Chapter 39

"Babe"

I was so excited to be hearing Ranger on the phone and then it crashed down on me where he'd been.

"Is it over?"

His voice held nothing, as though he was trying to hide his emotions from me. Why would he do that?

"They spent two days questioning us, separately and together but they had to let us go in the end"

"Did they believe you?"

"I don't know"

Oh shit, was that a good thing or not and what would happen now.

"What now?"

From the sigh I heard I got the feeling I wasn't going to like what he was going to tell me.

"I have a meeting with my lawyer today. I have a lot of paperwork to complete to reinstate myself as still being alive"

Oh shit. Did that mean he'd have lost everything? I mean his will had been read out and everything he owned had been allocated to different people and what about this house? I never had paid much attention to what the lawyer had said. I was still too shocked with the news of his death and felt that if I didn't listen then it wasn't happening.

"Then I need to go see my parents and family and head to Miami and see Julie"

He said that with a sigh, what the hell was that all about? He never sighed because he was always so sure of what he was doing. Visiting family, especially Julie, wasn't going to be easy for him to do and would some of his family offer him the money back and what of Rangeman?

"When will you go back to Trenton?"

Because somehow, I knew that I couldn't stay here much longer, I'd go nuts not knowing what was happening. Plus, I still had to sort out where the hell to live.

"Maybe four or five days"

"Ranger, I have some things to sort out as well, I need to talk with Eula, but I feel awful just kicking her out"

"Why do you need to kick her out?"

"I asked her to look after my apartment while I was away. I have nowhere else to stay and I need to find out if I still have a job"

"We can live in the house or on seven. You don't have to kick her out"

I was beginning to worry at what he'd suggested, and I knew that I hadn't said anything about where I would live. The idea of living here or on seven had me feeling both ecstatic and worried. What if it didn't work out between us or he decided that he didn't want me now that he was back home? I'd have nothing and nowhere to go.

"Babe, did you listen to anything that my lawyer said?"

"No. I couldn't. I mean all your family were there and somehow I almost felt like an imposter"

"The opposite was true Babe. Santos told me that Mama was really worried about you"

"She doesn't even know me"

"Don't be too sure about that. Anyway, the house was never included in the will"

I had to almost ask him to repeat what he'd said because that just didn't make any sense. I know I squirmed a bit and went quiet, maybe that's what had him realize that I wasn't sure what he meant by that.

"Babe. My will had a proviso on it. Nothing would happen until a year had passed after I was declared dead. Daringer, my lawyer, was the one to advice that. He said with the work that I did for the government that a false declaration was always possible"

It still didn't account for what he'd said about this house though.

"This house?"

"It's in your name. I wanted to be sure that you'd always have somewhere safe to go to, somewhere that you could call yours"

Mine? What if I'd been with Morelli? What if he'd come back and we'd never admitted to each other how we felt?

"Babe, remember what I said, that I would have done everything in my power to ensure that you knew how I felt? If you'd been with Morelli or hadn't felt the same for me then the house would still be yours. I would have bowed out gracefully knowing that you'd have the house as a place to go to"

I felt tears well up in my eyes as he said that and to think that I ever doubted what he'd written in that letter. He loved me and always would.

"I love you Ricardo Carlos Manoso"

"I love you too Stephanie Michelle Plum"

I wasn't sure where he was but then heard a voice in the background.

"Looking good Ranger, for a dead man"

I wasn't sure how Ranger would take that comment but was so relieved when he just ignored it.

"I have to go Babe, Tank's here with me to help me get everything sorted out"

"You ready to go, Daringer's expecting you in an hour"

It made me consider the position that I was in and couldn't help but think how this was going to happen. I mean if I just turned up in Trenton then that might look too obvious.

"Babe, you need to start calling people, let them know that you're fine and feel more centered. They'll expect more contact from you"

"So they'll tell me that you're back in Trenton"

As I finished his sentence, I knew exactly what he wanted me to do and knew that it would work, there was just one little problem.

"Could a phone call be traced here?"

"No, I'll sort that out with Hector"

I felt myself calming as some sort of plan seemed to be taking shape and he was right just talking to him made me feel more centered, ready to take the next steps.

"I know we're only talking over the phone, but I needed to talk to you, just to make sure you were okay"

I wasn't too sure if he felt that by not being here that I would be disappointed with him. I needed to assuage those fears right now.

"I feel fine now, maybe a little stupid, but at least I got caught up on my sleep. I'm glad you called me, even for just a short time"

I hesitated as I ran through the words that I wanted to say to him.

