Chapter 19

The following morning, I woke alone. I wasn't surprised because I knew Ranger would have gotten up early to go down to the gym. What did surprise me was how early it still was. There still wasn't much light coming in through the drapes. I turned over trying to go back to sleep but after a few minutes it just wasn't going to happen. Instead I was thinking through all the things I needed to happen. I needed clothes from my apartment and then to visit my parents. The work on Fábrega and the new skip needed doing. Probably I should talk with Lula and check in with Val about Rex and maybe catch up with Mary Lou. She'd know of any gossip going around. As I dressed, I wondered what Joe had decided to do. I didn't want him to get hurt but as I'd said to Ranger last night, what had happened to Clare and Tobi could have been avoided if only Joe had been more insistent with Terry. Or even if he'd had the gumption to just talk with Clare. Hell, she was being kept prisoner in his house.

Once dressed in a clean Rangeman uniform I took the elevator down to five and turned to go to my cubbie. I stopped short when I looked at it. I wasn't sure if I was embarrassed or pleased at what I was looking at. Sat along the back of the desk were several stuffed animals. Winnie the Pooh took center stage and was the largest of the toys. Sat next to him was Piglet and Eeyore, Kanga and Roo, Tiger, Rabbit and Owl. The last one I just couldn't remember his name. I picked up the grey colored animal, with his two big front teeth, remembering how he reminded me of a beaver.

"That's Gopher"
I turned to see Les watching me.

"I couldn't remember his name"
"I loved those books when I was a kid and then made sure I watched all the shows on TV"

"I think I liked Eeyore best, well after Pooh"
"You know you missed out the last sentence don't you?"
"I know, Ranger told me last night"
"Good, because that's what makes you so important around here"

"Thanks Les"

That was one of the most endearing things that Les had ever said to me and made me feel good about myself. Why had I taken so much notice of the horrible things said to me by my mother and Joe when here, in this building, were men who were forever saying positive things to me.
"So I hope we're staying in today, I don't fancy being chased by the mob"
"Neither do I. So yeah, we can stay in. Though at some stage I need some clothes from my apartment"
"I can do that and fetch your car at the same time"
"Nothing from the cameras?"

"Not yet, though there was a man who walked through that looked suspicious"

"Do you think he did something?"
"Not sure. He could have seen the cameras we'd installed and thought better of it"
"I suppose you couldn't get a clear picture of his face?"
"You suppose right. Ram came back with the results of any fingerprints"
"Let me guess, mine and Joe's"

"Good guess"

That only reaffirmed what Joe had said that he'd been in the apartment but probably looking for the rucksack.

"Okay, I need to start and get some work done, can you let me have some names for those people down in Columbia"
"Sure, but if that's what you're doing you'll need to be in a private room"
I nodded feeling a bit stupid that I hadn't thought about the confidentiality of the work. I watched as Les collected together my Pooh characters and then followed him down the hall, and into what I presume, was a small conference room.

The room was already fitted out with a computer, printer and boards with a file already sat next to the computer.

"Beautiful, use your fob to lock the room when you're not in here working"

As he left, I sat down and opened the file that had been left for me. I wasn't sure that the name Fábrega would actually be of any use in the search programs, especially as there was no other information on him. I flipped through the pages until I found information on Fertelli. Most of the information here focused on property he owned and known movement of him and his son. There was a photo of each of them along with a description and known habits. The father was 59 years old but for a man of his age he looked older. He was dark skinned with long dark grey hair pulled back at the nape of his neck into a ponytail. His face was lined with the signs of aging though his cheeks were rounded. His eyes though were a deep brown peering through from under a fold of skin that drooped down from his lids. His jowls were prominent over a thick neck. If I didn't know any better, I would hazard he looked ill, I wasn't sure why, just my immediate reaction from looking at him. Holman Fertelli had been born in Saravena

to parents who worked the land and he had been an only child. That took the idea of brothers, sisters or off spring out of the picture. There was nothing to say how he had ended up as a notorious drug lord and his birthplace was nowhere near the final property where he was found.

