CHAPTER 7

You Don't Know What You're Missing

Meanwhile, back in Trenton, Tank and the rest of the Rangemen were reaching the end of their rope. For the last month, they'd bent over backwards trying to accommodate their newest wealthy client, Preston Kingsley, who was under the impression he truly was royalty. Ranger had made it clear he wanted the client well taken care of and since he would be working from the Miami office until after the New Year, it was up to Tank and the rest of the Rangemen to make sure the clients every wish was granted. This job was going to net Rangeman a lot of money and if the client was pleased, there would be an even more lucrative contract in the future, but Preston Kingsley had been difficult to work with—changing his mind every few minutes—demanding things be redone as if he knew better than the elite security company he'd hired.

Four days after Ranger had arrived in Miami, he received an irate phone call from Kingsley, on Christmas day, no less. As if he was Mr. Scrooge himself, Kingsley threatened to sue Ranger, his company, and everyone affiliated with the company unless the security system designer personally came to stay on site for the remainder of the installation. It went against Ranger's better judgement to send Hector into the field under those conditions, but he didn't have a choice. Kingsley's name held a lot of weight in the wealthy sector and Ranger couldn't afford to leave the client dissatisfied. He gave Tank the order to send Hector to Philadelphia. That decision made all the Rangemen uneasy, especially Hector. The problem was obvious. Hector. Rich asshole. You do the math.

This is all to explain how Hector had come to be stuck at the rich man's sprawling estate for the last six days. During that time, Hector had shown great restraint. Only a few times, had his finger found its way to his gun trigger. Each time, he found the restraint not to squeeze it—barely—but now that the installation was complete, he pointed his truck North, eager to get the hell out of there. If he'd had to stay one more day, he would have cut the gilipollas titulado (entitled asshole).

As Hector drove, he thought back to when Stephanie had first piqued his interest. It was during the time the Somali national known as Razzle Dazzle was chasing her, trying to get his hands on the picture she'd inadvertently brought back from Hawaii. He grinned as he remembered hacking into the FBI's cameras to watch her ruthlessly attacking the secret operative in the feds parking garage. Razzle Dazzle had come at her with a ten-inch military grade knife and she'd gone crazy on his ass. The knife was knocked out of his hands and they both went for it, but she grabbed it first and sliced a gash in his leg that had him howling. But what really got Hector's attention was how she didn't immediately run away screaming after the skirmish. She stood above his prone body, kicking him over and over. Her skill might have lacked technique, but her fearlessness was something to behold. There was no doubt about it; his Angelita was a spitfire.

Outside of his Rangeman family… and Stephanie, Hector only had his Mamá and a few distant cousins left. All the rest were still in Mexico or dead from their affiliation with the 'Bloods.' It was the primary reason he got out when he did. It hadn't been easy, but with the help of some connected friends, he'd been able to sever most of his ties to his old way of life.

His mouth curved into a slight smile, recalling with fondness the conversation that solidified Stephanie as part of his family. "You know you're one of the scariest men I know, right?" she asked with a lop-sided grin, biting her lip with more than a little trepidation.

He appreciated her honesty and tried not to laugh as he gave her one of his patented, wicked smiles that he'd perfected years ago. But he couldn't resist yanking her chain a little. "Why, am I ugly?" As soon as the words escaped his lips, she started laughing uncontrollably and then as if realizing what she was doing, her eyes grew wide and she suddenly slapped her hand over her mouth. He saw the horror registered on her innocent face. Most people would have instantly backtracked, stumbling over words as they tried to recover before he unleashed his lethal temper, but not Stephanie.

Instead of avoiding the situation, she looked him firmly in the eyes and said, "No, you're a badass hottie; causing people everywhere to quake in their boots, even Ranger treats you with respect." He hadn't expected her to be so honest. Her words caused his insides to warm and he waited to see what else she'd say. "I wish I could be like that—no more getting hurt—or rolling in garbage." She smiled and did this weird thing with her eyes that had him thinking about laughing. "Just one squinty eyed look from me and my skips would hold their arms out, waiting for me to cuff them." She laughed and dusted her hands against each other. "Easy peasy."

Her confession made his connection to her stronger and for the first time in a long time, he wanted to let someone into his dark world so that he wasn't all alone. It was time to make a confession of his own. "As long as I am around, no one will ever hurt you."

