The alarm clock was going off, pulling me out of a deep sleep. I glanced up. Five a.m. My fingers slid over the bed sheets, searching for Ranger's body. He wasn't there. The nightmare was a reality. Ranger was in jail. The bed was empty and cold, and I curled up into myself thinking about what his night must have been like.

I wonder if he had slept at all. It was hard to imagine Ranger in a cage inside the Trenton police station. I had been inside the lockup before, but not inside an actual cell. He could do nothing to change his situation from where he was. He needed me out here to find out what happened that night.

I had helped him before. I knew he trusted me to find out information that the police were not able to. When his daughter was kidnapped, Ranger was the prime suspect. The police had evidence that he had taken his daughter Julie, and killed people who got in his way. Ranger had a stalker that had gone too far. The man was dressing and acting like him. He came to me for help. It was a serious situation, and he trusted me to find his daughter. Although it was a huge compliment, I struggled with the responsibility of finding a child without him. I had found her, but I ended up getting kidnapped along with her. He almost died trying to save us. Now it was up to me again. I was afraid for him. I was terrified that I wouldn't be able to find the pieces of the puzzle and figure out what happened. This time if things went badly, I was on my own. I wouldn't have anyone to save me.

I couldn't remember falling asleep last night. I'd worked side by side with Tank and Hal until after midnight. When I left them, they were still getting the computers back up and running. I had climbed up the stairs to the rooftop of the building and looked out over the city. I was trying hard to get the perspective Ranger had told me about before I left for Scottsdale. So much has happened. Trenton felt bitter and heartless. Where was I supposed to be? Who was I suppose to believe? What the hell was I suppose to do?

I sat down, pulling my knees up to my chest. I tried hard to figure out what my next move should be. Nothing had come of it. My mind was blank. I had no idea what steps I should take. I had gone back down stairs to Ranger's apartment. I remember turning on the T.V, flipping through channels, and turning it back off. The apartment had been too quiet. The clock in the wall ticked calmly. The lights from the oven radiated blue, outlining the tile floor and stainless steel appliances. I went into the bedroom. I lay down on his bed, putting my head on the pillow, looking up at the ceiling. I must have fallen asleep the moment my head hit the soft cotton.

I stretched out. Five in the morning was really early. I lay there thinking about the day before. How Tank had reacted and how hard everyone was working not to fall behind. I realized we were all distracted, but trying hard not to show it. I knew Rangeman meant everything to Tank and the others. It was a top priority. The entire team needed to stay focused on keeping things running smooth. The project that Ranger wanted to start so badly was still in front of us. Nothing had changed. The Gaskil building was being completely rewired with new security features. Everyone was hoping that the recent arrest would not detour the owners to find another company to handle their buildings. The next two weeks would be crucial for Rangeman. It would determine if the news would affect the accounts that they had worked so hard to maintain.

It was hard to be in Rangers apartment without him. It made me anxious. I needed to find out more about Jeanne. She had a life. She did things daily. There were people out there that had to be interacting with her. I needed to find them. I wanted someone besides Ranger to tell me more about her. I had an idea where to begin. Connie.

I looked in the mirror. My hair was a scary jostle of curly fragments. My eyes were puffy. I felt disheveled and my brain was tired from trying to think my way out of this disaster. I put my hair into a pony tail to keep it from wildly misbehaving and I pulled on my sweatpants. I laced up my running shoes and clipped my cell phone on my hip. I went out to get my clear perspective.

I stretched and hit the button on the elevator. I got in as the doors slid shut behind me. It moved slowly and stopped. Ramon got in from the fifth floor. The men who worked for Ranger had small apartments available to them. They were situated on the fifth floor of the building. Ranger had me stay in one a while ago. They were nice, but not as nice as Rangers apartment. I ended up back on the seventh floor, and back in Ranger's bed. It had tested not only my willpower but his, to the breaking point.

Ramon was dressed in sweats and running shoes. I knew all the Rangeman employees had an extensive workout routine. They all had to keep in shape. It was one of the requirements for getting a job for Ranger. He wanted everyone to be in good physical condition. It was one of the reasons working for him might not work out entirely well for me. I wasn't exactly a lump on the couch, but I didn't strive to stay fit.

Ramon glanced at my outfit and checked his watch.

"What?"

"You're up early, and it doesn't look like you were pushed out of bed. My guess, you haven't slept more than two hours."

"And?"

"And, I think you are just as disturbed as we are about what happened. If you want a partner to run with, I am your man. I need to get out of this building. Everything is so somber. It's freaking me out."

I wanted to talk to him. Ramon was the only one who spoke up and risked his ass telling Kyle that I was a pain in the butt. He told me the team would not stand behind me if I didn't cooperate. I was making them all look bad. I had pissed everyone off, including him. Speaking up about it took a lot of nerve, and I respected him for it. He was the one I needed to talk to about Ranger. I trusted him to have a better outlook on what was happening.

