Chapter 20

The hours passed slowly. It had only been two, but it seemed more like eight to Tank. He and Ranger had been in a similar situation many times, but this one felt different. The sky was completely dark now, and they had a good view of the front of the house. Stephanie's car was parked in the drive. The neighborhood was quiet. He was watching for anything unusual, but nothing had grabbed his attention. Ranger was supposedly watching, too, but Tank wondered if his friend was in the present or lost in times past. Ranger had been eerily quiet, even for him, all day. Tank thought he knew why.

"You should have answered your phone, man," he said.

Ranger responded with a soft grunt.

"I didn't want to tell you along with everyone else. As soon as we identified Terry Gilman as Gregg's Trenton connection, I started calling you."

"I should have taken your call," Ranger agreed. "And you would have told me about Gilman and Gregg, but would you have told me about Gilman and Morelli?"

"No," Tank said. "I didn't know that Stephanie knew, and it didn't seem like a key piece of information."

"It's the piece that makes everything come together," Ranger said. "It's the most important thing we've learned."

"How so?"

Ranger was quiet for a moment. He sighed deeply. "When I finally got home, and learned that Stephanie was dead, I went a little crazy."

"I was there," Tank said.

"I pulled in some favors from the Trenton PD. I accessed their investigation, because I was going to find the SOB responsible and make him pay."

"You tried to find the hit and run driver?" Tank asked. He was genuinely surprised that Ranger had been able to keep that from him.

"I tried, but I got nowhere," Ranger said. "When I was considering my next move, I got a visit from two cops. Gazarra, who was married to her cousin, and Costanza who'd been friends with her since grade school. They were both hurting, and they knew I was, too. They were trying to help me. Stephanie's death would be avenged, they said, because the Trenton PD wouldn't let a cop's death go unpunished. They would find the perp that ran away and left Joe, Stephanie and their child to die. And they'd make him pay."

"They never found the guy," Tank said.

"That's right, and that's my point."

"Whaddaya mean?"

"I mean, we both know there are times when no suspect can be found. When the elimination of a target has been professionally executed it can be impossible or nearly so, to find the responsible party."

Both men were quiet for a while. Tank was remembering times when no suspect was found, and all the planning it had involved.

"Joe's death was a professional hit," Ranger said. "If I hadn't had my head so far up my ass, I'd have realized it."

"Your head wasn't up your ass, man. It was nearly exploding with grief. And what does any of this have to do with the fact that Morelli was stepping out on Steph with his old girlfriend?"

"If I had continued with my investigation, I'd have run across the information about Gilman and Morelli. Hell, if I'd visited her family, her grandma probably would have told me. She always knew what was going on in the Burg. If I'd had that information, I'd have suspected Terry immediately. I most likely would have uncovered the connection between Gilman and Gregg, and I might have found the connection to Stephanie, Cally and their relocation."

"Listen to yourself," Tank said. "Mostly likely, might have. You don't deal in possibilities. You deal with fact. And the fact is the Trenton PD and all their finest didn't make the Gilman-Morelli connection. Quit beating yourself up. You were a man who was hurting, not some fictional superhero."

"Batman," Ranger said softly.

"What?"

"Batman. Stephanie always said I was Batman. I told her I was just a man. If I had half the faith in myself that she had in me, I'd have figured it out. Instead I listened to Constanza and Gazarra and gave up. I got a call from Gregg about that time. You remember?"

"I do," Tank said. "You set about preparing yourself to die in service of your country."

"You make it sound so noble. I was hurting, and Gregg offered me a way out of my pain. Take a job I most likely wouldn't come back from. A suicide mission that would bring money back to RangeMan even though I wouldn't be back. RangeMan would have been all yours and the responsibility for keeping the guys together would have landed on your shoulders."

"Hell, the money poured in, and it was all my responsibility even though you came home. You kept going back for more. Time after time."

Ranger laughed bitterly. "Ain't karma a bitch."

"This trip down memory lane has been fascinating," Tank said, "even if your memory is skewed." Ranger shot him a malevolent stare, but never one to take a hint, Tank continued. "As I said before, you're no superhero. The Trenton PD was unable to find a suspect. Quit beating yourself up for what you didn't do in the past and start dealing with what's going on in the here and now."

"The Trenton PD didn't do shit. You know the Grizolli family owned people in the department. They probably still do, which explains the death of Cally's husband for asking questions that were maybe a little too pointed."

"You're right about the cops. I haven't looked into the death of Cally's husband yet," Tank said. "I was hoping she'd know the names of the cops her husband talked to. I want to make sure we've got all our ducks in a row before I go nosing around and put her in danger."

"And put yourself in danger," Ranger added. "There has to still be someone in the department that was around when Joe was killed. We need help from inside. Costanza is still there, but I don't want to use him because of his connection to Stephanie. We're trying to keep this quiet."

"Yeah," Tank said. "Too bad Juniak is retired. He'd be all in for finding dirty cops," Tank said. "Even though he's older than dirt he still has friends in high places. He might be a good contact, but I think we have to start with Gregg and see what Althea can uncover from that end."

"Agreed," Ranger said as his phone dinged with an incoming text. Tank watched Ranger's expression lighten and was surprised to see the grin. Ranger held the illuminated screen out for Tank to read.

I know you're out there. I'm leaving and going by the gym before I go home. I need some time to myself. If you insist on following me, please do not follow me into the gym. It's secure. I'll be fine.

