Chapter 18-

Stephanie felt her head roll to the side as she was once again picked up and carried into a building. She could feel the effects from being so close to the car explosion all over her body; arms and legs aching and burning from the cuts and being thrown, then slammed to the ground. She didn't quite have enough energy to lift her head so it hung like a limp rag doll over the guy's arm.

She slowly tried to open first one eye then the other, it was still like looking through a fog. She could see the gray wall and stairs as he carried her into a building. She was so cold, like she was surrounded in ice, but her body didn't even have any energy to shake. She knew she was into shock and she would need to see a Doctor soon. At this point she would happily go to the ER if it meant Ranger, meds and warmth.

"Help me." She whispered, hoping the man would hear her and see how much help she needed.

The man didn't even look down, her voice was too weak to make it more than a small breathless whisper.

She rolled her head over to the front hoping she could figure out where she was, hoping that maybe she could figure it out so when she had more energy she could get away. She realized that her panic button was gone, lost when she passed out. But for some reason she just didn't panic, she began to calm. Like she knew everything was going to be ok. She wasn't sure how she knew it, but she knew. She was going to be ok; she knew Ranger was coming for her. She let the darkness begin to roll back over her as she was gently placed on the cold floor.

The last words she heard was, "Miss. Plum I am so sorry you have to be down here but I have no other place for you. I will go get you a blanket." Then nothing. Just darkness.

-/-

Ranger's head snapped up as another cop car pulled in the parking lot and he heard Joe Morelli start screaming at him. He was in the process of giving his statement to the cop so he could get the fuck out of there and back to the building. He knew his men had already started searching and were going through the information but he needed to be there. He needed to be actively searching, not fucking talking to some stupid ass police who were not going to be able to help him.

He was treading a very fine line and he was about to snap. He was about to walk away without a word and leave. And now Morelli wanted to come add his two cents, he clenched his fists and took a deep breath. He couldn't help Stephanie if he was arrested he thought. He turned to look at Morelli as he stormed up to him.

"What the fuck happened." Joe screamed at his face.

Ranger felt himself still waiting to see what Morelli would say next. Eddie, Stephanie's favorite cop also walked over and began holding his breath. Eddie knew if these two got in a fight he couldn't stop it. He wouldn't be able to help anyone.

Ranger tilted his head to the side and raised an eyebrow, everyone thought that he had a blank face because he didn't care or because he was unmoved by what was going on. If they only knew that he wasn't able to talk or say anything without snapping and attacking Joe. So instead he held himself still as stone waiting to see what was going to happen next, waiting to see if he would cause a cop's death today. He had nothing left in him to care, all he knew is Stephanie was missing and hurt and he was stuck here listening to Morelli act like a moron.

Ranger's reaction only made Joe's anger notch up even higher, "Do you even fucking care that she is gone? That she could be dead?" He practically screamed.

Ranger's eyes narrowed and everyone stopped and took a collective breath and held it. They knew shit was about to get real, very fast. No one moved or even blinked, one-minute Ranger and Morelli were standing next to each other and the next they were rolling on the ground. Ranger had moved so fast… tackled Morelli so quickly there was no time to stop it. And now that they were full on beating each other not one person wanted to get in the middle. It was a savage fight with fists swinging and heads snapping back.

Tank looked at all of the cops just watching and sighed, Guess I have to stop this shit, he thought. He walked over and grabbed Ranger off of Morelli, Ranger swung to hit Tank and Tank moved to the side at the last minute.

"Stop." He bellowed. "Now."

He didn't even glance at Joe when he rushed him, just shot his fist out and knocked Joe back several feet with one punch. Luckily now a few cops grabbed Joe before he could come rushing back again. Ranger went to move like he was going to hit Joe again but Tank pulled him back and got in his face yelling. "Attacking him won't bring her back, killing him won't make her ok. Calm down so we can fucking leave." He roared

Everyone stopped again to look at Tank, and processed the truth in the words. Fighting between themselves was not going to help Stephanie in anyway. Ranger nodded at Tank pulling himself upright and taking a breath. He looked over at Eddie who was still in the same spot just staring.

"I need to go now." Ranger said to him, all Eddie could do was nod. He walked past Joe and the other cops. Blood trickling down his eye and chin. Fighting didn't help but at least it had given him a place to put all his anger for a minute, now he could focus a little better.

