This is chapter 19. I hope you're still with me

Thank you so much for your reviews and suggestions, you inspire me to keep writing!

Spoilers: None. It's its own universe, I blame it all on the gin

Rating: Could be anywhere from PG13 to R. Who knows anymore?

Disclaimer: They're all JE's characters, except for Sandra. And no one would pay me for Sandra.

Out of my Mind Chapter 19

The next item on my agenda was Craig Johnson who had gotten drunk and disorderly on his neighbor's lawn. Actually, the next thing to do was to slap myself silly, but I took the road to Johnson's house.

I thunked my head on the steering wheel at every red light, and I berated myself the whole way. I didn't really know why I was so upset, it was probably the thought of Tank telling Ranger I had made out with Joe that had me in a state. Maybe Ranger wouldn't ask for a detailed report, maybe Tank would only tell him about any problems, like flower deliveries or car crashes. And even if he did, I argued with myself, what's it to Ranger? It wasn't like we were dating or anything. Okay, the truth was I had feelings for both of them and I didn't know what to do about it.

Directions to Johnson's house had been scribbled on his file, so he wasn't hard to find. When I parked in front of the line of row houses, I told myself to focus. Just because Johnson sounded like and easy capture, didn't mean he would be. I had thought Moreno would be a no-brainer, too…

Not only was Craig home, he answered his door after my second knock and had trouble standing up straight. He was about 5'5", with sandy blond hair and brown eyes, reminding me of a Labrador. It was hard to tell with his clothes fitting as loosely as they did, but I was guessing he didn't weigh over 130 pounds. He had a silly grin on his face: It wasn't even noon and he was absolutely shitfaced.

I introduced myself and gave him the spiel about rescheduling and I could tell by his eyes that I had lost him somewhere. He didn't resist when I cuffed him or took him by the elbow to my car.

By now I knew my way around a little bit, but I still had to backtrack to the bonds office to find my way to the police station. Johnson had fallen asleep by the time I arrived at Trenton's finest, and that was fine by me. It was easy to drag him out of the car and through to the docket lieutenant.

I couldn't believe my luck. My second capture attempt and it had been easier than getting a baby's binky! I felt the need to wave the body receipt around like a trophy, a big grin on my face. Although I had lost sight of the RangeMan SUV some time ago, I was pretty sure it was still there, so I kept my outburst under control as best as possible. But nothing would keep me from spending my $50 share on something fun.

I stopped at a convenience store to get a map of the area so I could continue my search.

Paola Minetti and Thomas Althaus were still on my list, and their addresses didn't mean anything to me. Paola was worth $80 to me, and Thomas $85. If I brought them both in, I'd have earned a small fortune by the time I'd cash my checks.

Paola had listed her job as a barista at Star Bucks, so that's where I started.

I was told she wouldn't come on until two in the afternoon, but they had no reason to believe she wouldn't show. If I waited another 45 minutes for her to show up, I'd be cutting it awfully close if I wanted to meet Joe on time. So I backtracked back into Trenton proper, took the turns as they seemed most logical on the map, and finally stopped in front of her house. With any luck, she wouldn't have left yet.

A short, middle-aged woman answered the door when I rang the bell. According to her file, Paola was 45 years old, and the woman in the door looked a lot like the picture. She lived alone in a row house in the middle of the block. What was it about those row houses? I really didn't see the appeal.

"Paola Minetti?" I asked. The woman nodded.

"I'm Lindsay Taylor and I work for Vincent Plum's Bail Bonding Agency. You missed your court date the other day." Boy, did I sound official.

She opened her mouth to say something, but she never got the chance. A bullet zinged past me and embedded itself in Paola's doorframe. Another shattered a front window. She screamed and slammed the door shut, I fell to the ground. I've never been shot at, but that's what they always do on TV, ass to the ground. I was so shocked, I forgot to scream.

A few more bullets flew around me, hitting the house, another window, and the ground.

I heard footfalls and shouting, then the shooting stopped, but I didn't move. There may have been cars racing away, I wasn't sure.

"Are you okay?" I heard Tank's voice moments before I felt strong hands around me, lifting me off the ground. I had never thought of myself as a lightweight, but when Ranger or Tank lifted me, I felt light as a child, that's how effortlessly they carried me.

"I'm OK." I assured him, and he believed me after giving me a quick once-over. Dusting myself off, I realized I had skinned my hands. Just perfect.

"Did you see the shooter?" Tank asked.

I shook my head no "But I'm pretty sure it wasn't my FTA," I indicated the front door "She was just as scared as I was."

