Disclaimer: Chuck Norris, Aaron Norris, CBS and others own the characters of "Walker Texas Ranger" and "Sons of Thunder". Any new characters and story lines that come into play are of my own creation. No copyright infringement is intended. This is a fan fiction intended for entertainment purposes only and I am not making any money from it.

Chapter 19: Waiting

Trent was pacing even though he had tried some breathing techniques but nothing could quell his pent-up energy. He considered going to Thunder Karate and having a bout with Walker, but there was no time for that since they were still searching for Carlos. The waiting was getting to him and he knew that he wasn't the only one concerned for Carlos.

He felt a hand on his arm and when he stopped and looked, he was surprised to see sapphire blue eyes with concern swirling within them. He looked and saw that Nancy was holding a steaming mug in her other hand. "Drink this," Nancy ordered as she motioned for him a take a seat in one of the overstuffed chairs that was in the little meeting area in front of Kim's desk. He did as she ordered and sat down, taking a sip from the mug and was surprised to discover that it wasn't coffee, but tea. Since it didn't taste like lawn clippings or ground up flowers and he could taste that it had a hint of orange in it, it wasn't bad.

Nancy took a seat in the chair next to him, placing her hand in his and gave his hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. "Has there been any word yet?" She asked softly.

"No," he responded, shaking his head as a disheartening sigh escaped his lips. "They are still looking for properties under a variety of aliases that Eli Parker has been suspected of using." He could tell that Kim was looking at her three computer screens, having set up a variety of searches under that mix of names. He knew that the way her eyes were darting from screen to screen meant that nothing significant had popped up.

He took another sip of the surprisingly refreshing tea as he thought about the Rangers and the two Detectives who had been looking at properties connected to the businesses and shell corporations they had discovered, but finding nothing that led to Carlos' location.

The door opened, and he smelled the delicious aroma of pizza. He felt Nancy release his hand just as Butch used his back to push open the door the rest of the way since his hands were full and when the bar owner turned around, Trent saw that not only did Butch have two boxes of pizza, but he also had a bag hanging from his wrist, which Trent figured had to be a couple containers of salad.

Butch scanned the room and smiled encouragingly at everyone as he greeted them with a boisterous hello. Trent could see the worry lines around the older man's eyes, but he was appreciative that Butch was trying to keep a brave and confident face for them.

Nancy arose from the couch, went to the little kitchen area, and returned with plates, napkins and silverware, setting it on the table while Butch set down the food and announced that it was time to eat.

Butch went over to Kim and gently pulled her away from her work. He had spoken to her softly so Trent didn't hear what he had said to her, but she had come over and selected a slice of pizza and some of the salad.

His eyes rose to meet Nancy's and his heart skipped a beat as she took a bite from a slice of pizza and had a look that special look on her face was she was delighted and happy.

He looked over her shoulder and his mood sank when he saw Butch. He hated the fact that they hadn't told Nancy's father about his and Nancy's relationship. Now wasn't the time, but he promised himself that he and Nancy would be having a talk about telling Butch the truth.

Trent's mind went to his missing partner and remembered the time when Carlos had been undercover and had disappeared. Fear had gripped him then, same as now. Familiar images of his friend lying dead invaded his mind, then as it did now.

He recalled, several years ago he had prayed vehemently to God that Carlos would be found alive, and thankfully, God must have been listening when he had decided to answer his prayers.

Now, Trent was doing the same, praying to God that they would find Carlos alive as he tried to prevent those images of death from entering his mind. He focused on his faith, knowing that as he held onto it that there was still hope.

A beep from Kim's computer interrupted his thoughts. When he looked up, he saw that Kim had already jumped to her feet and had rushed over to her desk, focused intently at one monitor.

He looked around to see that Butch and Nancy were watching Kim. He locked his eyes onto Kim's face and watched as various expressions went across her face. She had a concentrated look on her face then her eyebrows had risen in surprise. "Well, this is odd," Kim finally said after a couple minutes of nerve-racking silence.

"What? What is it?" Butch asked.

Kim looked over at them, with one corner of her mouth quirked up in thought. "I've decided to expand my search and that included Daisy O'Mara. According to this, she didn't exist ten years ago."

Trent was surprised at the news that Kim had discovered and was about to ask some questions but was interrupted when his cell rang.

He saw that it was Darryl and he answered it, hope filling him that this call would lead them to Carlos. He listened to Darryl, understanding what Kim's news and what Darryl was telling him meant. He thanked Darryl for the information, agreed to meeting at Ranger headquarters before ending the call.

He looked at his friends, seeing the mixture of hope and worry. He gave them a hopeful smile. "Looks like our friends already have some answers about Daisy and that may lead us to Carlos."

He filled them in and got ready to head out because he was going to help find his friend.