A/N: I really can't tell you how much I enjoy reading your thoughts and comments. Thank you to all who leave a review or follow or favorite this story. Unlike my previous stories, this one is literally being posted as each chapter is completed. While I think I know where this is going, sometimes the story takes on a life of its own when a reviewer's comment sparks something in my brain - so keep those reviews coming!
Chapter 12
In all the time I had known Ranger, he had never treated me with anything other than respect. Sure, I had exasperated him at times, and probably driven him a little crazy, but he had always been supportive. His control was legendary and the barely controlled rage with which he had spoken was more disconcerting than his words. I could understand why he was angry with Morelli, but I didn't understand why he was angry with me. Was he mad that I had slapped him? Or was it because of what I had done to distract Sergei?
Lester guided me to the front, passenger door and motioned for Binkie to get in the back with Joe. I settled myself into the seat and looked back to Lester, hoping he had some explanation for what was going on. He gave me a small shake of his head, and I realized he didn't want to talk about it in front of Joe.
"We need to get your neck checked out, Steph. Vince, drop Morelli off at this house and then take her to St. Francis." Lester said.
"No, I don't need to go to the hospital. They used a knife to remove the tracker but I don't think the cut is that deep. I'll clean it up when I get home." I hated hospitals and there was no way I wanted anyone from the Burg to see me like this.
"You won't be able to see what you're doing to take care of that. Tell you what, come back to Rangeman and we'll have Bobby take a look at it. If he thinks you need stitches, we'll talk about it then."
I nodded, knowing I wasn't going to win this one but happy not to head straight to the emergency room. Lester stepped back to close the door but paused to say, "You did a good job, Steph. You kept your head and executed, even when you had no back-up. I'd have you on my team any day." With that, he shut the door and turned back towards the other SUV.
"What a crock of shit." Joe sounded a bit nasally as he continued to hold the cold pack to his face. I had the fleeting thought that the least he deserved was to have his nose broken. When no one responded to his statement, I guess Joe took that to mean we wanted to hear what asinine thing he had to say. "How can he say you did a good job? You were kidnapped and almost raped and murdered."
I turned around to look at him over my shoulder. "I was supposed to be kidnapped. That was the plan. What was your excuse?" My question was met with silence so I continued. "You are the one who put me in danger of being raped and killed. In fact, you were the one who created this whole fiasco when you gave up Ranger. Fortunately, we were able to get him out, but at what cost? You didn't see what they did to him. He was flogged, Joe. He was beaten and whipped, and that is on you."
"Bullshit, Cupcake. He knew what he signed up for when he started this job. Anyone in his line of work knows this is the chance you takeā¦." Suddenly Joe quit talking and slumped to the side. I craned my neck further around and saw Binkie trying to look innocent while holding a stun gun. I gave him a big smile and settled back in my seat. The adrenaline had worn off and I was suddenly exhausted. I felt something on my shoulder and glanced back to see Binkie was offering me a jacket from the back seat. Smiling my thanks, I spread it over me like a blanket and closed my eyes to rest.
I woke up as we pulled up in front of Joe's house on Slater Street. I stared out the front windshield as Vince shifted the vehicle into park and popped the locks on the doors. Hearing no movement from the backseat, I finally glanced back to see a silently seething Joe glaring at me. "Last chance, Steph. Get out of this car with me now, or we're done."
I looked at him in disbelief. "Joe, we were done the second you gave up Ranger to try to save your own ass."
"That just proves he is more important to you than I am." Joe said in disgust.
"You've got it all wrong Joe. I can trust Ranger. He will always have my back. As a matter of fact, I can trust every one of the guys at RangeMan to have my back. I can't say that about you. You'd probably sell out your mother if it meant saving your own skin. Get out, Joe. We're done."
"Yeah, he sure had your back when he kicked you to the curb in Newark." he scoffed before opening the door. "You'll miss me, Cupcake. And when you come crawling back like you always do, I won't be waiting." Joe got out of the SUV and slammed the door behind him. I waited to feel something - sadness, heartache, maybe even regret, that someone who had been a part of my life for so long no longer had a place in it. I found it a little disturbing that I didn't really care.
Vince put the car in gear and pulled away from the curb. I asked him to drop me off at my apartment, but we headed to Haywood instead. I should have known he wouldn't let me out of my promise to Lester.
We got back before Bobby, so Vince grabbed the industrial sized first aid kit out of the control room and we went down to his apartment on four. I had stayed very briefly in one of the employee apartments but I had never been to one occupied by one of the guys. I was curious to see if they kept their homes as cool and impersonal as Ranger kept his apartment on seven. I was surprised at how comfortable Vince's apartment felt. He had a couple of overstuffed chairs that faced an impressive large screen television. There were several different gaming consoles and rows of movies and games lined up neatly on the shelves below. I took a moment to peruse the titles and was not surprised to find they were all war games and action movies.
"Let's get you cleaned up so Bobby can see how bad it is." Vince suggested and he indicated that I should precede him into the bathroom. I leaned over the sink with my head turned to the side so my hair would fall out of the way. Vince wet a clean washcloth with warm water and gently washed the dried blood from my neck. He was careful on to get too close to the cut and I was amazed at his almost delicate touch.