"I'd love to live here or at your apartment at Rangeman. Home is where the heart is and mine is with you"

This time we were interrupted, I think that Tank was getting impatient because I heard him cough in the background to make sure that we'd heard him.

"Babe as soon as I'm back in Trenton I'll let you know. Te amo mi querida"

The phone went dead in my ear and looking at it I realized that he was gone. When the hell was he ever going to end a phone call properly, or did he, maybe I needed to learn Spanish. As I sat there, I knew that things wouldn't happen straight away and that I'd be here for several days.

I didn't need or want to sleep after Ranger's call, so I showered and dressed in jeans and a sweater before heading downstairs. Even though I felt a bit wobbly on my feet I felt ravenous and was looking through the fridge when Hector appeared in the kitchen area.

"There's a dish in the microwave Estefania"

Okay, so maybe Hector knew that I'd be up and around soon. I watched as Hector set the time and heard the microwave heating up whatever it was that I was going to eat. Before the timer beeped my mouth was watering with the smell coming to me and I was already sat at the kitchen bar as Hector placed the dish in front of me. Lasagna, just the way that Ella made it.

"Estefania, go easy. You're still recovering"

I just nodded my head to let him know that I understood but I wasn't going to let that stop me from doing what I knew needed to be done.

As I finished my food and took the dish to the sink Hector placed a phone on the counter next to me. He didn't need to say anything as I smiled back at him. This was going to provide me a way to contact people and start to reintegrate myself back into Trenton. Having spent some time thinking through what I would say, hell I'd even written down some notes to be sure that I gave everyone the same story, I was ready to begin. I decided to start with my Dad, calling his mobile as I wasn't too sure I was ready to talk to my Mum.

"Hello?"

"Hi Dad"

"Pumpkin, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I am"

"You sound, relaxed. Time away must have done you some good"

"Yes, it did. I feel calmer now and ready to restart my life"

"Is that why you're calling?"

I wasn't too sure if I could detect some concern in his voice and wanted to allay any fears that he might have for me.

"Part of it was realizing how important the people in my life are"

"You're important in ours as well Pumpkin. Having no one around, well your mother isn't coping too well. I think she feels that both you and her mother leaving were somehow her fault"

"It wasn't, you know that"

"Can I tell her you called, she worries about you?"

"Yeah. Tell her I'll call her soon. How's Grandma doing?"

Wanting to change the subject away from thinking about my mother.

"She's enjoying it. She almost seems to have settled down a bit, maybe there are enough people and things to do there"

I never thought that I would hear that. My Grandma had always been so vivacious in how she lived. Maybe it was because the gossip about her wasn't getting back to my parents. It still made me worry about her though.

"Maybe I need to call her just to make sure that she's okay"

"I know that she misses you Pumpkin and I'm sure everyone would like to see you"

"I'll think about it"

"Okay Pumpkin, call and let me know what you decide. Take care"

"I will Dad"

As I finished the call, I had tears in my eyes as I realized how sad my Dad had sounded. I hadn't really thought how much he'd be affected with me leaving, to be honest it just wasn't a thought that went through my mind. I wasn't too sure that I wanted to make any more calls in case I got a similar reaction. I went and poured myself a coffee and heated it up as I argued with myself as to what to do. As I returned to the couch, I'd decided to get them out of the way, after all they were necessary for me to get back home. It was only as I went into the contact list that I suddenly realized that Hector had already put in the people he thought I might want to talk to. Funny, that Joe wasn't there.

"Hi Lou"

"Steph, is that you?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry Lou"

"Why are you sorry. I knew that you needed to get away"

Only Mary Lou would understand me and how I had felt.

"You must be feeling better if you're calling?"

"I am. I feel more relaxed and ready to face the world"

"Honey, I'm so sorry for what you went through"

Yeah, so was I, and I was almost bursting to tell her the truth but knew that I couldn't do that.

"So where did you get to, which beach did you land on?"

"I headed south, you can only do beaches in the sun"

"I'm glad you got a chance to find yourself"

"I did. So what's been happening while I've been away?"

I had to change the topic of conversation before she asked a question that I couldn't answer.

"Quiet really. Your Mum was inundated with calls after you left and not what you think. Apparently anyone and everyone were asking after you, saying how you'd lost the love of your life"

"Oh?"

"Folk aren't blind Honey, they knew how much Ranger meant to you. It made her rethink though and after Joe had a go at her she started to realize that she'd totally missed it"

"Joe?"

What the hell had he said to her, and why would he do that?"

"He called one afternoon when your Grandma was there"

"So the conversation went around the Burg?"

