Chapter 54
RPOV
My mind felt sluggish as any conscious thought came to me. My head hurt and as I tried to move so did my shoulder. I forced my eyes to open, blinking against the light. A shadow moved over me that I recognized as someone but not who it was. As my eyes began to focus, I saw that it was Bobby.
"Try to stay still Ranger. You took a hell of a blow to the back of your head and the doctors had to dig a bullet out of your shoulder"
My immediate concern was for Steph, was she okay, had she been hurt?
"Steph?"
"We don't know where she is. Everyone is out looking for her"
"What the hell happened?"
"Men in a Hummer attacked you and took Steph"
"I thought Ash and Zeph were watching?"
"They were. Zephs not good. He took a bullet that grazed his head and was beaten up pretty badly. He's still unconscious so the doctors are concerned"
"Ash?"
"A few bumps, but he took off to follow them"
"He find anything?"
"No, not yet"
"Bobby, I need to be out of here"
"Once the doctors have checked you over, I'll get you released"
No sooner had he said that than a doctor walked into the room. I could probably tell him the tests he was going to do, having been injured so many times. Once he felt I'd answered his questions he went to the back of the room and spoke with Bobby. I could tell he was annoyed with Bobby, but I couldn't give a shit what he thought. I needed to get back to Rangeman and get the search for Steph under control.
"Ranger we've reached a compromise. He'll release you this afternoon as long as you show no signs of getting any worse"
"That the best you can do?"
"Yes. I'll get Tank in here so he can update you. Do you need anything else?"
"Reports from the men"
"Not happening, Tank and I can be in here because we're on your medical proxy. Other than family that's it"
I wasn't going to win on this one and I started to understand how Steph felt when she was grounded in one of these hospital rooms. Talking with Tank would have to do for now. I watched as Bobby removed the IV feed but then turned to me with some water and two tablets in his hand. Shit I hated taking pain killers and he knew it.
"It's these or the IV goes back in. I can see it in your eyes Ranger, you've got a hell of a headache and if you don't take something to alleviate it then in an hour or two it will be debilitating making it impossible for you to leave or even think straight"
I took the pills and water swallowing them down and then lifted myself slightly so that I was sat up more. Maybe he was right, but I'd never say that to him. As Bobby left the room Tank came in and sat down in the chair next to the bed. He looked tired, no doubt he hadn't slept all night.
"Anything?"
"Nothing. Hector is on the streets but hasn't found much. Morelli hasn't had any visitors or left his house. Gannon is down south. Gauge is holed up in his house so the only one we can't find is Dolby"
"Did Ash and Steph get anything more on Dolby yesterday?"
"No, I spoke with him this morning"
"Trackers?"
I know that was a long shot, no doubt whoever took her would have found them by now.
"No. Her bag was next to you and her watch and earrings were found about a mile from the restaurant"
"The other tracker Ash gave her"
"He says she wasn't wearing it. Where was that tracker anyway?"
"In something only a woman would wear, a sanitary product I think"
"Ash tried to follow the Hummer but lost it on the freeway when there was an accident that blocked the road"
"I don't understand how anyone knew we were there"
"The restaurant?"
"Yeah, I didn't tell anyone where we were going and Ash and Zeph shadowed us"
"Well unless they followed you maybe it was your bad"
I didn't believe that we could have been that unlucky for someone to have found us. I went through what I'd done in the morning. I remember phoning Nita to make sure she was at the restaurant, but then turned off my phone. The trackers on the car had been switched off so maybe someone saw me at Nita's when I got there, or I was followed.
"Oh, your sister's outside wanting to see you. She says she hasn't spoken to anyone about what happened last night"
"How long has she been here for?"
"About 40 minutes, she won't leave till she's spoken to you"
"Okay. Who's outside the door"
"Ash and Cal, and Ram and Miguel"
"Have they been up all night?"
"Ash and Cal have. Ram and Miguel came on shift this morning"
"Take Ash and Cal back with you. Tell them to get some sleep and be at a meeting in 5 hours"
I watched as Tank opened the door and spoke with Ash and Cal and then as all three of them disappeared. Before the door had a chance to close Nita slipped into the room. She seemed nervous as she was constantly looking at the door before eventually coming over to the bed.
"Nita what's worrying you?"
"First I need to know that you are okay"
"I'm fine, just scratches"
"I don't think so. I watched as those men attacked you"
"Nita"
"Don't you Nita me. I know that what you do is dangerous. It's just that knowing it and seeing it is difficult to deal with"
"That's why I keep my distance from family"
"Carlos, do you trust the men who work for you?"
"Why would you say that?"
"I was watching as you left last night. I was so happy for you and Stephanie. So I wanted to see you as you left the restaurant. I wasn't spying, it's just that I haven't seen you so happy for such a long time"
"Nita"
"Okay. I was looking out from the window that faces the drive. I was behind the drape, so you didn't see me, but I saw everything that happened. I'm here to tell you what I saw in case it might help, but"
"Nita what's worrying you?"
