Disclaimer: Anything familiar belongs to JE and the creators of Criminal Minds.

Warning: Adult content, adult language

Chapter 70: Thursday, September 1st, 0900-1100

Rangeman Miami

Lester's POV

I saw a different Stephanie and Carlos this morning and last night. I saw a couple who were in sync, in tune with each other, and comfortable. I think they made a breakthrough. When Agent Prentiss arrived, I was surprised to find Ranger in his room with Stephanie. I'm pretty sure they were sleeping, and from the look on Steph's and Ranger's face, some of their tension was released.

Now, we begin the next stage; training Stephanie. I love Stephanie. Right now, she is my little sister, my best friend, and my cousin's savior. When Ranger first introduced us to her during that redecorating job, I didn't think she'd make it. Instead, she stuck to us and helped us get the job done. I think I fell a little in love with her that day. Over the last few years of getting to know her better, I now know that I am in love with her, and if my cousin didn't step up, I would have moved in. However, I know that she would never love me the way she loves Carlos

I'm glad that she and Carlos actually opened up their eyes, finally seeing what the rest of us have seen for years; they are perfect for each other. I promised my cousin I would always have his back, and that extends to his woman and Julie. I would give my life to keep them safe. My reason for staying in Miami and not heading back to Trenton is that I don't trust the Miami men with Stephanie. First of all, Steph's beautiful. Her smile can make a man hard at a single glance. Secondly, while Marco is a good leader, he is not overly confident in women doing our work. He doesn't like distractions, and he feels that women are best left out of the military and out of our line of work. From being around his men, and me being me, I get the feeling that they don't respect women. I know I am a playboy and have that love 'em and leave 'em reputation, but I have great respect for women. The men here see women as being on this planet to serve them. Thirdly, Ranger needs someone to watch his back, to keep him safe. His guard is always down here in Miami. Right now, because of everything going on with Julie, Tommy, and Stephanie, he is even more distracted than usual. Once everything settles, he'll be back to his vigilant self, but he needs to center himself. Finally, as much as I love Bobby and Tank as brothers, they are not my blood. I respect them, and they respect me, but if push came to shove, I don't know if they would keep our secrets.

Stephanie is also wary of people she doesn't know, especially Ranger's men. It is overwhelming to meet all of us. The men here might view her as a piece of meat, which would make things uncomfortable for her. After learning about her past, I can see her having difficulty trusting the men here. We already have a rapport, and I know she trusts me. She knows I will never force myself on her or do anything to make her feel uncomfortable. As much as I tease Carlos, I always try to make sure that I don't embarrass Beautiful.

After Julie and Tommy were dropped off at school, we headed to headquarters. Ranger was leading the morning meeting, officially announcing the temporary changes that will take place until things are settled with him. Right now, it appears that we will be here for at least three months. CPS granted Stephanie and Ranger extended custody of Tommy, citing that there are no other foster parents available right now. So, until one comes available in three months, Tommy will be with Ranger and Stephanie. I hope they decide to adopt him. He's a great kid.

When we arrive at Rangeman, we walk up to the sixth-floor conference room, where the men are assembling for the start of the meeting. Stephanie is dressed in her Rangeman uniform and walks towards the breakroom for a cup of coffee. I follow her. As long as I'm with her, the guys wouldn't dare say anything to make her feel unwelcomed. She adds cream and sugar to her coffee and prepares a cup of black coffee for Ranger. I get a cup for myself while snagging a muffin. Stephanie looks at the muffins but doesn't take one. I wonder if she's nervous.

I follow her into the conference room, and I can see she's unsure of where she is to sit. "Follow me, Steph," I say. I walk towards the head of the table and tell her to sit at the seat to Ranger's right. I sit next to her on her right. I watch as Marco walks in, seeing the flash of anger before sitting on the left side of Ranger. Finally, Ranger enters. The men in the room, who are looking at Stephanie with curiosity, annoyance, and superiority, suddenly draw their blank face, sit up straighter, and wait for Ranger to address them. He sees where I sat Steph, giving me a slight nod of thanks and appreciation. Bobby, Woody, Manny, and Hector quickly enter, standing against the walls at various locations around the conference room.

