Vortex

by Leserei

A dangerous or bad situation in which you become more and more involved and from which you cannot escape. Things just seem to happen to Stephanie Plum that always seem to be out of her control.

37. Chapter 37

Chapter 37

There was something niggling away in my head as I woke, and I didn't know what it was. My head was pounding but I didn't remember drinking. As I moved, I felt several places twinge with pain, and that's when it all came back to me. It was like déjà vu, how the hell was I back in that room again?

An incessant noise was in the background, but I was distracted from that when I felt someone stroking my hair, just as Jerry had done before. I felt my heart start to hammer inside my chest and heard that noise getting louder. That's when I became aware of the smell around me, a smell that was so familiar. I tried so hard to open my eyes because if Ranger was here then I needed to see him.

The image in front of me started to become clear, but something wasn't quite right. As I focused, I couldn't believe that Joe was sat on by the bed smiling down at me.

"There you are Cupcake"

A look around confirmed where I was ,and a soft groan came from me as I realized I was in a hospital room.

"Where's Ranger?"

"He's not here. I'm here for you Cupcake like I said I always would be"

"Does he know I'm here?"

"Probably, but I always told you he'd get fed up of you"

"Where am I?"

"A private hospital. Only the best for you Cupcake"

I heard the monitor beat faster as I absorbed what he'd said, hating it for giving away how I was feeling. I didn't feel all that well anyway but having Joe here only amplified the feeling of unease I was feeling. Looking at Joe though he looked tired and pale making me wonder what had been happening.

"Joe what happened?"

"The house you were in was due for demolition. Christ Cupcake, you nearly died in there"

"I don't understand"

"Cupcake, it was me who found you, saved you and brought you here. I always said that it was meant to be the two of us together"

As I thought through what had happened, I couldn't believe that Jerry had left me there to die. Did he know the houses were going to be demolished, but why would he want to kill me? I didn't think I knew him, and I was sure I hadn't brought him in as an FTA before.

That Joe was there as the house exploded had me asking how he knew where I'd be. All those feelings of mistrust for Joe rose to surface. I had to keep a tight hold of the panic that was starting to take over. I was on the verge of being afraid of Joe, I willed myself to calm down because I had to make Joe believe that I was okay with being here.

"The man that took me?"

"Not now Cupcake, let's just celebrate that you're alive and with me"

I closed my eyes hoping that Joe would leave, I needed some time to think through what had happened. I felt him kiss my forehead and then footsteps crossing the room. As soon as I heard the door open and close, I squinted through my eyelids to make sure no one was in the room. Once I was sure that I was alone I looked down at myself. I had a clip over my finger that was monitoring my pulse and a canular stuck out from the back of my hand attached to a bag above me. I very carefully sat up and noticed a clean bandage around my arm then did a quick of the rest of me.

Of course, I was now in one of those stupid hospital gowns. I had scratches on me that hadn't been there before and put it down to me landing after the explosion. I couldn't believe that Ranger wasn't here, I mean he always came when I was hurt or in trouble. Did that mean that he was badly hurt and couldn't come or was Joe right, that he'd already got sick of me?

I looked down at my left hand and realized that my ring was missing. I couldn't remember when I'd last seen it. I knew I was wearing it in the car, along with my watch just before the accident. Had Jerry taken them off me? Did Jerry know that the watch was also a tracker? But how would he know that?

I was brought out of my musings by the door opening and a middle aged nurse walking into the room. I could never work out what it was about nurses that they felt they had to plaster a false smile on their faces.

"I'm glad to see you awake, how are you feeling dear?"

Like I'd been in a car accident and then been blown up! I wasn't going there because I had to get out of here and find out what the hell was going on.

"Fine, good really"

"That's good to hear"

"When can I leave?"

"Well, it is usual with a head injury to spend at least the night here so we can keep an eye on you"

"If that happens then I'll have to make a call"

"Oh, I'm sure your husband has that all in hand"

Husband, did she mean Joe? I looked down at the hospital band around my wrist and sure enough when I turned it around to read what it said it had Mrs. Stephanie Morelli written on it along with the correct date for my birthday, No way was he going to try and manipulate what happened to me. I had to get a message to Ranger, at least then I would know if what Joe had said was true.