Tank's radio squawked and he swore under his breath. "We lost him. Cal had a visual for a few blocks. He doesn't know how the perp got away!"

"You got all that from the little static just now?" I asked.

He smiled. He had a cute smile, if anything on a bear of a man could be called cute. I had to strain my neck just to see his face when I was just a few steps away from him.

"It was in code."

"Of course." And I felt only a little stupid, I hadn't been able to make out a code like 10-4 or something either.

"Is it safe to leave? Do you need me to hang around? Should we call the police?" I think I overwhelmed Tank a little. He didn't say anything though, he just shook his head.

"I'm afraid this cuts the afternoon short. My orders are to escort you back to home base in case of incident. I will contact the authorities."

It took me a minute to decipher military-speak. "You mean you want to take me home?"

Tank nodded almost imperceptibly. "Affirmative."

"Oh, no, no." I shook my head for emphasis and wagged a finger at him "I have an FTA in there and then I have a…meeting at 3, that's 1500 hours to you. I appreciate your help a lot, but I think I'm OK now."

Tank looked pained. Like my outburst hadn't been in the handbook and he was unsure as to how to proceed.

Cal pulled up to the curb in the SUV.

I glared at Tank, facing off with a man twice my size. While I realized the idiocy in that, I wasn't going to stand down.

"I will place the FTA in custody for you." Tank said. As if that was my most pressing issue! It was true, the shooting had rattled me, but the danger seemed to be over and I didn't see any reason why I should scratch my plans. Probably I would have seen the severity of the situation if there wasn't a cute outfit to be bought and I didn't have a date with Joe.

I tried my death glare on Tank, but he didn't move. I heard a car door slam, and moments later, Cal was by Tank's side.

"Proceed?" He asked Tank, then he looked at me.

"No," I said "Change of plans. You two go write up the report or whatever, and I will bring in my FTA. I will take her straight to the police station and then I'm going to return to the office."

That's what I wanted to do; I crossed my arms over my chest defiantly.

Cal looked as if the information didn't compute. It looked like he wanted to say "But…".

I put my hand up in a 'stop!' motion. "If you gentlemen will excuse me, I am going to initiate contact with the FTA now." I thought that sounded very military.

Cal looked at Tank and Tank sighed.

"No." Tank simply said. I rolled my eyes and turned to knock on Paola's front door, but Tank took my elbow. "You come with me. Cal will drive your car."

I tried to resist, but he had an iron grip on me. I couldn't believe it! Cal had a pair of cuffs in his hands, and my eyes widened.

"You can't be serious!" I exclaimed, trying to lean away from Tank.

Cal did a palms-up and the cuffs jingled. "Your choice," he said, "We have our orders."

The situation was becoming ridiculous. Of course I realized I wouldn't stand a chance if they had a mind to carry me off to the SUV. The only choice I had was the amount of dignity I would be left with.

I let out a sigh and stopped resisting. Tank obviously didn't trust the sudden peace; he held my arm firmly all the way back to the car. He deposited me in the back seat and finally let go. "Sorry, no child-locks in the front" he said just before shutting the door.

It was a needless precaution, I wasn't going to cause a scene by trying to outrun him.

Halfway during the drive to the apartment, my cell phone rang. I took a look at the display, it was Joe. A glance at the clock in the dash told me it was a little past three. What could I tell him? That I was unable to meet him because I was detained by a bulldozer named Tank? I was going to call Joe back when I was in the privacy of the apartment, I decided. No way was I going to give Tank the satisfaction of reveling in his victory.

As I expected, Tank didn't just drop me off in front of the house. He did me the favor of not holding on to my arm again, but he was never more than two steps behind me. When we got to the apartment door, he opened it for me and motioned for me to enter.

He did a quick walk-through and obviously decided the environment was friendly, because he walked past me towards the front door.

"I'll be outside if you need anything." He said courtly and left. I didn't even get a chance to ignore him, he didn't wait for an answer.

I was furious, but I didn't feel like throwing a temper tantrum for myself.

"Fine!" I yelled at the closed door.

My cell phone chirped again, this time it was Ranger. I realized I could act really childish and scream all my frustration at him or I could ignore him and wait for my temper to calm down before I talked to him. I decided on the latter. Probably he was just going to laugh at me if I went all PMS anyway.

Now I was faced with a different dilemma: What to do?

I was supposed to sit opposite Joe for an intimate lunch, not stand in my apartment, with a goon to watch me outside the door. Yes, I conceded, the goon was there for my protection, and he meant well.

