Ch. 26- Food Fight
When I met Lester in the garage he was wearing all of his equipment and a flack jacket. "What the hell?" I asked him as we made our way to an SUV.
"Never can tell what's going to happen when working with you beautiful." He smiled as we got in.
"Nice." I rolled my eyes as he pulled off the jacket and got behind the wheel.
"Where to?" he asked
"Liberty Street, we are looking for Todd Johnson. He is a mailman." I was looking at the file in my hand.
"What did he do? Assault with a deadly weapon? Theft? " he suggested as he quickly made his way through the streets.
"He attacked his wife with a banana." I told him
"Wow, you've got to be kidding me." he laughed "A banana?"
"Hey, it's still money. His bond is $10k because he resisted arrest. So the charges are domestic violence and resisting arrest." I said as we pulled up a couple of houses down from his address.
"The guys are going to die of laughter when I explain this skip to them." Lester laughed "They'll never believe it."
"Like I said money is money." I smiled
"You know beautiful, you don't really need the money anymore." he said as we got out of the SUV.
"Lester, really? When have I ever been that kind of person? It's nice not to worry about paying my rent or buying groceries. But this is what I love to do and I want to bring in my own money." I explained.
"Sorry, I get you." he nodded "So, I know you like to split up and hit both doors. But I am under strict orders not to leave your side. We will both go to the front door. This is completely yours to handle, pretend I am not even there."
"Sounds good. I should have no problem with that." I laughed as we went up the walkway. I knew there would be no argument or debate about this. I understood Ranger's need to be careful with Jeanne Ellen still out there. Normally I would be pissed, but I was terrified of what would happen if she found me alone. We stepped up onto the porch and I knocked on the door. It took a few more knocks before Johnson opened the door.
"What do you want?" he was a tall man with sandy blonde hair. He looked tired, like he hadn't slept in days.
"My name is Stephanie Plum and I represent the Vincent Plum Bond agency. You missed your court date so I need to bring you in to get rebonded." I explained.
"I'm not going. I didn't even attack her, she attacked me. There's no evidence." he frowned
"The police found the banana peel in the garbage can." I told him
"I had been verbally attacked all morning. She accused me of cheating and then confessed that she was the one who cheated. She deserved what she got." he explained "It was a freaking banana."
"You also resisted arrest." I reminded him as Lester stifled a laugh
"I didn't. There was a squished banana on the floor and when they tried to grab me I slipped away." he smirked
"That's terrible." I told him as I stifled my own laugh. "I am so sorry. I still need to bring you in to get bonded again." I sighed
"Suddenly he pulled a can of mace from behind his back and sprayed us both. "I use this on barking dogs and you are a barking dog." he explained as he slammed the door.
Lester and I were both bent over in pain. I was drooling and snot was coming out of my nose as I coughed. I could hear Lester swearing as he pulled his head up and grabbed my hand. He pulled me to the SUV and grabbed a bottle of water. "Lean your head back." he ordered as he poured water all over my face, and then I bent over again to let it drip off as my eyes cleared up.
"How the hell did you see well enough to get us to the car?" I asked him as I kept spitting out the bad taste in my mouth.
"Experience" he said as he looked at my face "Oh Shit, Ranger is going to kill me." he shook his head and then poured some water over his face. "Damn your eyes are so red, are you okay?"
"Why is he going to kill you?" I was confused
"Your eyes are red! He's going to know I let someone hurt you." he sighed
"I'm fine, but we are going back to get that idiot." I told him.
"Can you let me handle it this time?" he asked and I nodded.
We made our way back to the house. This time we didn't knock. Lester kicked in the door and I followed him inside. We found Johnson sitting on his couch watching TV. He still had the mace in one hand and the remote control in the other. He barely glanced at us until Lester pulled out his gun.
"Drop the can." he ordered.
Johnson ran to his kitchen and we followed him. He started throwing things at us. First bags of potato chips and cereal boxes. Then he opened the refrigerator. He opened up a container of milk and threw it at Lester. That made him lower his gun to wipe his face. Next he threw an entire pie that landed on the top of my head and drizzled all over my hair. Next was the fruit.
