Sorry about the delay in posting, I had to go on a totally stressful business trip.
Here we go. I honestly don't know what the next chapter is going to be like when I post, I write them as they come. Your reviews give me the necessary feedback, and I appreciate all your suggestions!
Aria, Cokii, you guys rock!
Spoilers: None. It's its own universe, I blame it all on the gin
Rating: PG 13
Disclaimer: They're all JE's characters, except for Sandra. And no one would pay me for Sandra.
Out of my Mind Chapter 23
I boarded the elevator on wobbly legs. After the hour had passed, the only thing I had known was that I had made no decision. So I did something I'd never done before: I flipped a coin. All or nothing. Heads, I'd take the job. Tails, I'd find some excuse to leave and board a train to Boston.
I hadn't even gone with two-out-of-three, one toss and it was final.
My mind thus made up, I headed upstairs. Probably it was the wrong decision, but that's what you get when you leave life's choices to a coin.
I was going to stick with it anyway, I just didn't know how to tell Ranger.
My hand was shaking when I knocked on Ranger's front door. I heard his muffled "Come in!" and I used the key fob to enter, surprised to see Bobby and Lester in the living room.
"Right," Bobby said "If there's no change in plans I'll see you at 1400 hours" He gathered up some papers from the coffee table and turned towards me, I was standing under the arch. Ranger was sitting on the couch, studying more papers. He looked up and nodded at Lester, who took that as his cue and joined Bobby. They both smiled at me as they left, and then I was alone with Ranger. Someday I'd have to study the art of non-verbal communication.
Ranger got up and tossed the papers on the coffee table. He walked over and gave me the full-on smile.
"Hi." He said as he hugged me. Mmmm…Ranger scent. A girl could get addicted to it.
He put an arm around my shoulders and led me over to the living room.
"Let me give you the latest news. Lamberti spilled details about a delivery, supposedly planned for next week. According to him, so important that the boss himself will be there!"
"He told you this on account of your honest brown eyes?" I teased.
"Not hardly. But you don't want to know more about that. He's alive and his mom will still recognize him, if that's what you want to know."
It was a little more than I wanted to know, actually. I grimaced.
Ranger chuckled. "I don't know what kind of animal you think I am, it was a joke! We grilled him for hours, but there was no blood loss involved!"
"Oh." I said, embarrassed "I wasn't sure…after that afternoon we spent looking up contacts…"
That had gotten pretty violent at times, so my mind had filled in the blanks. I chose not to answer Ranger as far as the kind of animal was concerned.
He gathered up the papers. "Hours of phone conversation we still have to sort through. Not sure how much we'll share with the cops and when."
"Can I help you with that?"
He looked up and our eyes met. "As an employee, it would be part of your job description, yes."
I chewed my lower lip.
"Have you made a decision?"
"Yes." My heart was beating so loudly, I was sure he could hear it.
"Do you car to share it?" He asked softly as he straightened, his face was now only inches from mine.
I took a deep breath and did the mental pep talk thing again.
"Yes, Ranger, I would love to work for you! I'm not sure how good I will be, so I figured we could start out on a trial basis?" I let out a breath I wasn't aware of holding.
He traced my jawbone with his fingertips. "Don't worry, if the computer isn't your thing, I'll have a job I know you're excellent at…" I punched him jokingly, blushing again. "Cute." He smiled.
"I'll have HR put together the details, you can discuss salary and benefits with them. You can start tomorrow if you like."
I liked. Now that the decision was made, I was anxious to get started. What I didn't tell him was that the trial basis was to last a week. If after that I liked it, I was going to come clean. I didn't know how much of a difference it would make, but if I still had a job after that, I'd pack up my apartment and move to Trenton permanently. Otherwise, I'd leave in a week and go back to my old life.
Lunch was already waiting for us, a tray of sandwiches and bottled water. With the knot in my stomach, I hadn't realized how hungry I was, now I was wolfing down two sandwiches and eyeing a third.
"Go ahead," Ranger said, following my line of sight, "Your job comes with a free gym membership."
That did it, I didn't want another sandwich.
