Life for One
Chapter 10
I heard glass shattering, and felt the shards piercing my skin. But my eyes never left hers as I lunged toward her. Time stood still as the cold fear of the gunfire erupting all around us registered in her eyes. I felt the breath escape her body as I knocked her backwards and landed on top of her on the terrace. I heard a sickening crack as her head hit the ground and she lost consciousness. I covered her with my body as the shots pelted the ground all around us. Gathering her in my arms, I dragged her over to the set of stainless steel cabinets under the gas grill. I opened the door and shoved her inside, and placed my hand on her neck relieved to feel the steady beat of her pulse. My eyes slid to the French doors and I couldn't see Ella or Luke. All that was visible was Luke's empty over turned high chair on the kitchen floor. I drew my gun and rolled onto my back. I crawled over to my cell phone lying on the terrace a few feet away and picked it up. I started to dial Woody at the front gate when I heard a voice on the other end. I put the phone to my ear.
"Brewster?"
"Ah, I see you survived Manoso, prepare yourself for the next move in the game."
"End this now. Tell me where and when."
"Is Mrs. Morelli still alive?"
I gritted my teeth. "Yes."
"My man wasn't so lucky, but it's for the good of the cause." He said.
I saw Woody running across the lawn toward me.
"Meet with me Brewster, end this now."
"Patience Manoso, I have calculated the days until your demise. You have no control."
"You won't win." I said.
He laughed. "I've already won."
"Give me a time and a place Brewster." I said.
"There will be a face to face meeting I promise you." He disconnected.
I looked at Woody as I stood up. "Where's the shooter?"
"He's not going anywhere he's outside the fence line." He said.
"How the hell did he get past you?" I growled.
"He surprised me from behind."
"Go inside and check on Ella and Luke." I said.
"You need an ambulance." He said.
"I knocked Stephanie out when I took her to the ground. She'll be fine."
"I'm not talking about Stephanie, you've been hit."
I reached up and touched what I thought was sweat running down my face, but it was blood. I felt the top of my head and winced when I touched a flesh wound about 5 millimeters long running from the back of my scalp to my forehead.
"You're both lucky to be alive."
I saw Ella appear in the doorway to the kitchen holding Luke in her arms. Her face was white, and in her eyes was a total look of terror. Luke was holding a GI Joe doll and talking non-stop.
"Are you both okay?" I asked.
"We are fine, where is Stephanie?" She asked
I turned and walked over to the cabinets under the grill. I pulled the doors opened and scooped her up in my arms.
"Bring her inside." Ella said. I looked at Woody. "Call the police and Ram." He nodded and headed toward the front gate. I carried Stephanie inside and placed her on the couch, by that time she was coming around. Ella gave me a wet cloth and I placed it on her forehead. Stephanie's eyes fluttered open and she looked up at me.
"You've been shot." She said.
"Just a flesh wound." I answered.
She struggled to sit up in the couch. She spotted Luke playing nearby in the floor and I saw a look of relief cross her face. She looked back at me and I could see the internal struggle that she was battling. Her bottom lip trembled.
"Are we safe anywhere?"
"I need to get some things squared away with the police and then I'll get you and Luke to a safer location."
"He's not going to stop until he gets what he wants. You're a security expert and he has invaded your home."
"He may have the upper hand at this moment but I have men working around the clock. It's a matter of time before we catch him."
"I think we should stay here, and move Luke to a hidden location with Ella for a few days. I remain visible, obviously, he is after me. He has to make a mistake sometime."
"I will not use you as bait." I said.
"I can do this."
"You have twice as much at stake now. You have a son who needs you, and he's already lost one parent."
"So what's your plan? Wait around until he falls into your lap? We almost lost our lives today; you think by hiding me it's going to stop him?"
"Babe this discussion is closed. I will not jeopardize your life, not now, not ever."
I walked into the hospital room and had to smile. Tank was flat on his back with Lula hovering over him like a mother bear.
I walked over and bumped fists with him.
"How's it going man?"
He glanced at Lula and back at me. "I want outta here now."
"You know the doctor said you weren't ready. You just cool your jets big man." Lula said.
Tank looked at the bandage on my head. "What the fuck happened to you?"
"A little altercation with one of Brewster's men."
"The motherfucker is bad news; I think we might have met our match with this one." He said.