She lowered her eyes, humbled by his intensity. "Why do you care what happens to me?"

Time for words was over. They weren't his strong suit anyway. He stepped closer, bringing her into the fold of his arms where he could speak without looking into her eyes. "You remind me of my cousin, Lupita. She was killed many years ago." He leaned back and pointed to one of two tear shaped tattoos under his eye. "I have redeemed her honor." He hoped admitting to murder didn't horrify her, but he only saw understanding in her eyes. He pulled her close again. "I like you. You have a good heart, but people take advantage of you. When you get knocked down, you get back up." He quirked his eyebrow, giving her a flirtatious smirk. "If only I did not like men."

She slugged him lightly on his bicep, seeming a little overcome by his praise and unsure how to respond.

"People fear me. They follow my orders, but I do not let them become my friends," he said and then placed his hands on her shoulders, holding her gaze with his. "You are more than my friend—you are mi familia (my family)." She blinked and swallowed hard, moved by his heavy declaration.

Oncoming headlights nearly blinded him, pulling him back into the present. He glanced at the clock on the dashboard. It was an hour before midnight, and he was eager to get to Stephanie's apartment in time to ring in the New Year with her. He knew that Ranger and the cop were away, and she would be all by herself. The thought made him increase his speed. If he hurried, he could make it there in time to watch the ball drop with her, but he needed to be careful driving through the ice and snow-covered roads—especially with all the drunk drivers out tonight.

He turned up the volume on the radio. The forecaster was giving an update on the big snowstorm that had come through a few days ago, dumping nearly a foot of snow on Trenton. It had been a couple days since he'd texted Stephanie to check on her, but when she didn't text back, he figured she'd gone to stay with her family and was busy. Most people had gathered together to ride out the storm. He was taking a gamble that she'd even be at her apartment.

A half an hour later, he pulled into her lot, and was relieved to find her Jeep still covered in snow as if she'd safely tucked herself in for the duration. He went up and knocked on her apartment door. He could pick her locks in three seconds flat, but he knew she valued her privacy and he respected her boundaries.

It was taking her longer than usual to answer. He smiled thinking she'd fallen asleep in front of the TV. He knocked again, but with each passing minute, he got more anxious. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore and picked her locks. All the lights were off and there was a stagnant smell in the air. "Angelita." He called out to her, and still no answer. He checked all the rooms, but there was no sign of her, and no indication of a struggle.

The bed was—as usual—unmade. Stephanie didn't waste time on housekeeping. How in the world the cop thought she'd make a good housewife was an indication of his intelligence level. Simply put—in Hector's opinion—Morelli couldn't see past her sexual assets to fully examine the fact that she would make a horrible stay at home mother. It wasn't in her nature. She would be miserable within a year and divorced within two—Hector knew this.

On a more thorough search, he noticed her purse and cell phone were missing. His eyes landed on her hamster's cage. Rex was lying on the pine shavings, unmoving. Hector's heart rate accelerated as he rushed over. Upon closer inspection, he could see the little critters' chest barely moving. He did a quick survey of the contents of the cage. There was no visible food, and barely any water. Until now, he'd been trying to convince himself that she was safely ensconced at her parents or maybe Morelli had come back from his assignment early. But finding Rex in this condition was cause for concern. Steph took better care of him than she did herself. That worried feeling in his gut was quickly turning to fear.

He tapped Rex's little body and was relieved when he stirred. He quickly refilled his food and water and nudged him to eat. At first, he struggled, and then began eating like he was starving. If it hadn't been for the larger habitat with the automatic water and food dispenser she'd gotten him for Christmas, he'd have died. Hector didn't like anything he was seeing.

He was suddenly assaulted with images of her dead body lying in the parking lot covered in snow or passed out inside her car. He ran out of her apartment, down the stairs and out into the lot. The Jeep's tires were mired in icy slush, indicating it hadn't been moved since the snowstorm and there were no tracks in the snow other than the ones he was making. He circled the Jeep, using the flashlight on his phone to search for signs of her body buried under the snow, but didn't see anything.

