Disclaimer: All the characters you recognize from the Stephanie Plum books belong to Janet Evanovich. The Inferna Angelus' on the other hand are solely mine as is the tiny terror tiger that rules them.

Chapter 47 – Time To Get Serious

Great Falls, Virginia, early the next morning

Lost in reverie, Esme blankly gazed out the massive living room window. It had been surprisingly cold last night and now with the sun creeping over the horizon, dew was glistening on the grass, flowers and bushes. Last night's events had been shattering and Esme's heart was heavy with emotions. She yearned for Grief to come around the corner, take her in his strong arms and tell her that everything was going to be fine and that he'd always protect his little butterfly. A single tear worked its way down her cheek. She missed him so much; but on some days the pain was nearly unbearable.

A hundred yards away, the Potomac was unhurriedly preparing for another day of carrying tourists in canoes on its back. Sometimes, when yet another kayak dumped its occupants into the churning waters of the downstream rapids, Esme wondered whether the river deliberately turned them over. The thought of a bucking river made her smile as she wiped away the lonesome tear balancing on the edge of her jaw, ready to fall. As overwhelming as this country was in about nearly everything, the people simply didn't know how to live in harmony with their environment. A light draft on her neck made Esme aware that she was no longer alone and she turned around to her curious audience.

"Please, take a seat," she signed to Sean, Toby, Timothy and Brian; all looking a little grumpy after being called out of bed fifteen minutes ago.

Theoretically, the men were her employees and she surely paid them generously; but Esme looked at them as extended family. She, a girl who grew up at the lowest end of the food chain and had survived a childhood on the streets in total poverty, couldn't put herself above another human being. She could command them, yes; but she couldn't look down on them. Just as she was about to start signing again, Bobby popped his head through the door to the living room.

Sorry Baby, can you give me a moment? I need to clear some things with the guys here before we leave.

Sure, no problem. As quickly as he'd emerged, Bobby pulled his head back and closed the door behind him. Esme would love to have him at her side for this talk, to feel the comforting warmth of his body; but she knew he would freak in the face of what she was about to say. She couldn't do that to him; he's been through so much already. No, she was alone in this.

"Sean, Toby, Tim, Brian," Esme addressed each of the men in front of her, "first of all thank you for coming here at this early hour. The reason I called you is to discuss my immediate departure and some stuff that must be addressed in this regard," she looked at them to emphasize how important this was.

"Normally," she continued, "the guys and I make no secret of our work; but this time things are different and it's important that you listen to each of my words. In case someone should call or otherwise try to gather information, you have absolutely no knowledge about any assignment. Officially, I'll be with Bobby at Cedar Creek to visit Rubén and I plan to stay there for a while and the guys will pop in and out on vacation. The reason I let you know about all that being a pretense is that there's a certain chance that I won't come back from this mission. More precisely, the chance of my coming back is rather small."

The eyes of the four men in front of her widened and Toby grabbed Sean's arm for support. He was a soft and emotional man and Esme knew how hard this would be on him.

"I have all my affairs settled; my last will and testament is up-to-date. Without going into detail, I want you to know that your futures are secure and you'll continue residing here on the Torres grounds as you are currently for as long as you wish. In case of my demise the control over the Estate goes to Bobby; I wish and hope that you'll serve him as loyally as you served me. He'll have a hard time dealing with my death and will need any and every support he can get. I count on you to help him. My concern right now is your immediate safety. As said I will be at Cedar Creek for quite a while; feel free to tell this to anybody who asks. Should something feel weird to you, no matter how small, call the police. When in doubt, leave the premises. The guys and I are up against a powerful foe. Don't try to guard or rescue anything. Nothing's of as much worth for me as your lives. Be safe. The codes to the safe in the basement and the vaults at the Bank I'll give to a friend with Rangeman security in Trenton. Should something happen, call Tank at Rangeman and report to him. He will help you with everything you need. Any questions?" Esme looked around.

The men sat shell-shocked on the couch and armchairs and stared at her. Shockingly it was Sean, the one who she had the least relation to, that angrily jumped up and was right in her face.

"Well, I hope you have a nice trip and that your spoiled mug will show up here again," he growled, turned on his heel and furiously rushed out of the room.

"He likes you, you know? And he worries about you," Toby looked crestfallen. "He has just a strange way of showing it."

"I know, Toby. Now, everybody out. I want to have some quiet me-time before the men and I leave," she ordered the rest of them out of the living room.