I sighed and called Joe, letting him know I was okay and sorry I had missed our date. When he asked what had happened I told him I had to wrestle an uncooperative skip and we had ended up rolling in garbage. He accepted that and promised to call me later. Okay, that was taken care of. And the fib had come out very convincingly. One highlight in this rotten day.

I strolled into the kitchen and pulled the ice cream out of the freezer, since it seemed too early for beer and I needed to soothe my nerves.

It turned out I needed a lot of soothing, the tub was half gone by the time I had the self-control to put the lid back on.

I had just decided to spend some time channel surfing when my cell phone chirped again. Taking a deep breath when I read the display, I flipped it open.

"Talk." A Ranger-line, how original.

"Heard about what happened. Sorry babe." Ranger started, but he didn't sound sorry at all.

"Your men bullied me back to the apartment!" I said, not quite able to keep my voice down. I knew I should have waited to talk to him.

There was a short pause in which I thought I heard him sigh.

"It's for your own protection. The area was compromised."

He was right, of course. But I'd have rather bit off my tongue before I admitted that.

"You still there?" Ranger asked when I didn't say anything.

My ego was still bruised and my inner diva was jonesing for a fight. I took a deep breath so I wouldn't lash out.

"Yes." I said simply.

"Do you want me to come over?"

Yes, I did. But I didn't think that was such a good idea. By the time he'd get to me, I would have gotten over my anger, and then I'd probably feel silly. Then I may have felt the need to apologize or something, and that was out of the question.

"No." I finally replied and disconnected. Ha! I had hung up on Ranger! See how he liked that!

I wanted to pump my fist when the phone rang again a moment later. But it wasn't Ranger.

It was Cal, reporting that the Beetle was back in front of the apartment. I asked snippily if I was free to take it anywhere I liked and he told me he hadn't received any orders to that extend. Whatever.

I didn't know why I was being so difficult, when I knew I should be grateful for being protected. Something inside me just wanted to rebel against the authority that allowed no argument. And I had really wanted a new outfit.

Ranger showed up twenty minutes later. I was lounging in front of the TV and didn't get up when he entered. I was sulking.

I felt his eyes on me when he sat down on the second couch but kept my eyes on the TV.

"You hung up on me."

"Felt like the thing to do."

"Don't do it again."

Or what? He'd spank me? I tried really hard to stay calm, but I had never been good at taking orders, no matter how reasonable they were, and I wanted to…well, I didn't know what I wanted to do, except for stomping my feet and pouting.

Ranger picked up the remote and turned the TV off. I was about to protest when I saw the look on his face. It was stone cold.

"You were shot at." He said.

"There were shots fired. I don't know if they were directed at me." What a stupid thing to say. Like, I really believed people were just out for a shoot in Trenton? Like you hear gunshots every day?

"Cal and Tank were there to protect you. That's what they did. You aren't in a position to question them."

Oh, that was harsh. It was what I deserved for making a scene, but harsh. And it hurt.

"What position am I in, exactly?" I barely managed to keep eye contact, I could already feel tears sting.

"Your job is to lure the Senor out. You are taking a calculated risk. If the stakes are too high, you retreat. I thought that was a simple enough concept." He said calmly.

Did he mean simple enough even for me to understand or was I putting words into his mouth? Did I really feel up to argue with him? His self-control was so much better than mine, we weren't even on the same chart. I'd make a fool out of myself and he could end up realizing I wasn't worth the effort after all.

"Any time you want to quit, just say the word."

There it was, he was already thinking it. I didn't know if he was aware how much his words had stung me.

"No." I finally said.

"No what?"

"No, I don't want to quit." I had a hard time getting the words out through my clenched teeth.

"Then get ready. Tank will be waiting for you at eight o'clock, you're going out."

"Where am I going?"

"It's time to up the stakes, invade his territory. You're going to his club."

What? I thought I was supposed to retreat? I looked at Ranger in utter confusion.

He got up. "You will be wired. Hal and Bobby will already be inside when you get there, Tank will stay outside. Like I said, calculated risk. It's time to take the game to his playground."

Nice of him to share it with me. Way to put me in my place. Take it or leave it. He didn't ask if I felt ready for it.

"I have nothing to wear." Why did I pick the most irrelevant thing to say and always ended up being the dunce?

Ranger just looked at me, I thought anybody else's jaw would have dropped.

It was true though, I had only black clothes that could be arranged for a bar or a restaurant, but wouldn't let any bouncer in the western hemisphere let me pass.

"Then we'll get you something to wear." Ranger said, probably barely resisting an eye roll.

