"Undercover" Part 3
By Lorrie
Disclaimer: The following story is based on the characters of the TV Series "Walker, Texas Ranger". The characters belong to CBS Productions, Top Kick Productions, Washo Brother's Entertainment, etc, but the story is mine. ALL DISCLAIMERS APPLY. (No copyright infringement is intended.)
Before pulling out, Gage eyed the Commander's cellphone. "Excuse me, could I use your cell? I sure would like to let my wife know that we're on our way back."
"Sorry son. You won't be able to get a signal out here. You'll have to wait until we're back in town. I'm sure your missus can wait that long." He half smiled at the young Ranger.
Gage nodded and took his seat next to Trivette in the back of yet another truck. Jimmy grinned at him. "What?" Gage asked in a defensive tone.
"Nothing." Jimmy raised his hands, but continued to laugh.
"I can't help it. I miss her when she's not with me." Gage confessed as a smile crossed his face.
"I know. Too bad Sydney couldn't have dressed as a man. We could have used her down here."
Gage shook his head and grew serious. "Don't even think it, Trivette. As much as I wish she were with me, I'm glad she wasn't. Not this time."
******** Walker continued to bump along the underside of the truck. He nearly lost his grip when the truck jerked to a stop suddenly.
"What's wrong?" Sam asked as Manuel stopped the truck.
"There's something in the road up ahead."
"Trouble?"
"I don't know." He put the truck in gear and crawled towards the objects in the road. As he grew closer, he could make out the figures of two men, his men.
"Holy mother of God, it's two of our men." Sam said as Manuel once again stopped the truck. Both men got out for a closer look. While they were occupied with the bodies, Walker slid from his hiding place and made his way to the back of the truck. Surprisingly, there was no lock on the back. Walker figured that the gate had been rigged to not open from the inside. He lifted the latch and quickly opened it as wide as he dared. Before helping Tom out, he checked on Sam and Manuel. They were still examining the bodies.
Tom turned his back towards Walker so he could remove the ropes binding his hands. Once he was free, Walker closed the gate and they both made a run for the woods, still unnoticed by Sam and Manuel.
******* The truck rambled to a stop and Trivette and Gage hopped out of the back. "So, where exactly are we?" Gage asked.
"You're in Laredo gentlemen." The Commandant said as he exited the cab of the truck.
Gage rubbed the back of his head just as he caught sight of a familiar petite figure coming their way. "Syd?"
Trivette turned and smiled. "Sydney, how did you know where to find us?"
"I got a call." She eyed the Commander.
He tipped his hat at her. "Ma'am."
Gage slipped his arms around Sydney. "I'm glad you're here, Shorty."
"Me too." She said enjoying Gage's strong embrace and wanting nothing more than to feel his lips on hers, but knowing that this was neither the time nor place for that, she pulled away. "Where's Walker?" She asked.
"Walker?" Trivette questioned, looking at Gage who shrugged his shoulders.
Sydney's eyes grew large. "You mean that you two haven't seen Walker? He came down here to get you guys out."
Trivette's mouth opened slightly and he looked at Gage again. "Oh no, you don't suppose he's at Diablo's Den do you?"
Gage nodded. "If he's not there now, I would bet that he has been there."
The Commander approached the group of Rangers and cleared his throat. "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation." He paused. "Come with me." The Rangers followed the Commander into a briefing room. "Close the door." He instructed Trivette as he was the last one in.
"Now, under normal circumstances the DEA and the Texas Rangers don't really cross each others paths, but that is under NORMAL circumstances. Since we are all here and our cases seem to have crossed over, I'd like to know if the three of you would be interested in assisting my men," he paused and looked at Sydney.
Sydney smiled at the Commander. "How can we be of assistance?" She asked.
The hard-faced Commander returned the smile. "I think you're going to be a great asset in this raid young lady."
Gage threw him a stern look. "What exactly are you thinking?" He asked.
"Ranger Cooke would be a perfect decoy. I'm sure that Juarez and the rest of the 'boys' won't know what hit them as long as Ranger Cooke is standing close by."
"Standing?" Gage asked. "You mean you want her to go in there with those brutes and . . ."
Sydney cleared her throat. "Gage, I can take care of myself and I certainly don't need to ask your permission."
