Chapter 20

SPOV

The day went quickly with Mylo, Ella and Les being with us. To be honest I never got a moment to even think let alone have any time to myself. I was so happy that Mylo was pleased to see me, that he didn't hate me for leaving him at Rangeman. In fact, he seemed happy even though he still wasn't talking.

We spent time with me reading while Ella pottered in the kitchen, Ranger and Les had disappeared so I assumed they were catching up with each other, something I would have to ask Ranger about later. That word brought ideas to my head, later. Would Ranger regret what had nearly happened this morning or would he see my response as an opportunity to continue. I wasn't sure that I could resist any advances that he made. Would I, should I? I had no idea. Though from how we had talked by the waterfall and the way that he had supported me while being here I was actually beginning to hope that just maybe I was more important to him than I realized. I mean I was here at the Bat cave, wasn't I?

As Mylo settled to read on his own I took that as an opportunity to talk with Ella. It seemed the coffee machine had done its magic and the contents were still hot, so I poured out two mugs of coffee and set one next to Ella.

"Ella, I'm sorry"

"Nonsense. What you did was very brave"

Yeah and probably stupid.

"Mylo is such a darling but I do worry about his speech"

"He's had a very traumatic upbringing"

Not wanting to go into any detail with Ella, in fact I hadn't even told Ranger the full story of how Charlie had found him.

"I hope you don't mind but I've asked a close friend to work with him. He's a child psychologist"

I really had no idea how that might work or even if it was the right thing to do.

"I talked it through with Mylo and he seems okay with it. He'll come to Rangeman so you can be there with him"

I suppose if Mylo was happy for that to happen then I was as well.

"Oh Stephanie, I owe you a big apology"

I looked at Ella wondering why on earth she would need to apologize to me and immediately began to panic a little at what she might say.

"We had to move everything that was yours out of Ranger's apartment when the police came to search the building and I never put them back. I'm so sorry. Everything's back in there now along some extras for you"

I'm not sure what expression crossed my face, relief that I'd jumped to the wrong conclusions and maybe embarrassment that I just expected them still to be there. Whatever Ella saw though had her frowning at me and she surprised me by placing her hand gently on my cheek.

"Don't blame Ranger, he would always expect you to go to him. He'd be so upset if you didn't"

Okay that had me raising my eyebrows, what did she mean he'd be upset? Ranger never got upset.

"He bought this place after Julie was kidnapped, I think something happened to make him decide to stay here in Trenton rather than moving down to Miami or up to Boston"

I remembered that time all too well, that maniac Scrogg had a lot to answer for. One of which was for Ranger to keep his distance from me for a while using the excuse that his enemies could focus on me instead. I could never understand that argument, hell I had enough enemies of my own that infringed on his life.

The problem was that it was when Ranger was shot and close to death that I finally admitted to myself that I actually loved him. I'd never admitted that to anyone else and I tried so hard to lock that feeling away, but denial didn't really cooperate much with that. I'd tried to see if a relationship would work with Joe but in my heart, I knew that the feelings for Ranger would always be there, stopping me from committing to Joe.

Maybe that was why Joe had gone to such drastic lengths, to get me away from Ranger. Maybe Joe had seen Ranger as the reason for me being so reticent to make a commitment. I suppose Joe may have thought that if I packed in with bounty hunting then Ranger and I would drift apart. Yeah, like that was going to happen. The thing was, was I too late? Had Ranger found someone else? I had to admit that maybe I'd been quick to jump to that conclusion, then again.

My thoughts were interrupted as I felt an arm go around my shoulder and saw a smile cross Ella's face. Ranger was stood next to me and it was his arm around me, how strange was that? Ranger had always been a very hands on person but never in company, only in the privacy of the alley by the bonds office or inside a car or apartment when we were on our own. Had I totally misread Tali and who she was? I really hoped so.

