Here you go, chapter 25. I really hope you like, please let me know, either way.

Okay, so I'm addicted to reviews, I admit it…

Thank you very much for your reviews, in case I didn't reply to all, they were much appreciated.

Muchas Gracias to Stayce for keeping me sane and offering help, suggestions, and much-needed editing. Te quiero, Chica!

Disclaimer: Language! There are only adults in this story and they talk like adults.

Rating: Again with the PG 13

Spoilers: All the way through TS

Living on a Prayer

Chapter 25

I had jumped up at some point and was pacing the floor while I was talking. Ranger remained calm and just listened. I glanced up at him every now and then, but his blank face was in place and I couldn't tell what he was thinking.

I didn't have a blank face, my emotions were clearly displayed, and tears were stinging my eyes when I finished. I sat back down next to Ranger and took a long pull from my beer. "So what do you think?" I asked when he didn't say anything.

He reached over and stroked my face with his fingers. "You should have told me sooner. Don't hold something like this in, ever."

"I really didn't know all the facts until after I talked to Thomalla."

"Is that why you want me to check him out?"

"Yes. No. Well, what do you think about this?"

Ranger shrugged almost imperceptibly, "I didn't get that kind of vibe from Morelli." For Ranger, that was as good as saying, "Fuck, no!", and I nodded.

"So why would the Feds investigate him?" I asked. Ranger's hand was still on my face and he was cupping it. "You knew him better than anyone. What's your feeling? What does your spidey-sense tell you?" He smiled a little at that last part, and I thought I should never have told him what I called my gut feeling.

"I think the Feds have it wrong, but there has to be someone in the department setting Morelli up." I said and Ranger nodded. I chewed my lower lip, "Thomalla said there was a piece of evidence that could clear Morelli's name and I think it's on this CD he gave me, but I don't know where I put it."

Ranger chuckled low in his throat at my rambling. "I'll help you find it," he said. "Don't worry about it tonight, we'll start looking tomorrow." I knew he expected me to protest, maybe to jump up and insist on searching right now, but I was grateful he'd made the decision. Tomorrow would come soon enough, and we could start looking then. I sank back against his chest and he slung his arms around me. I remoted the TV on and we watched the Rangers game together. We commented on the game every now and then, but we avoided any talk about Teddy, Morelli, the Feds, or anything remotely connected to them. Well, I did, and Ranger played along.

After the game, Ranger tried to get me to play 'Risk', but I waved him off. I'd had enough risks lately. I made us popcorn instead and we compromised on an action movie. It ended up being a nice, relaxing evening after a very hectic and disturbing afternoon, and I felt I deserved it.

I must have fallen asleep in Ranger's arms because when I woke up, he was carrying me over to my bed. I nuzzled my face to the spot where his neck met his shoulder and breathed in his scent before I was fully awake and realized what I was doing.

I felt Ranger hold his breath and quickly pulled back, causing him to skip a step to keep himself upright. "Sorry," I murmured as he gently put me down on my bed. "Don't apologize," he said softly and pulled the covers over me. He tucked a stray curl behind my ear and I touched his hand when he turned to go. "Please, can you stay?" I asked. I couldn't see his face in the dim light, but he nodded slightly before shedding his clothes and getting into bed behind me. I sighed contently and snuggled into him. As his arm snaked around my waist, I felt completely safe and comfortable and was asleep within minutes.

Ranger was still asleep when I woke up; at least his eyes were closed. He was lying on his back, and I was sprawled over his chest, our legs were entwined. His left arm was around me, his hand resting on my back. I smiled when I realized that for some reason, we always woke up like this when we shared a bed, although nothing was 'going on' between us. It must have been pretty early, but I didn't dare crane my neck to see the alarm clock because I didn't want to wake Ranger. It was a rare occasion that I got to watch him while he was unaware; I was going to take advantage of it. His face was relaxed; the tiny lines he sometimes got from stress were invisible now. I rose every time he took a breath and pretty soon, the evenness of his breathing lulled me back to sleep.

