RangeWoman Enterprises had a contest to create a Merry Man. Rudder was mine. He was on the last mission with Lester and Ranger in Mexico before he came to Philadelphia on Christmas Eve. This is his bio and intro I added at the beginning of this chapter to give his background. Delaney will break him in.
Thanks for all your reviews always. Lee Anne
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Merry Man Bio: 'Rudder'
Name: Chandler 'Rudder' Sinclair
Age: 29
Height: 6'0"
Weight: 210
Hair color: Dark blonde
Eye color: green
Weapon of choice: My Grandfather's Colt 45, throwing stars, and a little ol' fully loaded rocket launcher.
Languages: English, German, Italian, and some Finnish
Body Description: A mighty fine specimen. I won a Jr. Body building title.
Last movie watched: G I Joe
Last book read: 'Run For Your Life'-James Patterson and the latest issue of Spiderman
Favorite TV show: Monday Night Football
Greatest fear: Losing a limb and scorpions
Greatest love: My Nana, my corvette, and my complete Spiderman Comic Book collection
Favorite quote: Character is like a tree and reputation like a shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing-Abraham Lincoln
Boxer or Briefs: What are those?
After-hours personal Car: '66 yellow corvette
What's in your closet? Some clothes, mostly jeans, a black suit, old Army uniform, running shoes, boots, the normal stuff, right?
What's on your current iPod/CD playlist? Anything Tom Petty, Journey, and Aerosmith, Usher, Lady GaGa, Madonna, ACDC, And The Beatles. It could be anything that fits my mood.
Coke or Pepsi? Coke, but don't tell Ranger since we're supposed to drink water.
Pino's or Shorty's? I'm not from here. I have 'Max's'-I live for the toasted Italian hoagie.
Football or baseball? Football, of course!
Sexiest part of a female? Her eyes, portals to her soul.
Do you like your women Tall or Short? Tall to my shoulders.
Do you like kids? I've never lost or killed any of my sister's yet.
Do you have kids? No and my mother tells me about it all the time.
Do you have any siblings or are you an only child? A sister, Amber, 27 and a brother, Bryan, 24.
Sexiest thing a woman can do Make me feel like I'm the only one in the world when I'm with her.
**What is your idea of a 'perfect date'? A warm summer day, a ride in the mountains in my corvette, a blanket, and a picnic lunch.
** Share one story from your past that you think impacted the person you are today.
My Grandpa operated a barge up and down the Mississippi River and when I was old enough he let my ride along on the shorts trips. Many were at night and he taught me the stars. We watched many of them and even in the dark, I could find my way. By learning the constellations, no matter where I was, I was never alone because the stars would be there to lead me home.
Rudder's In
His body was covered in sweat after finishing his daily kickboxing work-out and keeping up with his accuracy throwing his vast collection of shurikens or throwing stars. His sawdust dummies would need to be stitched up again because the chakram left new cuts in the thick sack material covering the forms. And, damn, he better sweep up the mess or his sensei would have his hide. He was getting anxious knowing a call was coming, he could feel it.
When he talked with his higher up on any upcoming missions, there was one in the works, but General Riley didn't think it was right for him. Rudder was an action guy and this one might involve more tracking and surveillance, 'being aware of your surroundings' as his superior called it. He begged to be placed on the list giving the argument he needed to develop those skills so he became a superior mercenary or 'warrior' as he thought of it in his mind.
Sitting in an office at his brother's health club reviewing accounts and paying the company's monthly bills, or filling his time as a personnel trainer did provide him with a regular paycheck, but did little to hone the observation skills he needed to acquire. Being careless in that aspect had gotten him shot a few times and he hated being shot. That involved doctors, hospitals, and those dreaded needles.
There was a very reputable PI with an office in downtown Saint Louis, maybe he would check with John Holland if he needed some outside help. A few of his ex-Army friends from his Airborne days worked for a company named Rangeman in Boston, Miami, Atlanta, and of all places, Trenton! Why the CEO Carlos 'Ranger' Manoso with his legendary reputation both for the government and Rangers, and from what he heard left a string of broken hearts in his quake would set up shop and actually live there was beyond him. His friend, Ram, was there, too. From what other team members had spoken of him, he was not someone to mess with and had more money than most of the developing third world companies put together.
