A/N: I apologize for such a long delay in posting. I do have ideas for where this story is going and some written. It was just very difficult for me to get this chapter out. I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for all of the reviews & encouragement-it keeps me going! Let me know what you think. Enjoy!
Tender by Jones
"'Cause what if life happens?
It ain't as good as it was
'Cause the girl that used to be me, when I look back now
Don't know who it was
I love you right now, but will I love you forever?
Forever
My heart beats so loud but my mind is still tender
Still tender"
Defining Moments
Chapter 14: Watching & Waiting…
Steph's POV
Quinn insists on a week full of surveillance on both Alexandra Ramos and on Sarah Shupp. Surveillance and sitting still have never been my strong suit. I guess it's something I'll need to get used to. We have been training and exercising every day. I'm getting better and stronger. I'm surprising myself daily. I also realize I can't just go off half-cocked without any thought for my own safety. I feel a deep embarrassment when I think of all the times I almost got myself and more importantly, someone else killed. It really is no wonder Ranger kept his distance. It's amazing as I think of the complex emotions thrown in this. Ranger always told me his life didn't lend itself to relationships, and part of me realizes he's afraid. I don't blame him. Why did I stay with Morelli for so long? It's so easy for me to see now. I was scared, and he was familiar. I'm not going back to who I was before. I barely recognize the person in the mirror, but I'm much more satisfied by who I see. I'm also realizing I can only choose how I react and deal with situations. I will survive whether Ranger truly loves me back or not. I sigh and let my thought drift to our surveillance subjects.
The difference between the two women is day and night. While Sarah has blonde hair and blue eyes, Alexandra is all dark. Sarah majored in International Affairs while Alexandra did Fashion and Design. Sarah is completely sloppy when it comes to her awareness and safety. Alexandra takes at least as many precautions as Ranger himself. It's amazing to think that Ian was once interested in both of these girls considering how different they are.
Sarah has been camped out in a Marriott a little outside of Trenton. Honestly, her activity isn't even interesting. It just seems like she's hiding out until she thinks Ian is no longer looking for her. I'm not sure why we haven't approached her yet except that Quinn thinks we should hold off as long as possible. She mostly stays in the hotel room, goes out for groceries or to run. The only smart things this girl is doing is using a fake last name, using a burner phone, and cash to pay for the hotel. Honestly, we might just leave her until we catch Ian since he hasn't seemed to figure out where she is.
Alexandra is a whole other story. She's been completely busy. We missed Ian's meeting with Juliet, and she wasn't on our radar yet so we weren't able to catch him. From what we can tell, she uses a burner cell to contact him. She then has another cell phone for all her family and work. She's been busy with planning a big party that will be held in New York. From what we gathered so far it's a big to-do with all of the Mob in the Tristate area along with some well-known foreign diplomats. That party seems important and we're trying to figure out how to get invited. It seems rather clear that Ian will be attending, but without knowing where he is or how to find him we can't get him before the party.
I sigh as I see Alexandra come out of her family's compound before getting into her yellow Porsche and heading, as usual, to her office building in New York. I don't know how she does this commute all of the time. We've bugged her car with trackers so we can follow without actually following. It's obvious her family knows nothing of her interactions with Ian. We've only been able to get close enough one time to hear her actually talking with him. We just had no way to track him.
"Maybe we should just go do some training," Quinn suggests. He obviously doesn't want to follow Alexandra again unless we see her tracker do something interesting.
Quinn drives us to the Newark office and thankfully I've learned to bring gym clothes with me all the time. We head in and stop by to say hi to Xandra. She welcomes the distraction and we chat for a bit. We haven't gotten together since the night I drank too much.
xxx
"Come on, Plum!" Quinn taunts as he bounces on the balls of his feet. He just got a good hit in and it knocked me off balance. I'm back in position, and I decide to fake him out. I dart my eyes to his left side but then go into his right. I'm able to elbow him, smash his foot and get him onto the floor. I then back away quickly so he can't get me with his foot.
"You okay down there, Sweetheart?" I reply feeling smug, "maybe you need to spar with someone your own size." I then laugh at my own sassiness. It feels so good knowing I can actually handle myself in hand to hand combat. At least I'm no longer a liability. Quinn smirks and shakes his head.
"I'm going to regret getting you trained, aren't I?" he asks with a smile as he reaches out a hand for me to help him up. I extend my hand down to him and he grabs it quickly. I see a flash of mischief on his face before he pulls me down with him.
"Quinn Anthony Rivers!" I exclaim as I hit the ground painfully. He's now standing up and looking down smirking.
"Never trust the enemy," he says before wiggling his eyebrows. I shake my head. I had totally beat him. I stand up and my cell phone rings. I can tell by the ringtone that it's Lester. I head over and answer the phone.
"Hey Les," I greet with a smile as Quinn gets a drink of water.
"Beautiful, where are you right now?" he asks with no real greeting. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. He seems serious though.
"Newark, why?" I question wondering what in the world Les has to tell me.
"Well…" he says hesitating, "it seems your Granny got picked up by PD." I'm speechless although not surprised. It wouldn't be the first time she's gotten picked up by the cops. I just wonder what she could have done this time.
"Is she okay?" I ask, unsure of why Les would be calling me and not my mother. Les chokes and coughs. I'm worried now.
