Ranger sat on his bed in shock. "Stephanie loves me," he whispered into the empty room. He was excited for a few minutes before fear overtook his senses. His enemies would go after Stephanie for payback. Ranger hyperventilated. Stephanie falling from the cupboard assaulted his mind. Her body lay lifeless in his arms.
Tears fell from his eyes as his heart raced. "I can't lose her," he cried. Anguish consumed him as he cried himself to sleep.
His ringing phone woke him from sleep. "Yo," he groggily answered.
"I'm accompanying Edna and Stephanie to the airport in Haines, where they'll catch a plane to Juneau, Alaska and transfer to their flight to San Diego, California," Cal replied. "I will return to Haines."
"ETA?"
"0500 Sunday," Cal replied.
"I'll have Ram meet them in San Diego. Wait until they board their flight to San Diego," Ranger ordered.
"Yes, sir. May I have permission to speak freely?"
"Granted."
"Pull your head from your ass. Everyone knows you love Stephanie. I heard she confessed to you," Cal replied. Why were his men offering relationship advice? Ranger had too many enemies who wouldn't think twice before killing Stephanie for revenge.
"Mind your business. Speaking of which, did Stephanie help?"
"In a manner of speaking," Cal replied. Ranger climbed from bed to hear Cal's story. "My parents never abandoned me. Stephanie thinks I got kidnapped. I'm meeting with Liam O'Malley tomorrow to compare our DNA at a private lab Stephanie found."
"Your reason to stay in town?"
"Yes, sir. I need to know the truth," Cal replied.
"Give Stephanie the panic button," Ranger suggested.
"Already done." Ranger was shocked. Before he could form the question, Cal said, "She asked me for it." What happened to his Babe? Was she in trouble? Should he fly to Juneau to meet her? "Ranger!" Cal shouted to get his attention.
"What?" Ranger barked. Cal resisted the urge to laugh. To his knowledge, Ranger had never been that distracted.
"I was trying to say that Stephanie knew you would worry about her and Edna flying to San Diego alone. She asked for the panic button to put your mind at ease. Stephanie is aware you can track her movements through the device as long as it's on her body," Cal explained.
"Cal?"
"Ranger, she isn't the same person she was in January. Stephanie is a force to be reckoned with," Cal replied.
"So I've heard. Good job," Ranger said, then hung up. "Proud of you, Babe."
~~~~~~~~~~
Ram felt jumpy. His nerves were on edge. How did the others get through this hell? Why him? Why now? Who the hell came up with the idea of helping Edna with her bucket list? Did someone give Edna inside information about the Rangeman employees? Someone had to have given Edna Mazur the intel. How else could she select the one place to affect the men the most? Ram shook his head. Ranger assigned the places to the men, not Edna.
He expected Lester, Bobby, Binkie, Woody, Tank and Zip to arrive at his apartment for the god-forsaken "wellness" check that Lester initiated. Zip said he should order food and beer for the guys, but Ram didn't want to participate. He refused to follow the tradition of the other men.
"Thank goodness they aren't coming over tonight," Ram said to his empty apartment. He was about to ramble on about nothing in particular when someone knocked on his door. Ram didn't want to answer the door. Maybe if he pretended to be asleep, they would go away.
Lester shouted, "Open the door, fucker. I have subs and pizza from Pino's."
"I brought beer," Bobby said.
"And tiramisu," Tank added.
"I have my dartboard," Woody announced.
Ram thunked his head against the wall before opening his door against his better judgment. The guys greeted Ram as they entered his apartment. "Make yourselves comfortable," Ram sarcastically said. "It's not like I don't have to leave in two hours to catch my flight or anything like that."
"Don't mind if I do," Lester said, putting his feet on the coffee table. Tank knocked Lester's feet off the table and cleared a spot for the pizza boxes.
Lester waited for Ram to sit on the chair before passing out the subs. "Got your favourite, Ram. Meatball with extra cheese," Lester announced. "The same way Beautiful loves her subs." Ram blushed. Stephanie was the reason he liked his meatball subs with extra cheese.
"Why is everyone staring at me?" Ram snapped.
"We're assessing the situation," Bobby replied. "How are you holding up?"
Ram stared at Bobby, hoping he'd drop the concern. He didn't want to visit San Diego and he certainly didn't want to risk running into his family. "Fine," Ram replied. He prayed Santos wouldn't see his answer as the lie it was.
Lester stared at Ram for a few minutes before calling him on his shit. "Everyone inside this room knows that's bullshit, Ram. How long does she have?"
