Ranger glared at the road ahead of him as he leant back in the passenger seat.
Tank, his right-hand man, was driving a Rangeman van and had just picked him up after his plane had landed.
"Vlakto's guys were that bad, eh Boss?" He asked. "Though you look you don't give a damn."
Ranger glanced at him and made a small smirk. "I did what I had to do. It's over now. No more terror plots from the Russians who give their county a bad name."
He closed his eyes and breathed out a silent sigh. The vile images still plagued his mind.
When he was informed about Vlakto's associates, he expected sadists cooking up plans similar to what had happened in Atlantic City.
But he had never anticipated finding what he could only describe as an underground concentration camp, filled with terrified young pregnant women and children.
He felt his blood boil when he remembered the terrified faces of the children working with dangerous chemicals and wiring, and some of the female captives, most of them were young expectant girls.
They were all born into slavery.
That's what the immoral place was: a slave breeding ground.
"I'm just fucking glad I gave what came to those bastards." Ranger growled.
"You didn't give me the whole story." Tank said without looking at him. "Talking helps."
He gave him a nod before taking in a deep breath. "Vlakto's men had kidnapped children for work and young women and girls either for reproducing or just sex. Most of them weren't even Julie's age."
Tank murmured something inaudible.
"Exactly," Ranger agreed. "We discovered they were using child slavery to make resources for weapons and bombs. The youngest were barely 4 years old."
He shook his head as the memories rewound themselves before his mind's eye. "I don't know what was worse when we raided the place. What we saw or hearing the screams of the girls being raped."
Tank patted his shoulder. "You did good Manoso. You brought them to justice and I bet the Russian Government will give their asses a hell of a whoopin'!"
Ranger made a small smile.
"Anyway, concentrate on what really matters now. Ya Babe is waiting for ya. Have you got what ya need?"
He patted his right pocket. "Yep. Thanks again for bringing over."
"No problem, Boss."
Although he made no physical signs of showing it, warmth evolved in his chest at the thought of seeing Stephanie again.
He hadn't seen her in almost 7 months and it still tortured him that he couldn't keep in touch with her. She probably went through more than he did.
Tank was driving him to her apartment now despite it being 3am. He couldn't wait to unlock her front door, climb into her bed to wrap her sleeping from in his arms and hold her close to him. He prayed he'd never have to be apart from her for so long ever again.
In what felt like a lifetime, Tank finally dropped him off at the apartment building where Ranger took the stairs 2 steps at a time. He reached her door and picked the locks with ease before quietly inching it open. He walked in and was surprised to see the television was on, flashing previews of sitcoms and trailers.
The blaring light outlined a sleeping figure on the sofa. Ranger smiled and silently turned on a nearby lamp.
Underneath a patchwork quilt, Stephanie lay fast asleep with her curls tied back in a braid. He knelt down next to her and stroked her cheek with his thumb as he caressed her face before placing a kiss on her sweet lips.
"I'm home, Babe." He whispered.
He got up, opened her bedroom door before turning the TV off and, with the desire of wanting her in his arms starting to overwhelm him, he went back to her side intending to carry her to her bed.
But when Ranger carefully pulled away the quilt, he froze.
At first, he thought he was hallucinating - thinking his mind was deceiving him after the despicable events in Russia.
He blinked a couple of times; shook his head even.
But he quickly concluded that he wasn't seeing things at all as he stared at her swollen stomach; a patch of skin poking out between the white sleeveless top and pink flannel pyjama pants.
Ranger shook his head slowly.
Was Stephanie really pregnant with his child?
Of course she was!
She would never betray him like that. She even made sure that their last night together was filled with all the love and passion they had.
But she said it was a safe time…
Ranger didn't ponder on that thought. He was no expert on the female anatomy.
Careful not to wake her up, he slid one arm behind her back and the other under her knees. With a little more effort than usual, he carried her into the bedroom and lay her down on the bed before going back into the living room to retrieve the quilt and placed it over her.
After staring at her peaceful silhouette for a few heartbeats, Ranger emptied his pockets onto a nightstand, stripped down to his boxers, lay beside her and took her into his arms before leaving a kiss on her forehead as he drifted off into a quiet slumber.
Stephanie was still asleep when the morning sun beams spilled into the room so Ranger took the time to gaze at her peaceful state, propped up on one elbow.
He smiled when he noticed his gold earring he had left with her, hanging on a golden chain around her neck but frowned when he remembered what he had discovered.
Without disturbing her, he gently pulled the quilt away enough so he could see her swelled stomach.
Ranger couldn't help but feel somewhat of a hypocrite after what he had hoped for the bastards in Russia to suffer as their punishment.
But then again, he never intended Stephanie to get pregnant nor did he force her in to anything.
In fact, it was her idea - she had wanted it. It was how she wanted to spend their final hours together before he left Trenton.
The guilt tugging at his heart-strings eased slightly when he banished the unwanted thoughts which were quickly replaced with the realisation that he was going to be a father for the second time.
Ranger wasn't proud that he had already fathered a daughter he barely saw with his ex-wife, but he knew he helped a lot to provide for her as well as giving her his name - unlike many so called men who didn't even lay eyes on who they brought into the world.