"Ouch! That hurts." I whined as he hit me in the chest with an orange.
"Ugh." I heard Lester breath out when he got hit in the stomach with an apple.
He kept digging in the refrigerator and came out with cupcakes. He must have hit me with a dozen cupcakes before Lester stepped towards him and got hit in the face with a chocolate cupcake. He stepped towards Johnson, but got knocked down when Johnson opened the freezer door. Lester was on the floor and suddenly an entire gallon of ice cream was dumped onto his head knocking him flat on his back. When I saw Johnson reach for the watermelon on the counter, I seized my chance. I jumped towards his legs and tackled him to the ground.
I was putting the cuffs on him when I noticed ice cream dripping onto his back. I looked up and saw Lester with ice cream dripping down from the sides of his face. "I hate butter pecan." he shook his head.
"You're done with your little food fight." he told him as he pulled him to his feet.
"I didn't do it. She attacked me with the banana. I don't even like bananas." he was hollering as Lester dragged him to the SUV.
"This is going to be a pain in the ass to clean." he shook his head as he threw Johnson in the back.
"That's not my first food fight." I laughed
"I'm not surprised." he smiled as he pulled away from the curb
We drove to the police station and around the back to deliver him and get my receipt. When we pulled in Gazzara came out to meet us. "Nice." he said smiling as he looked me over.
"I don't want to hear it." I tried to fight the smile but it forced it's way out
"Is that apple pie in your hair?" he smiled
"Yes." I admitted
"Ice cream?" he asked Lester
"Butter Pecan" Lester admitted
"You should get hazard pay when you work with Stephanie!" he laughed
"It was all about a banana." I admitted
"You always bring a smile to my day." he grabbed Johnson and took him in as I followed. Lester was right behind me. I went to the desk to pick up my receipt and Morelli walked around the corner.
"Hey cupcake." he laughed. "did you know you have frosting on your chest?" he asked as he stared at my breasts. He walked over and grabbed my shirt like he was going to pull it open and look down the front like he used to do.
Lester grabbed his hand before I could and pushed it away from my shirt. Joe looked at him and smiled. "I see you have already replaced Manoso. I knew you would become the Rangeman whore. It's okay, I'll still take you back and after a night with me you will forget any other man." he wiggled his eyebrows.
Lester stepped up and got face to face with Morelli."If you don't shut your mouth, I am going to do it for you, permanently."
Morelli took a step closer and they were nose to nose. "Are you sure you want to hit a cop in a police station?" he asked him
"I never said I was going to hit you." Lester smiled without backing down "But I will do whatever it takes to protect Stephanie."
"Oh, that's so sweet." he glared at him.
"We're done here." Lester told him as he took a step back but kept his eyes on Morelli. I picked up my receipt from the desk clerk.
"I don't think we are." Morelli smiled
Lester looked like he was about to explode. I knew we needed to get out quick, I didn't want Morelli to arrest Lester. We turned to walk down the hallway that lead to the back door. I pushed Lester in front of me and started following him. We reached the door. Lester stepped through and held it open for me, but Joe stepped in front of me and pulled the door closed. He locked it when I tried to get around him.
I turned my back to him to walk back towards the desk. He grabbed my arm and spun me around pushing me up against the door and I was suddenly facing him. I felt someone pounding on the door. Morelli's grip was hard and it hurt. I winced and he squeezed me tighter. He pushed it behind my back and I was in immediate pain. I went up on to my toes to lessen the pain, but he just pushed it higher towards my head and I froze. When I stopped fighting he slightly eased his grip on my arm. He leaned into me and pushed me against the door hard. His entire body was pressed against me and I could feel how excited he was. I was in shock, a combination of disgust and surprise.
"My sweet little cupcake." He said reaching up with his free hand to gather some frosting from my face. He put it in his mouth and smiled. "You still taste as sweet as ever."
"What the hell?" I began before he interrupted.
He kissed me hard and pushed his tongue into my mouth. I turned my head away from him, but he grabbed my chin and turned it back to face him. I tried to pull away but he squeezed my face harder and kissed me again. I fought to turn my head and moved it back and forth away from him. He held me firm and his fingers felt like a vice on my chin. My jaw was aching and my arm was going numb.