By the time we hit the park, we were both at a steady jog. I found the rhythm of his gate and stayed with him. We ran quietly together focusing on the path in front of us. I cleared my head. The park had a long open pathway that was cement with a combination of dirt and grass on both sides. The path zigzagged through an area with a large lake and plenty of trees and plants. It was beautiful. I relaxed and concentrated on the trail in front of me. I needed a logical picture of what had happened. If someone was setting Ranger up to take the fall for Jeanne Ellen, he had walked right into the trap.

Ramon and I ran for a half hour, and then I slowed and started walking. I know my limits. When I start reaching the point where I can't catch my breath, I stop. I was getting better; I could only run for about five minutes when I started doing this a few months ago. Half an hour was really good for me. I needed to talk to Ramon away from the other guys, and away from Rangeman. I couldn't do it while I concentrated on not collapsing in front of him. I decided it was now or never.

"Do you think Ranger killed Jeanne Ellen?" I asked.

Ramon was silent for a moment.

"Why would he?" He asked. "For causing problems, taking security out and messing with your Jeep?" He laughed. "You gotta be kidding. Ranger may be a little ruthless when he is on the hunt, but he is not a cold-blooded killer. He over thinks everything when it comes to putting someone down. I have watched him work many times. Ranger loves the thrill of the chase, but if it comes down to having to do the deed, he hates it. Not that he hesitates, because he doesn't. But you can see on his face, he doesn't want to do it. Ranger does not kill anyone for the fun of it, or for unjustified reasons."

"Tank said he is capable."

"He is capable. Every one of us is capable, Stephanie. Shit, you're capable. It doesn't mean it would happen."

I walked with him in silence. I stared down at my feet, thinking that he was right. Everyone was capable of murder.

"Did you know there was a thing going on between Jeanne Ellen and Ranger?"

Ramon looked at me. "Yes. I don't know if I would call it a "thing", but it was obvious something was going on between them. If you are going to ask me if I know the extent of their relationship, I am pleading the fifth. It never was any of my business."

I smiled, "Ok. Fair enough."

We walked some more in silence. Then I threw the big one at him. I wanted to see how Ramon reacted to the information I had gotten yesterday.

"How much did you know about Jeanne Ellen?"

Ramon smiled.

"Did you know she worked with the FBI?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"Yeah?" I stopped. "What do you mean, Yeah?"

"I mean, yeah. Yes, we knew Jeanne worked for the government, the FBI or whatever. We knew that she was keeping tabs on Rangeman. We knew who she was watching almost all the time. She was just as much our informant as she was the governments. We helped her, she helped us."

"So you're saying Ranger knew, and was ok with it?"

"I'm saying she kept us on our toes, and she kept us legit. We all needed a little push in the right direction when we started the company, Stephanie. It is easier for us as a team to do the wrong thing, instead of following the rules. When we started Rangeman she was on our shit. She really wanted to find something to pull the business down. She tried. She thought Ranger should become an informant like she was, not a security specialist. Apparently he had helped her when he was a kid. He would spy on people for her. She taught him how to do all that shit. She was like his mentor or something. Ranger didn't want any part of it. It wasn't what he wanted. Knowing she was watching all of us, made him make the right decisions. He told us it was good that someone watched us. When she realized we were all serious about getting Rangeman off the ground, she would give us the heads up when things were going down that could affect the company. She was a huge asset to us."

"She was a huge asset? What changed?" I asked.

I knew things had changed between Ranger and I, but was it enough to do damage with her and the company? Maybe.

Ramon glanced at me again, giving me a sideways look. "I think it's pretty obvious you had a lot to do with it, don't you think?" He smiled at me, catching my eye. "Things changed when he left last year. Ranger took off on some secret assignment right after you left. I know Ranger was unsure of how he felt about dealing with Jeanne. Her calls in were now directed to the new employees. That had never happened before. We had dropped them all on Montoya's desk. He was the newest, and Ranger told us to let him handle it. This pretty much started her getting irritated with Ranger. She started using his cell phone instead of the office line. By then, it was obvious Ranger was pulling away from her. She was pushing it. He wasn't in contact with any of us, but she thought we were lying to her. She would call him, and then when he didn't answer, she would call us on the emergency line. It happened for months while he was away."

I walked next to him silently, thinking about the calls Ranger had gotten the day we had come into town.

"I think he knew it needed to end, ya know?" Ramon said. "It wasn't exactly healthy. He said things with her had run their course. She was acting different. I think his feelings were changing. He was concentrating on how he felt about you, and I don't think she was happy about it at all. It was strange when we kicked her out of Rangeman that night, it felt like I was kicking his mom out. It was freaky weird."

I didn't want to tell him just how freaky weird it really was.

We walked back to Rangeman. The building activity had increased. Rangeman owned the building they were in, but leased out the first two floors to other companies. The garage was just about full when we walked through. We took the elevator back up.

"So tomorrow, you up for this again? I could use an excuse to get me out of Rangeman duties."

"If I'm not down here tomorrow by 5:30, leave without me."

Ramon rolled his eyes, and got out on the fifth floor.

