Chapter 18

I hurt, a lot, as some of my senses came to me. It meant that I was alive though I must have been badly injured when I hit the floor. So what the hell had happened? Where was I and did those two men have me?

I had to stay still for fear of the pain getting worse and it was then when I heard a dreaded sound, a sound that I hated and had me knowing exactly where I was. Beep, beep, beep echoed through my head but at least listening to that took my mind off the pain.

"Hey, how are you doing?"

I recognized the voice so struggled to open my eyes, blinking madly to get them to focus.

"I"

My throat was killing me, so I welcomed the straw that was pushed in between my lips. The water felt cool and so soothing in my dry mouth and as it slid down my throat. Feeling the bed dip, I looked up to see Xander sat looking back at me. His face was a mess, but the bruising looked to be turning yellow and there was no evidence of any swelling. Had that happened outside of the bus station?

"It's been a few days since you were brought here. A few things have happened but nothing for you to worry about"

"What the hell happened?"

I know I was frowning but judging from what Xander was saying I was feeling out of the loop.

"Nothing to worry your head about"

Yeah right, so why did Xander keep looking at the door, who was out there?

"Xander what's going on outside?"

Because I knew that he was getting nervous now and I had a right to know, didn't I?

"Someone's been trying to see you, won't give a reason but Greg's keeping him out"

Oh shit, who were they talking about, who would want to see me and have Gregory refusing to let him in. I jumped as the door opened, my eyes closing as a pain shot through my body. When I opened them, it was to see a young nurse adjusting the bag hung up above me. Great, lifting my wrist slightly, I had an IV in as well.

"When can I leave?"

That got me a dirty look from the nurse and a smirk from Zander.

"You need to sleep. Visiting hours are over but I'll be back in the morning"

I felt a kiss on my cheek so closed my eyes. Yeah, I was tired.

It was the weight on my hand that had me trying to move it, but it wouldn't move. I moved my head slightly to see why that was and I swear that I was having a heart attack. At least the heart monitor had gone, though when that had happened, I had no idea. The lighting was dim but that didn't stop the confusion or panic from running through me. I'd know that silhouette anywhere. I tried again to pull my hand away, but I didn't have the strength and to be honest the effort caused me pain. I didn't want him here so how the hell had he managed to get into my room? I suppose that he was the best at doing that, but it didn't make my panic any better.

I watched through my tears as he raised my hand and gently kissed it. That action had me so confused. Why would he do that?

"I have been so worried about you Babe"

I closed my eyes not sure why he'd said that. I mean he was someone who had doubted me, not trusted me and had deserted me so why the hell would he be worried about me now?

"When I got back it was to find out that you'd gone, disappeared. I am so sorry Babe, that I hadn't been there for you when you obviously needed someone"

My eyes shot open and maybe my mouth opened to ask why the hell he was here now, but nothing came out. I closed my mouth and just stared at him wondering what the hell he was saying. As every word that I'd been told about Ranger came back to me I needed for him to know why I was so upset.

"You said, no you suggested that I was responsible for what happened to my grandma, that I'd driven her in my car. That hurt, Ranger, and then before I even had a chance to tell you my side of the story you'd gone. Your men said it was because you didn't want to be anywhere near me"

Tears were streaming down my face now but at least I'd managed to tell him what I knew, to tell him how I saw his behavior. I watched him closely as he closed his eyes and then when they opened and looked right at me. I wasn't sure if he was annoyed with me for what I'd said but I wasn't going to just let him sit there and expect for everything to be okay between us.

"You knew that I was down in Miami. I came home as soon as I heard what had happened. I couldn't get anywhere near you until the cemetery. The rumors flying around were saying that your grandma was with you in the car and then Morelli was insistent, even served us with a warrant, so we had to hand over the data that showed where your trackers had been. The tracker in your bag was with the tracker in the car. That day, the day of the funeral, I got a call. I had to go Babe, I had no choice but when I got back, I wanted to find out what the hell had happened"

So he hadn't told Joe about the trackers voluntarily, Joe had demanded the information from Rangeman. So why had Joe told me after the funeral that Ranger couldn't understand why I'd had my grandmother with me, and that Ranger was annoyed with me? Why had Joe lied to me? Simple, because he knew that normally I'd go to Ranger for support and Joe needed a way to be sure that I wouldn't do that.

"Would you believe that Lula threatened me, actually managed to find her damn gun in her bag and point it at me? She was so fucking mad, and I suppose me turning up weeks later had her venting her anger at me. She told me everything. Christ Babe, I am so sorry that you went through that hell on your own. I couldn't find you, nothing gave us a lead as to where you'd gone"

Which meant that Lula had told Ranger everything. I felt uncomfortable with that because I'd learnt over the past few weeks that my life was worth something. Xander had given me that feeling of being worthy and to start to believe in myself, believe what I knew. Twice I could quite easily have let myself slip away.