I looked at Ranger and realized our relationship had changed. Probably because of the sex, but that didn't explain why I suddenly thought of Ranger as one of my best friends. That's not usually the reaction I have to great sex. Before, I had been so anxious that I never gave myself the time to look at him. Strangely enough, Ranger behaved as if he felt similar: a hug, a friendly arm around my shoulder, the teasing…all things I enjoyed a lot, but not typical behavior for lovers. Normal behavior for friends. Had we become friends through sex? That would be so odd, it could almost make sense.
"What?" Ranger finally asked, and I realized I was still staring at him.
"Nothing. Just checking out my new boss." Phew. Good save there.
He smiled as he chugged the last of his water. "I gotta get back to work. You might as well enjoy the last day of freedom." He winked.
"So I'm free to go?"
"No, but you're free to do whatever you want within in the building."
I must have looked disappointed at that because he quickly added, "Look, your situation really hasn't changed. The Senor doesn't even know about Lamberti, and we're not sure what we're going to do about him. There may be others waiting in the wings to harm you."
I nodded "I know. It's just getting old."
"It's only for today, babe. Tomorrow, I'll have a man available to watch you again."
I smiled. "Mmmm. I like to be watched."
Ranger laughed and jokey-punched my chin. Further proof of my friendship theory. The really strange thing was that I didn't mind.
We rode the elevator down together and for once, I didn't mind being close to Ranger. I wondered if we'd be the proverbial friends with benefits now. One thing was certain; my plan had sort of worked. Instead of holding back, I had decided to go ahead full steam and that had landed Ranger in my bed. Well, his bed, technically speaking, but anyway. Only now I realized that while I thought he was sizzling hot and I was attracted to him, I wasn't in love with him. Or maybe not yet.
There was one more name on my list. My plan wasn't fair to either of them, but the previous one hadn't been fair to me. A girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do, and all that crap.
Ranger left the elevator on the fifth floor and chucked me under the chin for a goodbye, I continued on to the fourth floor. I was free to do whatever I liked, within the building. Whoopedi-doo, that gave me a whole lot of options. I told myself to get over it and act my age.
I had a lot of time to think that afternoon. Not always a good thing.
But I could spend the time working on my plan, I decided. I took a deep breath and called Joe.
He sounded happy to hear from me and told me he'd be back in Trenton by the end of the day.
"Do you want to get together tonight?" he asked.
I told him about the house arrest deal, only I made it sound like I'd be busy the whole time.
"Well, I should be in town for at least this week, call me when you have time to see me?"
"I will. Did you get what you went for in Miami?" I knew he couldn't give me details about his work, so I asked as vague as possible.
"Yes and no. I may have to go back. But I've missed some stuff while I was gone, it seems. Do you really hate your stuff so much that you have to torch it every few days?"
I scowled at the phone and stuck my tongue out and Joe laughed as if he had seen it.
"I'm kidding! Are you okay?"
Now his tone sounded almost concerned. I assured him I was fine and told him I'd call as soon as my schedule would allow it. Then I added that I was really looking forward to seeing him again and Joe assured me he'd make special plans that wouldn't include a shootout. We disconnected and I realized I'd been telling the truth, I couldn't wait to see Joe again. I liked my new plan much better than the last, when I had panicked every time I saw him or Ranger.
A half hour later, Lester knocked on my door. He was carrying a box that he sat down on the coffee table.
"Welcome to RangeMan!" He smiled as he unpacked the box: a Kevlar vest, an ID card, a gun, boxes of bullets, two pairs of cuffs, more black t-shirts.
"I already have a gun." I commented, taking the contents in.
"Backup." He said "All standard equipment."
I had an idea. "Do you guys have a shooting range here? Could I go practice?"
"We do. " Lester confirmed, "Let me call to see if there's room."
He picked up the intercom and asked whoever picked up for the schedule. He was smiling when he put the receiver down. "Go for it! It's in the basement, your key fob will get you in."
He said as he lightly punched my arm "Go get them, Tex! I gotta get back to work."
He smiled and let himself out.
What the hell, I had the whole afternoon to pass anyway, might as well find out how hard this shooting thing was. I had never in my life even held a loaded gun.