He shined the light inside the Jeep, noting her purse and several shopping bags lying on the passenger seat and the keys still in the ignition. Thinking her phone was in her purse, he was getting ready to break the window to get in when he decided to try the door first. It was unlocked. He grabbed her purse, rummaged inside to locate her cell. It was dead. He found her car charger in the console and plugged it in, then turned on the engine to power it. While it charged enough for him to see her call log, he shut the door and paced back and forth, ignoring the bitter cold weather.

The door of her building creaked and Hector turned toward the sound. Stephanie's Super emerged carrying a bag of trash. He had his shoulders hunched and his head down against the chilly wind. As soon as Dillon saw Hector, he stopped in his tracks and dropped the garbage bag, his eyes darting left and right, trying to decide which way to run. Hector had neither the time nor the inclination to soothe the man's nerves. He walked right up to him, invading his space, and asked, "When was the last time you saw Stephanie Plum?"

Dillon stumbled backward, eyes widening and then crinkling in confusion. "Um," he stuttered, thinking back. "I… I think it was the morning after Christmas." He nodded his head. "Yeah, that's right. She was heading out early to go shopping."

"You haven't seen her since then?"

Dillon swallowed, and rapidly shook his head. "No, I haven't seen her at all. Is she okay?" Hector studied the man's facial expressions and body language for signs of deceit. He found none. He went back over to the Jeep, effectively dismissing him. Dillon picked up the bag and threw it in the dumpster. He was hesitant to draw Hector's attention back to him, but Stephanie was his friend and he wanted to offer his help. "Is there anything I can do?" he hollered.

Hector ignored him and opened her car door, hoping the phone had charged enough. He powered on the phone and started scrolling through the call log. There were several incoming calls from her parents, Mary Lou, Connie, and Lula, but the last outgoing call was to her mother six days ago. His heart sank, knowing she hadn't used her phone in so long. But maybe that was because she didn't need it. Maybe she'd joined Ranger in Miami. For a second, he was filled with hope, but it quickly died when he remembered how he found Rex. There was no way she'd leave him in that condition and go off to Miami, and especially not without her purse and phone.

He was still holding on to the hope that she was at her parents but didn't want to needlessly worry them in case she wasn't. At least not until he'd exhausted all other possibilities. He thought about all the places she'd go and with whom. The cop was the most logical choice. Maybe his assignment had ended early and she was at his house. He flipped through her phone to get Morelli's number and used his own to place the call. After four rings, an irritated voice barked through the speaker. "Morelli."

"Hector Sanchez," he said, barely able to conceal his worry. Small talk wasn't necessary. Hector only needed to know one thing. "Is Stephanie with you?"

As soon as Morelli heard Stephanie's name, the acid in his stomach started churning. It happened every time she got into trouble and unfortunately for him, it was a lot. He put his hand over the sharp sting under his sternum, hoping the corrosive liquid wasn't dissolving the lining of his belly as he spoke. "I'm out of town right now. I haven't heard from her all week."

Hector's heart beat faster, and he blew out a frustrated breath, he was tough fucker, but he wasn't immune to fear. He checked his unproductive emotions and gave Morelli the low down.

Joe sucked in a breath as the line went silent. "Let me make some calls." He hung up without another word.

The anger Hector had been holding at bay began bubbling to the surface. Where the fuck was she? He knew in his gut Morelli wasn't going to call back with good news. He checked the time on his phone; it was fifteen minutes until midnight. While he was looking at his phone, it rang.

"Have you found her?" Morelli barked as soon as Hector answered.

"No."

Joe squeezed his eyes shut as his heart sank even further. "Here's what I know. Mary Lou and Stephanie went shopping the morning of the 26th. They separated at the entrance to Macy's at 1 pm. She called her mother on the way home and that's the last anyone's seen or talked to her." Everything he said verified what Hector already knew in his gut. "I called TPD. They're sending a Crime Scene Unit to go over her apartment and Jeep. I'm on my way."

There was still a chance she could be with Ranger, but he wasn't going to make that call until he talked to Tank.

Tank and Lula were sitting on her couch preparing to watch the ball drop on TV when Hector called. "Speak!" Tank said.

"Stephanie's missing."

Tank took his feet off Lula's coffee table and sat forward on the couch, listening as Hector told him what he knew. "Fuck!" he swore and turned to Lula. "Baby? When was the last time you talked to Stephanie?"