"Let's move." He said to Tank waking over to the truck and getting in. He didn't even glance back at anyone. Just waited until Tank was in the truck before pulling away from the parking lot. He trusted the men that were left there to give the right information to the cops, right now he had to get back to the office and start searching for Stephanie.

Before it was too late.

-/-

At first Stephanie welcomed the cold, it helped sooth the burns and scratches. But now, now it was too cold. She could feel it seeping into her skin, into her bones. She could feel it making her stiffer, unable to move quickly and without pain. She was going in and out of focus not really able to look and see things. It was like a dream where you could feel the pain and the cold, but you were a little detached from it.

She forced her eyes open and found herself laying on a cement floor. She could see and feel the room around her, but at the same time she felt like she was floating. This could be worse she thought, it could always be worse.

Then she saw a small patched of bright black. It was like glowing little balls. With no real place, they were getting bigger and bigger as they got closer.

She couldn't focus.

She couldn't see what it was until it was right next to her cheek that laying on the freezing cement. But when it got close enough that she could make it out a scream ripped through her throat. It tore up and out of her chest in a way that she couldn't before or after the explosion.

Rats, there were rats on the floor scurrying up to her, curious to see who had invaded their territory. The scream had startled them and they rushed back away from her. She began to hyper ventilate.

She tried to move, tried to sit up but she couldn't, her limbs still too heavy. They just wouldn't listen to her, they wouldn't move. But her silence made the rats bold again and they began to come closer again, and so she screamed again. One after another, tearing out of her throat until she was horse.

She didn't know how long she screamed, she didn't know how long she kept the rats at bay with her horse cries, until she had no voice left. Until she was unable to make any real sound. And as they slowly scurried over to her again, her last thought before she let the darkness claim her again was, Please Ranger come faster.

I need you to come faster.

-/-

Ranger could feel the urgency as he walked into the conference room on five, his men loved Stephanie as much as he did. And they were as angry and desperate to find her as he was, she was their family and no one fucked with their family.

"Talk." He growled as he walked to the head of the table.

"No one demanded anything from her, us or her family. There have been no phones calls and no more information." Bobby said first.

"Hector said her panic button was still going off and all of her trackers are accounted for but one." Cal chimed in.

Ranger just waited knowing they would elaborate without any words; no words were ever needed with his men.

"She had two trackers in her car, one in her phone and one in her bag. Each is online and right where they are supposed to be. However, there is one tracker that was in her shoe. We assume that it is still on her but it is on the fritz. Hector said that it must be close to a signal blocker. It is jumping all over the map, he is trying to get a better lock on it now."

Ranger nodded and looked over to Bobby. "The girls?"

"Once I calmed Connie down she was able to tell me that once the car blew up she was able to go over to Stephanie and roll her over. Steph was coherent and able to ask about Lula. She had some injury's from being so close to the car when it exploded including bruising, scraps and cuts. The biggest deal was that she was able to talk to Connie and answer questions." Bobby said.

Ranger felt his heart pause then beat again and when he looked around he could see the relief on all of the guys faces. Stephanie was alive after explosion; she was hurt but alive. He nodded at Bobby to continue.

"Connie said Steph asked her to check on Lula so she ran over to Lula and was checking on her and she didn't see the man walk up to Stephanie. It was only after he had picked Steph up and began to walk away that she saw them. She screamed after him to stop him but he didn't listen, he placed Stephanie in the back of the white van we followed to the mall parking lot. She ran in the office to get her gun to get him to stop but by the time she got back outside the van was pulling away. She didn't want to chance shooting and hitting Steph." Bobby quickly explained.

Ranger clenched his jaw and nodded, as much as he wished Connie had put a bullet into the guy and the van he was grateful that Connie didn't just shoot blindly.

Ranger looked over at Bobby, who answered the unspoken question. "Lula is going to be ok; she was just knocked unconscious for a bit. They checked her into the hospital and will watch her overnight. Connie's had a few bruises and cuts but was protected by the counter in the office."

Ranger knew the first question when they rescued Stephanie would be if anyone was hurt and if everyone was ok. He was going to reassure her that everything was ok when he pulled her into his arms. That everything was ok. He just had to find her first.

"Were we able to figure out what car she was moved to in the parking lot?" He questioned the room.

"All the cameras in that part of the lot were out." Hal said.

Ranger shook his head, "Find out everything you can about our client from this afternoon. It was him, I know it. See how he links to the alarms going off. I am pretty sure it was the guy that shot Hector at the first break in. That was the building that he got into the system from."

