Disclaimer: Anything recognizable is owned by JE. I'm just borrowing them for a little while, but do I have to give Ranger back?

Chapter 2

It took Mary Lou until the second ring to come to the door. Just before she answered the door, we could hear her telling the boys to settle down and go to their rooms. When the door opened we were greeted by a smiling Mary Lou.

"Hey, Steph!" She said cheerfully. "Come on in! Did we have plans that I forgot about? I forgot to get a babysitter for the boys. Lenny and I told Mikey that we won't let him babysit his brothers until he turns thirteen." She explained to Joe, Ranger, and I as she led us into the living room.

"No…uh…we didn't have plans." I stammered.

My stammering must have put Mary Lou on alert, because she suddenly stopped walking and slowly turned around.

"Steph, what's wrong? Is there someone after you again? Is that why Joe and Ranger are with you?" She asked.

"No, Mary Lou. For the first time, I can honestly say that there is no one after Steph, at least not that we know of." Joe replied. "We actually came to talk to you."

"Oh…okay." Mary Lou said as she continued into the living room. Once she sat down on the couch, I sat next to her with Ranger on my other side. Joe sat in a navy wing-backed chair that was across from the couch. I noticed that Joe grimaced when he saw that Ranger was holding my hand.

"Where are my manners?" Mary Lou giggled. "Would any of you like some coffee? Steph, I have double fudge cake in the kitchen."

Joe, Ranger, and I all politely declined her offer.

"Alright, now you're starting to scare me." Mary Lou laughed nervously. "There has to be something seriously wrong if Steph is turning down my double fudge cake."

She was right. Mary Lou's double fudge cake could give my mom's and Ella's a run for their money.

Joe cleared his throat before he began. "Mary Lou, earlier we received a call down at the station from the Adams County Sheriff's Department."

"Really? Why? Lenny didn't mention that anything was wrong when he called me a few hours ago. Did something happen to his aunt or uncle? Is one of them in the hospital? I'm surprised Lenny didn't call me." She said with a voice on the edge of panic.

"Uh…Lenny's Aunt and Uncle are fine." Joe continued. "Mary Lou….there was an accident involving at Lenny at his aunt and uncle's farm."

Mary Lou stood up and began pacing across the living room floor. "Is he hurt? Is that why he hasn't called me tonight? Why didn't his aunt and uncle call me? They know the boys and I would want to be at the hospital with Lenny. It would have been easier to call me than to call the Trenton Police Department and have you deliver the message to me. Do you know which hospital Lenny is at?" Mary Lou glanced at the clock on the wall before she continued. "It's almost Danny and Tommy's bedtime. Steph, do you think that you mom would be willing to come over here and watch the boys so that you could go with me to the hospital in Pennsylvania. I know it's short notice, but it would probably be better to leave the boys here and I would rather not travel by myself."

"Mary Lou, I think you need to sit down." I gentle coaxed her as I tried to hold back my tears.

"Joe, is there something that you're not telling me?" She asked as she sat down next to me on the couch. I wasn't sure what to do, but I knew her world was about to flip upside down, so I used my free hand to hold hers.

"Mary Lou, I'm sorry to have to tell you this but I thought it might be better to hear from a friend. A piece of farming equipment, a bush hog, fell on Lenny. I talked to the sheriff's deputy on the phone. It looks like Lenny was reattaching the blade when something caused the tractor to roll forward. When the tractor rolled forward a piece of the bush hog fell on Lenny. When he didn't come in at dinner, his aunt got worried and so his uncle went down to the barn to look for him. His uncle was able to get the equipment off of him and attempted to perform CPR, but it was too late he was already gone." Joe explained.

"Noooo!" Mary Lou cried out. "I just talked to him this afternoon! He was fine when I talked to him!"

Mary Lou's outburst caused her boys to come running from their bedrooms and Tank, Bobby, and Lester to come running in from the outside.

"Mom?" Mikey questioned. "What's wrong?"

