OMG! The last few weeks have been manic and I'm only just getting everything back on track. Sadly it's meant that I've had to prioritise and although I agree that you should all come top of my list, somehow I'm not sure my family, the builders, my students etc would agree. :-(

I've also updated chapter 8 and added the comment below but for those of you who don't want to go back, I've repeated it again!

Thank you to everyone that spotted the following inconsistencies!

To set things straight (the appropriate chapters have been amended - said she hopefully):

1) Ranger slunk off early at Chico's funeral after watching from so far back no one saw him there (except his Mom)

2) It's Tia Maria's (Mama Manoso – Ranger's Mom) surprise 60th birthday party

3) There is no Carmen - it was a name I used then binned for Mama Manoso and hopefully is gone now, just like JEB

Big fat SORRY for the confusion (I blame it on the boxes...) I do make mistakes (most of my stories have little itty bitty consistences, but this one! Gah!

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Delfia's POV

Interesting, she thought as she returned to putting away the last of the supper dishes and loading the dishwasher.

Stephanie was putting Charlie to bed and almost as she'd left the room her phone had rung.

Flashback:

"Are you alone right now?" Lucas had asked.

"Why hello to you too, Son."

"Sorry Mama but, I only have a couple of minutes - are you alone?"

Knitting her brows in confusion and taking a long glance at the kitchen door she replied "yes… what's the problem."

"Oh, no problem but I think I might have worked out who Stephanie's husband is, was? Whatever."

Delfia gasped. "Who?" she whispered nervously as her hand moved to her throat in fear.

"Carlos Manoso."

Delfia gasped again. "Lucas! Are you suuuure?"

"About 99.9% positive. Or so Hector tells me. I was talking to Celia and browsing the photos in her great room when I came across Carlos and a girl who looked remarkably like our little lost girl on a beach. It was a wedding photo and even through the camera lens I could feel the love. Hector ran a couple of searches for me based on the information Stephanie gave for her insurance and hey presto… she's changed her identity but it's absolutely irrefutable. Ranger is Charlie's father. I don't know how I didn't see if before, but that little girl is the perfect blend of the two of them."

"What do you want to do with this information?"

"Right now, I'm not sure. Stephanie is hiding for a reason and Celia did tell me that the split was ugly so there's obviously something nasty that went down. I was thinking that I'd have a chat with Angela later when we've finished everything for tomorrow and can head off to bed and go from there.

"Lester's here and he's the biggest gossip of the lot, maybe he can spill something – that's if Carlos doesn't come. If he does turn up I can always pursue that avenue later."

"Good thinking. I really like Stephanie and Charlie is absolutely adorable. I can feel in my bones that we need to help her so maybe I'll have a little chat with her when she gets done with putting the little poppet to bed, see if I can get her to open up a little bit more. I don't know that she'll want anything to do with Carlos, she's clearly still very upset about what happened, but maybe given time she'd at least tell him about their daughter."

"Sounds like a plan but at this stage I don't think we tell her that know about their relationship. I'd hate for us to persuade Stephanie to talk to him and for him to brush her off. We don't know what happened and until we do, I think we tread very carefully."

"Oh mi hijo, I totally agree. Despite time, Stephanie is still very raw and she needs to heal before we could even bring this up. I think this will be a long term project."

"You're not wrong Mama! Shoot, Les is wandering in this direction, gotta go! Give my love to everyone at your end."

"Will do, have fun and see you tomorrow!"

"I'll pick you up from the airport. Let me know when you board."

End flashback

Steph wandered into the kitchen and blew out a soft sigh of relief as she stopped for a moment and watched the incredible woman who'd put so much faith in her and who was currently wiping the marble counter tops down.

"My favourite part of the day is when I get Charlie ready for bed." She explained as she padded further into the cavernous yet somehow home cosy room wearing pale grey lightweight jogging pants, a pale pink strappy top and brightly coloured snuggly socks. Delfia looked up and smiled and with a look encouraged her to continue as she finished up her task.

"Seeing my soft and sleepy little angel's smile as she hugs Bunbun makes my heart soar. Regardless of how tired I am and whether we've had a good day or not, seeing her little lips pout as she fights sleep and her eyes flutter to closed chases away my demons, even if only for a few minutes. She's a constant reminder of Ray… her father and that will always be a painful thing. I loved him so much and despite everything I always will. Charlie is the best of both of us…"

Steph's sentence just floated away and it was obvious she wasn't going to discuss the subject any more. It was also obvious that she was still very much in love with him.

