Disclaimer: The characters belonging to Janet Evanovich are used strictly for entertainment purposes.

Joe climbed into his police issued POS and put the keys in the ignition, but didn't turn them. Instead, he sat staring out the windshield and let his mind wander. It had been two weeks since Stephanie had left town and no one had heard from her, at least that's what everyone said to his face. He wasn't sure if they were telling him the truth or not. Personally, he couldn't imagine Stephanie keeping her mouth shut long enough to leave and not say a word to anyone. Even Mary Lou swore Stephanie had not contacted her. When he'd confronted her, Mary Lou had been concerned and angry she'd left so abruptly. It was the worried look in her eyes, not her words, which made him believe she was telling the truth.

With a sigh, Joe started the car and pulled away from the curb to make his way back through Trenton to the police station. He took the long way; cruising by all the usual places Stephanie might be spotted, hoping in vain that he might see her. "Damn it, Cupcake! Where are you?" Joe muttered as he pulled into the secure parking area for employees.

No sooner had he gone into his office than there was a knock at his doorframe and Carl Costanza popped his head in to say, "I'm on my way out to an 11-24 on I-295, same year, make, and model as Stephanie's. You want to ride along?"

Joe grabbed his jacket and followed Carl out the door. An abandoned vehicle that could be Stephanie's on the highway outside Trenton was worth his time. "Yeah, let's go. I'll ride with you because I'm beat. Worked that triple homicide on Stark last night."

"Nasty business. Why are you even here? You should be sleeping," Carl said when they climbed into his patrol car.

"Couldn't sleep." Not since the night he ruined his life, and hers. He was better than he'd acted and he'd learned his lesson, but was it too late to fix things with her?

Carl swung the police cruiser out of the lot and headed for the Interstate. Joe slumped down in the passenger's seat and closed his eyes; his thoughts focused on Stephanie. She'd left town right after his ultimatum and it left him raw and feeling even more guilt than he could stand. He'd pushed her too hard and upset her enough that she'd left town. He'd accused her of being in love with another man when she wouldn't marry him. Deep inside, he'd known that the real reason for her answer was because he'd sprung it on her. You're such an asshole, Morelli.

The day after her disappearance, he'd gone to the Plum's to tell them about the breakup and Mrs. Plum had refused to invite him into her home. She stood in the doorway and listened to his edited version of events and his explanations. When he'd finished, she calmly said, "Thank you, Joseph, for explaining what happened." Her words had been like ice traveling down his spine. His hopes of a warm family reception from Ellen were dashed with her next words. "I think it's time you left, Joseph, thank you. Please tell your mother hello for me." She'd promptly closed her front door and shut him out.

It had been worse when he and Eddie had gone back later to tell them that Stephanie was missing. Frank glared at Joe. Ellen stood stock still with her eyes trained on Eddie. When Eddie finished speaking, Mrs. Plum said 'thank you' quietly and retreated inside the house. "I want you to know," Frank said, "that I'm not happy with the relationship you had with my daughter." Morelli gulped as Frank stood up taller and hitched his waistband up higher. "When she comes back, it will be up to her if she wants to see you anymore. I expect you to respect her decision." Joe simply nodded and followed Eddie out of the house.

He broke out of his thoughts when Carl flipped on the Lightbar and eased the car out of traffic and onto the shoulder. Before Carl could shut off the engine, Joe was out and striding down the embankment toward the small group of people huddled around a small swampy area. The minute he caught a glimpse of the dusty hunk of metal buried in a puddle of mud, he knew it was Stephanie's car. On the dash was the hamster bobble head that he'd gotten her a couple of months after Rex died. Joe remembered the look on her face when she'd opened the box. Her hand had reached in and pulled out the furry little bobbing toy and she threw herself into his arms and cried like a baby. Then she had screwed his brains out the entire night. Why hadn't he picked that moment to propose to her?

Mac, a highway patrolman Joe had met a few years ago, looked up at him and nodded a hello. "No sign of a struggle; mud's too thick to hide a body. Looks like a dump and run."

"It's hers," Joe called back to Carl, who nodded and ducked inside the cruiser to wait for him.

Joe pulled out his cell phone and called Detective Winters from Missing Persons. Chuck Winters had only been with the force for about three weeks, but he was thorough and meticulous and Joe valued those qualities, especially now.