The scary part was I had been thinking the same thing for the last 48 hours. Brewster had it all, computer and security know how and the manpower to take me under.
"I just got word that we have one of his men in custody. Zero and Vince brought him in about 15 minutes ago."
"With a heavy hand the information you could extract could get you inside." He said.
"That's what I'm banking on."
"How's my girl holding up?" Lula asked.
"She's doing well, just antsy to help in anyway she can."
Lula smiled. "Like you expected something different from her?"
I smiled in return.
I looked at Tank. "Get well man I'll be in touch."
He looked ready to bolt. "I'll be outta here in the morning no matter what they say."
"You're not strong enough to work so you might as well be flat on your back here rather than at home."
"Fuck you man."
I smiled "Don't sweet talk me, it will get you no where."
An hour later, I walked into a safe house on the outskirts of Trenton. I made my way to the basement and found Zero and Vince pacing the floor in front of a holding cell. Inside was a short dark skinned man who was cursing and thrashing around on the floor with his hands cuffed behind his back.
I gave Vince a questioning look.
"He's been like that since we picked him off the dock. It's like he's high on something. The entire flight back here he screamed at the top of his lungs. I punched him; he went out for a few seconds and then shook it off. When he came to he was worse then before."
Zero glanced over at the cell and screamed. "Shut the fuck up already." He glanced back at me with a crazed look in his eyes. "It's so bad man that the next sound I've prayed to hear is a bullet going through my brain."
I fought back a smile as I walked over and opened the cell door. I kicked him over onto his back and picked him up by his shirt collar holding him off the ground in front of my face. I looked into his eyes and he instantly shut up.
"Do you know who I am?"
He nodded as I noticed a bead of sweat trickle down his forehead all the way to the tip of his nose. "I'm going to take the cuffs off you if you agree to cooperate with me. I'm going to ask you some questions and you'll give me the answers, if you try to bullshit me this is not going to end well. Any questions?"
"No man I got you loud and clear."
I led him over to a table in the corner of the room and Vince handed me the key to the cuffs. I unlocked them and he winced as he rubbed the circulation back in his wrists. I pushed him into the chair and leaned forward with both hands on the tabletop and looked into his eyes.
"Who are you?"
"Manuel Rodriquez."
"What are you to Brewster's operation?"
"Chief crew operator aboard Hitler's Revenge."
"How many vessels does Brewster have on the water?"
"He has ten but they are not all in operation everyday."
"What do you transport?"
He looked away from me and his knee started bouncing uncontrollably under the table.
"Answer the question."
He looked back at me. "If I answer all of your questions I'm still going to die."
"I've got plans for you, I can't promise what Brewster will do to you if you're caught but as long as you're in my custody I'll protect you."
"As soon as you're done with me I'm a dead man, so go ahead and kill me, my life is not worth shit anyway."
"That can be arranged but I promise you it will be a very slow and painful death. So your best bet is to answer the questions."
I saw the cold fear lighting his eyes. He was wrestling his options, and I could understand the desire to end a situation gone bad, I'd been there and done that.
He took a deep breath and looked at the floor. "Brewster is into war gaming. His entire life is played out as a game. He has an office on the main floor of the compound with a large screen on the wall; it reminds me of the grid you use when you play the game Battleship. He has marks labeled on the board and moves in between each mark in order for elimination. When a mark is eliminated, the light goes out and his next obstacle lights up and the game moves on like a precision oiled machine. I transport everything from stolen war memorabilia to ex cons that serve as his computer hackers. He is an extremely dangerous man, he's ruthless and nothing gets in the way of the object of the game at hand."
"How hard is it to get inside?"
He snorted and shook his head. "You got anything shy of an army to invade the compound and you're all dead. The place is as tight as Fort Knox, I'm not saying it can't be done, but I wouldn't advise it."
"Give an estimated head count of the number of men on the island at night fall."
"At the minimum at least 40, that's not counting the 5 men who patrol the waters around the island at all times."
Fuck. I wasn't expecting that high of a body count. I was anticipating a quick nighttime raid.
"What is the reason for that much man power?" I asked.
"He's building an army so to speak to carry out the game on a much larger scale. He is into borderline terrorist activities."
"How come the Feds haven't shut him down?"
"Because he's on to them before they even get into the ballgame. He has plants everywhere. Police departments, banks, art museums, you name it he has his finger in the pie."
