Chapter 7
Stephanie's POV
Marco asked if I could attend Jeanne Ellen's funeral with him and Uncle Sam. I didn't really want to go, but I also didn't want to stay home alone. We got to DC an hour before the funeral commenced to change our clothes. General Palmer asked Marco if he should receive the trifold flag since he was Jeanne's next of kin. Marco politely declined, stating I was his family. Jeanne Ellen Burrows was not a biological family member, and Marco felt Sam should receive the honours. Both Marco and I knew Ranger wouldn't accept the flag.
I tried not to cry for the woman partially responsible for my heartbreak, but I knew I would bawl as I usually do at funerals. Any loss of life was worth mourning, in my opinion. Tank walked towards Marco and me. He paused long enough to squeeze my hand. I gasped as an electric current passed through his fingers, flowing into mine. His lips curled into a smile for a fraction of a second before he slammed down the blank face I despised in all my Merry Man.
Marco shook in silent laughter beside me. I wrapped my arm around my brother's waist and put my head on his shoulder. When he didn't stop laughing, I pinched his side and whispered, "Behave. You're supposed to be grieving your cousin."
"She isn't related," he reminded me. I rolled my eyes. Until five months ago, Marco thought Jeanne was family. They got along but never went out of their way to hang out. At least that's the story Marco told me. Uncle Sam said he gathered the family together once a month. Marco said he never felt that connection to Burrows. He lost all respect for Jeanne Ellen when I told him my story. When I found Marco, we both felt whole. Like the part that was missing got filled. God help the woman who attempts to get between us.
I clung to Marco as the General talked about Jeanne Ellen's military career. She never rose in the ranks, but she got asked to assist on missions where a woman was required to infiltrate as part of a married couple. I resisted the urge to glance at Ranger. People looking at Marco and me assumed we were lovers until they saw the resemblance. Marco and I have unruly tight curls and blue eyes. His features are more masculine than mine, but you could also tell we're related.
Marco passed me a white rose to place on the coffin. I didn't want to give Jeanne Ellen that level of respect, but I did it for my brother and uncle. One could hardly sing "ding dong the witch is dead" at the funeral. I felt Marco laugh as he pulled my head into his chest. He whisper-sang the song in my ear. I shook from laughter. Anyone watching us would assume I'm crying. When I heard the three-volley salute, my laughter turned to tears.
Jeanne Ellen may have been a royal bitch to me, but she was still a respected soldier. I cried harder when I heard the creak of the winch as it lowered the coffin into the hole. Funerals make me cry harder than the grieving family. It's embarrassing how much I cry over people I don't know or like. Marco and I held hands as we walked to the grave, dropping our rose on top of the casket. As we turned to leave, I heard Lester ask, "Is that Stephanie?" My hair was only a few inches long, yet it was probably still an inch longer than Marco's hair. I spared a glance at Tank. He winked before returning the firearm to the lieutenant. My gentle giant knew my secret.
Marco left his arm around my shoulder as he accepted condolences from his old army and delta force buddies. He introduced me as his sister without saying my name. "Thank you," I whispered. Marco knew I was thanking him for not revealing my name.
We almost made it back to our car when Lester pulled me into his arms. I groaned from the pain in my shoulder. "Beautiful, are you injured?" Lester asked. He looked scared that he had hurt me.
"Not really," I replied as Mateo said, "She got shot in the shoulder a week ago." I wanted to kick Marco's ass for telling Lester about my shoulder. Ranger and Bobby were close enough to hear the exchange. Bobby and Lester were the only two surprised by the resemblance between Marco and me. It made me wonder how much Ranger knew.
I groaned when Marco continued, "She's my hero."
"What do you mean?" Tank asked as he approached us.
"Someone aimed a gun at Marco's back, so I killed him," I replied, shrugging. I hated taking a life, but I didn't want to lose my brother. However, I did not feel sorry for killing the man about to sexually assault me. Getting sprayed in the face with his blood was not one of my finer moments.
"Where were you that necessitated killing a man?" Ranger asked. If only Ranger knew that Marco, Charlie, Hawk and I completed his mission.
I rolled my eyes, then replied, "In a shoot out. It was morally correct, although firmly placed in a grey area.
Ranger's lip twitched. "My moral compass does not always point to the side of the law," he stated.