"Boys, I need you to do something for me. Could the three of you go to Mikey's room. I'll be in there in a minute." Mary Lou said as she tried to control her tears in front of her sons.

"Mom?" Tommy said as he looked nervously at Tank, Lester, and Bobby.

"Tommy, these men are Aunt Steph's friends. They won't hurt me." Mary Lou promised.

"If you're sure…" Tommy said, still unsure of why his home had been invaded by giant muscled men.

"Come on, guys." Mikey said with a look of confusion on his face, as he ushered his little brothers down the hallway towards his room.

Once Mikey's door was closed, Mary Lou laid her head on my shoulder and began to cry heavily. I cried with my best friend. While I tried to comfort her, I felt Ranger put his arms around me, supporting me. Bobby opened his medical bag and pulled out a syringe.

"Hold it! Don't come near her with that thing." I ordered. "Those boys in there are going to need their mother. You're not going to give her a sedative unless she asks for it."

"Okay, Bomber. I was only trying to help." Bobby replied, placing the syringe back into his medical bag.

"Are sure it was Lenny? Are you sure he's gone?" Mary Lou sobbed. "He was fine when I talked to him."

"When someone dies alone, it's standard procedure for a family member or friend to identify the body. His aunt and uncle confirmed it was Lenny." Joe explained.

"How…how am I going to go into that room and tell my boys that their father is gone? They're so young. How do I tell them that their father isn't coming back? That now they have to grow up without a father." Mary Lou cried.

"I know it's hard, but you have to tell them that while their father may not be here physically, he will still always be with them." Ranger said. "Tell them that Lenny will always be watching out for them."

"Steph, will you go in there with me to tell them. I…I can't do this by myself." Mary Lou said as she attempted to get her tears under control.

"I'll be with you every step of the way." I told her as we stood up and walked down the hall with Ranger following behind us. Before we went into Mikey's room, I turned to Ranger and said, "It would probably be best if you waited out here."

Ranger leaned over and kidded me just below my ear and said, "I plan on waiting in the hall, in case you need me."

"Thank you." I whispered back before following Mary Lou into Mikey's room.

Mary Lou walked over and sat on the edge of Mikey's bed. Mikey sat on her right side and Tommy sat on her left. Danny climbed into his mother's lap. I decided to stand off to the side, a few feet away.

"Mom, what's going on? Why are Mr. Morelli and all of Aunt Steph's friends here?" Tommy asked.

"You guys know how daddy goes to Uncle Bernie and Aunt Gloria's every year to help on the farm?" Mary Lou asked with a shaky voice. I could tell that she was doing her best not to cry in front of her boys. I watched her as she tried to be strong for her boys, caused tear to flow freely from my eyes.

"Yeah, Mommy." Danny said. "Usually we go with Daddy, but this year we stayed with you."

"That's right, you did." Mary Lou said with a small, sad smile. "Well, there was an accident at Uncle Bernie's farm."

"Did Dad get hurt? Is that why everybody is here?" Mikey asked.

"Yeah Mikey, it is. The accident was really bad and your Daddy died tonight." Mary Lou explained with tears rolling down her face.

Mikey and Tommy began crying. I decided to sit on the other side of Tommy, placing my arm around him.

Danny looked at his mother and brothers in confusion. Danny was barely six years old and hasn't fully grasped the concept of death yet. "So when is Daddy coming back?" He asked.

"Baby, God needed Daddy to come live with him, so Daddy is going to live in Heaven from now on." Mary Lou explained.

"Can't you call him and tell him that we don't want him to move?" Danny cried.

"It doesn't work that way, Baby. It was Daddy's time to go to Heaven." Mary Lou told Danny.

We sat with the boys for close to an hour, mostly hugging and crying. Occasionally, one of the boys would ask a question and Mary Lou would try to answer in a way that the boys could easily understand. Mostly we cried silently. Eventually Ranger opened the door and quietly called me over.

Ranger closed the door behind us and said, "Ella dropped off our bags and some breakfast casseroles and fruit for breakfast in the morning. Do we need to call anyone for Mary Lou?"