"Technically, I have more seniority than you and . . ."
"And I have more seniority than both of you." Trivette chimed in. "Gage, Sydney can take care of herself, besides we won't be far behind her, right?" He looked at the Commander.
The Commander nodded. "Exactly. The way I figure it, Ranger Cooke goes in as a woman driving through the desert, alone gets herself lost and then her car dies on her. That'll get her in and once she has Juarez and the others off guard, we come in."
"How many in your unit?" Gage asked.
"Fifteen." The Commander replied. "Are we in agreement?"
Sydney and Trivette both looked at Gage. He rolled his eyes. "Ok, ok, I know when I'm outnumbered."
******* "What do you think happened to them?" Manuel asked.
"I don't know, but I think we should get moving with our cargo." Sam replied as he headed back towards the truck, still not realizing that their cargo was missing.
Walker and Tom kept themselves hidden just below the embankment until they heard the truck pull away. "Come on." Walker said as he helped Tom to his feet. "What's the plan?' Tom asked.
"We're going to have to walk back to town." Walker said as they started down the rough road.
"How far you think it is?"
Walker shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, but I do know we had better put as much distance between us and that truck as we can before they check inside."
Tom nodded and the two men started down the road towards the nearest town.
******
The Commander briefed his team, including Trivette, Sydney and Gage on their plan. Sydney was to drive a loaner car right into Diablo's Den with the radiator smoking to get their attention. Once the men were busy helping the damsel in distress, the team would storm the camp and make their arrests.
Sydney was to set out a good half hour after the truck carrying the rest of the team, so they could get themselves in place before she made her appearance.
"Everyone understand their duty?" The Commander asked.
"Yes sir." The group responded in unison.
"Good, then move out."
Gage paused with Sydney in the doorway. "You be careful Shorty. I want you back in one piece."
Sydney nodded. "You too."
Gage reluctantly left her in the doorway and ran to catch up with the rest of the team.
Sydney watched the truck pull away and then looked at her watch. "OK, thirty minutes from now."
********
The team stopped about a mile away from Diablo's Den and scattered themselves on a ridge just above the camp. "You two Rangers move in closer to the camp along with two of my men so you can help that little lady if she needs it."
Gage and Trivette looked at each other and smiled, knowing that Sydney could definitely take care of herself if she needed to, but they did as the Commander suggested and moved in closer to the camp.
********* Sydney bumped along the rough road in the beat up, old Chevrolet that the Commander had found for her to drive. She knew that she wasn't too far from the camp and as she looked around she noted that the DEA SWAT teams were nowhere in sight, then of course, they weren't supposed to be.
"Who's this?" Trivette asked as he noted a Jeep pulling into the camp. Gage turned his binoculars away from Sydney's car and focused on the man Juarez was greeting.
"Um, this guy looks familiar." Gage said as he pushed the 'talk' button on his radio. "Commander, did you note the Jeep that just pulled in?"
"Sure did." The Commander sounded as if he were beaming. "That's Andrew Vincent, the owner of Diablo's Den. We've been waiting to catch him in the action and looks like today's our lucky day!"
"Thanks Commander." Gage replied.
Juarez saw the old car approaching and watched carefully as the radiator finally gave up and steam began pouring out from under the hood. His hand went for his gun. "Be on guard, amigo." He said, looking at Vincent.
Vincent nodded as the two men watched the car door open and a pair of sexy, dark legs emerge.
"What the . . .?" Vincent questioned as he glanced at Juarez.
Juarez wore a broad smile. "I don't know, amigo, but this is the best luck that has ever poured into Diablo's Den." He laughed, holstering his gun.
"She's in and they're taking the bait." Trivette said over the radio.
"Roger that." The Commander responded and then moved his teams towards the camp.
Sydney popped the hood of the car and leaned over the fender, pretending to jiggle wires.
"Careful senorita, you may burn yourself." Vincent said as he and Juarez neared the car.
Sydney turned towards the two men and half smiled. "Si Senor. Thank you for your concern over my safety."
"It's our pleasure." Vincent tipped his hat and then offered his arm. "Juarez, see if there is anything you can do for the lady's car." Vincent then led Sydney to his Jeep and helped her into the seat. "What is your name?" He asked.
"I am Maria Ortez."