The idea that Ranger had deserted me just didn't sit well. If he had decided to dump me then at least he would have told me to my face, wouldn't he? I was sure that he wouldn't just leave again, there'd been too many times now when he'd come and found me. No, what I needed to do was to confront him, that way I'd know for sure.

As I went through those thoughts in my head the nurse had removed the clip from my finger for the monitor and was peeling back the tape that held the canular in place. I have to admit that she was very gentle as she pulled the needle out and then as she fluffed up the pillows behind me. Lastly, she smoothed the cover over my legs and made as though to leave.

"Excuse me"
Fortunately she heard me and turned around to look at me.

"Is my husband still in the hospital?"

"No, I think he left. Do you want me to call him?"

"Could I please call him, that way I can tell him how I am now and that I'll be released in the morning"

"You just want to talk to him, don't you?"

I looked down at my hands and then looked back up to her with a slight smile on my face.

"Yeah, I suppose I do"

She beamed at me then, as though she was happy that she could make that happen. At least I hoped that was what she was implying. The nurse left and returned almost immediately with a phone in her hand.

"I'll be a few minutes. I have a couple of patients to see"

Before she handed me her phone, I saw her put in a code to unlock it and then smiling again she left me alone. I input Ranger's number and waited for it to start ringing "Shit" coming to my lips as it wouldn't go through. It made me remember what had happened that time I'd tried to contact them and couldn't get through. Was this the same? Surely not, because I knew I was calling the correct number.

I pondered on who to call next and decided to try Hector, but he might not answer if he saw an unknown number come up. As the phone rang, I crossed my fingers praying he'd answer. I was about to give up when I heard his voice on the other end.

"Hola"

"Hector it's me, I need help, I need to get out of here"

"Estefania. Where are you?"

Damn, I had no idea where I was. Why hadn't I asked the nurse the name of the hospital?

"I don't know. I'm in a private hospital"

"Hospital?"

"Hector it's a long story, please can you get me out of here"

"Are you hurt?"

"Not really"

"I trace phone. Be ready"

I was sat looking at the phone as he finished the call, hopefully he was in a hurry to get some plan in action. I had no doubt in my mind that Hector could find out where I was, though the length of time we'd been on the phone didn't seem long enough to do a trace. I went into recent calls and deleted the two I had made then lay back against the pillows. I was feeling very tired and without meaning to, drifted off to sleep.

When I woke, I was laid down, the pillows were gone and the light in the room was dim. There was no sign of the phone, so I assumed that the nurse had retrieved it, I just hoped that Joe hadn't been in and seen it because he'd know right away that I would have called for help. I wasn't too sure what Joe would do then, in fact I had no idea what he thought was going to happen when I was released from the hospital.

I could only hope that Hector got here before then. The door opened quietly allowing brighter light to seep into the room and I could see a figure stepping into the room. I knew from the outline that it was Joe but couldn't decide whether to pretend to be asleep or not.

As he approached the bed my stomach growled, meaning he'd know that I was awake. I heard him laugh as he approached the bed and sat down in the chair next to me. I turned to face him deciding to make the most of him being here.

"Joe, can you get me something to eat and drink please?"

"Sure, I'll call the nurse"

Damn, I'd hoped that he would have left the room to find me something, giving me a chance to prepare for Hector coming. It was a different nurse who came into the room and of course Joe was keen to greet her using his charms. He spoke softly to her, eliciting a giggle from her, before she disappeared from the room. Joe came back and sat down in the chair and had the nerve to take hold of my hand.

"You look better Cupcake"

"I've just woken up"

"Maybe we could get you released early"

I hoped I paled at that because that was the last thing that I needed. Somehow, I needed to convince him and probably a nurse that me leaving wasn't in my best interest.

"Where will we go?"

"I've booked a small cottage where you can recuperate and rest"

I resisted making a comment of any type. No way could I say that what he suggested sounded nice. Quite the opposite, if the monitor had still been attached then it would have shot through the roof with the panic that was running through me.
The silence was interrupted by the nurse coming into the room, carrying a tray. Joe took the tray from her while she came to the bed and raised it so that I was sat up. Joe placed the tray across my lap and removed the domes over the plates. As the smell hit me, I had an idea and just hoped that I could go through with it. For anyone watching I was enjoying my food but in actuality I hated it. I wasn't too sure what it was though it seemed to be some kind of mince with mashed potato, gravy and overcooked veg.