Once she was alone again Esme turned back to her earlier position and let her eyes sweep over the garden in front of her. With the early morning sun now caressing everything with her first warm rays, the sight was breathtaking. Esme opened the sliding door and inhaled the fragrances swirling around her. She tried to memorize every flower, bush and each of the ancient trees. This was the place she called home. She would give her last breath to come back; but right now she struggled to believe in a happy ending. NISE was overpowering. Whom could she trust anymore? Her brothers? Yes, unconditionally. Lester? Yes, and Ram. The rest of the Rangemen? No. Who knew how much more of them DuPuits bought. Closing the door, Esme shut her eyes, leaned her forehead against the cool glass and send a prayer toward heaven. She didn't want to die; not now as she finally found happiness. Eventually, she turned around and started to wander through the house. She wanted to memorize each and every room, their distinct smells, the pictures and paintings on the walls, the little mementos of her and the guys that had accumulated over the years. Esme was saying good-bye to her home and knew it was the worst way possible to mentally start an assignment; but for the moment she couldn't help the darkness in her mind.

Half an hour later five black trucks were chasing Bobby and Esme, who had taken lead in a silver Porsche Panamera, northeastward toward Trenton. From the distance they looked like a black high-speed snake with silver head; dangerous, almost lethal.

Rangeman, Trenton, New Jersey

With the Rangemen Navigators in lead the convoy turned onto Haywood and shortly after drove down the ramp of Rangeman's underground garage. Many of the office trucks were gone so the IAs and Bobby had no problem finding spaces for the three Escalades and the Panamera.

Let the games begin, Esme thought with a forced smile toward Bobby before he could see her T persona appear; dominant, observant and in control.

Something was wrong, majorly wrong. The whole drive Esme hadn't exchanged a single thought with him, the spark in her eyes was gone and she seemed vacant. Bobby knew that last night's findings had been a shock; but this emptiness in her was scaring him.

A quick scan had shown T that Ranger was not in the office and Tank was on his way down to them. The men at the monitors were tense about their arrival; but for the most part glad. The news of them being here was spreading like a wildfire over the floors and T was following several guys dashing to the monitors to check for themselves. Though he wasn't in the building, she could taste the venomous flavor of Ranger's mind. His destructive energy and maliciousness was everywhere. She could kill NISE for what they were doing to him. She and Ranger might have their discrepancies; but he was a good man and now he could be happy when he'd come out of this without permanent damage.

Tank, she greeted the huge black man as soon as he stepped of the elevator.

Good to have you here, T. Things are starting to get out of control, Tank hugged her small frame.

What happened? T looked at him all business.

Ranger gets more and more out of control. Junior got assassinated. The mood of the men is at an all-time low. We are about to reach our limit.

Let's get up to your office, Tank. We need to talk. Now. I want Lester and Ram with us. T turned and signed to Furor to follow them. Rage, you are in command of the rest of the team. Keep an eye out for Ranger.

The moment she started to move she felt Bobby automatically following them. Turning around to him, T took a deep breath.

I'm sorry; but I have to do this alone. Can you stay with Rage, please? She tried her best to exude nothing but affection; but her thoughts had a bite to them she couldn't hide from him.

Baby, what's going on? Something is wrong - I feel it, he wondered with eyes full of concern and thoughts that had a fearful taste to them.

Nothing, really. I just don't want you to get involved in this. The less you know the better. Please, Bobby, just stay with Rage, T got impatient. She knew it was unfair to him; but she couldn't help herself. She felt like lashing out at someone and she didn't want it to be him.

Hearing his full name from her lips hurt and made Bobby feel like he'd been slapped. She was lying to him and it made him angry; really angry. They had sworn openness and loyalty to each other and now she was hiding something from him.

In Tank's office on the fourth floor T and Furor brought Tank, Ram and Lester up on a par with them.

"So, just to be sure I've got it right," Tank rubbed his head, "You've identified two of the three leaders of NISE plus six of the seven men that form NISE's second tier."

"Correct," Furor answered in T's place.

"DuPuits is the central head of NISE; Fogger, the manager of the Inferna Angelus Syndicate is his partner," Tank continued.

This time Furor and T just nodded silently. The fact that Fogger was involved pained them beyond what they could explain.

"Then we already knew about Jones with the DEA, Moore with the FBI and Terrell with the NGA. In addition, you verified straw men with the Central Security Service, the Defense Intelligence Agency as well as with the National Clandestine Service."