"I've left her a couple messages, but we haven't talked since we went shopping with Mary Lou the day after Christmas," she told him.

That bad feeling in Tank's gut just got worse. "You haven't seen her at all since then?"

Her eyes widened in concern as she shook her head. "You've been keeping me busy in the bedroom while the Bond's office has been closed."

Since Ranger's last words to him before he left for Miami was to keep an eye on Stephanie, Tank was almost certain she wasn't with him. "Talk to her neighbors and friends," he told Hector. "See if anyone saw anything. Wake up the whole damn building! I'm on my way."

As soon as he disconnected, Lula stood up and handed him his coat. "What's going on? Did something happen to my girl?"

"We don't know," he said quietly, already preoccupied with the next step in the search. "I'm going to her apartment to see what I can find out."

"What can I do to help?"

"I need to establish a timeline," Tank explained. "Call her friends and get me names of everyone who saw or talked to her since Christmas. Also, get a list of her skips from Connie and think about places she might have gone."

"I got this, Tankie. I'll find out everything I can."

"Thanks, baby." He gave her one last squeeze and a kiss on the lips. "I'll call you as soon as I can."

As Tank drove to Stephanie's apartment, he called Lester and initiated 'The Cobalt Plan'. Ranger had come up with the plan over a year ago and made it mandatory that every employee be trained on what to do. It might have been premature to activate the policy, but in Tanks mind, it was better to be safe than sorry. If they did nothing and she was out there hurt or dying… well then, he and all his men were dead too.

He didn't know all the details of Ranger and Stephanie's relationship, but he did know that she was safer when she was an actual employee of Rangeman. He didn't understand why Ranger wouldn't bring her into the fold permanently. Her occasional part time work always helped them out. There was simply no better person to do the searches than her. She saw things and made connections the Rangemen didn't or couldn't. Tank had his suspicions why Ranger kept her at arm's length, and it was the first and only instance that made Tank question Ranger's intelligence. He had no problem following the man blindly into war or anywhere else for that matter, but this push and pull between Ranger and Stephanie was almost juvenile.

According to 'The Cobalt Plan', Ranger was to be notified immediately and Tank was scared shitless at the thought. Ranger had made it clear that Stephanie was always to be protected. If she'd been gone for six days, make that almost seven days since it was nearing midnight, without anyone knowing, all hell was going to break loose when Ranger found out. Tank wasn't sure life would be worth living under those conditions. He'd been by Ranger's side during the time Stiva had her locked away and he saw the fear in the man's eyes while he held the old lady from the property office at gun point until she told him all the properties Stiva owned. There wasn't a mountain he wouldn't move for her and in his absence, Ranger expected the same from his men.

As soon as Tank pulled into Stephanie's lot, he spotted Hector waiting in front of her Jeep. To the untrained eye, he appeared controlled, but Tank could see he was barely keeping it together. Just as he stepped out of the SUV, Hector started pointing at the snow around her Jeep, saying, "The only tracks are from me. Chances are she was taken right here in the lot—before the storm hit."

"Did the neighbors see anything?" Tank asked.

Hector shook his head.

Tank couldn't put this off any longer. He scrubbed his hand over his bald head, wiping the sweat away even though it was below freezing outside, and called Ranger.

Ranger thrust himself into her warm body twice more before grunting out his satisfaction. He rolled onto his back—breathing hard—little beads of sweat running down his temples. He looked over at the woman lying beside him, taking in her traditional Latin beauty and enticingly lush body. They'd had a mutually beneficial, no strings agreement, since he set up Rangeman Miami. As a flight attendant, Salina was able to meet up at various locations across the country, but Miami was her home base, which made it convenient to see her whenever he was in town.

He removed the condom, leaned over to toss it in the wastebasket beside the bed and laid back down. Salina wriggled closer, until she was half on top of him, kissing her way down his stomach, positioning herself between his legs. He was still semi-hard, so he let her have her fun. When she wrapped her lips around the head of his cock, he held back a smile and reached out with a gentle hand, tangling his fingers in her hair just as she was about to lean forward, taking him down her throat. He knew exactly what her mouth was capable of. She had an insatiable appetite for sex, much like himself, but he needed a few minutes before he was ready to go another round. Disappointed, she let him slip out of her mouth and rested her chin on his pubic bone, looking up at him with her lower lip sticking out.