I went back to the seventh floor and took a long hot shower. I had a lot of questions that needed answering. Sitting around here wasn't going to get me any closer to the truth. I took Ranger's keys and went down to the parking garage. I didn't have my Jeep, but I still had access to all Ranger's vehicles. His Porsche 911 Turbo was sitting there inside the garage. It was calling my name. The car was deep black, and had black leather upholstery. It was dark and alluring. There is no other word for it, the car was sexy. It wasn't something I should just drive around Trenton. It attracted attention. I loved that car. I eyeballed it. There was also the Ducati Monster, the Ford F250 truck, and the three black SUVs the team had access too. I had the keys in my hands for all of them, but I still was unsure if it was ok to go around taking Rangers toys.

My cell phone rang. It was Tank.

"Take the Turbo, Stephanie. We have money changing hands up here. Make a decision for Christ's sake."

What the hell, I picked one and drove out. I took the Turbo. Tank knew me pretty well. I also knew he must have won the bet, and he cheated to do it. He had called me. Tank doesn't play fair.

I wanted to talk to Connie about the hit man who had been after Jeanne Ellen. If she was an informant, she might have had a lot more enemies than anyone knew. If there was a hit out on her, then that could have been the hit "Tony the Tool" was supposed to collect. Connie had talked about it. Did Tony take Jeanne out? If he didn't, then who did? Maybe she could find out something for me.

I drove over to Vinnie's. It was still early, but I knew Connie got to the office by seven, and Lula was there by nine. It was going on eight thirty. There were no parking spaces anywhere on the street next to the bonds office. I parked three blocks down and walked back. Something was going on.

There were people milling around outside the office door, waiting to get inside. When I looked in, I could see at least twenty more people. None of them looked happy. I squeezed through, making my way over to Connie's desk. It was at the center of a concentration of people. Connie was there. She was leaning over her desk arguing with an angry mob of three. Whatever was going on, she was holding them off as best she should. I saw on her face she was losing the battle. She was panicking.

When I was close enough I was able to get her attention.

"What is going on?" I yelled to Connie.

She saw me. She was instantly relieved. I couldn't get close enough to talk to her. The crowd had squeezed me out. She stood up, climbed on to her chair and yelled out over the crowd.

"Someone heard we bailed out Michael Jackson Miller, and now they think that we should do the same for them. I have no idea what the hell to do!" She climbed down again quickly as one of the men tried to look up her skirt.

I waded through the angry mob, finally reaching her desk. I opened up the drawer and took out her gun. This trick had worked before, and it always worked in spaghetti westerns. I was Italian, I was hoping that helped. I stood up on her chair and stepped up on the table, gun in hand. I peered out over the crowd, counting heads. I tried to get everyone to calm down so we could get things figured out. I yelled at them to stop talking. I couldn't hear my own voice. No one was interested in listening. Someone grabbed for my leg. That was it. I realized there were more people in this office than the fire code allowed. I counted twenty-five. It was my civic duty to do the right thing and clear this place out. I took Connie's gun and shot it into the air. The gun was very loud in the small office. The bullet hit the ceiling. Plaster rained down on us. I was instantly grateful I hadn't hit anything electrical.

Everyone stopped screaming and yelling at once. I had their attention. I yelled out over the crowd. "Listen,everyone! If anyone here needs to have someone bailed out of jail that does not already have paperwork here, please make your way to the desk where I am standing. We are only taking new cases at this time."

Confusion rolled through the crowd in murmured voices.

"So uh… my brother already has paperwork here. What about him? "

"What is your brother's name?"

"Kevin Nolen."

"Kevin Nolen jumped bail. I had to bring him back in." We are not posting bail for any clowns who decide not to go to court anymore. You need to make other arrangements. We can't help you."

Someone deep in the crowd yelled out. "What about Michael Miller?"

"Michael Miller is none of your freakin' business!" I screamed back.

Clearly this was going to be an issue. I was sick of running after these jack-offs.

"Now get out before I call the cops. You all are violating the fire code in here, and I bet there are some of you who have warrants."

The threat of police and of warrants had some people getting to the door quickly. Everyone started to leave. I was glad, because I had no idea what else I could have done except call 911 and hope they got here before someone shot at us. I knew why Lula bailed Michael Miller out, but our business practices needed a little tweaking. Lula and Connie were softies. They needed Vinnie to help them say no.

I could finally see the carpet below me as everyone filtered out the front door. I ignored the rude comments and the gripes about how Vinnie's business was going down the tubes now that women were running it into the ground. A few people shouted about how they would take their business elsewhere. I thought that sounded ok with me. Screw them and their bail jumper relatives.

It was finally easier to breathe. A few people lingered, hoping Connie was nice enough to make an exception. She might have, but I intervened. I reminded her that if anyone came out of this office with papers in hand, the angry mob would be back for more. This had to stop. I climbed down off the desk. Everyone had left, everyone except a pretty woman sitting on the couch next to Carmen Manoso. Oh... Crap.

My eyes flew to the front door, and then I casually glanced at the back door gauging the distance. I could walk quickly. I could pretend I had not locked eyes with Carmen. I had things to do. I could act as if I had a headache and lock myself in Vinnie's security office. I wanted to run, badly. The woman sitting next to Carmen got up before I had a chance to make an escape. She was my height, thin and beautiful with small bones and elegance I could never manage. I had seen her before, and I knew I was doomed. Doomed!

