Chapter 30
There were so many possibilities, but I wanted a name that best suited the German Shepherd not some nerdy name like Bob. I mean who names a dog that? Qualities were in abundance as I watched the dog laid down on the floor next to me. Brave, loyal, a protector or guardian so I used those words to try to narrow down my choices. Some were just too much, like Bruno or Rambo, and even the dog didn't seem to respond to me saying names like that. In the end I narrowed it down to seven, each representing a warrior, guardian or protector.
"Okay mister, you need to listen up and help decide on a name. Okay?"
At least he was listening to me and actually sat up looking at me as though keen to get started.
"Azim, Arabic meaning protector. Odin, Nordic war god and the protector of heroes. Ajax, Greek that was fearless, smart, and of immense strength. Argus, a Greek defender. Ansgar, Celtic warrior. Akiak, brave in Inuit or maybe Semper fi?"
"Not the last one. I'd never live it down if I had to shout that out"
I smiled knowing that Ranger was stood watching me and would hate that name and had only said it because I'd become aware that he was close by.
"At least the Marine motto makes sense, always faithful. Your Ranger motto, Sua Sponte, of one's own accord just doesn't quite fit"
I felt Ranger lean against the chair behind me and knew that he was reading my shortlist of names.
"Ansgar or Akiak"
Was his final say as he bent down and ruffled Ansgar's, Akiak's head. I tried the names out in my head saying things like Ansgar sit, Akiak stay, trying to get a feel for what they sounded like.
"I think I like Ansgar, my warrior"
At least Ansgar wagged his tail when I said that to him and rubbed my hand over his head.
"I spoke to Hector and told him to make sure that Juan can't access any of the programs in Rangeman. He found that Juan had uploaded a program that gave him access into our systems. He probably found this place by tracking Santos"
I remembered that Ranger had said that Juan was ace on computers, so I assumed that was how he'd first managed to get into Rangeman undetected and then break into here by doing something to the security system. Did that mean that we were still vulnerable to him coming back?
"We've added an alert program that will notify us if anyone tries to access security systems or get back into the mainframe. I take it that you're worried about Juan?"
Damn, why was it that he seemed to know what I was thinking? The thing was that it wasn't just Juan's tech skills that had me worried.
"How did he know that I was with Sully in the bank? I've only ever mentioned that to you, and it wasn't that long ago because it took me a while to make the connection myself"
"There's something else isn't there. Even Ansgar picked up on how you became tense with Juan"
I bit my bottom lip because he was asking me to delve into past experiences that I didn't want to go back to. Hell, I had never told anyone what had happened after I was taken from the bank and denial was definitely the best place for what Joe had done to me.
"Talk to me"
Was all that he said as he led me through to the bed. It seemed that he was of the opinion that I was more relaxed laid with him, surrounded by him and he wasn't wrong.
"I can't remember ever being asked to give a statement to the police after I was found at Pinos. I've never told anyone what happened because it became part of my nightmare. I'm pretty sure that I was knocked out while in that getaway car and woke up in a dark, damp room. I was on my own in a place lit only with a bulb with my hands fastened behind me. I could smell and taste the rancid odor coming from that mattress which only made the way that I had felt worse. I was cold, yet sweaty and ready to throw up with a stifling headache that felt as though I'd drunk too much"
I shivered at the memory and although I didn't want to have to revisit that place in my head, I knew that I had to tell someone. As though understanding what I was going through I felt myself being pulled a little bit closer and tighter.
"A man opened the door, but it was hard to get a good look at him. He seemed large and well built and carried himself confidently. The first time he came in he was quite gentle with me, sat me up against the wall and spoke quietly. Asked me if I knew who had been at the bank. I answered that the only person that I knew was the cashier. After he left, I started to worry in case I'd actually come across one of the robbers as an FTA, and they were worried that I'd recognized them. But when the man eventually came back, he got right up in front of my face and held my chin so that I had to look him"
Even now I could still picture how he'd looked at me with eyes that showed a hint of brown, a hint of sadness that belied what was happening to me.
"He asked me about the man sat next to me in the bank but all I could tell him was that I didn't know him, that he was older and seemed ill"
I'd actually been worried that he was going to have a heart attack because he looked grey and was breathing fast.
"It was me who talked to him trying to calm him down and holding an arm around his shoulder to stop him from passing out. The man left again, and it was an age before anyone came back but I was sure that I heard shouting outside. It was a different man who came back in"
All that I could see were his eyes so dark because of the poor lighting but they had a coldness about them that had scared me.
"He stood me up against the wall and kept saying that I had to tell him what I knew but I just shouted that I didn't know anything. After back handing me a few times he left which was when I knew that I was screwed, that no one knew where I was. Then, well they came back and changed their tactics"
I knew that I'd already told Ranger about them hurting me and I didn't want to say it again. Talking about it made it seem too real and I really wanted to forget all about that ordeal. I felt Ranger run his hand through my hair and then as he pressed his face next to mine.
"I'm so sorry Babe, that I wasn't there for you or that no one could find you"
I wasn't going to allow Ranger to feel guilty about what happened, he was going through his own shit at the time, so I knew I needed to tamp down on the details of what I told him.