She loved how Ranger made her feel about herself. Being able to attract a man like him validated her own beauty and it didn't hurt that he paid the lease for this luxurious apartment along with a healthy monthly allowance. She wasn't ashamed of liking the finer things in life and as long as she made Ranger happy, he would continue subsidizing her lifestyle. It wasn't like she expected him to marry her. He'd made that perfectly clear up front and repeated it every time she'd gotten the least bit clingy. Condom… yes. Ring… no. That's what he always said, but she couldn't help thinking she might be able to change his mind—that one day he'd wake up and realize she was everything he ever wanted and marry her.

Ranger let her pout for a minute before untangling himself from her and sitting up on the side of the bed. He looked over at the bedside table when his phone vibrated for the second time. Even though he was officially off-line, he was never really off the clock. As soon as he picked his phone up, it vibrated again. His entire body went rigid as he read the three texts from Tank. They all said the same thing—911 Cobalt. That was the emergency code for when Stephanie was in serious trouble. He scrolled through his contacts and called Tank.

Tank had been expecting Ranger's call for the last ten minutes and he was getting pissed that he wasn't responding, but when his phone finally rang, his anger dissolved, turning back to dread because of the news he was about to impart. He didn't wait for Ranger to say anything, he simply blurting out, "Boss, Stephanie's missing."

Even with all of Ranger's training, those words struck fear in him like nothing else on this earth could. His vision darkened and for a minute he thought he might be sick. While he was using a breathing technique he'd learned years ago to keep himself calm, Salina crawled up behind him, purring in his ear, running her tongue over the sensitive area, just the way he liked it. "Mmmm, come back to bed," she whispered seductively as her hand snaked its way around to his cock, pumping him. Moments ago, Salina's touch had been arousing and now it was offensive. He flung her hand away and got off the bed.

Tank breathed out an audible sigh of relief. "Never mind, she's with you." He chuckled and then his voice turned icy. "You should have told someone. Hector and I have been worried sick for the last hour."

"What do you mean missing?" Ranger asked as he stuck his leg in his pants.

All the relief Tank felt seconds ago vanished when he realized his mistake. Ranger was with Salina, the gold digger. She was one of a select group of women Ranger had arrangements with. For as long as he'd known him, Ranger had never lacked for female attention. He never even had to make the first move. Women flocked to him while he sat back and decided which one he wanted to take home for the night. As his wingman, Tank had taken home quite a few of Ranger's cast offs.

What he didn't understand was why he kept playing with Stephanie's emotions. He seemed to care for her more than any of the others, but he wouldn't offer her anything resembling a relationship. It made him angry and he wished he'd just leave the poor girl alone. Of course, he couldn't say any of that to his friend, not if he wanted to keep breathing, so he just filled him in on what he knew. "Stephanie wasn't at her apartment when Hector stopped on his way home from the Philly job. No one has seen her since she parted ways with Mary Lou Molnar at Quaker Bridge Mall on the 26th at 1:00 p.m. And no one has talked to her since she called her mother at 1:15 p.m. that same day." Tank checked his watch, confirming the time, it was now after midnight. "That was now seven days ago," he reluctantly admitted.

The pit in Ranger's stomach grew deeper and wider with every word out of Tank's mouth. He was hanging on to one thread of hope, the possibility that she was with Morelli. Before he could ask, Tank forged ahead. "Detective Morelli hasn't seen or heard from her either."

"Pull up her trackers," Ranger ordered as he sat back down on the bed to put on his boots.

"All of her tracker's place her at her apartment." Tank hesitated, dreading what he was about to reveal. "There is also indication she may have had a stalker."

"Explain!" Ranger demanded.

Tank recited what Hector had told him.

Ranger took a deep breath for control and clipped his gun to his belt. Usually, his blood pressure was on an even keel, but right now, he was in the red zone. Of course, she had a stalker, he thought. She attracts them like bees to honey. Hell, even he could be considered a stalker the way he kept track of her. "Why am I just now hearing about this?" he barked. "And why in the fuck has it taken this long for someone to realize she was missing?"

Tank's complexion fought its natural color, doing its best to turn an ashy gray. "Stephanie shrugged it off, convincing Hector it was nothing. She even laughed about it when she told Hector that Morelli's dog probably ate her underwear."