That's correct, T replied. They all provide DuPuits with sensitive Intelligence Material and information about moves made by the Armed Forces Intelligence Community. It's the perfect scheme. At any given point, DuPuits has a wider knowledge than any of the bureaus and branches themselves. He knows more than any one person in the government, including the President. All of his information is first hand, unfiltered and directly from each agency. He knows all the W – Who? What? Where? Why? Wherefore? and can pull strings accordingly. I'd say in some ways he's the most powerful man in the United States. We didn't get far with the files you gave us; but there's proof that NISE has not just influenced promotions within the bureaus of the different branches; but also presidential elections themselves.

Silence descended over the room while the Rangemen tried to digest what they'd heard.

"The moment DuPuits or Fogger realize that you know the truth, they will mobilize every source they have to find and kill you," Tank said with a gravelly voice. "There won't be a place on earth where you'll be safe. No matter where, they will find you and send in their best to eliminate you."

"Fogger is no longer our concern," Furor replied with a blank face.

Tank scrutinized him. The IA's second in command was a pool of calm and strength. He was soft spoken, gentle when it was called for; but there was a depth to him Tank wasn't sure he wanted to explore. It was the same with every other member of the team. They were all laid back, funny, easy to have around; but each one of them hid a darkness under their friendly surface that was unsettling. Suddenly Tank remembered Pain's words that first day they'd been in Trenton – their names mirrored an aspect of their being: Pain, Terror, Furor, Rage, Vengeance, Agony, Revenge. What type of lives did they live? What kind horrors did they face to earn names which reflected such hefty distinctions? Tank had watched them a couple times training with his men at the compound. Compared to the IA's intensity the Rangemen appeared to be toy soldiers. Sighing, he forced his mind back to the reality in his office.

"Can we eliminate DuPuits to reduce the risk to you?" Tank asked the two IAs in front of him.

He wasn't one who killed easily. On the contrary, in his opinion, taking a life should always be the last option; but this woman and her team were willing to risk their lives to help Rangeman with this potentially catastrophic assignment and the conspiracy surrounding it. He wouldn't hesitate to assist in any way he could.

No. We still have no clue about the third partner. Eliminating DuPuits means we chance the possibility that someone as influential and hungry for power would be ready to slither into the abandoned top spot. With killing DuPuits, we wouldn't accomplish anything aside from the murder of a high-ranking government official resulting in potentially disastrous consequences. Fogger was one thing; just another civilian homicide. DuPuits' death must remain our last option.

"OK, so what's your plan?"

We are putting NISE on ice until the mission is accomplished. Then, we'll sift through the boxes of evidence we have and go from there. We need to determine the identity of the third partner and assemble airtight proof of the other members of NISE. Once we have all the information gathered, we present our findings to the President without being intercepted by third parties. After that, we'll just have to survive.

T's eyes lost focus as she thought of Bobby and their evolving love. A week ago they had made plans for their future; loving Rubén, building a family, doing their own thing. Bobby was thinking about studying psychology, specializing in PTSD and all its possible consequences. She loved the idea; he'd make a wonderful therapist. He was so warm, so gentle and he exuded a calm and strength that automatically made you relax in his presence. Searching for his mind, she found him bantering with Rage and the others in the control room; but his thoughts revolved around her and what was going on in the meeting. How should she tell him that their happiness might be over before it really began? Or should she not tell him anything at all? He was doing fine as long as there was no stress or tension; but his nerves were still thin as parchment. Taking a shuddering breath she felt a single tear slide down her cheek. The thought of saying good-bye to him knowing it could be their last; but leaving him in the dark – she couldn't do that to him. He had a right to know that it could be the last time they kissed. A hand on her leg jerked T out of her pondering.

Angel? Furor looked at her, his eyes as full of pain as her own.

It'll be OK, she placed her hand over his and squeezed. It's our destiny.

Alright, T looked over at Tank, Ram and Lester, next topic. Tank, you can stop investigating Junior's death. NISE is responsible for his murder. DuPuits bought Junior's loyalty at one point securing who knows what information from him. In any case, Junior reported about the IAs leaving Rangeman and about Ranger's deteriorating mental health.

"WHAT THE FUCK!" Rangeman's second in command thundered causing the glass to rattle. "First Ice, now Junior. How is that possible? How can men that we handpicked out of all applicants, men we trained and worked with 24/7, men we trusted with our life, how can they deceive us like that?"

T didn't know how to reply. She saw the hurt and incredulousness in Tank's eyes and sensed his pain in her heart. It was a fraction of how she and her brothers' felt about Fogger's betrayal.