He pressed harder against me and I began to raise my knee, but he used his to knock my legs apart. Every time I tried to close them he used his knee to keep them apart My inner thighs were on fire as he kept hitting harder with his knee each time. I could feel him hard against me. He kept a hold of my chin and was only about an inch from my face when he spoke. "I know you are worried about giving in to me and then losing control. I know he's not giving it to you like I did. I know I screwed up but I can make it up to you in just one night." he pressed against me. "Go back and tell him it's over. Let Jeanne Ellen have him. You will never have to fear again. Everything will be as it should have been before this mess."
He leaned in and kissed me again continuing to squeeze my face. "I know you can feel me against you and you remember how good it was."
"Joe" I tried but he kissed me again. I was still fighting but the pain was excruciating.
Suddenly there was a noise down the hall next to the desk. He pulled away from the kiss. "You know where I am when you are ready to admit how much you still want me. Don't worry Jeanne Ellen will be back to collect her man and then we can be together." he smiled and finally let go and walked away.
I unlocked the door and ran into Lester. "What the Fuck happened?"
"Nothing, I'm fine." I assured him but it hurt to open my mouth at all.
"Then why are you holding your arm against your chest?" he looked at my face "Your chin is all red. Damn it!" he yelled as we walked to the SUV. "I have to be the one to explain all of this to Ranger."
"It's not your fault." I assured him as I kept my teeth tight together.
"Hal, don't need you. I have her." Lester said into his phone. "Fuck! I should go back in there and beat his ass. What happened?"
"No, it's fine. I just want to go home." I got into the SUV.
"I am a dead man." Lester shook his head as he started the engine
"It will be fine, don't worry." I assured him
We drove the rest of the way in silence. My face hurt, my thighs hurt and my arm was nearly unbearable. I moved it and tried not to scream or call out, but a whine escaped my lips.
"Damn it, I'm sorry. I tried to get in. I was afraid to leave the door. I called Hal." he tried to explain. "I was worried he would pull you out the door and take you someplace else. I should have went around."
"It's fine." I breathed out as we pulled in to the garage. Lester took a deep sigh as he jumped out and ran around to open the door for me. We headed to the elevator and he punched in number five. I followed him as we headed towards Ranger's office. As soon as he saw me he jumped up from behind the desk and reached me in three short steps. He looked at my red eyes and chin. Then he looked me up and down. He turned to Lester.
"We got maced by the FTA, and then he had a food fight with us. We brought him in and had a run in with Morelli." He explained as he looked down at the floor.
"It wasn't Lester's fault." I told him as I reached out and grabbed his hand. It hurt to open my mouth to speak.
"Is that apple pie in your hair?" he asked as he pulled a piece of apple from my hair and tossed it behind him into the trash can. He looked at Lester. "What happened with Morelli?"
I didn't say anything, I didn't want Ranger to get angry and go after him. It took all of my strength to not show any pain as he continued to look me over. Finally Lester spoke up."He grabbed her shirt." Lester began.
"He what?" Ranger's eyes flashed with anger.
"I think he was trying to pull her shirt open and I stopped him." he spoke quietly
"Are you okay?" Ranger asked me.
"Just a little shaken up." I admitted as I choked back the tears
"What did he say?" Ranger turned to Lester
He took a deep breath. "He called her a whore but offered to take her back. I got in his face and threatened him. I told him to shut his mouth. We were on the way out and as soon as I stepped out the door he slammed it and locked it."
"What?" Ranger's eyes flashed again with fury. "Where were you? How could you let this happen? You know your job." His eyes were on Lester as he stepped towards him.
He looked back at me suddenly "What happened?" he asked me as he looked down at my arm."What's that bruise?" he asked
"It's nothing." I spoke quietly looking down. I was still working hard to keep my composure.
He reached out and lifted my chin. I winced in pain. "Mace would not bruise your arm and chin. What happened?" he demanded as Lester looked over at my arm as he took a step back.