"Stephanie, go get Mylo and then we can eat"

"I'll go get him"

Came from Ranger as he walked over to where Mylo was still sat reading. I set out plates and cutlery on the table as Les helped Ella to bring the food. Sat on one of the chairs I was facing into the room and realized that I'd never really looked at where I was properly. Not like me at all, normally I'd be keen to have a nosey around somewhere new to see what I could find. Like I had done the first time I'd found myself in Ranger's apartment.

Looking around now I liked the simplistic way that the living area had been put together. The wooden floors of the kitchen and dining area that then changed to carpet in the living area. Modern kitchen units that complimented the leather L shaped couch that sat with the fire in front of it. There were wooden units in the alcoves but no evidence of a TV or music system which surprised me knowing how much Ranger enjoyed listening to music. Wooden bookshelves filled with books lined a section of the wall with large glass doors that I assumed led to outside. No drapes or blinds which had me wondering how the light from inside wouldn't be seen from the outside.

Looking down at my plate I was surprised to see that someone had already spooned out some food onto my plate.

"Chicken & chorizo jambalaya, Mylo helped choose it"

I smiled at Mylo as I took a forkful and as the spices hit my taste buds I moaned in appreciation. I was sure that it was healthy, Ranger was eating it, but I had to say that it certainly tasted great. I was certainly full after cleaning my plate and we were soon moving the dirty pots across to the dish washer.

After our meal Ranger, Les, Mylo and I went outside into the meadow area, all of us enjoying playing with a Frisbee that Les had found somewhere, though for the most part I stayed stationary not wanting to put pressure on my ankle. Eventually I just sat down on the grass and watched the other three as they messed around, a feeling of contentment engulfing me.

The afternoon came to an end all too soon and I was stood at the front door watching and waving as Les drove away with Ella and Mylo. Ranger closed the door and we both went through to the kitchen, having visitors meant we had mugs and glasses to clear away.

"Babe"

I turned to see Ranger holding a large circular tin in his hands not sure what it was.

"Ella helped Mylo to make this for you. I think we were all too full after the meal to try it"

As I walked over to Ranger intrigued with what was inside, he eased the lid off the tin to reveal its contents. I was feeling excited to see what was inside but as I looked down into the tin a smell hit me, and the sight almost had me vomiting. I backed away, a hand over my mouth before turning and running for the bathroom.

I was still knelt down next to the toilet, having thrown up most of my lunch when I felt a cold cloth on my neck.

"Babe, are you okay?"

Tears were slowly falling down my cheeks as I turned, and I was soon sat across Ranger's legs as he sat against the tub.

"Are you feeling ill?"

I shook my head, I suppose I had felt ill, so much so that I'd ended up being sick, but it wasn't because I was actually ill.

"It was smelling and seeing that cake"

"The pineapple upside down cake?"

I nodded my head, feeling a bit stupid for how I'd reacted to seeing that damn cake.

"Babe, talk to me"

What did I say, I mean how could I explain the images that came to me, the feelings and emotions that crippled me?

"I had a flashback, I'm not even sure where I was. It was my mother, screaming at me, telling me that I was disgrace and that she was ashamed of me. That she never wanted to see me again and, and that she wished that I was dead"

All the hurt came back to me as I repeated the words that she'd said. How could a mother say that to her daughter, I mean I always thought a mother's love was unconditional?

"She hated me because of the fuck ups with the skips. She said I was a disgrace and should stop doing that stupid job and do what a respectable Burg woman should do"

"Marry Morelli"

Yeah, all she could see was me following in her footsteps and being a good little Burg housewife who didn't cause any problems that would reflect badly on her.

"You have a family, Babe, one who loves you very much, Mylo and Ella, the men at Rangeman and me. Friends who would do anything for you. I know that she's your mother, but you don't need her Babe, to be who you want to be"

I heard what Ranger had said to me and I suppose in some ways that he was right, my mother had never really shown any affection toward me, or encouragement, not like she had to Val. That she could turn on me as she had without even listening to my side of the story, well that just showed how fucked up my family was. With a sigh I turned my face up to Ranger wondering why I was even here with him.