"Don't know. Nobody will tell me until I arrive," Ram confessed.
"At least they're willing to talk to you," Woody replied. "Don't wait until it's too late."
"What do you know about that?" Ram snapped.
Woody defensively held up his hands. "No need to jump down my throat, buddy. I never got to tell my brother how much I loved him. He died before I had the chance. It's not too late to make amends with your family. I admit my parents didn't like me joining the Army or the Rangers, but they respected my decision. We have a "don't ask and won't tell" relationship regarding my military career."
"My parents had to know everything," Ram admitted. They sat around to shoot the shit until Ram announced he had to leave. Since the others drank, Ram got Junior to drive him to the airport. His flight would land half an hour before Stephanie's flight.
~~~~~~~~~~
Stephanie and Edna hugged Cal before entering the security section for their flight. Edna sat beside Stephanie and held her hand. "Everything will work out as it should," Edna said.
"You keep saying that, but I don't want to lose you for everything to work out," Stephanie replied.
"We had already discussed this, Stephie. It's almost my time. You have a lot to live for," Edna said. "When my time comes, I don't want you to grieve for too long. I want you to live your life. Visit with Savannah. Tell the sexy bounty hunter how you feel."
"I already did that, grandma. He knows I love him. I accidentally told him the other night. I'm afraid I messed everything up," Stephanie confessed.
Edna patted Stephanie's hand. She prayed Stephanie and Ranger would get their acts together. They loved each other more than anything in the world. Stephanie refused to settle for anything less than total commitment. Edna had ears around the Trenton.
She heard the rumours about Joe Morelli screwing around. Gossip of women throwing themselves at Ranger and him dismissing them also circulated. Ranger didn't give the women the time of day. He ignored them as if they were part of the scenery. She knew Ranger loved and respected her granddaughter more than he confessed to Stephanie. Ranger always told the other women that he was unavailable and walked away. He tossed the phone numbers the bold women tucked into his pockets.
"Come on, grandma. Our flight got called," Stephanie said, interrupting Edna's thoughts. Edna and Stephanie got into the first-class seats, then buckled the belts. Stephanie called Cal to say they got onto the flight. After he wished her a safe flight, she said, "Good luck, Cal. Let me know how everything works out."
"You helped him find his family," Edna said when Stephanie turned off the phone.
"We don't know that for sure, grandma. Cal and Liam need to compare their DNA," Stephanie replied.
"I know Cal found his uncle," Edna repeated with certainty. Stephanie prayed her grandmother was right.
~~~~~~~~~~
"What's so funny?" Angie asked Charlie. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon. Stephanie told her nieces via a text message that her plane landed in San Diego several hours ago. After taking a nap, Stephanie lazed around the pool at the hotel.
"The silly pictures from Aunt Stephanie," Charlie replied. "Grandma Edna is acting goofy." Charlie showed Angie the photograph of Edna and Stephanie sitting cross-legged on the Imagine memorial. Stephanie pretended to be the hands on a clock. Edna was lying on her side in what Stephanie called a "cheesecake" pose.
Charlie and Angie heard Lester ask, "What is she playing at? That's not a cheesecake pose. It's grandma Mazur sitting in the centre of the Imagine memorial eating a piece of chocolate cheesecake." The girls giggled at their uncle Lester.
"Um. Uncle Lester, what's a cheesecake pose?" Mary Alice innocently asked. Bobby, while drinking coffee, sprayed the screen at the monitor station. Lester's face turned pink as he tried to form the words to explain what he meant. Ranger noticed Lester struggling but didn't want him to answer the question.
"Santos, don't answer," Ranger barked. He turned to Mary Alice to explain the photograph Aunt Stephanie sent was a cheesecake picture. Mary Alice narrowed her eyes at her Uncle Carlos. She knew he was covering for Uncle Lester.
"Oh my gosh," Charlie yelled before giggling. Angie laughed when Charlie showed her the phone. When Mary Alice asked to see, she started laughing too.
"You lied to me, Uncle Carlos. I know what a cheesecake picture really is. I'm glad grandma Edna was only eating cake. I don't want to see all that wrinkly skin," Mary Alice said with a shudder.
"Don't you miss your great-grandmother?" Lester asked.
"Of course, I miss her, but visiting with grandma and grandpa Plum is more relaxing," Mary Alice admitted. "I miss Aunt Stephie the most." Frank and Helen explained the bucket list and why Stephanie was travelling with Edna. Mary Alice didn't think about the importance of the trip until Lester asked if she missed her great-grandmother.
