Chapter 36

A brand new Ford Bronco and Ford Escape were in the garage. Both had car seats for our children and Robbie. "We can take them with us to work," Carlos explained.

"We could transfer the car seats. There was no need to buy multiples," I stated.

"Easier this way," he reasoned. I nodded because he was right. It was easier this way. We didn't have to make sure they were secure whenever we transferred the seats.

It took us a few months to establish a routine for our family. Our Rangeman family was thriving. Each branch was profitable.

Julie and Robbie were settling into school nicely. A few months after school started, Carlos and his men were called away on a mission. I had a feeling someone was watching me. My spidey sense was humming.

Tank, Lester, Bobby, Ram, Zip, Ranger and Cal comprised his team. As usual, Carlos couldn't provide details. He was ordered to report to DC to receive instructions. I had a feeling it was going to be a very difficult mission for them. Lester and I developed a bit of a tradition before leaving on our missions. We would visit a local Catholic Church to light candles and pray. He didn't have time for his part of the tradition, so I visited the church to pray for their safe return.

Carlos and Lester made sure their affairs were in order. If anything happened to Lester, I would receive guardianship of Robbie. I also learned I would be in charge of Rangeman if anything happened to my husband.

A heaviness settled over me. I wondered why his team was handpicked for this mission. Ranger wasn't given the option to select his team. It was that moment when I realized all the best Rangers were selected for this mission.

Uncle Alex called me when the men left. "The man responsible for torturing Manoso turned up. He's been asking a lot of questions about you. Keep your guards close and watch your back," he said. "Use a secure laptop at Rangeman to help us locate this bastard," he added before promptly hanging up.

Meanwhile in the DC office….

General Rogers outlined the requirements for the mission. A Russian, who has evaded capture, resurfaced and was tracking down Rangers. He was specifically looking for Stephanie aka Fannie. Carlos didn't want this man to find his family. His intuition was telling him they would be led back to Miami where his family lives. They would be leaving at 0300, giving Lester plenty of time to complete his tradition.

Lester sensed Carlos' unease so he lit more candles and said more prayers. He was kneeling in the alcove with Saint Michael. For each prayer, he lit a candle. When Carlos kneeled beside him, all the candles were lit. "Lester?" he asked.

"This mission is very risky. He's evaded capture for so long. We've lost so many Rangers at his hands. What if it takes us the full six months to find him? I don't want to be away from my son that long," he confessed.

"Nor do I want to be away from my family that long. If we don't go after him, he'll come after us," Carlos reasoned.

"I know, but I still don't like it." Carlos said a few prayers before he left the church with Lester.

"We don't have to like it, but we have a job to do." Carlos and Lester walked to the waiting SUV.

They used the trip to the airfield to centre themselves. Returning home to his children was Ranger's top priority. His team was counting on my intel to find this evil man. If I could find him once, I could find him again.

When they boarded the plane, Carlos felt they needed to head towards northern Amsterdam. They were scheduled to land in Britain. He made my way to the pilot without informing my team. "Can we touch down at Rotterdam?"

"There's a private field a few miles north. We don't need to register the landing, but we need about a thousand Euro," the pilot stated.

"I've got it covered. Thanks," he said before leaving. Ranger sat beside Tank and motioned for the team to listen. "We're landing north of Rotterdam." They didn't ask why our destination changed.

Tank leaned in close and whispered, "Where?"

"Nad," Ranger replied. He nodded.

Tank received a coded message on his phone. "Hey boss, you've got to hear this. Our favourite cop got himself arrested for murder. Shot and killed an unarmed man. Claims he's innocent."

Back in Trenton….

News of Morelli's arrest was broadcast over several networks. I listened as they outlined the events leading to his arrest. As much as I hate the man, I couldn't see him shooting at an unarmed man. Carlos' mission is more important than Morelli's stupid murder charge. If he's truly guilty, they will prove it.