When sunlight tickled me awake the next time, I was alone in my bed and I felt strangely lonely. But then I heard the shower run and breathed a sigh of relief. I caught myself mid-sigh and clamped a hand over my mouth. What was I doing? I missed Ranger when I didn't wake up next to him? I am relieved when I hear him in the shower?

I shook my head to clear it and decided I was just confused, stress was finally catching up with me and rather than thinking about the newest issues, I was focusing on Ranger. Plain and simple.

I threw back the covers and pulled down my t-shirt that had ridden halfway up my chest. And where had my bra gone? I certainly didn't remember taking off my clothes and changing into a sleep shirt. But I didn't know what I'd been wearing when Ranger carried me to bed either. Maybe that one beer had mixed with the rest of the alcohol and messed me up all over again. Not that it mattered, since I was still wearing my panties, it wasn't like I'd miss anything important. I smiled at that thought and felt bad immediately for letting my thoughts wander in that direction.

The shower had stopped and I really needed to use the bathroom, but I didn't want to walk in on naked Ranger. Well, actually I did, and I didn't know which was worse. I sunk back onto the mattress with a frustrated grunt.

A few minutes later, Ranger stepped out of the bathroom with a towel draped very low around his hips. I forced myself to look at his face. Unfortunately, there was no distraction there either. His hair was still wet and tousled and water drops were glistening on his chest. I had no idea what kind of monster had woken up with me this morning, but I was determined to slay it before it got out of control.

I cast my eyes down while I got out of bed and walked past Ranger into the bathroom without a sideward glance. Probably it was just low blood sugar anyway, I needed a donut.

I stood under the hot shower and tried to think about something else besides naked Ranger, or wet Ranger or naked and wet Ranger. The problem was, the only other thing I could come up with were Thomalla's accusations from the day before and I really didn't want to think about those. I grunted again and occupied myself with lathering and rinsing and shaving, trying my best to ignore the massage setting on the showerhead. I'd had half a pineapple upside-down cake for dinner the night before, but that was over 12 hours ago now, it was clearly sugar withdrawal. Jeesh!

My shower was cut short by the water turning cold, and I spent another 30 minutes drying off, lotioning and putting on make-up. Unfortunately, I'd forgotten to bring clothes with me into the bathroom. Prancing around in a towel in front of Ranger was not something I dared to do in my sugar-deprived state, so I opened the bathroom door a crack and peeked out. Ranger was not in my bedroom. Relieved, I exited the bathroom and got dressed before I followed my nose to the fresh pot of coffee in the kitchen.

Ranger was at the dining room table with his coffee and his laptop. He looked up when I joined him, "I have some meetings to attend this morning," he said after greeting me, "If I asked you to stay here, would you do it?" That was a tricky question. If I said I'd stay here, I could guarantee something would come up that made me have to leave. If I said no, Ranger would babe me and I'd feel bad for being a pain in the ass. I sighed. "I don't know. Why do you need me to stay here?"

The ghost of a smile played around Ranger's lips, "To keep you safe," he said. "From what?" I wanted to know. Ranger ran a hand through his damp hair and exhaled audibly. "I don't know. From everything. For once, can you just do it to do me a favor?"

"I guess so," I replied noncommittally.

He had to leave before he could make me promise anything and my phone rang when I was still watching him peel out of the parking lot.

"Yo, white girl," Lula said by way of greeting when I picked up, "Connie and I've been talking and we haven't seen you for ages and were wondering if you wanted to come by for donuts?" I had a feeling there was more reasons for the call than donuts but actually, I'd been craving a Boston crème since I got out of the shower. And the Bonds office wasn't like lurking on Stark Street, I figured I'd be perfectly safe with Lula and Connie. "I'll be there in twenty minutes. Save me some donuts!" I said and we disconnected. I rinsed my coffee cup, gave Rex some grapes, shrugged into my jeans jacket and was ready to go. As a concession to Ranger, I made sure my gun and my pepper spray were in my bag before I locked the door behind me.

I took a quick look around in my parking lot to see if I could spot anyone who didn't belong, or maybe a RangeMan SUV, but I saw neither, so I just hopped into my Mini and took off. I couldn't even remember if I had parked it or if maybe a Merry Men had brought it over, it seemed like a lifetime ago that I last drove it. It felt good to be on my own again. I missed Ranger, but I didn't miss my bodyguard.