"I'm sorry. You must be fed up with me by now"

Because I couldn't understand why Ranger put up with me, I mean look at me. I was crap at my job, always finding trouble, constantly had bad guys after me and on top of that I came from a dysfunctional family and was an emotional mess.

"Have you finished berating yourself? Because I for one know and understand you. You have a heart that can be fierce and sensitive, a mind that can be intuitive and devious and a personality that can be feisty and loving"

I raised my eyebrows as he told me that, well lectured me really and as I opened my mouth to say something to refute what he had just said his lips came down on mine, hard and passionate. I couldn't resist the way he nibbled at my lip so opened my mouth to taste him. I was out of breath and my body was humming when all too soon he pulled away from me, a whisper in my ear that had me blushing.

"I forgot to add that you're beautiful and sexy"

After my melt down over that damn cake it gave a better insight into my insecurities and how they'd been fed by my mother and probably Morelli. I knew how strong I could be and that was what I intended to be but knew that there would be some ups and downs along the way. I was still emotional even after that amazing kiss and kind words from Ranger. After showering he lay with me in bed, touching and holding me in a way that made me feel cherished. I wanted to forget all of the trauma in my life and focus on what was important, myself. Tomorrow would come soon enough, and we would be back at Rangeman trying to piece together everything that we had, so I had to be focused and not let Ranger down.

RPOV

I woke before Steph this morning, enjoying the feel of her curled up next to me. I was glad that I hadn't made any sexual moves toward her last night, she would have been willing, but she might have regretted it this morning. She was too emotional and fragile for me to take advantage of her, even though I so wanted to.

This morning we would be heading back to Rangeman and with the evidence that Steph had managed to uncover along with ours, hopefully we could start to decipher the who and the why of what was going on. I tightened my hold around Steph as she started to wake up and watched her sleepy eyes opening. I think at first that she was a bit confused but as her eyes focused on my face, I saw her give me her beautiful smile.

"Morning Babe"

"Hey"

"Coffee?"

"Mmm"

I smiled to myself as I slowly began to move out of the bed and could feel her eyes on me as I walked through to the kitchen. While the coffee machine did its work, I found some pancakes in the fridge that Ella had brought and then went for a shower. After dressing, with breakfast on the table I went to see if Steph had moved from the bed yet. I was actually surprised when I walked into the bedroom to see her fully dressed, pulling up the covers on the bed.

"Breakfast is ready Babe"

"I'm there"

Was all that she said as she followed me out. But made up for the lack of words when she spied what was there for breakfast. It wasn't healthy but I didn't give a shit, the way her eyes lit up and she smiled was totally worth it.

Steph was quiet as we drove to Trenton, I think trying to work out where the house was located. As we came into the city it was almost as if she was trying to hide from anyone seeing her by sitting low in the seat.

"The windows are tinted Babe"

I said trying to calm her.

"I know, it just feels kinda strange being out in the open"

I took hold of her hand trying to express to her that I understood and that I was with her. I only let go of her hand as we entered into the underground garage and parked the truck by the elevator.

"You ready Babe?"

I asked as I opened her door and held out my hand for her to take. I watched as she took in a deep breath and pulled her shoulders back, as though she was prepping herself for being back inside Rangeman. I wasn't too sure why she would need to that because she knew that she was safe here.

"Will the men be annoyed with me?"

Was the question she asked as we were riding up in the elevator. Ah, that was the reason that she was feeling so nervous because of her walking out of Rangeman and giving herself up to the police.

"No. They were surprised but understand. They won't think any less of you Babe"

I kept her hand in mine as we walked onto five, pleased when some of the men stopped to greet her. Ram was the first to hug her and whisper something in her ear that made her smile followed by Brown who was very careful as he kissed her forehead.

"How're the ankle and ribs doing?"