"What do you know about his connections to RangeMan?"
"All I know is you are a mark and so is Morelli's widow."
"What about Morelli's son Luke?"
"His plan is to orphan the kid, he wants him to grow up with out parents the way he did. He's very bitter about losing his stepfather he was the only person who shared his dream of the game."
"Abruzzi was in on the game before his death?"
"Abruzzi was the founder of the game, and Morelli's wife has been a mark long before you took out Abruzzi. She picked up one of Brewster's good friends and confidants. The smuck never made it out of jail, someone got to him on the inside. Brewster blames Stephanie Morelli for his death."
"Do you know anything about who rigged the boat that Morelli was aboard when he died?"
He gave me a questioning look. "What do you mean?"
"Brewster didn't have the bomb planted on The Lucky Tide?" I asked.
"Not to my knowledge." He said.
"How far inside was Morelli before his death?"
"Brewster toyed with Morelli as part of the game; he knew Morelli was a cop from the moment he stepped on the island."
"So Morelli's days were numbered?"
"He disappeared from the island late one night and never came back, and then we got word he was taken out in an explosion."
"Do you know if he was hit before he left the island?"
"Have no idea."
"So what is Brewster's security expertise?"
"He has a few men that hack into any server in the country, it doesn't matter about encryption, fire walls or codes they can crack anything."
"Have you heard what way they invade the servers?"
"They have perfected a code breaker. They can crack any password out there, and in a matter of minutes they can destroy security on any building and wipe out every last cent in any bank account."
"What have most of these hackers done time for?"
"Most of them for identity theft, one of the guys' stole 50 million dollars as it was being electronically wired to a Swiss bank account."
"Did he do this for Brewster?"
"No but he's wiped out bank accounts more than once since he's been employed by Brewster."
"Do you know if he has a number of plans to take Stephanie Morelli out?"
"I know that your house is being watched by video feed inside and out. So he knows your every move."
Ram and I had been through every corner of the house and turned up nothing, the only logical explanation was he had hacked into my own surveillance equipment.
"Do you know a man by the name of Jax Alexander?" I asked.
"Never heard of him."
Zero gave me a questioning look; he and Jax were often partners and shared an apartment at one time when Jax first signed on at RangeMan.
I felt my cell vibrate on my hip and I looked up at Vince. "Lock him up; I need to take this call." Zero followed me out of the room. I turned and looked at him as I flipped open my phone. "Jax has past ties to Brewster, I'll explain later." I put the phone to my ear.
"Yo."
"Ranger its Mia, I got your voice mail."
"Are you in Boston?"
"I'm filling in for Bear here in Trenton, he had to leave town on some family business."
"I need you to meet me at RangeMan in about 30 minutes. I have a proposition for you." I said.
"I'll take a guess and say it's a business proposition."
I smiled. "You guessed right."
Thirty minutes later, I walked into the conference room at RangeMan. You could have heard a pin drop. Bobby and Lester sat on one side of the table with Stephanie. Ram was on the other side with Mia.
Shit.
I looked at Santos. "Report."
"Brewster got away with 2.5 mil in war memorabilia."
"Explain."
"It appears to be an inside job. He bought off a security guard that has worked for Sotheby's for twenty years."
"So what about the video feed covering the gallery?" I asked.
"They stopped the feed so it looked as if no one was in the gallery, but the timer on the recording continued to roll. He was in and out in seconds."
"So where were you knuckle heads when this went down?" I asked.
Brown shot me a dirty look. "It occurred inside the vault before the stuff went on display this morning."
I pulled out a chair and sat down. Was there no one this guy couldn't get to?
I looked at Ram. "So what do you have on Jax?"
"I have a log of him signing on and just minutes later the system defaulted to some previous settings, I can remember the day it happened. We thought we had a glitch in the program, and I discovered the settings had defaulted, I thought the system had a power surge and reset the settings. Now I know differently."
"So in that time what did he manage to do?"
"My guess is he copied the contents of the main server along with codes to all our accounts and took them to a hacker who was able to decipher the encryption."
"So Brewster has total access to our main server anytime he wants?"
"I don't know that 100 but it would certainly make sense."
"What did you do to protect our holdings?"
