This is the sequel to 'Living on a Prayer' I was threatening…and by its nature, it's AU, because Joe is still dead. He was killed in chapter 1 of LOAP. Other than that, I don't think you need to have read LOAP for it to make sense.

Disclaimer: All characters are borrowed from JE, the title is borrowed from Bon Jovi

Thank you all so much for your encouraging feedback, I wouldn't be able to continue without it. Me? Dropping hints? Naaaah...

Stayce, vielen lieben Dank for everything you do for me, for not laughing at my stupid mistakes, for never turning me down and for always being there fore me!

Keep the Faith

Chapter 9

Tank didn't blink. He looked at me calmly and got up. His intense stare reminded me so much of Ranger that I had to stifle a sob and sank back into the chair, covering my face with my hands.

"I'm sorry," I said and meant it. "None of this is your fault, I had to vent." I closed my eyes and counted to ten. It worked, I calmed down enough to stop crying.

"I know." Tank came around the desk and leaned against it, facing me, crossing his arms over his chest. "But you have to stop feeling sorry for yourself and start acting like you mean it."

I looked up at him to see if he was kidding, but there wasn't even the ghost of a smile on his face. Apparently, Tank was only Dr. Phil when he was behind the desk.

Still, he was right. I straightened in my chair. "I mean it."

Now Tank smiled. He had a beautiful smile that made it easy to understand what Lula saw in him. "Okay then. I think what's more important than Ranger right now is your life."

He turned and picked up a file from his desk. "A RangeMan company SUV was vandalized. The obvious first question is, did they mean to send a message to RangeMan or to you?"

Oh, that kind of action. I really didn't think I could focus on the SUV. I didn't think I'd be able to think about anything but Ranger, now that I'd open the flood gates, so to say.

"I don't think…" I started but Tank interrupted me. "Did you hear anything I said?" He asked.

I stood up because my neck was starting to hurt from looking up at him. I thought of the cheesy line 'My life is not important without him', but that wasn't true. My life was important. I just didn't see how someone destroying a car was threatening my life. Maybe I was jaded from all the cars blowing up around me.

"I heard you," I said. "But right now, I couldn't possibly care less about the fucking car!"

"But that's what I meant, Steph," Tank said patiently. "The only thing you can focus on is Ranger."

I scoffed. "I thought you wanted me focused on him." I crossed my arms over my chest defiantly.

He sighed. "I said I wanted you focused. I didn't say focused only on Ranger. Don't you get it?" He threw his hands up in the air and I flinched, I hadn't expected him to move. "If you get hurt because all you can think of is him, what conclusion do you think he draws from that?"

I opened my mouth to tell him I didn't give a shit about Ranger's conclusions when I realized what he'd meant. "That he is bad for me," I almost whispered.

Tank nodded.

"That he endangers me by being in my life, even if all I do is think of him and am not aware of my surroundings," I continued. Tank nodded again.

"Shit." I fell back into the chair, deflated. Tank was right. The irony was hilarious. I couldn't think straight because Ranger left me and he left me because he wanted to protect me and I only needed protection because all I could think about was him.

"Are you saying you have a plan?" I asked.

Tank grinned and picked the file back up. "Like I said, the obvious first question is, did they mean to send a message to RangeMan or to you when they destroyed that SUV?"

"Focus on work?" I guessed.

"Show him how independent you are. Show him you can take care of yourself," Tank clarified.

"But I'm not. And I can't. If you hadn't been there last night…"
"You still would have taken care of a notorious gunman all by yourself," Tank completed for me. "You can do a lot more than you give yourself credit for at the moment."

I didn't have the energy to argue any further, so I leaned against the chair I'd been sitting in and sighed.

"I have the guys working on possible enemies for both you and RangeMan, but you could speed this up if you could come up with a list," Tank came back to the subject.

Okay, I decided, it was worth a try. I took the folder from him and opened it. There was a RangeMan incident report, I knew that the police report would be faxed over later and photos would be added. "So this is a case? It was just a car, no one was hurt."

"Yet," Tank cautioned, sounding exactly like Ranger again. I studied the report and handed it back to him just as a loud knock on the door made me flinch.

"Think about that list," Tank said and straightened before he hollered, "Come in!"