"The ribs are fine, and the ankle is better"

"Good, remember rest is the best"

I heard Steph laugh at Brown's stupid saying, knowing that he was right. I guided her past Cal and Hal and into the conference room where Santos was sat with Tank and Hector. All three of them got to their feet and made their way toward Steph. Hector was there first and took her in his arms before handing her over to Tank. Santos stood back, hell he'd only seen her yesterday, but there was something that I was reading on his face that I didn't like. I'd catch up with him as soon as Steph felt more settled on her own.

"Wow, you weren't kidding when you said you had a lot of information"

Came from Steph as she stood looking at all of our information on the boards.

"You found it"

I looked to where she was pointing to, seeing the mapping that Hector and Miguel had done on the tunnels from the house where she'd disappeared from.

"Hector and Miguel, Babe"

"I knew it was like a maze down there. Thank goodness Mylo knew his way around to get us out of there"

I watched as Steph started to read what we had on Manning, frowning as she lifted up a sheet to continue reading.

"It was him, he was there when Charlie was shot?"

Hell, had we made a mistake by thinking that Manning would lead us to his associates? We should have thrown him in the cells and beaten the truth out of him. What if we couldn't find Manning even though Jayce and Tali were keeping an eye on him? I began to question the wisdom of that decision. Shit.

"Possibly"

"I'll start with him as he isn't a face that I recognize, and you have the search that was done when he was employed to work here"

I was pleased that Steph seemed keen to get down to some work, maybe doing that would take her mind off the problems that she was battling with. I watched as Hector passed her a laptop and they had a conversation. I wasn't too sure why that was necessary as Steph had a good understanding of how our systems worked, something that maybe Hector would fill me in with later. As Steph removed Manning's information from the board and settled at the table with the laptop, I was behind her, my hands on her shoulder.

"Will you be okay Babe?"

I saw the surprised look on her face as she turned and looked up at me, realizing that she was going to be just fine.

"Babe. I'm not leaving the building so maybe we could meet up for lunch"

"I'd like that"

Was all she said as she went back to her work. Leaving the room, I headed toward my office, seeing Santos waiting outside for me. I had to admit that I had a feeling that what he wanted to tell me I wouldn't like. He followed me into my office and closed the door before taking the seat in front of my desk.

"What's happened?"

I asked wanting Santos to get to the point.

"We've lost Manning"

"How the hell has that happened?"

Jayce and Tali were supposed to be sticking to him like glue.

"Jayce had followed him to Quaker Bridge mall and then Tali took over and went inside. She lost him"

How the hell had Tali lost Manning?

"Tali hacked into the mall cameras but said that Manning seemed to know where the cameras were and was very clever in how he avoided them. She checked all of the exit cameras but had no luck. Tali's uploaded copies of them for us to go through"

"There are a lot of areas behind the shops with loading areas, that probably aren't always covered"

I added, maybe as a way of trying to stop myself from hitting something. It stopped me from hitting the desk, but I was still extremely annoyed.

"Shit. How the hell could they lose him, they're supposed to be the best at surveillance"

The only response from Santos was him raising his eyebrow before he said my next thought out loud.

"Beautiful will be pissed"

I knew I'd have to tell her but maybe if she was following up on him then she might find some threads for us to follow that could lead us to him.

"What are Jayce and Tali doing?"

"Jayce is watching the gambling joint and Tali is going to take a look around his apartment"

I wasn't too sure what else we could do other than for the men to keep an eye open for him. Manning was probably too clever to show himself, but it did make me wonder what the hell he was up to and how he had figured out that he was being followed. As I made to get up from the desk the door opened, and Hector walked in. I could tell from his mannerisms as he sat down that he was annoyed about something.

"Ellas jodieron"

I raised an eyebrow at his comment, to be honest I couldn't have said it better myself.

"Can we salvage anything?"