"Implement 'The Cobalt Plan'," he said as he headed out of the bedroom, "and get me on a chartered flight straight to Trenton Mercer Airport. Call in every man we have. I don't care what happens to the business; I want her found." Ranger's voice turned menacing when he spoke again. "And Tank, you better have some good news when I get there."

"Copy that." Tank had already implemented the 'The Cobalt Plan,' and he had every available man combing the apartment complex, talking to neighbors, going over her skips, and tracing her movements.

Ranger was moving so fast, Salina had to drape the sheet around her as she scrambled off the bed after him. "Carlos, where are you going?" she yelled at his back. "I thought we were going to ring in the New Year together."

He put his hand on the apartment doorknob and paused, turning back to her even though he didn't want to look at her, not right now. Stephanie was missing and that was all he was thinking about. "There's been an emergency with an employee," he said. "I have to go. I'll call you."

After the apartment door closed firmly behind him, she was filled with fury. She grabbed the first thing she could find, throwing it at the door, splattering the crystal vase all over the marble floor. She couldn't believe he'd left her so abruptly. He'd never done that before. Most times he even lingered as if he didn't want to leave her. And who was the missing woman he was so worried about? She must be important if he was willing to risk his company for her. Rangeman was Carlos' priority, but he always made time for her. Even if all their time was spent in bed.

Forty-five minutes after receiving Hector's call, Joe pulled into Stephanie's parking lot. He got out of his SUV, shoulders drawn in against the wind, and wearily made his way over to the newly promoted, Detective Eddie Gazarra. "What do you have?"

Eddie was overseeing the Crime Scene Unit as they went over his lifelong friend's Jeep. He was more than a little worried that Stephanie had been missing for so long. Her job had her associating with some bad people. He looked up when Morelli called out, grimacing because he had nothing good to report. "Crime scenes a mess," Gazarra said. "The damn snow has covered any trace evidence on the ground."

"What about her apartment?" Morelli asked while trying to keep a lid on his frustration.

Gazarra shook his head. "No sign of forced entry, but we're collecting prints from there and her Jeep." He motioned to the techs scurrying around. "There's no signs of struggle, but since her purse, phone, and packages were still inside the Jeep, it's my guess this is the abduction site. Most likely, she was stunned to immobilize her. Quick and easy."

Morelli's lips remained tight, trying his best to keep his cop face in place even though he was more worried than he could ever remember. "Did the neighbors hear or see anything?"

"TPD and Rangeman are canvassing the apartment complex and surrounding areas, but so far no one has seen or heard anything."

Screeching tires caught their attention and both men looked up as Frank Plum pulled into the lot. He barely had time to close the door to his cab before he was yelling, "Where's my daughter?" He looked back and forth between Eddie and Morelli.

Morelli put his hand on the older man's shoulder. "We don't know where she is. I can tell you what we know so far, but it's not much."

Frank shrugged Morelli's hand off, breathed in deep, flaring his nostrils, and gave them a stern look telling them they'd better start talking.

Morelli physically regrouped and began from when he first got the call from Hector and ended with what Eddie had just told him.

Frank looked distraught. "Do whatever you have to, just find my little girl."

"I'll find her," Morelli said and then all three men turned to watch as a black SUV sped into the lot. Morelli stiffened as Ranger stepped out, heading straight for Tank, and disappearing inside the apartment building. Fucking Ranger. Should have known he'd show up sooner or later. It wasn't like him to let anything stand between him and playing hero for Stephanie.

Hector was in Stephanie's apartment coaxing Rex to eat when Ranger and Tank walked in. Ranger stared him down but didn't approach. It was taking all his resolve not to kill Hector for ignoring the signs that Stephanie had a stalker. For now, he pushed those feeling to the backburner. There would be time to deal with him later. Right now, he had to focus on finding Stephanie. He stood in the center of her apartment and let his eyes sweep over the entire space. There were no overt signs that someone had been in here, but he knew it was true. He started in the living room and systematically went over every inch of her apartment, hoping fresh eyes would see something the others had missed. That feeling only intensified as he entered her bedroom. Even though everything appeared the same as always, his gut told him someone had been in here, violating her space. His stomach twisted.