"I asked especially for that because I know how much you like a meal that your mother would make"

I didn't bother to reply as I finished what was on my plate and then started on what was supposed to be desert. As I took a spoonful my stomach turned, but knowing I needed to wait I took a deep breath and swallowed it. The sweet sticky substance was some kind of custard with hard chunks floating around in it. I had to really try hard to smile as Joe took the tray away from me and was desperate for the nurse to come back in.

I was feeling hot and sweaty as I leaned back and just hoped that Joe stayed away from me. Of course, he didn't, he leaned over me and tried to kiss me on my mouth. It was then that I realized that Joe was wearing Ranger's cologne, but whilst the smell was similar it wasn't the same. There was something about the smell on Ranger, maybe because it changed depending on the individual just like that Channel scent advertised.

On Joe it only repulsed me. My stomach heaved and I was suddenly vomiting, all over Joe. I didn't stop until my stomach felt empty, until it was only bile coming up. Now I felt like shit, but it didn't stop me smiling inside.

"Christ Cupcake, couldn't you have said you were going to be sick"

I leant back into the pillows with my eyes closed trying to calm my system down. I heard the door open and noticed that Joe had left me. As I breathed through the nausea, I felt someone close by, then the covers being pulled down. Somehow, I had totally missed being sick on myself, how was that for good planning.

"I think maybe you'd feel better after a shower"

My eyes opened instantly at the sound of the voice and I could have hugged them to me because stood over me in a nurses uniform was Ella. She winked at me as she pulled my legs over the side of the bed. I had to hide the grimace that I so wanted to utter because I didn't want Ella to know how much I hurt. She held me around my waist and guided me into a wheelchair that she must have brought in with her. A clean blanket was placed over my legs and we were soon heading out of the door.

Of course, Joe had to be there, allowing the nurse to wipe down his shirt where I'd hit him with my sick. I was surprised when no one saw me or took any notice and even more surprised when Ella opened the door into the stairwell. There was no way I would be able to walk down the stairs. I should have known better though because no sooner had the door closed behind us than a figure appeared next to me, a figure that almost made me cry.

Hands were under my thighs and around my shoulders as I was lifted up into a firm hold. That we were heading up the stairs surprised me, but I didn't care. All was quiet around us and his footsteps didn't make a sound as we made our up, past the exits to the next two floors until the final exit was opened and I was met by air blowing against me.

My hair swirled around my head from the downdraft of the blades, but I wasn't afraid anymore to travel via helicopter. As Ranger sat me in a seat Ella covered me with another blanket and took a seat opposite me. Ranger fastened the seat belt and was soon next to me with his arms around my shoulder.

His mouth was close to me as he started to talk using a voice that was full of emotion.

"I thought I'd lost you"

"No, why would you think that?"

"After the car accident no one could find you"

"The tracker?"
"Somehow it wasn't working, and your watch and bag were at the scene of the accident"

As I felt his arm tighten around me, I suddenly knew how desperate he'd been in trying to find me and how it must have cost him when he was unsuccessful.

"Sleep Babe, you're safe now"

When I woke, I knew that Ranger was with me, I could feel the heat radiating from him as I lay across his chest. My head felt better, so I tentatively moved my leg that was over Rangers. It twinged, but not as badly as it had done before, though most of my aches seemed to be coming from my arm and shoulder.

"How are you feeling?"

I looked up to see Ranger watching me and it was then that I noticed a bruise on his cheek and what seemed like a gash high on his forehead.

"You were hurt as well"

"That collision knocked us both out"
"How is Tom?"

"Recovering. Broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder, along with cuts and bruises"

"I can't even remember what happened"

"A garbage truck happened. It came out of a side street at speed and hit us full on"

"It was Jerry"

"I know now"
That had me curious, why was it that he knew now and not before?

"You're gonna have to tell me about that"

"Let Dax check you over first. Are you hungry?"

"I'm famished"

"No aftereffects from being sick?"

