Chapter 15

Joe Morelli laid in his hospital bed as he felt sorry for himself. If he were honest, he would have told Stephanie he didn't love her. He didn't want to marry her either. Joe only wanted Stephanie because Manoso wanted her, and Helen wanted Stephanie to marry a Burg man. He wasn't fair to himself or Stephanie. It was time he made amends with Stephanie and Manoso.

Ranger and Stephanie were in love. Everybody could see the fireworks between them. Joe wanted to be Stephanie's friend. He didn't have anything left to offer. They were great friends before they crossed the line to lovers. Joe had his come to Jesus moment. He vowed to become friends with Stephanie and Manoso.

Helen Plum cried when Angie said Joseph couldn't have children. Her hopes of getting a Morelli grandchild vanished into thin air. She blamed Stephanie for acting like a floozy. Her selfish actions cost Joseph his ability to give her a child.

Frank had enough of Helen's attitude. He heard Helen lament the loss of a Morelli grandchild. Good riddance, Frank thought. There will be no spawn of Joseph Morelli to roam Trenton.

Tank and his entourage arrived in Trenton at 0300 hours. Lester carried Ricky into the house while Mateo lifted Stephanie. She nuzzled into Mateo's neck and mumbled, "Thanks, Mat." Stephanie and Mateo got close over the past few months. Mateo was the brother she always wanted.

A few hours later, Stephanie woke up to the scent of Bulgari. "Carlos," she moaned.

"Babe, you've been busy," he growled. Ranger was proud of his wife. She saved his company and got the criminals to indict themselves. When the FBI caught Dickie, he sang like a canary. He had recorded Perez and Martinez as they asked for help to bring down Rangeman.

"I missed you. Happy Birthday, Batman," Stephanie said as she removed his shirt. He wasted no time stripping her.

"Me too," Ranger said as they made love. "Babe." I missed this too, Batman, Stephanie thought.

Ricky woke up at 0600 and yelled, "Da da."

Stephanie smiled when Ranger sat up in the bed, wide awake. "Ricky started asking for you last month. He crawls faster than we can keep up," Stephanie explained while she yawned.

"Stay here. I'll get Ricky," Ranger said. Stephanie listened as Ranger entered Ricky's bedroom. "Hey, Ricky. How's my little man?"

Ricky squealed, "Da da." Ranger smiled as Ricky held up his arms. He silently asked his dad to lift him from the crib.

"You're getting big," Ranger said as he changed the diaper. Ricky gave his dad a wet kiss while he got carried down the stairs. Ranger felt the boy's teeth dig into his chin.

Stephanie climbed out of bed and pulled Ranger's shirt over her head. She pulled on panties and used the washroom. Tank, Lester and Bobby exited the main-floor guest bedrooms when Stephanie descended the stairs. "Morning," the men greeted.

"Coffee," she mumbled.

Lester noticed Stephanie wore Ranger's shirt and her hair was a mess. He knew it was her 'just had sex' look. She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat next to Ricky's high chair.

Ranger wrinkled his nose as he fed Ricky the baby cereal. "How can you eat this?" Ranger asked Ricky.

Stephanie laughed when Ricky gave his dad the raspberry and sprayed cereal into his face. She pointed around the room and said, "We learned not to talk while feeding him."

Mateo entered the room and laughed. "Let me guess, Carlos talked to Ricky while feeding him?"

Tank replied, "He most certainly did."

"Ricky thinks it's a game," Mateo explained. "We tested the theory for days. Someone else needs to take over."

Ranger pinched the bridge of his nose as he passed Bobby the baby food. Ricky ate the remainder without further incident. "Babe," he groaned.

"What? He's like me. Don't interrupt our meal, or you face the consequences," she shrugged. Mateo watched Ricky while the others discussed Rangeman business.

Joe Morelli got released from the hospital a week later. He got put on mandatory medical leave for three more weeks. Angie cleaned Joe's house while he stayed in the hospital. She didn't want him to return to a filthy home. Her Joey needed to find a nice woman and settle down. Maybe he should marry a woman that had kids for Joey to raise.

Stephanie asked Mateo if he would be her bodyguard. She didn't want her brother-in-law to go home to Miami. Ranger was pleased with Stephanie's decision. If he got called for another mission, his brother would protect his wife and son. Mateo readily accepted. He wanted to guard this gorgeous, amazing woman and his nephew.