Winters was an FBI agent from the New York City office, prior to that he'd been a decorated police officer from the Baltimore area. He specialized in finding the lost and had agreed to look into Stephanie's disappearance before the normal forty-eight hour waiting period. Joe had known Winters for years and worked with him several times when he was with vice; he knew Winters was doing this as a favor. It was well past the waiting period, so Missing Persons was now officially on the case.

"Sorry about this, Morelli. I was hoping for your sake she'd just show up in a few days and say she went on vacation to clear her head. I'll get you a copy of my report and progress after I get all the relevant details," Detective Winters said.

Joe knew that if anything bad had happened to Stephanie, Winters would figure it out. He was a legend in New York, a rogue of sorts. Joe had been amazed and slightly surprised at his methods, but he had to hand it to the guy: he always got results. He also knew that others had their own searches going for her, such as Manoso's entire staff. If she had left on her own, as the evidence suggested, it would prove difficult to find her until she wanted to be found. So far, there was no indication of foul play. Joe wasn't sure if he was happy or disappointed; it meant the ball was in her court and likely to stay that way for the time being.

He ended the call and trudged back up the hill to rejoin Carl. "I talked to Winters. Missing Persons will take possession of the car and I'm going to get in touch with some of my CI's again, see if any of them saw or heard anything since we talked last week."

"Tough break," Carl muttered darkly. Stephanie's disappearance, and Joe's part in it, had put a damper on his usual outgoing and jovial mood. "Maybe it's none of my business, but you've got Missing Persons dragged into this quest for Stephanie, and maybe it's pointless. It looks like she may have left on her own for some privacy. Why not let her have it?" Joe was surprised to hear Carl give such a sentimental opinion, but it was understandable. He was Stephanie's friend, too, and had been brooding ever since she left town.

"I don't know; you're probably right," Joe conceded. What have I done?

*\/*\/*\/*\/*

Lester sat in his car, parked along Stark Street, with his phone up to his ear listening to the voice on the other end. The more he heard, the more his shoulders slumped. "You're sure?" When the man gave an affirmative reply, Lester sighed and said, "Okay. Thanks, Eddie. I owe you one."

He crushed the phone closed in his hand and tossed it onto the seat next to him with a disgusted sigh. Trying to find Stephanie the past two weeks had been a nightmare. He had worked his normal shifts and then spent much of his free time tracking down leads that all dead-ended. She was gone with no trace. Hector had been unable to raise a signal from the third tracker and had been upset. He would feel a little better when he found out she'd ditched her car. She'd done all the right things to cover her tracks and make it difficult for anyone to find her.

When he and Tank discussed her disappearing act, they'd decided since Stephanie was a city girl, it would be logical for her to head out for either New York City or Philly. It was likely she wouldn't venture too far from home. It was easier to fade into the hustle and bustle of a big city, but both cities were too crowded for a random search. And now, after talking with Eddie and learning that her car had been found abandoned, he was fairly certain she'd left town, with no immediate plans to return. The question now was, how did she do it? Did she walk? Hitchhike? Take a bus? There were no clues to indicate the method.

Tank had Ranger's informants in eight major cities on the lookout for her. So far, none of them had reported back with anything useful. He wouldn't be surprised if Tank sent a couple of guys out to track them all down.

His phone rang again and he looked at the display. "Yo, Manny," he answered.

"Ram and I just found Stephanie's cell phone a few blocks from Rangeman. I thought I'd let you break the news to Tank since we're on our way to a takedown."

"You always bring such wonderful news."

"I do what I can, man. Later."

Lester closed his phone slowly and set it down in the seat next to him as if it were a piece of fragile glass, then he lifted his hands up to the steering wheel and leaned his head back against the headrest. He took a few slow breaths and then shook his head. This news had to be reported to Ranger the next time he called to check in and then the shit would really hit the fan.

No one wanted to be nominated to break the news to Ranger about Stephanie leaving with no trace. With the addition of her phone being dumped, it was likely to be a very unpleasant conversation. Lester was more than happy to leave that duty to Tank, even if it made him a pussy. Tank could tell Ranger bad news and not get killed. Lester would like to stay alive so he could wrap his hands around Stephanie's neck when they found her, or when she returned, whichever came first.

Lester released another sigh when he realized he needed to pass the information along to Tank. He leaned over and grabbed his cell, again, flicked it open with his thumb, and punched Tank's speed dial number. He was dreading the big man's reaction, but at least it wasn't Ranger he had to inform. He'd get to keep his balls for another day.

*\/*\/*\/*\/*

"Well shit!" Tank yelled after he disconnected the call.

"What's up?" Hal asked as he turned his gaze from the house they'd surveyed all evening to look at Tank.

