THAT MIAMI GLOW

Ranger POV

Chapter 11: L

oOo

Looking at Stephanie now, especially since that awful, fateful dinner disaster, the difference in her general demeanour has been significantly more self-assured.

Our escape to Miami had set things in motion. But, in truth, even before we were engaged, Stephanie was feeling empowered, having physically removed herself from that noxious environment. When she moved in with me, into the penthouse on seven, and made Rangeman her home was a wonderful day. I'd like to think of it as being surrounded by unconditional support, love and unbiased judgment. There was no critical judgment, but there was constructive criticism. There was positive feedback and the only negative encounters were in dealing with different aspects of the job. There was a lot of brotherly pride and respect. Not just from me, but the entire Rangeman family. She worked hard and proved her worth repeatedly by maintaining the standards for Rangeman personnel.

This happened to coincide with the time when she gave her final notice to her sleazy cousin Vincent Plum and bounty hunting for him. No more. His bullying tactics reminded her too much of Morelli. Add to that the shallow friendship from Connie, and especially Lula, she was done with them too. It seemed that the Bonds Office was often the source of quite a bit of gossip for the Burg, like insider information. Stephanie did not want to share our relationship details and cherished that privacy. But Lula and Connie wanted all the salacious specifics. Lula was blunt and tactless, and was still a Morelli fan. We often wondered if she and the fuckwit had more than just a verbal connection. I shudder at the thought.

Succeeding in that powerful Morelli smackdown at the TPD was another contributing factor. But, even more so, because of the hugely successful Fuck You in the dethroning of her mother so firmly. Knowing she had endured, and effectively disempowered, and subsequently derailed her mother at that dinner, was exhilarating and empowering. In essence, Stephanie did not change but her resilience and fortitude were noticeably stronger. She glowed with having finally defied her toxic mother so unequivocally. It was just amazing. Beyond amazing. Damn. I was so proud of her.

I don't think Helen expected that attitude to come from Stephanie. Helen, like Morelli, is a control freak. And, while Helen was screeching her tirades, Stephanie's voice was firm, direct and calm. She did not rise nor respond to that emotional hysteria. That's another thing that threw Helen off balance. Stephanie countered Helen's ridiculously rehearsed criticisms and those disparaging remarks, each time, when she took a breath, or had a stunned gasping pause to gather her wits. Stephanie played her own cards, not the way that Helen anticipated at all. Helen expected her to back down under the relentless onslaught of guilt and reprimands. Stephanie stood her ground firmly and was steady as a rock. Damn, she was good. No, she was brilliant.

How she tolerated Morelli's repetitive and predictable rant was another contributing factor. The stupid fucker had not anticipated her calm and strong demeanour. All the things he said, every single word, she had heard before. Apparently, that was how his rant went. I chuckled, recalling how she predicted his line of attack almost verbatim. The only thing missing was that incessant pacing. The fuckwit couldn't very well do that in the dining room. Yes, it was repetitive, yet relentless. Some parts I was already familiar with from our encounters at the scene of the Stephanie incidents that often made my heart skip more than a beat as I sent a prayer to keep her safe, hoping to get to her in time to save her. Saving her from his noxious rants was another reason that had me rushing in. But, the last scene like that was practically fifteen months ago. We have all moved on, well, most of us. Obviously not the fuckwit nor his co-conspirator. I couldn't stand the way he talked down to her, with all that abusive yelling and remonstrating. Upstanding citizen my ass! He was a bully and didn't care how many people heard his public displays of aggression.

Morelli was thrown by her strong body language. That he faltered a couple of times was noticeable, which had him second guessing his tactics, but he was determined to get that well-rehearsed spiel out. Stephanie's attitude was a strong Fuck You Morelli. Yet, still he underestimated her, after all this time. I take no credit for that. This is all Stephanie's doing.