"No. The car he used was left in the parking area. It was stolen two nights ago. The cameras, what there are on the loading bays are wiped over every 24 hours, but Tali was quick enough to upload them onto our systems. I looked at the internal views, saw him go in but then he must have avoided any cameras. He must have known where they would be"

I leant back in my chair as I tried to figure out what else we could do. One thing was for sure I'd have to make sure that Steph was kept safe.

"I need to talk to Steph"

I said as much for me as anyone else, surprised when Hector sat forward on the chair.

"Estefania, I gave her a new phone, but she asked me that the laptop that she used wasn't connected to Rangeman. Why would she ask that?"

I had no idea why Steph would do that, I mean she knew the systems that we used here at Rangeman, she'd used them before. Unless she felt that somehow our systems had been compromised, but why would she suddenly think that?

"Are our systems secure?"

"First thing that I did after her request was to run a thorough diagnostic"

Steph always did have an unusual way of seeing things, intuition that was way beyond my understanding. If she had requested not to be connected to the Rangeman server then she must have had a good reason for doing it.

"How is she accessing and running the programs?"

"I have a separate system running. I use it to backup all of our data. It runs totally separately to the main system and only I can access it"

Did Steph think that we had another person employed who might see what she was doing? It was the only thing that made sense to me. I nodded my head to Hector who took the hint and left my office. I felt disconcerted with what Hector had told me about Steph's request and started to pull up a list of employees and their records. We'd taken on four new employees in the last two months, two had been contractors who we had used over the last year and then there was Manning and a man named Donalds. I messaged Tank asking him to see me when he could and then once again made to leave my desk. This time it was the phone that stopped me, someone calling me from reception.

I picked up the phone to hear Binkie at the other end, sounding a lot more formal than he usually did.

"Sir, there is Detective Morelli here at reception making enquiries about Miss Plum"

"Did you tell him anything Binkie?"

"No sir"

Damn it, I really did not want to have to deal with Morelli now and I wasn't sure that Steph was emotionally strong enough for it. I would never make the decision for her though, that's if Morelli was here to see her.

"Binkie ask him what he wants"

As I waited for Binkie to find that out, I walked out of the office with the phone and into the conference room where Steph was working. She looked up as I entered and frowned at my sudden entrance as though she sensed that something was wrong, maybe the look on my face gave me away.

"Morelli is downstairs"

I said to her, watching to see what her reaction was while waiting for Binkie to get back to me.

"Sir, the detective says that he wants to talk to Miss Plum. I told him that I didn't know if she was in the building"

"Tell him that I'll be down"

Steph had closed down the lid of the laptop and was just looking at me with a myriad of expressions crossing her face. The final one that looked back at me as she stood up was almost fierce.

"He's fucked with me once too often and it's about time he knew it"

I gave her a full smile as she walked toward the door and then took her in my arms giving her my support as I held her to me.

"Proud of you Babe"

Was what I thought she would appreciate hearing.

"Would you, err, stay with me?"

"Of course"

I wouldn't have had it any other way. I watched as Steph went to the phone and made a call, I wasn't too sure what that was about, and I wasn't going to ask. It was then that Tank decided to find me so on an impulse I decided that he could help support Steph as well.

"Tank, would you escort Morelli into conference room 1"

I saw as Tank looked from Steph to me and knew that he wouldn't just escort Morelli to the room, he'd be standing at the door in case he was needed. While Tank took the stairs, Steph and I went down in the elevator. I wanted Steph and I to be in the room when Morelli arrived and for her to decide where she wanted to be sat. Being in control of this meeting would be important and Steph would need that to stand up to Morelli.

Steph had decided to sit at the head of the table in the conference room and asked for me to sit at the side closest to the door. It made perfect sense as a tactic to keep Morelli away from her. He wouldn't get past me to get to Steph and if he made to move the other way then Steph would be able to move around the table away from him toward me.

