Three little soldier boys walking in a Zoo; A bear hugged one and there there were Two.

Stephanie took Edna, Ram and his parents to the San Diego Zoo. Edna sat in the wheelchair they rented for the excursion. Ram pushed Edna toward the entrance, where Edith and Duane waited for them to arrive. Edith sat in a wheelchair similar to the one they used for Edna. Duane pushed his wife, leaving Stephanie to walk between the two men.

"Where do you live?" Edith asked.

"Trenton, New Jersey," Stephanie replied. She didn't want to deal with the small talk. "I have a boyfriend." The last thing Stephanie wanted was for Edith to recommend a relative for her to meet.

"Stephanie's dating my boss," Ram helpfully added. Stephanie smacked his arm while Edith sniffed in disappointment. Edith hoped Stephanie would date Evan. They got along, and she could see genuine affection between them. "Steph and I are only friends, mom."

When Stephanie, Edna and Ram returned to the hotel the previous night, he shared that his family refused to accept his career. Stephanie couldn't understand why his parents refused to support their only child. She knew Ram and her other Merry Men were honourable men. They fought and killed men who threatened their way of life. Stephanie told Ram she was proud of him and the sacrifice he made for their country.

"Do you mind seeing the giant cats first?" Edith asked.

"Sure. I love watching the panthers and jaguars," Stephanie replied. She didn't add that the wild cats reminded her of Ranger. Stephanie reached down to squeeze her grandmother's hand. Edna smiled lovingly at her granddaughter. She planned to sit back and let Stephanie put Edith and Duane in their place regarding their remarkable son.

"That's ghastly," Edith exclaimed. Stephanie looked at the enclosure containing the panthers. One managed to breach the fence separating the cats from the antelope. A graceful panther leapt through the air and landed on an antelope, severing the artery at the neck. Stephanie got mesmerized by the smooth execution of the prey by the predator.

"It's the circle of life. Every living creature is somewhere in the circle. Some are the predators, and some are the prey. In extreme cases where one species is becoming extinct or has too many predators in the region, hunters get sent in to eradicate them. Is it wrong to cull the predators?" Stephanie asked.

Edith didn't miss the subtle reference to the military. "No. It's necessary to stop the merciless killing of the predators to ensure life continues for the prey," Edith replied. "But don't confuse the behaviours of animals to the murderers you call snipers in the military."

"I fail to see where is that any different with humans. Your son didn't murder anyone, as far as I'm concerned. He culled the predators who murdered countless women, children and villagers standing in their way of dominating drug, human and gun trafficking. Because of Ram and his team, they saved millions of innocent lives. We are free of those evil men. Men who believe in a dictatorship. Men who don't think twice about raping a child to force their parents to comply with their wishes. Men who would kill you for sneezing in their direction. They fought for our freedoms and rights to live," Stephanie said. She looked into Edith's eyes and added, "Men who would kill sick women like you to save a few dollars."

Stephanie knew it was harsh, but Edith needed to understand that everything Ram did was to ensure she and other Americans got to see another sunrise. The zookeepers managed to get the panther back into its enclosure and allowed her to eat the prey she had caught. It was a waste otherwise.

"How dare you!" Edith shouted. Duane placed his hand on Edith's shoulder, attempting to calm her nerves.

"Stuff a sock in it," Edna snapped. "My granddaughter made a valid point. Cancer puts a strain on the medical community. The researchers are no closer to a cure than they were ten years ago. They can only delay the inevitable. Patients get a cocktail of chemicals pumped into their veins, hoping for a magic combination to eradicate the cancerous cells spreading throughout their bodies. I elected to decline treatment, much to my daughter's dismay. My days are numbered, but I wouldn't do anything differently. I want to live my remaining days on my terms. You know as much as I do that cancer treatment gets expensive. Not all of it got covered by Blue Cross or Medicare. It puts a strain on your finances."

"What does that have to do with being a gun for hire?" Edith asked.

"Nothing. I'm pointing out that every choice becomes a strain on someone. Your finances are probably in the toilet because you spent your savings on a cure. Would you rob a bank to get more to find another solution?"

"No. I won't break the law to extend my life," Edith replied.

"The men your son got hired to exterminate were breaking the law. They did everything imaginable to get what they wanted, which translates into money and power. Nothing except death stopped those men. How would you feel if your daughter got kidnapped by a man who sells them into slavery?" Edna asked.

"I don't have a daughter," Edith answered.

"That's beside the point. What if Evan got kidnapped as a child and sold to a perverted bastard in another country? Would you admonish the soldiers our government hired to rescue your child and kill his captors?" Edna asked.

"Of course not!" Edith was astonished Edna asked her such a ridiculous question. "Those soldiers would be my hero for returning my son to me."

