A/N: Thank you so much for all the kind words and reviews. I really appreciate all your enthusiasm. You guys are the best :)
Please note: This chapter is unedited. I will repost when Fredda has had a chance to read through.
M rating
Extra special thanks to my beta, Fredda (Rangergirl1234) for all her hard work, the name of this story and encouraging me to write. Fredda, you're the best :)
JE owns the characters, I'm just taking them for a test drive.
Chapter 29 A couple of notes in Trenton
We were in the Hummer on our way back to the hotel when I finally felt it was safe to ask some questions.
"Devon, can they lock Carlos and Tank up after the arraignment?"
"They can, but some of Briggs' charges won't hold, so I plan to plea bargain with the judge before the arraignment."
"What charges?" I asked, curious about this whole courts martial process.
"Desertion for Ranger and away without leave for Tank. If I can get both of their charges down to disobeying a direct order we may be able to get this reduced to a Summary Courts Martial and then I'm going to try for dismissal. But McHugh is right; Briggs does seem to have a stick up his ass and from what I hear he's not too happy that Ranger made it out of Somalia alive."
Oh, so that's where he was. I thought that was supposed to be a secret? I guessed it would come out at the trial anyway, so Devon was just sharing something we'd learn eventually.
Since Devon was answering, I was going to try again. "Did you know there was anyone over McHugh?"
"There hadn't been before, but McHugh is only a Major so we had to assume that eventually there'd be someone in a senior position over him. And Briggs had been bucking for a promotion for a while now. They just made him Colonel a few months ago with McHugh reporting to him. I personally think McHugh will retire soon. Briggs is not a nice guy from what I've heard."
"Did you, Carlos and Tank know him personally? You mentioned he had a grudge against them."
"No, today was our first meeting with him, but I've been asking questions so I'd have ammunition and picked up the few tidbits I shared. McHugh on the other hand is a good guy; we've known him personally for years now. He's always done right by Ranger and Tank, and they've bent the rules before."
This was good; I was getting some answers. So I turned to Carlos to see if it was catching. "Carlos, you introduced me to McHugh as you're fiancé, was there a reason for that?"
"McHugh's been married to the same woman for almost forty years. He has three grown children and he's a very pious man. I figured that to him 'fiancé' showed more commitment than 'girlfriend' and I hate that word anyway. And he's just too old school for me to call you my 'woman', he would think that harsh. I thought about calling you 'mi amante', but he's also multi-lingual and I didn't think his religious upbringing would take well to that phrase either, although I like it. So I just stretched the truth a little...fiancé means promised, and I promised you we'd be together forever."
"What's 'amante' mean?"
"It means 'lover'."
Oh boy. That shut me up, and I guessed my question and answer session was now over.
We drove for a while in silence, but my wheels were still turning. They had to come back here for their arraignment next Monday. I wondered if Lula and I could come too. I mean if Devon couldn't work his magic, I wanted to know about it first hand.
It seemed like Devon was sensing what I was thinking. "Just so you know," he said to all of us, "Briggs is going for a General Courts Martial. We had heard it was going to be a Special Courts Martial, which is a tier down and more like a misdemeanor, but the bastard decided he has enough evidence for the big one. McHugh is siding with us, but this is Briggs' baby as he is the commanding officer."
"Does that mean you can't get them off?" I asked.
"I'll do my best. I know I can get a few of the charges thrown out, and bring it down to a Special. I was hoping to bring it down to a Summary, then have it dismissed. I still may be able to do that, but it'll make Briggs look bad. He's already pissed off, so I'm not sure what he'll do."
"Do we need to keep him happy?" Lula asked, "I mean after all, Tank and Ranger's contracts are over, they don't need to deal with him anymore."
"Unfortunately he seems to have his own ideas. He's a lifer and as you could tell by how he addressed Tank and Ranger, his philosophy is 'once an officer, always an officer'. We still want Ranger to get paid for his last mission. It amounts to a lot of money. We need to play nice until that check is cut."
"Would they cheat him out of pay?" I asked.