"Damn," Tank said. "She made us. I must be losing my touch."

"She didn't make us," Ranger said. "She just knows us."

They turned their attention to the door of Alan's house which had opened and spilled light onto the porch. Stephanie exited, head down and made her way to her car. In seconds her car was off the driveway and heading down the road away from them.

"Let's roll," Tank said. He pulled the SUV from the curb and followed with his lights off until Stephanie was a distance ahead of them.

"Today, when I heard that Joe was with Gilman it all became clear for me," Ranger said. "Gilman was behind the hit and run. She wasn't running the Grizolli empire yet, but she was on her way up. Arranging something like that would have been in her wheelhouse."

"Don't you think shooting him would have been more in Terry's comfort zone?"

"Maybe, but it would have immediately drawn suspicion to her or her family. A hit and run is more anonymous. I don't know what the relationship between her and Gregg was or still is, but I'd bet my last dollar she's behind Joe's death. The car the guy was driving was probably in pieces at a chop shop before they pulled Morelli's body from the wreckage of his vehicle."

"You think Stephanie and Cally were just collateral damage?" Tank asked. "What was the purpose of letting people think they were dead and re-IDing them?"

"I think Steph and Cally were meant to die," Ranger said. "When they didn't maybe it was easier to remove them from the scene instead of trying for a second hit. The question is how was she able to get Gregg involved?"

"I don't know," Tank said. "But I'm going to try and find out. Silvio is giving this his all. We know Gregg kept an electronic diary. Althea mentioned that he had recovered some deleted files. I'm hoping there's more."

"I've rethought my earlier acquiescence. When you find him, I'm going with you," Ranger said. "And I'm also going to confront Terry Gilman at some point. I had planned to stay here, but I'm going to bring someone else in to watch Stephanie. I need to be face-to-face with Brian Gregg."

"What someone?" Tank asked.

"Lester."

"Well, shit, let's just have a reunion, and invite them all."

"You think they'd come?" Ranger asked.

"Yeah, I do. Are you serious?"

"No," Ranger said. "I think Lester will come and I think he'll be enough. I'll call him tomorrow. Can you put off Puerto Rico for an extra day or so? I 'd like you to hang around until he can get here. To watch Stephanie's back."

"I can do that," Tank said. "I thought that was going to be your gig, though."

"I need to get back to Trenton and finalize a couple of things. I'm moving."

"To Georgia?"

"To Georgia."

"You and Stephanie…"

"Me and Stephanie, nothing," Ranger interrupted. "We haven't had a chance to talk anything out. I thought I'd have another day alone with her, but that didn't work out as planned. I knew Cally was coming, but she showed up early and…well you were there. You know the rest. I need you to stay for a couple of days until Lester is in place because I've got some loose ends to tie up. I'm going to turn down the job offer at the Law Enforcement Training Center. I might offer to do some limited consulting work for them. I don't know what the hell I'm going to do with the rest of my life, but I'm going to be doing it from Brunswick, Georgia."

"You're really moving?" Tank asked again. "You're leaving New Jersey?"

"I'll stay in touch with my family, and the men. You heard Stephanie's reaction to the possibility that she might have to testify. I don't see her ever being able to go back to Trenton, so I'll stay here."

Tank pulled the SUV into the parking lot of Antiope. Stephanie was standing next to her car, talking to the guy that had enrolled him in the gym. Paul, he thought. Stephanie's second in command. She gave the SUV a cursory look and went back to her conversation with Paul. She gave Paul a little wave and turned toward the building. Paul turned and walked slowly toward the SUV. As he approached the driver's side, Tank rolled the window down.

"Uh, boss says," Paul started and then stopped. "Hey! It's Mr. Charles, right? I'm the guy who helped you with your membership."

"Yeah, I remember," Tank said.

"Good to see you, man. I didn't know you knew the boss," Paul said.

"I know her."

"Cool! The boss said to tell you she's going to be inside looking at receipts and doing some end of the day paperwork. She said she's fine and…uh, doesn't need a babysitter, and you dudes can sit out here until hell freezes over as far as she's concerned. Sorry, man, but that's what she said."

"No problem," Tank said. "Thanks for the message." They watched the young man turn the corner. A few seconds later a truck came out of the side lot and pulled into the street. "He was in a hurry," Tank commented. "I think he was uncomfortable delivering the message."

Ranger snorted. Tank unbuckled his seat belt and slouched in his seat. He reached out a big finger and pushed a button on the dash. The console lights flickered and then he snorted. "Might as well get comfortable," he told Ranger. "The temp is 89°. It's going to be a while before it drops to below freezing."

Ranger unbuckled his seat belt and put his hand on the door handle. "Buckle back up and go back to your hotel. I'm going in, and I'll come home with her. I'll talk to you after I've talked to Lester in the morning."

"You want me to talk to Lester?" Tank asked.

Ranger thought about it for a moment. Thought about the explanations that would have to be made and thought about the 1001 questions Lester would have. "Do you have a secure phone?" he asked.

"Yes, of course."

"Yeah, call Lester, but wait until you hear from me. I want to run it by Stephanie." Ranger opened the door and walked toward the side of the gym. Tank watched him go and noticed the slight limp. This had been hard on his friend physically and mentally, and he made himself a commitment to shift into high gear. This situation had to be resolved and resolved soon.