"You looked for me?"

A question or a statement, it didn't matter. What mattered was that he seemed to care enough to do it. I watched as he kissed my hand again.

"I'm not going to desert you Babe, I'll support you for as long as you need me"

As he kissed my eyelids, they stayed closed and I'm sure that I fell asleep with a smile on my face.

Turns out that my fall was broken by a pile of rubbish underneath me, but it hadn't protected me from injuring myself. I'd landed on my side and badly bruised the bone and muscles in my hip and ribs which was I'd been in so much pain to start with. Plus, I'd given my head a hell of crack which was why it had taken time for me to wake up properly. I suppose that I was lucky that I hadn't broken any bones. Physio was the doctors answer so every afternoon a woman would take me through her exercises. Fortunately, I could manage to walk to the bathroom by myself, well I made myself by putting up with the pain.

Ranger was always there with me during the night while Xander occupied me during the day. It was on the fifth night when Ranger was with me that I was definitely feeling antsy. I wanted to be out of the hospital, but no one had told what had happened that night and that had me feeling anxious.

"Who were the men in that warehouse"

At least if I asked a pointed question then I might get an honest answer.

"Paid hench men. They grabbed you from outside the bus station"

That was what it felt like when I woke up in that room but to be honest, I wasn't sure that I was prepared for Ranger to say it out loud.

"So people were after me? But why?"

"We don't know for sure. I've spoken with both Greg and his man Xander, but no one can give you any answers"

"Who found me?"

"As soon as Xander realized that someone had grabbed you he called Greg. Greg mobilized his men in his Chicago office while we flew up here. Xander managed to follow the taxi through street cams and teams started to search grid by grid in the area where it looked to have gone"

Wow, a lot of manpower had gone into finding me which had me feeling quite humble. I didn't really know Gregory that well, yet he had made sure that teams were looking for me.

"The men with the machine guns, who were they?"

Because I'd felt threatened by them as well. Was it them who had fired a shot towards us?

"Greg's men. They saw an opportunity to take a shot at the man holding you but didn't realize that you were off balance"

Okay, at least they were the good guys then, even if I'd ended up going over the bannister.

"I don't know Gregory that well but Xander, he's become a very good friend and I needed a friend. Have you spoken to him?"

I saw a raised eyebrow so knew that he had, of course he would have.

"He is very protective of you Babe but hasn't told me anything personal"

I was thankful for that because I'd told Xander things that I didn't want repeated and neither did I want him to feel intimidated by Ranger. When I felt that the time was right maybe I'd share my story with Ranger, but I was a bit embarrassed with what I'd tried to do. I needed to change the subject so asked him a question that had me curious.

"How did you find me?"

Because I knew that I hadn't left a trail to follow, and no one knew who I was. I'd tried to hide Stephanie Plum from everyone including myself.

"I just knew when I helped Greg with a job that it could be you who was this ace researcher that he'd found. No one I know looks at a puzzle the way that you do. So I had Hector try to find you near to where Greg's house is. Then when I saw all of the paper and colored highlighters down in Atlanta, I knew for sure that it was you. I had to find you and make sure that you were okay. I didn't know how much you'd been hurt or that you thought that I was the enemy"

I wasn't sure how to respond to that because I'd left Trenton knowing how much everyone had blamed me for my grandma's death, saying that if I carried on with my job then I'd get other people killed as well, and at the time that included Ranger saying it.

"I started to look into what grandma was doing before that day"

That had Ranger look at me and when he seemed to close down his expression I knew for sure that he knew something.

"What is it Ranger, what aren't you telling me?"

"Once you're properly healed then I'll talk you through that"

I felt worried after he said that because it must have been bad if he wasn't prepared to say anything now. Being properly healed meant getting out of the hospital so I started to ask anyone and everyone when that would happen. That was when it occurred to me that I had no idea where I would go. I was a nomad with no home to go back to, not that I wanted to go back to Trenton. As the day for my release came, I know that I became very quiet because I was worried about where I would go. After the papers were signed, I then worried how the medical bill had been paid so after the doctor had left me and the nurse had helped me to change into soft joggers and a T shirt, I ended up in tears sat on the bed. Imagine my surprise when Ranger, Xander and Gregory walked into the room.

"Babe, what's the matter?"

"Annie?"

I looked at the three men through my tears unable to voice my worries.

"You're going to a safe house. Between Carlos and me we have two teams that will protect you"

I looked at Ranger because he would know how much I would hate the idea of a safe house.