Chandler 'Rudder' Sinclair never had the pleasure or displeasure of meeting this man. The few times he and Ram were together on government jobs, he seemed to enjoy his job at Rangeman doing security work and bounty hunting sometimes. Manoso ran a very tight ship he explained and did expect the very best out of his employees his Army buddy relayed, also.
After a training circuit session assisting 86 year-old Ruth Goldblum and her 83 year-old sister, Esther, who wanted to tone up their flabby arms before their Caribbean cruise, Rudder was finishing eating his lunch while he ran the time sheets for payroll when his cell phone rang. "Hello," his raspy male voice asked choking slightly on his 'works' hoagie.
"Rudder, you're on the mission. Be in Virginia tomorrow by 400 hours," General Riley commanded.
"Great! Where to and who's in charge?"
"Mexico. We have two major suppliers on the run we want to put out of commission permanently. Ranger Manoso. He got shot during a drug raid in the South; the cocaine was traced to brothers from Mexico for that operation. He has some unfinished business with them. Are you in?"
Rudder acknowledged, "Yes, Sir. I'll be there."
"Talk to you when you return. Rudder," the General said.
"Yes, Sir."
There was a chuckle, "A friendly warning. Be aware of your surroundings or Manoso has been know to make men disappear and end up in places never heard of before."
"Yes, Sir." He closed his cell phone. Great, what did he get himself into now!
A Wish Come True
Chapter 7
Lester and Bobby walked into Tank's office handing him a check from the bonds office. "We brought in the last two outstanding skips and another four from the new files," Lester related.
Tank looked up not seeing Rudder, a new temporary Rangeman employee. He was on the last mission with Ranger and Lester. The boss wanted him to work on bettering his 'awareness of his surroundings' skills. Bobby and Lester were showing him the ropes of bounty hunting and he would be assisting on surveillance details. Rudder was one of the quickest weapon throwers Tank had ever seen. He never saw the throwing stars until they landed in the dummy. "How did he do?"
"Not bad," Bobby reported. "He's learning patience."
"Good. Do you want to make a trip to Philadelphia? Hector needs some more components and sensors?" the big man in charge asked. Ranger was twenty-five miles away, where else?
They looked at each other giving a 'Sure."
"Can we take Rudder with us?" Lester chuckled.
Tank laughed slapping his desk, "Let Delaney break him in."
"We'll hide the glue," Bobby joked with his friends. Everyone at Rangeman thought that was classic making her a miniature MacGyver in their book.
A little over thirty minutes later, Lester was parking his Rangeman SUV next to another black one and Ranger's Porsche. He came for the morning meeting, met with a client, and returned to Philadelphia to handle the security system installation personally with Hector. The boss was a bear yesterday because a new client delayed him leaving to be at the bed & breakfast to meet his little girl's afternoon school bus. Today was an in-service day at Delaney's school, so she had no school; it was another reason why the lovesick Cuban man was in a rush.
Rudder read the sign in the parking area, "The Quiet Corner Bed & Breakfast. This is the security installation?"
Bobby said, "Yup," trying to keep a straight face as they walked up the back sidewalk and knocked on the door.
It opened under the power of a wavy haired little girl. "Look who dropped in," she greeted. Her dark eyes darted to Rudder. "Who's he?"
"This is Rudder, Delaney. He's working at Rangeman for a while," Lester answered.
She gave him a second look as he unzipped his jacket hanging it up with his two companions. "Huh." Delaney whipped her deck of cards out seeing a new victim. "Hi or Lo?"
Rudder looked at his companions for guidance and Bobby waved towards the cards. "Lo," he said.
The little girl cut the cards; it was a 'Jack of Diamonds. "Lady Luck is not with you today."
"Give her a quarter," Lester tapped his back. "It's for homeless dogs."
Rudder dropped a quarter in the small palm. "Let me try again."
After five times of losing, Delaney gave her approval, "I like him. He's easy. The homeless dogs will enjoy their new toys with him around."