"Babe," Carlos answered for Devon, "they can do whatever they want. I've been putting about 65% of everything I make on these missions back into Rangeman, so that's a lot of operating capital we'd be losing. Not that it's going to put Rangeman into the red or anything. We're very profitable. It's just a huge inconvenience."
I decided to go for it. "Can Lula and I come down next week for the Article 32? I think we'd both like to be there for it?"
"I know the military judge that's going to be presiding over the hearing," Devon answered. "He likes to keep a closed courtroom, but I'll ask when I speak with him later this week."
So I guessed we weren't going to be able to go unless Devon could perform a miracle. Shit.
While we were in the Hummer on the way back to the hotel, Carlos called for a NetJets flight back to New Jersey and was able to set up a 10:00 out of Ronald Reagan, which was very close to our hotel.
"Lula and I are going to go to Trenton," Tank told us, "I convinced her to move in with me, at least until after the trial. We'll see if her allergy shots worked. If they didn't, I'm going to buy a bigger house and give my cats their own wing."
I knew Tank was attached to his cats, but wasn't that a bit much?
"I thought we'd go to Trenton too," Carlos said, "My men moved Stephanie in to seven this morning and I want to check out her old apartment and see if there is anything we can do to use it as a safe house. I also need to look in on some things at Rangeman. Babe, let's take your car. Technically no one can try to capture me for ransom now, but I don't want to provoke it until the word is out."
"Ok Carlos, but I get to drive." I said, still never having set foot behind the steering wheel of my new car.
We packed quickly and went back out to the waiting Hummer for the trip to Ronald Reagan. Our plane had already arrived and was waiting for us. Devon stayed behind to gather some more information, so it was just the four of us on this flight. If we didn't need a car we could have flown directly in Trenton-Mercer and gotten to Rangeman in under an hour, but Carlos wanted to have the Mercedes with us. I got the feeling he wanted to go out tonight too; he's been cooped up for a long time.
"Tank, why don't you and Lula stay on the plane and have our pilots make another stop for you. There's no reason for you to have to come to Belmar is there?"
"We have all our luggage from Turks and Caicos back at your house, but someone from Rangeman can pick that up tomorrow and deliver it to us. Thanks man, I can't wait to take Lula home."
I was starting to get excited, we'd be back in Trenton soon, and even though I loved our beach house, I was missing the bustle of city life. I couldn't wait to see Connie. I'd even been missing Vinnie, which kind of freaks me out because he's such a weasel.
We were on the ground shortly. We said our goodbyes to Tank and Lula who were staying on for the flight into Trenton-Mercer, although I had a sneaking suspicion that I'd be seeing them very soon.
There was a Rangeman black vehicle waiting for us and I recognized the driver. It was Pedro Velasquez, the Rangeman security guard who was hit by Malone's bullet last week. Obviously he was all healed and back at work. I had never met him although I did see him on the security camera, so Carlos introduced us as he put our luggage into the back of the Explorer.
It was a quick ride back to our beach house and Carlos held my hand and nuzzled my neck for most of the ride. He couldn't seem to get enough of me lately, which had me worried. Possibly he knew something that I didn't. But I had to trust what Devon just told us and not get all worked up about something that might not come to pass.
We had Pedro drive us directly to the garage. We didn't even stop at the house. Carlos had a set of keys on him and another set were sitting on the seat of the CL65. He opened the door and handed them to me. "These are yours, Babe. Are you sure you want to be my chauffeur?"
I nodded yes and got into the car. I adjusted the seat and mirrors as Carlos loaded our bags into the trunk and we followed Pedro out the gate once Carlos stopped at the keypad to allow us exit.
It was a beautiful day for a drive and I loved the way this car felt. Hmm, maybe Carlos was right. Maybe my Escort just wasn't drivable anymore. I could get used to this.
"Babe, deep thoughts?" Carlos asked, looking over at me as we drove west on 195.
"I was just thinking that I was being an idiot when you first offered me this car. It drives so much better than my Escort."