"Oh yeah. He told your mum that she was selfish and blind. That her constantly pushing you to conform were what caused you to go. I think he was trying to blame her for you leaving"

"Wow"

Maybe Joe knew me better than I thought.

"Are you coming home?"

I heard in a very quiet voice. Yeah, it was time for me to go home, but not quite yet.

"Probably. I'm talking to people first, you know testing out the water"

"I saw Lula the other day. She's not at Vinnie's anymore, but she seemed happy"

"What's she doing?"

I knew that Vinnie was looking to get rid of her as well, Connie had said as much and that Lula was being ignorant of the hints that Vinnie had dropped.

"She's working upstairs at the Cut n Curl doing manicures. The women love her and to be honest her being there has changed the places profile so some of the younger women go now"

"I'm glad it turned out okay for her though she's one I need to call"

Lula might be mad at me for not talking to her before I left, but to be honest there was no way I could do that without relenting or even hinting at what I was thinking of doing.

"She has your back, Honey. She's been telling everyone that you did the right thing"

Okay, that made me feel better and I knew I'd talk to her next. We spent a few more minutes with Lou telling me how the kids were doing and some boring gossip going around the Burg. All I could think about was how glad I was that there was nothing being said about me. I finished the call promising to call her soon.

Okay so who next? I called Lula's number and let out a breath of relief when it went straight to voicemail.

"Hey Lula. Hope you're not mad with me but I just needed some time to sort myself out. Hope you're doing okay. Love you. Steph"

I had one more call to make and swore that once I'd done that, I would get myself something to eat.

"Hi, Connie here"

"Hi Connie"

"Steph, is that you, are you okay?"

"I'm fine Connie. I'm sorry I"

I didn't get a chance of saying any more before Connie was talking again.

"No, don't apologize. I understand, are you coming home?"

"I don't know"

"We all miss you. Hell, everyone keeps asking me if I've heard from you. Where've you been?"

"Just around, trying to sort out my life"

"When are you coming back?"

I was surprised that Connie said when and not if wondering why she would say that. I must have been quiet for too long because Connie was soon talking to me again.

"Tank's been coming in for the Rangeman files, now that Lula isn't here, I think he feels more at ease. He said he'd employ you straight away"

I wasn't too sure if that was Tank's way of giving me the opening to come back or not and then I thought about how bad it would be doing that if Ranger had been dead. Hell, the idea of going into Rangeman before I went away had made me feel so upset.

"I don't know about that Connie. Not having Ranger there, I'm not sure that I could go there"

"Just think about it Steph. They're worried about you"

"Okay"

"Call me again?"

"I will. Bye Connie"

As I closed the phone down, I suddenly felt so tired so brought my feet up from the floor and rested my head on the cushion. I must have fallen asleep because when I woke up it was dark outside. I couldn't believe I'd slept again for such a long time. I stretched my arms above my head and realized that I didn't feel as achy as I had done earlier, and my head seemed to have lost that foggy feeling. As I sat up, I noticed a bottle of water on the table in front of me so moved to pick it up. Once I'd emptied the bottle I stood up and took the empty bottle through to the trash can wondering what to do now. I'd laid the first part of my plan to go home, so now what? That's when I remembered what I'd been doing before my bout of flu. Searches, looking to see if I could find the FBI agent who was the insider at the company where Jin had worked at, Hisence.

Going back into the lounge area I spied a laptop on top of a cabinet so went over to retrieve it. It was then that I started to look around at the things on the shelf above. There were lots of books, mainly reference books ranging from cooking recipes to military strategy but what caught my eye were the photo frames dispersed between the books. I recognized the first one that I looked at as the guys from Rangeman, okay they were dressed in the black uniform of Rangeman. I easily spotted Ranger in the middle and Tank, Les and Bobby. The rest of the men I didn't recognize, though looking carefully it seemed to have been taken a few years ago because the core team definitely looked younger. It was the smiles that captivated me, hell even Ranger was smiling making me wonder why this photo had been taken.

The next photo was of Julie, sat in a school uniform so no doubt Rachel had sent it to Ranger. Seeing and talking to her would be hard for Ranger to do. He didn't do emotions too well and I knew that Julie would be overcome knowing that he was still alive. Face to face was far better than a telephone call. My eyes swept along the shelf to a group photograph that I was sure were probably family, yeah, I was sure that I recognized some faces from when I was at the hospital after Ranger was shot by Scrogg.

