Freedom

Chapter 23

RPOV

It's been two hours since Steph was taken and we haven't made much progress yet in getting her back. The man Hal saw on the helicopter, Tom Emery that had Steph over his back is, or was a Navy SEAL as far as he knew. They had apparently lost contact after Hal started at Rangeman. He said he was an upstanding guy. Hal, also being a Navy SEAL recognized him from his time in the service as they had been friends and at one point, roommates. This would hopefully work in our favor.

Our cell service returned when the helicopter took off, so they obviously had standard government issued scrambling technology aboard.

The phone service was repaired by Hector. The cables had been cut, but he was able to splice the wires back together to get us back up. He scheduled a permanent repair for tomorrow.

Power had been cut out at the street, and the power company came right out and had it repaired in an hour.

I'm still struggling to wrap my mind around the fact that Stephanie is gone, taken from my own fucking building! I know it's Joe that has her. I feel it in my bones, even if he wasn't there for the actual kidnapping. The good news is, he wants her for his own, so I doubt her life is in danger unless she's defending herself. The bad news is, he could damage her in ways that would be hard to come back from. She would never give herself to him and if he tries to rape her, she'll fight with all she has. Fuck! Time is of the essence.

Hal burst into my office which we were using as make shift command central for this rescue operation. Even though the conference room would've been larger, I needed to be around Steph's space, to feel closer to her, or somehow channel her natural luck for deciphering clues.

"The helicopter was from Fort Nix and it returned a half hour ago. I called someone I know that is still based there. The man that took it tonight falsified the records and gave an ID that now doesn't check out, but at the time looked legit, so that's a dead end. They're seeing if there's any facial shots on their surveillance system, but it's doubtful as he wore a cap. I was able to get contact info for Tom Emery though. I tried the two numbers they have for him, and both went to voicemail. Needless to say, I didn't leave a message. What do you want me to do?" Hal was talking so fast, I could barely make out what he was saying. His adrenaline was still considerably high.

"Call him back, leave a short message to simply call you back and give him your cell number. Then ask Hector to start tracing all calls to your cell, your apartment phone and here at Rangeman. We don't know who he's working for, If he calls, we go pick him up and get him to tell us where they took Steph." It's a long shot, but it's worth pursuing.

I called FBI Agent Tony Dirks and Henry Shepard, NJ State Police, Internal Affairs an hour ago. They are up to speed on all of Morelli's shit and might prove to be useful. They should be here soon to help in any way they can. We aren't going public yet or issuing an APB on Morelli, as it could make him hide deeper or run further. Following his somewhat predictable behavior, he hasn't taken her far. He can no longer show his face in New Jersey or the surrounding states as his face is too easily recognized, I'd make sure of it. He knows he needs to take her far away for them not to be found. Our window to find them is slowly closing, I can feel it.

My men have been coming in and out of the office, looking at me to see the slightest change in mood and therefore news on Steph. Tank has had limited success in finding which direction the helicopter went. Hector put out word of a reward on the streets, telling his gang affiliate to keep it under wraps. With a few calls coming in so far, he's been able to track a dark helicopter, no lights, flying low, obviously avoiding radars, heading north east, towards the shore.

Lester walked into our office and went straight to Steph's desk, putting his arms on the desk in front of him and resting his head on them. They've gotten pretty close over these past few months and he's showing the outward expression of how we're all feeling inside, helpless and frustrated.

Tank and Hector were all at the round meeting table between our two desks, making calls when Les' phone rang. After several minutes of listening, he hung up and updated us on the news from the call. Bobby, who went in to the hospital with Luis and Ella said Luis has a moderate concussion and a large goose-egg on the back of his head from where he hit the wall. They're keeping him overnight to monitor brain swelling and with luck he'll be back here by morning. He's alert and begging to be released to return here and help find Steph. Bobby asked for a private room so Ella, who went into shock, could rest comfortably in a bed beside Luis. They risked their own safety to help protect Steph and I'll be eternally grateful.

Just as I was about to call Steph's parents, Agent Dirks walked into our office. "Ranger, we have Tom Emery in custody. One of my coworkers, Agent Samuels was staking out his house, and he just arrived home. Funny thing is, he didn't put up a fight. Hopefully that's a good sign of his willingness to cooperate."

"Thank you Tony. Do you have that list we talked about of Tom's Seal buddies?"

"It will be faxed here to your office. I expect it any minute."

Agent Samuels arrived with Tom Emery no more than 30 minutes after he was apprehended. We had him set up in a holding cell, to help intimidate a confession out of him. Audio and video monitoring were both on and recording. We all sat attentively and watched, praying for some lead that would prove valuable.