"She's fine…it seems her and her beau were found uh…you know…" Les stutters and I can picture him blushing although he's usually hard to embarrass. I feel my cheeks tinting pink at the thought. Only my Grandma.
"I guess I need to pick them up?" I ask not knowing why else he would call. Quinn is looking at me wondering what the hell is going on. This will be fun to explain. He also might question my gene pool and his choice in partner.
"Uh…Beautiful," Les continues and I wonder what else it could be. "Bring some clothes." He hangs up without so much as a goodbye. I stand there holding my phone to my ear. I'm in shock. Not a pretty picture. I'm startled when Quinn waves a hand in front of my face.
"Care to share?" he asks looking confused and a little worried. I smile nervously.
"We gotta go," I say with no other backstory. I so do not want to explain this to my partner.
"Come on, sweetheart," Quinn whines, "you're killing me here. What's going on?" I dread explaining this as I'm sure he'll never let me forget it. I glance over at him as he drives. We're almost back to Trenton.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," I say with a grimace, "let's hit my apartment first." I'm honestly surprised my mother hasn't called yet. Like magic, I feel my phone vibrating, and I groan as I see her name appear. Quinn glances over with a raised eyebrow. I sigh and answer the phone.
"Stephanie Michelle Plum!" my mother screeches like I'm the one who has done something wrong. I wince.
"Yes, mother?" I question, holding the phone about a foot away from my ear.
"You better be on the way to pick up your Grandmother!" she fumes, "I cannot believe her! We will be the talk of the town. We're a laughing stock. I've gotten 50 calls just this morning." I roll my eyes. I always hated how much she cares about what others think.
"I'm on my way now," I say, "and who cares? It seems like Grandma…had fun." I cringe at the mental image.
"Fun? Fun?!" she screeches some more and I hear her take a drink of something. Probably something with a kick. I decide just to hang up now and regret it later. I put my phone on silent. Quinn keeps shooting looks my way.
"So what did your Grandma do?" he asks, "your mom seriously sounded like she was about to blow a gasket or something." I sigh as we pull into the parking lot of my building.
"You don't want to know," I say, placing a finger on my now twitching eye, "but it doesn't take much to set my mother off." We head up and I quickly gather some clothes and a blanket. Quinn keeps giving me looks but I completely ignore them. I can feel my face flushing at the thought. It's bad enough when I have to direct him to the police station. A grin breaks out onto his face as we park.
"Why do I have a feeling this is gonna be good?" he questions with a shit-eating grin plastered on his face. I narrow my eyes and glare at him. We head into the station and I'm surprised to see Lester standing in the lobby. He grins at the two of us. I can tell Quinn is getting excited since he's sure Les will spill the beans. I sigh, roll my eyes and head to the window. Robin Russell is behind and she smiles when she sees me.
"Sorry you had to come in Steph," she says, "I'll take you back to get them." I nod as I sign some paperwork. Quinn sees me and grins, slaps Les on the back before coming over to me. I guess Les filled him in and he doesn't want to miss this. It's his retinas that will be burned forever. Robin shows us to the holding cell. Thankfully, they separated Nicolas and Grandma and gave them blankets. They're holding hands through the bars. I roll my eyes upward and mutter to myself. Really, it's no wonder my mother drinks.
"Alright, you two lovebirds," I say, "time to go." They jump up and I hastily shield my eyes as the towel around Nicolas falls. I hear Quinn groan. Apparently, he wasn't as fast as me.
"Keep the towel up! Towel up!" Quinn yells sounding like he's been shot. Still keeping my eyes covered, I hold out the clothes I brought to Grandma.
"Thanks," she says, "I'm glad it's you and not your mother. Helen doesn't know how to have any fun!" I cough.
"This was fun?" I question as we walk down the hall. Robin shows my grandma and Nicolas a place to change. Thankfully I grabbed two shirts and two pairs of sweatpants. I resist the urge to make the sign of the cross. Quinn is silently shaking next to me. I look over to glare at him and he can't help the loud guffaw.
"Sweetheart, your life could be a movie," he says, "I almost don't believe it." He blinks.
"Although, I do wish I could erase seeing the wrinkled raisin," Quinn mentions scrunching up his face. I laugh.
"You deserved it!"
Grandma and Nicolas take a suspicious amount of time to get dressed, but I think we're all too scared to check on them. Finally, they emerge dressed in my clothes and giving each other sly looks.
"Alright you two," I state, "let's go." We head out to the car and everyone in the station claps as Nicolas and my Grandma walk out. Grandma waves and thanks everyone as she walks by. I feel my eye twitch some more. We get to the car and they watch from the station as we get in. Jeez, I guess the Burg has nothing better to do.
"Wow! Ain't that a pip," Grandma says from the backseat, "I feel like Madonna!" Quinn laughs.
"I don't ever want to have to come to get you two again!" I exclaim, "once is enough! Besides who knows what Mom will say."
"Aw who cares, she's got a stick up her behind," Grandma quips as Nicolas grips her hand.
"Thank you for coming to get us, Stephanie," Nicolas says, the calmer of the pair. "To show our appreciation I'd like to invite you and Quinn to the big gala we're having on Saturday." Quinn and I lock eyes. This big gala is exactly the event we were trying to get invited to. My irritation with Grandma's actions suddenly evaporates. We're about to get our man.