"Fuck." Lester muttered "I tried to push it open but it was locked. I was going to run around the building and go through the front, but I was afraid he might drag her out the back. I called Hal for back-up. He was a couple of blocks away when she finally came out." he explained
Ranger let go of me and quickly turned on Lester and grabbed his shirt pulling them face to face"You let him touch her?" Lester turned away with a look of fear on his face. It looked like he was preparing for Ranger to hit him. "You should have called me. You should have shot the lock off of the door or kicked it in."
"I couldn't shoot, I didn't know if she was behind it. It was a metal fire door, I couldn't kick it in." Lester stuttered with some of his words.
"It wasn't his fault. I pushed him towards the exit and I was following behind him." I grabbed Ranger's hand with my good one and pulled him back to me.
"You were supposed to have her back." he told Lester
"I won't let this happen again." he turned to me. "I am so sorry beautiful."
"It's okay." I forced a smile
"Why the hell are you keeping your mouth so still when you talk?" he asked me
"Just sore." I explained
"This won't happen again." he told Lester. "From now on when Stephanie does a capture one of you guys will go in for the receipt and she will wait in the car. I don't want her in the police station at all."
"Understood." Lester told him
"Anything else Babe?" he asked me
"He told me Jeanne Ellen would be back to get her man." I took in a deep breath controlling my words.
"Damn it." he shook his head and then looked at Lester "Go get cleaned up before I lose my temper." Ranger ordered him as Lester quickly left the room.
Ranger turned to me and grabbed my hand. "I'm so sorry Babe. I should have been there, I should have gone with you. What happened?"
"It's not your fault. We just argued. Same stuff, different day." I forced a smile, I didn't want him to lose his temper again. I started to lean into him and then pulled back when it hurt my arm. "I need to get cleaned up."
"Let me come with you." He looked at me
"Let me go take a shower. I'm fine, I just need to get this food out of my hair." I stepped back
"Okay, I'll be up in a few minutes. I have to finish this paperwork. But it won't take long." he assured me.
"See you soon." I smiled as I leaned in and kissed his cheek.
As soon as I was out of his office I dropped the smile. As I walked past the control room every eye was on me. They were all nervous, and Hal gave out a deep sigh. "Sorry Bomber." he said quietly
"Not your fault." I told him as I tripped and caught myself. I winced in pain and he tightened his jaw.
"He's going to lose it." Hector whispered to him.
I punched the button on the elevator. "Morelli is a dead man." Ram spoke quietly
I got into the elevator with no emotion on my face and pushed seven. I was shaken up about the run in with Morelli, but I couldn't let anyone see that. My arm was hurting bad, but I was trying to ignore it. All I needed was some aspirin and I would be fine I told myself. I went into the apartment and headed straight to the shower. I stripped down with some difficulty getting the shirt over my arm. I left the clothes piled on the floor. I used one arm to wash and got the food off of my body and face. The hard part was washing my hair with one hand. I watched as apple chunks slid onto the floor of the shower. .
Then it all hit me and I was sobbing. I bent over letting the water wash away my tears, but I couldn't get control. Why couldn't I get myself away? I was a hundred percent on board with knowing Morelli no longer deserved my friendship and I was done feeling sorry for him. What nerve to think I wanted him or would ever want him. He was freaking delusional. That cocky, ignorant, disgusting piece of garbage. I was mad at him, mad at myself but I couldn't stop crying. My breath kept catching and I was hyperventilating. I slid down and sat in the bottom of the shower as the water poured over me. I was trying to collect myself, because I knew Ranger would be coming up soon.
I was wrong, because he was already there. Ranger suddenly slid the glass door open "Babe." he said as I used one arm to pull myself up quickly. "I'm fine." I turned off the water and climbed out, He was holding a towel open for me and I went to him. He wrapped me in the towel and pulled me against him. I held my breath so I wouldn't wince when he pulled me so close. If he could see the pain in my face he would lose his cool. He pulled me away and looked at my face. I forced a grin, but his eyes suddenly got dark.
"What's the matter did I miss some frosting?" I asked him
"No, the bruises on your face look worse." he said through clenched teeth. I turned to look in the mirror and I saw two fingerprint bruised on each side of my chin. "They look like marks from fingers." he noticed "specifically a finger and a thumb."