His son, Elkin, was born in Bogota, the capital, and was 40 years old. His photograph wasn't that clear but showed straight black hair cut short. He had been an attractive man and even from the photograph held himself with confidence. Again, there was information on where he'd travelled but in general it coincided with where his father had been. As I compared the two photographs, I could see a resemblance, just, but thought it odd that Elkin was quite old. Fertelli had been a father at a young age. So where were the rest of any brothers or sisters. As there was no mention they obviously hadn't been involved with their father's business. I input all the details I had for Fortelli into the search program and let it run while I found a map on Google of Colombia. Interesting that Fortelli was born near the border with Venezuela. I input a search through Google for caves near Saravena, not surprised that there weren't any that were seen as tourist attractions. Maybe though it was an area to look at.
The search finished on Fertelli and was printing so I started to read as each page came out. I was interested in his family, his wife or any other significant person. As I read, I highlighted things that jumped out at me, noted the names of people I wanted to follow up on. By the time I'd done that I was aching from being sat so long. A look at my watch told me I'd been in the room for over three hours and I was hungry. I was also a bit disappointed that I hadn't seen Ranger this morning. I put my papers into a new folder and made for the door. I even remembered to use my fob to lock it and then walked down the corridor to the breakroom. It was unusually quiet on the corridor. The breakroom was empty, so I looked around the corner into the monitoring area surprised to see Tank, Les and other men watching the monitors intently. I tried to see what they were looking at but hadn't a chance of moving between there massive frames. At last Les turned around and noticed me and pulled me to his side. "Les, what's happened, what's going on. Where's Ranger?"
"He went out with a team"
"Why"
"Something that needed sorting out"
I swear he was trying to avoid telling me anything and that only made me feel more anxious. "Les" Everyone in the room stopped talking and looked at me when I shouted, then turned back to what they were doing. Les put his arm around my shoulder and turned me toward the elevator. "He's fine Beautiful, they managed to get there before anything bad happened and are bringing one back"
"Bad, who, where?"
"Your apartment. We saw two men inside"
"How did they get past the cameras?"
"They were dressed as old people, they just kinda blended in when some of your neighbors came back from a coffee morning outing"
"Was anyone hurt?"
"No, Ranger got there in time to stop them doing anything. I'm sorry Beautiful, but your place is a bit of a mess"