"They just found Stephanie's car. It was down an embankment off I-295. No indication that it was involved in an accident, although it would be hard to tell with that piece of shit. On top of that, Manny and Ram just recovered her cell phone. Just confirms our suspicions that she left town." Tank shook his head and rubbed his large hand over his bald head. "Now I get the fucking pleasure of telling Ranger the next time he calls."

Hal snorted. It wasn't often he saw Tank pissed. Annoyed, yes. Pissed, no. When the man started swearing every time he spoke, it was a safe assumption that he was a very angry man. "That will be a fun conversation. 'Hey Ranger. I know I should have told you two weeks ago, but…' Man, I don't envy you that one."

"Yeah, me either. Damn!" Tank dropped his head back on the headrest and uttered several more colorful curses when Hal nudged him, stopping his tirade to catch his attention.

"Skip just walked out, man." Hal zipped his jacket and Tank did the same. They left the SUV and withdrew their weapons from their belt holsters.

Tank nodded to Hal and took point as they walked away from the nearly obscured vehicle. "Let's go see a man about a bond." Tank was in the mood to smack something around. It wasn't this guy's lucky day.

*\/*\/*\/*\/*

"Okay, that's good. See? You have five chords down!" Merc grinned and gave Stephanie's shoulder a squeeze.

"And my fingers don't hurt as much as last week!" Stephanie was beaming. She'd been learning to play guitar and strengthening her fingers every day. She almost gave up after the first week because her fingertips were so sore and they had near-permanent grooves in them from the guitar strings, but she stuck it out and the pain was a distant memory. It had been more than she'd accomplished with any personal enrichment endeavor she'd attempted in the past. She was extremely proud of herself.

Geo flopped down on the other side of her on the couch where she and Merc were seated, careful not to smack his body into the rounded end of the shiny black acoustic electric guitar she was strumming. "I told you it'd get better. Callouses, they're wonderful things." He winked at her and then mock shivered. "Oh yes, love callouses."

Stephanie screwed up her nose and nudged her elbow into Geo's ribs, then turned to Merc to ask, "Okay, what's my new chord today? I learned and mastered five chords, and now I can even play some songs. What next?"

"C7!" He laughed at the expression on her face. "I promise, it's different from C Major and it's important."

"But I already learned C…"

Merc's face remained pleasant and patient as he held up his hand to stop her. "I can see we're going to have to give you some music theory lessons on top of teaching you how to play the guitar."

Stephanie couldn't have been more pleased. Her new friends had taken her in and given her a focus to remove Joe and the 'Unmentionable One' from her mind. The nice surprise was how she found she loved to practice her guitar and had even begun experimenting on it when the guys were out. She wanted to show them what she'd learned on her own and get their opinions, but she still felt unsure, intimidated, and decided to wait.

The time away from Trenton and the ever-present Burg gossip had given her the kind of break from reality that she craved. During her time in Atlantic City, they'd taken in a few shows and visited some of the casinos. Stephanie was ready to figure out what she wanted for her life and wasn't in a hurry to rush it. Periodically, thoughts of her friends and family swirled through her mind, but she always shoved them away. Twice, she had been tempted to contact her parents, but forced herself to stay away from the phone. She didn't need anyone's demands on her life right now.

Ranger had hurt her to the core. Even if he didn't want a relationship, Stephanie thought he would have been gentle about telling her so. Then again, he had left so abruptly after they'd completed the DeChooch deal that she realized she could hardly expect anything else. Still, he'd been so tender toward her over the past year. He had been different, so she'd naturally assumed that it meant his feelings had grown. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

In the evenings, she accompanied Geo and Merc to 'The Closter' bar, which was geared toward the 20 to 30 year old crowd, to listen to Naked Soul's regular performances and show her support for them. She supposed some of the regulars thought she was a groupie, and sometimes she felt that way, but it was far from the truth. M&G, as she'd begun to think of them, had given her so much of their time that she had no problems supporting them. She loved the cover songs the band performed, but most of all, she loved their original music. Her favorite was called 'Drying Up My Soul'. The song was about living a life that was going nowhere and, boy, could she relate to the lyrics. It had made such an impression on her that she found herself singing along whenever they played it.

She pulled out of her thoughts and noticed both Geo and Merc staring at her. "What?"

"You were singing our song." A soft smile played on Geo's lips as he spoke.

Stephanie smiled at both of them, "Yeah, I was just thinking how much I like it."