"Nah. I wanted a distraction and it seemed to work well"

I allowed Ranger to move me until I was sat up against the pillows and then watched as he left the bed, wearing only his silk shorts, and pulled up some joggers that were on the floor. It was then that I realized that I was in an unfamiliar room. The drapes were pulled across a large window though they were thin enough to let the light through. The bed was set against the wall with bedside cabinets on either side in a light oak color. The walls were painted white with a dark grey carpet that matched a small two seater couch. The cover over me was a deep blue color, similar to the drapes with Ranger's 100 thread sheets underneath. It wasn't long after he left that Dax came in, carrying a black bag in his hands.

"Okay, I'm not going to ask how you are. I saw the bruises last night"

"What"

How the hell had I missed that? When did he see me?

"Steph you were out cold when you got here so Ranger insisted that I checked you over. You have two bumps on your head"

He leaned forward and gently used his fingers against the bumps, okay, maybe slightly tender when someone touched them.

"A cut on your left arm and bruising of your shoulder. It's the same shoulder that you injured before, so I'd say it probably hadn't healed properly. The cut has stitches and looks fine"

He took hold of the cover that was over my legs and then looked at me. I thought he was wanting to let me know that he was going to look at my leg but when I didn't say anything he didn't move.

"It's okay"

So he wanted my permission to uncover my legs. I had a fresh bandage around my leg which surprised me. I was sure that there was just bruising there.

"How, I mean, I don't remember cutting it, maybe bruising it"

"I had to remove what was left of the tracker. You must have banged yourself pretty hard for it to get smashed"

"I don't remember"

"For your information. That is shortest amount of time a tracker has been in place"

"Sorry"

"Not your fault Steph"

"Will you put another one in?"

I saw him hesitate before he replied and wasn't sure why my question was causing that.

"Maybe, but I'll have to source another device and then work out where it would be best to implant it"

"Okay"

"Your ribs were a bit bruised, how are they feeling now?"

"Okay, just a twinge every so often"

"Any other cuts and bruises are fine, they're already starting to heal. Just be careful for a few days"

I watched as Dax left the room and then continued to look around at where I was. There were two doors opposite me which I hoped contained a bathroom and maybe a closet. Where this was, I had no idea, but I would ask Ranger when he came back. It wasn't long before he walked through the door carrying a tray. He set the tray on my knee and removed a dome from a plate. I was too busy running my finger over the petals of a beautiful red rose to notice what he'd brought.

I saw a fork approach me and recognized that it was scrambled egg so allowed Ranger to feed me my breakfast. Once my plate was clean, I drank down the glass of orange juice. I felt full and comfortable, safe and protected so now I needed some questions answered.

"A man called Jerry took me"

"We found some CCTV footage from a shop down the road and saw his van drive away. Santos caught on that the plates were the same as the FTA he was after, Jerome Hancock"

"Why would he want to take me and kill me?"

"We can't ask him now, he's dead"

I turned to look at Ranger, shocked that he was dead. Did that mean he'd left me in the house knowing it was going to explode or had he been killed before he could come back. Shit, I wished he wasn't dead because I really wanted to know the answer.

"It gets more complicated"

"How?"

"The police agreed not to be seen looking for him in case it spooked him. Then yesterday in the early hours a report came over the radio that Morelli had shot him"

I tried to work out when that was and decided that it didn't really matter. Jerome had left me in that house and then been caught by Joe. Did Joe know he was the one that had taken me, I suppose he must have.

"Why the hell would Joe shoot him?"

"Morelli says he got a ransom note from Hancock. He was demanding $100,000 and he'd let you go. There was a telephone number to find out where to meet him"

"Did you see the ransom note?"

"No, but the chief did. Morelli got hold of the money and contacted Hancock as agreed. Hancock told him to meet at an old warehouse off Stark. According to Morelli, Hancock was there hidden, as Morelli threw the money over to him, Hancock had shouted out where you were, but that he had to go alone. Apparently, Hancock fired at Morelli who shot back and killed him"

I couldn't get my head around that, I mean why would Hancock contact Joe? He would have got far more money from Ranger, or at least tried to. Maybe he knew not to cross Ranger because he wouldn't get away with it.

"Babe, what are you thinking?"

"I don't understand why Hancock would demand money from Joe"

"Maybe there are still some people who see you as Morelli's girlfriend"
I shook my head as Ranger said that, there was something that wasn't sitting right with me.

"Babe, tell me what you're thinking"

"Hancock never gave me the impression that he was using me for ransom. I mean he let me see him and even told me his name"

"Did he treat you okay?"