"And Maria Ortez, what brings you all the way out here, in the middle of nowhere, alone?" Vincent asked.
Gage and Trivette were within hearing distance of Sydney. Gage knew that she was going to have a hard time explaining her way out of this situation and he was afraid that Vincent may already be suspicious of her. He caught her eye and motioned to her.
"Maria, what is it?" Vincent asked as he realized that she was no longer paying attention to him, but to something behind him. He quickly turned just as Gage leaped over the Jeep and delivered a flying kick to his chest.
One of Juarez's men grabbed at Sydney, pulling her from the truck. The man smiled wickedly as he watched her fall to the ground. Sydney paused for a moment, letting the man think that she would be no threat, and then she swept his feet from beneath him with one swift move.
Vincent recovered more quickly than Gage had expected. He was on his feet and challenging Gage to fight. He threw two strong punches, catching Gage in the ribs. The Ranger staggered slightly and turned away from his assailant. After recomposing himself, he turned with a strong spin kick, delivering it expertly to Vincent's chest, propelling him to the ground.
Juarez started to run, but Trivette was on him quickly. He leaped into the air and tackled the man before he could get away. Soon the other teams descended on the camp and sorted through the men who were being held in the camp and those running it.
Trivette, along with half of the SWAT team herded several men towards a waiting truck. "What happened to you?" He asked as he saw Gage holding his ribs.
"I was about to ask you the same thing. I thought you were with me when I went over the Jeep."
"I started to, but then I saw Juarez running from the car and well, I thought you could take care of yourself."
********
Manuel and Sam arrived at their stop point, just this side of the boarder. "Let's check the cargo. We should probably put the chains on them here before we cross over the river."
Manuel nodded as he and Sam both got out, dragging two sets of chains with them.
Sam lifted the latch and opened the back of the truck and his eyes grew wide when he found it empty. "They're gone!" He called out.
"They cannot be." Manuel said.
"But they are." Sam replied. "They had to have got out when we stopped for those bodies in the road."
"We had better make tracks, if Mr. Vincent finds out we've lost anyone he'll make sure that we go in their place."
Manuel nodded and followed Sam to the truck.
********
Walker and Tom neared the small town that for miles had just been a dot on the horizon. "Thank God!" Tom shouted as they stepped into the edge of the town.
Walker looked at him and then pointed to a phone booth. "I need to contact my people."
"Hey, so do I!" Tom exclaimed as he picked up the receiver. Walker calmly took the receiver from his hand and began to dial Sydney's cell phone.
"Sydney." She answered.
"Sydney, it's Walker."
"Walker!" She shouted. "Where are you?"
"I'm in a little town about ten miles south of Laredo. I have Agent Tom Michaels with me."
"Great, I know the Commander will want to speak with him. Are you guys alright?"
"We're fine, but we have two of the camp's goons are bound to be hot on our trail about now."
"We're on our way." Sydney said.
Walker shook his head. "Who is 'we'?"
"Me, Gage, Trivette and about a dozen DEA agents."
"Great. We'll be waiting."
"Was that Walker?" Trivette asked, just catching the last of Sydney's conversation.
"Yes. He has Agent Tom Michaels with him." She reported as the Commander stood listening.
"Good. Michaels is a good man, I sure would hate to lose him."
"Walker said that he and Michaels are in a small town about ten miles south of Laredo." Sydney said.
The Commander nodded. "I think I might know where. Are they pinned down?"
"Not yet, but Walker's pretty sure that the two men that took them are going to be back on their trail soon."
"Then we had better move out." The Commander stated.
******** Manuel stopped the truck just outside of the small town. "How do we want to do this? They could be anywhere."
"Let's start asking around. I'll bet someone has seen them for sure and if we tell them that they're both wanted fugitives, I'll bet people will be lining up to tell us where they are." Manuel nodded and he and Sam got out of the truck.
Walker and Tom had made their way down an alley near the north entrance of town where he hoped that they could see the Rangers and DEA agents as they approached. "What do you think?" Tom asked, turning to Walker.
Walker nodded. "This will do just fine if we can keep this position without Manuel and Sam finding us."
No sooner than Walker had uttered the words, Manuel spotted them. "There they are Sam!" He shouted and started running towards the two men.
