Warning: Violence. Let me know what you think – Heather
Re comments: Yes,I know Stephs mom is Italian, but she knows Ranger's Cuban and so was comforting him with the few spanish phrases she knows! At least that's the wayI think of it! Anyway, thanks for commenting everyone!
Chapter 40
Ranger's POV
Ten days. No leads, nothing.
My cell rang, it was Connie; she'd been out of town on a romantic weekend, she'd only just heard about Steph being taken.
'Did Steph tell you?' she asked.
'About what?' I said, my heart beating faster in my chest.
'About the house in Miami?'
'No. Explain.'
'Pedral brought a house in Miami, in the suburbs somewhere. Big houses, big plots of land, big gates.'
I digested this. Big gates, big houses, vast amounts of land; if you had someone there against their will, no one would know, no one would hear anything.
'Can you get me a better location than 'in the suburbs'? The suburbs is a large area.'
'I'll try.' Connie said.
'Try hard.' I replied; Steph's life might depend on getting that information fast. I hung up.
I turned to Tank, 'get the private jet ready, and get the others to pack.'
'Where are we going?' Tank asked.
'Miami.'
Hours later, under the cover of darkness, a convoy of five bronco's rolled into my parent's house in Miami. I knew there was a slight possibility I was endangering my family, but checking into a hotel or an inn risked Pedral knowing we were in Miami – which would endanger Steph. The security gates swung shut behind us, and the tall hedges that my father had cultivated hid the house from sight.
People spilled out of the cars: Bobby, Lester, Tank, Bear, Cal, Hal, Junior, Hector, My cousin Damien and his men, and surprisingly, Coyote.
As I scanned the people, there was another surprise, Ellen, Steph's Mom, was here too. Huh?
'Tank called me. I wanted to be near in case we found her. I hope that's not a problem mi hijo?'
How could it be a problem if she called me 'mi hijo'? 'No, it's fine, I was just surprised.' I said.
Ellen nodded, and started organising the boys like a drill sergeant. In minutes all our luggage was inside the house and the cars were tucked away in the garage, out of sight.
I ordered everyone inside and we went to the main room. My family were awake, I expect they had been since I'd called, asking if my men and I could stay.
Like Steph, I knew my Ma could look at me and see my exhaustion. I shook my head slightly; berate me later. Her lips thinned, but she nodded very slightly back.
I assigned rooms to everyone and they trooped off to get a few hours sleep, but they were a bit too noisy.
'Daddy?' Aly said sleepily from the top of the stairs, 'what are you doing here?'
'It's late honey, go back to bed.' But she ignored me and came down the stairs.
'Is Mom here?' she asked looking around. 'She hasn't phoned me in days, or emailed me. Is she sick?'
'No honey, she's not sick.'
'Doesn't she want to talk to me anymore?' Aly asked, bottom lip wobbling precariously, 'doesn't she love me anymore?'
My throat constricted painfully, 'Oh Kitten.' I said, using Steph's pet name for her. 'Come here.' Aly shuffled towards me, I lifted her up, holding her in my arms. 'Mom loves you very very much.' I told her.
'Then why-' she started to say, then she froze. She slowly looked around: no doubt noting Tank, Bobby and Lester's presence, as well as Ellen's. She probably noticed all the equipment that was out too.
'They got her, didn't they?' she said, in a voice a heartbeat away from tears.
I couldn't deny it, couldn't lie to her. So I said nothing, and she knew the truth.
She burst into tears and I held her, rocking her back and forth and singing to her softly in Spanish. Slowly her sobs subsided and she fell asleep.
'I'll take her.' Said Ellen.
I handed Alysha to Ellen carefully. 'Her bedroom is in the left corridor off the stairs, it's the one on the end on the left.' Ellen nodded, but halfway up the stairs she paused.
'Ric?' she said.
'Yeah?'
'Go get some sleep now, you're exhausted.'
I considered arguing with her, but I saw a glint in her eye that Steph sometimes wore; the glint that said I won't back down. So I nodded instead.
Ellen walked up a few more stairs and paused, 'Now Ricardo.'
'Yes ma'am.' I said respectfully. And I turned on my heel and went to my bedroom. I removed my shoes, but that was all, because as soon as I hit the mattress I was out for the count.
When I finally woke up I'd been sleeping for nearly ten hours. I only meant to catch a couple hours of sleep; I'd instructed to Tank to wake me. Obviously he hadn't.
I quickly showered and headed out to the living room. As I entered the living room Bobby and Lester scarpered off to my Papa's office, a large room that comes off the living room. They shut the door firmly behind them, leaving Tank to face my irritation alone.