"I'm sorry." I whispered
"You need to quit apologizing. You didn't do anything wrong. You are allowed to get upset, you are allowed to show me your feelings good or bad. I am allowed to get pissed when my fiancee has bruises on her face." he pulled me out of the bathroom and sat me on the bed. "I don't want you to be afraid of me."
"I am not afraid of you. I don't want to hurt you." I explained
He knelt down in front of me and reached up to grab my hands. He looked down at my thighs and snapped his head up to look at me. I glanced down and saw bruising, as my eyes teared up. He pulled my hands towards him and I winced. "It still hurts?" he asked "Come on Steph I need to know the whole story here. I know you are leaving something out. These bruises were not caused by mace. They were not caused by a food fight or arguing with Morelli." he looked down at my legs.
"The skip hit me with an orange. I will be okay." I assured him
"Get some clothes on. I am calling Bobby up here." He told me as he stood up and went to the closet. He brought me shorts and a t-shirt while he was on his phone.
"I'm really okay." I assured him
"Humor me." he said as he left the room.
He came back with Bobby who was carrying his medical bag. "Hope you have some strong aspirin in there because I have a killer headache." I admitted with a smile.
"We will take care of that. Just let me look at your arm first." he stepped toward me and went to his knees in front of me. He gently took my arm and looked at the bruise and then turned my arm as I winced. "Stephanie, who did this?"
"I had an FTA throw food at me." I forced a smile "I cuffed him before he could throw the watermelon." I turned quick to look at Ranger and winced.
"Stephanie." Bobby looked at me sternly
"I have a crook in my neck. Probably slept wrong" I pulled my lips tight together.
"And your mouth?" Bobby asked "You're not opening it very wide when you speak."
"Must have gotten hit with some other food." I tried to explain
"If you don't tell me what the hell is going on I am going to find out myself. I will go every place you went today and get videos from any camera you passed" Ranger was pissed
"Now, who did this?" Bobby asked
"Morelli." I spoke quietly as Ranger let out a big breath and stared at my arm.
"Did he twist your arm or just hold it?" Bobby asked
I didn't answer. I looked away and just stared at the wall remembering how Morelli had twisted it behind my back. I didn't want Ranger to know what happened. I knew he would go after Morelli and I didn't want him to risk getting arrested. I took some breaths but said nothing. I could feel the tears streaming down my face, I tried to control myself. I lifted my free hand and wiped away the tears. Ranger stood with his hands on his hips waiting for my response. When I said nothing he walked over to the doorway and leaned against it. He looked like he was about to run out any second.
"Come on Stephanie. I need to know." Bobby spoke softly
"Can Ranger leave the room?" I asked Bobby as I kept my eyes off of Ranger
"NO!" Ranger answered
I looked up and turned to Ranger. "Promise me you won't go after him." I pleaded.
"Babe, you know I can't do that." he told me as he stepped away from the doorway and closer to me.
"I don't want you to be arrested." I told him
"I promise you I won't get arrested." he said as he sat next to me.
"I would be alone every night." I whispered as more tears fell from my eyes.
He reached up and wiped away the tears. "I promise I won't kill him and I won't get arrested. Please just tell Bobby everything that happened."
"You are going to be disgusted, you will be disappointed in me." more tears fell
"That's not going to happen." he lifted my hand to his lips and kissed it.
"Stephanie?" Bobby was waiting
I pulled my hand away from Ranger and gave our a sigh. I looked around and settled my eyes on the ceiling. "He twisted it behind my back." I admitted.
"Everything Babe." Ranger spoke softly.
"He closed and locked the door when Lester walked out. He grabbed my arm and twisted it behind my back. He pushed me up against the door When I resisted he pushed my arm up higher towards my head. I was frozen, afraid to move to make the pain worse. I felt like it was going to break."
Ranger put his hand over his mouth and took a deep breath. "He pressed against me and kissed me. I turned away from him and he grabbed my chin to force me to face him and kissed me again. He pushed against me hard and it pressed my arm into the door as he was twisting. I didn't want to kiss him." I told them as I turned to look at Ranger. "I tried to pull away."