Ranger's mother walked up to me. Her intense brown eyes held mine and bore into my soul. I stared back at her in awe. I had seen her in pictures at the cabin. She had his eyes, and they were burning holes in my retinas. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't look away. Ranger had a way of making you pay attention. I understood now where he had gotten that power.

Carmen started to get up off the couch. Mrs. Manoso turned back to her with a quickness I did not expect and said something to her in Spanish. I have no idea what she said, but Carmen sat back down. She turned back toward me.

"I am Isabella Manoso, Carlos's mother."

I glanced quickly at Connie. She looked like she had swallowed a canary.

"Carmen tells me that you are responsible for my son getting into trouble." Mrs. Manoso said, still holding me captive with her gaze. "She says that it is your entire fault. She told me many things about you; none of them are good, Stephanie Plum."

Oh boy. This is bad. Ranger is going to be pissed if I upset his mother.

"I went to the jail today, and I saw my son." She said to me quietly. "Carlos said something completely different about you. He told me that he had feelings for you, Stephanie. He said what happened with Miss Burrows was not your fault." She looked back at Carmen for a moment, but not long enough for me to retort. "I didn't know who to believe." She said as she looked down. "I came here today to see for myself. To meet the girl my son holds so high. Do you know what I saw?"

I nodded my head. No. I wanted to explain. Oh crap. There was no way for me to explain the gun thing to Ranger. He wouldn't understand how I had fired a gun in front of his mother, stood on a desk and used cuss words in front of her. Triple crap. Moms were people you try to impress. I held my breath and closed my eyes, if she was going to breathe fire, this was the moment.

"I saw a little girl shoot a hole in the ceiling of a very nice building." She said. "I saw her do it to help someone who could not get out of the ditch, even if someone had handed her a ladder."

I opened my eyes. She was giving me an offhanded compliment. Ok then. I took a deep breath, and relaxed a little trying to smile.

"Thank you." I said.

I couldn't find any words to follow that with. Damn, I was tongue-tied.

She was still watching me. "You have courage most do not. It is a good trait. Help him get out of trouble. He needs you. When this whole thing is over, you come see me Stephanie. I would like to talk with you more."

I finally swallowed, and let out a deep breath. His mom did not hate me. She turned her attention back to her daughter. She said something too quickly for me to catch, and Carmen followed her out the door with a sideways hateful glance. I stood outside the office watching as Carmen opened the car door for her mother.

"Mrs. Manoso?" I said. "Can I talk to you in private for a moment?" I asked. I had this sudden urge to tell her something I thought she would understand.

Carmen walked away from her mother, pulling a cigarette out of her jacket pocket and lighting it. Isabella turned towards me. I looked at her closely trying to see her son in her eyes.

"This might sound kind of strange to you, but I was at your cabin. The one in New Mexico. Your son brought me there because I needed him to protect me. He told me the story about his father, your husband. I wanted you to know there is peace at that cabin. Carlos needs it. He feels his father is there protecting him and his friends. I think he is right. That place is special. Thank you for keeping it. It means the world to him."

Tears came to her eyes, and she hugged me. "Thank you, Stephanie. Thank you. I haven't thought about that place in a very long time. I gave that to Carlos a long time ago. I am happy he still finds it useful." She motioned for Carmen and yelled at her for smoking. Carmen glared at me once more as she helped her mother into the car. They drove away. Isabella Manoso was still watching me.

I thought it was possible I had made an enemy of Ranger's sister, but I think his mother thought I was Ok. Carmen had thought I was Ok, until she realized I was dating her brother. I guess your attitude must change about someone when you realize the wolf was already in your house, not just knocking on the neighbor's door.

Mary Maggie Mason was opening up her bookstore as I waved a final goodbye salute the way of Carmen's car. It was a relief that I was still in one piece. I took a deep breath and turned back towards the office. I saw Mary and smiled. Mary had put all her savings into building a business for herself. She had opened The Mystery Book Store. It was connected by a wall to Vinnie's. The fire last year had done damage mostly to the bonds building, but her store had also been damaged.

She saw me, smiled and waved. "Hello, Stephanie, how are you?"

I watched the car turn the corner. I was free from the Manoso spell. I took a deep breath. "I'm good." I said. But anyone with sense could see the transparency behind that statement.

She propped open her business door with an antique looking light blue chair that had an "Open" sign on it.

"You don't sound so sure about that. Would you like to come in? I don't know if you have seen the inside of this place since it was rebuilt. It's really something."

She stood in the doorway waiting for my reply. I needed to ask Connie questions about Jeanne, but I was intrigued. I had never stepped foot in Mary's store before. I was still a little perturbed about the mud wrestling thing. I never thought to come over and say hello. Once you have been pulled apart like a spring chicken by a woman in a pit of mud, you just don't assume you will need to make idle conversation with them down the road.