The door opened and Lester poked his head through, grinning. "You two decent?"

I smiled for the first time that day and rolled my eyes. "I'll work on the list," I told Tank and left the office. The last thing I heard before I closed the door was Lester, "I found something that could be bad…"

Bob was waiting outside the office for me, probably Lester had entertained him until now. I told him what a good boy he was and he trotted after me when I got coffee from the kitchen and then sat down at my desk.

My inbox was full of background check requests and I decided doing a couple of them would distract me enough to start a list of potential enemies. Bob settled on his dog bed in the next cube and I went to work.

I knew Tank was standing behind me fifteen minutes later because he eclipsed all the overhead lights and my cube turned dark.

"Can I see you in the conference room?" He asked before I had fully turned around. "Why the…" I started but Tank had already left for the conference room and Lester was right behind him.

I knew I hadn't missed a meeting, nothing had been planned.

Junior and Bobby were already seated around the oblong conference table when I entered. Tank took a Ranger's chair at the head. He was in charge when Ranger was out of town.

Lester was sitting on his right and pulled out a chair for me. There were black and white pictures on the table, blown up to 8"X10", all showing my former car from different angles.

I'd had an uneasy feeling when Tank just summoned me to the conference room, now it was confirmed: the meeting was about me. And I was not going to like the news.

"Steph," Tank began when we were all seated. "We got some news that may help us identify who vandalized your car." He picked up the photos and handed them to me. "I think we can definitely put him on the shortlist of possible suspects."

I leafed through the pictures the cops had taken and sent over. I still couldn't see anything, and certainly not a signature. "Am I supposed to read the guy's name here?" I looked up and met Lester's eyes.

Lester was showing his blank face. I'd never seen a blank face on Lester. Now I was scared.

"Who is it?" I asked, looking from Lester to Tank to Bobby to Junior. They shifted their attention from me to Tank. Tank picket up a sheet of paper.

"Anton Ward was released on parole yesterday," he handed me the report. "And word is the Slayers are preparing for his triumphant return."

If I'd been standing, I would have collapsed. It was a good thing I was sitting down. I broke out in a cold sweat and my heart was beating way too fast. I didn't need to read the report to know what it said.

Anton Ward. The Red Devil robber, the member of the Slayers who Lula, Connie and I had kidnapped.

"How…" I began, but I knew the answer. Probably Anton had been a choir boy in prison, or he'd had a good lawyer. Or both. 'Piece of shit legal system', as Lula called it.

"Just great," I sighed. Because my life really didn't suck enough lately. It just figured that ghosts from the past would come back to haunt me. I'd closed that chapter when Ward went to prison, I'd tried to believe in our justice system.

Tank ignored my comment. "Ward is at the top of our suspect list," he said. I nodded.

"And I think until we get him or rule him out, you should stay here." Now the Merry Men nodded, but I just stared at Tank. And when his words sank in, I snapped out of my initial shock.

"You mean like house arrest? Protective custody?" I asked and my voice had a shrill undertone. I was starting to get irritated and slowly got up. "Based on these?" I pointed at the pictures on the table. "Don't I get a say in this?"

I thought he was moving way too fast. I couldn't hide at Range Man. That would mean I'd admit fear, and I'd much rather pretend Ward was still in prison and move on as if nothing had happened.

I looked at Lester, hoping for some backup. "Sorry, Hon," he said. "Let's go over everything we have," he shot Tank a look, "all the evidence so far. It really doesn't look good, you'll be safer here, Steph."

"No, not like house arrest," Tank said, ignoring Lester. "Like we can protect you around the clock. Like you don't live in an apartment with a papier-mâché door. Like you move into one of the studio apartments on the fourth floor."

I don't think I'd ever heard that tone of voice from Tank before. The kind of tone that didn't leave room for arguments. The kind of tone that was 'my way or the high way'.

"Well, I think you're jumping to conclusions," I said, my hands on my hips. I heard one of the guys suck in air. "Just because Ward is out there and someone maimed my car, doesn't mean the two are related."

The room was quiet around me. Apparently they weren't used to someone arguimg with the Merry Man in charge, whether it was Ranger or Tank.

"And you know I hate hiding," I finished. Tank stood up and walked over to me. I tried to glare at him, but I don't know if it had any impact, since I had to crane my neck to look at him, he was standing so close.

