Chapter 24

It had been a long time since I'd seen Ranger surprised but that was exactly what I saw on his face, then curiosity before his blank face slammed down.

"Oh no you don't, you're not going to get all macho on me like that"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, we had some time to talk before, well she was struggling to breathe"
"She'd got broken ribs from the rock fall that had injured her chest and punctured her lung. What did she tell you?"
"Are you going to stop me working with you on this?"
"No. For two reasons"
I saw him drop the blank face, but I could see concern and worry now.

"First, I do want you with me on this. I know I can omit to tell you things, usually it's to keep you safe"
"Usually, does that mean you'll tell me everything you know?"
"Yes, though it's going to be a hard habit to break"
"Okay and the second reason?"
"I know you all too well. You'd go with what you had and not tell me anything then follow the clues you had. I don't want that to happen"
"So we agree to tell each other everything"
"Everything Babe"

My hand went to my neck as I remembered her giving me her locket. Of course, there was nothing there now so where the hell was it?

"I had a locket on, do you know where it went?"
"I was given a bag with all your belongings in at the hospital. I'll go fetch it"

I was surprised that Ranger hadn't asked me about it, why I had it or what it meant, but waited until he returned and handed it to me.

"I only made sure your rings were handed back to me, I just never thought to look"
I turned the locket over in my hand, it was surprisingly heavy so must have been made from solid gold. It was more of a reddish yellow color than I was used to. It was shiny but as I turned it around there were a lot of marks on it. I carefully opened the locket revealing the inside and found myself looking at two photographs. The first one was black and white and quite grainy but showed the faces of a woman and child sat smiling at the camera. It was probably Alejandra and her mother when she was younger. The second photo showed the face of a man, maybe her father when he was younger, but there was writing around it. I showed Ranger the locket.

"What does the writing say?"
"I will always love you"

"She gave me this and told me she'd worked it out and to find him"
I watched as Ranger turned the locket over in his hand, rubbing the back with his thumb.

"Babe, this looks to be made from pure gold"
"I know"
"No, I mean gold before it's been treated. Normally gold used for jewelry has copper or silver added to it to make it harder"

"Maybe her father had it made for her, he worked in a gold mine"

After looking at the photos inside he handed the locket back to me.

"Any idea what she meant Babe?"
"Not really. Obviously who ever set off that explosion wanted to keep her quiet because of what she knew"
"Gael gave her apartment a cursory look through but he said there wasn't much there"
"Okay, so what about that lead from Marin to look for Fábrega?"
"I'm still trying to figure that one out"

As I fingered the locket in my hand, I knew there was something I was missing, something maybe in the searches I'd done. I would need to read through them again to jolt my memory. I was brought out of my musings by the appearance of Bones, who gave Ranger a brief nod but endowed me with a brilliant smile.

"It's nice to see you up and about Steph. How's the leg doing?"

"Okay, it's still hurts especially when moving around"

I lifted the skirt of my dress and watched as Bones carefully peeled back the dressing. As he gently felt around the gash, I realized he was one of the Merry Men I had never got to know very well in Trenton. He'd moved down to Miami and Bobby had taken over all things related to medical.

"Do you like it down here?"
"Yes and Amy feels more at home here. She found it really difficult to fit in anywhere in Trenton"
"Amy?"
"My wife"

I didn't know he was married, to be honest most of the men at Trenton were still single, I wondered why that was.

"It's healing really well Steph. The stitches can come out in a couple of days and then you can start with some physio"
"No tablets?"
"No, I don't want you on antibiotics so soon after the last lot. There's no sign of infection so there's no need for any"
"Do I still need something over it?"
"Just when you shower, otherwise let the air get to it"
He pulled my dress down and then turned to Ranger.

"Are you here for a few days Ranger?"
"I think so, maybe if we wait until the stitches are out before we leave"
"Sure, I'll send the report to Bobby for his records"
Ranger stood up and went with Bones as he left. I thought about what he'd said, yeah, I could see a woman being uncomfortable in Trenton. Hell, any newcomer to the Burg was treated as an outcast by the women there. My own mother being one of the worst culprits of them all. I reclined the seat and turned onto my side, the view of the ocean in front of me. Between the soft feel of the breeze and the sound of the waves it wasn't long before I was asleep.