I was pretty sure that Morelli expected to see Steph as he walked into the room. He certainly didn't look surprised, but seemed annoyed when he glanced toward me. Even he knew that where Steph was sat meant that she didn't want him anywhere near her.

"What are you doing here Joe?"

I was pleased that Steph had spoken first, taking control of this meeting. Her voice was firm, not showing any of the nerves that she'd exhibited on the way down here.

"I came for you"

I watched Steph as she leant back in the chair, staring at Morelli as though thinking through what he'd said.

"Not happening Joe. You know the way out"

As a dismissal it was to the point, but it seemed that Morelli wasn't going to concede that easily.

"Cupcake, we've had this conversation before. You hit the jackpot with the trouble that you're in. I've told you before that I can look after you and keep you safe"

I didn't like what Morelli was suggesting and from the frown on Steph's face I was sure that she didn't appreciate his suggestion.

"Like you did before Joe, you remember, don't you? You know when you set me up to be attacked when I went after my skips"

Morelli looked down at his feet before he looked back to Steph. Yeah, he was as guilty as hell, but he soon pulled himself together and looked directly at her.

"Why the hell would you think that, of course I never set you up"

Even I flinched along with Morelli when Steph stood up and hammered her fists on the table.

"Don't you dare lie to me. I told you months ago that I was through with you and what did you do? You stalked me and then you tried to berate me by telling me I was hopeless at my job"

"You were, are. Hell, they ran rings around you"

I was waiting for what Steph was going to say to Morelli next because I was pretty sure it would surprise him.

"Maybe you can explain to Jeanne Ellen why she had rotten fish dumped over her. It wasn't me Joe, but you had a go at me for it, which had me questioning the other incidents. A mechanic ring a bell Joe, one who should have been charged with auto theft?"

I knew that I'd told Steph about finding that man but somehow, I had the feeling that she'd been way ahead of me on that one.

"That's ridiculous, what the hell Cupcake. Why would think that I'd do that?"

The look that Steph gave Morelli was devoid of any expression.

"Maybe because Gary Sturnam spoke to me. He's a friend of my Dad's and he was really upset when you threatened to have his taxi license revoked if he didn't drop the charges against the man who basically stole his cab. Draven Laxby, that name ring a bell, Joe?"

Oh boy, she totally had him, she'd done what she was so good at. She'd put the pieces together and then with the luck that she seemed to have through people that knew her had uncovered Morelli's plan.

"It's not what you think"

"Really?"

She snapped back. I could tell from the way her eyes were flashing and the way that her hands were curled tightly into fists that she was beyond annoyed at him.

"I only did it to keep you safe. The people you went after were dangerous and I was trying to get you to stop that damned job before you were killed"

Morelli didn't stand a chance against Steph and the stupid SOB was so conceited that he'd thought that he could trick her. He really didn't know her at all and in some ways neither did I. I'd totally underestimated her. Her next question had me watching Morelli very carefully because it seemed that Steph had been thinking along the same lines that I had.

"So putting my gun in my bag, that was your idea of keeping me safe?"

"Well, I"

Not enough of an admission in my opinion and as I looked to Steph, I could see that she was getting frustrated with the way that he had answered her but how she changed her approach to Morelli nearly had me stepping in front of her.

I waited and watched, wanting to see what she was up to, as she walked around the table toward him. She had a plan, and I didn't want to undermine what she had in mind. Steph needed to do this by herself, to regain some of the confidence that Morelli had leached from her. Her eyes were looking down to the floor as she approached him, a submissive move which judging from Morelli's posture he was buying into. She looked up at him when she was only a few feet away from him, all the annoyance and aggression in her face and posture having melted away.

"I know you were trying to help me Joe, to show me that I really needed to quit. I should have listened to you, but the gun. Why Joe?"

Her voice was low and almost seductive as she spoke and if I hadn't witnessed her doing so many distractions for us to entice skips from bars, I would never have realized what she was doing. It was the body language that I knew so well, that would be covering the emotions that would be running through her, that gave her away and it seemed that Morelli was stupid enough to fall for.