He turned to Bobby, "Find out everything you can about what injury's Stephanie would have from the explosion and what we would need to care for her, or the best doctor to give care."

He then looked over at Tank, "You and I are going to hit the streets and see if anyone saw anything around town today."

He looked around the room, the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. "I know that you all are just as worried as I am. We are going to find her, we are going to bring her home… and we are going to kill who ever took her."

He watched as the guys nodded and scattered out of the room to do whatever they could to find her. He wanted to talk to Hector personally before he left, and he knew Hector would not leave his computer. Hector loved Stephanie, Ranger knew without a doubt that next to him, Hector would be the most devastated if anything happened to her.

He ran down the stairs to the basement, only to walk into Hector's office and see him hunched over set of computer keys and 4 different screens of information and maps. Hector didn't even bother to look up or even acknowledge him. He desperately wanted to demand Hector give him some information but he knew that if had any he would have already told him. If he made Hector turn around and talk to him, it would waste precious time. He turned and ran back up the stairs to see Bobby, "Tell Hector to call me immediately with any news."

Bobby nodded as he ran past him down the stairs to go to the infirmary and see what he needed to get. Everyone was in fast mode, running everywhere. New contract works had been brought in to deal with the alarms and regular work. Every single member of the core team and of Rangeman had one task.

They had one objective.

Find Stephanie Plum as quickly as possible.

-/-

Stephanie came back around to feel someone brushing her hair out of her face.

"Ranger." She crocked, her voice braking from the screaming earlier.

She knew it wasn't him there with her, she could feel it before she even opened her eyes, but she hoped. She prayed it was him and when her eyes slowly cracked open she could feel the disappointment running through her as she looked up to the man who had taken her.

"Shhhhh." He whispered as he continued to brush her curls back.

Tears leaked out of her eyes as she looked up at him, "Why?" Was all she asked.

She watched trough hooded eyes as he stood and walked across the room picking up a pillow and blanket. He walked back to her and kneeled down and slowly lifted her head and placed the pillow under it. Then he pulled the blanket out and gently put it over her body that was in a tight fetal position on the floor. Then he sat crisscross in front of her face to talk to her.

"Honestly I hate having you here, I normally don't deal in people." He said to her.

He saw the confusion in her eyes.

He sighed, "Maybe I should start at the beginning. You probably know me as Mikel Stine. A few months ago I was arrested for burglary and possession of a fire arm. What you probably don't know is who arrested me." He said looking down at her.

Stephanie shook her head slowly and watched as he pulled a water bottle with a straw out. She looked at it not sure if she could trust him.

"It's not poisoned." He said as he held it up, "I am not going to hurt you anymore." He took a quick sip then put the straw back up to her lips so she could take a small sip. She looked at him for a moment before slowly leaning forward and taking the straw between her lips. It felt like heaven on her throat.

He let her take another sip before he set it on the ground.

He looked down and said, "Joe Morelli arrested me…... and he took all of the things in the room I was in as evidence. When I was released on bail I tried to gather all of my equipment to recreate a computer system for a client. I quickly learnt that there was a chip I couldn't replace. I tried to explain to my client that I could no longer do the job…. But they impressed upon me pretty quickly and pretty physically, that not finishing the job was not an option. I attempted to claim the goods through the police evidence room but found that it was quite impossible."

Stephanie watched as he shook his head and rubbed his ribs. "So I followed Joe around for a few days trying to find a way to get him to get the evidence he took and the chip."

He looked up at Stephanie, "And do you know what I saw? I saw you. And I thought to myself you were the key. If I could get you, I could make him trade the chip for you. I mean I couldn't take him, then he wouldn't be able to get the chip."

He grinned, "Then you had dinner that night at the restaurant and it was like fate. I walked right up behind you and went to grab you only to have that man run up to you."

She watched him roll his eyes, "After that it was impossible, you went into that building and didn't come out. So I decided to set off the alarms to distract the men but you still didn't come out. So I kept setting them off but then you came out with body guards. I finally decided last week that today was going to be the day. I started last week by setting up an appointment with the head of the company on the other side of town. Then last night I made the alarm after alarm go off. So they were completely distracted and I hoped and prayed that you would come out alone… and you did!" He exclaimed excitedly.

"I watched you get in that car with the fat chick and drive off, I knew you would be back and everything was going perfectly. I planted the bomb and waited for you, but then everything started to get messed up again." He frowned "First the bomb went off to soon, I didn't want you that close but I think when you slammed the door it set it off instead me remote detonating it. I just wanted to startle you and grab you, not kill you. You really need a better car!"