I felt someone shaking me, holding me and opened my eyes to see Ranger looking down on me. I blinked my eyes trying to remember the dream, I was back down in the tunnel with Ali next to me, listening to what she was trying to tell me. I had to remember everything Ali had told me.

"Babe. It's okay"
"I was hearing Ali"
"Babe you don't need to go through that again"
"I do, I need to remember what she said"

"Please Babe, don't beat yourself up over this"
"But she knew who it was. The locket, there has to be more to it. It was the last thing she did, to give it to me"

"Okay, we'll take a better look at it"
I felt his hand stroking my head as I lay there and raised my hand to cover his and smiled back at him.

"I feel okay, honestly. The dream didn't frighten me"
"Okay, how about a drink and maybe something to eat?"
"No, I'm still full. I want to look at that locket again"
"It's on the table where we were sat"

He helped me to stand up and together we walked to the steps, there weren't that many, but I felt myself being lifted and carried toward where we were sat before. I picked up the locket again, looking carefully at the outside and then opened it to where the photos were. This time I carefully pulled the narrow frame that surrounded the photo of Ali and her mother and then pulled the photo out. Ranger had sat silently watching me as I did this but held out his hand for the photo. He looked carefully at it and then turned it over to look at the back. I was intent on seeing if there had been anything underneath it. I was so disappointed when all I saw was the gold at the back where the photo had been. I looked over to Ranger.

"It has a date on it, June 1987"
"She'd just be about 6 years old, so this was taken before the mining accident"

I was busy trying to free the second photo, the frame on this one was a much tighter fit. As It came away, I automatically handed the photo to Ranger and looked hopefully back at the locket. My heart jumped as I spied a small piece of paper.

"Babe, this doesn't make sense"
"What is it?"
"It has a date that's only ten years ago"
"But her father died at least twenty years ago, Les found the newspaper article"

That meant the photo couldn't be Aran Fábrega, so who on earth was it? My mind went back to the first photo so putting the locket down I picked up the original photo. Something wasn't right, something was different. I wasn't aware that Ranger had gone into the house until he came back and handed me a magnifying glass. I was trying to remember the photo that Les had found, it wasn't a clear photo, but I remembered trying to look for something that would be unique to one of the woman, maybe a piece of jewelry. That's when it hit me. Using the magnifying glass, I could see the shape of a locket around the older woman's neck, that wasn't there on the other one. I looked more closely at the young child. Yes, there were similarities to Ali, but I was almost sure that this photo wasn't her.

"It isn't Alejandra and looking at her build I'd say they're younger"

"Why say that?"

I looked again at the photo and suddenly it became so very clear.

"Oh shit, this isn't a young girl. I think this is a very attractive boy"

"So, what are you thinking Babe?"

"I don't know, it doesn't make sense"

"If it isn't Alejandra and her mother, then who is it?"

"Ranger the photo of the man, how old would you say he was?"
"Maybe 20 to 30"

"Maybe this is the man Ali was looking for"

"Are you saying that this may be Fábrega?"

"It could be"

I picked up the small piece of paper that had been hidden behind the photo and very carefully unfolded it. Written in very small writing were the words "Vida romántica - nunca será"

I passed the paper to Ranger for him to translate it for me, surprised when he hesitated.

"It reads, "A romantic life, never to be"

I had no idea what that meant but it must be important if it had been hidden behind the photograph. I wondered who it was that had put it there, Alejandra or the man in the photo and why such a melancholy verse?

"Babe why don't we head to Rangeman tomorrow and you can run some searches while I finish off some work that needs doing. We can stay the night there and then leave the following morning to head back to Trenton"

I nodded my head at that suggestion. I knew I needed to rest some more but also knew I'd be biting at the bit to follow up on what we'd just found.