'Nice to know they've always got my back.' Tank muttered.
I opened my mouth to start giving Tank a bollocking when Ellen stepped in the room.
'Now, Ric, don't be angry. You were tired; we didn't give you any sleeping drugs or anything, we just removed your alarms – which means you slept for as long as your body needed too. Tank and the boys have set up an operations room in your Papa's office, which they have done just as easily as you would have done. Stephanie needs you alert and well rested, not asleep on your feet. So don't you yell at Mr Tank.'
I always thought that Steph's kick-ass attitude had skipped a generation from her Grandma to her, but now I know that I'm wrong. Ellen kicks ass too, it's just she smiles at you when she does it. Probably I should have taken Ellen running over the man in a rabbit suit as a big clue.
'I need to feel like I'm doing something.' I said.
Ellen smiled, 'you were doing something; you were resting. Now hush mi hijo, I don't want to hear another word about it.'
'Yes ma'am.' I said. 'Do you need anything?' I asked her.
'No, I'm fine, thank you.' I nodded and gestured for Tank to follow me into the operations room.
Steph's POVRule number one in the victims handbook; don't piss off your kidnapper. Since not pissing off people generally involves co-operating, and I refuse to answer Pedral's questions, he's probably starting to get pissed at me.
I've never liked rules anyway.
And I decided that if I'm gonna piss someone off, there's no point doing it halfway. So instead of answering Pedral's questions, I'm singing:
'Nine hundred and thirty six bottles of beer on the wall, Nine hundred and thirty six bottles of beer, knock one down and pass it around; Nine hundred and thirty five bottles of beer on the wall…'
'Miss Plum. Stop this nonsense. Tell me where Ricardo lives and I'll give you chocolate cake.'
Oh yum…chocolate cake. I really wanted chocolate cake. I sighed internally, and continued singing without missing a beat.
'…knock one down and pass it around; Nine hundred and thirty four bottles of beer on the wall…'
Probably actively trying to piss off your kidnapper is a very very bad idea. But they're slowing starving me to death, and it's not so fun. They're going to kill me anyway – I might as well speed up the process to minimise my own suffering.
'Nine hundred and thirty three bottles of beer on the wall. Nine hundred and thirty three bottles of beer, knock one down and pass it around; Nine hundred and thirty two bottles of beer on the wall...'
Ranger's POV
Everyone was convened in the huge dinning room for dinner, except Ellen who was upstairs with Aly.
My cell rang and I stood up from the table to answer. I started walking towards the main room and answered the phone eagerly, hoping it would be Connie with more details on Pedral's location.
'Yo.' I said.
'As eloquent as ever Ricardo.' Said a male condescending voice with a faint French accent.
'Pedral.' I all but growled. The room fell completely silent.
'Why yes, I'm glad you recognise my voice. I wonder, do you recognise these screams?' I heard a door click open, and then I could hear my Babe alternately screaming and sobbing.
I was barely aware that I'd dropped to my knees.
'Please.' I begged, 'she has done nothing to you, nothing. Take me in her place.'
Pedral laughed, 'it is tempting, I must admit, but mostly because she will not be silent. If I never hear that infernal song again it is still too soon…'
'What?' I asked, confused.
'Never mind Ricardo. Do you wish to speak to her one last time?'
'I…yes.'
'Say please Ricardo, say pretty please let me speak to Stephanie.'
I swallowed my natural inclination to say 'fuck you' and instead I said, 'pretty please, let me speak to Stephanie.'
Pedral laughed, 'very good.'
'Enough.' I heard Pedral say in the background, 'I want her to hear him. It's is Ricardo.' He said, clearly to Steph.
'Ric?' Steph asked in a hoarse voice.
'Babe.' I said, 'I'll find you. Don't give up. I'll find you.'
'I know, I love you Ric, more than anything. I haven't told him anything.'
'I know, I know. I love you Baby, so much. It's going to be ok.'
'I love you.' Steph said.
'How touching.' Said Pedral, taking control of the phone again.
'Anything.' I pleaded, 'name anything and I will get it for you.'
Pedral laughed, 'you cannot give me back the nine years I spent in jail Ricardo, you have nothing I want, save your pain.'
'Then have MY pain, not hers.'
'But her pain is your pain – and this way is much more fun. Don't worry Ricardo, I'm not through with playing with her yet. I still haven't managed to break her. But it won't be much longer, and then I will put her out of her misery.'
Disconnect.
Like my life, the phone slipped out of my hand and shattered into a million pieces.