"I suppose. When I woke up, I was handcuffed to a bed, but he'd tried to treat the cut on my arm. He wasn't there that long before he left. It took me ages to undo the handcuffs"

"We saw the marks on your ankle"

"Yeah well, I had to move the mattress to get some wire. Then I had to unlock the door. I'd literally just walked out of the house when I heard workmen shouting and then boom"

"Boom?"

"They were demolishing the row of houses. Didn't Joe tell you where I was?"

"No, he's been very evasive. No one knew where the address was, he wouldn't say, even after the chief threatened him. He must have known we were keeping an eye on him because he kept using different cars and coming out of different exits, we lost him. That is until you got in touch"

"He wouldn't have told you because he wanted me to go with him"

I couldn't help but think that Joe had something to do with it, then a memory of being in that room came back to me.

"He gave me a bottle of water"

"Babe?"

"Hancock, he gave me a bottle of water, but when I saw that it was the same brand that I used to buy I threw it across the room"

"Do you think Hancock was the one in your apartment?"

"Maybe. I mean I had his file. If he thought he could get me to drop bounty hunting then maybe he was stupid enough to think he could just disappear from the system"

"But you did drop the bounty hunting"

"Yeah, I had hadn't I"

I leaned against Ranger as he held his arm around my shoulder. I had no idea what had just happened, and I was sure there were other things I wanted to know, but at the moment I just couldn't think straight. So I closed my eyes, and as everything seemed to disappear from my thoughts, I drifted into sleep.

When I woke again, I knew I was alone, but it didn't seem to have me panicking. I rolled onto my back and went through what Ranger and I had discussed after breakfast. I felt I was missing something important, an answer to a question that I hadn't asked. I needed to get up so carefully maneuvered from the bed and walked over to one of the doors. I was surprised to find a large walk in closet that had clothes on either side. I recognized the ones on one side as Ranger's but wasn't too comfortable that the other side held women's clothing.

I closed the door and opened the next one to find a beautiful bathroom. It seemed enormous, especially compared to what I was used to. I turned on the shower for the water to heat up as I used the toilet. Looking around I was impressed; okay it didn't take much to do that. But this place had character, not the usual functionality that was normal for Ranger. Even though everything was white, including the walls and floors, it was things like the color of the towels and the ornaments on a shelf. Hell, there was even a couple of pictures hung up on the wall. I showered, washing my hair carefully and with a towel wrapped around me returned to the bedroom. I was surprised to find some clothes laid on the bed, and they were in my size.

I opened the door of the bedroom and found myself in a wide hallway. I could hear talking so going down some stairs followed the sound until I was stood just inside a large lounge that looked outside. It was Les who saw me saw me first and smiled as he came over to me.

"How're you doing Beautiful?"

"Okay"

"Shit, you scared us this time"

"I was scared as well Les"

"You got yourself out, twice. You did really well"

As we walked over to where Ranger, Dax and Hector were sat I couldn't help but look at the view. Below was a small lake with hills behind it. There was a sense of tranquility here that was calming.

"Where are we?"

Because it sure wasn't Jersey.

"No Beautiful we're not in Jersey. This is Ranger's place. We're near Maine which is why it's so quiet and clean"

Damn, I should have accepted Ranger's offer of a safe house in Maine. I went and stood behind Hector and rested my arms around his shoulders.

"Thank you, Hector"

"De nada"

"Babe why call Hector?"

As I sat down, I explained about trying his number and not being connected so was fairly sure that Hector would answer and know what to do.

"My phone got broken in the crash, I've only just replaced it"

"Why were you so scared in the hospital Estefania?"

I looked at Hector and knew that he would have sensed that from how I'd spoken.

"Joe was there. He told the staff I was his wife and then told me he was going to take me to some cottage so that I could recuperate. I was feeling uneasy with him around and couldn't work out where you were"

I felt a hand take mine and soon I was sat on Ranger's knee, knowing that he was feeling the hurt as much as me.

"I would have been there Babe, had I known"

Had he known, the expression had one of those questions popping into my head.

"How did Hancock know we would be on the street heading back to Rangeman, and in Tom's car which isn't black?"