"Ranger, what have you told your handler, Marin?"
"Nothing. He thinks I'm heading down to Bogota tomorrow"

"Won't he know we were there"
"No, the only information that came out of what happened in the tunnel was the death of a guide and an injured tourist"
"Good"

We spent the remainder of the day relaxing at the house, I think we both were in need of recharging our energy levels. I'd never seen Ranger so relaxed before, yes I had, when we were in Hawaii. I spent most of my time cuddled up with him and dozing totally content with my life. I managed to eat more in the evening but having rested so well during the day I was wide awake after dinner. Once showered I went into the lounge area with the intention of watching some TV. I was distracted by my surroundings and started to walk around looking at the books in a bookshelf which of course took me around the room and the low-level cabinets. One shelf had an array of frames on, that piqued my curiosity. I picked one up and found myself looking at a photograph of Ranger and Julie. It must have been taken recently because Julie looked older than I remembered. I occasionally swapped emails with her but knowing how tenuous my relationship was with Ranger had never pushed it to anything more. I didn't want Ranger to feel I was encroaching into his personal life. I put that photo down and picked up another, seeing four extremely serious faces looking back at me. There was Tank, Les, Bobby and Ranger all dressed in army camouflage gear with the scene of a desert behind them. The next photo I picked up had me drawing in my breath. It looked like me, but not how I imagined me to look like. I was sat cross legged on a beach, with the waves behind me. My hair was being blown around my face, a face that had no makeup on, but I was wearing an enormous smile. It was almost as if someone had edited the photo to make me look, different. I was sure I didn't look like this. It was definitely me though because I recognized the blue of my eyes that seemed to be looking right into the camera.

"You look beautiful in that photo"
I jumped slightly because I had been so focused on the photo, I hadn't realized Ranger had come up behind me.

"Someone did a good job editing it"
"No Babe, you are a very beautiful woman. You don't see yourself like other people do"
"Who took this?"
"Santos. He was with you once when you went to Point Pleasant"
"I remember now, it was when you were in the wind and he just turned up at my apartment and said I needed the day off to relax"
I watched as Ranger picked up the next photo and passed it to me. I saw him stood next to an elderly woman who was sat down. Her hair was going grey but pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck, her skin was slightly darker than Ranger's and showed her age from the wrinkles. It was her eyes that were captivating, the same deep dark brown eyes as Ranger. The same intensity that I loved so much.

"My Abuela Rosa. She was who I lived with when my parents sent me down here. I'd like you meet her Babe before we leave"
"I'd like that"
"She knows about you. She's the only relative that I really confide in and I know she would like it as well"
"Ranger, this house?"
"Is mine. I sometimes come here when I'm in Miami. It's somewhere where I can relax, ground myself"
"Do many people know about it?"
"No, the core team of course and Juan who manages Rangeman Miami and now Bones"
"Do you bring Julie here?"
"No. I need to have somewhere that's not tied to me or Rangeman or family. I suppose I felt that I needed a place that was private, personal and secure"

"I understand, it feels serene here and I love that you brought me here"
"Babe anything I have is yours as well"
I didn't know what to say to that. I'd never owned very much and what I did have I had worked for. I would never want Ranger or anyone to think that material possessions were important to me.

"I have everything I want or need with you"
I'm sure I saw a slight shake of his head as he turned away from me. I continued to look around at the things in the room. They had a new meaning for me now because these were things that Ranger had taken the time to decorate his house with, they meant something to him. As I read through some of the books on the shelf there was one that piqued my interest. One that might allow me to learn something about the man that I loved. I felt him pulling me toward the couch where we spent the rest of the evening. He told me stories of his time in Miami living with his Abuela and how she had ensured he'd learnt respect and manners the hard way before the move to trust. She supported him through his education and his decision to join the army. From what he told me I could feel the love that he felt for her. Obviously, I compared it my own upbringing and even though I'd had a family around me I felt saddened that my parents had never really shown me the feelings that a parent should endow upon their child.

"Babe, what are you thinking?"
"I never had that with my parents"
"Why would you say that?"
"My father never really had much to do with Val or me, my mother was the one who took charge. She was always putting me down as a young kid, always wanting me to be more like my sister"
"Did that change as you got older?"
"No, she always blamed me when things went wrong so I suppose as I got older I didn't care anymore and did as I pleased"

"Were you a rebel Babe?"
"Hey, I'm a Jersey girl, and did she hate that"
"What about now?"
"She tries to manipulate me rather than support or encourage me. She thinks she knows what's best for me rather than letting me find my own way"
"Remember your pep talk?"
I looked at him wondering where he was going with that, but in my head I was saying it to myself, only to hear Ranger repeat it to me.