Ranger, Tank, Lester and Bobby decided to draft a contract to give Stephanie a co-CEO role with Ranger. They stipulated that either Carlos or Stephanie can sign for the sale of a branch, employee termination or contract renewal. She was granted an equal say in the operation of Rangeman.

At first, Stephanie said she didn't want the responsibility. "Babe, when I get deployed, the core team and I won't have to give you temporary controlling rights. I could leave knowing you are ensuring I have a company when I return," Ranger explained.

"You only want to avoid signing more papers every time you leave and return," Stephanie said as she had one eye partially closed.

"Babe," he groaned. "Please."

Stephanie couldn't refuse him when he said that magic word. "Okay, Carlos. If it helps you worry less, I'll accept. Thank you. I love you," Stephanie caved.

"Babe, I love you too." Ranger rested his head against her forehead. He breathed in her scent before he gently kissed her. Ranger dropped to his knees and kissed Stephanie's baby bump. She was only ten weeks pregnant, but her body knew what to do. Ranger got deployed a few days later, which happened to be the day before Stephanie's birthday.

The men gave Ranger and Stephanie privacy to say their goodbyes. Mateo watched his favourite nephew, Ricky, while his parents were busy. Ricky was on the verge of walking. He stood on his feet and wobbled before he fell to his bum.

After they made love several times, Carlos gave Stephanie his old dog tags to wear. "Babe, I want you to wear these earrings all the time. Ricky won't grab them, and they have trackers," he said as he placed the velvet box into her hand. Ranger gave her a choice. He hoped she would make the one he wanted.

Stephanie looked into his eyes for the answer to her silent question. She took the box and removed the earrings. "Okay," she replied before she swapped the new pair for the ones in her ears. "I'm doing this, so you don't have to worry about me."

Much too soon, it was time for Carlos to go. Ranger kissed Stephanie and his son before he left. Ricky gave his dad a wet, toothy kiss before he held tight to his mom. He knew his dad had to leave, but it didn't stop the tears. "This is the last one, Babe," Ranger whispered. "Don't go crazy."

"Don't get shot," Stephanie automatically replied. She kissed her husband one more time before he had to leave. Mateo wrapped his arms around Stephanie and Ricky as they watched Carlos walk out the door.

"He'll come back," Mateo whispered.

Cal, Hal, Vince, Manny, and Binkie arrived the following evening for Stephanie's birthday. They wanted to give their friend a party. She laughed when they showed up wearing ridiculous Hawaiian shirts. "You guys are wonderful. Thanks for the distraction," Stephanie said as she let them into the house.

Tank, Bobby, Lester and Hector were already at the house. They stayed over most nights since they returned to Trenton. Stephanie thought they should go back to their lives and stay at Rangeman.

Ricky squealed when he saw Hal. He squirmed in Mateo's arms until he put the child on the floor. It didn't take long for the boy to crawl to his uncle and pull himself up. "Hey, Ricky. How's my buddy today?" Hal asked as he lifted the small child. Ricky babbled before he gave Hal a wet, toothy kiss.

Stephanie looked between Tank, Bobby, Lester and Mateo. Each man nodded when she caught their eye. "Hal, can we talk for a minute?" Stephanie asked.

"Sure," Hal replied as he gave Ricky to Cal.

She dragged him into the living room before asking, "I meant to ask you for months, and I promise never to zap you with a taser again. Would you be my bodyguard?"

"Yes," Hal quickly replied. He hugged Stephanie tight before he kissed her forehead. "I was wondering when you'd get around to asking me."

A tear streamed down Stephanie's cheek. Her hormones from the pregnancy were close to the surface. Everything made her cry. It's as though her emotions had a direct line to her tear ducts. She gave Hal the rundown on responsibilities.

Mateo and Hal were responsible for her safety. Lester and Hector would be around if she left the house with Ricky. When Ricky got older, Mateo and Hal would become Ricky's bodyguards.

Frank arrived once Cal produced the cake Ella made for Stephanie. He hugged his daughter and held Ricky on his lap. Ricky babbled to his grandfather. Stephanie joked that Ricky was telling him everything that he had done since he visited last week. Frank watched his daughter closely. She seemed to glow. When he caught her eye, he pointed to her stomach and raised an eyebrow.

Stephanie smiled at her dad and nodded. Her hand reflectively rubbed circles on her abdomen. She held up both hands, displaying the ten fingers. Frank stood with Ricky in his arms and hugged Stephanie. "I'm proud of you, pumpkin. Congratulations," he whispered. Frank kissed her forehead and returned to his chair with Ricky.