"We don't know Estefania, maybe someone watching from outside"

I wasn't buying that; I mean we'd gone in through the front door and Ranger had arrived separately from us. No one would have known who Tom or Dax was. Dax, I looked at him as he came into my thoughts. He'd been there at the forest when those men were chasing me, and he'd not been there when we came out of the room with Joe after the interview. Was he the one that was feeding information?

"No Babe. Dax drove the Porsche back to Rangeman"

"Sorry, but I'm getting a bit paranoid about who I can trust"

The only person who would know all the answers would have been Hancock, damn, why had Joe gone and killed him. I was still looking at Ranger as the realization of what I was thinking came to me. Joe. Could he have set up Hancock, would he have?

"I see you're on the same wavelength as me now"

I could see that Ranger was watching me closely and must have seen how I was trying to work it out. I suppose he wanted me to reach my own conclusion rather than just telling me what he thought. I had to admit though that the idea of Joe being involved seemed almost surreal. He professed to love me and wanted me to marry him. Would he really go to all these lengths to force a woman to marry him when he knew she didn't love him?

"What do you have?"

"Santos and Hector have spent the last day working on this. Especially since the man was conveniently killed. The man's name is Adam Langhorne. Petty criminal who moved into drugs. He was arrested a few times but because he gave up suppliers he was never charged"

"Joe was narcotics before moving across to homicide"

"He was the one who dealt with Langhorne. Hector"

I turned to look at Hector eager to hear more but knew that I wasn't going to like what I heard.

"Langhorne's been spending money around town and talking. He told a friend of his that he was doing a job for someone and used the word undercover. He bought some sedatives off Grinch saying he wasn't sleeping"

"So Langhorne was the one who broke into my apartment and drugged my water?"

"We think so Babe and it was probably him who tampered with your phone"

"Can you tie him to Joe in any other way?"

"No. Not yet. Hector is trying to find any accounts that Langhorne had, but I doubt that Morelli would be stupid enough to transfer money. His phone is clean so he may have used a burn phone. The only place we haven't found is where Langhorne was living"

With my head resting against Ranger I closed my eyes, trying to shut out what had been said, I didn't know what to say, I mean Joe had been a part of my life since we were kids. Was that it, was that the reason? That he thought somehow that he owned me and me breaking up with him had sent him over the edge. Did he really think that he could manipulate me into being with him? Maybe he did because he'd tried it before.

"Babe, remember talk to me. What are you thinking?"

As I looked around, we were on our own now, the others had disappeared. Okay this was what I was supposed to do, talk out my thoughts and feelings.

"I was thinking that he was stupid to try and manipulate me, especially now that I was with you. Every time you and I got close, he'd do something romantic or find a way for me to have to stay with him. After Scrogg I think he knew he was losing me, even before I did. He took me away from Trenton after you left the hospital and went down to Miami, well he tried. I lasted two days before I came back home, but he didn't give up. He was constantly trying to get me to quit bounty hunting and stop working at Rangeman. I just never thought he'd take it this far. Hell Ranger, two minutes and I would still have been in that house. Is that what he wanted, to kill me?"

"No, I think he wanted to show you that he could rescue you, be your superman, instead of it being me"

"I wonder what he'll do now?"

"I have a man on him"

I had no idea who that could have been because Joe wasn't stupid when it came to be being followed, he was a cop after all. Plus, Joe knew a lot of the Rangemen by sight, so he'd get suspicious if he suddenly saw Rangemen wherever he went or black SUVs. I started to twist my finger where my engagement ring had been, saddened that someone had removed it. It had probably been Langhorne so it would probably never be found.

We both looked up as Les shouted from the door.

"Conference call"

Ranger stood letting me down on the floor carefully and with my hand in his we slowly made our way inside. He led me to a couch and had me sit down with him sitting beside me and Les on the other side. Dax and Hector were sat in similar styled leather chairs that were at either side of a pale wooden coffee table in front of me. I hadn't a clue how there was going to be a conference call that everyone would be able to see because it was Hector who had a laptop on his knee. The TV attached to the wall flickered and suddenly we were looking at Tank who seemed to be sat in his office.

"Good to see you safe and sound Little Girl"

"Thanks Tank"

"Our man's on Morelli now, he caught up with him at that hospital. He returned to his house and hasn't left. He should be on duty in the morning"

"The investigation on Hayes?"

"Stalled. I sent that bullet to Daniel like you said"

I had forgotten that Joe was lead investigator on the murder of Hayes but couldn't work out why Daniel would be involved.