There's more, she continued, not giving the big man in front of her time to dwell on his thoughts. Regarding Ranger, your speculation about steroid abuse was just a short hop from the truth. For months on end Ranger has been systematically drugged with a cocktail of amphetamines and steroids. Most probably since before we came to Trenton the first time. How NISE was able to pull this off is a miracle to me. The security of this building is unparalleled. As sad as that makes me for you, there must be someone on the inside who supplies the drug to him. Seeing how drastically his behavior changed, how aggressive he's become and also taking into account how the flavor of his thoughts have changed for me, I'd say he needs medical help, ASAP. He'll be lucky to avoid any permanent damage to his organs when this is all said and done.

Without warning, Tank's fist hit the wall with such violence that the stucco flew in flecks all around him. He was forced to send his men on a mission that was sabotaged by the most powerful conspiracy he'd ever known. NISE had men in every leading Intelligence branch; their power so far reaching it boggled the mind. They had the power and money to turn trusted Rangeman employees against the company without anyone ever noticing and then dispensing of them when their services were no longer necessary. They even managed to infiltrate Rangeman to unknowingly drug Ranger, their impeccable always alerted leader, with a potent cocktail that most probably would leave him impaired. There was no doubt in Tank's mind, NISE would isolate and eliminate his men down in Colombia without even a chance to counterattack.

In a sign of defeat Tank sagged into his chair, put his head on his desk and clasped his hands behind his neck.

T watched as a man she thought of as a pillar of strength and brawn crumble before her eyes.

Provided that certain conditions are met, my team and I are willing to escort your men down to Colombia and do everything within our power to get them back alive.

After several minutes, Tank finally lifted his head and scrutinized the small woman in front of him. Though she was aware of the lethal consequences, she offered the services and lives of herself and her men to assist Rangeman on this sure-death mission.

"Why? You owe us nothing." He needed to know because he couldn't grasp why she'd do it.

For Bobby, for his friends, for Les, T smiled over to her bestie. For Ram, can't have him not continuing to polish his weapons, she smirked at her favorite weapons freak. For Rubén, cuz NISE is responsible for his condition, for all those people that don't know they are being hurt, for my Dad, Grief, cuz it would make him proud and for myself to prove that I'm more than what Fogger and NISE think of me. I won't let them hurt anymore of mine and I won't let them continue their scheme. They pissed of the wrong woman.

"What are these "conditions" you mentioned?"

First of all, Ranger has to be stopped and brought to a hospital. He's a danger to himself and to his men, not to mention this fucked-up mission. The tone of T's thoughts made clear that this wasn't a point she would discuss.

Secondly, she continued, the mission team gets reduced to Les, Ram, Cal, Vince, Woody, Scar, Zero, Knock and Scotch with Les and Ram taking over command of them. As explanation, you can say it's the lack of trust considering the latest realizations. Thirdly, nobody outside this room is aware the IAs are back in the game. Not even the team members. I want to do a last loyalty check when my team meets up with them." T stared at Tank to emphasize her resolution.

Fourthly, the revised team leaves for a mountain training at Camp Merrill, Georgia. Once our preparations are finished, my team and I will secretly meet up with them and we'll leave directly for Columbia; transportation's on us. Fifthly, I have free reign to do whatever necessary should I detect another traitor in our midst. T locked eyes with Tank making him understand that she won't hesitate to kill should the need arise.

Tank took a deep breath and stared at her for a few long minutes; but T never backed down.

"What's your game plan?" He finally asked with an emotionless voice.

My plans are none of your concern, Tank. The less anybody knows, the greater our chance to survive. Agree to these conditions and I take over command of the mission, your men have my team at their side and the likelihood of them returning increases. Should you not agree, your men are on their own and we leave with no hard feelings.

"Fuck, T!" Tank cussed. "You can't expect me to allow my men go out there with me not knowing the details and therefore having no contingencies."

Tank, you send your men go out there alone, they are as good as dead no matter what back-up plans you have. We are their only hope for survival. My men and I discussed the situation and unanimously agreed to sacrifice our lives to get your boys back in one piece. Take this gift or leave it; there'll be no further discussion on the matter. Oh, and don't think for one second that we'd go anywhere without some wild cards tucked away. We want our own asses out of that fucking jungle alive.

At that moment Furor's cell rang.

"Yo. Understood." He put the phone back on his belt and looked at T. "Ranger just got in, saw our trucks and is on his way up here."