By now I hadn't even realized we were stepping from the elevator into the garage. It was the sound of two cars breaking and car doors opening that had me look around. "Ranger" For some reason I was crying as I almost ran toward him. Once in his arms I could feel him against me, knowing that was all that I needed. "Babe, I'm sorry. There was some damage"
"I don't care about that as long as you're safe and no one was hurt"
"I'm good" "No one told me what was going on"
"I asked Santos to leave you to work when we left. I didn't want you upset or worse still rushing down there"
At one time I would have been annoyed that he'd left me in the dark, but I suppose he'd been right. The words that Clare said came back to me. He wouldn't have been able to focus on his job if he was worrying about me. "Have you eaten?"
"No, I was looking for something when I saw the commotion from the monitors" "Let's go up to seven, I can shower and change and then we can eat"
As Ranger showered and dressed, I used things from the fridge to make us some sandwiches. I found some cut vegetables and sauce for dipping then placed it all onto the table. Not being at my apartment when it was destroyed or seeing the aftereffects made it seem surreal. That certainly removed an item from my to do list, but I would still need some clothes and now I'd have to tidy the place up. "Babe, I was saying that Hal brought your car back here, no one had touched it" "Sorry, I was too busy thinking. Les said there were two men who were responsible. Did you catch them?"
"One, the other managed to get out onto the fire escape"
"So he's where? With the police?"
"No. I took him back to his boss"
I know I was staring now. Why the hell would Ranger do that? And that seemed so out of character for him? "Why?" "I wanted Grizoli to know not to mess with you. That if anything happened to you, he would answer to me. I also emphasized that you didn't know of anything that would make you a target. It was an interesting meeting"
"How did you know where he was?"
"Hector's kept track of him. He and Tobi are interested in the movement of Grizoli and Terry. Tobi wants to see what she does now rather than arresting her for kidnapping. He said that would happen later when he had a better idea of her involvement" "Where was Grizoli?" "He was in the back room of one the restaurants he uses with a special guest"
"Ranger, just tell me"
"Alexander Ramos was with him. Grizoli seemed annoyed at what I told him and was quick to tell me that he would never hurt you. Of course, Ramos was horrified. He still remembers you and asked me to tell you his door is always open for you if you need somewhere safe or change your mind" I smiled remembering my encounters with Alexander Ramos. He commandeered me in Big Blue while I was supposed to be watching his house, and after I helped him to escape from his sons, he'd proposed to me. "Grizoli said he had nothing to do with it but implied that the man I had with me worked primarily for his niece Terry" "I thought business for him was bad?"
"Sounded like he and Ramos were in cahoots about a new business opportunity. Grizoli promised he'd speak with Terry" "Do you think she's working on something without his knowledge?"
"It looks like it. He doesn't want her causing any trouble for him" I thought it was interesting that Terry had gone out on her own without the sanction of her uncle. What was she up to? Did she think that by getting rid of Fábrega she would be helping her uncle or was she setting out to try and take over that side of her father's business. Ramos was an arms dealer, what new business could they possibly have in common? "Babe" I watched as Ranger looked up from reading a message on his phone. "Ram just took delivery of an envelope for you delivered here. He's going to process it and then bring it up here"
"Process it?"
"Check it out for anything that could be dangerous"
I cleared away the dishes from the table, mainly as something to do while we waited. In fact, I was so busy thinking what this envelope might be that I actually washed them up and started to dry them. I saw the amused look on Ranger's face as he put everything in the right place. Even though I was expecting it I still jumped at the knock on the door and watched as Ranger answered it and brought a small white envelope back. I wasn't too sure I wanted to open it. I mean who the hell would write to me here at Rangeman. Not many people even knew I was here. Ranger took my hand and led me to the couch and then sat next to me holding the envelope out for me to take. I recognized the writing straight away so felt easier with taking it and opening it. There was a single sheet of paper inside that I started to read, holding the sheet so that Ranger could read it as well.