The next photo both surprised and pleased me because it was a photo of Ranger and me and if I wasn't mistaken it was possibly taken after a distraction. I wasn't too sure of the exact time but the clothes I was wearing gave it away. Ranger had his arms around me, with one hand holding my head to his chest something that he would always do after a job like that. I wondered if he knew how creeped out I would feel afterwards and how being in his arms had always calmed me. I swept my finger down the glass front, following the contours of Ranger's face as he looked down at me, memories flashing through my mind. With a sigh I picked up the laptop and stepped away to go to the couch and try to focus on doing some more work.

As I sat down, I noticed a printed sheet on the table so picked it up to read it.

Estefania. If you are bored and reading this then check out a new folder on your desktop. Remember you have a bed to sleep in. Don't work too late, I have plans for the morning.

Hector.

I smiled at reading Hector's note to me, I suppose he had a point, I had spent too often sleeping on this couch. A look at the time told me it was 8pm, so I would work for a couple of hours trying to get myself into a better routine. Starting up the laptop I found the folder that Hector had mentioned and opened it to see what he'd found out.

There were several files labelled with the names of the four FBI agents. I opened the file on Gareth Thompkins because he was the one that had my spidey senses going and started to look through what Hector had found on him. I never was that keen on scanning through spreadsheets so was relieved that Hector had color coded some of the irregular outgoings and income. Thompkins obviously had regular monthly payments that I assumed were for rent and paying bills and these were what Hector had coded in blue. There were some cash payments, highlighted in red, that were small and irregular but maybe worth chasing up on. All the other income I assumed was his pay for the work he did through the FBI. There were no other large payments to suggest that he was being paid by anyone else but I didn't think there would be. An FBI agent who was on the take wouldn't use an account that could be hacked into so easily.

I focused on the irregular outgoings first, okay maybe it was payment for clothes or other luxuries but it would give me a picture of who the man was. I was right about that. This man had expensive tastes from the clothes that he bought to the restaurants that he went to. In fact I couldn't understand how he wasn't bankrupt because his outgoings certainly exceeded what was going into the account. How was that even possible? Had Hector missed something? I couldn't even imagine that happening.

There had to be something somewhere, so I started at the beginning and did it the hard way, delving into each payment that went into the account. I hit the payload on the sixth incoming payment, and damnit it if wasn't one of the ones that looked like his wage from the FBI. It was so simple it was almost ingenious.

I saved the work that I had done and closed down the laptop, placing it on the table. Looking at the time I'd worked longer than I'd intended so dragged myself upstairs and into the master bedroom. I didn't have the energy to shower so changed and sank down in between the sheets. I tried to get comfortable, tossing and turning but sleep just didn't want to happen. I had no idea why so in the end I got up and grabbed the throw from the bottom of the bed and a pillow then made my way downstairs.

I decided not to turn on any lights, just in case I disturbed Hector and made my way to the couch. As I settled onto the soft cushions, I felt a bit silly really that being there felt right. Maybe there was still a lingering smell from the worn leather that comforted me, but I was asleep before I even thought about it.

It was the smell of coffee that was infiltrating my senses that had me slowly waking up. I stretched pleased that I was further to one end of the couch this time not to hit the arm and opened my eyes. Of course, Hector was working at the kitchen, ever so quietly so hadn't realized that I was awake. I wanted to surprise him so ever so carefully placed my feet on the floor and started to walk over the rugs and polished floor. I thought I was doing ever so well when Hector suddenly turned around and shouted.

"Boo"

Okay I jumped, I mean I thought I was quiet but obviously there was no way to sneak up on Hector. I laughed as he smiled at me and saw him shaking his head.

"Come here"

I went and stood next to Hector wondering what he wanted and then looked at where he was pointing to. The toaster was made from polished chrome and I could see a reflection of myself, grimacing at the state of my hair.

"I make pancakes, you get showered and dressed"

I was smiling all the way up to the bedroom, yeah today felt like a good day. After showering and dressing in cargo pants and a thick T-shirt I was ready for breakfast and was most impressed with the pancakes that Hector had made. When Hector disappeared, I tidied away the dishes and cleaned down the surfaces.

"Estefania"

I tuned to see Hector wearing boots and a thick jacket, holding in his hands a similar outfit.

"We go out"

"Outside?"

Okay maybe a stupid comment to make but I'd imagined having to stay inside. Once I had the boots and coat on Hector led me through a door at the side of the kitchen that led to a utility room and then we were walking outside in the fresh air.

"It's beautiful here Hector"

I said as I inhaled the cold but fresh air. We walked from the verandah down onto grass and then headed toward the lake. All the time my eyes taking in the scenery. It was a beautiful crisp and sunny day and I enjoyed walking with Hector.

"Hector where are we exactly?"