I stopped at the Tasty Pastry for a dozen donuts, just in case Lula decided I'd taken to long and had eaten all the ones she had.

When I parked in front of the Bonds office, I had a short flashback of Morelli. How often had he been sitting in my car right where I was parked now? Everybody had said it would get easier, but I hadn't believed them. Now I realized that thinking back made me sad, but I wasn't in tears anymore.

I took a deep breath, grabbed my bag and the donuts and locked the Mini. This was me, taking my first steps towards picking my life back up, I thought. Yeah, right.

Connie looked up when I opened the door and a huge grin spread over her face. "Girlfriend!!!" Lula screamed and almost smushed me and the donuts in the big bear hug she gave me. I was glad I'd decided to come; this was exactly what I needed.

I put the bakery box on Connie's desk and helped myself to a donut. "So, what've I missed?" I asked between bites as I plopped down on the couch.

Lula and Connie exchanged a serious look that made me curious and Connie busied herself with the files on her desk. "What have I missed?" I asked again with a funny feeling in my stomach. I stopped the Boston crème halfway to my mouth and looked at Lula who was currently studying her manicure.

"Well, you know," Connie began, but Lula cut her off. "I told you we've been getting a lot of skips in…" I made a 'go on' gesture to signal I was getting impatient. "And Ranger's been busy, uhm, guarding your body, so my man Tank and I have been trying to keep up, but…" she still didn't look at me.

"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Connie exclaimed, "Vinnie has hired Joyce full-time. And he's said that if you're not back soon, you won't have a job here anymore." She slammed down the pile of folders she'd been holding for emphasis.

"What?" I screamed, jumping up. "You're kidding! No way!" Connie just nodded solemnly.

Wow. That was a double-whammy. I hated Joyce Barnhardt and the thought of running into her on a regular basis made me sick. But to not have a job at all was even more serious. "What about Ranger," I asked, my voice sounding like Minnie Mouse on steroids, "Is he gonna get fired, too?"

Connie's eyebrows met her hairline, "If Vinnie could find anyone half as good as Ranger, possibly. But let's face it, there is no one." Lula scoffed at that so Connie added, "Well, Ranger and his team are the best there is, everybody knows this."

I was pacing frantically, "Well, I'm gonna tell him where he can stick that plan! Is he in?" I stomped towards Vinnie's office when Lula shook her head. "We haven't seen him since Friday. I think he went on some kind of family vacation thing."

"Yeah, his attendance was mandated by his father-in-law personally," Connie snorted. She didn't have to say more. We all knew that when Harry the Hammer asked you to do something, you did it. And I got the nagging feeling that reminded my I still owed him a favor.

That little vacation had just saved Vinnie's balls.

"Well, Girl, what are you gonna do about it?" Lula interrupted my thoughts. I had no idea what I was going to do about it, deciding some other day sounded like a good idea. Telling Vinnie's wife just exactly why he'd hired Joyce was a close second. I could tell her and then shoot him, I'd pay off my debt to Harry and get even in one swoop.

Lula got up and put her hand on my forearm, "Maybe you don't have to do nothing. Maybe Vinnie has Joyce working for him for a week and realizes what he has in you!" I smiled at her and was about to thank her when a loud crash interrupted everything. Instinctively, we all ducked because it sounded like gunfire. True, a car backfiring can sound a lot like a shot, but in Jersey, we tend to err on the side of caution.

I counted two gunshots and heard glass shattering, then a car burning rubber on its way out. We all got up and rushed to the plate glass window to find out what had happened.

"Holy shit!" Lula yelled. "Jesus, Mary and Joseph!" Connie added. I was speechless, staring at the huge hole where my passenger side window had been moments before. On the plus side, there was no fire or smoke, so an explosion was unlikely. I sighed. Probably I was way overdue for something to happen to my car. I was unable to feel anything but despair though. On my list of recent events, my car being shot at without me in it was way down.