Stephanie gently touched Edith's shoulder. "You can accept other men who save your child, then why can't you accept your son for saving other families from that same fate? Is it because they weren't your child? Or was it because your son neutralized those evil men?" Stephanie asked. "You're staring at the same side of the coin. Life is too short for this pettiness. I would give anything to have more time with my grandma and my son." She walked away with Edna and Ram on her heels. Edith needed time to think about Edna's words.

"Son? Stephanie had a kid?" Ram asked. "Where is he?"

"Now isn't the time for that discussion. Spend time with your parents. Your mother doesn't have much time left," Edna said. "I'll get Stephie to push me around for a while."

"Okay. Stephanie, stay in my line of sight," Ram ordered. Stephanie kissed his cheek and wished him well.

"Do you think we helped?" Stephanie asked when Ram walked away.

"Who knows? I hope she gets over herself. Duane seemed to be more understanding than his wife," Edna replied. Stephanie kept an eye on Ram and his parents as they walked around the zoo. Edna asked to see the reptiles and snakes. Stephanie shivered as they walked to the snake enclosure. "Face your fears, child."

"I don't like snakes," Stephanie whispered. Edna pointed out that the snakes were inside the aquariums. They couldn't escape the enclosures. Stephanie reluctantly entered the building with Edna. She quickly texted Ram to let him know they were going inside.

Stephanie and Edna met Ram and his parents at the bear cages. The pandas stayed in the shade. A teenage boy climbed the fence for the brown bears. "George, what are you doing?" his girlfriend screeched.

He laughed and stood at the top. "I'm having fun, Janey." The barbed wire along the top of the fence caught his shoelace as he attempted to walk across the top. He fell inside, hanging by his shoe until it gave way.

"Help," Janey screamed. Stephanie and Ram left Duane with Edna and Edith as they tried to calm down the girl. She cried as Stephanie held her.

A zoo worker arrived riding an ATV. He jumped off and pulled the tranquillizer gun from his pack. The man's hands shook as he attempted to aim at the bear mauling George. "Give it to me," Ram ordered. Everyone watched in wonder as Ram took aim and shot the bear.

"You could have hit George," Janey cried. "It missed him by an inch."

"Janey!" Stephanie shouted to get her attention. "My friend is an excellent shot. He wouldn't have hit your boyfriend."

Ram grabbed the keys from the frightened zoo employee. He unlocked the enclosure to pull George outside before the other bears could descend on them. Stephanie pulled the swinging door closed and attached the chain and lock. Ram grabbed the first aid supplies from the employees to wrap up George's wounds. He pulled on latex gloves before touching the boy.

Stephanie donned gloves, then grabbed a stack of gauze and ripped the packages open for Ram. They worked quickly until the medics arrived to take George to the hospital. Janey climbed into the ambulance with her boyfriend.

"Why did the bear attack him?" Ram asked. "George wasn't moving after he fell."

"George had food in his coat pocket," Stephanie said. She pointed to the spot on the ground where George briefly hung upside down. "It gives a new meaning to feeding the bears." Ram used the biohazard bags to dispose of the used packages and gloves. He poured rubbing alcohol on his hands, then Stephanie's hands, to clean off anything that got missed.

Edith was staring at Ram and Stephanie open-mouthed. She couldn't believe how fast her son rescued the boy. Edith was amazed that Stephanie assisted without Ram asking for help. Stephanie was a genuinely kind woman. "My granddaughter is special," Edna said, pulling Edith from her thoughts.

"I didn't realize the skills he learned during his sniper training would be transferable to civilian life," Edith confessed.

"That's what happens when you bury your head in the sand. You've missed too many years by hating your son's career and pushing him away. It's not too late to make things right. You can hate what the military forced him to become. But don't ever hate your son." Edna stopped talking when Ram and Stephanie approached.

Duane stood back and listened to the women talk. He thought Edna was incredibly wise. There was something about Edna's aura that made him wonder if she possessed a sixth sense. Edna smiled at Duane. He was happy Edna didn't hold back when putting Edith in her place. Edna's eyes sparkled as she read Duane's expression. He was trying to determine if she was a Wiccan or Gypsy.