"About 25 minutes from Trenton"

I stopped and turned to look at Hector to make sure that he was being serious. I had never thought that we were so close to Trenton.

"We're not far from Fort Dix so Ranger has easy access to their facilities if he needs them"

I was sure there was another story to go with that but also that Hector wouldn't know it. I mulled that around in my head but gave up in the end and continued to enjoy the walk. I was glad of just being able to walk and enjoy the surroundings as we followed a path by the edge of the lake. It was almost as though it had the ability to clear my head and I never once thought about anything else, except for Ranger of course. Somehow, I could imagine him running along this track.

When the house eventually came back into view, I really loved the look of it. It didn't look imposing as it sat nestled between the trees and looked and felt just right. I still couldn't believe that it was in my name, that was just too much to comprehend.

After entering the house through the door that we had come out of I hung my jacket on a hook and took off my boots, placing them in a cupboard that had what looked to be another pair of boots and some dirty trainers. No doubt what Ranger used to run in. Once back in the lounge I heated both of us some coffee and then took the mugs over to the couch.

"I worked out who the FBI agent is"

I could see that Hector was curious so opening up the laptop I showed him how I'd looked again at the financial search on the man called Thompkins.
I drank my coffee while Hector looked at what I had done to find the additional money.

"What made you suspicious?"

"He was spending more than he supposedly made"

"Clever, to write a program that would overwrite a financial search"

"Someone has major hacking and programming skills then?"

I asked thinking that it couldn't be that easy to do.

"I don't think so. I think the program overrides what can be lifted when a search is being raised"

I watched as Hector followed the details of where a payment had come from, totally enthralled with the way that he was pasting and copying across from one program to another between writing what I suppose were programing codes. As the final page came into view, I couldn't work out what we were looking at, until Hector pointed to a name part way down the page.

"I don't follow, what am I looking at?"

"It seems Thompkins is trying to fly under the radar of the IRS. These are transfers from a trust fund managed by a private wealth management company up in New York City"

"Not our man then"

I said with a sigh, hell I'd been so excited when I'd managed to find the discrepancies in his finances. I knew we still had three other men to look through, but I was starting to think that maybe I'd been optimistic in thinking it would be so easy.

I was brought out of my thinking when Hector closed down the file we'd been working on and opened the one on a man called Craig Roberts. I hadn't got to him to do a search on yet because I'd been out of commission with the flu.

"I did search but you're better at seeing things than I am. His financials, well he isn't good at hiding things"

I looked to where Hector pointed on the screen not really following what he meant. There were payments out to someone who Hector had labelled as a booky followed by a cash deposit.

"He bets a lot"

"He does. I had a quiet word with Brassie, one of the bookies down on Stark. He told me that this guy likes to gamble and loses a lot more than he wins and it isn't just with Brassie. Seems though that Roberts can always pay off his debts, with cash"

I didn't want to know how Hector had managed to get that information and I wasn't going to ask. I knew he could move through the underworld of Trenton and that most people had the sense to stay on his good side.

"What about the last man?"

"Trevor Mitchel? I'd say he's clean. He's young and just got to work in the field so I don't think he has enough street savvy to play with the big guys yet"

"Okay let me follow up on the search of Craig Roberts"

As I was about to take the laptop from Hector, he closed the lid, effectively shutting the computer down. He even took it with him as he walked toward the kitchen area shouting back to me.

"You're turn to make dinner"

"Yeah right"

Had Hector never learnt that I just didn't cook because I couldn't? I sat and watched as he turned toward me and beckoned me to him. Ah well, don't say that he wasn't warned.

Dinner turned out surprisingly well even though I did have a hand in its preparation. Though I think even Hector could tell that my skills were nonexistent. The paella that we'd eaten was good and nothing had burned, well okay maybe there was the tea towel that had somehow managed to be near an open flame. It was as we were washing and drying the dishes that Hector broached the subject of me cooking.

"Estefania why can't you cook?"

"My Mum tried to teach me but there were so many different foods cooking at the time that I would panic, and something always ended up burnt or undercooked"

"She expected you to make a full meal?"

"Usually. She said if Val could do it then I should be able to as well. Then with her constantly criticizing me I suppose I gave up"

"Could you make paella on your own now?"

"Maybe"

"Tomorrow I show you how to make stir fry"

The day had flown by without me realizing and by 10pm Hector was telling me to go to bed. I actually felt good today. I didn't seem to have any after effects left over from the flu and I had enjoyed the walk that we took and even helping Hector with cooking dinner. I hadn't thought about Ranger all day but now as I lay in bed, I was feeling guilty about that.