"You have a great voice. How come you never sang before when we were jamming?" Merc's question was more curious than anything else, but Stephanie detected a note of awe in it, as well.

"I just never – I was too concentrated on playing to think about singing, I guess."

"You just never what?" This question came from Geo on her right.

Stephanie turned to look into his steady gaze. "I never thought that I was much of a singer."

Geo scoffed at her statement. "Who ever gave you that impression?"

Stephanie shrugged. "No one ever said anything. When I sang at home as a kid, my mother would hush me."

"What?" Merc said in an incredulous tone. "Didn't you ever get the 'Well, try it and see if you like it, but you have to stick with it for six months' speech or anything like that?"

Stephanie sank lower into the couch cushions and began picking at some imaginary lint on her sweater. "I usually got the 'Why do I have a daughter who can't…' or 'Why do you always have to embarrass me, S – uh, Michelle?' So, no, there wasn't much encouragement to try new things, just pressure to do her things."

Her speech was met with absolute silence. She was afraid to look up at the guys. She didn't know if they'd caught her slip of the tongue or not. She waited a few moments, then raised her eyes to take a peek at them. Their identical faces held the same expression: shocked outrage.

"Let me get this straight," Geo finally said after a few moments. "You were told you were an embarrassment–"

"I am told with every decision she doesn't like; it is part of why I married Mr. Wrong when I was young. Or, I was told, but then I left. She doesn't say much to me since I left." She smiled at her last statement. Stephanie was starting to lose some of her Burg guilt and gain resentment for the treatment she'd received from her mother.

"You're a grown woman and your mother still says that you're–" Merc stopped with a look of bewilderment on his face. "Okay, does she still complain about what you don't do right? Wait," he said when he saw Stephanie's expression, "why am I asking? If she is disrespectful enough to call you an embarrassment, then of course she tells you what you do wrong."

Geo shook his head in amazement. "Wow, no wonder you ran away. Pair that with the idiots who hurt you…" His brow darkened in a deep scowl. "Well, how about we do everything you never believed you could accomplish?"

Stephanie laughed. "Trust me, I don't need to do half of those things anymore. Now, I only want to be my own person. Okay, and I still want to fly."

"Interesting. It's something to keep in mind for surprises later," Merc said. "But, how about we keep working on your music for now? You're a fast learner, but promise us you'll sing more! You have that Ann Wilson thing going on, it's sexy."

"Ann Wilson? From Heart?"

"Yeah. Well, your voice is fuller; hips narrower." Geo slid an arm around her shoulders and leaned his head against hers.

"I love that band." Stephanie had a look of awe on her face. "Well, their early stuff, anyway. You think I sound like her?"

"Yes, but your voice resonates more. That okay?" They both turned their faces to look at each other, their faces a centimeter apart. Geo was incredibly good looking and her mind registered it, but there was no physical attraction. Stephanie felt comfortable and confident. It meant something to have friendship with men who expected nothing from her other than what she wanted to give.

"Uh, yeah," Stephanie laughed and then pulled back, sobered. "But I need to tell you both something I haven't been honest about."

"Your name isn't really Michelle Cherry?" Merc asked.

Stephanie's jaw dropped. "How did you know? Why didn't you tell me you knew?"

"Figured you'd say when you were ready. I got it from the newspaper. Half of Trenton is looking for you, Stephanie." He pulled up a paper and showed her a copy of the Trenton Times with a picture of her on the front page.

Stephanie groaned. "Oh great! Now I have to call my parents. This is a nightmare. Even when I leave that damn town, I make the front page of the paper!" She stopped and cast a narrowed glance at the two of them. "Why do you have a copy of Trenton's paper?"

"Yesterday there was a little blurb in Atlantic City Weekly that said Stephanie Plum, the famous Bombshell Bounty Hunter, had gone missing two weeks ago. I went to school with a guy who lives in Trenton. He's tapped into everything – a genius of sorts. He told me about your 'disappearance' and I looked it up online." He gave her a self-satisfied smile. "Once I determined it was you, I asked him to get me a copy. He didn't disappoint, met me last night to give this to me. I thought you might want it for yourself, you made the front page."

"What? Who is your friend?"

"He's a guy named Salvatore. You may not know him. You'd have to run in the right circles, and I'm sorry, but you don't look like the type."

"Oh shit, let me guess. Is it Sally Sweet?"

Both men dropped their jaws. "You know Sally?"

"Omigod! It's a long story." Stephanie stood and began to pace, clearly agitated. "Fuck! You didn't tell him you knew me, did you?" Her hands were trembling and she shoved them into her jeans to keep them steady.