To that Stephanie rolled her eyes, even her kidnapper was telling her to get a different car. Unbelievable!

"Then those men were on the way so much faster, I couldn't even leave the note I had for Joe. Then they somehow were tracking us, so instead of talking you to the location I set up…. I had to bring you here. I have a jamming system here, so no matter what you have on you they can't get a signal."

Stephanie felt her heart plummet at this news, the tracker in her shoe was not going to help her. It was the only thing she had put her hope into, her last link to Ranger and it was useless. They wouldn't be able to find her now. She felt like her world was crumbling around her. A tear rolled down her cheek.

"I just sent a message to Joe, as soon as he agrees to meet me with the chip I am going to set you free, ok. I promise." He said bringing the water back up for her to drink.

She needed to think and think fast, she cleared her throat and whispered. "Joe can't help you, he can't get into the evidence room without a cause. And he wouldn't anyway, it's against the law."

"He wouldn't do it to save your life?" Mikel asked.

"It's not about me, he physically can't even get in, plus we are not even together anymore. He wouldn't risk his career to save me." She said trying to sound convincing. "Those men though, the ones who are always with me. They don't care about the law… they don't care about what's right or wrong. They will come here, they will find me and they will kill you."

She took a deep breath, "They won't even blink an eye; they won't ask for an explanation. They will shoot first and ask me later…. but if you let me go, if you bring me to a hospital you will have time to run. You could get away. We don't know your real name or who you are. You could run and never look back." She whispered.

He shook his head sadly, "You don't understand without that chip I am a dead man anyway."

Stephanie looked at him and said in the clearest voice she could, "You are already a dead man, the question is how fast you can run."

He stood and looked down at her, "I really am sorry, like I said I deal in computers and electronics. I have never hurt another person in my life."

Stephanie nodded at him knowing that it was useless to try and change his mind. She went a different path to fix the immediate problem "Can you stop the rats? They terrify me and I think a few bit me."

He looked down at her, "They did bite you a few times, I scared them all away when I got down here. I put the blanket over you, that should help. I also brought down a mp3 player, I hope the noise will keep them away. I wish I could bring you upstairs but I need the blocker that is down here and I don't know where your tracker is."

"It's in my shoe." Stephanie said quickly knowing that if it came to the tracker that wasn't working or rats she would choose to get away from the rats.

"I am sorry I don't think I can trust you, you might have more than one." He said and walked up the stairs.

"Please leave the lights on." She called out to his back and heard him reply. "I can't they are on a system with the door, when I close it they automatically turn off. I have to have the door closed for the best blocking on your tracker." Then she heard the door close and the watched as the lights went back out. She was left in the dark on the cold cement floor and for the first time she began to lose hope.

-/-

Ranger was entering the basement to leave when he watched Joe Morelli pull up to the gate. Rangers eyes narrowed into slits, he was not in the fucking mood to deal with him again. He nodded to Tank who walk over to the car to find out why he was here. Ranger watched as Tank's head snapped back and whipped around to look at him. Now he knew something was going on. Tank signaled to let Joe in and park in an empty spot. Ranger watched waiting for Tank to walk back over.

"They have news, I told them we would go to the conference room." Tank said as he walked passed Ranger to call the elevator back, then picked up his phone to call a meeting.

Ranger walked over and waited as Joe, Eddie and two other officers got out and followed them to the elevator. It was dead silence as they rode up and Ranger felt some grim satisfaction as he watched Joe shift from side to side obviously in pain from the ribs he had punched earlier.

When they walked into the conference room on five the core team minus Hector were already waiting. He watched as Tank told the officers and Joe to stand at the end of the table farthest away from him. Now he knew something was going on.

Tank nodded to everyone, "Let's sit down and listen to the information Detective Morelli brought us." Now Ranger knew he wasn't alone in the belief that shit was about to hit the fan, each of the men looked to him, then at Tank with confusion and suspicion then down at "DETECTIVE" Morelli.

Joe did not look at anyone else but Ranger when he uttered the next words, "I know why Stephanie was taken, I just got an email."

Ranger said nothing just waited with his arms crossed over his chest as he refused to sit down.

Joe cleared his throat and lifted his chin as if to brace himself, still looking at Ranger he said, "She was taken because of me."

Then all hell broke loose.