"No shit, Sherlock," I thought. Without filtering my next thought, I added, "Ranger, your moral compass needs to get recalibrated." Marco took my statement as our cue to get into the car. Tank silently laughed. I winked at him before closing the door. My man liked me calling Ranger on his shit. Wait a minute⦠when did Tank become my man?
"The second he confessed regarding Ranger's marriage," Marco said, answering the question I thought was in my head. "It helps to know what you're thinking."
"I really have to stop doing that," I complained.
"You do it less often than you think. Your face often shows what you're thinking. The only time I saw a lack of expression was on our mission," Marco explained to me. I never thought I could give the blank face. Hearing that I pulled it off made me happier than I expected.
A few blocks away from the cemetery, I noticed a car following us. I told Marco about our tail. He drove offensively to shake the vehicle. We travelled to Uncle Sam's home instead of heading home. "Why are we here?" I asked.
"We'll visit until the man following us leaves," Marco replied. The vehicle continued following us until we exited the car.
Recognizing the driver, I grabbed Marco's sat phone to call Lester. "Why are you following us?" I asked when he answered.
"Oh. Um. Well," Lester said. I was losing my patience when he finally said, "Ranger wants to know where you live."
"Take Ranger back to Trenton. Marco and I are visiting our uncle," I said. There was no way Marco and I would let Lester follow us home. If Ranger tried to locate the hideaway, he would hit brick walls. The house got registered under one of Marco's undercover names in the Delta Force. It wasn't one Marco had to use during a mission. Uncle Sam was the only person to know the name. The knowledge that Ranger couldn't discover the place gave me the feeling of safety.
I thought Lester hung up until he asked, "So, Marco Barker is your brother?"
"His name is Marco Plum. He's my twin brother. Judging from the lack of surprise from Ranger at the cemetery, I think he already knew," I replied. I neglected to tell them Marco got the name Barker redacted from his military records.
"Babe," Ranger said. I was annoyed that Lester had the phone on speaker, but it made sense. They were travelling back to Trenton. Bobby and Tank drove home in a different car.
I hung up out of annoyance. "I need something to hit," I mumbled. Marco assured me that Uncle Sam had a punching bag in his home gym for me to use. I smiled and thanked him for the great news.
Ranger's POV
"How long did you know?" Lester asked when Stephanie ended the call.
"Know what?" I asked, trying to avoid answering.
"That Stephanie and Marco Barker were siblings," Lester snarled. I could tell he was angry that I didn't share the knowledge.
"Since we met," I confessed. "I ran a background check on Stephanie before inviting her on the redecorating job. Her birth record listed a twin brother. I found a death certificate for Marco Frances Plum dated for almost two years after their birth."
"But how did you know he was still alive?" Lester asked.
The answer was going to be more problematic to explain. I pinched the bridge of my nose before telling Lester the Coles notes version of the story. "Stephanie was looking for Annie Soter. She crossed paths with Jeanne Ellen as she looked for Evelyn Soter, the child's mother. When I called to tell Jeanne Ellen to return Stephanie's car, she commented that Stephanie resembled her cousin, Marco Barker. I pulled a photo of Marco Barker from his military records. It confirmed my suspicion. I'm trying to find out why Barker raised Frank Plum's son."
"You could ask Marco," Lester suggested. I had no intention of asking for the information. When I return to Rangeman, I'll use the programs to uncover the reason why. There isn't anything people could bury that I couldn't find. Lester stopped talking, which was surprising. He must be angrier than I anticipated. He preferred gathering intel by asking the people involved. I enjoyed the electronic route. I'm skilled at uncovering the details.
Lester got onto the interstate to drive home. I could feel anger radiating from his body. Using my phone, I dialled Stephanie's number. Her phone rang once before going straight to voice mail. I left a message, asking her to return my call. Lester smirked when I hung up. I raised my eyebrow.
"She's not going to call you," Lester said. I counted on Stephanie giving me another chance now that Jeanne Ellen is dead.
An hour later, my phone rang. "Yo," I answered.
"Ranger," Stephanie replied.
"Babe," I said for Lester's benefit. I knew Stephanie would return my call.
"Whatever," she replied. "I'm calling from an untraceable phone." I wanted to take her out for dinner and properly date my Babe. As though she read my thoughts, she said, "I'm not interested in having a relationship with you. You betrayed my trust and lied to me when I asked about your relationship with Jeanne Ellen."