"I'll be there with you Babe and Xander has already taken over the annex"

Okay, that answered one of my worries and I would get the answer to the other one later. Of course, I had to leave the hospital in a wheelchair, but the sense of freedom was liberating. Greg drove the blue SUV with Xander sat next to him which meant that Ranger was in the back holding me. Whilst I knew that the bruising was on the mend any movement still hurt me but once settled in the seat, I found a position that was the most comfortable.

I totally missed the drive out of Chicago, not that I was interested, but I had been curious where we would end up. Waking up laid on my side I was looking at two huge glass windows with a view of tree branches and a large expanse of water. The water looked so calm as I continued to stare out with the last rays of the sun gliding along the surface. I was sure that I was probably frowning because I couldn't understand where we were. I sure as hell didn't expect to be close to the sea. Turning slightly, I grimaced at the discomfort that came with the movement, but I wanted to see where I was.

I was laid down on a long soft leather couch with a blanket over me and a pillow underneath my head but seeing as the couch was facing the window the only view that I had were of cream colored ceiling and walls. The rustle of fabric made me aware that someone was with me and very quickly Ranger appeared in front of me, crouching down to my level.

"You slept well Babe. How are you feeling?"

I suppose better than I had been, but I knew that I needed to move. I used my hand to push me up but without me asking for help Ranger was carefully helping me to sit up.

"Where are we?"

Because I was totally confused. Okay, I knew that I'd been brought to somewhere safe, but had I slept that long that I'd missed travelling for miles?

"Treetops Lakefront. It's a vacation home with 200 ft of private beach onto Lake Michigan"

I looked back through the window totally surprised that the water that I was seeing was a lake. It was enormous, so big that I couldn't see the other side of it. I held my hands out for Ranger to take glad of his help as he pulled me to my feet and looked around where I was. The room was bright and large and open plan. I spied a log burning stove set against the wall and as my eyes traversed the room saw a large area dedicated to a kitchen. The floors were polished wood but everywhere else looked new and modern.

"Err, where's the bathroom?"

Because standing up had made me realize that was where I needed to be. Ranger kept his arm around my waist as he led me into the kitchen area and then turned, walking through a dining area until we came into an internal hallway. Even here it was light with the sun coming through a huge window at the end.

"That leads through to the annex and there are two bedrooms on this floor, each with their own bathrooms"

I was led past two doors, seeing a spiral staircase leading upstairs, before Ranger opened the third door for me. He released me from his hold as I walked inside and marveled at the room that I was in. The color that had been chosen to complement the cream walls was a light coral, seen in the cushions and throws on the huge bed. A door led into a large modern bathroom which I looked around while I used the toilet. A large tub caught my eye which had me wanting to soak down into hot bubbly water, but I knew that I wouldn't be able to get in and out of it on my own.

As I washed my hands, I looked at my reflection in the mirror. I was still pale but the darkness around my eyes had gone and as I turned even the redness on my cheek and neck were receding. My hair though, looked like a mop sat on top of my head. As I swept my fingers through it, I pulled at it trying to get into some sort of style. My waves were definitely growing through and as I examined my scalp it seemed so were strands of white hair. That it mingled in with the streaks was a blessing, I'd got used to it being short now but couldn't wait for it to grow faster. Okay, it was now down my neck and with the weight and tweezing it I managed to tame it. Coming back into the bedroom I found another door that held a closet and what looked like an array of new clothes. I had no idea where they had come from or who had put them there. My eyes caught the movement of fine drapes across the window, so I looked outside to that spectacular view. It really was beautiful here and seemed so quiet. Maybe being here for a while wouldn't be that bad.

Walking slowly from the bedroom down the hallway I came to a sudden stop at seeing the door to the annex open. That wasn't what surprised me though and tears began to form when I saw who was stood there watching me. I was soon cocooned inside arms that were holding me, feeling so emotional.

"Beautiful, I've really missed you. I never thought that I'd see you again, well yes I did because Ranger has been going nuts looking for you"

My tears ran freely as Les held on to me because it felt so good to feel him holding me.

"We couldn't get anywhere near you after, well after the fire. I'm so sorry Beautiful for what happened"

I wasn't sure whether Les was saying he was sorry for my grandma dying or that he hadn't seen me, but it didn't matter now. He was here now, another part of my life that I'd thought that I'd lost. Turning me Les walked me back through to the living area and helped me to sit down on the couch that was facing the window. As I looked around, I could swear that some of the furniture had been moved because the couch was at a slight angle to the window and there was a similar one now against the wall.

"Who else is here Les?"

Fearful of the reception I might get from some of the other men.

