DANGEROUS MERGERS

Chapter Three

The gray of dawn faded into the pastel hues of pink and lavender, before the brilliant blue sky announced the full arrival of a new day. Uncaring, Ranger observed the changes from his hotel window. Nothing mattered to him but finding Stephanie. Nothing.

Except for answering Detective Lopez's questions he hadn't uttered a single word. He understood that Lopez was just doing his job and the red tape that went along with it. He had to force himself to remain calm when what he wanted to do was force his way out of the room and take charge of the situation.

Tank's arrival was announced by his slamming the door open, with Bobby and Lester close behind. "Ric!" Relief sounded in Tank's voice.

Ranger couldn't stop the painful smile from playing across his face while he watched his friends enter the room in single file. "Yo."

Not being as reserved as Ranger, Tank crossed the room in two lengthy strides and embraced him in a bone-crushing hug. Ranger knew it was Tank's way and that it was better to just accept it and not try to fight him on it. Sure enough, the hug lasted for a few seconds, and then Tank stepped back to resume his business-like demeanor.

"Any news on Steph?" Tank asked, his eyes full of worry.

"Not since earlier," Ranger said. "The Coast Guard is concentrating their search in the area where they first picked up a tracking signal. From the location, I'm almost certain it's hers. After the second explosion, my chute carried me away from Stephanie. So the area makes sense."

"When are they going to expand the search?" Lester asked.

"Not sure." Ranger raked his hands through his hair, unable to contain his impatience. "I can't leave until after Detective Miller has a chance to question me. He's supposed to be here anytime."

Tank's eyes met Ranger's. He understood his best friend's level of worry. "Don't worry, man, you know Steph, she always finds her way out of trouble. Besides, our Miami office is working on it. There's a driver waiting for you downstairs. Soon as you're done here, he'll haul your injured ass over to join us."

Turning his attention to Detective Lopez, Tank did a quick study of the man. "I'd like to see the Coast Guards rescue reports." Tank waited. He was curious as to how helpful Lopez was going to be in sharing information.

Detective Lopez knew that both Manoso and his friend were working hard to keep their assertiveness in check. Both men were trained to take control of a situation and were used to being the ones giving the orders. He had to admire the level of control Manoso had exhibited so far; it looked like his friend was comfortable in following Manoso's lead. Knowing that it would be better to have them working with him instead of against him, Lopez walked over to his briefcase, removed a thin manila folder and handed it to Tank and then waited to see what the large man did with the information and who he would contact.

Tank perused the report before passing it over to Bobby and Lester. While the other two men reviewed the report, Tank pulled out his cell phone and punched in a local number.

"Leon, we need the boat, have it ready in thirty." Tank listened to the voice on the other end of the phone. "Thanks." He disconnected the call and directed his attention back to Ranger. "Remember, your wife's a smart woman. We'll keep you posted." Tank pulled an extra cell phone from one of the deep pockets on the side of his pants and handed it to Lopez. "That's his." He nodded in Ranger's direction and turned to leave.

Ranger forced himself not to overtake Lopez and leave with his friends when they headed back out the door.

oOoOo

Miguel rolled over in the large bed and reached for his ringing phone, trying in desperation to silence it.

"Shit," he muttered as he yanked the phone up to his ear. ¿Qué?

"Did you accomplish your assignment?" The stern voice asked from the other end of the phone. Just the sound of the older man's voice had Miguel sitting up in bed, clearing his head.

"Yes, of course I did," Miguel, said trying to sound self-assured. "No problem. Ricardo was so lax in his security that taking him out was easy." He knew the plane had exploded, but he hadn't received confirmation from the two men he'd hired to do the job. Hopefully, they had died in the explosion as well. Still, he worried that the old man might have better means of information.

The expansion of quietness grew as Miguel waited for the older man's response. Not able to stand the silence any longer, he blurted out, "I promise you, everything was taken care of. Everything; including his beautiful new wife." Miguel also didn't share his thoughts of sparing the woman and saving her for himself. He knew that if the old man ever found out, he'd be a dead man in a matter of hours.

"Let us hope that you are correct," the older man said before he hung up the phone.