Morelli was standing before the judge. He claimed 'not guilty' at his plea. The judge set bail at 100,000. Joe's confidential informant, Carman Sanchez, called him concerning a police matter. He responded and Ziggy Kulesza shot at him. Ziggy's gun jammed when Morelli shot and killed him. Joe claimed it was in self defence. A concerned neighbour hit Joe in the head with a six pack of beer, knocking him out. The police arrived and arrested him. He made bail and tried to find his informant.

Carmen mentioned a boxer named Benito Ramirez raped and cut her. Joe finally realized what he did to Stephanie over twelve years ago was wrong. Carmen was only eighteen years old. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Her younger sister was working Stark Street several weeks earlier. Tammy was only sixteen. Ramirez picked her up from her corner. They had sex in the back alley where he found a broken beer bottle and shoved it inside her. She was left in the alley bleeding. Tammy called her sister crying. Carmen listened as Ziggy killed her sister. When she saw Morelli talking to various hookers for information, she told him what she overheard. Morelli believed her and vowed to find Tammy's killer.

He found a valuable lead and started interrogating the witnesses. Carmen was raped several weeks later. Morelli arrived at her apartment to take a statement when his life was forever changed. All his past misdeeds were suddenly brought forward. Joe realized it was time to make amends with Stephanie. Fucking her mother was inappropriate. There were plenty of younger woman more than willing to sleep with him. It was time to let the dream of a life with Stephanie go. For the first time in his life, he regretted what he did to me behind the Tasty Pastry. I felt a sense of peace roll over me. It was as though a part of my past was finally laid to rest.

Back on the plane...

Carlos passed around a map to review. He kept focussing on a specific area. Tank pointed to the area he was focused on.

The plane landed at the private airfield without incident. Ranger paid the man at the gate in cash. He gave me a two finger wave as he opened the gate. With their packs on their backs and weapons secure, they hiked a few miles to one of Ranger's trusted contact's home. They stayed for dinner and left during the early hours of the morning.

Ranger's buddy gave them a car to use. It was a very tight fit and I was forced to sit in Lester's lap. They quietly formulated a plan. Several hours later they arrived near their destination. After quick conferring, they set up their posts.

A gas station would be their last stop before proceeding to their destination on foot. Something wasn't sitting well with Ranger or Lester. Everything screamed this was a distraction.

In Miami….

I went to the mall with Jeanne, Mike and Ryan. When I used the washroom to empty my bladder, the door opened with a slight creaking noise. Reaching behind me, I grabbed my weapon from the small of my back. I didn't hear the man move behind me, but I felt the pinch of the needle entering my neck. Everything went black as I started falling.

Several hours later I woke up in a room restrained to a metal chair. Where the fuck am I? My vision was a bit fuzzy as I looked around the room. It was barren like an empty warehouse. "I've been searching for you a long time," a man spoke with a distinct British accent. He was wearing a ball cap pulled low over his eyes. I recognized the skull and flower tattoo on his neck. "Who would have thought the brilliant Fannie Palmer was really Stephanie Plum. Or is it Guzman? Manoso?" he asked.

I didn't answer his question. Regardless of my answer, he would torture me. Using his sharp knife, he cut down my arm. Deep enough to draw blood, but shallow enough not to have me bleed to death. "Answer me!" he demanded.

"My name is Fannie Palmer," I recited my name, rank and serial number. He kept me chained to the chair for several days. It's just a matter of time before I'm found.

"I've broken men stronger than you." I wouldn't doubt that for a minute. He has no idea how strong I could be. Vlatko grabbed some rubbing alcohol and poured it onto my arm. It stung horribly, but it wasn't something I haven't felt before. Rubbing alcohol was Helen's choice of antiseptic when I scraped my knee or cut myself. I retreated into my mind as he continued to cut me in various places. The pain from his cuts didn't seem to register. He seemed frustrated I didn't flinch and punched me in the head. I repeated my name, rank and serial number several more times. Vlatko pressed a cloth to my mouth. It smelled like chloroform.