"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, smarter than you think and loved more than you'll ever know"
"How does that help with my mother?"
"Because as you really start to believe it she'll recognize those qualities in you and I'm sure you'll see that her behavior toward you will change"
I'd never really thought about the image I portrayed to my family. Grandma always supported me, she always had even as a kid. Maybe Ranger was right, maybe if I became more assertive with my mother and showed her those qualities, then she'd accept who I was, reluctantly but without protest. As I smiled at Ranger, he pulled me to him and kissed me gently. That was how we spent the remainder of the evening, kissing and touching. Whilst our actions could have become sexual, they didn't. I knew Ranger was being careful because of my leg. How we were with each other, whispering sentiments felt more loving and romantic, bringing to us a different, yet intense feeling between us. I felt loved and cared for and hoped that Ranger felt the same way. Once we'd decided to go to bed, I snuggled closely to him, I wanted to verbalize how I felt. I was surprised when Ranger's voice broke through my thoughts.

"Babe, tonight was different for me. I've never spent time like that with a woman before. It made me feel closer to you, that love isn't just about the sexual attraction. I could spend a lifetime just holding you, being near to you. It made me realize just how strong our love is for each other. Para siempre, como mi pareja, amante y esposa. Mi alma gemela"

"For someone who doesn't say very much you said exactly what I feel. Te amo con todo mi corazón Carlos"
As the words left my mouth he squeezed me to him, I'd made a real effort to find the right words I could say to him from that book on his shelf, and it was with a feeling of total euphoria that I drifted to sleep.

As we travelled in a Porsche Cayenne away from the house toward Rangeman I was feeling very nervous. I had no idea how to behave with the men I would be meeting with. I was so used to the men in Trenton and how they accepted me for who I was. As we pulled into a parking space in the garage, I waited anxiously for him to come around the car to my door. Instead of helping me out he crouched down in front of me, looking intently at me.

"Babe, you've not said a word since we left the house, what's got you so nervous?"
I should have known that he would be able to read the change in my mood and remembering that I had to open my feelings to him I closed my eyes and then began to tell him.

"I feel nervous that I don't know anyone here or how they'll react to me"
"Babe they know of you. Stories get told from the other offices"
"What stories?"

My eyes snapped open at what he'd said. Did that mean they would all know of how bad a bounty hunter I was, the blown up cars and disastrous take downs?

"They know how you've helped me, getting Julie back and supporting me when I was accused of killing Ramos. I'm sure they'll have heard of some of the incidents with the men when they've helped you. But they respect you Babe and they know that I have looked out for you"

Of course, there would be cameras down here and no doubt we were being watched. As I got out of the car and smoothed my dress down from my hips a door banged open making me jump. A glance to where the noise had come from had me seeing Bones and another man. Ranger had his arm around my waist as I limped toward them, so they stopped and waited for us to join them.

"You're walking better Steph. How's it feeling?"
"Better, it still hurts when I walk but the stitches are pulling now"

"How about I take you to the infirmary and take them out"
I nodded my head, surprised when Ranger started to walk away with the other man. They stopped by the door from where I heard a conversation between them, in Spanish of course.

"Babe, Bones can bring you up to my office when you're finished"
Okay, was that his way of downplaying that we were now together or had he important work to do upstairs? I didn't want to think of the reasons why so happily allowed Bones to support me by holding my elbow. We were soon in an elevator heading up. As Bones read a message on his phone, I noticed that the numbers only went to six and that the doors opened on the second floor.

"Down here Steph"

He opened a door that led into a large office that had two doors leading from it.

"It's a larger infirmary than at Trenton, more men work here so Ranger decided we needed to be better equipped"
He opened one of the doors that led into a surgery and asked me to sit on the bed. I watched as he snipped and pulled the stitches relieved that they were out.

"Here's some simple exercises you can do, but don't overdo it to start with. If it starts to hurt, then stop. Bobby can do more with you up in Trenton"

I pushed myself from the table as he handed me some papers, no doubt these were the exercises he wanted me to do.
"Thanks Bones. I'm sorry to have caused so much trouble"
"Anytime Steph, just take care of yourself"
As we walked out of the infirmary toward the elevator Bones was using his phone again and once in the elevator, he gave me an explanation.