"Bullet?"

"We found the bullet that missed you in that alley and sent it to Daniel to compare against the shot that killed Jinski"

I looked at Les as he answered my question not surprised that he'd thought of that. I couldn't remember much about the shot that hit Hayes or the second shot. I suppose they were from a sniper as well, but why kill Hayes and why did they shoot at the car that I was hidden behind at the airport. It didn't make sense to me, was this gunman wanting me dead or just scared to death? He'd certainly managed the second one. I looked back to the screen and noticed that Tank wasn't there but then I was smiling as Ella came into view.

"Ella"

"How are you feeling Stephanie?"

"A lot better, thank you. Ella you were brilliant yesterday"

"I quite enjoyed being able to help"

"Ella, what happened after we left?"

"Oh Ranger, you were right. When that man, Morelli, eventually dragged himself away from the nurse and realized Stephanie was missing I could hear him from outside the door. His language was foul, but he was composed when he came back out. He told the staff that his wife had decided that she was ready to leave and was waiting for him downstairs"

"What did he do next?"

"Used the elevator to go downstairs. He never came back up so never found the wheelchair. I put it back in the storeroom"

"Today?"

"Oh yes. I went down to those houses that were being demolished. I pretended I used to live there when I was young. The men were very helpful. Apparently, the time for the demolition was brought forward because of the weather. I was told all about this woman who came out of the house, and how lucky she was. They told me they were just about to call in the paramedics when this nice policeman turned up. He said it would be quicker if he took her to the hospital"

I couldn't believe that Ella had gone out to the house and managed to get those men to talk. Then again, I'd seen a side to Ella that I didn't know exist.

"Tank the hospital?"

"Bobby knows one of the doctors there, so he made a call. Interesting, because Morelli made a call to say that he was bringing in his wife who had some injuries. The call was made before the explosion"

I wasn't sure if that was relevant, I mean maybe he knew that I'd been hurt in the car accident. But then again how would he know that?

"Tank do we know exactly what Langhorne was supposed to have said to Joe?"

"Good thinking Little Girl. I just assumed your injuries were from the accident, but he wouldn't know that unless he'd had that conversation with Langhorne"

"Tank, I don't suppose Langhorne had a phone on him, did he?"

"No Hector. The coroner listed some money, keys to that van of his and another set of keys"

"The van?"

"Found on Stark, well what was left of it. I'm thinking the other keys maybe for where he was living. We're on that"

That left one thing that was still missing but I didn't want to mention it. Hell, I wasn't even sure any of the guys had actually noticed that I was wearing a ring on my finger. The following five minutes were taken up with reports from Rangeman. I was pleased to hear that Mr Webster had resolved the problems with his grandchildren and the security system and that business was running smoothly. Once the guys had finished talking Les and Ranger disappeared leaving me with Hector. I had no idea when Dax had left the room or where he had gone. Hector came with his laptop over to where I was sitting and handed it to me.

"Do your thing Estefania. Find out where Langhorne could have been living"

"I suppose nothing came up through the searches?"

"No, nothing that panned out"

"Did you check out relatives?"

"Si. Parents are in Ohio, where he was born. No siblings. Any other relatives also in Ohio"

"Okay, leave it with me"

I was aware of Hector getting up and leaving me, but I was already pulling up the search on Langhorne that had been saved onto the system. I noticed that he was 37 years old, meaning he hadn't aged very well. No doubt using drink and drugs would do that to someone. I read through each section, interested that he'd left Ohio 11 years ago, after he'd lost his last job in a long list of previous ones. He'd tended to work as a bouncer in bars so maybe that was what he'd fallen into in Trenton.

There was no record of him having had a job in Trenton, but I knew there were a lot of places that just paid their staff cash. I was guessing though that seeing as how Langhorne tended to be seen near Stark then that's where he would be working and living. That had me thinking about Chantal. She had worked down Stark near to the corner where I had first seen Lula and Jackie. Surely Chantal would have seen Langhorne around the area?

I went back to the search program and input her name and information, Chantal Greenwood, and hit the icon to start the search. As information came up, I forwarded to her medical history. There were details of her admittance to the hospital and a one night stay. The records listed her injuries as superficial bruises and evidence of rough sex, though no semen was found.

