A/N: I think some of you guys either hacked my laptop or can predict the future :) Also... people that had issues understanding what was up with the chapter two chapters back, where Steph got into a bit of an ugly situation... you'll see after this chapter now that there is actually logic to my madness :) Well, I guess sometimes anyway... And because someone ask and it was mentioned a few times prior in regards of what's up with the lack of Ella? Truth be told, I just forgot about her... oops, my bad. I do adore her though, just... forgot about her.

It took exactly three days for Lester, Tank and Bobby to make my life a lot easier – and push their way into my daily workout schedule. It was decided Tank would become my new self-defense trainer and Lester would join my Pilates and Yoga with Vince.

"I wasn't aware you are into Yoga?" I mentioned when I spotted Lester's name on my schedule.

"Neither was I in regards of Vince," Lester remarked with an odd smile.

"You… you are not going to give him crap, are you? Cause I don't want any of them to feel bad or… ashamed cause it isn't all kickass and hardcore."

"Of course not, Beautiful," Lester assured me seriously. "And not everything has to be deadly or kickass. Yoga as a matter of fact trains a lot of important things as well. Also… I think we spent already too much time hitting or shooting stuff, or being otherwise very active. Yoga sort of centers you and to a certain point calms things down. I actually wish more guys of us would do it. But as long as no one is going off batshit crazy I guess we all have our own ways to deal with our job and the things we witnessed at some point."

With the guys back, Tank took on the roster and a few other things which meant I was able to actually leave my desk more often and join the rest of the Merry Men in the field. Lester had become my somewhat partner out in the field and it was him who currently was handing our latest FTA for Vinnie over to the PD in order to collect the body receipt.

I would have done it, but seeing Morelli idling with a small group of colleagues, I decided spontaneously to stay at reception.

"Hi Eddie," I said in greeting, nodding towards one of my longest friends.

"Hi Steph," he greeted me back, grinning. "What brings you down here?"

"The usual. Just making a drop off for an FTA for Vinnie. Lester just handed him over and is waiting for the body receipt. What's new on your end?"

"Not much other than the usual," he said smiling at me. "How's things with-" he started on, but I was momentarily distracted from whatever he was going to ask when there was a lot of loud noises behind me. Looking at the source of noise I saw a bunch of cops arguing with each other and looking rather pissed off. Though I wasn't sure why or at what or who. No one really stood out.

"What's going on?" I asked curious and Eddie just sighed for a moment.

"The usual really. Department cutbacks and a couple guys had their cases screwed up."

"Because of department cutbacks?" I asked surprised, wondering what on earth they were cutting back on. Usually it was things like staffing or office supplies. None would usually mean a case got screwed up.

"Yeah, they cut back the K9 unit recently. The guys you see there were about to have possibly quite a huge breakthrough on some local drug trafficking. But the K9 unit is hit by quite a bit of cutbacks and we were told we need to do it old-school and can't count on a few of their sniffer dogs. Meaning a job that could have been done with a warrant and within an hour or two now takes several days probably. And that doesn't even mean they'll find what they are looking for."

"That sucks big time," I admitted and saw Eddie nodding.

"Tell me about it." We watched the arguing a bit longer while I waited for Lester to return and Eddie waiting for… whatever he was doing in the first place.

"Speaking of dogs, how's yours doing? What breed was it again?"

"Batman's doing just fine getting spoiled with food and attention from everyone. He's a Labrador and spends his day sleeping or eating," I laughed and saw Eddie do the same.

"There used to be a time when the same thing could be said about you, Steph," he joked and I laughed with a nod. He wasn't entirely off with that.

"True," I laughed at him.

"So he isn't accompanying you out in the field?"

"Not really. I guess he could. But he is sort of attached to me for unknown reasons. And I'm worried that he might attack someone who he thinks is a threat to me. I don't think he could do a lot of proper damage except for biting someone, but… that's already too much. And the last thing I would need right now is a lawsuit from a disgruntled client. He gets some training."

Eddie smiled at me and was about to say something when he was called over by a colleague I didn't recognize. Walking he turned around after a few steps and looked at me.

"You know, maybe with the right training, your dog could become a K9 and solve our problem," he laughed before walking on. Before I could reply Lester made his way to me, waving the body receipt at me and motioned for us to leave.

Eddie's comment stayed with me for a while, long after Lester and me had made it back to Haywood. Curling up next to Batman on the couch, I switched back and forth between TV channels until I found something that wasn't too hard to follow but also not of the idiotic kind.

"You think you could be a good K9?" I asked the dog lying next to me who looked up with big eyes. Instead of an answer I received a lick on my hand. Not sure how to take that.