When I got down to the basement, I realized I should have asked on of the Merry Men to come with me, the range was big, dark and empty. There was a bookshelf filled with little boxes of ammunition by the entrance, but how would I know which kind went with my gun? I'd have to use the ammo that came with my 'starter kit' and ask for refills later.
I tried the light switches until the whole room was lit and stepped over to the shooting cubicles. Goggles lay on a small shelf in each cubicle, and there were switches to presumably operate the targets. 'Right', I thought 'I've seen this in enough movies to make do!'
I assumed cameras were watching my every move, and I didn't want to risk being watched making a fool of myself. Probably the team had better things to do than monitor the basement, but I didn't want to take the chance.
I figured out the switches, pulled the target up to a comfortable range and loaded the gun.
I spent about a half hour firing away and was happy to see I had ripped some holes into the cardboard cutouts. Not exactly bull's eyes, but not gutter balls either. Now my shoulders ached and my bullets were almost all gone, so I decided to call it a day.
I took another shower because shooting had left me sweaty, and dressed in the blue jeans and t-shirt Ella had bought. I didn't have a plan for the rest of the day, but I did the hair and make-up thing anyway, always be prepared.
Bobby intercommed me shortly after five and told me they were ordering pizza for dinner, would I be interested? Dinner with the boys? Of course I was! He asked me to meet them in the cafeteria at six and I thanked him even though he had already disconnected.
I couldn't decide between being early and showing up fashionably late, so I got to the cafeteria at six on the dot. The Merry Men were already seated at various tables, and pizza and beer were served. Ranger wasn't there, but I spotted Tank and Bobby at a table and joined them.
News of me joining the team had already spread, and everybody was welcoming me to RangeMan. I did a fast scan of the room and realized I was the only girl. This would be interesting. I was used to working in an all-male environment from my job in IT, and I knew there were at least two other women in the building. I had a feeling my job could be fun. And if it wasn't, it was only going to last a week anyway. Maybe I would find the time to see Nick at some point, get some female perspective.
The men ate like an army; I had never seen so much food disappear in such a short time. I was lucky to steal two slices. The beer was being emptied fast as well, and Tank felt the need to explain that alcohol was only allowed at the end of a shift; all men present would have the night off.
I had a mild beer buzz going after dinner and felt quite comfortable among my new colleagues.
Plans were made to freshen up and head out into town, and I knew without asking that I wasn't included. As much as I wanted to leave the building, I didn't want the merry men feel obligated to watch over me on their night off, so I stayed behind when everybody left and helped myself to another beer.
I hadn't heard from Ranger by the time I stumbled back to my quarter an hour later, and although the beer was telling me to call him, I resisted. What if he was still working and in the middle of something? He'd know where to find me if he wanted to, and I had already decided not to complicate things further. I'd just watch some TV and go to bed, as if it was an ordinary Sunday night.
The phone woke me when it was still dark outside. I had fallen asleep on the couch, fully dressed, the TV was still running.
"Mmh?" was the only thing I could breathe into the receiver.
"Slight change of plans, babe." Ranger said, sounding wide-awake.
"The computer work will have to wait, I need you out pretending to go skip-tracing today, only you'll go after some of my skips. Are you okay with that?"
I was still trying to make sense to his words and the pause must have been too long for Ranger.
"Lin, are you awake?"
"Sort of." I mumbled, sitting up to keep from falling asleep again.
"Can you be in the control room in an hour for a briefing?"
I assured him that I could and disconnected. Why did workdays at RangeMan have to start at 6:00 AM?
I dragged myself into the bathroom, took a shower, tamed my hair and put on work make-up. I dressed in RangeMan black, clipped all my equipment to my belt and stuffed the cargo pants' pockets with all the stuff I'd usually put in my purse.
On the way to the control room, I detoured into the kitchen I had spotted on the fifth floor and helped myself to some coffee. I would have liked a donut to go with the coffee, but I settled for a cereal bar, since there were only healthy food choices.
The control room was staffed with merry men I hadn't met yet, but Hal waved a greeting from the conference room entrance.
"Morning. You're early. The boss will like to see that. Have a seat." He said as he motioned me into the room. So far I seemed to be the only non-morning person.