Since I am staying here with Ranger and Stephanie, I'm at the table, signaling that modification of leadership in Miami. Normally, when the Core Team is in Miami or Boston, we are there as visitors. While we are here, we don't usually sit at the table and spend more time observing and assessing the office. Trenton's workers are hand-picked for Trenton. Several have been pulled from Miami and Boston because we wanted them with the A team. Most of our government ops are run with Trenton guys. The other two offices know to yield and follow Trenton's men. Silvio still reports back to us, keeping us abreast of the tone and environment here in Miami.

Ranger starts the meeting once the Trenton guys are settled. "Good morning. I have a few announcements to make before I turn the meeting over to Marco. I will be staying in Miami for the next three months at a minimum. While I am here, this will be Rangeman's headquarters. Marco will still attend to the day-to-day running of this office, but I have the final say. For the last year, the numbers here in Miami have plateaued. Some of our research says that we have most of the market covered already. But I think we can do better in a city this large. I will be looking into ways to expand our business here, so if anyone has any ideas, please come and see me.

"I am retaining my title as CEO, and as always, the buck stops with me. Marco will be the Second-in-Command, attending to payroll and scheduling as always. He will also be in charge of all Commercial Accounts. Slick, who will be returning tomorrow, will handle the Residential Accounts and Personal Security. Lester Santos, from the Trenton office and one of the Core Team members, will be staying here in Miami, taking over the Fugitive Apprehension and Research Departments. Philip will be heading to Trenton to assist Tank and Bobby with the running of that office while Santos and I are here.

"I'd like to formally introduce Ms. Stephanie Plum to you. She is also joining the Miami team, assisting Santos with the Fugitive Apprehensions and Research. She will be developing the apprehension plans for our FTAs as well as finding where they are. When necessary, she will assist Silvio and his team with any searches that need to be completed. Stephanie and Lester will be partners."

I am watching the room, observing the reactions of the men in Miami, and I am not liking what I am seeing. I know that Ranger sees the same things that I am when he mentions Stephanie's elevated role in Miami. I glance at the Trenton guys, who are starting to tense from the expressions on the faces of the Miami men. Hector expression turns from his blank face to a look of murderous intent. Suddenly, Hector is behind a newer Miami hire, telling him, in Spanish, to repeat what he just said for the Boss to hear while holding a knife in his hand. I'm not even sure where it came from, but Hector had it out and ready for action.

"Héctor, ¿cuál es el problema?" Ranger asks. (Hector, what is the problem.)

"Dijo algo muy irrespetuoso sobre Estefania," Hector replies. (He said something very disrespectful about Stephanie.)

Marco finally speaks up. "Carter, what did you say?"

I see Carter sit a little straighter, determined to stand his ground against Ranger. "I said, I guess it's a good thing that Bomber's the Boss' little piece of ass. Maybe you'd let some of us fuck her."

I watch as Ranger goes from angry to murderous. I watch the Trenton guys brace to restrain Ranger. Wisely, I see Stephanie not doing anything. She seems to realize that intervening here would only undermine his authority.

"Carter, first off, you will refer to Stephanie by her name, Stephanie, Steph, Ms. Plum, or Ma'am. You have to earn the honor to call her "Bomber," and so far, aside from Silvio, none of you have earned that privilege. Secondly, she is not a piece of ass, nor is she available. You will respect her. Third, Stephanie has instincts that could put most of yours in this room to shame. She can find things out about people that we can't find out using our best search engines. She is a valuable member to this company and has assisted me numerous times, most notably in finding Julie when she was kidnapped and this past week in finding those responsible for hurting my daughter and killing her family. Carter, I expect you on the mats at 1300. You will face Hector, Lester, and myself. If you are still standing, you will face Woody and Manny. Is there anyone else who would like to comment on the role that Stephanie will play in this office?"