"It's okay Babe." He still had his hand over his mouth and I could see he was trying hard to maintain his stone face.
"I was lifting my knee to try to smash his balls, but he was faster than me. He used his knee to keep pushing my legs apart. He said a bunch of things that aren't worth repeating. There was a noise in the hall like someone was coming and he finally released me. He told me Jeanne Ellen was coming back soon to be with you Ranger." I spoke as quickly as I could trying to get it all out at once. I didn't want to talk anymore, my jaw was throbbing.
Ranger jumped up from the bed and walked towards the bedside table. He stood there breathing in through his nose and blowing out deep breaths. He finally grabbed a vase full of flowers and threw it against the wall. I cowered and started sobbing. "I'm sorry, I know you are disgusted. I didn't want him to kiss me, I didn't kiss him back I turned my head." I explained
"You think I am mad about that?" he was angry and Bobby was busy inspecting my arm. and then looked up at my face. He gently moved my face side to side and I let out a gasp.
"Aren't you?" I asked
"Well, it's one of the many things I am pissed about, but I am not mad at you." he said as he returned to my side. "I don't blame you Babe."
"Your neck hurts?" he asked
"A little." I confessed.
"I want to get an x-ray of her arm, her head and neck area. I need to make sure nothing is broken." he told Ranger
Ranger nodded and took me under the arm and ushered me from the room. We got in the elevator and headed back to the fifth floor. When we passed the control room all mouths dropped. We followed Bobby to his room and he had me lay down on his table. He told Ranger to leave the room. "I'm staying." he said firmly.
"Let me work and we can get this done quickly." Bobby told him
"It's okay." I assured him
"I will be right outside." he told me as he stepped outside the door.
Bobby moved the machine above my head as I laid back. He got images of my face, neck and arm. "They will take five minutes to develop." he explained.
"Okay." I spoke quietly as I started to pull myself up.
"Please stay there and lay down." Bobby spoke softly.
I didn't say anything but I continued to lay down. I felt tears streaming down the sides of my face. How could I let this happen? Damn it! It seemed like forever before Bobby came back to me. "Let's go." he said helping me up and leading me to the door.
When the door was opened Ranger was pacing back and forth as Tank and Lester sat in chairs. The guys jumped to their feet and Ranger froze. He came to me and grabbed my hand. "Tell me" he told Bobby
"The arm is not broken." Lester and Tank gave out a sigh.
"and?" Ranger asked
"Her arm is sprained." Bobby told them as Ranger sucked in a breath.
Bobby explained. "She has a minor fracture in her jaw. It's her mandible, the bone in the lower jaw.""
Lester gasped before Bobby could continue. "It's minor, it will heal on it's own. Best if she eats soft foods and liquids. The bruises on her thighs are not as deep, but she is going to be in a lot more pain tomorrow. It's like a car accident, it hurts more the next day. I would bet she is still in shock right now and that is masking some of the pain."
Tank looked down as Bobby continued. "She has a mild case of whiplash. She must have been turning her head back and forth quickly with a lot of force."
Lester brought his hand to his forehead and rubbed it. "Damn it." he whispered
"That's it. Everything else looks good." Bobby forced a grin.
Ranger looked at me and then at Tank. "I'm going to kill him!" he jumped back up.
"No. You promised you wouldn't get arrested." I told him as I stepped closer to him
"I need to splint her arm. We get one splint off and now another on. The two of you will always keep me busy." Bobby gave a laugh as I followed him back into the room. I sat down on the table and he quickly splinted my arm. He pulled out a sling and handed it to me.
"Wait at least twenty-four hours till you start moving around. The sling may hurt your neck." he helped me down and we went back into the hall.
Lester and Tank were still there, but I could see Ranger's back walking away. "Ranger!" I called out to him as my voice cracked. He turned around and rushed back to me.