He placed a hand on Stephanie's stomach.
A little bump nudged at his fingertips, making him blink in surprise and recoil slightly with his fingers skimming over her skin.
It kicked…
A grin slowly spread across his lips as Ranger pressed his palm where he had felt the little foot inside.
It kicked again…
And again…
And again…
"Couldn't you wait until noon?" Stephanie moaned groggily. "It's too early…"
Ranger smirked. "El bebé must get that from me."
"No kidding." She sighed.
Her blue eyes snapped open suddenly and locked onto his; gaping at him in disbelief.
"R-Ranger?" Stephanie whispered.
She hesitantly reached out and stroked his face with her fingertips. Ranger placed his hand over hers with a warm smile before kissing it. "Babe."
Tears slid down cheeks as she threw herself into his arms. She clung on to him; burying her face against into his shoulder while breathing out shaky sobs.
Holding her close to him, Ranger sat them both up while calmingly rubbing her back.
After a few minutes, Stephanie took a few deep breaths and looked up at him with a small smile. "When did you get back?"
"Last night. Tank dropped me off after the plane landed." He smiled back but his eyes fell to her stomach. "Babe, I-"
"It's my fault!" She croaked, fresh tears falling. "I got the dates mixed up. I was so stupid…I should have given up some time so we could have bought-"
Ranger silenced her by placing a finger on her lips. "Shhh, Babe. You didn't get pregnant by yourself. I'm glad I got back in one piece so you won't have to go through everything else on your own."
He placed a kiss on her forehead and she leant against him.
"Lula and Connie have been looking after me." Stephanie sniffed. "They've been great too. Joe came over as well and said to call him if I needed anything."
She took another deep breath as she wiped away some stray tears. "Apart from the hospital, nobody else knows. Not even our families or friends or the guys at Rangeman. I haven't seen anyone for 6 months because I'm sure my mother would dis-own me if I have a kid out of wedlock or if you never came back from Russia."
"She has no reason to now. I'm sure your grandmother will be delighted, as will mine, and your dad…?" He shrugged. "But my sisters will be thrilled to know and they won't care about it being out of wedlock. Then there's Julie."
She smiled brightly. "I forgot about her! I didn't even realise she'd be a half-sister." Her grin faulted. "But I'm still worried about what my mother will think. Then there's the whole damn Burg who will be dying to know and gossip about it…"
He didn't answer straight away.
After holding her close to him for a few more moments, Ranger leaned towards his side of the bed and swiped his hand over the nightstand.
"Babe?" He asked, placing a hand on her stomach. "I have an idea."
"Hmm?" Stephanie mumbled, looking up at him with tired eyes.
"Until the baby is born, we'll keep it a secret. When the time comes to tell our families, we'll say we were engaged first before it was conceived but that we decided not to tell anyone I proposed to you because of my mission in Russia."
She stared at him thoughtfully. "That's a pretty good plan. But…" She held up her left hand. "We kinda need a ring…"
Ranger smirked. "Like this?"
He opened a small black box he held in the palm of his hand. Stephanie's mouth fell open as it revealed a gold banded ring topped with a heart cut tourmaline jewel between 2 smaller shaped peridots.
"Our birthstones…" She whispered, beaming at him.
He nodded. "I had it all planned out before I had to leave Trenton but all I could do was buy the ring," Ranger slid of the bed and knelt on the floor in front of her. "At least I can recite my speech."
Stephanie's eyes shone tear bright as he held her left hand in his.
"Stephanie Plum, I love you. Every moment when we're together, you make me want to be a better man. You are the reason why I realised I can love again and I want to spend the rest of my life with you by my side. Would you do me the honour, of making me the happiest man alive and be my wife?"
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she nodded eagerly with a growing grin. "Yes!" She breathed. "Yes I will, Carlos!"
The second Ranger slipped the ring onto her finger Stephanie threw her arms around his neck. Ranger gladly returned the embrace before they both leaned back to beam at each other and join their lips into a passionate kiss.
After they parted for breath, he looked at her stomach again and placed both his hands against it. "Usted es nuetro don de lo alto, pequeña."
Ranger's smile brightened as he felt a soft prod against the palm of his hand. He pressed his lips to it and looked back at Stephanie.
"What did you say?" She asked.
"You are a gift from above, little one." He replied warmly, kissing her bump again when he felt another kick.
Stephanie leant over and opened the draw of the twin nightstand to pull out a brown envelope. "I got scanned the other week and had a photo printed."
She pulled it out and handed it to him.
Ranger felt his heart swell as he gazed at the black and grey silhouette; able to make out a pair of tiny hands.
"Did they tell you what it is going to be?"
Her smile enlightened the love in her eyes as she nodded. "It's girl. Lula and Connie have already started searching for baby stuff for me."
Ranger held her gaze with an adoration coating his dark brown spheres as he sat beside her on the bed; placing an arm around her and resting his free hand on her front. "We should make them godmothers."
"Definitely."
"Have you thought of a name yet?"
Stephanie looked down at her stomach before resting her head against him and breathed out a happy sigh. "Yeah. Ricarda Michelina Manoso."
He laughed softly. "They sound like our names."
"Uh-huh." She grinned. "I had it all planned out."