"I'll even make you coffee." She said, tempting me. "I want to ask you something anyway, if you have a couple of minutes."

Mary looked like she was doing well. She had lost some of the bulk she had from wrestling, and now looked a lot more feminine. Her hair was cut short, and fell next to her ears. She had on a dark pair of cargo pants and a plain white button down short sleeve shirt tucked in with a belt. She wore small silver stud earrings, and her makeup was freshly done. Her eyes were pale blue. It worked well with her blond hair. Working at a bookstore was good for her. It took all the roughness away.

She held the door open for me. What the hell. I could use a cup of coffee and maybe someone to throw some ideas about this whole mess onto. An innocent bystander who wasn't involved might be perfect. I walked into the store. I was overtaken by the dark and light contrast of the room. The foliage and the small lights made the dark corners radiate like it was part of some far off fairy tale. My mouth dropped. It was beautiful.

The bookstore was situated differently than Vinnie's. It had the same basic structure. Front and back door, bathroom in the back. Large front glass window. Everything else was different. It was magical. Vinnie had put in industrial steel gray carpet throughout the office. Mary had opted for oak flooring. A display case was adjacent to the front window displaying new novels and gift items. Vinnie just had the Sign in the window and nothing was in front of it except some plastic chairs for additional customers. The windows were lined with the twinkiling white lights that I was seeing throughout the store. The ceiling was high; the attic taken out and replaced with a balcony room with wood railings. A metal spiral antique staircase led to the upstairs floor. Wood beams were placed for structural balance with a combination of lights and plant vines climbing up. The long wall that separated our office from her store had tall wooden bookshelves filled with old and new novels. A wooden ladder was placed nearby to help with searching for titles to high up to see. The opposite wall had a combination of wood shelves and a large grandfather clock that sat behind her desk. A series of three display cases enclosed the area giving her an open office in the middle of the store near the staircase. The display cases held gift items and antique copies of books. A candle burned on her desk next to her computer and filled the room with a light pine fragrance, and a fax machine and phone sat on a small table nearby.

I walked through the store, looking at the book titles, smelling the scent of the written word. I was almost waiting for a few little pixies to fly around the room at any moment. I heard birds. I saw a cage positioned next to her desk with a pair of lovebirds sitting happily side by side. Near the back, where Vinnie's office was next door, sat a small children's section with a brightly colored table and chairs on a small yellow rug. Next to it was a wooden box filled with toys and games to play. On the wall, an announcement about the next children's night. Guest reader Camille Lending would be here on the twenty second of the month. Kids who wanted to come were encouraged to come dressed in pajamas and to bring their pillows for a night under the lights. The book they would be reading was "Where the Wild Things Are". I thought for a moment that Mary Alice would probably think this place was awesome. Mary Maggie pointed upstairs and told me there were two leather couches, a coffee maker and snacks for anyone wishing to hang out and read. I was impressed.

"When Vinnie's burned down," she said "most of this place did too; She looked around, pointing up at the 2nd floor. "I used insurance money and savings to fix and change the entire building to what I wanted it to be. This is my dream. Now it is a reality." She said. "We have been featured as one of the best places in Trenton three times in the newspaper, and I have been featured in Travel World as one of the shops to go to when visiting New Jersey.

I never imagined that a store like this would be attached to a bail bonds office, much less Vinnie's. Mary was putting on coffee and booting up her computer as I gawked at the beauty of her store.

"Did you ever catch up with Sasha?" She said looking up from her computer and putting on her glasses.

"Yea." I said. "She fainted. We had to call an ambulance."

"Really?" She didn't act that surprised. "She's pregnant. I know her boyfriend, Aaron. After you asked me about her, I called him and warned him that she many need to be bailed out again. I asked him if she was dangerous. He said she is a little crazy, but since she had gotten knocked up, she has put the knife business behind her. Now the most she will do is faint."

Pregnant. I hadn't thought of that. "I hope things turn out for her." I said. "I don't like to arrest pregnant women. They are unstable."

She sat there for a minute. Thinking, while waiting for her computer. She poured us both some coffee.

"I don't know if I ever told you." she said. "I was friends with the woman who got killed the other day, Jeanne Ellen."

"I didn't know." I was stunned. Hot damn. Luck was on my side. Someone who knew Jeanne Ellen. I had no idea Jeanne had friends, much less our neighbor.

"Yeah, we were pretty close, actually. Not many people knew." She said. "Jeanne was bi-sexual."

"She was?" I said a little too late to stop myself. That had thrown me again. It dawned on me a little late about the "friends" comment. It had occurred to me that Mary could be, but I hadn't known Jeanne well enough to think she could be playing both sides of the field.

"Well, she didn't exactly tell a lot of people, Stephanie. It was kind of secret."

I guess I must have sounded like an idiot. I hadn't expected any of this to come up.

I had to ask. "So, were you guys..together?"

"I thought so. I think she had her doubts." She took a drink of her coffee and stirred it, taking her time with what she wanted to say. "Jeanne had a lot of relationships. You knew she was seeing your friend Ranger, right?"

I nodded. Jeanne was definitely becoming an interesting woman.