I was confused as she sat on the bed and then bent forward and started to whisper in my ear.
"The man who was outside, he was there last night"
"I know, Ash was with us"
"Then why did he hang back when you were attacked, why did he talk with the men in that Hummer car as it drove down the drive?"
"When was that Nita?"
"I heard the guns and saw a man hit you. Then that same man held a cloth over Steph's mouth. Two men came running from a black SUV, but one held back while the other one tried to take on one of the men who hurt you. The one that hung back ran down the drive after the Hummer car, it stopped and I saw him speaking to someone inside"
"Nita are you saying this man was outside before?"
"Yes, blonde guy. Good looking but not as muscular as you"
Shit was she describing Ash? Surely, she must have gotten confused with what she saw, what with the guns firing and Steph and I being attacked. Maybe Ash was chasing the car to try to identify who was inside. But then why hadn't he helped Zeph and was it a coincidence that Zeph was so badly injured. I quickly messaged Tank "Get back here ASAP"
"Nita stay here until Tank gets back"
"Why?"
"Please Nita"
She lent away from me and then sat down in the chair next to the bed. She seemed more settled, not as nervous as when she'd first come in. It wasn't long before Tank came into the room, but he obviously wasn't pleased about having to come back.
"Look Ranger nothing else has happened and there's nothing else to report. I'd tell you if there was"
"Tank"
"What?"
"Whose outside the door?"
"Ram and Miguel, I sent Ash and Cal to get some rest"
"Nita, tell Tank what you said to me"
I listened as Nita repeated her story to Tank. This time she was clear and concise as she recounted what she'd seen. Once she'd finished Tank walked to the door and back again rubbing his hand over his bald head,
"Shit"
Yeah that might describe what had happened.
"I can think of a better word than that Tank"
"What do you want to happen next?"
"We can't let him know we're onto him. He's far too clever for us to trick, plus he has some skills with IT"
"Okay, so we keep this between us for now?"
"Yeah. Did he see Nita?"
"No. He didn't, did he Nita?"
"No. I stayed in the waiting room while he was outside your door and then I hid in the toilets when I saw him leave"
"Tank can you get Nita home?"
My focus was distracted as Nita suddenly stood up.
"No. I'll get a taxi, if anyone is watching they'll just assume I was visiting someone else"
"Tank get a panic button for her and have someone with her"
"Any suggestions"
"Yeah, call Nita's husband, Jason"
Tank left the room in order to call Jason, they knew each other well through some of the family functions Tank had been to with me. I could tell that Nita wasn't too happy about the decisions I'd made for her.
"Carlos he'll be"
"Protective, no one knows him and he isn't associated with me"
"Okay. Okay"
Jason started his career working out on the oil rigs and for that he needed to stay in shape. He'd met Nita when he'd come into her restaurant and returned frequently. After he'd married Nita, he eventually gave up the offshore work but now worked in a managerial position. But he never stopped keeping himself in shape and he was a big man whose looks could be very deceiving. He was actually a very gentle and caring man who doted on Nita, so I was sure she would be safe if Ash thought she'd been a witness to his behaviors. Tank returned to the room and nodded to me.
"Okay Nita he's on his way. I'll go out first and make sure the way is clear and then follow you down to the front entrance where Jason will be waiting for you. Ranger I'll be right back"
Nita bent forward to kiss my cheek but was obviously still worried.
"Carlos will Stephanie be alright?"
"I'm sure she will be"
"Is this because of you and the work you do?"
"No, Nita. This is something that Steph got caught up in"
"Okay let me know when she's back and then we can have a family celebration at the restaurant"
"Nita"
"I know, not a word to anyone"
After she left I closed my eyes trying to work out what to do next. Hell, I'd trusted Ash with my life, he'd been my backup on missions before. Why the hell would he be part of taking Steph? Would Steph know that he'd betrayed her? She'd be as mad as hell at him because she'd let him into her life, saw him as a friend and someone she could trust. Her trust in people was going to suffer as mine would.
"Ranger?"
"Just thinking"
"How do we sort this one out?"
"What options do we have?"
"I'd like to stick him in a cell and beat the crap out of him"
"Join the queue. We can't do that because there's got to be someone working with him. If he disappears Steph may get hurt or worse"
"Why take her?"
"Because someone thinks she knows where Buckley's program is"
"Does she?"
"I think maybe she does but thinks it's a stupid idea"
"So you think she knows?"
"Yes. She won't tell anyone, but that worries me in case they try to make her"
"Torture her?"
Shit, I hadn't wanted to think of that scenario, but Tank has voiced it.