"Babe, you can't even compare the two, but I'm glad you like it. When I picked it up in Florida I bought it with you in mind. I want you to have nice things, you deserve them," he said taking my right hand and kissing it.
"Let's go out to dinner tonight, just you and me," he continued, 'I know a great Mediterranean restaurant where they'll treat us well and leave us alone. We can eat in the garden if you'd like…it's very romantic. They have heat lamps so you won't be cold."
"I'd like that very much. Thank you, Carlos. We haven't been out together in a while."
"I promised you dates and nice places. I plan to start keeping my word; though Babe, we do need security, at least for tonight, but I'll make sure it's discreet."
As we were making plans for the evening, Carlos' phone rang. He answered with the official Rangeman 'Yo', and I heard Bobby's voice on speaker.
"We moved Steph into Rangeman this morning, but I need to share something with both of you. There was a note pushed under her door. It said, "I understand you and the Rangeman are together. He won't be too happy putting his dick into what I have planned for you. Hope you like wide open spaces."
"Do they have any idea who left that? Were there any prints, latents?" I asked having heard that on speakerphone.
Bobby heard me and answered, "Hal was one of the men who moved you and he found the note. He preserved the area and dusted right away. We deposited Esposito into TPD's hands this morning; Kraven's already bailed him out. If I had to bet on it, I'd say Kraven left that note. He wasn't too happy that you, Santos, Lula and Ram were able to bring him in on his FTA and he was quite vocal about it."
God, I had forgotten all about Kraven until Lula brought his name up at Easter.
"Did he leave Lula a note too?" I asked, thinking about that day. Her and Ram were the ones that really took him down.
"I just sent Ram and Hal over to her apartment, I haven't heard back from them yet."
"Call us if you do," Carlos added and disconnected.
We were almost into Trenton and I was starting to feel anxious. I really didn't need another sicko after me, but at least I was moved in with Carlos and there was no safer place on earth. I guessed too that I'd have to let everyone know I actually made the move, although at this point no one would be surprised. The only difference is that the landline in my apartment would be disconnected. I needed to give people Carlos' number so that there would be a secondary way to get in touch with me as I seemed to have bad luck with cell phone batteries. I don't know why all these thoughts popped into my head just now, but I couldn't stop the flow once it started.
"Babe, want to go to your apartment first to make sure my men did a thorough job?" Carlos asked, breaking my train of thought.
I nodded yes and made the turn to head to my old building. I parked by the dumpster as I thought it might be the safest spot for the car. Carlos and I got out and went in the back door. Mrs. Bestler was manning the elevator. "Going up, second floor, men in black."
"Mrs. Bestler, you remember Carlos, don't you?"
She looked at me a little dumbfounded, but nodded yes. I don't think she ever knew his name.
"He's asked me to move in with him and I agreed. I'm not going to be staying here anymore."
"Good for you, but we'll miss you. It'll be real dull around here without you."
"I'll miss you too, but I'll stop by to visit, I promise," I said as we got off and walked to my door.
"For old time's sake," I said to Carlos, "want to let yourself in? I want to see how you do this."
Carlos reached into his pocket and took out a small key without teeth. He inserted it into the lock, hit it with the palm of his hand and it turned. He was in in under 2 seconds.
"Carlos, what was that you used?'
"It's called a bump key."
"No lock picking tools?"
"This is easier, Babe."
"Is it legal?" I asked, questioningly.
"For me it is," he smiled his 200-watt smile at me and we walked inside.
The place looked the same. The guys left everything intact, but I noticed they took my cookie jar. I guess it was an easy move because all my mismatched china was still in the cabinets, and all my rag-tag furnishings were still in the living room and bedroom. If it weren't for the empty closets and dresser drawers, it would have looked like I was still living here. Then I remembered Rex. He was still at the house in Belmar. What a bad hamster mommy I was, I didn't even think to get him and we were right there. I must have had a panicked look on my face because Carlos came over and put his arm around me.
"Babe? Is everything ok?"
"We forgot Rex," was all I could get out before I burst into tears.