"I never knew Ranger, except in passing on the street." She said "I only knew he was important to Jeanne."

She laughed. "I asked her once if she would consider a three way with all of us. He is a very good looking man. I wanted to be part of her world in some way. She got upset with me and said she would never consider it. It was out of bounds. I have no idea what the deal was with that. So, I dropped it. Do you think he was responsible for what happened to her? Didn't they arrest him?"

"Responsible is a big word." I said. "Maybe responsible for it to a degree, but I don't believe that he killed her. I wish I had more of an idea who did."

Mary paused for a moment. "It's a good mystery. I do know something that might help you find out who could have killed her." She said. "About a week ago, Jeanne started acting strange. She was agitated. She had been fighting with someone through text messaging. I think it was Ranger. She ended up throwing her phone across the room here at the store. She was really upset about it. It really bothered me. We had been getting closer. I thought that she and I had become a couple. I thought Jeanne was finally ready to make things more permanent between us."

Mary looked down at the floor, as if searching for what to say. "She was livid. She stormed out of here, slamming the door behind her. A few days later she came to see me. She apologized for what had happened. She said that she couldn't see me anymore, but wanted to stay friends. Whatever that means." Mary rolled her eyes.

"Did she tell you why she had decided to end things with you?"

"Kind of, but she was vague. When I asked her, she said that she had been getting serious with a man, he had proposed to her. I was surprised, to say the very least. I was hurt. I had no idea that she had seen anyone else except her casual encounter with your friend." She was quiet for a moment.

"Stephanie, there's something else. She told me she was pregnant. She said she needed to change everything in her life."

I almost choked. What! I had taken a drink of my coffee at the very moment she said it. It took me a moment to get my breath back.

"What?!" I said through strained vocal chords.

She nodded. "You heard me right, Stephanie. She told me that she was about two months along."

"Jeanne is almost fifty. How could she be pregnant?"

She shrugged. I actually asked her the same thing. She said she confirmed it with her doctor. She was worried. She didn't know if she wanted to tell anyone about it. I don't think it occurred to her that she could get pregnant. "

"Did you ask her who the father was?"

I bit my lip, worried about what her answer might be.

"I asked her, but like I said, she was vague. Getting her to talk sometimes was like pulling teeth. All she said was she wasn't sure. She also said she wasn't even sure she was keeping the baby. Then she told me she had someplace to be, and that she would keep in touch. She hugged me, said goodbye and she left."

Mary looked sad. I think she was still trying to grasp the idea Jeanne wasn't coming back.

"The next thing I knew, she was dead." Mary said. "I doubt that anyone even knew that we had been seeing each other. How close we were. It was like I was a deep dark secret. I miss her."

Mary wiped her tears away, as she looked out the window of her bookstore. I wanted to console her. I felt so bad. You just don't think about how many people are affected by someone dying. It can be someone's son or daughter, a friend, a lover, or even a neighbor. When someone dies, the world loses a piece of itself.

Jeanne Ellen Burrows had too many secrets. She must have known the dangers of having that much going on at once. It had to have been exhausting.

"Mary, You need to come forward with this information. The police need to know about this." I said, giving her a tissue to wipe her eyes. "Did you ever see Jeanne with anyone else; anyone she was on the phone with a lot? Or mentioned a lot?"

She shook her head. "It wasn't like that; she never let me in on any part of her life whatsoever." She said.

"You need to talk to the police. Anything might be helpful in finding who did this to her." I said.

"Ok, sure. I will". Mary sat there for a moment, collecting her thoughts.

My head felt like it was going to explode with all the crazy information that kept coming up for his woman. Who the hell did she think she was? How did she manage to juggle so many things around? I was instantly glad my life was less complicated than hers.

"Stephanie, on another note," Mary said. "Joyce Barnhardt has been coming over here. She has been talking to me about becoming a ghost writer. She wants me to help her write a book on bond enforcement. She wants someone else to pen it for her. She said the book would be a study and learning course of what to do and what not to do. I thought it was a good idea, until she showed me the photos and exploits she would use as examples. They were all of you. She was going to use pictures and videos of your takedowns, and then have notes on what to do instead of what you had done. It was an interesting idea, but she doesn't understand that she needs your permission to use the images and videos. I think she has a bit of a vendetta against you."

I took a deep breath. "Joyce." My face felt hot. She is a tick.

Mary looked at me funny. I think steam must have been coming out my ears.

"That's what I thought." She said. "I just wanted to make sure you knew. You know, you could do your own book. Use her ideas, but make it right instead of insulting. Think about it. It could mean money in both our pockets."

I thanked her for all the information and I asked if she came up with anything else about Jeanne, to please let me know. I also said I didn't think I was interested in a book of any sort, but she would be first to know if I changed my mind.

I walked outside and called Rangers attorney, Michael Rosewall. I asked him about handling a case for me against my cousin and Joyce. He told me to go ahead and send him what I had on them, and he would look into it. I felt slightly relieved. Maybe Rosewall could scare the crap out of Joyce for me. Then I got to the point of why I called.

