Dinner was companionable, but fast. The Rangeman team wanted to stay on task, and enjoying ourselves at a party was not in our evening plans. We took ten minutes for our dinner. By the time we were finished eating, Ranger and the kids were still going strong. I looked at them and tried to decide as to whether I was being rude to leave the table and continue researching. Ranger saw me looking at the clock and smiled. "Go back to work, babe", he said. "I'll finish eating with the six kidlets, take them upstairs to see Tracy, and leave them for Tracy to get ready for bed. I'll be down soon after. I'll bring them into your office to say goodnight to you before we go. Same with you, Nick. I know how important this research is."

I smiled, stood, and kissed Ranger on the top of his head, whispered a thank you, gave each of the kids kisses and hugs, and turned to the rest of my team as we walked out of the boardroom. "What is your status?" I said as I switched from Mommy-mode to Director-mode.

"I've finished the overviews and am now doing in-depths", said Dirk. "There are a few people that I think we need in-depth reviews on. I can't tell if they stink because they are assholes in general, or if it has something to do with the role that they are playing in the club. Either way, we won't know that answer until we have researched them in-depth and assess the results."

"How many of the seven overviews do you think stink?"

"All of them?" said Dirk with a smile. "I have four identified that absolutely need in-depth research done, but honestly, I think they could, and should, all be looked at intently. I think, if nothing else, that by doing in-depths on the men we will find enough to arrest all of them. They have that much in their past."

I turned to Miguel. "I'm about in the same position", he said. "While I think they could all benefit from looking at closely, there are three in particular that need the extra investigation. I have started the first."

"Why do you both have so many people who need deep research done?"

Miguel laughed. "Have you not seen the felons' files? These are not the morally upright of the population. It is hard to decide as to which people need further research. They could all use it. They are thugs with low intelligence, bad habits, and the tendency to sample their own product. They are the assholes of the underworld, people who act before thinking, people who have chips on their shoulders and the need to spread poison. The question isn't why we have so many in-depth reports to do. The question is why we don't have more."

"Do you think that, if we did in-depths on each of the gang members, we could shut the whole club down?"

Miguel smiled. "Oh yeah. And since they are the most vicious club in Trenton right now, I think that would be a very good thing."

I nodded. "Can you please send me all your overviews? I want to make sure that a combined package of overviews of all gang members is available as soon as possible. I would also like to pitch the idea of doing in-depths on everyone as we have discussed. Shutting down the Death Dogs seems like a very good idea."

"I was thinking that, at a minimum, I'd stay until this in-depth is done and, depending what time it is and my fatigue level, maybe longer" said Dirk. "That's okay with me. You are right in that the team needs that information and, quite honestly, I would love to shut the gang down. It would be good for the City, and it would be good for society."

"I don't want you to have to stay."

"This isn't exactly normal times", said Miguel, "and this isn't normal behavior. I don't mind staying either."

"Steph, there is a police officer out there who may be undergoing torture or otherwise being treated inhumanely. Abductors aren't known for their friendly and supportive attitudes. We've got to bring him home as soon as we can", said Dirk.

Nick had come up during that last bit of conversation and said, "I can stay too. The kids are taken care of and, quite frankly, it is as Dirk and Miguel said. There is a priority on this. It's okay for me to be tired. It's not okay for Brett to suffer the way he is potentially suffering and, to tell you the truth, judging by the quality of people we are researching, the chances of him being treated well are not high. As far as doing the other in-depths so that we can shut the club down, I think that is a very good idea. I would love to stop them from doing this sort of thing again."

Tears came to my eyes. "Thank you, everybody. I will take you up on your offer. As someone who has been kidnapped several times, I know that kidnappers aren't always kind and, you are right, Nick. Even if they get caught this time, they will do it again."

"Steph, it's okay", said Dirk. "We have all been trained on how to keep going when we haven't had sleep in days. We can stay up a night or two to help research."

I gave everyone a hug and thanked them as we got to our offices. Nick, although he was still working part-time, had been dropped into a Team Leader role and worked directly for me in the Investigative Unit. Dirk's Corporate Team Leader was Lauren, and she did some administrative tasks in addition to her research responsibilities. Gwynne filled that role for Miguel for the Individual Research unit. Nick had been thrilled to be given the position when we restructured the team and broke Miguel's portfolio into two. Not only was it thirty thousand more a year in salary, but it also let him do more work in investigations, an area which he not only found fascinating but in which he truly shined.