Add to all that Frank's miraculous awakening with Morelli's outrageous statements, our Fuck You Plan went well beyond our expectations. The bonus of seeing Frank finally come to life with that fury was awesome. As a father with a daughter, I felt that rage, and I probably would have done a lot more damage to Morelli. Thankfully Stephanie had anticipated my surging rage and tamed my rumbling beast with just her special loving touch, to keep me grounded. I pride myself on my self-control, but the two tag-teaming morons were just unbelievably stupid and absurd. My strong need to protect my Babe is quite overwhelming sometimes. Okay, all the time, but she's alright with that. Besides, it's mutual.

A couple of days later, Edna eagerly elaborated how the Helen Smackdown went. And how impressed she was with her son-in-law. Edna had repeatedly tried in vain to tell her conniving daughter to lay off her stupid insidious plans with Morelli. But Helen stupidly ignored her, feeling arrogant and smug with her scheme.

Frank apparently nailed it, questioning her incessant desire for Stephanie to be married "to such a philandering, womanising asshole who treated Stephanie with such contempt and utter disrespect, under the guise that he loved her."

Yep. He nailed that for sure.

Evidently, Frank queried if Helen was lusting after Morelli herself? Or was it to do with her earlier infatuation with the senior Morelli?

Oh! I bet that hit a nerve.

Apparently, she was all in a fluster. Yep. More denial. He called her on that so many times. Frank was right however. Helen was very infatuated with that older asshole.

Frank was direct and blunt, not tolerating any of her usual bullshit. Helen was not used to Frank challenging her, and that totally shook her to the core. She stuttered and stammered and fidgeted. She tried making excuses to escape his wrath by trying to clear the table. Well, that didn't work.

"You will sit and listen, Helen. I am so sick of all your lies and interference."

Helen was stunned.

Then he asked her, if she really wanted her daughter to live a life like Angie Morelli had? How Morelli senior beat his children as well, Joseph more than the others. But that does not excuse his present day attitude and behaviour. Look at Angie Morelli; that could be Stephanie, which she emphatically denied. And what about if Stephanie had children with that brute? Would the Morelli family curse continue? Of course. Stupid harpy. More denial.

Edna strongly reminded Helen how they both had witnessed the evidence first-hand, of the brutish and violent drunken behaviour of the senior Morelli.

She then let Frank continue his reprimanding conversation. Edna confessed how much she enjoyed watching Helen squirm under Frank's angry and furious verbal attack. Payback is a bitch. Getting some of her own medicine was brilliant and she was finding that most uncomfortable and difficult to deal with.

The apple did not fall far from the tree, he had reminded Helen. Joseph Morelli had already shown his true colours: the alcohol, the disrespect, the bullying rants and raging put downs, the constant cheating and philandering. His earlier days of bar room brawls before he cleaned up his act was proof as well.

Frank laid it all out for Helen. Stupidly, she tried to defend the fucker. That made Frank even more furious.

We, all of us here at Rangeman, knew of Morelli's extra-curricular activities on Stark Street. I don't know if Frank had any idea, nor Helen. The only thing missing was the violence, but his bullying tactics and that insidious need to control and change Stephanie was evident to everyone. There was nothing affectionate in his PDAs since they were public displays of aggravation and aggression. Expecting Stephanie to change to suit his notion of a Burg housewife by marrying him and having his kids. I shudder at that scenario. Gaslighting and all that demeaning verbal abuse were his favourite tactics, so it was only a matter of time before that abuse would escalate to physical abuse.

Helen didn't want to hear anything about all that, covering her ears and vigorously shaking her head. She became more hysterical. It seemed that Frank finally broke her, bringing Helen to tears a number of times. But, once again each time it was just another performance, and pathetic ones at that. Pfft. Crocodile tears. It was a ploy for sympathy and Frank could see right through that. False promises of self-improvement failed to impress any belief or optimism he might have for her. No trust.

He actually had given her ultimatums before, so this was not the first time. She never took him seriously. Frank didn't think she would go this far after all this time. However, this time he had drawn the line in the sand, and gave her enough rope to hang herself. She just wouldn't stop her meddling. This obsession was all consuming. Between the incessant gossiping and devious scheming with Morelli, Frank said he had a gutful.