Little did Duane know, Edna was neither. She was simply in tune with nature and everything around her. There was no label for Edna's skills. Stephanie, calling it her spidey sense, was accurate. Her intuition was unmatched by any other than Stephanie. It took Edna many years to hone her skills, but Edna ensured Stephanie knew how to tap into her ability to read the situation at hand. Edna couldn't be more proud of her granddaughter. Now, how was she supposed to tell Stephanie?

~~~~~~~~~~

Despite saying they weren't going to visit with Stephanie, Ranger got Tank to stop at their hotel. He entered the suite, finding Stephanie's bed empty. Water hitting the tiled wall forced Ranger to move in that direction. He picked the simple lock to enter the room engulfed in steam from the hot shower. "Ranger?" Stephanie called. The scent of his Bulgari body wash assaulted him as he entered the bathroom.

Ranger stripped off his clothes to join Stephanie in the shower. He pressed her against the shower wall and gave in to the desire he couldn't deny when he landed in San Diego. "Babe," he groaned as he pushed into her warmth. Ranger got Stephanie to orgasm twice before releasing into her.

"Um. Thank you for the much needed orgasms, but why are you here?" Stephanie asked. She kissed his chest before rinsing her body. He pulled the shower curtain open to grab a towel. Stephanie raised her arms, letting Ranger wrap the towel around her body. He took a second one off the shelf to dry off his body.

"What put that smile on your face?" Tank asked, interrupting Ranger's mental replay of the previous night. Tank never gave him the chance to answer. It was written all over Ranger's face. He was thinking about his shower with Stephanie the previous night. "When are you going to pull your head from your ass?"

Woody interrupted Ranger's snarky response by announcing the arrival of the FBI for their meeting. FBI director, Sam Miller, sat across the table from Ranger. He didn't need a team to negotiate the Rangeman contract. Ranger and Tank patiently waited for the man to speak.

"Is she here? I want to meet her," Sam said.

"Who?" Tank asked.

"Ms. Plum. I want to meet the woman who saved the FBI's reputation," he replied.

For the second time, Woody interrupted Ranger. "Boss, you have to see this," Woody announced. He placed an iPad in the centre of the conference table to play the footage.

"Good afternoon. I'm Carla Dickson with the San Diego news. A few minutes ago, patrons of San Diego zoo witnessed a teenage boy climbing the fence surrounding the bear enclosure. Despite protests from his girlfriend, the boy walked along the top post when a barb tangled in his shoelaces. He fell head-first into the space. Fortunately, the boy is still alive. He's recovering from his injuries in the hospital. If not for the quick thinking of Evan Ramsey and his friend, Stephanie Plum, other zoo patrons could have been seriously injured."

The camera panned to the spot on the ground where Stephanie and Ram worked tirelessly to stop the teen from bleeding to death. Stephanie pulled the belt from her shorts to wrap around the teen's leg. She pulled it tight to slow the blood flow. Ranger, Tank and Sam watched in amazement at Stephanie and Ram, wrapping the wounds until the ambulance arrived.

Ranger smiled when the zoo employee confessed he didn't know how to shoot the tranquillizer gun. He usually worked with reptiles. Tank froze the frame to show Stephanie's face. "That is Stephanie Plum," Tank proudly announced. Sam was intrigued by Stephanie Plum. He asked if Stephanie was single.

Sam raised his hands in defeat when Ranger growled, "Mine." Her photograph didn't do her any justice. Sam noticed her muscular legs and arms. Manoso was a lucky man to share her bed. Only one question remained. Why wasn't Manoso married to Stephanie Plum?

As usual, Ranger was proud of his Babe.

~~~~~~~~~~

Joe stared at his TV. Stephanie worked beside the Rangeman named Ram to save a boy's life. No words got exchanged as Stephanie expertly helped her partner tend to the wounds. For the first time, he wondered how Stephanie learned first aid. Joe didn't think Stephanie was capable of being a nurse. A memory of Stephanie caring for him flashed through his mind.

Stephanie changed the bandages covering the stitches on his arm and stomach when he broke his leg a few years earlier. Joe realized he was neither a good boyfriend nor partner for Stephanie. As Stephanie said when they broke up, they were never meant to be together. He hoped Stephanie would change her mind and give him another chance. Those hopes and wishes evaporated when he married Joyce with a child on the way.

"Did Stephanie close the bear enclosure just as the huge grizzly charged toward her?" Joyce asked. "It's a shame she made it in time."

Joe was shocked. He knew there was no love lost between Joyce and Stephanie. "What did she do to make you hate her?" Joe asked.

"She refused to admit that we're cousins. Stephanie embarrassed me in front of the class," Joyce replied.

"How are you related to Stephanie?"

"Do you know her cousin Shirley?" Joyce asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes. Her mother died after an accident."

"We have the same father," Joyce replied. "Which makes us cousins. Stephanie said I could only be her cousin if Shirley and I had the same mother. Shirley's mom and Helen are sisters."

"Stephanie isn't wrong," Joe said. "Technically, you are not cousins." Joe could see Joyce getting overly emotional. "Joyce, hear me out before getting defensive. What if Anthony and Angelina got divorced? Angelina remarries and has children with her new husband. Would Angelina's children with her second husband be my nieces or nephews?"

"No. You're only related to Angelina through Anthony. Her children with a new husband would not be your relatives. They would be half-siblings to your niece and nephews but not directly related to you," Joyce replied. It took her a few seconds to think about her words. "Oh. We're not directly related."

He fought back a grin. Joyce fell into his carefully laid trap. "You need to drop the negativity towards Stephanie. She never did anything to you," Joe reasoned.

"And I have been nothing but a bitch to her. I slept with her husband to pay her back," Joyce confessed.

Joe didn't want to consider what Joyce would do if he pissed her off.