"Well, they do say good things come in three," Lula said in an attempt to brighten the mood. I grimaced. Working with Joyce, possibly losing my job and my car being violated. Three good things indeed. In bizarro-world! In my world, just about the three shittiest things I could imagine.

I felt like throwing my hands up in the air and whining "Why me?" but what would have been the use? I settled for a heartfelt 'Fuck!', but Connie and Lula missed it, as they almost fell over one another on their way out to examine the damage from up close. I'd seen enough and had no desire to follow them. I grabbed another donut and plopped down on the couch.

Someone must have called the cops, because I could hear sirens approaching before I'd finished my third donut. I prayed it wasn't anyone I knew. I didn't want to be mocked, or pitied or made fun of, I wanted to give my statement and be done.

The group of people streaming out of the nearby shops got larger by the minute. By now, my mom's phone would probably have started ringing. She'd call me soon. I took a deep breath when I saw the cruiser arrive and straightened my shoulders. If police departments had a frequent use programs like airlines, I'd have executive status with them by now.

Two uniforms were assessing the damage; thankfully I didn't know their names. Thank God for small favors. They asked to see my registration and proof of insurance and at that point, I had to take deep breaths to stay calm. Why the hell did it matter if I had insurance when somebody shoots the hell out of my window? The breathing wasn't working, but before I could explode, a hand settled at the back of my neck. Ranger. Just in time, as usual. A few minutes later and the whole Burg would talk of me screaming at the cops for days.

"Babe," Ranger said and nudged me back towards the office, "I'll handle this. Why don't you wait inside?" He signaled Lula and she took one look at me and understood. "Wait inside," Ranger said again, this time to Lula. I was torn between protesting because I was quite capable of taking care of myself, thank you very much, and being grateful because Ranger was saving me from public humiliation.

In the end, Lula won by taking my arm and pulling me back into the office just as Ranger took over the interview with the uniform.

"Hunh," Lula said when we were back inside, "I thought they caught that guy and it was all cool now." I nodded numbly, "Yep."

"Then who would shoot your car? Maybe it was a coincidence?" I looked up and Lula's eyes met mine. She shrugged, "Yeah, I know, but it could be this one time, don't you think?"

I'd lost faith in coincidence a long time ago; maybe it was when my second or third car blew up. No, this was more than likely a planned attack. What bothered me most about it was that it was clearly supposed to scare me, like a first warning. My car had been sitting at the curb for at least twenty minutes; they knew no one was inside. "I hate my life!" I blurted out. I hadn't planned to say that out loud.

Lula sat down next to me and surprised me by taking my hand. "I know it looks pretty bad right now, but it's gonna get better," she said, "and I'm here for you if you need anything, you know that, right? Although it looks like someone's already taking good care of you…" She looked back out the window where Ranger was still talking to the cop. I followed her gaze and nodded. Then I wondered where I'd be right now if it hadn't been for Ranger. Somehow I doubted very much Randy Briggs would have alerted the cops at any point. Teddy would have kidnapped me out of Atlantic City and that would have been the end of me. I shuddered at the thought and Lula turned her attention back to me.

"I know what you need," she said, "You need a gallon-sized margarita and a shoe sale at Macy's! Maybe not in that order, but that's what you need!" I had to agree. But the only thing I wanted right now was to crawl back into my bed. None of this would have happened if I'd stayed there in the first place.

I leaned back and closed my eyes. "So how're you doing, what's new?" I asked Lula, partly because I was interested and partly because I really needed a change of topic. And it worked, Lula went over her latest gig with her band The What, and how her mike had died so she had to scream to be heard over the music, and how Tank had been there to make sure she got off the stage and home safely. That led to details about her relationship with him, and I let it all wash over me, trying to listen without letting my mind wander.

I almost jumped when the front door opened and Connie came in. "They think they can release your car after they're done looking for prints and such," she said. "What prints?" I asked, "They shot the window out."

Connie nodded, "Yeah, but they also left you a couple presents. Those they wanted to examine, but Ranger told them he'd take care of it."

Oh joy, presents. I've come to loath that word, because in my life, they more often than not meant sick stuff. Like a guy sawed in half on my couch, or a rose and a carnation with a cryptic note.