"Shoot!" Walker exclaimed as he and Tom started to run.
Meanwhile, just over the hill, two trucks filled with DEA agents and three very anxious Texas Rangers were approaching. Gage saw Walker and Tom out of the corner of his eye as they passed one of the allys. "There they are!" He shouted.
"Stop here!" The Commander ordered. The trucks stopped and the agents all filed out, along with the Rangers.
"Gage, you two take the back." Trivette instructed.
The two young Rangers nodded and circled one of the larger buildings to find a way to the back of the ally. Gage held out his arm to stop Sydney as they approached an opening behind the building. He could hear voices.
"There's too many of them Sam, how are we gonna get out of here?" Manuel asked, breathing hard.
"We'll get out!" Sam replied and flinched as he felt the barrel of Gage's gun a few inches from his head.
Sydney slipped from behind Gage and covered Manuel. "You two are under arrest." Gage said as he pulled his handcuffs from his pocket.
"You? Let me guess, that black feller, he's a cop too?" Sam asked as Trivette joined the Rangers.
"Not exactly. You see this Afro-American man is a Texas Ranger and so are these two." He pointed at Sydney and Gage. "Now, what I want to know is what have you done with Ranger Walker and Agent Michaels?" Trivette was in Sam's face now.
"I ain't done nothing with them. We just saw them and started chasing them when these two showed up."
Before Trivette could ask anything else, Walker and Tom stepped out of the shadows. "What took you guys so long?"
"Us? We had to travel ten miles to get here." Gage replied.
"At least you had a ride." Walker laughed as he looked at Tom and realized how dust ridden they were from their hike into town.
"Are you two alright?" Sydney asked.
Walker nodded. "Nothing that a good bath won't cure." Tom replied.
********
The following morning at Ranger Headquarters, Trivette, Gage and Sydney were already at their desks when Walker arrived. "So, had a little trouble getting up this morning?" Trivette teased.
"Nope." Walker said with a determined look on his face that Trivette was having trouble reading.
"What's wrong?" Gage asked.
"Did I say something was wrong?" Walker answered.
"Well, no you didn't but you sure look like something's wrong." Gage replied.
Walker didn't answer, but went to his desk, sat down and began rifling through his papers. Sydney raised her eyebrows and turned back to her reports, as did Gage. Trivette, being the senior Ranger of the three took it upon himself to find out what was wrong. He picked up the phone to dial Alex.
"Don't you dare." Walker said, not lifting his head from his papers, but reading his partner's moves like a book.
"What?" Trivette questions innocently.
"Don't you dare call Alex and ask her what's bothering me."
Trivette hung up the phone and scoffed. "I wouldn't think of doing such a thing. I mean, if you want us to know what's bugging you, you'll tell us, right?" Walker didn't reply.
Walker started to respond, but his phone interrupted him. "Walker!" He said gruffly.
"Hi, it's me." Alex replied in a soft voice.
Walker turned his chair towards the wall and held the phone.
"Are you there?" Alex asked.
"I'm here. Where are you?"
"In my office. Did you get my note?"
"What note?" Walker asked, beginning to soften slightly. "I got home late last night and you were nowhere to be found."
Alex smiled and was thankful that Walker couldn't see her. "Walker, one of my cases got moved up to today and I had to come in and pull an all-nighter to get everything prepared. Where did you think I was?"
Walker began to feel a little ashamed of himself. He had come home to an empty house and after their last argument over how much his work took him away from home, he couldn't help but think that maybe Alex had had enough. "I didn't really know."
"I should be out of court around 1:00, how about we grab a bite of lunch? I'd really like to know that you're OK."
"That sounds great. I'll meet you outside of the courtroom at 1:00 and Alex, I'm fine."
"I'll be waiting." Alex said, still smiling as she hung up the phone.
Walker hung up the phone and turned his chair around to find his three friends staring at him. "What?" He asked, a smile on his face.
"Well, whatever it was, I take it that it's much better now, right?" Trivette asked.
"There's nothing wrong. By the way, I haven't thanked you guys for coming after me and Tom back there. Why don't we plan to have lunch out tomorrow?"
"Why not today?" Trivette asked, already having an idea that Walker had lunch plans.
"Because today belongs to my wonderful wife." Walker smiled and stepped out of the office.