"I met with Carl Edwards at Security Trust Bank; he moved all of our accounts and changed the passwords and name on the account. He said to give him a call and he would fill you in on the details."
"Okay we move on to plan B." I looked at Stephanie. I knew this plan would go over like a lead balloon but I had one of his men in custody and a shit load more information than I had two hours ago.
"Stephanie I want you and Luke to stay on the seventh floor here at RangeMan. I think this is the safest location for the both of you. I need you to stay inside for a couple of days. Mia has volunteered to stand in as your decoy. I have one of his men in custody and I'm going to use him as leverage." I braced myself for the barrage of objections, but none came. She sat staring at the tabletop with a blank expression on her face. She finally looked up at Mia and then slid her gaze toward me.
"I'll do whatever you want."
Her words felt like a knife twisting in my gut. That wasn't Stephanie, she appeared defeated.
"I need everyone to excuse us I need a word with Stephanie." Everyone silently filed out of the room except for Mia she touched my arm on the way out and looked at me. "I'll pack some things and meet you in your office." I nodded and she walked out. I looked at Stephanie she glanced up at me and slowly stood.
"Stephanie I know you don't agree with this arrangement."
"I have no right to disagree with anything you do. You're bleeding money to protect me and Luke; I want to make this as quick and easy as possible for you."
"Don't worry about the money." I said.
"But I do. I know you promised Joe you would look after us, but it's not your deal anymore."
"You were never a deal to me; I'm helping you because I care about what happens to you and Luke."
"But you don't trust me to do the job." She said.
"I won't risk your life."
"But you trust Mia enough to risk her life?"
"She mentioned it long before I even considered it an option."
"She would do anything for you; she's in love with you." She said.
"It's not like that." I said.
She stepped toward me and looked into my eyes. "Open your eyes, or is it the same way with her that it was with me. You see only what you choose to see. I know what she feels. Because she looks at you, the way I used to look at you. And God help me I probably still do."
"Babe."
"Ranger I married Joe because I thought it was right for my son, but that doesn't mean that I forgot what you meant to me. I loved Joe and probably always will, but a day didn't go by that I didn't dream of what it would have been like if Luke had been yours."
"But he's not mine." I said.
"No he isn't but you treat him as if he is. We've both moved on, and I'm in no way ready to be anything but a grieving widow trying her best to protect her son."
"I'm not asking you to be anything more." I said.
"Are you happy Ranger?"
"It's hard to be happy with the shit that's gone down in the last week." I answered.
"No I mean personally are you happy with Mia?"
"I care for her, but it's nothing serious."
"Does she know that?"
"She knows exactly where we stand."
Stephanie smiled. "You've never had any problem telling a woman what you don't want, that hasn't changed."
I smiled in return. "It is what it is Babe"
"I think she's good for you." She said.
"She's been an invaluable employee."
"I'm sure she is, but I was talking about the chemistry between the both of you, it's obvious you work well together and have a tremendous respect for one another."
"The way it was when we were partners." I said.
She smiled. "I'm glad you found someone Ranger."
"She's been a good friend."
She rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say."
I laughed and started out of the room when I heard her voice. I turned back to look at her.
"If you care for her don't hesitate this time, tell her."
I wanted to tell her that she was the only woman that I had ever wanted in my life, but even though he was gone, in her heart she still belonged to him.
"Nothing has changed, my life is meant for one and I like it that way." I said.
I looked up from the computer as Mia entered my office. I shoved the chair backwards and leaned back. "You all settled in?"
"Yes, in the guest bedroom as you requested." She looked a little miffed and I blew out a breath. I didn't feel like dealing with this shit right now.
"There was a time I was in your bed and you were fucking me but now that Joe Morelli is gone and you have another chance with her, I'm in the guest room." She said.
I was instantly pissed.
"Mistake on my part." I said.
"So now I'm a mistake?"
"We should have never happened." I said.
"So I guess it's done then." She said.
"If it is uncomfortable for you to stay here I'll take you back to RangeMan right now and we'll forget about the plan."
I could see the cold anger in her eyes. "I said I would do this and I will. I felt like I needed to say something about us before it's too late."
I rubbed my hands over my face and looked at her. "Before it's too late for what? It was never anything more than a physical act. I should have never become involved with you."
"Yeah but you did, and you have to admit I was some of the best you ever had." She said.
"Did I ever complain?" I asked.