Hal, who stood outside the door, waiting to go in was calm, but anyone who knew him well could see the beast waiting to be unleashed. Steph was taken on his watch. They'd grown to be closer than any siblings I know, and he's being torn apart with the uncertainty of the situation. He took a deep breath and stormed in the cell door slamming open before shutting loudly.

HPOV

"Tom, I'm going to cut to the chase. You took something that doesn't belong to you and I want her returned."

"What's she to you?"

"She's my sister."

"Do you forget I know you? I know you don't have a sister!"

"I do now. We're very close and I'll stop at nothing to make sure she's returned, unharmed. Now, what's your part in all this? The FBI and New Jersey State Police are already involved. NCIS has also been contacted within the past hour and will be here shortly. You were a part of stealing government property and kidnapping a civilian! Come clean and you'll make life easier."

"I won't answer your questions until you tell me what she is to you."

"Dammit, she's everything! She accepts me and everyone around her unconditionally. She's a woman that captures your heart with her spirit, her tenacity, her ability to come back from adversity. And shit, man, I don't want her to lose that. She's better than blood, she's my chosen family. And you just handed her over to the devil!"

"The man who she's with in this building… is she here, with him, willingly?" He asked, giving me the most intense look.

"What? Fuck, yes! She begged us to help keep her safe from her ex. She's been here for months, not only willingly, but happy. They're engaged for christs sake!" I don't know what where the hell he's going with this. He studied me for a minute, his eyes finding the answer he was looking for.

"I got a call from Walter James. He said it was a field exercise. He said the woman was Navy and chosen to help with the exercise because of her size. She'd be easy to climb up the side of the building with. When I saw you on the roof and how desperate you were to stop us, I knew we'd won. I was surprised to see you, but nonetheless, it didn't tip me off. The practice extraction was a success. I had no idea it was a real kidnapping until we dropped her off and it was too late."

"Where did you take her?"

"North end of Laurence Harbor."

I looked up at the camera and nodded, letting the guys know I trusted what he was telling me. "What tipped you off that it wasn't an exercise?"

"Walter, who was the only one of us who went to the briefing for this op also piloted the chopper. He carried her off and put her in the back of a waiting SUV. I couldn't see who was driving. He was handed something by the driver of the truck and injected her with it before they took off."

"Fuck! So you didn't call or alert the authorities?"

"I knew you saw me. I also knew you'd find me."

"I've got to know, the last you saw of her, was she injured in any way?"

"Hey! I'm a Seal! And I'm one of the best at extractions. Of course she wasn't injured. Not a scratch on her. I stunned her to get her to come with me, but I didn't lay a hand on her."

"Thank you for leveling with me. You'll be kept in this holding cell until this is over. You will be left alone. Like I said, Steph is engaged to my boss who owns this building, and he'll make sure you're taken care of until he finds out you've steered us wrong or held out on us. If you have, only god will be able to help you from the retaliation you're going to face with the men who work here. You sure there's nothing else you want to share?"

"No… "

"Why the hell did you want to know if she was here willingly?"

"Seeing how upset you were on the roof, I thought originally it was because of the training exercise. I got one over on you. After I saw Walter talking to the guy in the truck and then inject her with something, I asked him who she was. He said something about her being held captive here. Said some guy was abusing her and we were helping her to safety. He said the guy we delivered her to, he never used his name, bragged about having a real private place to take her to but needed to keep her sedated until they got there and he could explain what was going on. Come to think of it, he also said something about having someone in his pocket that has a family member wintering in another state. I hope some of this helps. I can see now that you only have love and concern for her. I'll do anything to help you get her back. I really am sorry man."

I walked out of the room and right before the door shut, Tom hollered out, "Wait!"

"Remember something else?"

"I… Well… This is hard to tell you and it may not be important, but you need to know. You have to promise not to beat the crap out of me. I had nothing to do with it, I swear!"

"Just tell me!"

"After we landed, after Walter carried Stephanie to the SUV, he stripped her down. She was only wearing her bra and panties. He even took her hair tie out. He was instructed to do so in case she was wearing a tracker."

That was it! I lunged at him, catching him off guard and decked him. Tank stepped in and pulled me off him just as I pulled back to swing at him again. "You stood by and did nothing as a woman is stripped, practically naked, drugged and driven off." Good thing Tank removed me from the cell before I did something else I'd regret. I could hear Tank's fist make contact with flesh, and I grinned as I walked away.

SPOV

My body feels like I've got lead coursing through my veins, not blood. Any effort to move is such a struggle. Not that it matters much, I can't exactly go anywhere if I wanted to since my hands are cuffed behind me and my legs are cuffed together and attached to the foot board of the bed I'm in. I know it's a bed because of the soft surface I'm lying on, and it creaks like a metal bed frame when I move. But other than that, I can't tell where I am. The room is dark and it smells a bit musky. I can't see any windows or lights shining in through the edges of curtains. A basement maybe? Or an attic? It's cold and I feel chilled. I'm starting to feel a tingling sensation throughout my body. Or maybe that's fear. All I know for sure is I want to go home. As much as I hate being confined to Rangeman, I would do anything right now to be back there, in my own bed, in Carlos' arms.