Ranger arrived minutes after me and nodded a greeting to Hal, then he smiled at me. His skin-tight shirt fit him like he belonged on the cover of GQ rather than in an office and I got a tingle down below when I remembered what he looked like under the shirt.
Hal handed out folders to us and Ranger laid out the plan for the day.
"The large drug deal Lamberti told us about won't happen for days, I have men working on our preparations. We'll be ready. But in the meantime, we may lure more of Najar's men out of hiding by parading you in front of them."
Oh, goody. I was once again going to be bait.
"You're going after FTA's that are probably more your caliber anyway." He opened the folder and I took a look at mine.
Roger Thornstein was the name on the first sheet. He looked mean in the mugshot and he had been arrested for rape and grand theft auto.
"Roger car-jacked a Volvo and raped the owner before he tossed her out on the highway." Ranger explained.
This was what he thought was my caliber? I couldn't believe I had fooled him that well, he must have noticed by now that I was completely incompetent. The way I figured, little old ladies that cheated at bingo were more my caliber. But I didn't say anything as Ranger went on.
"There are three for today. The one thing they have in common is they all live in the Senor's stomping grounds. We're bound to rattle some cages today."
I wasn't so sure I liked the plan. Sure, I'd have protection, but they would probably have to rescue me on my first try. I didn't know the first thing to do!
Ranger obviously took my silence as agreement.
"Hal and I will be your shadow, Tank and Bobby will be in the vicinity to spot any attention you might get. It'll get you out there again, like you wanted." He winked and I grimaced. My going out plans had more to do with Macy's. I knew the smart thing to do was to tell him I felt inapt for the task, but I couldn't make myself object. The last thing I wanted to do was 'rattle cages' again, but the second to last thing was disappoint Ranger, so I nodded. We went over the other FTA's in order and the queasy feeling in my stomach grew stronger. They were all what Stephanie would refer to as Ranger cases.
"You have a map of all their locations in your folder. You'll take your car to make it look like you're alone."
When I looked up in surprise, Ranger added, "Your car is tracked from here. If we lose you, we'll quickly find you again. We'll communicate via the two-way function on your phone. Any questions?"
Yes, how did I get myself into this mess and what would be the least embarrassing way out?
I shook my head.
"Okay then." Ranger said and got up. "We'll gear up and meet in the garage in 30 minutes."
Hal stood and walked out. I was about to follow him when Ranger took my arm.
His eyes were soft when he studied my face.
"Are you sure you're okay with this?" He asked.
I didn't trust my voice yet, so I just nodded and lowered my eyes.
"We'll be close, babe, you may not see us, but we're there. With any luck, we'll catch us a big fish today." He put a finger under my chin to force my face up to him and our eyes met.
"High bonds?" I managed.
"That too." He acknowledged "No one under fifty thousand. But I was thinking more of the men tasked with taking you out."
I swallowed. When he put it that way, a day cooped up at RangeMan didn't sound too bad. But I had promised myself I'd give my new job a try, and starting off not liking plans didn't seem like a good idea.
"I'll be fine." I said, more to convince myself than Ranger, but he seemed to believe me and smiled.
We joined Hal in the control room as he was just clipping on his gear. I had the urge to come clean and tell everyone my secret but the fear of embarrassment won over, so I just chewed my lower lip and kept quiet.
Ranger and I left first to take the elevator down.
"Try not to get hurt." He said when we were alone. "I have plans for you tonight."
Heat rushed through me when I saw the look in his eyes. I didn't know how well I could hide my attraction when I was working with Ranger and he clearly wanted to keep our little affair from the others.
"I'll try." I said softly. "Will you help me with the take down?"
He shook his head slightly "Gotta be just you. We'll step in before you get hurt though." He took me in his arms and kissed my head. "You'll be fine, don't let him get to you!"
I didn't think I was going to be fine, I thought I'd be humiliated by messing my pants if I'd see someone pointing a gun at me, but I nodded into Ranger's chest.
I was to leave first, cell phone at the ready, map on the passenger seat beside me. I took a couple of deep breaths when I was alone in the Beetle and tried to convince myself that Ranger was right, I'd be fine.
I even managed a finger wave for Hal and Ranger as I passed them on my way out and headed for Stark Street.