He took my hand. "Please?" I think it was Bobby who gasped this time. I doubt he'd ever heard Tank use 'please'.

Tank held on to my hand but looked at the guys. "Santos, get me Ward's location ASAP and make sure we know everything, even the rumors," he barked and the Merry Men took that as the signal that the meeting was adjourned.

"You got it," Lester confirmed on his way out. Seconds later, I heard the door close behind him.

I pulled my hand out of Tank's. "Don't you think you should have told me this in private? Why the audience?"

Tank blew out a long breath. "For some reason I thought it would be easier to convince you in public." He crossed his arms over his chest. "This is serious, Steph. And like I told you before, I can't take any risks where you're concerned."

Understanding dawned on me. "Ranger told you to keep me here?" Tank looked pained.

"Although he's not here to assess the situation, hasn't seen my car or heard from Ward, and knows that I haven't received any threats, but he told you to keep me here?"

Tank was wearing his blank face now but he nodded slowly. I couldn't blame him. No man stands a chance arguing with a Burg girl on a roll. And I was getting pissed. Who did Ranger think he was, ordering me around? Worse, telling his employees to order me around. Okay, so Tank was more than Ranger's employee, but still.

"I think Ranger gave up the right to give me orders when he broke up with me," I said and turned to go.

Tank put a hand on my elbow. "Remember what we talked about earlier? This would be another example."

"I remember you telling me you want me independent. This is me independent. I am not hiding."

I crossed my arms over my chest and did my best to look confident and in control.

Tank looked up at the ceiling exasperated, probably cursing Ranger as much as I was.

"It's not an order, Steph," he tried again. "It's a safety precaution. After what happened in your apartment last night I thought you'd welcome the idea of living somewhere safe."

He had a point there. Everybody and there brother could and would break into my apartment. And I knew he was acting out of concern for me, so I couldn't be mad at him.

"Why don't we wait what we can find out until tonight," I suggested. "If we find any evidence that Ward is in Trenton and is stalking me, I'll pick Rex up and move in."

Tank ran a hand over his head, probably trying to figure out who was easier to handle, me or Ranger.

"Okay," he finally said. "But if you're going home, you're not going alone. Deal?"

"Deal. If you're the one taking me home." I smiled at him and he rolled his eyes.

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," he agreed and ushered me back into the hall. When we were back in the control room and all eyes were on us, I turned around to face him.

"Thank you," I said softly and left for my cube.

"Everything okay, honey?" Lester asked from his position at the monitors. I waved and nodded and sat back down at my desk. Bob was fast asleep and snoring in the next cube.

I looked at my inbox and decided to get back to running the searches while I worked on my list. I didn't want Anton Ward to be the vandal. I never wanted to see his ugly face again.

Connie, Lula and I had kidnapped him, but we didn't get any information from him until Ranger stepped in. He'd been arrested and convicted and I haven't thought about him since.

I started a background check for Sales and sat back to think about my list of possible car exterminators.

Tank was right, Ward was at the top of the list now that he was out of prison. I doubted he'd forgotten I was the one who put him there.

When the check was complete, I printed out the results and started my own search, typing in all the FTAs I could remember, those who'd threatened to get even, and their status. And then there was Teddy.

Teddy Gardner the psychopath. He had murdered Joe and kidnapped me, convinced I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. Joe had died because of Gardner's delusional love for me. Just thinking his name made my hands shake, even after six months, the memory hurt.

I typed his name in as fast as I could and tried to ignore everything it said about him until I got to his arrest date. Current status: jailed.

I sighed in relief and was able to breathe semi-normally again. Had Gardner been a possible suspect, I would have locked myself in a fourth floor apartment. If I never saw him again, it would be too soon.

After an hour, I had confirmed that all the men on my list were either still in jail or had verified addresses in other states.

Tank was wrong. Whoever did it, wasn't after me. That's what it was. I'd have to give him hell for scaring me like that, but he'd been wrong. Probably a disgruntled RangeMan customer or something.

I called my mom to ensure her I was alive and kicking before she could panic again, and I listened to a voicemail from Harry, apologizing for Guzzarella, but wanting an update all the same. That would have to wait, at least until I could make it to the bonds office again. One crisis at a time, I decided.