THE END
Disclaimer: The following story is based on the characters of the TV Series "Walker, Texas Ranger". The characters belong to CBS Productions, Top Kick Productions, Washo Brother's Entertainment, etc, but the story is mine. ALL DISCLAIMERS APPLY. (No copyright infringement is intended.)
Before pulling out, Gage eyed the Commander's cellphone. "Excuse me, could I use your cell? I sure would like to let my wife know that we're on our way back."
"Sorry son. You won't be able to get a signal out here. You'll have to wait until we're back in town. I'm sure your missus can wait that long." He half smiled at the young Ranger.
Gage nodded and took his seat next to Trivette in the back of yet another truck. Jimmy grinned at him. "What?" Gage asked in a defensive tone.
"Nothing." Jimmy raised his hands, but continued to laugh.
"I can't help it. I miss her when she's not with me." Gage confessed as a smile crossed his face.
"I know. Too bad Sydney couldn't have dressed as a man. We could have used her down here."
Gage shook his head and grew serious. "Don't even think it, Trivette. As much as I wish she were with me, I'm glad she wasn't. Not this time."
******** Walker continued to bump along the underside of the truck. He nearly lost his grip when the truck jerked to a stop suddenly.
"What's wrong?" Sam asked as Manuel stopped the truck.
"There's something in the road up ahead."
"Trouble?"
"I don't know." He put the truck in gear and crawled towards the objects in the road. As he grew closer, he could make out the figures of two men, his men.
"Holy mother of God, it's two of our men." Sam said as Manuel once again stopped the truck. Both men got out for a closer look. While they were occupied with the bodies, Walker slid from his hiding place and made his way to the back of the truck. Surprisingly, there was no lock on the back. Walker figured that the gate had been rigged to not open from the inside. He lifted the latch and quickly opened it as wide as he dared. Before helping Tom out, he checked on Sam and Manuel. They were still examining the bodies.
Tom turned his back towards Walker so he could remove the ropes binding his hands. Once he was free, Walker closed the gate and they both made a run for the woods, still unnoticed by Sam and Manuel.
******* The truck rambled to a stop and Trivette and Gage hopped out of the back. "So, where exactly are we?" Gage asked.
"You're in Laredo gentlemen." The Commandant said as he exited the cab of the truck.
Gage rubbed the back of his head just as he caught sight of a familiar petite figure coming their way. "Syd?"
Trivette turned and smiled. "Sydney, how did you know where to find us?"
"I got a call." She eyed the Commander.
He tipped his hat at her. "Ma'am."
Gage slipped his arms around Sydney. "I'm glad you're here, Shorty."
"Me too." She said enjoying Gage's strong embrace and wanting nothing more than to feel his lips on hers, but knowing that this was neither the time nor place for that, she pulled away. "Where's Walker?" She asked.
"Walker?" Trivette questioned, looking at Gage who shrugged his shoulders.
Sydney's eyes grew large. "You mean that you two haven't seen Walker? He came down here to get you guys out."
Trivette's mouth opened slightly and he looked at Gage again. "Oh no, you don't suppose he's at Diablo's Den do you?"
Gage nodded. "If he's not there now, I would bet that he has been there."
The Commander approached the group of Rangers and cleared his throat. "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation." He paused. "Come with me." The Rangers followed the Commander into a briefing room. "Close the door." He instructed Trivette as he was the last one in.
"Now, under normal circumstances the DEA and the Texas Rangers don't really cross each others paths, but that is under NORMAL circumstances. Since we are all here and our cases seem to have crossed over, I'd like to know if the three of you would be interested in assisting my men," he paused and looked at Sydney.
Sydney smiled at the Commander. "How can we be of assistance?" She asked.
The hard-faced Commander returned the smile. "I think you're going to be a great asset in this raid young lady."
Gage threw him a stern look. "What exactly are you thinking?" He asked.
"Ranger Cooke would be a perfect decoy. I'm sure that Juarez and the rest of the 'boys' won't know what hit them as long as Ranger Cooke is standing close by."
"Standing?" Gage asked. "You mean you want her to go in there with those brutes and . . ."
Sydney cleared her throat. "Gage, I can take care of myself and I certainly don't need to ask your permission."
"Technically, I have more seniority than you and . . ."