Silence filled the air, so thick you could cut it with a knife. Silvio was the next person to speak.

"I have seen Stephanie in action, and she is the best researcher I have ever worked with. I had the honor of training her in the programs, but Ranger is right, her instincts are second to none. If it weren't for her instincts, Scottie would be sitting here now with me in federal custody."

A few of the men listened to what Silvio said, and I can see their body language change, ready to give her a chance to prove herself. I also saw Stephanie's resolve change, as she is more focused and aware of her surroundings, then I have ever seen her. I watch her eyes track the room, staring down some of the men who are trying to undress her with their eyes or giving her a hard look. They look away first. I'm glad to see her confidence is starting to emerge.

"Thank you, Jaime. Now, I'll turn the meeting over to Marco to discuss what's on the table for today."

Marco went over the schedule for the day, which clients are being met by which teams, the installations that need to occur today, and the number of FTAs that are outstanding. I have the files in front of me. I plan on giving Steph her first self-defense lesson today, then we'll start to develop our plan for catching the skips. When Marco finishes, I catch Ranger's eye. He nods imperceptibly.

"Before you leave, I'd like to give the floor to Santos."

"I want the apprehension teams to meet with Stephanie and I in Conference Room C at 1500. At that point, we will discuss those changes that will occur in how we go after skips effective Monday. Questions?"

With no one asking a question, Ranger adjourns the meeting. Marco is asked to stay behind along with Bobby, Stephanie, Philip, and me.

"Marco, what is going on with your team here? Woody and Manny have been telling me that the men here don't want to work with a "skirt" and think that she can't do her job. I have always respected the valuable role that women can play in our company. I also heard how you don't use distractions, mainly because the women you hire don't want to work here after a week. I spoke to Maggie, and it seems that the men who live here treat her like a servant. I'm not happy. I promise you, if I don't see changes soon, I will be forced to take extreme measures, and one could be your job."

Marco, while a good guy and overall a good leader, has let his power go to his head. Miami has become too independent, and the bottom line shows that things aren't operating well here, because we are experiencing growth in both Trenton and Boston. So much growth that we have talked about opening a branch in the DC area.

Marco doesn't look happy as he is dismissed. Philip seems not to be surprised, almost as if he's glad that Ranger took Marco down a peg or two. Interesting. I decide to keep an eye on Marco to see what he's up to.

"Steph let's get our first day of training in. If you work with me, you'll be able to take on these guys in no time."

"Babe, are you comfortable working out in front of all the men?"

"Yes. I'll be fine. I assume there's no women's locker room here?"

"No, Babe, there isn't. But you have the fob for the penthouse."

"Les, I'm heading up to the ninth floor to get changed. What floor is the gym on?"

"The second. I'll meet you there in ten."

"Okay, Les. See you in ten."

"Babe, I'll come up with you," Ranger says. I watch them head to the elevator, wondering what he's going to tell her.

Exactly ten minutes later, I see Steph enter the gym. She's wearing gi pants and a Rangeman t-shirt. I wonder where she got the pants from. It actually works out well, because the pants are loose-fitting. There are about eight guys down here, most of them who are on the late afternoon/evening shift. She walks over to me, her hair in a ponytail.

"Okay, Lester, let's do this." She says.

"Proud of you," I respond.

