Cayenne Pepper and Tabasco Sauce. The third ham we added a bottle of Jack Daniels and Hot Sauce as well as Vodka."

Ranger was grinning ear to ear by the time I'd finished and I also found Lester was silently shaking with laughter. Gee, I guess he wasn't such a bad guy after all. I turned back to Ranger and noticed Davie and Jamie following my suit. Jamie asked the question we were all wondering, "Are the police going to arrest us? Did we cause Uncle Frank and Aunt Helen to disappear?"

"No. You won't be arrested and you didn't cause anyone to disappear. You caused your aunt a little grief for being mean to Stephanie, but other than that you did nothing wrong."

Stephanie's POV:

Ranger woke me as we were pulling into the school parking lot. I thanked the boys for asking me along and returned them to Eddie. He smiled and thanked me. I was still groggy from sleep and leaned against Ranger for support. We made our way back to Rangeman and he carried me up to the 7th floor. He carried me through to the bedroom and slipped me under the covers after stripping me and slipping one of his t-shirts over me. I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

Ranger's POV:

I stripped Babe and slipped one of my t-shirts over her before covering her with a blanket. I stood watching her for several minutes before making my way through the apartment and down to the garage. I had already disabled the audio and knew he wouldn't come out of the shadows so no one would know. I was adept at making things look different than they were. I gave him a few seconds before saying, "Report."

"It is done."

"Like we planned?"

"Just like we planned."

I made my way back up to 7 and stripped before climbing into bed with Babe.

Hector's POV:

It was done. I had followed my instructions to the T and now they were placed so they would be found. I felt no remorse for what I'd done. Try to hurt my little angel would they...well, no matter. They would never hurt another soul. I rubbed my shoulder where the two new ones were. No one saw those. They were the ones I considered justified. I only marked my face for the ones I regretted. The ones who hadn't deserved to die. I smiled as I remembered the looks on their faces at the last moment...just before the life drained out of their cold hearts.

Stephanie's POV:

I woke up around 8 a.m. and slid out of bed, showering and shampooing my hair before getting dressed. I made my way into the kitchen and had just gotten there when Ranger walked into the apartment. He kissed me and told me he just needed to shower and dress and he'd be right back. When he returned 15 minutes later he was carrying a newspaper in his hands. He pulled me into his arms and I got a feeling something was off. I knew. I knew in that moment what he meant by what he said the other day. I looked up and met his gaze.

"They're dead aren't they?"

"Don't grieve for them Babe. They don't deserve your consideration."

He must have thought the tears pouring down my cheeks were for them. I shook my head, "The tears aren't for them. They are for you and him. I know the price you are willing to pay and I grieve for you."

"You are worth any price Babe. There is no price too high to pay."

I wrapped my arms around him and held him close to me.