"No but you didn't have too, I knew that I was a substitute for her."
"So why did you let it happen?"
"Because a part of me wanted to believe I could make you forget her."
"I'm surprised you even tried, since you think you know me so well."
She rolled her eyes. "Will you do me a favor?" She asked.
"What?" I asked.
"When you get your second chance with her, don't fuck it up. She'll never find anyone that is more devoted to her than you are."
"I'm not concerned with second chances I'm just focused on taking Brewster out."
"So I guess that means end of discussion and time for business. What's the plan?" She asked.
"I don't need a plan I anticipate him contacting me."
"So what do you think of my disguise?"She asked
I smiled as I took in the curly hair paired with jeans and t-shirt. "It's so close it's scary."
"But not enough to make you pretend I'm her?" She asked.
"Not even close." I said.
She stood up and looked at me across the desk. "I left some things in the car I'm going to get them and then turn in for the night."
"I'll see you in the morning." I said.
I watched her walk through the office door and I sighed. She was a good woman, but in my mind, Stephanie was better, and there was no changing that.
I did some research on Jax Alexander; I couldn't find anything to substantiate his life before he worked in Newark. I glanced at the time on the corner of the computer screen and realized it was getting late. I logged off and pushed away from the desk. I walked into the hallway and noticed the door to the guest room was open, but Mia wasn't inside. I couldn't recall hearing more than one audible tone from the security system when she went out to the garage to retrieve her things. I made my way downstairs and opened the door. The garage door was up but I remembered closing it earlier. The Cayenne's hatch was open and the lights were on inside, but Mia was nowhere to be seen. I walked down to the end of the drive and Manny wasn't at the front gate.
What the fuck?
I flipped open my cell phone and dialed Manny's number.
"Hello."
"Manny where the fuck are you?"
I heard a laugh at the other end of the line and I felt my jaw tighten.
I heard Brewster's voice. "Manny can't talk right now, he is incapacitated."
"Where is Stephanie?"
"Oh she's right beside me, the game is proceeding right on schedule, and it's been a very productive day. Have a nice evening Carlos."
And the line went dead.
Thirty minutes later, I walked into the safe house and made my way to the basement. Zero looked up at me in surprise. I grabbed the keys to the holding cell and unlocked the door. Rodriquez's eyes were darting warily from me to Zero. He was sitting on the floor when I walked over to him.
"Get up."
He quickly jumped up. I grabbed his arm, pulled him out of the cell, and pushed him in the chair by the table. I was barely holding my frustration in check, I needed answers and he had to provide them.
He looked up at me.
"Does Brewster have a operation based in Trenton when he isn't on the island?"
"Not that I'm aware of."
I grabbed him by the neck and jerked him out of the chair.
"I need to know any locations where he conducts business in or around Trenton."
"I know he has a warehouse he uses for storage but I have no idea where it is."
"Is it near the waterfront?"
His face was turning a pretty shade of purple I slowly sat him back in the chair and he slumped forward gasping for air.
"Man…I told…you…I don't…know."
"Do you know if he has a residence in Trenton?"
"I'm sure he does but he wouldn't tell me if he did." He said.
"Tell me his contacts in Trenton, anyone he does business with?"
"The only person I know is Harold the hack."
"Who?"
"Harold Bailey is an ex con that flops in Trenton most of the time, he could tell you anything you need to know about Brewster."
"Where can I find him?"
"He lives in a flop house off Stark Street. I think it's called Beds but no Bugs."
"Anyone else?"
"I know others but no names to go with faces. The less I know about people the better."
I glanced at Zero as I walked toward the door. " I'll be in touch."
I walked into the control room at RangeMan. Ram looked up at me and I noticed the lines of fatigue around his eyes. He looked as tired as I felt. "You have anything for me?"
"Santos and Brown had no luck finding Harold Bailey. He left the flop house a couple of days ago."
I noticed a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
"Explain?"
"Santos is freaking out. They searched the room Harold rented and Lester has been itching since they left the place. He swears he has lice, he said nothing short of a body condom would save him in that place."
"So have you found anything on the surveillance tape from the house?"
"I have a black Suburban pulling up in front of the house, They used a dart gun on Manny and nabbed Mia in the garage. She put up a hell of a fight."
"No license plate number visible?"
"No the vehicle was at the wrong angle to view the plate." He said.