I lead her through a ten-minute warm-up, then I make her give me twenty push-ups and twenty crunches. Her form isn't bad, but she needs to work on her strength. Once that part is over, I show her how to get in a ready position. I tell her to place her left foot in front, right in the back. Her hands go up shoulder-width apart, protecting her face. I show Steph how to throw a jab with her leading arm, a straight punch with her backhand, an uppercut with her lead hand, and a curve with her back arm. I make her do those in various combos over and over again. Right now, we are just working on form and muscle memory. I'm using a soft pad for her to hit, the one we use of guys who have broken bones in their hands or wrists so they can keep training. Once Steph gets used to throwing the punch, I'll give her gloves and use a regular pad for her to hit. She finishes those, then I show her how to get out of a basic choke hold. I place my hands around her neck gently. I tell her to bend, step to one side, roll with her head down to the side she stepped, then stand up in her ready stance. She does that, and after about ten repetitions, can do it quickly, following through with a punch.

"Steph, you did really well today. You learned a lot of the basics. We will work on these same skills for this week. Next week. I'll add more on. Eventually, we will work on you getting out of some holds while on your back." I watch as panic sets in her eyes.

"Beautiful, you know I would never hurt you, at least not deliberately."

"Yes, I know," Steph replies.

"So don't panic. I will talk you through it. I will let you demonstrate on me first. But you need to learn how to protect yourself. With learning these skills, you are giving us time to find you, to react to you hitting your panic button. The extra time may allow you to subdue your skips, and possibly get your cuffs on them. In a more dire situation, time to get to your weapon."

"Okay. I feel better now."

"Good. Go take a shower and meet me in the gun range in twenty minutes. We'll practice shooting for half an hour before lunch."

Steph gives me her Burg glare before heading for the elevator. I watch the door close as she hits her fob for nine. I walk into the locker room, heading straight for the shower. Thankfully, the locker room is empty. I keep thinking back over her lesson. Steph did real good, picking up quickly. She will be formidable once she gets comfortable. I wonder if Carlos was watching?

I finish showering, then I dress back in my uniform. I place all my weapons back in their proper locations. The gun range is located on the other side of the garage, and I realize Steph might not know where that is, so I head up to nine to meet her. As I exit the stairwell, the elevator opens and Ranger steps out.

"How did it go?" Ranger asks.

"She did well. She picked up the basics quickly. Inside a month, your woman will be a worthy opponent. You know you need to face her on the mats eventually."

"Yeah, I know, and I'm not looking forward to it."

"Don't worry, she'll surprise you."

"What are you doing up here?"

"I'm taking Steph to the range, but I'm not sure she knows where it is."

Ranger laughs. "She called me, asking me for directions. I told her I'd escort her."

"I'll let you go then. Meet you there in a few."

Ten minutes later, Steph arrives at the range. I have her load her S & W, fix her stance, and then let her shoot. She's not a bad shot, just a scared, inexperienced one. I give her pointers, and stand behind her, holding her arms in a good stance. I help adjust her aim, then let her shoot. After that, she comes in fairly close to her intended target. She's a natural. Now, to get her over her fear of guns. I glance at my watch. "Alright, Beautiful, lunchtime. Every day we'll follow this schedule. For the next month, you are only working with me on Fugitive Apprehension. You won't be completing any searches for Silvio. We need to increase our skip capture rate here, and you and I are the ones for the job."

"Fine. Thank you, Lester."

"For what, Beautiful?"

"For believing in me, being patient with me, and genuinely caring."

"Stephanie, you care so much about us, giving us so much of your heart. It is almost impossible not to love you back." I kiss her on her forehead, and we walk together out of the range, into the breakroom. We get some lunch before heading into my office, which will become our office by Monday.

TNTCE

A/N: Thank you for your continued support of this story. I'm starting to set the action in motion for Part II in the last few chapters. I promise all loose ends will be tied up nicely by the end of the trilogy. This chapter has not yet been edited by Susan, so all mistakes belong solely to me. Once Susan sends me back the edited chapter, I'll replace this one with that one.

I am glad that you appreciated Julie's and Tommy's POVs. Being a middle school teacher, I am all too familiar with the cattiness, jealousy, and downright nastiness of 12-14 year-olds. Julie, unfortunately, is not immune to those issues. We most likely heard the last from Julie in Part I, but she will feature more in part II.