I picked up all the print-outs and took the seat next to Lester. When he looked up, I put all the papers on the desk.

"It's not me. Everyone who hates me is in jail," I announced, tapping my finger on the print-outs for emphasis.

I smiled, both relieved and a bit proud. I'd been independent. I'd done the smart thing rather than the run-and-hide thing. And it had made me feel better, so on that point, Tank won.

Lester picked up the reports and started leafing through them. "Good work, Steph," he said after a few minutes. "Some of these were on my list, too. And some of them, I would have never thought of."

"So you see? I'm perfectly safe," I said, pointing at the reports again. Lester picked up the file he'd been working on.

"They didn't find any fingerprints on the car," he said, reading over the information again. "So I can't give you hard evidence. But can you just stay here because of my spidey sense?" He looked up and did the best puppy dog eyes I'd ever seen on him. I knew he was using my expression to tease me and I laughed. I thought if he teased, he must be kidding. I was wrong.

"All kidding aside, I mean it Steph," he said and put his hand on my forearm. "Stay as a personal favor." His face was serious now and it threw me a little because Lester usually talked in jokes and innuendos.

"Tank promised I could go home if we can't find any evidence," I said. "But he'll be with me."

Lester seemed to relax. "So you're not running off to Atlantic City?" The smile was back. I rolled my eyes in response. He often teased me about the time I ran off to Atlantic City and got myself kidnapped.

"How come I'm not the one taking you home? I already proved I'd give my life for you?" He tried to look wounded but only managed clueless and I had to laugh at his expression.

"I think we'll have to wait until you're back to 100 percent," I said, teasing him. "You know I wouldn't accept anything less…"

Now we were both laughing and it felt good. For at least that moment, it felt like there was nothing wrong. I knew Lester meant it, too, even though he was still healing, he would not hesitate to keep me safe.

"I'll go over these and compare them to what I have. Tank wants to regroup this afternoon." Lester said and turned back to his monitor. He sent me a smile and a wink, "Get back to work Plum!"

I slapped the back of his head lightly on my way back to my cube and his laughter followed me.

It was almost noon when I started the next background check, this one for HR. I was convinced the Merry Men had overreacted and that I had it right. If Anton Ward had killed my car, he would have wanted me to know about it, he would have left a message. I just needed to give Tank and Lester enough time to see it.

By three, I'd cleaned out my inbox and logged off my computer. I hadn't seen Tank since the meeting, so I got up and walked over to the office. The door was closed, so I knocked and waited for Tank to call me in.

He was sitting behind the desk, which was littered with piles of papers. He looked stressed, frowning at the computer screen.

"Everything okay?" I asked as I walked over to the visitor's chair. He sighed and ran a hand over his bald head. I'd come to think of that gesture as Tank's sure sign of stress.

"Ranger does all this shit usually, it takes me forever," he said and punched a few keys, made some notes and then he looked up.

"You have perfect timing, I was just about to call you guys in for a meeting," he leaned back and laced his hands behind his head. "Find anything?"

"Lester has my reports," I explained. "I found plenty. For starters, all the bad guys in my life are safely locked away."

"Except for one," Tank interrupted.

"Except for one," I admitted but waved it off. "But we have no evidence that he's even in the area."

Tank looked heavenwards again and I almost expected him to throw his hands up and do one of my mom's famous 'Why me?', and the thought made me smile.

"We'll see what Bobby and Lester have found," he cautioned as he leaned forward, picked up the desk phone and called the two over the Intercom.

The meeting was pretty short. Tank, Lester and Bobby were trying to convince me that the absence of evidence, in this case fingerprints or a message, was indeed evidence, whereas I kept insisting that only evidence was evidence.

"Look guys," I finally said. "I know you're only trying to keep me safe, and I appreciate that. And as soon as there's even the rumor of danger, I swear I'll let you know and do whatever you want." I made sure I made eye contact with them as I spoke and tried to smile encouragingly.

"But for right now, trust me, you don't want to keep me here. I'd feel like a caged animal and if you think I have an attitude now, you ain't seen nothing yet."

Bobby looked from me to Tank, shaking his head. "Didn't the boss say…"

Tank held up a hand to stop him. "It really doesn't matter what was said before. I'm in charge and I think Steph's right."

