Chapter 44

LPOV

I wonder if Morelli pissed his pants while watching Hector sharpen his knives. He was involved in many bar fights, which makes me doubt he'd piss himself. Spending so many years working homicide hardened him. Investigating death on a daily basis could really change a man. I'm curious if his stint in the Navy caused his attitude towards other military men, especially those accepted into special ops programs.

"Morelli told Sonya he barely qualified for SEAL training. After the first week of training, he was kicked from the program," Stephanie told me.

"How true was his story?" Tank asked.

"Not at all. He didn't pass the preliminary psychological requirement," she stated. We nodded, understanding just how intense the special ops programs are. You can't eat, sleep or go to the washroom unless your commanding officer permits it.

"How mad do you think he was?" Lester asked.

With a smirk, Stephanie replied, "He got into too many fights and was dishonourably discharged."

"That sounds more like it. I honestly couldn't see him making it into SEAL training. He just doesn't have the personality or discipline to make it," Lester stated.

"Dixon was a SEAL," Tank announced.

"He had to work harder than anyone else in order to complete his training. It wasn't as easy for him as it was for Cal, who was in the same training group," Stephanie announced.

"Did you find that information in his military records?" I asked.

"Only where he placed among the men in his training class. Cal and a few other men we know, placed a lot higher than him. He managed to complete his training, but he was a bit resentful. Dixon never had what it took to be in command. It was a goal he was never able to achieve," she supplied.

"Are you ready?" Ranger asked her.

"Yes. I may be able to get him to spill his secrets," she joked as she tucked an item into the back of her pants.

"What did you give her?" I asked Bobby.

"You'll see in a few minutes," he answered.

I really didn't want my wife in the room with that despicable man, but she was probably the only person he would brag to. He has something to prove to my wife. She spurned him once before. I imagine he'll get very cocky and start posturing.

Ranger and Stephanie entered the room followed closely by Hector. She started to reach behind her to grab Hector's hand, but quickly changed her mind.

"Well… well… well… who do we have here?" Dixon asked. "How's Sonya, Plum?" he asked.

Stephanie wisely remained quiet. He was trying to rattle her. My wife looked completely bored from his questions.

"Dixon," Ranger approached him.

"To what do I owe this pleasure?" Dixon asked.

"Did you hear that Ranger? He says it's a pleasure to be wearing pissed pants," she stated.

Lester and Bobby started laughing. She was going to taunt him. Since she met her sister Mallory, she's been coming out of her shell more. I always knew she had a sense of humour.

"I didn't piss myself," he attempted to convince her. Hector stepped around Stephanie, knife in hand. Dixon's face paled and the fresh scent of urine filled the room.

"Crap. I forgot to give you this," Stephanie said reaching into the back band of his pants. "I'm afraid the sticky side won't stick to anything… wet," she stated as she passed him a maxi pad. "Oh… I have this too. Would you prefer the pad or a tampon?"

Watching Ranger's face in the camera feed, I noticed a very small smile appear on his face. He had his blank face slammed into place by the time Dixon looked in his direction. "Babe, I think it will take more than a tampon to absorb this mess," he said while pointing to the puddle beneath Dixon's chair.

"Meh, it was worth a try," she said with a shrug. "So Dixon, did you actually think you'd get away with it?"

"Get away with what exactly? I didn't do anything wrong," he insisted. We all know he more than did something wrong. Because of his selfish actions, 20 Rangeman employees were about to be unemployed. Actually only 15 will be unemployed, the others will be spending time in prison for assisting their misguided leader.

"You took money from Rangeman," Ranger coldly stated. Dixon didn't bother denying it.

"And you stole money from your friends," Stephanie added. Once again, Dixon wisely remained silent. She turned to Ranger and in Spanish she said, "Do you think we should issue a Rangeman Atlanta memo detailing how much money he stole from each man?"

"It may violate our confidentiality agreement," he replied.

"Maybe we should tell them the 'taxes' deducted from their overtime pay was really 'pad Dixon's retirement' taxes? Also we should tell them about the daily withdrawals from their accounts and where the money went." Stephanie suggested instead. "Oh… I've got it. We should find a way to contact Eclipse and tell him how much money he has in his offshore accounts?"

"All that money belongs to me!" Dixon shouted. "I only opened the accounts in Eclipse's name so he'd take the fall if the money was found." In order to formally charge Dixon with embezzlement and theft, we needed more proof than the ID on the accounts. His confession literally sealed his fate. Stephanie discovered the accounts were opened online, not in person. She needed to be absolutely certain he was responsible.

"Didn't I tell you he opened the accounts online? I'm surprised he didn't say one of the other men used his ID to open the accounts to frame him," Stephanie continued speaking to Ranger in Spanish.

"I love how she's questioning Dixon by talking to Ranger and ignoring him," Lester laughed.

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SPOV

It didn't take long for Dixon to realize he just dug his own grave. Not only did he claim the money was his, he admitted to creating the accounts. He cleared Eclipse's involvement in under 10 minutes, while incriminating himself.

As we're in this room talking to this lowlife, an FBI analyst was sorting through each transfer and pay deduction recorded in the offshore accounts. For now, the accounts are frozen. Nobody can deposit or withdraw funds. When this case is tried and Dixon arrested, the funds will be directly returned to the men.

"Why?" Ranger asked.