"Bobby because he wants to supervise your recovery and Hector because he missed you and wanted to make sure that you were safe"

"Les, I'm so sorry"

I felt so guilty that Ranger and probably some of the other men had been looking for me.

"Why's that?"

Trust Les to ask that question. I thought through what to say knowing how well Les knew me so knew that I had to be honest with him.

"I thought that you hated me for what had happened, that you wouldn't want me around in case I got you hurt"

"You wound me Beautiful. Okay it was a bit of a shock when we heard what had happened, but we know you. You would never hurt anyone and the way that Morelli kept you separated from everyone and the stories he put out, well we figured that it was you that was being hurt"

I considered what Les had told me knowing that Joe and my parents were telling anyone who would listen that it was because of me that grandma had died but I'd been so upset that to be honest it never occurred to me that he was stopping anyone from seeing me. Then again, I had been confined to my old bedroom at my parent's house.

"Joe and my family were adamant that it was all my fault and I believed them. After the funeral when they started to plan what would happen next I, I felt stifled. A neighbor gave me a lift to the bonds office so that I could see Lula. That was when I overheard those Rangemen talking about me. I knew that I only had myself to blame. I just kept walking and. Anyway, Lula found me, she knew the state that I was in and that I was adamant that I had to leave. She helped, took me to the bank and then to the bus station"

Stifled was an understatement for how I was feeling. I'd hacked at my hair to get rid of the burnt ends when I was at my parent's house. Joe had actually said that he was glad that I'd got rid of my curls. I had felt so miserable and entrenched with guilt.

"Yeah, we heard about what those men had said. They were there to collect files because Ranger was away and the rest of us were trying to figure out what was going on and how we could get to you. Tank suggested that we just bust down your parent's door and kidnap you"

I smiled at the image of that had it happened, especially how my mother would have coped. It hadn't happened and fate had dealt her hand, in more ways than one.

I was aware of people walking toward us and saw Ranger and Xander take a seat in the couch opposite me wondering what was going on.

"Babe. We're all worried why someone is looking for you. Xander told me what you'd been looking at before leaving Chicago and some of the questions that you had"

Okay that wasn't too bad because I wanted to know the answers to those questions as well.

"Santos and Tank had started to look through things before I got back. It provided some interesting reading. For some reason Morelli appointed himself as lead officer on your grandmother's death. At first, we thought it was a way of protecting you until we read his final report. His conclusion before closing the case was that it was one of your FTAs who was responsible, but there were inconsistencies and witnesses that we couldn't find. He reported that your grandmother was in the passenger seat and that you had been driving the car. When we eventually found your car at the breakers yard the driver's seat was pulled forward"

I knew from when Xander had me go through the incident with the fire that I'd remembered that that was where I'd found her. Okay, maybe me pulling her across the front could have caused that confusion. I waited because from the serious look on Ranger's face I knew that he had more to say.

"Ram did some forensic tests on the seats and found skin cells from your grandmother and from you on the front seat. It also looked as though one her shoes was in the drivers footwell"

I remembered all too well how the heat from the seats had burnt my hands as I tried to move my grandmother.

"The report said that the fire started from the back seat, from a molotov cocktail being thrown through the rear window. We found a brick in the rear with remnants of glass so assume the brick was thrown first to break the window"

That had me frowning because I wasn't aware of hearing glass being broken and surely that in itself would have made grandma get out of the car, wouldn't it? It also meant that it wasn't a random act of throwing a lit bottle at the car, it had been intended for it to go up in flames quickly. I knew that talking and thinking about this was getting me upset, even as the tears slid down my cheeks, I could feel Les's hand moving up and down my arm, as though to comfort me.

"The FTA whose file you'd just picked up that morning was a man named Jethro Crocker, arrested for B & E. Morelli had a report from a witness that said that he'd seen Crocker throw a lit bottle towards your car, but, as I said, we can't find that witness and Crocker isn't around anymore to give his side of the story"

I knew that Xander was concerned when he sat forward in his seat and was sure that he was going to say something. I shook my head at him because I just knew that Ranger had more to say, and I didn't want him to be interrupted. I was waiting to hear what Ranger had meant when he'd said that Crocker wasn't around anymore because I was sure that there was yet more to say about that.

"A week later a call went out through the police band that had our attention. Apparently, an anonymous tip came into the station that reported that Crocker had broken into a house. The report that eventually came out said that he was armed and dangerous, so after the police surrounded the house some of them went in from the back and shots were fired that killed him"

I couldn't understand how Crocker would have gone from B & E to armed robbery and surely if he knew that he was surrounded by the police then he would have given himself up?

"Morelli was the one to go in first and stated that he was faced with Crocker holding a gun at him, so had to take the shot first, that it was self-defense"