"Tell me what I want to know. That's the last that I remember hearing, but his voice and what he'd shouted at me stayed with me"
Exactly what he'd done was very vivid but surprisingly it never emerged in my dreams. Maybe my brain had the sense to block it out. I was scared that he would kill me, more scared than I'd ever been before. He was so close to me, his breath smelling of bubble gum and his eyes piercing into me. I'm not sure how often he punched me and when I fell down the wall how he lifted me up by my hair to do it all over again. Maybe he lost his temper because on the last occasion it was his hands around my neck that lifted me from the floor before a punch had me slamming against the wall. Stars had appeared and the oncoming darkness was actually a relief.
"You said that Morelli said the same thing?"
"From what I remember, so Juan repeating the same phrase just hit a nerve. Do you believe him?"
I had to ask because I had so many doubts that kept flashing through my head and so many things that Juan had said just didn't add up to me.
"Not at the moment but I'll reserve judgement until we find out more. Morelli concerns me"
My hand, that had been gently resting on his chest began to make circular moves as I considered what he'd said. So far, I'd thought through two motives for Joe keeping me at his house. One was because he wanted to control me and submerse me in doubts about our suitability and marriage. The second one was his excuse to everyone who would listen that he was trying to keep me safe, though I'd never worked out who from. Ranger expressing his concern brought a more sinister thought to my mind. What if Joe was in cahoots with this organization and he was tasked with getting information from me?
"My bag. I took it for granted when I found it at his house but with Eddie handing me my jacket when we were at Pinos, well it seemed odd. I'm sure that I didn't have my bag with me when I left the bank"
"So how did Morelli have it? I'll get Hector to look through the footages from when you came out of the bank"
That had me lifting up my head and looking at Ranger. There were videos of me being abducted? Who in their right minds would do that and why? Did that mean that those videos had been uploaded and shared on social media?
"They were taken by SWAT and us, to collect as much evidence as we could"
Okay I knew that, hell how many films had I watched where SWAT men had cameras on their jackets and I suppose the Merry Men would have been in their combat mode wearing similar equipment. I rested my head down on his chest listening to his heart thumping slowly below my ear.
"I take it you don't trust him either"
"No, which was why I didn't let Juan have the copies of Sully's book"
I felt embarrassed as I woke because I'd had no intention of falling asleep, it just kinda happened. Of course it did, because I'd been so warm and comfortable, which had me feeling that someone was still with me. I lifted my head from the pillow expecting to see Ranger, but wasn't surprised to see Ansgar sprawled down the bed on his side right next to me.
"You and me are in trouble mister. I'm pretty sure Ranger doesn't share his bed with just anyone"
That only had him lifting his head slightly before he lowered it back down. I needed to get up and I probably needed a shower to wake me up properly followed by coffee. Ansgar moved as soon as I did but stayed just beyond the wall of the bathroom while I went inside. Thirty minutes later I was dressed and wondering where Ranger was so went downstairs to find him sat on the floor in front of the couch with papers around him. I suppose he had Rangeman work to catch up on, but I did a double take when I recognized that they were the copies of Sully's verses.
"Any joy?"
I asked as I went through to the kitchen and brought two bottles of water through and as I sat on the couch behind him.
"I suppose knowing what we do it makes some sense. Whatever he was involved with twenty years ago though he regretted. A lost love and a lot of guilt with a hint that he wanted to put things right, which to me suggests that he thought that he had a way of doing that"
"Or a way of ensuring his own safety"
I added remembering that he'd locked that book in a safety box twenty years ago. Which meant if people were hunting for that information now then there had to be something else that was jeopardizing their operations. Katerina had said that Sully had attended her mother's funeral so that meant that he'd been in the area undetected.
I picked up each page to read the verses again, stopping at one that seemed different.
"Chapter 9, it's not the same. He refers to an old friend. I'm like an abused dog,
Trust is hard to regain. One person can really screw it up. Then comes an old friend,
Yet I was still fearful and unwilling. Little by little, the dog is coaxed out from hiding,
Finally beginning again. Then one day the bad owner shows back up. But the dog is not afraid. A threat is thrown. The dog slowly walks away. As if to say he is no longer owned. No longer afraid by those with power"
Ranger had rested the paper that he was holding on his outstretched legs as he listened to me read that verse.
"An old friend, any ideas?"
I knew that it wouldn't have been Vinnie, Vinnie would be the last person to get advice from and he never could keep anything secret.
"Alfred Creighton, he was the owner of the bonds office before Harry took over and Sully worked for him, he started bounty hunting with Alfred"
"Tomorrow"
Ranger's answer puzzled me but then I felt myself being pulled over his shoulder. I ended up across him at a weird angle and couldn't keep my balance so literally slipped from his knee and onto the floor, flat on my back with my legs still over Ranger's. I ended up laughing at how I had landed and when Ranger leant over me and started to tickle me, I couldn't stop from laughing and squirming. Ranger's face was close to mine, giving me a perfect view of his 200 Watt smile, so when he went still and his face went serious I quietened down wondering what had suddenly changed.
"I love to hear you laugh, to see you smile. It makes me want to laugh with you. I've never met a woman who could lighten my world like you do with something so simple and have me loving her even more"
Oh wow, for someone who never said much it seemed that the damn had broken, and I absolutely loved it. Instead of replying, because let's face it I could never come up with something so romantic, I pushed myself up from the floor and held my arms around his neck. I used every skill that I had to devour his lips, deepening the kiss to the point that I was definitely getting turned on. Mmm, seemed Ranger had the same idea as me as he rolled me until it was his back on the floor. Clothes disappeared like magic as hands sought skin to skin contact, mouths exploring the nuances of each other's bodies.
It didn't matter how often Ranger and I had made love because each time surpassed the previous experience.