"Jeanne Ellen was two months pregnant." I said. "I wanted to give you the heads up."

There was silence on the other end of the phone. "Do you know this for sure?"

"No, it is not verified. I just talked to Jeanne's girlfriend. She claims Jeanne broke a relationship off with her a week ago because she needed to change her life."

"Let me get back to you." He said.

I didn't know if this would have any relevancy in this case whatsoever. There was a chance that there could be another suspect if there was any way to get DNA from Jeanne. Maybe it could help Ranger. Of course, if the DNA was Rangers, that might not work out so well.

I decided to call Joe. He answered after three long rings.

"Yep…What?"

I think he was annoyed I had called him.

"Stephanie, if this is about my grandmother, you need to call my mother. I'm busy. I am not responsible for her anymore."

I heard papers being shuffled around in the background. I started second guessing my call to him. It might have been a bad idea to talk to him.

"Did you know Jeanne was telling people she was pregnant?"

There was dead silence on the other end of the line. The papers stopped shuffling.

"Who told you that?" He said agitated.

"Have you gotten the tox report back yet?"

"No, it takes a couple days. Stephanie, who told you she might be pregnant?"

He was getting pissed. I could hear it in his voice. It had begun as cool annoyance, now it was flat out upset. I smiled. I had found a clue. He hadn't even been looking.

"Who told you, Stephanie?" His voice raised up a notch. I thought I should probably end this conversation, since I needed to ask Mary if I could tell Joe about her.

"I gotta go." I said hanging up on him.

I didn't know if what Jeanne had told Mary was the truth; it could all be just something she said to her to get her to leave things alone. I had no proof to back it up. I was curious. Who was Jeanne's doctor?

I walked back into the bookstore. Mary was at the computer working. She heard the door chime and looked up.

"Hey, Stephanie, decide to come back and browse?" Her cheerfulness was back. She was handling it. Mary was a pretty tough woman.

"I want to give the police the information you gave me about Jeanne. Would it be okay if I told them your name? They will ask questions."

She paused with what she was doing. "You can tell them." She said. "I am happy to help out, and I am glad you want to call it in. I didn't know where to begin."

I let her know that it was possible she would hear from the police. They would probably want her to come in and talk to them in person. I thanked her and I waved as I walked out the door. As soon as it closed, I called Joe back. He was blowing up my phone since I had been inside the building.

"Are you going to tell me who gave you this information?" He said. "I called down to forensics. They haven't gotten that far yet. They are still processing the body. How the hell do you find out information so quickly?"

"Mary Maggie Mason." I said. It felt good having clues they didn't.

"Who is Mary Maggie Mason?" He said, a little confused. "The name sounds like a nursery rhyme. Wait, you mean the wrestler?"

"That's her. The wrestler. She was seeing Jeanne." I said to him. I couldn't help but feel a little elated for finding information that might be important. "She broke up with Mary because Jeanne said she was involved with a man. She told Mary she was pregnant."

I heard Joe rustle papers around in the background. "Says here Jeanne was forty-nine."

"That's what I heard too."

"I am not an expert in women's reproductive systems, but isn't that a bit of a stretch for a pregnancy?"

"Yeah, It is." I said. "Mary thought so, also. Apparently Jeanne was pretty surprised herself, according to Mary."

"What else did she say?"

"She told Mary that he had proposed to her. She wanted to change her life and be with him."

"And, who is the guy?"

"I don't know."

"What makes you think this person isn't Ranger? It looked to me like Ranger had his fingers in a lot of pies."

"Yeah, apparently you did too."

My face flushed. There it was. I threw it out there like a jealous housewife. I wanted to smack myself. It was none of my business who Joe slept with. I took a deep breath.

He was silent for a moment. Which was good. I needed to regroup.

"Ok. Where is this Mary Maggie now? We will need to talk to her."

"She has a bookstore next to Vinnie's. The Mystery Bookstore." I said.

"That is her bookstore?"

We were both silent for a moment.

"Stephanie, you realize this doesn't mean Ranger didn't commit the crime. You might have gotten him in more hot water. I am not suppose to tell you this, but you should ask his lawyer before calling in anymore tips, Cupcake."

"Don't call me that anymore." He had a point, but he didn't need to call me Cupcake. I needed to curb my addiction of calling in leads.

"You are a cupcake. Thanks for the tip on Mary." He hung up.

He can't call me that anymore. It is against the rules. Let's see him call me that in front of Trisha.

I stood in front of Vinnie's. This new information had my brain on overloaded. Mary was right, it is a good mystery. I looked back again at the bookstore. I hoped telling Joe about Jeanne wasn't the wrong move. Ranger was not in Trenton when Jeanne Ellen claims to have gotten pregnant. Unless she was on the mission with him. I think that was extremely doubtful. Ramon had told me about the calls they had to filter through because she wanted to talk to Ranger. He was either in New Mexico or he was overseas. He couldn't be the father of her baby. If there was even was a baby to begin with. I knew that game. Women used it to get into relationships and to get out of relationships. Jeanne would lie to the Pope if she thought it would get her what she wanted. I wouldn't put anything past her.