Connie helped herself to a donut and sat back down at her desk. A large pile of files sat next to her monitor, and I knew they were outstanding FTA's. And I knew that if I wanted to keep my job, I should really show some interest and take care of at least a few. But I couldn't motivate myself enough to do it.

"So I can drive home when they're done?" I asked Connie. She shook her head no, "Ranger said he's gonna have your car picked up and take you home." Just as well, I thought and leaned back.

"I know this is all some serious shit you've been through," Lula said, "but at least you have Ranger to take care of you now that…" I didn't have to open my eyes to know that she was biting back the rest of the sentence because Connie had sent her a glare. And I knew what she was going to say. Now that Joe was gone. She was right, of course, but it still hurt. And besides, Ranger had been taking care of me for a long time now, if I was honest with myself, it wasn't a new development.

As if on cue, the door opened and Ranger entered. "You ready to leave, Babe?" He asked and I reluctantly opened my eyes. "Sure," I just said and got up. "Connie, can you call me when Vinnie gets back? I need to talk to him about this before he makes his final decision." Big words. I had no idea what to say to Vinnie, I couldn't argue with any of his reasons.

"You got it," Connie said, "Take care of yourself first." I smiled at her, said goodbye to Lula and followed Ranger outside.

The crowd outside had dispersed somewhat, now that the cops were wrapping up, but a group of people stood outside the deli and took it all in. No doubt to report it all back to the Burg grapevine, as usual. I tried to keep my eyes down and not look at my car.

Ranger had put his hand on the small of my back and was gently leading me over to his parked SUV. At the sound of my name, I turned around. "Steph? Hold on a second," Thomalla shouted and jogged over. "I got called because this may tie in with the case," He waved in the general direction of my car, "How're you doing? I know you didn't get hurt, but are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine Frank," I replied, "Do you really think it could be the same guys that…that…you know?" I couldn't bring myself to repeat any of the accusations from the day before. He shook his head slowly, "Personally, I don't believe so. But if you have any ideas who might be responsible for this, let me know."

When I didn't respond he reached out to touch my arm, "I'm really sorry about your car, Steph." I nodded, "It's not the first one to get attacked."

Thomalla smiled, "You must be hell on your insurance company!" Ranger snorted at that and I shot him a glare. "It's never my fault," I said.

"I know," Thomalla said, "My insurance company never cares about that though. Let me know if I can help you out, there may be a car in the impound lot that's coming up for auction…"

"Thanks, Frank, but this time my car didn't blow up. I can get it fixed and drive it again," I said. And even if my car hadn't been drivable, I wasn't sure I wanted some old clunker from the lot. But it was still a nice offer.

"I have to get back to finish up," Thomalla said, "You have my number in case you need anything." I could feel Ranger's hand on my back stiffen slightly, but he didn't' say anything. "I do," I said, "Thanks Frank."

Thomalla smiled and turned back towards my car. "I'll have his check run now," Ranger said and opened the SUV's passenger side door for me.

We were both silent on the drive to my apartment. I was glad Ranger didn't need to ask, he knew I wanted to go home.

"How did you know?" I asked him when we got out of the car in my parking lot. He raised an eyebrow at me; probably he'd changed channels on his ESP and couldn't read my mind, "How did you know about the car? Police scanner?"

A half-smile appeared, "Tank called as soon as he saw. There's an old saying, Babe: Trust is good, control is better. I made sure you were safe when I couldn't be there." He put his arm around my neck and pulled me close to kiss my hair. I knew I should have been furious, but I couldn't be mad at him. Come to think of it, he would have reason to be upset with me as well, he had asked me to stay at home, but didn't seem to be.

"What did they see?" I asked as we waited for the elevator. "They have the make and model of the car, along with the plates. I gave it all to the cops. But I'd bet the car was stolen anyway," Ranger said, "Tank said the guy was out of the getaway car for less than a minute, not enough time for them to get into position and catch him. They followed the car but he lost him in an underground garage." I tried to read the look in his eyes, but he was wearing his blank face. This was exactly how Scrog had managed to get away. I shuddered involuntarily. I had been honest with Thomalla, I didn't know who'd shot at my car, not by name. But I knew they were part of Teddy's team, there was no doubt in my mind.