"We miss her too," Lester replied. "Rangeman isn't the same without her. I know she's planning to come home soon." Mary Alice nodded before bursting into tears.
"Why the tears?" Bobby asked, pulling Mary Alice onto his lap.
"I dreamed Grandma Edna died on the trip," Mary Alice confessed. She cried into Bobby's shoulder. "I want to see her before she dies."
Lester rubbed Mary Alice's back and squatted to get at her eye level. "Sweetie, we will Skype with your aunt Stephanie and grandma Edna. Would that help?" Lester asked. Mary Alice nodded, then turned to face her uncle. "Let's ask Tia Ella if she has an emergency chocolate cake."
"Okay. Thank you," Mary Alice whispered. She held Lester's hand as they walked to the break room. Ella motioned for Mary Alice to sit at the table closest to the refrigerator. She pulled a covered dish from the fridge and placed it on the table.
"I'll call your sister and Charlie," Ella said. "Help yourself, sweetie." Ella grabbed plates and forks to set the table.
"Woah." Mary Alice removed the cover from the cake. "Is that fudge?" she asked Lester.
He tapped the top of the cake with a fork. Lester grabbed a knife from the drawer to cut Mary Alice a slice. "Yup, it's fudge," Lester replied after popping a piece into his mouth.
"Could we have Tia Ella make this cake for Stephanie when she comes home?"
"Absolutely," Ella replied when she escorted Charlie and Angie into the room.
"I love it here," Charlie said. Ella pushed Lester out of her way to serve the cake to the girls. Lester pouted until Ella permitted him to grab a piece.
"Smile," Lester said when the girls lifted the forks to their mouths. He snapped the picture and sent it to Stephanie in a text message.
"Why did you take a photo?" Charlie asked.
"I'm letting your Aunt Stephanie see what she's missing," he replied. Lester laughed when his phone rang. "Yo, Beautiful. How are you?" He put the call on speaker for the girls to hear.
"You are mean, Lester Santos. Hi, girls. I hope you enjoy Tia Ella's double chocolate fudge cake. Please beg her to make one for me when I come home," Stephanie replied.
"We've got you covered, Aunt Stephie," Mary Alice said.
"I've got to go. I'll Skype soon. Lester, wait for my text," Stephanie replied, then hung up.
"Where did she have to go?" Mary Alice asked.
"There was a lot of background noise. Knowing your aunt, she's finding a place to talk without being overheard," Lester replied.
Charlie's phone buzzed. She grinned before saying, "Or Aunt Stephanie lost track of time, and she needs to get ready for dinner before they lose their reservation." Lester grabbed Charlie's phone to read the message. "Aunt Steph said to pass along the message."
Mary Alice and Angie pouted because Stephanie never sent them a message. Lester asked the girls if they had their cell phones. They shook their heads. "Mine broke," Mary Alice said when Angie replied, "It won't charge." The girls could hardly receive a text message if they didn't have phones.
Lester sent a group text to Valerie, Albert and Hector, asking if the girls could get replacement phones. Valerie and Albert said Mary Alice and Angie had to earn them by volunteering at the Hundred Acre Wood the following weekend. Mary Alice bounced in her seat in excitement. She couldn't wait to see the horses.
Angie, however, was not excited to work on the farm. "I'll come with you, Angie," Charlie offered. "I'm sure Uncle Joe would have something for us to do that didn't involve horses."
"Thanks, Charlie," Angie quietly replied. Lester clapped his hands. He knew Hector would find phones suitable and durable for the girls.
Albert arrived several minutes later with the iPads. He gave Mary Alice the one with a horse decal on the brown cover and the purple cover with yellow and white flowers. They used a fingerprint to unlock the screen. "Charlie said your phones are out of commission, so I air-dropped you this message. I'm getting dressed for dinner. Ram, grandma and I have reservations at Clara Luna with his parents. Talk to Uncle Hector. He'll get you new phones and ensure your messages get transferred to the new device. I called Uncle Joe. He expects you next weekend at Hundred Acre Wood to help on the farm. Mary Alice, I know you love horses, but Angie doesn't. She can help Aunt Shelly in the house. Hug all your uncles from me. Love you both. XOXO."
"She didn't forget us," Mary Alice said. Her lip quivered before the tears rolled down her cheek.
"Aunt Steph will never forget you," Charlie replied while hugging Mary Alice. "Why don't we round up some guys to play paintball? That always cheers you up." As Charlie predicted, Mary Alice stopped crying. She ran from the break room to call all the off-duty men.
