A HUGE thanks to everyone who read and reviewed... Unlike those Burg Busybodies, most of you got the answer right! Fictional 2015 Buick Lacrosses for EVERYONE! (notice the word FICTIONAL) :-) Without (much) further ado, let's find out who won!

All the characters belong to JE, but the mistakes are mine. I get nothing from this except for the warm fuzzy feelings from all the great reviews. (no fictional car for me)

o0(Friday)0o

Stephanie walked into the conference room and smacked Les on the back of his head. He winced and rubbed the spot. "What the hell?"

She put a hand on her hip. "Ball and Chain? Really?"

He tried to look innocent. "What do you mean, Beautiful?"

She wiggled her finger at him. "Don't even try to pretend. I know it was you."

"The brownies were your idea, beautiful. You and Ella came up with that one."

She rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but Ella and I decided on a ring and a heart for the third clue."

He grinned, unrepentant. "That was too easy to guess. You should see what some people thought of the other clue. All I'm gonna say is that I'm pretty sure your grandma has read Fifty Shades of Grey." He shuddered as he remembered the entry Edna Mazur submitted.

Steph laughed. "Serves you right." Her gaze wandered up to the head of the table, and she squealed wth delight. Abandoning Les, She ran to the other end of the room and jumped into the waiting arms of her godfather. "Uncle Joe! You here to watch the fireworks?"

He laughed and set her back down. "I wouldn't miss it for all the donuts at Tasty Pastry." He took a step back and looked her over. Smiling, he said, "You look happy, kiddo."

She smiled back. "I am happy, Uncle Joe. This is where I belong."

Hector walked up to them and handed the mayor a large envelope. "You won the pool, congratulations."

Stephanie looked at her godfather in shock. "You bet on me?"

Joe smiled and handed her the envelope. "I bet on you doing what was best for you. I knew you would never be a Burg housewife, and I figured Ranger was the guy for you. I was just lucky with the month. And hey, this way you get a wedding present that has been building up for years!"

Stephanie opened the envelope and was stunned by all the crisp hundred dollar bills inside. She looked up at her godfather and he said, "No matter who won, we were always going to give the money to you. You deserve it, kiddo."

After some more small talk, Stephanie went to the buffet and got breakfast for herself and Mayor Juniak. She settled them down next to Ranger's spot at the head of the table, and they waited for the fun to start. Ranger walked in the door, grabbed a bagel and a bottle of water and sat next to them. Once he was seated, the lights were lowered and the bank of monitors lit up to show the scene unfolding on the other side of town.

The parking lot at the Tasty Pastry was roped off so that no cars could come in. There was one car in the lot, but it was covered with a sheet. This must be the grand prize 2015 Buick that Helen was sure she would be driving away in. Next to the car was a small stage with a podium. Even though there were no cars, the parking lot was filled to capacity with residents of the Burg. It seemed like everyone was there to find out who won.

The owner of the Tasty Pastry walked up on the stage and stood behind the podium. "May I have your attention, Ladies and Gentlemen?" The noise quieted down as everyone turned to her. "I want to thank everybody for participating in our little contest. The brownies were such a hit that we will be selling them from now on. In order to make room for these wonderful treats, we will be taking cupcakes off the menu." There was a lot of noise at that announcement, but no one sounded particularly mad.

"Now that that's out of the way, let's get to the reason why you're all here." She waved her hand towards the sheet covered car. "Surprisingly, there was only one correct entry. Frank Plum, are you here?" Helen was stunned. She didn't even know that Frank had entered the contest, nevermind entertain the possibility that he could win. How could she have been wrong?

Frank walked up onto the stage and shook the owners hand. He had known the answer to the riddle, but on the off chance that someone else guessed correctly, they would have had a real raffle and given away another car. The owner leaned back towards the microphone. "Frank, will you tell everybody what the clues meant while we reveal your prize?"

Frank smiled and looked out over the assembled crowd. Whe he found his wife, he looked straight into her eyes and said, "Carlos Manoso and Stephanie Plum are married."

The owner pulled the sheet back to reveal a fully loaded, beautiful black 2015 Buick Lacrosse. There were flames on the hood of the car and pinstripes along the sides. The vanity license plate said, "Babe". On the back fender was the Rangeman logo, but it was the doors that caught everyone's attention. Written in an airbrushed script was 'Carlos Manoso & Stephanie Plum' with the date of the weekend before.

Helen looked from her car to her husband and back again. Suddenly her eyes rolled up and she crashed to the ground. When she came to, she was propped up against the side of the 'Grand Prize', right next to the newlywed's names. The lot was clearing now that the contest was over. She looked at Frank. "What happened?"

"You passed out again. I went and dragged you over here so that you wouldn't get stampeded. Pretty much everyone took a picture of you then left."

She looked around, "Where's Angie? We were carpooling and I need to get home." After this morning, she really needed a drink, but Frank didn't need to know that.