"And I have more seniority than both of you." Trivette chimed in. "Gage, Sydney can take care of herself, besides we won't be far behind her, right?" He looked at the Commander.
The Commander nodded. "Exactly. The way I figure it, Ranger Cooke goes in as a woman driving through the desert, alone gets herself lost and then her car dies on her. That'll get her in and once she has Juarez and the others off guard, we come in."
"How many in your unit?" Gage asked.
"Fifteen." The Commander replied. "Are we in agreement?"
Sydney and Trivette both looked at Gage. He rolled his eyes. "Ok, ok, I know when I'm outnumbered."
******* "What do you think happened to them?" Manuel asked.
"I don't know, but I think we should get moving with our cargo." Sam replied as he headed back towards the truck, still not realizing that their cargo was missing.
Walker and Tom kept themselves hidden just below the embankment until they heard the truck pull away. "Come on." Walker said as he helped Tom to his feet. "What's the plan?' Tom asked.
"We're going to have to walk back to town." Walker said as they started down the rough road.
"How far you think it is?"
Walker shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, but I do know we had better put as much distance between us and that truck as we can before they check inside."
Tom nodded and the two men started down the road towards the nearest town.
******
The Commander briefed his team, including Trivette, Sydney and Gage on their plan. Sydney was to drive a loaner car right into Diablo's Den with the radiator smoking to get their attention. Once the men were busy helping the damsel in distress, the team would storm the camp and make their arrests.
Sydney was to set out a good half hour after the truck carrying the rest of the team, so they could get themselves in place before she made her appearance.
"Everyone understand their duty?" The Commander asked.
"Yes sir." The group responded in unison.
"Good, then move out."
Gage paused with Sydney in the doorway. "You be careful Shorty. I want you back in one piece."
Sydney nodded. "You too."
Gage reluctantly left her in the doorway and ran to catch up with the rest of the team.
Sydney watched the truck pull away and then looked at her watch. "OK, thirty minutes from now."
********
The team stopped about a mile away from Diablo's Den and scattered themselves on a ridge just above the camp. "You two Rangers move in closer to the camp along with two of my men so you can help that little lady if she needs it."
Gage and Trivette looked at each other and smiled, knowing that Sydney could definitely take care of herself if she needed to, but they did as the Commander suggested and moved in closer to the camp.
********* Sydney bumped along the rough road in the beat up, old Chevrolet that the Commander had found for her to drive. She knew that she wasn't too far from the camp and as she looked around she noted that the DEA SWAT teams were nowhere in sight, then of course, they weren't supposed to be.
"Who's this?" Trivette asked as he noted a Jeep pulling into the camp. Gage turned his binoculars away from Sydney's car and focused on the man Juarez was greeting.
"Um, this guy looks familiar." Gage said as he pushed the 'talk' button on his radio. "Commander, did you note the Jeep that just pulled in?"
"Sure did." The Commander sounded as if he were beaming. "That's Andrew Vincent, the owner of Diablo's Den. We've been waiting to catch him in the action and looks like today's our lucky day!"
"Thanks Commander." Gage replied.
Juarez saw the old car approaching and watched carefully as the radiator finally gave up and steam began pouring out from under the hood. His hand went for his gun. "Be on guard, amigo." He said, looking at Vincent.
Vincent nodded as the two men watched the car door open and a pair of sexy, dark legs emerge.
"What the . . .?" Vincent questioned as he glanced at Juarez.
Juarez wore a broad smile. "I don't know, amigo, but this is the best luck that has ever poured into Diablo's Den." He laughed, holstering his gun.
"She's in and they're taking the bait." Trivette said over the radio.
"Roger that." The Commander responded and then moved his teams towards the camp.
Sydney popped the hood of the car and leaned over the fender, pretending to jiggle wires.
"Careful senorita, you may burn yourself." Vincent said as he and Juarez neared the car.
Sydney turned towards the two men and half smiled. "Si Senor. Thank you for your concern over my safety."
"It's our pleasure." Vincent tipped his hat and then offered his arm. "Juarez, see if there is anything you can do for the lady's car." Vincent then led Sydney to his Jeep and helped her into the seat. "What is your name?" He asked.
"I am Maria Ortez."