When Ranger came out of the bedroom, Hector was waiting with his arms crossed over his chest and his mouth set in a cruel line. Hector was livid. He'd been standing beside Tank when he'd made the call to Ranger and knew he'd been with another woman while Stephanie was in trouble. His face contorted in pure disgust as he walked up to him, chest to chest, sniffing loudly. "You smell like cheap pussy," he snarled.

Ranger's eyes narrowed slightly. Not many people challenged him, especially openly, but Hector wasn't like many men.

"If you had not gone to Miami to scratch an itch, you would have been here when Estefanía needed you instead of rolling around in whatever puta's bed you just crawled out of."

Ranger held himself frighteningly still, but inside he was vibrating with rage at the audacity of the man. He shot a look at Tank and nearly flinched when his friend pursed his lips and broke eye contact. Tank wasn't going to say anything negative about Ranger, not in someone else's presence, but Ranger saw that he agreed with Hector. He lost some of his anger when he realized this was his fault, and he might never have a chance to make it right. But he wasn't the only one who had blame to shoulder. He focused back on Hector. "You should have come to me immediately with threats of a stalker."

Hector stepped back as if he'd been punched in the gut. He'd been beating himself up over that for the past four hours. Before any blood was shed, Tank intervened. "Playing the blame game isn't helping Stephanie." He looked from one man to the other. "We should head back down and see what they've gotten from the Jeep."

As soon as they exited the building, Morelli was in Ranger's face, shouting. "You track her every move, so tell me where she is."

"All her trackers are here," Ranger said, unaffected by Morelli's outburst of anger.

"Is it true?" Frank looked from Ranger to Hector. "Did my daughter have a stalker?"

"Based on her conversation with Mr. Sanchez," Eddie said, tilting his head in Hector's direction. "We have reason to believe she was being stalked."

"What sort of conversation?" Frank asked Hector, ignoring the tattoos and his fierce demeanor. He didn't pretend to understand Stephanie's knack for befriending oddballs, but Hector seemed like someone that stood up for his friends no matter what the cost.

"Estefanía mentioned that things seemed off in her apartment." He met Franks gaze head on. "She asked if I had moved some items." On the outside, Hector looked as frightening as ever, but on the inside, he was bleeding. It wasn't often he messed up and now that he could see everything from a larger screen, he knew that her questions were red flags that should have caused him to react more proactively.

"What kinds of items?" Frank persisted.

"Such things as lipstick, earrings, a notebook… her computer." Hector lowered his voice and looked away. "And missing underwear."

Frank's face lost all color. This was his worst nightmare.

Ranger listened to the replay for Frank's benefit, rage reigniting under his skin. He didn't think for one minute that Morelli's dog ate her underwear.

"A few times she thought someone might have been in her apartment and messed up her bedding, but she brushed it off and said maybe it was Morelli or even you." Hector nodded toward Ranger.

Eddie quickly took over the conversation before blame could be slung around. "I think it's safe to say that no one here moved her things or took her underwear." He made eye contact with each man. "What we need to do now is process the prints, rule out her friends, and see what we have left. Whoever took her has been playing with her for a while. Coming and going from her apartment unnoticed, leaving no traces of forced entry behind."

Frank's shoulders slumped forward with each word Eddie spoke. "Go home and be with your wife," Eddie said as he nudged Frank toward his cab. "I'll let you know as soon as we know anything."

Frank took a couple steps towards his car before turning around. His face was hard as granite as he looked between Joe and Ranger. "Bring my daughter home."

Ranger stepped forward, looking him in the eyes. "Nothing will stop me from finding her. You have my word." Frank studied him and knew it was the truth. Morelli stepped beside Ranger, nodding his agreement. It gave Frank enough peace to go home to his wife.

"I want men stationed inside her apartment and in the parking lot 24/7," Ranger ordered Tank. "And have the entire Rangeman team meet in conference room A, at 0400, with all reports and witness statements." Ranger turned to Gazarra and Morelli. "You're both welcome to join us."

"We'll be there," Gazarra said. "Steph has a lot of friends in the department. We will find her."

A uniformed officer came out of the building and handed Rex's cage to Morelli. "I need to drop him by Mary Lou's and then I'll be there."

They all stared at the rodent, knowing he was their only witness to Stephanie's stalker, but he wasn't talking.