My eyebrows shot up in surprise but I didn't want to butt in when Tank was on the right track. "She'll be safe with me," Tank continued and looked at me. "We weren't gonna lock you up, but I see your point. And I have a feeling all our training wouldn't be a match for your attitude…" He rolled his eyes at the last word to show me and the guys exactly how he felt about it, but then he smiled.

"Hey," I complained in fake protest and Tank winked at me. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Lester looking at Bobby with raised eyebrows and Bobby almost-shrugging.

"Santos, if you find anything, call me," Tank said as he stood up. Lester gathered his papers and took my reports he had given back to me at the beginning of the meeting. "Sure thing," he said, getting up. But when I glanced at him as he walked off, he looked really confused.

I bit my lip as understanding hit me. Tank knew how to do it all: He was doing his job by protecting me and he was all but flirting with me to make the Merry Men at least wonder.

So that's why Lula had suggested him right away, she must have known about his talents, whereas I'd never spent enough time with Tank to discover them.

"That plan work for you?" He asked me when Bobby and Lester had cleared out.

"Where you 'in character' just now? Was that part of the plan?"

Tank grinned. "Your safety is not part of the plan, or the game, or whatever you want to call it. But if I can combine the two, I will. Less to remember. Plus, Santos is the resident gossip monger." He gathered up some papers and turned to the computer.

"I have a lot of work to finish up here, can you wait till five?" He asked.

I nodded, "Sure thing," I said, imitating Lester and that got me another grin. "I have to walk Bob and then I'll help Lester with the searches." Tank nodded and focused his attention on the monitor.

I was still incredulous when I left his office. I'd noticed the night before that he'd taken advantage of the situation and hugged me in front of the guys. Probably Tank was a lot less shaken by the disasters in my life, so it was easier for him to switch. Whatever the reason, he was playing our little game much better than I was at the moment. I made a mental note to take my cues from him more, starting now.

When I got back to my cube, Lester was not at his station and Bob wasn't on his bed, but there were three new requests in my inbox. I decided to let them wait until after a coffee break and went in search of snacks to the break room.

Lester and Bob came back after an hour, but I didn't see Tank come out of his office. Bobby checked in with the news that there were no news and by five, I'd done all the search requests and printed them out.

Just as I was logging off and shutting down, Lula called, wanting an update.

"I haven't seen my man in days, and you don't come by to tell me what's up. I don't got to be jealous, do I?"

"No," I assured her, although I knew she'd been half-kidding. "And I would have called you if anything happened. My car died this morning, otherwise I would have been in the office." And then I had to fill her in on the details, since this was a new car death for me. I didn't mention anything about Ward, since that was just a rumor as far as I was concerned.

Lula wanted more details about what I'd been doing with Tank, but I told her I was still at work and I'd be at the bonds office in the morning. She got the hint that I couldn't talk freely, since the Merry Men were listening.

I checked with Lester and Bobby, but neither of them had heard anything. They cautioned they hadn't tapped all their sources yet, but I was confident I had it right.

And just after five, Tank announced he was ready to go if I was. Bob immediately jumped to his feet and wagged his tail. "We're ready," I announced and Tank laughed.

I kind of liked being chauffeured by Tank. It was impossible not to feel completely safe in his presence. For one, he could squash half of all possible attackers, but more importantly, he was so calm, so in charge, so like…fuck, I'd gone almost half a day without thinking about Ranger and now his right-hand man, possessing all of Ranger's qualities was another reminder of what I no longer had. I sighed, closed my eyes and sank back in my seat and I could feel Tank's eyes on me.

"I'm fine," I said before he could ask and he chuckled. "You know we're gonna start rumors if you keep picking me up and driving me home," I changed the topics.

"That's the idea, cookie," Tank said and I could hear the smile in his voice.

We pulled into my lot ten minutes later, and Tank slowed down immediately, scanning the parked cars. "See anything that doesn't belong?" He asked and I made sure I could identify all cars' owners.

"Nope, all my neighbors' good American cars are here," I told him. That was the good thing about living in a house full of seniors: their cars were easily identified. There were no silver Toyotas or white Nissans, or any other color and make you see a dozen times in every street.