I liked Eddie's idea, though he most likely only said it as a joke and the longer I thought about it, the more I took a liking. So I grabbed my phone and started on a bit of research, just to see if technically a private company could train and provide K9.

I knew I couldn't just decide something like that on the whim and not without a second or third opinion or by running it by at least one person, most likely though a few more. So I went to bed, deciding to see how the same idea would feel tomorrow and then maybe running it past Tank, Lester, Bobby and maybe a few of the other guys.

By next morning I somewhat still liked my idea but was also a little more careful in getting too excited. Instead of just running to Tank, Lester and Bobby right away to tell them about my idea, I did more research for a few days. I needed to know what I was going to get us into if I wanted to pitch this idea successfully. Technically I knew I was holding the majority of the company and if I was really hell-bent on my idea I could just go ahead without any of them approving, but they had experiences and knowledge. And maybe could provide me with a different angle on why my idea was maybe not as glorious as I was making it out to be. I respected them and their opinions. So if they said no, I would trust them on their decision.

When I felt ready in regards of research and facts that supported my idea, I called a meeting with Lester, Bobby and Tank and ran my idea past them thoroughly.

"What do you think?" I finished after my initial idea rundown.

There was a long silence with all three men looking at me carefully and seeming to think things through.

"I like it," Bobby said first after all of them had seemed like thinking about it for ages. "It is something different and gives us the option of new sources of revenue. It also adds to our own security in a way. A dog as your partner has a lot of advantages. It helps the PD in the long run. And it also means an expansion for RangeMan."

"But," Tank cut in after a moment, giving me the feeling as if he was about to shoot me and my idea down. "It is a pricey undertaking and one that will only start showing success in both financial and business gain over time. A lot of time. The training for these dogs is tough and long. We are talking years."

"So… that's a no?" I asked carefully, looking at everyone.

"That's not what I said, Stephanie," Tank said a moment later. "I just want you to be aware that this is not something that you start that works out in a few weeks. I like the idea and I agree with Bobby. It brings a lot of great things to RangeMan if successful. But success won't show for a few years."

"Also, you need to be aware that not every breed is made for being a K9. We are talking about approaching breeders and they usually ask for quite a hefty fee," Lester added and I was actually aware of that. When I started my research the night before one of the first things I looked into were the usual breeds for that. And these breeds were… some of the more expensive ones when talking about breeders. But then I figured the moment you were talking about breeders things never would be cheap.

"Well, I was thinking of maybe starting with two or three and we could maybe look through the local shelters to see if they have dogs that would work," I offered and I know it was a weak argument. This was built on chance and luck.

"Also… training might be another thing. None of us have any idea how to train a dog to be able to sniff out money, drugs or just scents and tracks. That's a very specific branch of the business that none of us have experiences with," Lester went on.

"I… Okay, so here's the thing, I… sort of ran this idea past Bones because he once mentioned that while stationed in Iraq his unit had specific dogs for different kind of jobs. While he himself isn't a trainer, he knows a couple of guys from back then who by now are certified trainers for several of the alphabet agencies."

"And Bones wants to shadow them?" Bobby and Tank asked confused, at which I shook my head.

"No. Some of them look for new opportunities in their professional paths. I … might have their files on my desk."

Tank laughed at that. "I thought you left recruiting to me," he remarked and I smiled back.

"Well, I haven't seen them in person yet and they haven't signed anything yet. So I didn't recruit anyone. I don't even know if they bring anything to RangeMan, but they tick all the general boxes of ex-military, buff and hunky."

At my remark Tank couldn't hide the laugh and Lester as well as Bobby seemed amused as well.

"Speak to Bones and see if you find a suitable dog or two at the local shelters," Tank said after a long while. "And have the files of these guys on my desk and I'll look at them."

"Thank you," I said and was meet with a surprised expression on Tank's face.

"What for?" he asked.

"For considering this. For taking the time and actually looking at the possibility. And for not just shutting it down right away."

"I case you hadn't noticed, Little Girl, every opinion matters to at least get heard. Even the ridiculous ones do. Most of them might never pan out and work the way you think, but every idea offers a different angle on an idea in this business. And seeing as you are holding the majority of stocks in the company… you know you wouldn't even have to ask us, right? You could just go and do what you want and none of us can do anything against it."

"I know," I admit and was met with more surprise. "But I wanted an honest opinion and if you guys would have said no, than I would have let it go and not follow through with it. I might hold the majority of stocks but that doesn't mean I know everything or have a right to bypass your opinions."

Two days later Tank had decided on hiring two of my suggestions since 'they'd make a great addition'. And two weeks after that we had three puppies that we thought as a good choice for our little adventure. RangeMan K9 was fully underway and I was hoping this worked the way I was wishing and wouldn't be a complete disaster.