Helen contacted Joe and asked him to look for Stephanie. She called Stephanie's apartment several times and asked her to call. Helen never went this long without hearing from her youngest daughter. Joseph Morelli interrogated Stephanie's friends and family, hoping to locate her for Helen. He entered the apartment with Helen, looking for clues. Joe checked his recording device, but it offered no help. He only heard Edna Mazur enter the apartment once a week to clean.

Edna listened to Stephanie's messages but never kept them. She erased every single one. The first time Edna cleaned the apartment, Edna had Manny Ramos from Rangeman install hidden cameras throughout the place. "Make sure the guys call from time to time and leave messages," she stated. "I wouldn't be surprised if Morelli installs bugs."

Manny monitored the video feed for Edna. She's a crazy old bat, but she loved her granddaughter. Edna was correct about Morelli. He planted the listening devices throughout Stephanie's apartment.

Joe placed one in her bedroom, shower, living room and kitchen. He hardwired them into her outlets like he did when he tried to capture Jimmy Alpha. Joe installed a signal booster on the power tower behind the dumpster.

Several men from Rangeman asked her to return their call. They knew she was safe, but they still wanted to hear her voice. Joe was convinced that Rangeman hid her. Morelli wanted Stephanie back. His cases couldn't solve themselves. He needed her help.

Stephanie's Rangeman friends kept up the charade though they knew she lived in the large house north of Trenton. They didn't want to raise suspicion for detective Morelli or Helen Plum.

Dougie kept his ear to the ground. Morelli was stupid. He had eyes and ears throughout Trenton, waiting for Stephanie to come home. Mooner asked, "Dougie, have you seen Stephanie?" He was high from puffing his joint.

"Not since she took me to get re-bonded April of last year. Why?" Dougie asked. She didn't keep secrets from his best friend, but this was one he had to keep. Stephanie's son depended on his silence.

"Morelli's been pressing me for info, man. He said I could get sent to prison for eating and bedding," Mooner stated.

Dougie laughed, "Aiding and abetting?" Mooner rolled his eyes. He picked the potato chip crumb off his shirt to flick at Dougie.

"That's what I said, dude," Mooner replied. "Steph's gorgeous and all, but I don't want to mess with Ranger's girl."

"Morelli is blowing smoke up your ass, Moon-man. Steph isn't a criminal," Dougie reminded him.

"Unless leaving the douche cop at the alter was committing a crime," Mooner said as he laughed his ass off.

When Dougie was dealing north of Trenton five months ago, he saw Stephanie enter the enormous house locked behind the gates. He knew his friend was home.

Cal called Tank, "We have detective Morelli and Helen Plum in the lobby demanding we give up Stephanie's location."

"What have you said?" Tank asked.

"Nothing. We don't know where Stephanie is," Cal answered loud enough for Morelli to hear. Cal knew where his friend lived. He visited with Stephanie and Ricky last night to celebrate her birthday.

Joe knew the dumb ass with the skull tattoo knew where Stephanie was. He was going to plant his feet firmly inside Rangeman and wait for Stephanie to return. "We don't know where she is," Hal stated as he entered the room to assist Cal.

"I'm not moving until you bring her to me!" Morelli snapped.

Tank groaned. "Keep him there. We'll be there soon," Tank said before he hung up.

"Nobody saw her, Morelli. We don't know where she is either," Cal insisted.

Stephanie and Frank Plum were in Ricky's bedroom as they listened to the conversation over the baby monitor. She was frustrated with Morelli and her mother. It was time to send detective Morelli a gift.

Edna sat in the Clip N Curl and waited for her hair to dry. Her phone rang with an out-of-town number. She knew it was Stephanie's call from the burner phone. "Hello," she answered, careful not to give away Stephanie.

"Are you alone?" Stephanie asked.

"No. My appointment is nearly finished. You can pick me up in a few minutes, Frank," Edna replied.

Stephanie giggled. "I hope you're still carrying around that parcel. It's time to deliver it," Stephanie stated. "He's at Rangeman with mom and refused to leave."

"See you soon, Frank," Edna said before she hung up. She went through her phone and changed the incoming number using the program Hector installed on her phone. Once she changed the number, she put her phone back into her purse.

Frank rolled his eyes when he realized Edna volunteered him to pick her up and deliver the parcel. "I owe you one, dad," Stephanie stated.

"Let me come back to see this little man, pumpkin," Frank responded.

"Done," Stephanie said as she held out her hand for her dad to shake.