As I had predicted when we hired Nick in July, he and Dirk and Miguel had become good friends, and the four of us formed a tight team. Gwynne and Lauren were good too, but they didn't have the military experience or crime fighting background that the four of us had, and they didn't have the same intuitive understanding of the issues. They were, however, damn good researchers. The six of us worked extremely well together. I considered us the dream team of research, and there was little that the six of us couldn't do.

With Nick's promotion to Team Leader, he now had an office as well. He was thrilled to have a space that he could close the door on when he found things a little too distracting or upsetting. With his PTSD, having that ability to reduce the noise and confusion was extremely important. It wasn't that the Research Department was particularly noisy. However, when he was episodic even the slightest noise could become irritating.

Nick's therapy and medication were working for him though. He said that he hadn't suffered from symptoms for the past month. He reported being happier than he had been in years, and that contentment shone out of his face. His kids were feeding off his joy in life as well, and it was rare to see them without smiles on their faces. After rescuing them from their abusive grandmother, it was especially comforting to see their happiness. They also had been going through therapy, and the psychologist was so pleased with their progress that she said they no longer had to go to regular sessions. She had told Nick that he was a great dad, and had been able to smooth his kids' concerns so well that, in her opinion, their best prescription was to spend time with their father and do family things together, to relax and to play together. They had become a tight family unit.

I got to my office and woke up my computer, left to get a coffee, and returned to investigate Kobe Globe. His history was much like Aaron's – lengthy list of charges and arrests, questionable character, disgusting habits and interests. He liked to go to the bird wars that were offered in various industrial units around town and bet on which bird would peck the other to death, or something like that. I had only gone once and Lula felt sorry for the birds. She let them loose before I was able to see the challenge and that was the end to the bird wars for the day. There were chickens everywhere. Instead of a madhouse, it was a henhouse of a scene.

His other favorite place to go was the mud pits. He apparently really liked it when it was Naked Night. Of course, so did many men in Trenton. Personally I found it a little messy. I mean, wouldn't you get an infection from all that mud going up places that no mud should go?

I finished Kobe's history at eleven and, since I had consumed many cups of coffee by then, I started the last of the three in-depth reviews. Dirk and Miguel and Nick were trying to power through the in-depths as quickly as possible as well. We all felt a panicked need to get the research done as rapidly as we could. Something told me that it was imperative to find Brett quickly. I don't know if it was reading the quality of character that was holding him hostage or just an instinct that something was wrong, but I knew time was of the essence.

Joe had brought his laptop down and was working on my conference table. He looked equally engrossed in his review of our research. However, he stopped for a moment and sent a text to Tracy. A few seconds later, he smiled and looked up. "Hey, cupcake? I just talked to Trace. She said the kids are a breeze to work with and, if we get in too late tonight and Nick doesn't mind keeping the kids out of school tomorrow, she will look after the six kids during the day tomorrow as well. She wants us to have the time we need to both do the job as well as to rest when we can."

"That's nice of her. I'll send a thank you, and have a check in with everyone now to find out the status of the investigation." I got up, stuck my head into each of the offices and asked them for a pow wow in the hall. Joe came out of my office to join, and I looked at each of the men. "How are things going?" I said.

"I'm working on one in-depth review, and I have another one to go tonight that I want to get done before I leave", said Miguel. "Having said that, if I have time I would like to do the other in-depths."

Ranger came down and joined the group. "I was coming to do a check in to see how everyone was doing, but it looks like you beat me to the punch." The men all smiled.

"As I was saying", said Miguel, "I am halfway through an in-depth review, and I have one more to go before I feel comfortable leaving for the night. But Steph? If we don't do in-depths on everyone, it is my impression that we would be letting criminals go who don't deserve to be released. They may not be involved in this crime, but they are up to their eyeballs in others."

"I am about the same", said Dirk. "I am just finishing an in-depth review, and I have two more to do before I want to go for the night. And I agree with Miguel. I'm itching to do the other in-depths. All these men deserve to go down. They all have so much shit on them, they stink."

"I'm not working as fast as you", said Nick. "I had four in-depths to do, and I just started the second. But I agree with Miguel and Dirk. It was hard for me to select the four since all the people I overviewed are dirty."

"Because you all did the overview research and let me do the in-depths, I have done two completely and am working on the third. When I get finished, I'll do another check in to see how everyone is doing and find out where I can help out."

"How is everyone doing fatigue-wise?" said Ranger. "What I was thinking was that, if people needed catnaps to allow them to concentrate, Nick and Steph and Joe and I can go to our apartment but Dirk and Miguel can go to the corporate residence and sleep there. That might make more sense than driving tired, and it would allow you to sleep longer if you are planning on coming back in a few hours than to waste the time driving."