"Okay Ranger let's make some plans and look at how to run that meeting and somehow find Steph without Ash realizing what's happening"
I was sat in the conference on five with the men involved with finding Steph. Part of our plan was to distract Ash in order for others to work at uncovering where Steph was. There was no point in putting trackers on him or his car because he was clever enough to detect them and that would blow our cover. So we were going to have to do this the old fashioned way. I let Tank run the meeting feigning my injuries as being worse than they were. That would give me the opportunity of observing Ash.
"Reports so far have nothing, so let's expand our search. Ram and Miguel, I need you to get inside Gauge's house. He only has the one listed around here. Once in, recon the place for any sign of Steph. I've got the guys at Boston doing the same at the house he has there. Ash and Santos, Dolby has two homes registered to him, one here in Trenton and one at the beach. Ash you take the house here in Trenton, Santos the beach house. Partner with Miguel and Cal. Hal, you and Woody ride up to the farm-house that belonged to his family. People remember Steph could be at any of those locations. Stay smart"
"No trackers Tank?"
"Sorry Hector they were found at the restaurant"
"Anyone made contact with you Ranger?"
"No Ash, nothing. I don't understand who would take her or why. I'm gonna spend some time tracking down old enemies in case this has nothing to do with the Buckley case"
"You think that's possible?"
"Hell Tank, we all know that anything Buckley had is gone. Steph had no idea what it was anyone thought she had. With both Dolby's and Gauge's facilities destroyed I don't see why they'd still be after her"
"Maybe that's a good idea Ranger"
"Maybe, if you have any names Ash let me have them"
"Get to work men"
I watched as the men left the room and then looked at Hector. He immediately pulled out his phone and made out that he was talking to someone but it was in fact a scanner.
I stood up and went into my office followed by Tank, Bobby and Hector. Hitting a switch under the desk I put the room into lockdown mode. No signal could get in or out.
"I found two listening devices and a miniature camera"
"Any idea of how long they've been there?"
"Not really. Ash was included in the weekly scanning"
"How about this room?"
"None are showing up"
"What I would do would be to swap out cars, he know we have trackers and cameras in the SUVs "
"Then he knows we'll expect to see our SUV at the house. Hector?"
"Cameras set up around area to record to stand alone computers"
"So we should see what car he's using. Clever. Then what?"
"I spoke with Eddie, he's going to watch the street cameras to give us an idea of what road he's taking and follow as much as possible"
"That should give us a direction"
"We know that he isn't using any houses that belong to Dolby or Gauge, Buckley's parent's house we can discount because he knows we know about it"
"It would need to be fairly close to Trenton for him to come and go so easily"
"I agree Bobby"
"You know don't you Ranger?"
"Possibly, I need to check some details first"
"What do you want us doing?"
"Hector is going out to check the cameras. Tank you make sure that Rangeman is looking as it should be. Bobby I want you to keep an eye on Zeph"
"You think he might be in danger"
"He's a witness, so Ash won't want him to survive. Plus seeing someone hanging around close to him might give us a face or a name"
"I'll set up something"
As Tank and Bobby left the room Hector hung back. He and I had an understanding for the way we each worked. Not everyone felt comfortable with him, he was seen as a wild card. Unpredictable and someone who still worked with the dregs of society.
"I found out that Dolby owes lots of money to one of the bosses. They want him and I know where he's hiding out"
I always told Steph that nothing was black and white, nearly always grey. I tried to follow a code that maybe wasn't always legal but certainly within a moral standing. What Hector was suggesting was one of those grey areas and what he wanted was for me to give him the go ahead. To hand out some justice that was legally wrong but morally right. I didn't really need to think about how I would answer him.
"Do it"
That was enough for Hector to know that I wanted the man dead but not by anyone of us. The mob would do the job for us. The lockdown was disengaged, and I watched as Hector left my office. Now I had some reading to do. I was sure that within all the research we'd done there would be a clue, especially if Steph had followed her instincts in how she followed clues. Something that I hoped Ash hadn't been aware of was how Steph always printed out what she was reading. If I could find a discrepancy in the printed version and the one saved to the search file, I would know I was on the right track. I knew Steph had been excited that she had found out who Remi was, her true identity, so that was where I was starting. The timing as well, whilst it confused me might just fit in if Ash thought she was too close to uncovering something. I found her printed version in a large box file in the room she'd been working in. The file was full of all the searches she'd completed. I printed the search on Remi now stored on the system and sat down to compare the two. I was skimming through the words not really reading them but looking for where they differed. It didn't take long to find a section that was missing from the saved file. According to the search Steph had printed Siobhan Remington had inherited 50% of her deceased parent's assets. One of those assets was the family country home, and that was the piece of information that was missing. I wrote the address down and then returned her files into the folder and shut down the computer. If Ash checked activity, he'd think I had nothing. That meant that this Siobhan was the one working with Ash. Now I needed to find somewhere so I could put some plans in motion, without using computers or phones in case Ash had set up an alert for anyone communicating with me. I made a phone call and set off to meet with someone who might be able to help.