I hear the door open and steps coming towards me but it's so dark, even squinting, I can't see a thing. A flashlight goes on and shines right in my eyes as my arms are yanked upward. He makes no noise as I feel a pinch and something sinking into my arm and quickly my eyelids are too heavy to keep open. I try to see who's doing this to me, but I can't seem to stay awake. Carlos… where are you…

RPOV

I feel my Babe pulling me. The connection we have is so strong. I know she's hanging on, but by how much, I don't know.

Lester and Binkie took off for Laurence Harbor. It is doubtful that anything can link us to her, but it's worth a try. And it gives them something to do. Hector together with Agent Dirks is working with the surrounding cities and their traffic cameras to track the path the SUV took. I called Hector for an update.

"We lost him. He took back roads, stayed away from the main thoroughfare cameras. We know he started going north, north east." When the hell did Morelli develop some iota of intelligence?

Agent Dirks appeared in our office, and slumped down on the sofa, defeated. "Ranger, I know you want to find her tonight, but it's not going to happen. You've got to get a few hours of sleep so you're productive later. Steph would want you to take care of yourself, so you can be there for her when we get her back. And we will get her back. I have a team flying in from DC right now that will help us in any way in locating and assisting with her rescue. You've got the law on your side. And assuming this is Morelli, this stunt just nailed his coffin shut. He's going away for life, most likely, with all we have on him and the missing body of Missy, we're looking at the death penalty." That is if they get to him first. If I or my team is first on scene, we're acting as self appointed judge, jury, and executioner, delivering our own sentence, our own death penalty.

I nodded to appease him, but I have no plans for sleep. I'll rest when Steph is back home and safe.

SPOV

I now know I'm in a basement. I woke up a little while ago and was pleasantly surprised to find myself uncuffed and wrapped in a blanket. I still didn't have anything on besides my underwear, but I wasn't cold anymore. I got off the bed and about fell over, feeling very dizzy and somewhat nauseous. The drugs that man gave me, still in my system. The basement is unfinished. The walls have studs, but no insulation or drywall. The floor is concrete and the ceiling the same as the walls. There's one window on the far side of the room, but it's up high, close to the ceiling and I'd barely be able to squeeze through it, even if I could get it open. I hear the door at the top of the stairs open and I run behind the stairs, jumping back in the bed, wrapping the blanket tightly around me.

"Good morning, Cupcake."

"Joe? You did this to me? What do you want?"

"I want you to come to your senses. Manoso has been brainwashing you and now that I've got you back, I'm willing to forgive your indiscretions. I don't appreciate you whoring yourself out to Manoso and his men, but I'm willing to put that behind us and start our future."

"You're crazy if you think I'm going to leave Carlos for you! I love him. I'm engaged to marry him!"

Uh, oh, wrong thing to say. Joe launched himself at me, jumped on the bed and straddled my hips, his left hand wrapped around my throat while his right hand slapped me, hard, across the face.

"You ungrateful bitch! I risked everything! I walked away from my life, my career so we could start over, and this is the gratitude I get? This is going to take more time than I thought. He really has done a number on you."

Joe got off me and as he unwrapped his fingers from around my throat. I gasped for air and flinched as he came close to me again, grabbing my arm and pulling me off the bed. He led me to a toilet in the opposite corner of the room and set me on it. I did my business and washed my hands in the dingy porcelain utility sink off to the side of the toilet. I would've cared about him watching me if I didn't have to go so bad.

I walked on my own back to the bed and didn't put up a fight when he picked me up and sat me against the headboard, cuffing my hands behind me to the headboard rails. I'm tired, I'm hungry and I don't feel good. I really don't know how I'm going to get out of this one.

"Can I at least have something to eat?"

"No. I'm going to give you some time to think about what we had together, how good we were, how much in love until he came along. When you can give me three reasons why you love me and three reasons why you don't belong with that thug, I'll get you something to eat, not a moment before."

"But Joe…"

"Save it! We've got a lot of ground to cover, Cupcake. It's just you and I now. You know what they say, 'today is the first day of the rest of your life.' You need to spend this time thinking about what I've said, what I've done to help you get away from him. Remember, no sleeping, if you want to eat. And we all know how much you like to eat."

The bastard actually had the nerve to laugh at me while he turned and walked back up the stairs. Now what am I supposed to do? Do I remain true to my feelings, my integrity, or do I use reverse psychology and tell him what he wants to hear? A crystal ball would come in real handy right about now.