"He should be in our kitchen on seven by now. I asked my men to bring him there, along with that blue Nicole Miller dress and those Jimmy Choos you wore on Easter. I thought you might want to wear that tonight. You looked ravishing in them. And I for one, want to ravage you later."
"Carlos, you scare me sometimes. Why didn't you tell me?"
"You seemed to have other things on your mind. I didn't want to bother you."
I was happy Carlos thought to get Rex and that dress and shoes. I would have to ask him about it later though. I know I'd never worn them before yesterday, I can't imagine how he could have seen me in them.
Carlos was making notes on his iPhone; I presumed security measures he'd need to take to use this place, when his phone rang. He looked at the display and answered on speaker. It was Bobby.
"Hal and Ram just called, Lula got a present too. The note under her door said, "What Ramirez did to you is nothing compared to my plan. Your big Rangeman boyfriend won't be able to save you. And he won't like you much after I'm done with you either."
Ok, we were both the targets of a madman with antique torture equipment. Lucky us. I for one was very happy that I was safely moved into Carlos' apartment at Rangeman and that Lula was with Tank. I hoped she was planning on moving in with him soon too as her apartment wasn't much safer than mine.
"Does Tank know?" I asked Bobby, thinking that might change his plan.
"Yeah and Zero and Vince just dropped off their luggage from your house and spoke with him. He's not happy about this at all.
Carlos seemed pretty cool to me. I guessed my normal episodes must have made him used to the crazies who were after me by now. This was new for Tank.
"Babe, let's get going," Carlos said to me when he hung up with Bobby. "Is there anything my men forgot to take that you might need?"
I went into my bathroom to see if they packed all my assorted hair stuff and the other package of birth control pills that I was going to need shortly. When I saw my cabinets empty, I nodded to Carlos and we took off for Haywood.
Carlos beat me to the drivers seat, and we were in his garage in under ten minutes. I saw my POS Escort in one of Carlos' four spots and the sight of the dented, rusted, unintentionally two-toned vehicle made me cringe. We unpacked the trunk and walked arm in arm to the elevator and up to seven. Carlos took the suitcase I was wheeling out of my hand, fobbed the door open and picked me up bridal-style to carry me into his apartment.
"I want to make this special," he said kissing me and carrying me into the bedroom. The place had been aired out and smelled faintly of cleaning products, so I guessed Ella had been up earlier. He lovingly laid me down on the bed so that I was propped up on the pillows and went over to his huge walk-in closet. When he opened the doors, I could see that everything had been rearranged and that my clothes now occupied the side that I could see from the bed.
"Babe, you're finally here," he said and came back over to me and kissed me thoroughly. "Want to change into something more comfortable, and we can go out to lunch? I want to show Trenton my beautiful woman."
I got up, walked to the closet and noticed there were clothes in there I had never seen before. I went over to a pair of summer-weight wool, wide-legged bells and took them out. "Carlos, where did these come from?"
"I asked Ella to pick up some clothes for you that would be good for now. I remembered you had so little that wasn't either summer or winter," he said seriously. I couldn't remember what I had in my closet; I didn't know how he could.
"While we're on the subject Carlos, where did that blue Nicole Miller dress come from? You said you saw me in it, but I know I never wore it before yesterday. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but I don't remember it from Florida."
"I saw it on you in my mind's eye. It fit you perfect. It hugged your curves and the low neck showed off just enough of your beautiful breasts. I knew it would look stunning on you and I had Ella pick it up and send it to Belmar. The shoes too."
"Since when are you into women's fashion?"
"I'm into everything Babe. Men's fashion, women's fashion, furniture, dinnerware, the best cooking utensils; you name it and I can tell you about it."
"Seriously, Batman?"
"You haven't called me Batman in a long time."
"I guess your secret-side reminds me of Batman. Would you rather I not call you that?"
"I like that you see me as your super-hero, but I do prefer Carlos." He paused for a second, "You know I've been calling you 'Babe' since I met you, would you rather I call you Stephanie?"
"This is going to sound weird, but I like that you call me 'Babe', it makes me feel loved and cherished."
"You are loved and cherished Babe."