"Stephanie is happy. She is already married, to a wonderful, honourable man; a man who sees her for who she is, accepts her for who she is, and respects her with all his heart. I am so happy for them both. He will protect her and love her, like she deserves. Morelli never deserved Stephanie. Leave her alone! You have constantly betrayed her, and you have deceived me so many times, that I cannot trust you anymore. You are such an embarrassment Helen, with how you mistreat and abuse your very own daughter, with this inexplicable Morelli fixation. Why the hell are you defending that asshole, Helen? I am incredulous that you always take his side over Stephanie's, giving him more credence. What kind of mother does that? I am so disappointed in you. I have honoured our marriage vows, but you, this screeching banshee I see before me, you are not the woman to whom I wish to be married. I am ashamed of you. What you have done is contemptable and unforgiveable."

Edna was really enjoying this. "While Helen did the goldfish thing, he gave her notice. No more, he'd said. The house is for sale and she can get half, to find somewhere else to live. His duffle bag was already packed, waiting upstairs by the bedroom door. And of course, Helen spouted her favourite "why me's" and "what will the neighbours say" bullshit routine. And, "What about me?" She became more hysterical, throwing a dreadful tantrum that even surprised Edna. Her voice was hoarse and rasping from all that screeching. Frank calmly turned around after telling her to clean up the dinner table, do the dishes and go to bed. You can sleep in Stephanie's room, I am not sharing my bed with you anymore."

"Hot diggity. I was so damned proud of him, finally putting her in her place."

As he went up the stairs, Frank stopped halfway. His voice went calm and soft, but firm and scary, in a way I have never heard from Frank. Helen picked up on that, too.

"Oh. By the way. I have solved one little problem for you. Don't worry," he said nonchalantly, "the neighbours can read about it in the newspaper. You won't have to explain anything. It's so obvious that I'm divorcing you, but if they haven't worked that out yet, it will be in the Notices for Divorce this week, just to confirm any doubts or confusion. Also, you'll be served those divorce papers tomorrow. I have had enough of your devious scheming, your interfering and vile gossiping, how you have abused Stephanie repeatedly, and all the other despicable behaviour especially your disgraceful alcohol addiction."

Apparently, that set her off again.

Edna's eyes sparkled. She was not the least bit sad for her daughter. When I asked her about that, she calmly remarked, "It was all self-inflicted, Carlos. She created and nurtured this entire toxic situation and now she has to deal, and live with the consequences. I have disowned her."

Her eyes gleamed with a secretive grin.

"Stephanie, after your awesome divorce from that cheating bastard Dickie Orr, she changed. She was determined to see you married in the proper Burg manner, whatever that meant in her weird and warped sozzled mind. Yes, she is an alcoholic. Not your fault. She sought the false comfort of her pity party time friends Jim, Jack and The Turk. She wanted to control you. She wanted to change you. I am so proud of you, Stephanie. I am sorry it had to come to this to finally get through to her. But, we both know, she is deep in denial.

Frank and I thought seriously about an intervention and tried without success. Denial. She has no conscience whatsoever. You have done all you can. What you did at that dinner was perfect. And always remember, she is not your responsibility."

I could tell that Stephanie was feeling a bit remorseful.

"It's all on her now, Babe. She does not deserve your pity. She betrayed you so many times as your father said. Helen has chosen this path and has deviated way beyond the boundaries of reality."

Edna suddenly became excited with another bit of information.

"Oh! By the way, did you know that Helen wanted Valerie at the dinner, but not with the children or Albert? Valerie refused to come if Albert wasn't invited. She was suspicious but also confused, asking me what was going on. Apparently, Helen was beyond excited for this dinner and Valerie was beginning to doubt her intentions. She was hesitant to get involved with any of Helen's sneaky schemes but was not going to accept such an invitation without her Cuddle-umpkins.

Helen stupidly thought that with herself, Morelli, Frank and I, and Valerie, that would be enough to convene an intervention. Lordy, Lordy. Even I can not believe how deluded she has become. She is bordering beyond crazy and neurotic. She has become certifiable. The intervention should be on her, for both her alcohol addiction and this psychotic obsession with changing you to become a Morelli bride. Ugh!"

Stephanie shuddered at that last remark. I grinned at Steph as she looked at me, wondering how I guessed. I nudged her and gave her a wink.