"Ranger asked me to let him know when you were on your way so he could meet you"
That helped me to relax knowing I would probably be meeting the Merry Men of Miami with Ranger at my side. As the doors opened Ranger took my hand and started to lead me down the corridor when I heard a voice behind me calling my name. I turned to see Silvio walking toward us.

"Steph, I didn't realize you were here. It's good to see you, how you doing?"

"Good, though I miss you up in Trenton"
"Nonsense, from what I hear you're doing a dam good job when you work there"
"So how do you like Miami?"
"Love it. The family are pleased to be back here as well"
Weird, another married guy whose family preferred Miami to Trenton. As I turned back to Ranger there was another man stood next to him. He looked slightly older than Ranger but looked to have similar features. Dark hair cut short, dark brown eyes with mocha latte skin and the looks and physique that seemed to be a requisite to be a Rangeman.
"Babe this is Juan, my older brother. Juan meet Steph"
I had to admit at being shocked at that, Ranger had never mentioned that Juan was related. I was taken by surprise when Juan pulled me to him, and he kissed both of my cheeks and though I wanted to move away from him, I was stopped when he held me by my arms and just looked at me.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet. You are far more beautiful than I imagined"
As he let go of my arms I looked down at my shoes, sure my face was blushing, and felt Ranger pull me into his side.

"My office Juan"
We walked in through a door into what I knew was Ranger's office. Hell, it was like déjà vu with the layout and furniture. Maybe bigger than his Trenton office but the furniture and colors were exactly the same. Ranger led me to a leather couch set against the wall that had a coffee table in front of it and two leather chairs opposite. As we sat down Juan fetched three bottles of water from somewhere and placed them on the table. I knew as soon Ranger sat forward that he intended to have a serious conversation.

"Juan, Steph is with me doing some work"
I saw Juan's eyes flick to my left hand and suddenly felt slightly embarrassed.

"Okay, as far as the men go I'll make sure that's what they understand. But hermano, why not tell me?"
I was sure Ranger had no idea what Juan was referring to and I saw him lift an eyebrow, basically telling Juan to explain himself. A look crossed Juan's face, he wasn't sure what to say and maybe he was thinking he'd jumped to the wrong conclusion. He sighed and then looked Ranger in the eye.

"Steph is wearing an engagement ring"
"Yes she is"
"I assumed it was from you. I know how important she is to you"
I looked at Ranger, trying to figure out what he was thinking, or what he was going to say. I was relieved when he smiled and took hold of my hand.

"It is from me, just recently. But Juan I want to keep it quiet until we've had chance to talk with family and friends"
"Mama and Papa don't know?"
"No, we've been down here in Miami"
"I knew you were at the beach house and that Bones had visited, I just assumed you'd been injured"
"No. Steph got hurt so needed Bones to check her out"
I watched as concern swept Juan's face and he looked at me. To an observer they wouldn't see any sign of an injury and because Ranger had held me when we walked into his office my limp wasn't that obvious.

"Are you alright now?"
As I nodded my head my attention was caught by Ranger taking his phone from the belt of his cargos. I saw him close his eyes and then he abruptly stood up, meaning that something was wrong.

"Juan take Steph through to the workroom. Someone's coming in here and I don't want them to know Steph is here"

I never got a chance to ask anything as Juan gently took my elbow and started to walk me through a door within the office. This time I couldn't help but feel a slight ache in my leg and ended up limping slightly. The door closed behind me and I found myself in a room set up as a small meeting room. A circular table had eight chairs around it and a smaller table to the side with coffeemaking facilities and mugs. Another table held a computer, monitor and printer. I pulled a chair out and sat down waiting for Juan to do the same. I was surprised when his phone beeped, and he stood still to read the message.

"Ranger wants you to observe his meeting"

I raised my eyebrows at that, curious who the meeting was with. Juan switched on the computer and once the screen came alive clicked through a few icons until the screen filled with the inside of Ranger's office. I walked over to the table and took the seat that Juan had pulled over for me. Ranger was sat behind his desk, to anyone entering the room he would look as though he was busy working. I heard the door open and my heart dropped as that damn woman walked in. Anna held herself with confidence as she walked across the room. Well sashayed across it in her tight fitting short red dress that did nothing to hide her cleavage or the top of legs as the dress swirled around her thighs. Ranger stayed in his seat and just looked up at her.