"It's all her fault," Dixon spat. "She was spreading her legs wide open for everyone else. If she didn't keep jerking Morelli around by the chain and spread her legs for him again, none of this would have happened." What the ever loving fuck? I never 'spread my legs open' for anyone except my husband.

I could feel my anger boiling to the surface. The fuck wad Morelli actually convinced him I was promiscuous. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I wanted to yell at him, but I took a few deep breaths instead. I'm here to rattle his cage.

"Let me get this straight," I said in English. "You started embezzling money because Morelli lied and said I was fucking everyone else but him?" It was absolutely absurd.

"No, I did it because you were fucking Ranger," he admitted.

"Ranger I wasn't aware we fucked. How long ago did we hookup? Did I zone out or something? How was I?" I joked.

Dixon snarled, "It was back in Columbus Georgia. I saw you two together. What happened to your baby?"

Resisting the urge to laugh, I calmly stated, "I have never visited or lived in Georgia. You didn't see me with Ranger. It was my identical twin sister Emily you saw, not me."

"Are you fucking serious?" he shouted. "You're going to sit here and lie to me?"

I shook my head and sighed. This was going into a whole new direction. It's about time we got back to the reason he undermined Rangeman.

"I am serious and I'm not standing her lying to you. Why don't you just entertain the possibility it wasn't me and you've destroyed your life because of Morelli's lies?" I asked. Without giving him time to answer, I asked, "Is this why you tried to screw with Ranger's livelihood, his men's lives?"

Ranger was furious. I could feel anger radiating off his body. If he gave me the look he was currently giving Dixon, I would literally piss my pants. "Talk!" Ranger barked.

Dixon immediately started talking. He told us when he met Morelli, in the Navy on their first day. When he applied for SEAL training, a few years after basic and his first mission. Why he applied at Rangeman, couldn't find a job elsewhere. "Morelli said you were his wife and Ranger stole you from under his nose. When I told him I was working for Rangeman, we came up with a plan to bankrupt the company. To put Ranger in his place. If you didn't have a job, you would settle down with your husband."

Sensing Dixon was still holding back, Ranger left me with Dixon and Hector. Ranger knew Hector would keep me safe. "I know you didn't learn those methods on your own. Who taught you the tricks of the trade?" I asked.

He proudly answered, "Morelli's uncle Sunny showed me how to siphon money without getting caught. He even told us how to kill Ranger without getting our hands dirty. All we had to do was get his handler to send him on a wild goose chase of a mission and let his enemy kill him."

"Okay, I'm sensing a common theme here. Morelli spins a web of lies and you believe him, no questions asked. I have not married, nor will I ever marry Joe Morelli. Dating Morelli was never on my radar. Ranger and I never had a relationship outside of being friends. The only man I ever slept with is my current husband. If by any chance I ever find myself unemployed, I have other employment opportunities. There will never be a time where I would become so desperate I'd settle for Morelli. Did I make myself clear?" I calmly stated.

"But he said…" Dixon started before Hector sat across from him to sharpen his knives. He stayed silent for several minutes before Hector quickly moved behind him, pressing the knife into his throat. "Dietz contacted Compton. We paid him a lot of money to eliminate Ranger and his team," he confessed.

"You put your trust into the wrong man," Hector stated in English. "Salvatore Sunucchi, Morelli's uncle Sunny, will flip on you in seconds. Ranger is a good man. Angel is my hermana." Dixon kept opening his mouth before suddenly closing it, giving him the impression of a fish.

"The men trusted you. They followed your instructions. Rangeman Atlanta is filled with Morelli's friends… your friends. How do you think they'll react when they learn we've closed the Atlanta office? Their sense of loyalty to you caused them their jobs. None of them will ever work for Rangeman again," I told him our plans.

"Realizing the extent of his actions, he asked, "Will they be arrested?"

"I don't have an answer to your question. It all depends what the FBI uncovers during their investigation," I answered while looking at my watch. "As of 5 minutes ago, Rangeman Atlanta no longer exists."

"You can't do that to them," he stated.

"I didn't do this to my men, you did. Are you proud of yourself?" Ranger asked before guiding me from the room.

Lucas pulled me into his arms when I entered the viewing room. "You did it," he whispered.

Ranger pulled me from my husband's arms to hug me. "Proud of you Babe," Ranger stated.

"He confessed to embezzlement, theft, fraud and conspiracy. Excellent job Beautiful," Lester praised.

"Hey Bobby," I called towards him, "Next time pass me a diaper. The maxi pad and tampons weren't absorbent enough."

Everyone laughed before we decided to call it a night. I held Luke's hand as we walked up the stairs to our Rangeman apartment. Mallory was bunking with Manny. We had reports to file before the FBI and MPs arrive to arrest Morelli and Dixon.

It's another night we were spending at Rangeman. Since Lucas is still acting CEO for the next couple of weeks, we'll be spending our time here. I should be taking time to myself, but I really didn't want to be away from my husband longer than absolutely necessary. I'll just have to hang around Mallory since she's on mandatory leave too.

I wonder how much trouble we can cause… I mean… get into… ya whatever. Most likely we'll hang around my apartment. Until the aftershock of closing Rangeman Atlanta is done, Ranger wants us to stay where our Merry Men can watch over us.

Lucas opened the door and pulled me into our apartment. Before I could take a step, he had me pressed against the door. We didn't waste time by talking. I wrapped my legs around his waist as he carried me to our bedroom.