My head was swimming. I could hear a lock being picked and slight squeak of a window pane being cut. The noises sounded much louder than they should. "Don't move," I heard Vlatko say. It was pointless since I was still restrained to the chair. He removed the restraints and pulled me to my feet. I felt myself being dragged up a set of stairs. We made our way down a narrow hallway towards a window. He pushed me through the window onto a narrow ledge. I saw a rope with a loop lowered from above and instinctively slipped it over my head and under my armpits. As he climbed through, I grabbed his arm and pulled hard. Vlatko lost his grip and fell to the pavement below. Ranger and Bobby approached him. Bobby looked up at me and shook his head. I was dangling of the side of the building, swinging past the window.

Lester reached through the window to pull me back in. "Steph, you're hurt."

"I'm fine. It's just a few scratches. All I need is a bandage," I stated. We were halfway down the rickety metal stairs when I started feeling dizzy. Lester caught me before I fell down the stairs.

"Bobby!" Lester yelled before I lost consciousness.

I could feel myself floating. Bright lights stung my eyes and a strong antiseptic smell filled my nose. Cold hands removed a bandage from my lower right side near my hip. I squinted to see an older woman examining me. "It's healing nicely," she said to someone in the room.

The lights dimmed when another person entered the room. I felt a tingling sensation on the back of my neck. Warm fingers stroked my face as I opened my eyes to look into the most handsome face. "Babe, I have never been so scared in my life," Carlos said as he lowered his lips to mine.

"Me either. Where am I?"

"Hospital in Miami," another male voice said. "You've been here for nine days."

"What happened?" I asked.

"We have matching scars," Carlos announced. I knew exactly what he meant. Vlatko stabbed us deep enough to injure us, but not quite deep enough to be an appendectomy.

The doctor's next words proved me wrong. "Your appendix was nicked and needed to be removed. If it wasn't for Mr Brown, you wouldn't have made it. We had to leave the incision open because of the abscess. It's healing well so we can close it now." He numbed the area to stitch it closed. I focused on Carlos. Once he finished closing my incision, he removed the stitches from my arm.

"I didn't think it was deep enough for sutures," I mumbled.

"A few spots were deeper than others," he explained.

"When can I go home?" I wanted to see my children.

"Soon," he replied as he updated my chart. "We just need to check on the fetus before we can release you."

"I'm pregnant?" I asked. "I don't feel pregnant. My breasts aren't tender."

"Babe?" Carlos asked.

"When I was pregnant with Julie, my breasts were tender before I took the pregnancy test. I don't feel pregnant. If I was, then I'm not now," I explained.

"Do the blood test to confirm," Carlos ordered. The kind older nurse took a sample and promised the results within a few hours.

A few minutes before I received the results, I felt blood pooling between my legs. "I'm not pregnant Carlos." He helped me out of bed to change. Carlos carefully washed me and helped me dress. I found feminine pads in the bathroom cabinet. We just started walking towards the bed when the nurse arrived. She quickly changed the sheets and shook her head to confirm I wasn't pregnant.

"Start the discharge procedure," he ordered the nurse. We wanted to go home. Carlos and the team refused to return home until I was ready to leave. I was required to meet with the team for debriefing. General Rogers wanted to ensure Vlatko didn't tell me pertinent information while he was torturing me.

Our team arrived in DC a few days later. We spent a few hours debriefing. Carlos provided proof Vlatko was neutralized. His head cracked open on the pavement. There was zero chance of survival. This crazy man was no longer able to hunt and kill our fellow Rangers. I learned I was missing for five days before they located me in the abandoned Miami warehouse. We can finally return to life as normal. General Rogers tried to convince me to sign a new contract with enticing terms, but I wanted to be home with my family. My children and husband are my world. Carlos still had a few years left on his contract. He wasn't going to renew when his time was done. We talked about training options, but going on life threatening missions lost its appeal for my husband.