Delfia put her cloth on the drainer then glided closer and ran her hand down her arm, but once she'd seen the tears that were threatening to fall, she gently pulled her into her arms and cradled her as Steph lost her battle with the tears and wept.

Stroking her hair gently, she whispered platitudes in Spanish to try and calm the crying woman even as she vowed to get to the bottom of this terribly sad mess and do her best to help heal Stephanie's heart.

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Frank put the phone down on the table then and plonked himself down heavily onto the attached padded bench before leaning forward, putting his head in his hands and weeping with relief.

Confused by the noise, Helen came running into the hallway and sunk to her knees by his feet. "Frank? Frank! What is it, what's the matter. You're scaring me!" she asked, heart in her mouth and tears in her eyes as she looked at the apparently broken man in front of her.

"Oh my God! It's Stephanie! They've found her body, haven't they? Oh please tell me it's not true! It can't be true! My baby! Oh Frank…" she wept, clinging to his legs as painful sobs wracked her body.

"I'm sorry… I didn't mean to frighten you!" he replied calming down enough to sputter the words out, suddenly realising how it must look. Changing his position he scooped her up in his arms. "It's not what you think, Dear! Hector has found her, but she's alive! OH MY GOD, HELEN, SHE'S ALIVE!"

"Wh…what? She's… where is she? I need to see her! Is she ok? Where is she? What's happened to my baby? I need to see her…"

"Shh… it'll be all be alright." He added as reassuringly as he could as they clung to each other like drowning sailors. "I don't have many details, but Hector tells me she's safe and well. She doesn't know that she's been found so we won't be able to see her straight away. She's in a safe place and is doing ok. He couldn't, or wouldn't tell me any more but he wanted to know that she was alive."

Helen nodded even as she wiped her hands over her face, then through her hair to try and tame the curls that had escaped the confines of her pony tail. "She's alive, Frank! She's… oh my baby…"

"I know… I know." He replied as he pulled her back into his arms. Stephanie Manoso, nee Plum was alive and ok. That would do …for now.

They'd waited a smidge under three and a quarter years for this day to come. They'd could wait a bit longer for the rest. She was alive and that was all that mattered.

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Hector smiled the smile of a very contented man. Three years 1 month and 22 days after her disappearance, his Angelita had resurfaced and he'd been able to tell her father that she'd been found. Admittedly, there was not a lot else he felt comfortable sharing, after all, Steph needed to introduce Charlie to her maternal family in her own time, but it had felt really, really good to be able to put hope back into her parents' hearts.

For the first few months after she disappeared, Frank had phoned him daily to see if there was any news. Then as time had marched on, it grew too painful to hear that there was nothing to report, so the daily calls turned to weekly, monthly and finally quarterly. The more time lapsed the less hopeful Frank had become and Hector's heart broke a little more each time he was unable to tell him anything.

Being able to call him with the news that she'd been found had been wonderful. He just hoped that in time Estephania would decide to meet up with him and come home. He knew that it would be a while till he could contact her but he was hoping he would be the first person she would agree to meet with (if it was Lester he was going to be very pissed) and they could start the long process of being the light of Rangeman home.

He wasn't naïve, there were a lot of things that would need to be fixed that right now seemed so broken and things would never be the same again. But that didn't matter and perhaps, just perhaps enough water had gone under the bridge that there was the slightest chance of reconciliation. After all, life was too short and even more precious. Leaning back in his chair and pressing the padded leather backwards so he could look up to the ceiling, he laced his fingers behind his head and thought about all the crappy things that needed fixing.

Steph's parents had said a few things they day before she's left that they still regretted. Neither had spoken to nor allowed Ranger over the threshold since the day she'd disappeared.

Lester and Bobby felt they should have stopped her and taken her to a safe house until everything died down then talked Ranger down from whatever had pushed him over the edge and locked them in a room together.

Tank hated that he'd only just managed to keep Ranger sane and almost had survivor's guilt for being so happy with Lula.

Lula, Connie and Mary Lou boycotted and hated most of Rangeman and especially Ranger for the terrible way they'd treated Steph.

Angelita never got to say goodbye to her beloved Grandma Mazur.

He himself felt that he should have done more to track her down and should never have given up hope, just like Frank Plum.

But in spite of the impossible list he'd just created, he felt hope. The first time in a long, long three years, he felt there was a chance that things would work out. And something told him that a certain little bundle with a tiny pink cap on her head may yet be the miracle they all needed.

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Please don't hate me for taking so long to update! Love ya xoxoxox