"Both of Lenny's parents died a few years ago. Mary Lou's dad isn't in the best of health. I'll ask her if she wants us to call them tonight or if she wants us to wait until in the morning." I explained. Mary Lou was a late in life child and her parents are older than mine.

"Ella also brought some herbal tea for Mary Lou. She thought that it would be better than giving Mary Lou a sedative." Ranger said.

"Thank you for doing all of this for Mary Lou." I said hugging him. I think I took him off guard because it took a couple of seconds before he hugged me back. He's not used to me initiating contact.

"Babe, you know that there's nothing I wouldn't do for you. Mary Lou's is your best friend, so of course I want to help. Do you think someone should call your mom? She'll probably want to help." He asked.

"I'll probably never hear the end of it if I don't call her tonight, but let's wait until in the morning. If we start calling people tonight, everyone in the 'Burg will show up here tonight. I don't think that Mary Lou needs to go through that tonight. If she says otherwise, then we can make calls. I'm surprised that people aren't ringing the doorbell or calling to try to find out what's going on." I told him.

"Joe went through the house and turned all the ringers off of the phones. I have Tank, Lester, and Bobby hanging out on the front porch to discourage anyone from ringing the doorbell." Ranger explained. "Joe left a few minutes ago. He said that if anyone needs anything to give him a call. Tank, Bobby, and Lester will leave in a little while."

Mikey's bedroom door opened and Mary Lou and the boys came out. She asked Mikey to help his brothers get ready for bed while she spoke with me and Ranger.

"The boys want to stay in my room tonight. Would you mind staying tonight? I may need a shoulder to cry once the boys are asleep." Mary Lou asked me.

"I had already planned on staying. Ranger asked earlier if you would mind it if he stayed on the couch tonight. Is that okay?" I asked.

"Tommy and Danny have twin beds in their room. I put fresh sheet on this afternoon. Ranger your feet will probably hang off the bed, but it would be more comfortable than the couch." Mary Lou offered.

Ranger nodded that the bed would be fine.

"Do you want me to call your Mom tonight?" I asked her.

"Oh my! I haven't even thought about calling my mother. Could you call her, but tell her that I can't come get her until the morning. I don't want to leave my boys tonight. She never learned to drive and I don't want Dad trying to drive tonight." She explained.

"I can send one of my men over to pick them up in the morning, if that's okay?" Ranger offered.

"I would really appreciate that Ranger. I'm going to get the boys settled in my room. Once they're asleep, I'll join you in the living room." Mary Lou told us.

While Mary Lou helped the boys, I called her mother and told her about Lenny and to expect one of Ranger's men to pick them up in the morning. All they needed to do was call me when they were ready. Ranger and I took turns using the guest bathroom to get ready for bed. When all was said and done it was almost 11 p.m. and Mary Lou still hadn't come out of her bedroom. I peaked in to check on her and she was asleep with Tommy on one side and Danny on the other. Mikey was lying across the foot of the bed. Today had taken a lot out of her, so I left the door to her room cracked so I could hear if they needed me during the night.

When I got back to the living room Ranger was on the phone. He was wearing black lounge pants and a black t-shirt that looked like the sleeves had been ripped off. In other circumstances, I would have been drooling. I motioned to him that I was going to bed. He nodded as he continued to his conversation in hushed tones.

I decided to crawl into the closet bed, but I couldn't fall asleep. Instead, I laid there silently crying. My heart was breaking for my best friend. About ten minutes later, I felt the mattress dip.

"It's just me." Ranger said has he placed my back against his chest.

It probably wasn't a good idea for Ranger to be in bed with me.

"Don't worry, Babe. If one of the kids gets up during the night, I'll hear them and move to the other bed." He told me.

"I wish that there was more that I could do to help her." I whispered.

"Babe, just the fact that you're here is helping her more than you could ever imagine." He whispered back before placing a kiss in my hair.

I finally was able to fall asleep with Ranger's warm, comforting arms around me.