"You're taking me to the mall?" This could be fun!

"No."

And he flipped his phone open and dialed a number. He walked into the kitchen as he talked, and I couldn't make out what he said. I heard him open and close the fridge door.

He returned a few minutes later and clipped his phone back on his belt.

"You're having clothes brought here." I said, it wasn't a question.

"We can't risk the exposure at this point. We couldn't keep a close watch at a mall. I have all my men assigned otherwise."

His eyes softened a little and I relaxed. He was explaining himself, not just barking orders anymore. Okay, he hadn't barked before, but he had been court.

"Okay." I conceded. "Where will you be?"

"I'll be in the wind, babe."

That made me smile despite myself, and Ranger stepped closer.

"Do you have any other questions?"

I did, but not about the evening. I figured he'd let me know if he wanted me to do anything specific once I was there. I did however want to know how he felt about me. How much of me was his job?

"Who will be my date?"

I thought it was a valid question. Who goes to a club by herself?

"You won't have a date. I need you to appear unprotected."

My first 'undercover' job and I wasn't even going to have a handsome merry man by my side, I thought, but didn't say. I was still trying to smooth the waves with Ranger, whining didn't seem like a good idea.

"Okay." I said.

Ranger almost-nodded. "I'll be back before you leave. Tank is bringing you some clothes. Call me if you have any questions." For a beat, I thought he was going to lean in and hug or kiss me, but then he straightened and left.

Since my options were limited, I decided to make the best out of the situation. At the very least, I'd get to go out. I'd get to wear new clothes. Think of it as an adventure, I told myself.

An hour and some sitcom reruns later, Tank showed up. He was carrying a duffel bag and placed it on the floor in front of me.

"I brought you clothes."

I was eager to show him I was over my little tantrum, so I smiled "Who picked them?"

"I did. I was given the size and occasion." There may have been the hint of a smile around his lips, but I wasn't sure.

Oh, this would be interesting. I couldn't wait to find out what Tank would pick for me to wear at a nightclub! I thanked him and he left.

Curious, I opened the bag. I knew Ranger miraculously knew my size, so I wasn't concerned the clothes would fit, I couldn't wait to find out what Tank saw me in for a night out.

As it turned out, Tank didn't see me in much. There was a dress, dark green satin, with a plunging neckline that would need some work to hide a bra. When I held the dress, it looked like it would comfortably come down to my thighs, but as I tried it on, I quickly found out it barely covered my ass. I couldn't decide whether I was flattered or insulted by Tank's choice. Good thing I had spent a lot of time at the gym the past few months.

In addition to the dress, the bag held a pair of shoes, black high-heeled pumps, and a clutch purse. I didn't know how it fit in, but there was also a red terry robe.

There was plenty of time to get ready, it was just past 5 PM, so I took my time. After I took a shower, I spent an insane amount of time on my hair and make-up and finally squeezed myself into the dress. It didn't leave room for underwear of any kind.

'Slutty', I decided when I looked in the mirror. 'Sexy-slutty' was my second impression. The green of the dress brought out the color of my eyes perfectly, and I wasn't so sure anymore that Tank had been telling the truth about picking the dress. What guy would think to match eye color?

I put on the shoes and tried to walk in them. Usually I didn't have problems in heels, but these were FMPs, new heights for me, so I took them for a test walk around the apartment.

When Ranger knocked at a quarter of eight, I was ready. My make-up was classy to offset the sluttiness of the dress, my hair was piled up on my head with a few curls escaping to frame my face. Ranger let his eyes wander down my body slowly, but didn't say anything and his expression never changed.

"Well?" I asked "What do you think?"

"It'll work."

Not exactly what I had wanted to hear, but what had I expected when fishing for compliments?

I got uncomfortable under his stare, mostly because I felt self-conscious without underwear and his eyes seemed to undress me. At the very least, I wanted him to smile at the sight of me.

He had a metal briefcase with him and disappeared into the kitchen with it. Moments later he reappeared with a cable contraption in his hands. Now he was smiling. "This should be interesting." He said, eyeing me.

He managed to get me wired, by all means. I was afraid the wires wouldn't stick to me because I would break out in a sweat. Ranger's fingertips kept brushing against my skin, igniting tiny fires that would spread fast. I had to concentrate on breathing evenly.

Eventually, he managed to hide the little microphone low between my breasts and I had almost passed out when he had placed it there.

He took a step back and checked his handiwork. I was glad the hot traces his fingers had left weren't visible.

"You ready?" He asked, offering his arm. I took it and smiled.

"I was born ready!"