When we got off the elevator, I let Ranger take the lead. He took the key from me wordlessly and drew his gun while I leaned against a wall and waited. I doubted there was anyone in my apartment, I was more afraid of the anything that could be lurking.

Ranger gave the all clear a minute later and I sighed in relief. I dumped my bag in the foyer and proceeded to Rex's cage to feed him. I dropped a couple raisins and a carrot into his food dish and watched as the pine shavings started moving almost immediately. Rex is a lot like me, we usually get up for good food.

I looked up to find Ranger leaning against the doorjamb, his arms crossed over his chest, watching me. A smile played around his lips and his eyes were soft.

"Maybe you should consider a surveillance system so that you always know when someone comes too close to your hamster," he joked and I sent him a grimace. "Rex can take care of himself," I assured him and went into the kitchen to make some coffee.

"So…" I started, my back to Ranger as I was watching the coffee drip. "Do I want to know what the presents were?"

"I should have known Connie would tell you," Ranger said and I could feel him shake his head in exasperation. I turned to face him, "You mean you wouldn't have?" I asked and quirked an eyebrow at him. When he didn't respond, I knew it was bad. "What was it? A note?"

Ranger nodded almost imperceptibly, "That too."

"What did it say?" I knew Ranger was only trying to protect me, but since I knew there had been more than the smashed window, it was a futile effort. He knew I had to know.

"Ave Stephanie, morituri te salutant," Ranger almost whispered. "Huh?" I asked eloquently, "What language is that and what does it mean?"

Ranger pushed himself off and walked past me, took two mugs out of the cabinet and filled them with coffee. I automatically got milk out of the fridge and added it to both mugs.

"It's Latin," Ranger explained, "And what it says literally is not as concerning as what it could mean."

I frowned at him, "Why don't you start by telling me what it means in English and we take it from there?"

Ranger stirred his coffee, obviously searching for the right words. Holy shit, what the fuck did it mean?? I touched his elbow to make him look at me.

"Those who are about to die salute you," he said tonelessly. I swallowed. "Okay," I tried to reason, "So either someone totally loco or someone who's going to kill himself and wants to say goodbye?" I was really hoping it was the latter.

Ranger chuckled low in his throat and brushed his fingers over my cheek, "Yeah, those are the only two explanations, nothing to worry about." Probably Ranger would never fully appreciate the value of denial.

"All right then," I challenged him, "What's your suggestion?" Ranger brushed his lips against mine, then he pulled back and retrieved his coffee, and I followed him into the living room.

"It's what gladiators said to the emperor just before they started fighting," Ranger explained when we were both sitting on my couch. "So we're talking about a 'Gladiator' fan here, clearly door number one, the loco." I said and I really wanted to believe myself.

"Yeah, I wish it were that easy, too. Loco como un cencerro," he drew circles against his temple with his index finger and I didn't need a translation, "What bugs me is that it could be one or more 'locos' who have made you their prey."

"Do you think they're Teddy's friends?" I asked and tucked my legs under me. I took a sip from my coffee and tried to come up with any other explanation.

"Don't know," Ranger admitted, "We could be lucky and this is a new stalker." He smiled but I didn't think it was funny. I'd had way more than my share of stalkers and if I lived the rest of my live without another, I wouldn't complain.

Ranger pushed a loose strand of hair out of my face and locked eyes with me, "Whoever it is, I'll take care of him," he promised. I leaned in until our foreheads touched and sighed.

"That was the note. What was the present?"

Ranger pulled back and cupped my face in his hands, "This, you really don't want to know."

"I do!" I protested. "You first," Ranger said, "What is it you need to talk to Vinnie about?"

I waved it off, "That can wait, what else was in my car?"

"That can wait too," Ranger said and lowered his lips to mine.

Loco como un cencerro – completely crazy, crazy like a loon

TBC

A/N: So…do you think Ranger should tell Steph what else he found or keep protecting her? Would you want to know??