The newcomer was very confused.
"Here, Delaney, Tank sent these for you," Bobby chuckled dropping a few more quarters in her hand.
"I'll have to thank, Ho Ho. He knows when he met his match. He always loses."
"Santa Claus?" Rudder questioned.
Her hands went to her hips and eyes rolling, "No, Ho Ho. Tank. Big Guy. Brother to the Jolly Green Giant."
A confused look crossed the new guy's smooth face.
"Yeesh! Ho, Ho, Green Giant," she sang. "Get it now?"
"Oh," Rudder said making the connection. "What about them?" he indicated to Bobby and Lester with the movement of a finger.
"Scope," Delaney said pointing to Bobby. "Bounce," she indicated Lester's nickname.
Rudder began laughing thinking he understood, "They're named after mouthwash and fabric softener."
"No! Bobby is like a doctor with a stethoscope. Scope. When my used-to-be grandmas tried to take me, Lester guarded the door like a bouncer in a casino. Bounce. Yeesh! He needs to go back!"
Lester nodded confirming Delaney's comment. "She glued them to the chairs in the beauty shop until the cops arrived."
Totally bewildered, he finally asked the million-dollar question, "Who is she?"
The two Rangemen were laughing.
Ranger came walking into the kitchen seeing his friends. "Delaney, you met Rudder. He's here for a short time."
"Dad, where did you get him?" She asked smiling at Ranger with her little hands on her hips.
"Why?" the father picked up his daughter questioning her. He couldn't help the smirk seeing the surprised and dazed expression on the younger team member's face.
"I'd call him Thud," she explained knocking a knuckle on her head. "There ain't anything up there."
"I didn't know you were married, Ranger?" His former leader and now temporary boss never gave any indication that he wasn't single and he was told the 'Great Manoso' didn't get involved long-term with a woman.
"My Mom and Dad are dating. They're not married yet. I'm working out the details," Delaney related. "Grandma Mazur wanted to date him but she got Slim Jim now, but if you're available, she'll go out with you when he's delivering. I'm going to haul slot machines and poker chips with Grandma in the Rangeman big wheeler when I get my license."
"I see," Rudder nodded not really sure if all that was true. "Who's Grandma Mazur?" he asked with his voice going up saying her last name.
"Me," Grandma said coming in the door and standing in the kitchen holding a palmful of Rangeman ass. "That's a tight ass!"
"Did you win?" Delaney was running to her gambling Grandma.
"Five hundred big ones and I brought you this," handing her little great-granddaughter a couple blue metal tokens.
"Wow, I'll add these to my collection. Thanks, Grandma!"
Delaney ran back over to Ranger, "Look, Dad! Neat, huh?"
"The best, Shark."
Stephanie and Ghost came in the backdoor from the flower shop. "Hi, I've never seen you before. I'm Stephanie," she said shaking Rudder's hand then hung up her jacket on the coat rack. "This is Ghost."
"Mom, I got more slot tokens from Grandma," she opened her hand for her mother to see. "I'm going to add these to my collection."
Happily, a jingling Delaney ran off to her bedroom to add those chips to her slot machine box with the little old lady following with Ghost.
"It's nice to meet you," Rudder returned her greeting. He was beyond confused.
The 'Burg' girl giggled at her full kitchen, "It can be crazy around here," noticing his quizzical countenance.
"Come on, Rudder," Bobby said picking up the box of components Hector wanted.
He followed but turned around hearing "Babe" seeing Ranger kissing Stephanie in a passionate lip lock.
"'I'm confused," he whispered not so quietly. "Ranger lives in a bed and breakfast? Who is he dating?"
"You're such a pup," Lester told him.
Bobby was laughing they could hear in the kitchen, "Let's begin at the beginning. Once upon a time there was a boy named Ranger and a girl named Stephanie."
"Poor man," Stephanie giggled against the lips touching hers. "Maybe he should give up while he's ahead."
"A man can be destroyed but not defeated," Ranger informed her. An eyebrow went up as he thought about those words and his body shook against hers. "This is Delaney. Rudder doesn't stand a chance."