"Babe." he took my hand in his
"Let's get her back upstairs to rest." Bobby insisted
When we were back in the bedroom Ranger was pacing and looked to be planning something in his mind. "For the next 24 hours you need to put ice on it for twenty minutes at a time every couple of hours. After that you still want to put ice on it a few times a day. When you sleep you need it elevated on a pillow. As far as your jaw, put some ice on it when you ice your arm. Putting ice on your thighs will also help. Soft foods or liquids for the next twenty-four hours and then we will see how your jaw feels. I will check you out again tomorrow."
Ranger was pacing like a caged tiger. "Ranger!" Bobby got his attention and he stopped to look at Bobby. "She is going to need you to help her with the ice and making sure she elevates it whenever she is sitting down. You need to focus on her. You know she won't follow all of the directions unless someone is up her ass pushing her"
"I will take care of it" Ranger crossed back over to me and sat down taking my hand "Babe." he kissed my hand and wiped away my tears as I took deep breaths to control myself. He was calm now and held my hand gently.
"You took it easy and got your splint off quickly, now help her do the same." Bobby told him.
"It wasn't easy." I tried to smile.
"Put this on your tongue and let it dissolve. It's for your headache." He told me as he placed a pill in my mouth. "This is for your pain, it should last for four to five days but I can give you pills also if the pain is worse. Tomorrow will be worse when you wake up." he said giving me a shot
Bobby looked at Ranger. "Look, everyone will be pissed about this. You need to control the guys or this will get ugly fast." He warned. "I would never try to give you orders boss, but taking care of her is more important than revenge right now. You do not want your entire team in jail for killing Morelli even if he deserves it. You saw the look on Tank's face and Lester is so overcome with guilt he would shoot Morelli on sight."
Ranger nodded as the pill finally dissolved. "I'll go get some ice right now." he left the room.
"Babe" Ranger began as he took my hand. "I am not mad at you. I am aggravated you didn't tell me the whole truth right away but I understand. I know you wouldn't return his kiss so please stop thinking about that. I am just so pissed off he put his hands on you. We should have never let him off so easily. Damn! I should have gotten more solid proof and then he would be locked up right now and you would be safe." he sighed
"Your face." he gently touched my cheek and ran his fingers to my temple.
"Pretty messed up?" I asked him
"Beautiful as always. Just hurts me to look and see the bruises and know you are covering the pain." he sighed
"Something must be going on to make him act like that. He was never so rough with me before." I looked down
"Please don't make excuses for him Babe." he shook his head.
"You're right." I sighed
"I love you." he smiled at me
"I love you too." I told him as I felt my headache slowly start to fade.
"I need to make a phone call." he told me as he stood up. He kissed the top of my head and left the room as Bobby came back with the ice.
"Lay back on a pillow and let's elevate it. You use the sling when you are up and moving around. I don't want you up for twenty-four hours. I know how stubborn you are, but please try to follow my directions. Right now you should rest." I laid back and he moved a pillow underneath my arm.
"Stephanie look at me." he ordered as I looked up at his face. " Eat the damn soft foods and If you don't follow my directions you are going to end up walking down the aisle in a sling. If you do what I say, you should be better in a week or two."
"I will, I promise." I assured him. "Please find Ranger and have him come back in here. I am worried about what he will do."
"Me too." he said as he gave me a small bag of ice for my face and left to go find Ranger.
I reached over and grabbed the remote control and put on the TV. I wanted to escape with some mindless show. I was worried what Ranger would do and I was still in pain. I held some ice to my face, but it was freezing. I flipped around the channels and found nothing. I was getting impatient for Ranger to come back to me, but was trying to keep my cool knowing he had to catch up with work.
"Hey Steph." Cal smiled coming in the room.
"Hey Cal! What's up?" I asked him.
"I am here to keep you company." He told me as he took the remote and sat down in the chair next to the bed. "I'm sorry to say this but you look like hell."
"Where's Ranger?" I asked him
"I honestly don't know. He came to me and told me he had to go take care of something and I needed to come and keep you company." He shrugged.
"Cal, did he go after Morelli?" I sat up.
"I don't know Steph, but we all know what happened to you. Lester was kicking himself as soon as you two got back." he shook his head. "He headed to the gym ad went to work on a pad for nearly an hour. I'm glad wasn't that bag he was hitting."
"Oh Cal, we have to go find him." I started to climb up from the bed.