Miguel's body sagged against the headboard with relief upon hearing the disconnection of the call. A sudden feeling of euphoria settled between his legs. Rolling over, he grabbed the woman lying in the bed next to him. So what if he had to pay her extra, he had good reason to celebrate! His cousin, Ricardo Carlos Manoso was dead! Long live Miguel José Manoso!

oOoOo

Detective Miller questioned Manoso for over an hour and he could tell the man was ready to take matters in his own hands, the detective's neck among them. "One last question. Do you recognize this man?" Miller held out a blurred black and white photo that appeared to have been enlarged from a security camera.

"Maybe." Ranger studied the photo.

"How about this one?" Miller handed him a clearer photo. "Any easier?"

Ranger studied the picture and then closed his eyes while he crumpled the picture in his hand. "His name is Miguel Manoso. He's my cousin."

"Could you have pissed him off by not inviting him to your little wedding?" Miller was careful at how he poked at Ranger's edginess. God knew he didn't want to come to blows with him. "One of the hotel employees remembered him and that he was asking questions about you."

"Detective, I believe that my wife is alive somewhere and it's of the utmost importance that we find her before my cousin does… or he'll kill her."

oOoOo

Stephanie felt the cool wetness upon her brow. Oh God it felt wonderful. Why was she so hot? She fumbled to push the covers off her body. Maybe Ranger was too close? She tried to turn onto her side, hoping to put some space between their bodies, but her body refused to cooperate with the signals from her brain. She stopped moving when a wave of nausea engulfed her. Shit, this was sooo not good. She tried to speak, but the words came out in the form of a groan; another bad sign. She could still feel the dampness on her brow, but now it was warm. Another groan sounded from inside her and the dampness was once again cool. It felt wonderful. This time Stephanie didn't fight her body, instead she just let it drift away, hoping to leave the pain behind.

oOoOo

Detective Miller snapped his briefcase closed when Detective Lopez handed Ranger his phone. It started ringing as soon as it was in Ranger's hand. "Yo."

"We just received a message from the Coast Guard. They've picked up a faint echo on their radar screen. They're adjusting the search coordinates. Time to hurry it up, my friend," Tank said.

"Just finished, I'm on my way." Ranger started gathering up various items one-handed and stuffing them in his pockets. One of the items caught Detective Lopez's attention, Ranger's gun. "Pick me up at Sam's Dock." Ranger listened for a few minutes before speaking again. "Miguel is behind this." Ranger rushed for the door.

"Manoso!" Detective Lopez called him back. "A helicopter would be faster."

Ranger stopped, looked at Lopez and nodded. "Thanks." Lopez nodded. "You're welcome to come along, just remember that I'm in charge now and I don't always follow the rules."

"Figured that out already," Lopez said with a tight smile.

As the helicopter hovered above Sam's Dock, Ranger scanned the water's vast surface. It would be dark soon and therefore he cursed the wasted hours. Not willing to wait any longer, Ranger hunched over and leaped from the helicopter as soon as the pilot touched down.

"Update." Ranger shouted over the noise of the rotating blades to Lester, who had run to meet him.

"Tank's on the phone with the Coast Guard right now." Lester nodded his head in the big man's direction. "Nothing new until he finishes." Lester looked at his friend's face. The two of them had been through a lot together. Good and bad, but he'd never seen Ranger look worried, no matter which situation.

Tank made his way to Ranger; his feet felt as if they were made of lead. Everyone else crowded around to hear the news. How in the hell was he going to stop Ric from going after Stephanie? Simple, he wouldn't be able to so he'd have to think of something else, but right now his mind was blank. One thing was sure; marriage hadn't changed the Bombshell one bit! "They've pinpointed the tracker's signal." Tank answered the inquiring lift of Ranger's eyebrow.

"Let's go," Ranger ordered and started for the boat. The other three men raced after him.

"Wait!" Tank shouted, bringing everyone to a stop. "Wait?" Ranger stopped and turned to face his friend. The look on his face caused Tank to take a step back. "I have waited. I have wasted this whole day waiting. I waited two fucking years for Stephanie." Ranger retraced his steps and was now standing nose to nose with his friend. "I did not wait all that time just to have my family interfere with my life."

Ranger's hands were fisted, ready to strike out at the man in front of him when he realized that Tank wasn't finished with his news. "What?" he asked and relaxed his hands.

"It's not what, it's where." Tank saw the confused looks on the other men's faces. "The problem is where Stephanie is."

"Explain," Ranger said through clenched teeth.

"Cuba. She's in Cuba," Tank answered.

Ranger stared at his friend. "You've got to be shitting me!"