Chapter Five

Somebody finds Stephanie

For the next few days Hector watched Tank and Beth Crowder get comfortable with one another. He was shy and she was a lady. Perhaps they needed be pushed together, but before anything could happen she returned to Florida. If he was going to play cupid and get them together as well as let Tank discover Estefania's location it would take some serious Hector manipulations.

Tank was going to Atlanta in a few days. Hector thought if he could get the design for the Bernstein house done, Tank could hand deliver them to Beth in the office and see Estefania. Hector went into overtime.

"You want me to fly from Atlanta down to Florida and hand-deliver these?" Tank grumbled.

Si, Si, you could point out the new ideas I have, I think Mrs. Crowder will like them, Hector replied.

"I'll think about it. I don't have time to waste what with Ranger gone again."

"Stephanie, are you ready to go?" Beth asked.

"Yes, I am ready and I will succeed, I will succeed…."

"That's a girl. We both know you can do this." Then turning towards the back office Beth called, "Antonio, close up at Noon."

"Thank you Mrs. Crowder. My wife wants to sail this afternoon, having the extra hours will be helpful."

Beth and I were both dressed in white doboks, Taekwondo uniforms. Beth's was wrapped with a black belt, mine was green, but today I hoped to earn a higher rank. Beth has been my instructor, pushing me harder and farther than Tank did. Not only has my body trimmed and muscled up, but my mental fitness has greatly improved.

It was 11:50 when the office buzzer rang. Antonio silently cursed. He wanted to close at Noon and didn't need a client stopping by.

The dark man was well over 6 feet tall and was carrying a brief case.

"I'm Tank from Rangeman in Trenton. I have Bernstein material on the Hamilton Township project for Beth Crowder."

Antonio had heard about "Tank" from Beth and Michelle-formerly-Stephanie and agreed, no other name other than Godzilla was appropriate. "Beth is judging a martial arts competition today. You may leave the material here; I'll make sure she gets it."

"Judging marital arts?" Tank raised his eyebrows.

"Beth is a master in several disciplines and insists her employees also take martial arts. She says it improves our mental awareness and body health. I've been taking Karate for 5 years. Our office manager is studying several disciplines and today is she has an exam in Taekwando. You ought to go watch. The dojang is on Oceanside, about 1/2 mile west," Antonio explained.

Tank looked at his watch. "I need to catch a flight. Make sure she gets these." Tank opened the brief case and handed the material to Antonio.

The airport was also west. Tank saw the dojang's parking lot. He checked his watch and decided not to stop and drove on.

When Tank returned to Trenton Hector casually asked if he delivered the drawings to Mrs. Crowder.

Tank grumbled, "She and her office manager were at a martial arts tournament."

Hector shook his head. Of all the days both of them would be out of the office, it would be the day Tank showed up.

Hector went back to his office and set out to find if anyone had recorded the competition. Finally he found a short piece on Facebook showing Angela O'Brian mostly but there were quick glimpses of Stephanie and Mrs. Crowder. Estefania looked lovely. She was trimmer and more muscular and boy could she kick! He down loaded the video and held it until the proper time to show Tank. He also made a paper copy for himself and framed it. He kept it in his apartment.

He might be gay, but Estefania was his angel. He knew exactly when he fell for her. It was when he first came to Rangeman and Estefania needed a better lock on her apartment door. Hector selected a lock that required a digital code be input with a fob. She promptly forgot the code and took her frustrations out on the fob with her .38. One of the few times she ever hit something with her gun.

One month later in Trenton, Tank was preparing to meet Beth at Rangeman. His cell phone vibrated and he found himself looking at a picture of Beth in the background and two out of focus women in dobocks in the foreground. He played the video and was amazed when he recognized Stephanie.

The architect in Florida said Beth judging a martial arts competition and her office manager was being tested that day. Was Stephanie her manager? Why had Beth kept that a secret? What a coincidence Mr. Bernstein selected Beth as his architect. Or was it coincidence?