I sat back as I contemplated what I'd just read. I knew that I had thought that Langhorne might want me out of the way because he was FTA and I was the bounty hunter, but now I was looking at this from a different perspective. If Joe had somehow approached Langhorne, then it must have been before the attack on Chantal. That would mean he'd need to do something that would get him arrested and then get Vinnie to post his bail.

Remembering how Langhorne had treated me I didn't get the vibe that he was a violent person, so had the whole thing with Chantal been a charade. Was Chantal really his girlfriend? What if Langhorne wanted me to go after him and tried to set up a trap? I'd kinda jinxed that because I hadn't even opened his file, so he went to plan B.

Or he and Joe went to plan B. Drugging me and forcing me to be isolated from all my friends so that marrying Joe would be my only choice. I went back to the search in front of me and wrote down the address that Chantal lived at. Funnily enough it wasn't on Stark, it was near to where she'd got that job at the bakery.

I closed down the program and placed the laptop on the table. I felt a bit stiff from sitting so went outside to try walking. It helped and the more I walked the easier it got. As the air seemed to cool, I decided to head back inside. Once in the lounge I went through another door and found myself in a large dining and kitchen area. Les was placing things on the table and Ranger was removing something from the hob. As he turned, he saw me and smiled.

"I wondered where you were. Dinner is about to be served"

"What is it?"

"Beautiful, you'll love it"

I did, it was tangy, juicy and crispy. There was meat that I recognized as beef that seemed to have spices, onion, garlic, and citrus juices. All of it fried until it was crispy.

"What's it called?"

"Vaca Frita, Cuban beef stir fry"

I was impressed that Ranger and Les had put this together, it made me feel slightly ashamed that I was so hopeless in the kitchen.

"It's really easy to make Beautiful. I'll show you sometime"

I wasn't sure that Les would be ready to deal with me in a kitchen. My mother had tried everything she could to make me domesticated, including the ability to cook. Once we'd finished eating, I helped with clearing the dishes and did the one thing I knew I could do and that was to wash them up with Hector drying them and Dax putting them away.

As we went through to the lounge, I pulled the paper from my pocket and handed it to Hector.

"I think he was living here"

For the first time ever, I saw surprise in Hector's eyes and inwardly smiled at the fact that I had maybe done something that he couldn't figure out. As I sat down next to Ranger, Hector was looking down at the paper and then looked up at me.

"How?"

"I could be totally wrong, but it might be worth looking at"

"Estefania, explain how you came by this so quickly"
I had everyone's attention now and felt slightly embarrassed as Hector continued to look at me.

"Babe?"

"Okay. I think Langhorne set himself up to be an FTA. For some reason that means that Chantal was in it with him. The search on her shows her admittance to the hospital with bruising. There was evidence of rough sex, but they must have used a condom. Maybe at first the plan was to trap me because I was the one who would go after him and my background would suggest that I'd turn up at that address in his file. When that didn't work, he went for plan B, drugging me, and that didn't work out either. Plan C was what happened with the truck"

"So you think he was living with the woman?"

"Yes. But you can't just barge in there. She may know what was going on"

"What do you suggest Babe?"

"I need to talk to her, on my own. Maybe get her to break down. She may be grieving and mad as hell if I'm right"

I watched as Ranger sat forward and wiped his hands down his face. The pose he took of leaning his elbows on his knees with his hands pushed together, with his fingertips under his chin meant he was thinking. Apparently, everyone knew to be quiet, including me. It wasn't long before he moved and took my hand in his, but he didn't turn to look at me.

"I don't like it. I didn't want you to have to go back to Trenton so soon"

I squeezed his hand because I knew he was thinking solely of me. I couldn't let him do that, I mean I'd have to go back sooner or later, and I really wanted to find something that would either find Joe guilty or innocent.

"We have to do it Ranger. If Joe is involved and he works out where Chantal is then he might hurt her"

That was when he looked at me and squeezed my hand tightly.

"I know. We have to end this and if Morelli is part of this then I want him to be accountable for it"

I saw the other guys nod their heads in agreement. As I looked at the men sat around me, I knew life as I'd known it would be a little different when we got back to Trenton. Somehow, they'd make sure that nothing could happen to me. But come on, it was me, had anything ever gone according to plan when I was involved?