"Dear Cupcake. I'm really sorry that you seem to have got caught up in this. I should have realized you would stumble onto something. I spoke with Terry this morning. I explained that you had no idea what was going on, only that you thought she and I were seeing each other. She seemed placated with what I said especially when I returned the rucksack to her. Don't go to your apartment today because she admitted that she'd already sent a couple of men over to do some damage and look for the rucksack. She assured me she would leave you alone. I've taken leave owed to me. I'm gonna be out of town for a while. I'll think about what you said to me. I really wish you were coming with me. Maybe when I get back, we can go back to how we were. You'll always be mine to love. Joe"
I reread the letter again, trying to get a feel for what Joe had said. Why was he leaving town? Did he think Terry would hurt him? Was he really going to consider talking with someone in the department? Or was he hiding out until this all blew over? "Babe, what do you think?"
"That he's an even bigger asshole than I thought"
"Why?" I looked up into Ranger's eyes and hoped he understood how I felt.
"I'm not his for starters and I'll never go near him again" "Good, because I'd like to say you're mine. Would that annoy you?"
"Not if I can say you are mine as well"
"Definitely. What about the letter?"
"I don't understand why he's leaving town"
"No I'm not too sure either, too many possibilities there" "What will Tobi do about Joe having Clare at his house?"
"He said he'd wait and see what Morelli did next" I didn't want to spend any longer thinking about it, I might never know what Joe was thinking and to be honest I didn't care. I handed the letter to Ranger and got up from the couch heading toward the door.
"Babe?" "Just file the letter. I'm going back to my searches"
"We have a conference call at 1800hrs"
"Who with?"
"My handler. It's usual on a job for each operator to report in to one person"
"What happens then?"
"The handler would then collate the reports for the Director"
What did I know of protocols, I'd just do as asked and try to make sure I made a worthwhile contribution. When I went down to the room on five that I'd been working in, I was surprised to find Les sat reading the file. As I sat down, he looked up from the papers. "You highlighted some interesting points Beautiful"
"Yeah, I thought maybe the area around where Fertelli was born might yield something"
"Okay, I started the searches on those names you listed"
"Thanks. Les would it be possible to find out the names of the families from the village where Fertelli was born?"
"I can try, why?"
"Well, he married young and had their son, then no more children. There's no evidence of a divorce and his mother died when he was about 30. I'm wondering if he went back home when she became ill"
"And found himself a mistress?"
"Or maybe reconnected with a childhood sweetheart" "So you think he may have an illegitimate son"
"It would fit. He was 24 when his mother died" "I'll see what I can find"
"I'm going to see if I can find a list of births for that timeframe while the other searches run and print" It took me a while but none of the names that came up gave me a feeling that they were important. There wasn't another Fertelli or Fábrega amongst the list. The information I had listed both of the parents, so what the hell was I missing? Why only the one child at such a young age and no divorce? "Les there's nothing here. I'm missing something but it's evading me"
"No family names to tie in with Fábrega, sorry Beautiful"
"Would you check the area for the possibility of caves because it is close to the border with Venezuela" Would it be worth trying out newspapers or even chat sites? Why not? The search on Fertelli's wife had her still living in Bogota, but that she was separated from her husband, not divorced. She was associated with properties in the city and at the beach, so she must have money. She didn't work so maybe her husband still provided for her. I input her name into the newspapers that came out from Bogota, thankful for there being an English version. There were a lot of mentions of Salome Fertelli and most of them in the social columns. She was seen as a socialite attending a lot of high end functions and events. There was never any mention of her husband being with her, but their son did feature in some of the photographs. On a whim I logged into Facebook then put her name in a search. Nothing, which didn't surprise me.