When Beth sat down at the conference table, Tank showed her the video. "This arrived this morning. You are the only one I've shown this to," Tank uttered quietly.

Beth relaxed and reaching for Tank's hand, "Thank you. Stephanie has changed a lot in this past year or so. When I took her into my home and hired her for the office she was a wreck, physically and mentally. Now she is strong, confident, organized, and self-assured."

Tank responded, "Ranger thought she could become that with more discipline, but she constantly refused. I worked with her a few times, but she dropped out. She didn't seem to care."

"She needed to get away from the Burg. She couldn't grow with everything that fell upon her; her mother, her job and the ridicule from the policemen, the newspaper stories, her old enemies…everyone but the men here at Rangeman."

"We tried to give her a home here, but she wouldn't join us."

"I know, she couldn't it back then. She needed to be…..reborn." Beth continued, "When she landed at my back door she was a wreck. I fed her, housed her, got her medical attention, hired her and started her on martial arts and weapons. She's quite the marksman now."

Medical attention?

"She's a diabetic. Apparently there's some in her mother's and father's family but they didn't talk about it much. It's well controlled now that she is taking care of herself. Her poor eating habits, very heavy on the sugar and carbs learned at her family table and continuing into her adult life caught up to her."

He looked back at his phone, "This short video is impressive. How far along is she in Taekwondo?"

She's now a purple belt, but that's not all she does. She's also been studying Karate, Kendo and Aikido. Plus I've been teaching her about handguns, rifles and crossbows."

Tank raised both eyebrows? "Are you her instructor?"

"Yes and a she's a very disciplined student. She says she wants to impress you."

"She has already with this video. How did you get her started?"

Mentally she was a wreck, she needed discipline. Plus I require it of my employees."

Tank smiled, "Your associate and karate."

"I was really mad I missed you that day at the office, but also thankful. It was too early for Stephanie to be found."

Tank smiled. He cared for Stephanie as if she was his sister….she was family. "Does she have a love interest?" he asked.

"I've tried to get her to move beyond Ranger. I haven't been successful. I've explained either she has to settle for a friendship or he has to change. She is still in love with him. At least she realizes she can't return if he's in his dangerous work. If she has to…I think she could give him up."

Tank shook his head, "I wish he'd get his head out of his ass. The rest of us knew when to quit, he just keeps going on."

Beth sighed, "Will he ever come around?"

Tank shook his head sadly, "When he left the Army he was cold, closed. When Stephanie came into his life, he opened up. She left suddenly and he thought it was his fault. The corporate facade held but he became hollow inside again. He's doing more mercenary work and will probably get himself killed. His head is wrong."

Beth jumped up, "I can't tell her that, it will set her back." Beth began pacing, "Tank, I don't want to lose her. She's worked so hard on finding and taking responsibility for herself and her health. When she first came down, she'd sit on the beach day after day eating doughnuts, drinking soda then get up and go down to the a water. Gradually she'd swim out further and further. I'd watch from my porch. Then she'd start going down to the water at night. That's when the sharks move in. One night she stripped naked and waded out. I figured this was it and I started down to get her, but she was forced back by the wind and tides. She lay on the beach and cried for hours. The next morning I told her I didn't want to find her remains on the beach. She came to my door the next day.

Tank was stunned.

She was depressed, confused, lost.

Tank sat there. Had all of them under estimated the stresses she was under? Tank stood and touched Beth's cheek, "Thank you for saving our baby girl."

Beth found his touch warm and comforting and tipped her face into his hand. She turned her face and kissed his hand. Their eyes locked and the next kiss was on each other's lips.

Bobby and Lester started into the conference room, but quick thinking Bobby turned around quickly, spun Lester around and pushed him back out the door.

"What the he… Bobby," Lester sputtered.

"We need to give them a few more minutes."

Lester wiggled his eyebrows.

"Do that again and Tank will take you to the mats tomorrow morning." Bobby warned