"And Maria Ortez, what brings you all the way out here, in the middle of nowhere, alone?" Vincent asked.
Gage and Trivette were within hearing distance of Sydney. Gage knew that she was going to have a hard time explaining her way out of this situation and he was afraid that Vincent may already be suspicious of her. He caught her eye and motioned to her.
"Maria, what is it?" Vincent asked as he realized that she was no longer paying attention to him, but to something behind him. He quickly turned just as Gage leaped over the Jeep and delivered a flying kick to his chest.
One of Juarez's men grabbed at Sydney, pulling her from the truck. The man smiled wickedly as he watched her fall to the ground. Sydney paused for a moment, letting the man think that she would be no threat, and then she swept his feet from beneath him with one swift move.
Vincent recovered more quickly than Gage had expected. He was on his feet and challenging Gage to fight. He threw two strong punches, catching Gage in the ribs. The Ranger staggered slightly and turned away from his assailant. After recomposing himself, he turned with a strong spin kick, delivering it expertly to Vincent's chest, propelling him to the ground.
Juarez started to run, but Trivette was on him quickly. He leaped into the air and tackled the man before he could get away. Soon the other teams descended on the camp and sorted through the men who were being held in the camp and those running it.
Trivette, along with half of the SWAT team herded several men towards a waiting truck. "What happened to you?" He asked as he saw Gage holding his ribs.
"I was about to ask you the same thing. I thought you were with me when I went over the Jeep."
"I started to, but then I saw Juarez running from the car and well, I thought you could take care of yourself."
********
Manuel and Sam arrived at their stop point, just this side of the boarder. "Let's check the cargo. We should probably put the chains on them here before we cross over the river."
Manuel nodded as he and Sam both got out, dragging two sets of chains with them.
Sam lifted the latch and opened the back of the truck and his eyes grew wide when he found it empty. "They're gone!" He called out.
"They cannot be." Manuel said.
"But they are." Sam replied. "They had to have got out when we stopped for those bodies in the road."
"We had better make tracks, if Mr. Vincent finds out we've lost anyone he'll make sure that we go in their place."
Manuel nodded and followed Sam to the truck.
********
Walker and Tom neared the small town that for miles had just been a dot on the horizon. "Thank God!" Tom shouted as they stepped into the edge of the town.
Walker looked at him and then pointed to a phone booth. "I need to contact my people."
"Hey, so do I!" Tom exclaimed as he picked up the receiver. Walker calmly took the receiver from his hand and began to dial Sydney's cell phone.
"Sydney." She answered.
"Sydney, it's Walker."
"Walker!" She shouted. "Where are you?"
"I'm in a little town about ten miles south of Laredo. I have Agent Tom Michaels with me."
"Great, I know the Commander will want to speak with him. Are you guys alright?"
"We're fine, but we have two of the camp's goons are bound to be hot on our trail about now."
"We're on our way." Sydney said.
Walker shook his head. "Who is 'we'?"
"Me, Gage, Trivette and about a dozen DEA agents."
"Great. We'll be waiting."
"Was that Walker?" Trivette asked, just catching the last of Sydney's conversation.
"Yes. He has Agent Tom Michaels with him." She reported as the Commander stood listening.
"Good. Michaels is a good man, I sure would hate to lose him."
"Walker said that he and Michaels are in a small town about ten miles south of Laredo." Sydney said.
The Commander nodded. "I think I might know where. Are they pinned down?"
"Not yet, but Walker's pretty sure that the two men that took them are going to be back on their trail soon."
"Then we had better move out." The Commander stated.
******** Manuel stopped the truck just outside of the small town. "How do we want to do this? They could be anywhere."
"Let's start asking around. I'll bet someone has seen them for sure and if we tell them that they're both wanted fugitives, I'll bet people will be lining up to tell us where they are." Manuel nodded and he and Sam got out of the truck.
Walker and Tom had made their way down an alley near the north entrance of town where he hoped that they could see the Rangers and DEA agents as they approached. "What do you think?" Tom asked, turning to Walker.
Walker nodded. "This will do just fine if we can keep this position without Manuel and Sam finding us."
No sooner than Walker had uttered the words, Manuel spotted them. "There they are Sam!" He shouted and started running towards the two men.
"Shoot!" Walker exclaimed as he and Tom started to run.