"I never lied to you, Babe," I snapped. She was hooking my anger. I was annoyed she thought I outright lied to her.
"Not answering my question and deflection is a lie of omission. You knew how I felt about infidelity in a marriage. I can't believe you placed me in the role of the mistress. Joe and I broke up when I could no longer tolerate him berating me. I will not stand for a man who thinks nothing about cheating on his wife. We can be friends, but nothing more," Stephanie explained.
I wondered how I could get her to change her mind. My life was empty without my Babe. "I will never cheat on you," I promised. Stephanie laughed over the phone before hanging up. I guess she didn't have anything else to say.
When I looked at Lester, he was barely suppressing a grin. I raised an eyebrow, wondering what stupidity would leave Lester's mouth. "I admit that I was wrong about her returning your call. But I knew she wouldn't give you another chance to love her," Lester said. I wanted to punch him because he was right.
"I've lost her," I said, resigned.
"If you don't back off, the rest of us will lose her too," Lester stated. I knew Stephanie and Lester were best friends. Bobby and Tank would take me to the mats if I caused Stephanie to ignore her Rangeman friends. Lester turned on the radio to the 80s station. He played the music loud enough to indicate he was done talking for now.
I leaned my head back against the headrest to think about everything I did to betray Stephanie. She didn't deserve how I treated her. I should have been honest about my relationship with Jeanne Ellen before sleeping with her. Stephanie would never have agreed to the deal, knowing I was a married man. Having an open marriage didn't matter to Stephanie. I should have known that her moral compass was more on point than mine.
The music shut off, alerting me that Lester had some questions. "Carlos, who killed Gomez?" he asked.
"Didn't they disclose the information in your debrief?" I asked.
"No. The General did not. We never asked," Lester replied. "I thought the general would have told you because it impacted your mission." The only way to get the answer was to call the man himself. I decided against calling General Barker, assuming he wouldn't divulge the intel to protect his family.
Suddenly, I wanted the answer to the question too. I called General Palmer to ask. "How are you feeling, Manoso?" Palmer asked as I placed the call on speakerphone.
"On the mend, sir," I replied. Palmer could read that in the file for the mission. "I had a question regarding my mission. Burrows and I were told to use Cortez to neutralize Gomez. How did Gomez die?"
"Mrs. Cortez and Mrs. Gomez are sisters. The wives were at war, not the husbands. Plum killed him," Palmer replied.
"Marco?" I asked to follow up on his reply.
"No," Palmer said before ending the call. I was shocked. Babe killed Gomez.
Lester started laughing. "Well, I'll be damned. Beautiful killed Gomez. I bet she looked hot while pulling the trigger. Man, I'm turned on and hard," Lester said. The urge to punch him increased.
I knew Stephanie would have a difficult time dealing with taking another life. Her heart was too pure to get sullied by killing a man. "She compromised our mission," I said between clenched teeth.
"Ranger, you and Jeanne Ellen weren't making progress. Gomez died in Philadelphia. Where were you and the bitch?" Lester asked. I refused to answer his question. "Right, you were in Roanoke, Virginia."
Lester didn't say anything else. I thought I could sleep, but his next few words had me seeing red. "Whose brilliant idea was it to use Cortez to kill Gomez?" Lester sarcastically asked.
"Jeanne Ellen and I collaborated on the plan. It was flawless until Barker got involved," I said, defending our mission. "Cortez had a soft spot for Burrows. She tried to use his affection to bend his will."
"Right. Did you know that Sophia Gomez and Maribella Cortez are sisters?" Lester asked. "Your mission would have been successful if you seduced the wife. She wanted her brother-in-law dead for marrying her sister."
I was furious to hear this link between the women. It felt like someone stabbed me in the back. "How did you know?" I demanded. Whoever collected the intel for the family didn't do a thorough job.
"It was in the file you received from General Palmer to approach the wife." I remembered back to our mission brief. The file was placed on the table between Jeanne Ellen and me. She grabbed the folder and grabbed some papers. That information must have been in her pile. Lester twisted the knife by adding, "Your mission was doomed to fail the minute you allowed your wife to take the lead."
My future with Stephanie was gone because I betrayed her trust. I lost Stephanie the day she discovered I was married to Jeanne Ellen. It doesn't matter what I do to make amends, nothing will fix what got broken before I met my Babe. Lester was right.