"Where the fuck is she?" They could hear Ranger bellowing outside in the hall.

Tank, let me deal with him. He hates me anyway. Your friendship is strained enough and he will need you while detoxing, T pushed to Rangeman's second in command.

Meanwhile, Ranger got right into Rage's face. "You'll immediately leave this building. I don't want to see any of you assholes on my fucking property."

"You need to calm down, man," Rage answered without batting an eye. "I'm just following orders."

Rage had a few inch on Ranger and didn't doubt he could withstand his power; but he didn't want to start a fight, not even to defend himself.

"I said leave!" Ranger snarled ferociously.

"No. Calm down, Ranger. I have orders that I won't disobey and I don't want to fight with you," Rage straightened up to his full 6'4" and tensed his hard body. His voice was still calm; but took on a warning quality.

Ranger fisted Rage's shirt near the collar and vigorously yanked him forward causing the man to stumble before he could gain his balance back. There were barely a few inches between the faces of the two men as Rage leveled an icy glare at Ranger.

"Let, the fuck, go," he growl warningly.

"What? Too pussy to stand up to me?" Ranger's voice sounded high-pitched and taunting. "I'll tell you one more time: Take your little whore and get back to your bordello at Great Falls."

Ranger, leave my men alone. Now.

At the sound of T in his head, Ranger jerked around roughly releasing Rage from his grasp. Filled with hatred, he stared at the 5'3" woman on the opposite side of the hall. She had her hands at her hips and met his stare with one equally as venomous. Behind her he could see Furor and Tank. The realization that Tank, his own right hand man, was betraying him, caused something in Ranger to snap. From one second to the other there was a swooshing in his ears and everything aside from Terror vanished from his vision. She was responsible, she was about to take everything from him, she needed to be brought down.

Nobody interferes, T commanded. She had read every one of his thoughts and knew it was about to become ugly. This fight is mine.

"You goddamned fucking whore," Ranger screamed insanely and attacked.

None of the surrounding men expected to witness the events of the next few minutes. T was a black-belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the chess of the martial arts world developed on the streets of Brazil. It's based more on intelligence, agility and technique than size and brute strength. Growing up on the perilous streets of a farvela, fighting meant down and dirty on the ground battles. Linho wanted her safe and cultivating her skills in BJJ was the way to achieve that goal. T's brothers and their friends from the streets took up training her when and wherever they found a worthwhile spot until she mastered their lessons. When she showed an interest to train further, Linho somehow managed to enroll her in classes. T knew from experience, she needed to force her attacker to the ground in order to have a chance of survival.

At the last possible moment, T moved to the side and grabbed the arm of Ranger's dress shirt as he flew past her. By his enormous momentum, she was catapulted onto his back. Before he could even comprehend what happened, she had her legs crossed in front of his upper body and her arms wrapped around his neck in a choke-hold. With a loud noise they crashed into the wall and Ranger threw himself around to smash her backward again. T stretched her legs increasing the vice on his ribcage while simultaneously enhancing the pressure of her arms around his neck. The sound coming from Ranger's squashed throat was inhuman. Stepping forward, he wanted to smash her into the wall again; but she quickly disengaged her lock on him and scooted away before he could cause any damage.

"I'll kill you!" Ranger roared, jumping toward her without any planning.

T dodged him easily. Her agility and speed were unmatched. Even after years of training together, her brothers couldn't hold a candle to her finesse. She was a tigress on the prowl and Ranger being her prey needed to be brought down. The ground was her battlefield where she would pounce, incapacitating Ranger and knocking him out. As he came flying towards her again, she grabbed the front of his shirt, jumped up to put both feet at his groin and as she felt herself falling backward to the ground she brought leverage to bear on his body and made him soar over her. She would consider this a thrill had the situation not been so serious. Never losing her grasp on Ranger, T engaged the momentum of his body again pulling her with him and landed square on his chest knocking the air out of him. In the blink of an eye, she lay flat on his upper body, her legs wrapped around his entwining them as she locked her feet around his shins. With her arms encircled around the back of Ranger's neck, he was neither able to wriggled from beneath her nor could he roll her off of his struggling body. T clung to his front like a spider monkey and the way she pressed his face into her upper body made it almost impossible for Ranger to breathe.