Meanwhile, just over the hill, two trucks filled with DEA agents and three very anxious Texas Rangers were approaching. Gage saw Walker and Tom out of the corner of his eye as they passed one of the allys. "There they are!" He shouted.
"Stop here!" The Commander ordered. The trucks stopped and the agents all filed out, along with the Rangers.
"Gage, you two take the back." Trivette instructed.
The two young Rangers nodded and circled one of the larger buildings to find a way to the back of the ally. Gage held out his arm to stop Sydney as they approached an opening behind the building. He could hear voices.
"There's too many of them Sam, how are we gonna get out of here?" Manuel asked, breathing hard.
"We'll get out!" Sam replied and flinched as he felt the barrel of Gage's gun a few inches from his head.
Sydney slipped from behind Gage and covered Manuel. "You two are under arrest." Gage said as he pulled his handcuffs from his pocket.
"You? Let me guess, that black feller, he's a cop too?" Sam asked as Trivette joined the Rangers.
"Not exactly. You see this Afro-American man is a Texas Ranger and so are these two." He pointed at Sydney and Gage. "Now, what I want to know is what have you done with Ranger Walker and Agent Michaels?" Trivette was in Sam's face now.
"I ain't done nothing with them. We just saw them and started chasing them when these two showed up."
Before Trivette could ask anything else, Walker and Tom stepped out of the shadows. "What took you guys so long?"
"Us? We had to travel ten miles to get here." Gage replied.
"At least you had a ride." Walker laughed as he looked at Tom and realized how dust ridden they were from their hike into town.
"Are you two alright?" Sydney asked.
Walker nodded. "Nothing that a good bath won't cure." Tom replied.
********
The following morning at Ranger Headquarters, Trivette, Gage and Sydney were already at their desks when Walker arrived. "So, had a little trouble getting up this morning?" Trivette teased.
"Nope." Walker said with a determined look on his face that Trivette was having trouble reading.
"What's wrong?" Gage asked.
"Did I say something was wrong?" Walker answered.
"Well, no you didn't but you sure look like something's wrong." Gage replied.
Walker didn't answer, but went to his desk, sat down and began rifling through his papers. Sydney raised her eyebrows and turned back to her reports, as did Gage. Trivette, being the senior Ranger of the three took it upon himself to find out what was wrong. He picked up the phone to dial Alex.
"Don't you dare." Walker said, not lifting his head from his papers, but reading his partner's moves like a book.
"What?" Trivette questions innocently.
"Don't you dare call Alex and ask her what's bothering me."
Trivette hung up the phone and scoffed. "I wouldn't think of doing such a thing. I mean, if you want us to know what's bugging you, you'll tell us, right?" Walker didn't reply.
Walker started to respond, but his phone interrupted him. "Walker!" He said gruffly.
"Hi, it's me." Alex replied in a soft voice.
Walker turned his chair towards the wall and held the phone.
"Are you there?" Alex asked.
"I'm here. Where are you?"
"In my office. Did you get my note?"
"What note?" Walker asked, beginning to soften slightly. "I got home late last night and you were nowhere to be found."
Alex smiled and was thankful that Walker couldn't see her. "Walker, one of my cases got moved up to today and I had to come in and pull an all-nighter to get everything prepared. Where did you think I was?"
Walker began to feel a little ashamed of himself. He had come home to an empty house and after their last argument over how much his work took him away from home, he couldn't help but think that maybe Alex had had enough. "I didn't really know."
"I should be out of court around 1:00, how about we grab a bite of lunch? I'd really like to know that you're OK."
"That sounds great. I'll meet you outside of the courtroom at 1:00 and Alex, I'm fine."
"I'll be waiting." Alex said, still smiling as she hung up the phone.
Walker hung up the phone and turned his chair around to find his three friends staring at him. "What?" He asked, a smile on his face.
"Well, whatever it was, I take it that it's much better now, right?" Trivette asked.
"There's nothing wrong. By the way, I haven't thanked you guys for coming after me and Tom back there. Why don't we plan to have lunch out tomorrow?"
"Why not today?" Trivette asked, already having an idea that Walker had lunch plans.
"Because today belongs to my wonderful wife." Walker smiled and stepped out of the office.
THE END