I logged out and picked up the search on Fertelli and went straight to his medical record. He obviously had regular health checks, was that usual? I input the name of the doctor he used and ran a search on him. Maybe how he looked meant that he was actually ill. As the search started to come up on the screen, I wasn't surprised at what I was reading. It fit with all those little things that seemed off to me. The doctor specialized in treating patients with HIV and AIDS. Maybe that was why there was only one son, why he was separated from his wife and probably why he looked so ill. We weren't looking for a woman, we were looking for a man. Even another man, who like Fertelli, had tried to be what people expected him to be and married. Maybe he'd had children but then Fertelli came along and the attraction was strong and immediate. Maybe they fell in love. Was there a monogamous relationship that lasted his lifetime, or did he play the field? So, would he keep any relationships a guarded secret or be open about it?

For some reason I assumed Fertelli was gay and started to think through other avenues of thought. Where had Fertelli contracted the HIV virus from? It could be he'd contracted the virus through a blood transfusion or a woman. I went back to his medical records noting when the regular health checks started, to discover that he'd been attending the private clinic for about 25 years. How did this information help in finding out who Fábrega was? I wasn't sure but felt I was on the right track. The problem would be finding out who his partners may have been, not something that was easy to do.

"Beautiful, those other searches are finished" I'd forgotten all about Les sat working in the same room as me. Collecting the papers, I started to skim read through them. I was looking for someone who had a long standing friendship with Fertelli. Relatives were mainly cousins and their children and there was nothing to suggest any contact between them. Some business associates had known him for longer, though there weren't that many, and many had died over the years. I was drawn to a man named Brayan Henao who was a similar age to Serrano. He'd been born in the same town as Serrano and had the occupation of being an accountant. Interesting that Henao had been married then divorced after only three years of being married.
"Beautiful, we need to go to Ranger's office"
"Why?"
"Conference call" "Give me a minute"
"You explain why you're late then"
I heard the door close, but I was too busy reading about Henao. I just had to finish following this thread.
There was no mention of any children, so I input the name of his wife Anaya and watched as the information slowly began to appear on the screen. Anaya Henao, neé Paz, had remarried a man named Aran Fábrega and gave birth to a child who would be 36 years old now. I jumped up from my seat aware that I may have a good lead to follow now. Going into Ranger's office I could hear Ranger talking, though he didn't look away from the laptop he was using. "Ah, Miss Plum" From the tone of voice and the use of my name I assumed that whoever they were talking to wasn't pleased that I was late. "Sorry, I had to finish my last piece of reading"
"Oh, and why was that?"
"I think I'm close to finding out who Fábrega might be" I looked up at the screen to see the face of the man, the handler, the scowl he'd been wearing slowly dissolved until I could see a look of confusion. "Ranger, how long did it take her?"
"Probably about 4 hours" "So why the hell after 3 days do my analysts have nothing? Forget it, Miss Plum maybe you need to work here in Washington" "No, thank you" "How sure are you about this?"
"I still have some more work to do"
I don't know why but for some reason I didn't want to say any more to this man. I'd taken an instant dislike to him, maybe it was how he looked or how he spoke to me. I played the very short conversation through in mind. He was probably mid forties with a full head of dark hair, his eyes were brown but looked cold and hard. I didn't see him as particularly handsome, maybe because of his pasty complexion. As I focused back into what was being said I heard Ranger giving a brief outline of Clare being found and his concern over the involvement of the Grizoli family, but he was also being very guarded with what he said and at no time mentioned my involvement. "Keep me up to date Major" "Of course" The screen went blank leaving the room in an uneasy silence. "What's wrong?"
"What do you mean Beautiful?"
"You're both too quiet"
"You talk to her"
I watched as Les stood up and left the room, if I didn't know better, I'd say he was annoyed. Ranger pulled his chair closer to mine so that he was facing me, my hands were being held in his making me feel a sense of dread. "Ranger, what's going on?"
"He wants me to go down to Colombia and for you to work out of Washington" "That's not going to happen"
"I can't refuse Babe" "I'm not going to Washington"
"I wouldn't let that happen"
"What does he expect you to do if you go down to Colombia?"
"He says there are reports of Fábrega being seen in Bogota" "Well he isn't there"
"What do you know Babe?" "I'm sorry but I didn't like that man. So, I, err, didn't tell him everything"
I talked him through the threads I'd followed until I'd found someone with the surname Fábrega, adding it might well be a coincidence but they were the right age and as the mother had died 18 months ago maybe it was too much of a coincidence that this was the time when Fábrega had turned up working for Serrano. "The father?"
"Died several years ago. He was a miner and died when a mining tunnel collapsed" "Proud of you Babe. Maybe we could find out exactly where he worked"
"It's not recorded, well that I could see. Ranger you haven't asked me anything about the Fábrega we're looking for" I saw a look cross his face, as though he didn't really want to know. I was very sure he wouldn't believe me. Of course, he went silent on me meaning I was the one who had to continue.

"I think Fábrega is Alejandra"

"You mean Alejandro"
"No, Alejandra is a woman. Think about it, please. There are no records of this person Fábrega from when a team first went to Colombia. All they say was that Fábrega was new and on the payroll. Everyone just assumed it was a man"
I watched as Ranger sat back, his eyes never left mine. With every passing second, I was getting more and more anxious. I suddenly stood up and made for the door but didn't get far. Ranger's hand held my arm, firmly but not hard enough to hurt. I couldn't help it, I was half annoyed and half upset so I turned to him and let my emotions wash over me.

"I'm sorry. It's a stupid idea. You shouldn't be asking me to do this. I don't know what the hell made me think I was any good at this. I'm sorry"

My tirade emptied me of the anger inside of me and left me feeling upset and useless causing the tears to start. I turned away from Ranger and tried to move away from him, but his hold remained. He pulled me to him with his other hand coming around my head and pulling me into a mind blowing kiss. All thought of Fábrega disappeared from my mind as I focused on the feelings building within me. Feelings that only Ranger could make me feel. As he moved back from me his eyes were intense as he looked at me.

"Never doubt yourself, you are smarter than you think. What you just said took me by surprise. I never even considered Fábrega was a woman. I was trying to remember if there'd been any details of Fábrega from any of the reports. You're right, no one can give a description. Anna assumed he was a man and ran with any information that seemed to fit. There's no reason a woman couldn't be a foot soldier within a cartel, I've come across some before"
"Why didn't you tell your handler everything?"
"Probably the same reason you didn't"
"You don't trust him?"

"Him, someone in the team. Something doesn't feel right"

"Who said that Fábrega was in Bogota?"
"I don't know. Intel is passed on when needed but not the source"
"Then we'll both go to Bogota"
"Not a good idea Babe, it could be dangerous"
"Tourists are flocking down there, what better cover than a couple away on vacation"

Shit, had I just volunteered to go on vacation with Ranger or in the wind?