"Good," Tank said and radioed the status in as he parked his SUV in a free spot by the dumpster.

"You don't have to…" I was going to say 'come in', but Tank sent me a look. "I pick you up, I take you home, no date of mine unlocks her own door," he said and winked as he got out of the car.

I was still speechless when he opened my car door a minute later and he gallantly extended his hand to help me out, grinning now. I looked around. "Are they watching us?" I asked, just in case I couldn't see the Merry Men parked close by.

"No," Tank said. "But they're monitoring my GPS. Besides, I still need to make sure there are no surprises in your apartment."

I'd almost managed to deny the night before had ever happened. Of course I wanted Tank to see me upstairs! What had I been thinking?

Probably I'd been thinking I was independent and in charge now. Silly me.

We took Bob for a short walk so he could take care of business. I did not pay attention to my surroundings because I figured Tank's vigilance would be enough for two. We made it back to my building without incident.

We rode the elevator up in comfortable silence. I stole a look at Tank and wondered if he ever looked tired, or ever 'let his hair down', so to speak. I'd have to ask Lula about that when I called her later.

We'd taken the elevator because I'd told Tank he could meet me upstairs if he insisted on taking the stairs. That had earned me another eye roll, and they almost made me giggle now every time I saw one, and a nudge into the elevator. Now why hadn't I tried that one before?

On my floor, Tank took the keys out of my hand and motioned for me to stand behind him. Now I rolled my eyes to pretend to be annoyed when actually I appreciated his help. Bob got the signal, too, and stopped dancing around.

Tank unlocked my front door, slipped through and closed it. I took that as the sign to wait outside. Sure enough, he reappeared after a couple minutes and let me in.

"All clear," he said. "Your hamster looks hungry though."

I laughed and pushed past him to the kitchen where I filled Bob's food and water bowls and dropped a grape into Rex's cage.

Tank joined me a moment later and we both watched Rex stuff the grape into his cheeks and disappear into his soup can.

"You want me to stay?" He asked. I thought about that. I didn't really want company, but I had to admit Guzzarella's visit had rattled me.

My stomach growled, reminding me I hadn't eaten since the tuna on multigrain at lunch. "Have you had dinner?" I asked, reaching for the take-out menus I kept over the microwave.

Tank laughed as he shook his head and took the menus from me. He picked a deli on Hamilton, probably because they seemed the healthiest and I called in our order to be delivered.

Tank was wrestling with Bob on the floor when the food came, and I'd relaxed to the point where I'd forgotten why he was in my apartment. Then the doorbell rang and Tank was on his feet and with his gun in hand in a split-second, only lowering it after he'd verified the visitor was indeed the delivery guy. And my relaxed state was gone, but at least I had a meatball sub to look forward to.

I took the bag of food into the living room, got plates and beers from the kitchen and divided up the sandwiches between Bob, Tank and me.

I'd turned on the TV and we watched while we ate. Tank declined another beer, so I had three and I didn't even notice how time passed after dinner until Tank got up and announced that he better man his post or he'd fall asleep on the couch. It was past ten. I knew he was kidding about the falling asleep part.

"You can stay here, if you like," I suggested and at his curious look I added "My couch is quite comfortable."

Tank tried to look disappointed but his eyes were smiling. "Tempting, but I wouldn't be able to see the perimeter. I'll be better off in the parking lot." He got up, stretched and I walked him to the door.

"Call me if you need anything," he said and kissed my cheek. "And lock this." He pointed at the door.

"I will," I promised and watched him fill out almost the entire hallway on his way to the staircase.

I closed and locked the door, still smiling. Tank had been great company. I didn't even know why I was surprised at that, I guess I'd just figured him wrong.

"Can't judge a book by its cover," I told Bob on my way to bed. I took my shoulder bag with me to put my gun on the nightstand and get my cell phone out to call Lula as promised.

I opened my bedroom door with one hand on my shoe laces to untie them and my mind on how I could maybe stall Harry for a few days until I could get the car mess sorted.

And then I froze, my heart leaping into my throat leaving me unable to even breathe. Little black dots danced in front of my eyes and the room began to sway.

"Alone at last, huh?"

TBC

A/N: I know what you're thinking: What now?, am I right? Do you think Steph may have forgotten a name on her list?