A car pulled up next to me. It was Carmen. Crap. Didn't I just go through this? I opened the door to the office and walked in quickly. I went out the back door. Connie didn't even flinch. Carmen was already there waiting for me. Those are skills, ladies and gentlemen. Skills. You're born with those. She was as cool as Ranger. And she didn't even have to try.

I looked down, knowing I was caught. I put my hands on my hips. "Shit."I said quietly.

"Nice, Stephanie. Very nice. I taught Carlos everything he knows about trusting people's body language. I knew you were going for the back door before you did. I'm the master. Don't fuck with me." She said smiling.

I just rolled my eyes. "Whatever." I said defiantly. "I needed to come out here anyways. I was looking for my.. My lucky …" I looked around, there had to be something. and there it was. "My lucky paperclip."

I picked up an old discarded paperclip and looked at it, putting it in my pocket like a good luck charm.

Carmen leaned against the wall and rolled a cigarette. Not many people rolled their own anymore. I was mesmerized. When she was done licking the sides she lit it. She stood there looking at me with curiosity. I bet she practiced that look in the mirror to be cool. She looked way too much like Ranger, and that was really annoying. I took another deep breath, and folded my arms in front of me, waiting.

"Is there something you wanted, Carmen? I have a life. Things to do, places to go. I half tolerate this from your brother, but I have to tell you, there is usually a pot of "happy" waiting at the end of that rainbow. I don't believe that would be the case here. So if you want to kick my ass or scream at me or threaten me, do it soon. I need to get back to my life."

She looked at me, and lit her cigarette.

"Ok Fonzi, what?" I said. I was annoyed that she was playing this role, and making me wait for her.

She had been sucking in to light the cigarette, and she almost choked.

"Fonzi? Are you serious?" She said. "I was going more for Angelina. I get Fonzi? Shit. It's the black jacket isn't it?"

"Its everything." I said. "You are very Joan Jett. Your tough. I always wanted to be Suzi Quatro. I was actually jealous."

I wanted to look that tough sometimes. I just couldn't pull it off.

She blew out some smoke.

"I don't really know how to approach this, Stephanie." She said. "When Trisha first talked about you, and when I met you, I never imagined that you were close to my brother. I should have guessed. You were bond enforcement, so is Carlos. I should have known Carlos would pick up your scent."

Pick up my scent? Was that an insult? I wasn't sure, but it felt like an insult.

"I want you to stay away from my family. You're bad luck. We don't need anymore bad luck. I don't like it that you are seeing my brother. I do think you are to blame for all the shit happening to him right now. Joe has told me enough about you to know you have bad karma. I don't want Carlos or our family to get caught up in your drama."

She pointed her finger at me accusingly getting into my face. "You are going to bring him down. Get him killed. It will spread throughout my family, causing grief and instability. As a matter of fact, when I found out about Carlos being arrested, I drove straight over to Joe's, and I punched him."

I looked at her incredulously. She nodded.

"I did. Right in the face." She curled up her fist like it was a threat. "He has a black eye. You know why? This is partially his fault. If he had stayed with you, my brother would not be in jail. You would still be Joe's problem and not Carlos' problem. Making it my family's problem."

She folded her arms and stared at me, angrily.

A year ago, that statement would have devastated me. Up until a couple days ago, it probably would have thrown me into inner turmoil. Today, I had things I needed to do, and she was holding me up. I didn't care what she or her family thought about me. I had found a damn good clue, and I needed to run with it. I was not going to let Ranger down because his sister wanted me to feel like shit.

"You know, you aren't worried about your brother. You are worried about how this all might affect you. Your brother is struggling to figure out what the hell happened with a good friend of his, and his life is on the line. You need to deal with it."

She stood in front of me for a moment. I wasn't sure if she was gaining momentum to kick my ass or threaten me with death. Whatever it was, I'd had enough. I am tired of being pushed around.

"You know Stephanie, I really worked myself up to come over here to threaten you. After the Fonzi comment though, I think I lost my nerve. My brother thinks you are something special. He really stuck up for you when we went and saw him. I have never seen him this protective over anyone before. I think he likes you a lot. Carlos doesn't like anyone a lot. That says something. It doesn't help that I actually like you. I don't have any idea how you get yourself into the mess you always do, but if there is anything I can do to help with Carlos, call me.

Carmen pulled out her keys.

"Did you know Carlos was in a relationship with Jeanne?" I asked.

She thought for a long moment. "Not really, no. Carlos keeps us at a distance. He will come over when he feels he should, but he is not exactly someone who hangs out at mom's house." She said. "But I remember her being around him for a long time. I think they were good friends."

It wasn't my place to burst that bubble. Maybe Jeanne was good for him in some ways. I didn't want her to feel differently about things that had happened. Past was past. And none of it was my business.

"Well, since I am not going to kick your ass anymore, I have things to do." She said.

She turned to me one more time. "You know, whatever you said to my mother, really made her happy. Thank you."

Carmen walked back around the corner and was gone. I took a deep breath. That had gone much better than I had expected.