"That would be double points for me, you know." I couldn't help chuckling.

"Well. It gets even better. The next morning the For Sale sign went up on the lawn, and of course, that set her off into another screaming fit. Poor Hal had the misfortune of witnessing that when he arrived to pick me up."

Edna added the final scandalous downfall of the harpy, Helen Plum. In her excitement, her teeth do-si-do-ed in her mouth.

"I know that Frank waited to leave, until the papers were served. Of course, that set her off again. What a performance! Almost worthy of an Oscar. Such a distressing and disturbing display. She had already been tippling as she does, even before breakfast.

Because she assaulted the server of the documents, he immediately called the police. After shrieking for the entire neighbourhood to hear, everyone already knows. Pfft. The newspaper will just provide confirmation. Frank just sat quietly on the porch, watching this debacle. It was embarrassing. She was a mess.

As a result of her complete denial and hysterics, when the cops arrived she resisted arrest and became aggressive. She slapped the arresting officer and that was it. Handcuffs, Miranda Rights, and all in full view of all her neighbours. I just shook my head.

Frank calmly went back inside, after straightening up the For Sale Sign. He locked up the house after checking all the lights and grabbed his duffle bag. He checked if I was okay, and gave me a hug, wishing me well before he drove away. He was looking forward to a peaceful breakfast at a diner. He was planning to go to the Lodge and then stay with Joe Juniak."

Stephanie's face was aghast. I gently tapped her bottom jaw.

"Oh. My. God."

"Well. It solves the intervention issue now. It's over."

"Thanks Grandma. That was … wow … unexpected."

"Best smackdown ever," Edna chuckled, "and the Burg has been buzzing in an absolute frenetic frenzy. What a pip! And, as you can guess, there is so much video evidence of her disgraceful public performance whizzing through the Burg."

As we left, I chuckled. Edna got better than just a smackdown. She also got a Helen Plum breakdown of epic proportions.

I do recall Hal's stricken face after collecting Edna and taking her to her apartment yesterday. I thought that Edna was back to her old tricks of groping. But Stephanie had firmly warned her grandmother, to keep her hands off her Merry Men, me especially. Edna had solemnly promised and has been on her best behaviour ever since.

Hal had sat down in the break room with a large coffee and explained Helen's reaction when he came to collect Edna. Helen was about to slam the door as they were leaving when she spotted the For Sale sign. Edna grabbed his hand and pulled him away to the waiting SUV while Helen was trying desperately to remove the sign. She told him to wait, because she wanted to see it all, as she wound down her window. Apparently, all the neighbours saw and heard it all Then when the server arrived, the assault, the police and everything that happened, Hal saw Helen Plum the harpy in full frenetic flight. When they departed, Edna smiled and waved goodbye, quite the royal wave, to all the neighbours.

Well, that couldn't have happened to a nicer person! What goes around comes around, as the saying goes. Helen Plum got what was coming to her, and her demise was all unsolicited yet self-inflicted.

Hm … I wonder how far the fucktard has travelled? Cal and Hector were happy to add another couple of trackers to his truck. You know, just to see if he runs, where to, and how far he runs. I still don't trust the asshole, but, after his humiliating confrontation with Frank, it might be a while before he comes back to Trenton, if at all. We shall see.

And just to mess with him some more, Hector suggested we have a few cars tail him, just for the extra mind fuck as he leaves the Burg behind. Tank and I thought that was an excellent idea. After hearing the replay of the dinner at the House of Horrors in the conference room meeting, there was no shortage of volunteers. But, only on the condition that they would tail him, peel off and then allow the next team to pursue him in turn. But, under no circumstance, whatsoever, was anyone to inflict any kind of punishment or vengeance. That may come later, and I will be at the head of that queue. Retribution was a pleasant thought.

oOo

TBC

Because you waited so patiently, my Muse gifted you an extra-long chapter. And, she is loving those reviews. Thank you. My Muse enjoys them all and appreciates you taking the time to read and review.

Oh, how the mighty fallen. Do I hear cackling and rubbing hands?

Two more chapters to go. = - )