"Not on your life, Belle." Merc stood and drew her into a comforting embrace. His hands rubbed gently up and down to soothe her nerves and he placed a kiss on her temple. "I told him that the story was interesting and I wanted to read more about this bounty hunter. He didn't mention he knew you."

Stephanie stopped. "He didn't say anything?"

Merc slightly danced his head back and forth in thought; eyes squinted, teeth clenched in an 'oops' expression. "Well, he said something that confused me. He said 'You think you know someone' and then he slapped the paper in my hand and changed the subject. I thought he was talking about me."

Stephanie sat on the coffee table and buried her face in her hands. What a nightmare!

"Belle, does anyone know where you are?" She snapped her head up to look at Geo.

"No, and it's damn well going to stay that way." Both men held up their hands in an 'okay, calm down' gesture. "I left because I had to. You don't know these guys. They'll be on me like flies on poop if they catch wind of where I am."

Merc studied her for a moment, looking over her hair and her body. Stephanie grew uncomfortable under his scrutiny after a several moments and finally shouted, "What are you looking at?"

"Well, it seems that you're a pretty well-known gal. I was thinking we could make some changes so that anyone looking for you won't recognize you. That hair is a dead giveaway and–"

"I'm not cutting it off or dying it. Been there, done that; it was a disaster!" Stephanie covered her hair with her hands in protection.

Geo laughed. "No, but my boyfriend, Lucio, has a great resource for amazing wigs. I think we should get a few." At Stephanie's snarl, he grinned and put up his hands. "No, I promise. They look natural. They're very expensive. Real hair."

She did a double take at Geo. "Did you say boyfriend?"

Geo cocked his head at her. "Yep. Boyfriend."

She nodded. "It's always the way it is. Hot, sweet, kind - totally not interested."

Geo laughed. "You want me to be interested in you? 'Cause I am bi."

"No!" She stood and smiled sheepishly. "I'm just saying it seems to be the way things are." She turned to look at Merc.

"Straight, 100%. Geo likes to experiment, I'm boring." The brothers laughed.

She cast her eyes around the common room. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

Merc laughed. "Not hidden in here." She cocked her head to the side and narrowed her gaze at him. "I'm in between girlfriends right now. The band takes up all of my time and I'm not a one night stand kind of guy."

"Well, that's good." Stephanie blew out a breath and planted her hands on her hips. "But seriously, I don't want you to spend money on me all the time. I'll never be able to pay it back."

Merc slid an arm around her waist and pulled her close for a brotherly kiss on her cheek. "You don't have a say in it." He pressed a finger to her lips to silence her and looked at Geo. "I don't know about you, G, but I, for one, want to hear more about how Belle here got the nickname from the paper." Merc's smile was contagious and Stephanie found herself smiling back. "Must be a pretty spectacular story. What do you know? We've been trying to gain fame and she's got it mastered already!"

Geo threw his head back and laughed. "That is so typical!"

Stephanie shook her head and joined in the laughter with her two friends. "Okay, here's the reason they gave me the name…"

*\/*\/*\/*\/*

"Repeat." Ranger didn't bother to disguise his anger. Tank was lucky he couldn't get his hands around the man's giant neck.

He heard Tank pause and let out a breath. Ranger struggled to keep his emotions in check, but the anger was rapidly building into full-blown carnal rage. "Stephanie's been missing for two weeks. Left town the night she came to talk to you. No one's seen or heard from her since."

"You told me you would keep her safe. You…"

"What I said was I'd try. At that point, we were still trying to find her and thought she was just hiding out with friends, blowing off steam. This is the first time you've called since we've confirmed everything." Tank was working hard to cover his ass and Ranger forced himself to draw in a deep breath through his nose and exhale slowly through his mouth.

"Tank, do whatever it takes, use whatever resources available to Rangeman. Just find her." Ranger's voice was a quiet plea to his friend; the only man Ranger trusted with his life. The only man he had trusted to take care of his heart and he'd let her go missing.

"That's what we've been doing and we'll continue to do everything possible."

Ranger hung up and sat down on his bunk. He'd not only broken Stephanie's heart, but she'd left town because she couldn't face him and didn't know he was leaving. The reality of his fuckup sank in and he regretted the hasty words he'd uttered when she had shocked him nearly senseless with her confession. He was adept at handling complicated military campaigns, but he didn't know how to be honest with the one person who mattered most, the person he loved.