"I thought if you were stopped for carrying concealed then you'd see how dangerous your life was becoming, you'd finally realize that I was right all along"

I had to fight hard to keep my face blank and to control the anger building up inside of me. Morelli's actions were responsible for the trouble that Steph was in. As I thought through that I was aware of Steph stepping back from him and looking up to the camera in the corner of the room. A moment later the door opened, surprising both myself and Morelli especially when Eddie and Carl Constanza walked into the room.

I was pretty sure Eddie winked at Steph before he stood in front of Morelli. Morelli was looking back and forth between Eddie and Steph totally puzzled by the entrance of the two men who were now facing him, effectively blocking him from Steph.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

Yeah Morelli was totally screwed now.

"Joseph Morelli, the chief wants to see you for perverting the course of justice, endangering civilians and being an ass hole"

"What. You can't do this"

I watched as Eddie brought out a pair of cuffs and dangled them in front of Morelli. Morelli actually went pale before I saw the temper flare up in his eyes, it looked as though he was going to make a scene. A look at Tank, who looked amused, and he was behind Morelli helping Eddie and Carl remove an indignant Morelli from the room.

Once they were gone, I looked over to where Steph had sat back down. She looked pale and was staring at her hands on the table. I was next to her as quickly as I could, pulling her onto my knee as I sat down.

"You never fail to amaze me Babe. Proud of you"

"Why do I feel so bad then?"

Came through to me from a small muffled voice.

"You trusted him and had feelings for him, but he betrayed and hurt you"

I didn't know what else to say to her and knew it would take time for her to come to terms with what she'd done.

"I didn't have a choice, did I?"

"No Babe, he would have continued to harass you"

I heard her sniff and then sigh before she looked up at me. The hurt in her eyes nearly floored me and I swore that one way or another Morelli would pay for what he'd done to her. How the hell had I missed what he was like, sent her back to him even. Shit, I felt as much to blame for what Morelli had done as him.

"I'm sorry Babe"

"Why would you be sorry?"

She had no idea that I'd feel responsible for not protecting her against Morelli.

"I should have seen it; I should have done something to stop him"

"No. He fooled everyone, even me. It was after that weekend at the beach that it became clear to me. What Gary Sturnam had said to me suddenly started to make sense, so I talked to Eddie. He said that without proof he couldn't do anything, so having Morelli here seemed like the chance to get him to admit to me exactly what he'd done"

"You called Eddie before coming down here"

It was a statement not a question as I remembered Steph making a phone call just before we met with Morelli.

"Yeah, Eddie spoke to Tank so I knew the whole thing would be recorded"

I kissed Steph's head and then her cheek, moving down to her neck.

"Babe remember what I said, that you are strong, brave and incredibly determined is so very true. You always accomplish what you need to do"

What had me concerned though was why she hadn't said anything to me about what she'd suspected. Hell, had that happened then maybe Morelli would never have had the opportunity to slip her gun inside her bag.

"Why didn't you tell me Babe?"

I saw the puzzled expression cross her face before she answered me.

"I tried to, but I don't think I explained myself very well. You told me to take some time to sort it out"

My mind was racing trying to remember what she had said when I'd spoken to her and I realized that she was right. I never saw beyond her saying that was struggling with Morelli and stupidly assumed that they were going through some relationship issues. Why the hell had I been so blinded to what was happening? Maybe because I wanted that relationship to fail but would never be the cause, that was something that I wanted Steph to realize on her own.

We were interrupted when Tank strode into the room, stopped and looked up at the camera in the corner of the room.

"Santos is really pissed with you Steph, he wanted in on the action with Morelli"

"I'll bare him in mind for the future because I can't see Joe backing off"

Tank laughed, but me, I knew that she was right. Morelli would be totally pissed that Steph had gotten the better of him and had the foresight to involve her friends on the force.