I walked into the apartment after Morelli dropped me off, and changed into my Rangeman black. Tia was just waking up from her morning nap and starting to fuss. I left my shirt untucked and walked through to the nursery to pick her up out of her crib. I nuzzled her on her tummy and she gurgled in happiness, and I changed her and carried her through to the living room where Amelia was doing some schoolwork for her college courses. "How are you?" I said.

"Good. You look happy. Did you have a successful morning?"

"We did. We've been working on the gay serial killer case, and we talked to the ex-fiancée of the killer. She provided the proof that we needed to convict the man. After we left her apartment, we phoned it in to have the man picked up and Joe and I went to see Jose. He had just buried Vic yesterday, and he was in control of himself but barely. We were able to tell him, however, that we'd identified the man and that he was currently being picked up. While we were talking with Jose, we got confirmation that Harley was in custody and that the police were running his DNA. The results will take another couple of days to confirm identification, but we already have him on his confessions that he left for Lorraine after each murder and, just to sweeten the pot, he had removed each victim's penis, and the TPD found the trophies in a box under his bed."

"Why did he do it?"

"He was bisexual and trying to eliminate proof that he'd had a sexual relationship with other males. Each of the people that he killed were people that he'd had sex with in high school. He was doing it so that he could get his fiancée back. Apparently she was the youth pastor in her church and her church was one that believed homosexuality was a sin. Of course, so was sex outside the marital relationship and he'd raped her as a teenager. She thought he was the only person she could marry because he was the only person, with her views on premarital sex, who wouldn't look down on her for having had sex outside a marriage."

"Crap. Religion can be a good thing, but when it is extreme it can also cause problems, can't it?"

I nodded. "Unfortunately."

"What are you doing this afternoon?"

"You still have another bottle, so after I feed Tia I'll head down to the floor to see what needs to be done next week, and to start setting up people's weeks. I have a bit of paperwork to do. I anticipate that I'll be back up here by about three or three-thirty, and I'll have a nap before getting ready to go to my parents tonight. I'm a little tired. Tia had me up early and I didn't settle again once Ranger left for the airport."

"Have you heard from him?"

"I got a text from him that said that they were there, the plans had all been reviewed for their design and installation, and their security officer was very pleased. He said, at first glance, the contract looked good and incorporated all the numbers that were in our proposal. Ranger plans, as long as Emmy greenlights it, to sign it that afternoon."

"That's awesome!"

"That's what I said. Ranger sounded very happy. But that is why I'm going to my parents tonight. Ranger is still a little angry with Val, despite karma biting her in the butt, and he's a little irritated with my grandmother and hates how her pursuit of gossip and her belief that it is okay to create some in the absence of anything scandalous, happens at the expense of my peace of mind."

"Are you sure you don't want to come to Tank's and my place instead?"

I laughed. "I feel I should spend some time with them. My grandmother is, after all, getting older. Going to my family's isn't comfortable, but I value family and I'll keep trying, and I hope that my relations with my family soon ease and become more relaxed."

"If you want to talk afterwards", she said, "I'm around."

"Thanks." I grinned. "I have a pin."

Amelia looked confused. "You have a pin?"

"If things look like they are heading south, I'll just keep jabbing Tia to make her cry, and I'll tell them that something must be bothering her and that I have to go."

Amelia smiled. "Especially keep it handy if your mom is serving cabbage rolls."

"Ugh", I said. "Don't even suggest that."

Amelia laughed.

~ The End ~