Frustrated, he ferociously clawed at the back of her shirt and cargoes; but no matter how hard he pulled or how deep his fingers dug into her flesh, T was glued to him. On any other day, her strength and resilience would have impressed him; but today it added fuel to his fire. Violently flopping them over and over, Ranger tried to disengage from her lock. T felt as though she was atop a bucking rodeo bull jockeying for control of the rampant beast. She could feel how Ranger started to tire; but the constant smashing to the floor with his weight on top of her was arduous on her body. This escapade needed to end, quickly.

The next time he squashed her back into the floor, T loosened the grip on his neck and locked her legs around his waist instead. Ranger took the bait and instantly pushed his upper body up, forcibly pressing his right hand down on her chest. It felt as though the last wisp of air left her body. Stretching her legs and pressing them together like a vise, T once more squished his ribcage. As she had anticipated, Ranger came up with his left leg and tried to force his left hand between his body and T's legs to get some air. She had him exactly where she wanted him. The moment he pushed his arm between her legs, she gripped his wrist, uncrossed her feet, twisted counter-clockwise on her back while at the same time pulling his left arm out from beneath him. The pressure of Ranger's right hand on her thorax bearing all his weight started to suffocate T. She pushed her right leg flat on the back of his neck and at the same time pulled the hand that was still on her chest in front of his throat. With both hands incapacitated, Ranger was without any balance and crumbled onto her like a wet sack. Fast as lightning, T laced her right foot under her bent left knee to secure the hold on his neck, placed both hands on the back of his head and adamantly pulled it down while pushing her hips up.

Ranger had no chance against the force on his windpipe. He desperately tried to rear up; but with T's full weight hanging onto his neck and the increasing compression on his windpipe, he never gained enough momentum to really move. Slowly the resistance in his arms and legs grew less forceful and T felt his strength ebb. His face was pressed into her abdomen and she wished he would stop fighting her so she could let him go; but Ranger wasn't one to submit so she kept the pressure on his neck and waited. Thirty seconds later, his mind tumbling rapidly into nothingness, Ranger's body went limp in the chokehold of her arms and legs. T felt like a bulldozer had run over her. Loosening her arms and uncrossing her legs, she let Ranger's unconscious body slump onto her. His face was closer to her promise land than Bobby had ever been; but she couldn't bring herself to care at the moment. She felt wiped out. The fight perhaps lasted four or five minutes; but zapped every ounce of strength from her tiny body.

Lifting her arms over her head, she felt her chest pumping in vain at the attempt to fill her lungs with enough oxygen. Black dots started to dance in front of her eyes. Suddenly the weight on top of her was gone and Bobby's face appeared behind the dancing dots. He was talking with her; but the blood rushing through her ears was too noisy. Trying to get onto her feet, T rolled over on her side and pushed herself up onto her hands and knees; but her body wasn't ready for that and tumbled over.

"It's OK, Baby," she finally heard Bobby as though his mind was at the other end of a long tunnel. "Give your body a moment to recuperate." His hand started to caress her face. Oh how she loved when he touched her that way. At least he didn't seem upset with her.

Oh, I am upset with you, Esmeralda; but we will talk about that when you feel better and we are alone, he thought smiling down on her with love in his eyes.

Great, apparently she couldn't keep her thoughts to herself. Closing her eyes she thought, Restrain Ranger. I can't go a second round with him.

Ram and Cal are already on it. Together with Button and CP they will bring him to his sister Mariah in Princeton. Tank's talking to her on the phone right now.

Good, T thought, her body becoming heavier by the minute. Help me up or I'll fall asleep on you.

Bobby chuckled as he slowly helped T back onto her feet. Swaying, she stood there for a minute, holding on to him, while her circulation restarted. As the black dots slowly vanished she became aware of the Rangemen staring at her. Those of the mission team stood proudly in awe unable to contain their smiles. The BEA guys, on the other hand, appeared unsettled with mouths agape looking back and forth between T and Ranger. The only one known with the ability to knock Ranger out was Tank; but even still he had accomplished that feat only a hand full of times. Seeing their boss defeated by this little bit of a woman was difficult to comprehend. No matter how hostile Ranger had been lately he was their role model, the standard they strove to achieve, the man that brought regime and guidance to them. Seeing him so swiftly brought down left some of them confused and vulnerable.

A/N: For those of you who aren't familiar with Brazilien Jiu Jitsu and want to see how it looks what T's dishing out go to you tube and insert:

2009 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu World Championships - Mundial

Watch the video from Budovideosdotcom. The position described when Ranger flops them around is called The Mount and can be seen in the video at 4:34 minutes. The technique that brings Ranger finally down is called Triangle Choke From The Guard.