Dirk and Miguel looked thankful. "I could actually use a two-hour catnap to set me up for the next twenty-four hours", said Dirk.

"That would be good for me as well", said Miguel. "I'm starting to feel as though my brain is fried and I'm afraid that I am going to miss something important."

Ranger looked at me and assessed my face, then turned to Joe and Nick. "How about we all power down for four hours and meet back here at three-thirty. I think you all need a break and a rest. You've been going pretty well non-stop for twelve hours, and three hours on your regular work before that." He took a key out of his pocket and handed it to Miguel and another to Dirk. "There are three king beds with clean sheets. One of the bedrooms has an ensuite. I'll let the two of you fight over that one. There is also a powder room to use. New toothbrushes and other toiletries are in the top drawer of the ensuite. Please help yourself."

"You don't mind?" said Dirk with relief.

Ranger smiled. "It's just sitting there not being used. Besides, I don't want you driving tired. I particularly like your team, and I don't want to see you in an accident."

The men all laughed, and I looked at Ranger in relief. I also didn't want to have to worry about them and, to tell you the truth, I was running on fumes and caffeine, and it was getting to the point that there weren't enough fumes for the caffeine to augment. I knew what happened when there were no longer any fumes to sustain me. I fell asleep standing up. And while there were many people who had bet on the next time I did so, I really didn't want to do that again. Ranger found it incredibly funny but I found it incredibly embarrassing and hated doing it. The fact that staff were betting on it made it even worse.

I pulled out my phone and sent a message to Cal and Hector. Seconds later I got a return message from Cal. "We powered down about an hour ago. We'll meet you at the office at three-thirty and will review your research then. When you are ready, we'll help you identify a few places that potentially Brett is being held at. Hopefully we'll be able to get the ERT out searching first thing in the morning."

I smiled and sent back a 'thumbs up' sign, turned to the men and told them what Cal and Hector were doing. Then, as I shut down my computer and turned off the lights in my office, I locked the door and walked beside the rest of the team to our designated beds.

We entered the apartment quietly, and snuck down to our respective bedrooms. I was glad that our kids were heavy sleepers and were unlikely to wake up. As we got in our room and closed the door, Ranger turned to me and said softly, "how are you doing, babe?"

"Exhausted and worried. There is a lot more work to be done and not much time to do it."

"What do you need to do?"

"My team has done an incredible amount of work. In a period of less than twelve hours, they have overviewed twenty gang members, and done about one in-depth review each, which is saying something because each review is taking longer than the average. There is just so much to investigate. These definitely aren't choirboys. I have done another two reviews and have printed a map of Trenton and started circling locations that gang members may have stored Brett, like their own residences and other houses that the club may own. We have another eight essential in-depth reviews to go, plus whatever comes up, and the development of a plan of attack. As everyone said, however, the gang members should all be done and, if they are, it is our impression that we could shut the club down."

"What do you personally have to do?"

"I have to finish my last in-depth review, go over all the research that was done, identify any needs for further research, help research those other people, and develop a rescue plan. Much like a capture plan, it will identify locations that we think Brett will be in. I will be working with Cal and Hector and Joe on that." I quickly undressed and floated an oversized t-shirt over my head, kicked off my panties and pulled on a pair of flannel sleep pants. I followed Ranger into the washroom and, as I mentally thanked Ranger for his sensitivity to my feelings, I used the toilet in its private enclosure. While Ranger didn't care if I was pooping while he was brushing his teeth, I found the concept to be particularly disgusting and had been known to hold it in and dance in discomfort while I waited for him to leave the washroom. And nothing would get me brushing my teeth faster than hearing someone fart while I was cleaning my teeth. After all, I don't know how far a fart would travel, but I had heard that particles of poop and pee could travel six feet through the air when a toilet is flushed. That means that, if I was brushing my teeth, I would get sprayed with poop and pee at the same time. It had been Ranger's idea to put the toilet into its own separate enclosure, thus protecting me from the poop and pee raining down on me. I loved all aspects about our apartment, but I especially loved the separate enclosure for the toilet. It was one of my favorite features.

"I was thinking that I would work with Joe and Cal and Hector in the boardroom as you finished the last in-depth", said Ranger as he spat.