"You hack into vehicle registrations for Brewster?"
"I'm working on it now."
"Call me if you find anything."
"You staying at the house tonight?"
"I'll probably crash in my office. I want to view the tape. " I said.
He nodded and I headed down the hall to my office. I stopped when I reached the elevator. I shook my head and continued down the hall. But I knew that I wouldn't think worth a damn if I didn't go see her. I retraced my steps and punched the button. I stepped on when the doors opened and pointed the key fob at the control panel. The elevator climbed to seven. I stepped inside the apartment and no lights were on except a dim light from the bedroom pooling onto the living room floor. I walked over to the bedroom and entered the sitting area to the bedroom. I saw Luke sleeping in a crib near the couch. I hesitated then walked into the bedroom. Stephanie was walking out of the bathroom. Her hair was wet and she was wearing a bathrobe.
She jumped when she saw me.
"Oh my God you scared me."
"Sorry." I said.
"What are you doing here?"
I didn't want to tell her what had gone down, but I knew it was now or in the morning and the only difference was a matter of time.
"I needed to touch base with Ram."
"And you couldn't do that by phone?" She asked.
I ran a hand through my hair and looked at the floor. I was frustrated and tired, my mind was fried and I was in the wrong place with the right person.
She stepped toward me and put a hand on my arm.
"Ranger what happened?"
Leave it to her to read my thoughts.
"Mia and Manny were abducted from the house earlier tonight."
Her face blanched. "How, were you there?"
"I was upstairs in my office. Mia went out to the garage to get some of her things out of the car."
"Why weren't you with her?"
"Because I didn't think with the garage door closed and her still inside the house that anything could happen to her."
She backed up and sat down hard on the end of the bed. "Oh my God this is all my fault."
"Stephanie this was a risk of the plan, nothing is your fault."
She stared into space as she spoke. "How many more times am I going to screw up your life?"
"Babe what are you talking about?"
"I destroyed any chance of us being together and now I've possibly ruined any chance of you making a life with Mia."
I knelt down in front of her and looked into her eyes. "You've never ruined anything, I ruined us and there's nothing between Mia and me."
"That's not true, I know you care for her. I'm sorry, you must be losing your mind with worry."
"I'm worried for her well being and Manny's, but I'm not in love with her."
"But it's not fair to her; she risked her life for me, why?"
"Because she knows what you mean to me, and that's the kind of person she is."
"You told her that you still care for me?"
"I didn't have to, she knew."
Her eyes lowered to my lips and her tongue darted out of her mouth tracing her bottom lip.
I came undone.
I pushed her backwards on the bed as she fisted her hands in my hair. My mouth found hers as my hands slipped inside the neck of her robe. I palmed her breasts and tore my mouth from hers dipping my lips to cover the rigid peak of her nipple. She moaned as she writhed beneath me. She pulled my shirt from the waistband of my cargos and skimmed her hands up my back. I untied the belt around her waist and it clicked in my mind how wrong this was. I slowly slipped away from her and sat up on the end of the bed facing away from her. I stood up and turned to look at her. She had pulled the robe back on and was sitting in the middle of the bed staring into space.
"Stephanie I'm sorry I had no right…"
"Ranger it's okay. We both know that no matter what we feel it's not the right thing to do."
"I need to get downstairs. I'll check on you in the morning." I said.
She gave me a slight smile. "If I can do anything at all let me know."
"I will, get some rest."
"I'm not the one who needs rest; you look ready to fall over." She said.
"I'm fine."
She winked at me. "Well that's beside the point."
I felt my phone vibrate on my hip and I pulled it out of the holder and flipped it open.
"Yo."
"Manoso what kind of shit are you trying to pull? I have a woman here who is not Stephanie Morelli. You have 24 hours to produce Stephanie at a location of my choice or your hired man and Miss Mia will die." I heard a scream and the line went dead.
I flipped the phone closed and looked at Stephanie.
"That was him wasn't it?"
I nodded.
"What did he say?"
"He knows that Mia is an imposter."
"What does he want?"
"I have to go. Get some rest Babe." I started toward the door and she grabbed my arm. I turned and looked at her.
"He wants me. I'm getting dressed and coming with you." She said.
"Stephanie I'm not handing you over to him."
"Then we need a plan and this time I'm going to be involved, so deal with it."