Frank's smile got even wider. "She left already. She was muttering to herself in Italian, so I don't think she was too happy. I'll tell you what, my cab is only a block away. Why don't you take my new car home and I'll see you at dinnertime?" He tossed her the keys and walked away.

Helen looked at the paint job, shook her head and said, "Why me?" She got in the car and started it up. The inside was beautiful, it had every bell and whistle. Why couldn't it be a normal car like everyone else drives?

o0(Still Friday)0o

Joe Morelli was happy to be home after six months undercover. Sure, he had broken up with his cupcake before he left, but he always did that and they always got back together as soon as he came home. He left the train station and got into the first taxi available. Giving the driver the address to Stephanie's apartment he sank back into the seat and thought about what he wanted. Sex, a hot shower and about five hours of sleep, preferably in that order.

When the driver pullled up in front of the building, Joe paid him and grabbed his duffle bag. He walked in the front door to the building and noticed the back door swinging shut. There was also a desk in the lobby now, but he didn't care about that. He hit the button for the elevator and was secretly glad that it was empty when it showed up.

Joe let himself into her apartment. He knew that she understood their breakup was temporary since he didn't giver her back her key and she didn't change the locks. Hearing a noise from the bedroom, Joe pulled his gun and crept forward.

The sight of Edna Mazur riding Stephanie's 800 year old neighbor Mr. Woleski like a bucking bronco almost gave him an instant stroke. He dropped his gun and covered his eyes shouting, "Jesus!"

The noises on the bed stopped, but Joe didn't uncover his eyes. Edna said to him, "Either get naked and get over here or get out, those blue pills don't grow on trees you know."

Joe bent over and groped blindly for his gun. Once he found it, he backed quickly out of the room. By the time he made it to the living room, he was hyperventilating. He sat down on Stephanie's couch and put his head between his knees until he could breathe again. He left the apartment and locked the door behind him. Once he was out in the hallway, he realized that he didn't have a car and needed a ride. He called the first number that he could think of. "Hi, Ma?"

Angie Morelli laid into him as soon as she heard his voice on the phone. "Joseph Anthony Morelli, I have never been so embarassed, and this is ALL YOUR FAULT! I've been busy planning your wedding with Helen, and you didn't think it was important to tell me that you broke up with the only girl that would still have you?"

Joe was really starting to sweat now. "Ma, we're just on an off phase. We'll get back together, we always do."

Angie wasn't finished yelling at him. "And how are you going to do that? I just found out today that she moved out of her apartment a month after you left! She moved into that building on Haywood Street, and you weren't here to do anything about it! Today I found out that just last weekend..."

Joe didn't want to hear any more. He made crackling noises and said, "Ma? I can't hear you, you're breaking up. I'll call you later." He quickly ended the call.

Wanting to get the version of events that didn't paint him as the bad guy, he called Helen Plum. When she answered he said, "Helen, could you do me a favor and pick me up at Stephanie's old apartment?"

Helen said, "Oh, Joseph, of course I will. Let me just go home and change cars. I'll be there in a half an hour."

He ran his hand through his hair. "I really don't want to wait that long. Is there any way you can get here sooner?"

He could hear her sigh. "Okay, Joe. I'll be there in five minutes."

Joe was standing in front of the building when Helen pulled up in front of Stephanie's building. When he saw the paint job on the side of the brand new Buick, he sat down in the middle of the sidewalk and hung his head in his hands. Helen got out of the car and knelt behind him, rubbing his back in soothing circles. "I'm sorry, Joseph, I didn't know about it until today. She stopped talking to me when I yelled at her for bringing that thug to dinner. Get in the car, I'll bring you to your house."

Joe got into the car and asked Helen to bring him to the police station, which was where he had left his own car. They drove there in silence, each of them cringing every time they stopped at a traffic light or stop sign. It seemed like everybody in the neighborhood wanted to get pictures of the two of them in the Babemobile.

When they pulled up in front of the police station, the pair got their next surprise. The billboard across the street had a huge pink neon heart with the words Carlos + Stephanie inside. The date flashed across the bottom in colorful lights. Helen buried her head in her hands and said, "Why me?"

Joe got out of the car and walked into the building. His hopes of not being noticed before he could get out the back door were instantly dashed. Most of the officers in the building were gathered around a huge box of donuts and Eddie Gazarra was holding a big envelope in his hands. He waved Joe over and said, "Have a donut on me, Joe. I just won the motherload."

Big Dog laughed and yelled, "Yeah, by betting against him."

Joe didn't say anything, just pushed past the crowd to get out. Eddie caught up with him just as he made it to the door and said, "Don't be sore, you're the one who broke up with her."

Joe really wanted to punch him, but that would only lead to trouble. Instead he said, "How could you bet against me, Eddie?"

Eddie grinned and said, "The way I figured it, one Ranger was all she'd ever need."