"After I review everybody's work, I'll join you and perhaps we can come up with a rescue plan", I said. "I was also thinking that I don't know how far you want to go with this. Do you want us to do in-depths on all the gang members? After this is done, I could create capture plans for the police and they could pick the bastards up. Something for you to think about." I brushed my teeth and drank some water, and followed Ranger out of the washroom and over to the bed. I climbed under the covers, rolled over to the center of the bed, snuggled in, and asked him if he had set the alarm. To tell you the truth though, I was already asleep by the time he answered seconds later, and I slept straight through until the alarm woke us at three.

Ranger gave me a kiss and turned on the light. I groaned and hid my head under my pillow. Ranger pulled the pillow off my head and I bared my teeth at him before pulling my sheets up and over my head. I think I might have even told him to fuck off. Ranger smiled worriedly as he pulled down the blankets and kissed me on the forehead. "Up and at 'em", he said. "There are reports to generate and rescue plans to do. I'll let you have first shower."

"Rescue plan?" I said, still groggy and trying to figure out why I was getting up before the sun.

"Brett? Kidnapped victim?"

I sat bolt-upright in bed, my eyes wide open. "Fuck! Brett! How could I forget? I'll be ready to go in ten minutes."

Ranger smiled as I quickly scrambled out of bed and ran into the bathroom. He called out that he would put the coffee on and cut the two loaves of quick bread – one a banana bread, and one an apple cinnamon bread – that he had taken out of the freezer to defrost the night before. I smiled. Knowing Ranger, he would bring the bread to the office to make sure that Dirk and Miguel didn't get hungry. I also knew that Ranger had put the leftover Thai in the fridge in the breakroom on our floor. If we got especially hungry, we'd be able to break into those containers. Judging by how hungry I was right then, a plate of Pad Thai would go down well. It didn't even have to be heated up. I think I had used up all my nutrients from the night before while worrying about Brett. Besides, I was a stress eater. Although I didn't want to eat when I was depressed, I ate in copious amounts when I was under stress. I could only hope that this case didn't go on too long. Not only would it not be good for Brett, but it also would be bad for my clothing choices. I would have to break out my maternity pants again and, quite honestly, I didn't want to give the staff something else to bet on.

I flew through my shower, put my towel-dried hair up in a ponytail, and quickly donned a uniform as I gave thanks for Ranger's insistence that people wear one. The outfit of a black t-shirt, a pair of black fatigues, black socks and a black hoody gave me the ability to dress quickly and easily. I never had to consider whether the clothing pieces all color-coordinated. I could just reach blindly on the shelf and know that whatever I picked would be within our dress code.

By the time I was out of the washroom, dressed and ready to go, Ranger was stepping out of the shower. I flew into the kitchen, poured us a coffee each and, as Nick and Joe came out of their bedrooms, poured them one each as well. Tracy came through with sleep in her eyes. "Hey", I said. "I can't tell you how much we appreciate you looking after the kids."

Tracy smiled. "All six of them are great kids, and they get along so well. It's a joy to look after them. How is the search going?"

I smiled. "It should go better now that I can keep my eyes open."

"Fifteen minutes ago I thought I was going to have to use the cattle prod to get you out of bed", said Ranger as he walked into the kitchen.

I looked at Tracy and she looked at me, and both of us struggled not to laugh. "Is that what you call it now?" she said.

Ranger looked confused, so I grinned. "I've heard it called many things. Mr. Wobbly, Willy, Peter Pecker, gigglestick – although what self-respecting man wants his wanger to be called a gigglestick, I don't know – but I have never heard it called a cattle prod. Although, Vinnie could call it a cattle prod." I turned to Nick and explained that Vinnie was my cousin. His father and my father were brothers. "He learned, however", I said as I turned back to my story, "that when you prod cattle with your gigglestick the cattle's sphincter relaxes and a load of manure is dropped all over you." The men looked at me, horrified, although I could tell that Ranger thought the men's reactions were amusing. Of course, he had heard the story before. "That was the same time that Vinnie found out there was a difference between cows and bulls, and he'd been fucking a bull. Apparently it was quite a sight seeing him run down the street with his pants around his ankles and covered in shit, his wanger hanging out, as a bull chased him and prodded him in the ass with his horns. Personally, I figured Vinnie would have figured it out when he tried to drink the milk straight from the cow and there was only one udder, but no. He said the milk was much saltier and chunkier than he had anticipated." Joe made a gagging sound and turned green. Nick was made of sterner stuff but then, he used to be a Ranger. Joe had just been a sailor in the Navy. Hooah!

"He takes after his mother's side of the family in intelligence", I added helpfully.

Tracy couldn't hold it in any longer and broke out laughing. So did Ranger. "Thanks, babe", he said. "No matter how bad things get, you can always make me laugh."