We heard one sharp rap on the door and then heard the door opening. "We're in the bathroom." Vince called out just before Bobby walked into view. Vince rinsed the cloth out one more time and then set it aside. There was no way we were all going to fit in the bathroom at the same time so Bobby stepped aside so Vince could exit. Vince stood in the doorway as Bobby placed the ginormous first aid kit on the closed toilet lid. He pulled on a pair of latex before pushing my hair up out of the way to get a better look. I felt awkward bent over the sink, but Bobby didn't seem to mind.
"The cut doesn't look very deep. It looks like they stopped digging when they got to the tracker. I am going to clean it out and use a butterfly bandage to try to pull the sides together as best as I can, but you're still going to have a small scar." Bobby explained.
I wasn't concerned about the scar. It would be under my hair most of the time anyway and if it meant I didn't have to go to the hospital for stitches I was okay with that. I tried not to wince as Bobby gently cleaned the wound. Once he was satisfied that it was as clean as it was going to get, he applied an antibiotic ointment before pulling it closed with the butterfly bandage. Over that, he added a waterproof bandage so I could take a shower.
"You've got quite a bump on the back of your head. What happened?" he asked as he gentled probed the bump on the back of my skull. Now that the cut on my neck was taken care of, Bobby had me standing before him so he could assess the rest of my injuries.
"Chantelle pushed be backwards into a desk, but I'm okay now. No headache or dizziness." I didn't think it was necessary to mention losing consciousness, I wouldn't want to make Bobby worry. Besides, then he would make me go to the hospital for sure. At that moment, the beast in my stomach chose to make an appearance.
"Vince, go to the break room and grab some of Ella's soup and a sandwich for Steph. And grab a bottle of water, too."
As soon as we heard the door shut Bobby stopped with the exam and leaned back to look me in the eye. "I'm sorry to do this Steph, but I need to know. Were you sexually assaulted?"
Now I understood why Bobby sent Vince to get the food rather than having Ella bring it down. He knew this would be a difficult question for me and was trying to make it as easy as possible on me. I felt the heat rise in my face as I glanced down and shook my head no. "Steph, it's nothing to be ashamed of, but if you were we need to have you treated."
"No, Bobby. Nothing more than some heavy groping through my clothes. I don't need a rape kit." He just nodded and continued to examine my cuts and bruises until Vince returned with a bowl of Ella's hearty vegetable soup and a turkey sandwich on a multigrain roll.
Bobby finished up his exam and rubbed some arnica cream on my worst bruises before packing up the first aid kit. He told me to call if I developed a fever or noticed the area around my cut getting red. Then he told me to eat and asked Vince to drive me home when I was ready. I sat at the breakfast bar in Vince's kitchen and tried to eat, but I suddenly felt the events of the last twenty four hours catching up with me. It was hard to believe that it was only a day ago that we had found out Ranger was missing.
"Vince, I think I'm ready to go home now. I'll take the soup and sandwich with me and eat it later. Right now, I just need to shower and be in my own space." I explained.
We packed up my soup in a plastic container Vince found in the cupboard (who knew Merry Men had Tupperware?) and wrapped up my sandwich in some plastic wrap. I followed Vince down to the garage and piled into the Ford Explorer he beeped open. The ride to my apartment was spent in silence and I didn't protest when Vince walked me to my apartment and checked it for bad guys. Once it was deemed bad guy free, I was allowed to enter.
Thanking Vince for the ride, I closed and locked the door behind him. I didn't need to peek through the peephole to know he would be standing outside my door until he heard the chain slide into place.
I put the soup and sandwich in the refrigerator for later and opened the bottle of water. I took several deep pulls from the bottle before making my way into the bathroom. I stripped off the shirt and yoga pants the Things had made me put on and stuffed them into the trash. I turned the shower on as hot as I could stand it before stepping in and pulling the shower curtain closed. As the near scalding hot water flowed over me, I grabbed the loofah and started scrubbing. I felt dirty, but no matter how hard I scrubbed, I couldn't feel clean again. I had been groped. I had kissed and fondled a man as a distraction. I had killed a man.
I don't remember when I started to cry as I continued to scrub at my skin as hard as I could, but suddenly I was sobbing so hard I started retching. I found myself sinking down on my knees in the tub with the water flowing over me as I threw up the water I had just drank and then continued dry heave when there was nothing left.
I was still kneeling in the tub when the water turned cold but I couldn't make myself move. Then, the water was off and the shower curtain was pulled aside and I was being wrapped in a towel and lifted from the tub. The sobbing had stopped but I continued to cry softly as I was gently dried and then carried into my bedroom.
I was afraid to open my eyes because I knew this had to be a dream, but I don't ever remember a dream that felt so real. I kept my eyes closed when a soft t-shirt was pulled over my head and as I was lowered into my down turned sheets. I felt someone slide into bed beside me and when a pair of strong arms wrapped around me, I finally started to believe this wasn't a dream.
A gentle kiss was placed on the top of my damp curls. The last thing I remember hearing as I succumbed to the overwhelming pull of sleep brought on by mental and physical exhaustion was a voice whispering, "Babe."
