The Rangeman jet landed at a private airfield in Atlanta, Georgia. Hector, Tito and Carlos carried the sleeping children into the elevator, leaving Stephanie and Bobby to grab the luggage. Everyone was exhausted from travelling. It wasn't from lack of sleep. They knew what waited on the horizon.
Carlos guided them to an apartment on the fourth floor. Stephanie wondered why they weren't staying on the top floor. "Babe, I don't have a place to stay here. I gave up my suite when we had children. It was barely large enough for one person," Carlos explained.
"I assumed you had apartments at all the branches," Stephanie replied. Carlos assured her that wasn't the case. He only had an apartment at the Miami and Trenton offices. Those are the only Rangeman buildings he regularly visited.
David Walker, the Atlanta branch manager, waited outside the unit. "Marla added cots for the children," David said. "Let me know if you need anything else."
"Stephanie and I are leaving for a few hours. Hector and the others will stay in my apartment to watch the children. Keep my family safe," Ranger stated.
"We've got your back." David promised to have Marla deliver breakfast for the children.
Carlos and Stephanie left Rangeman, borrowing a fleet vehicle. The ride to the bakery was silent. "It's going down tomorrow. Technically, later today," Stephanie whispered. Carlos nodded. He didn't want to put his children in the line of fire. It made Carlos feel like an inadequate parent. "Carlos, it's the only way to catch him."
"I don't like it," Carlos quietly replied.
"Neither do I," Stephanie confessed. "Ricky's been having nightmares. He keeps dreaming the bad guy took Alex."
"I'm not going to let that happen." Stephanie knew Carlos had the best of intentions. However, when it involved his family, Carlos was blind. Carlos raised his hand to wipe the tear off Stephanie's cheek with his finger. "Babe, I will do anything to stop him from getting Alejandra."
"But my dream indicates Ricky's in trouble," Stephanie said. "Do you feel it?"
"The cosmos are sending you messages. I can feel the frenetic energy. Something bad is ready to happen, and I feel powerless to prevent the chain of events," Carlos confessed.
Stephanie captured her bottom lip between her teeth. She knew what would happen later that day. It was inevitable. Carlos left Stephanie to her thoughts. He trusted her instincts to protect their children and herself.
Carlos parked at the curb in front of the bakery. He walked around the car to help Stephanie step onto the uneven sidewalk. She faltered as she stepped on the curb. Carlos smiled as he caught her. "Babe?" Stephanie interpreted the question as, "Are you hurt?"
"I'm good, Carlos. You caught me before I twisted my ankle," Stephanie replied. She entwined their fingers and let Ranger guide them into the alley.
The medical examiner was zipping the body in a bag. He smiled when Ranger and Stephanie approached.
Stephanie's spidey sense tingled. Someone was watching them. She glanced around, seeing a woman watching from the second-floor window of the building beside the bakery. Officer Miller followed her line of vision. He smiled, then waved at the woman. She nodded when he pointed to the front.
Charlotte grabbed her phone, knowing the police officer would want the video she had captured a few hours earlier that night. She wrapped a robe around her pyjamas before walking to the hallway leading to the stairs. Officer Miller was waiting when she opened the door.
"Hello, ma'am. I'm Officer Miller with the Atlanta PD. Did you see what happened?"
She shook her head, then caught Stephanie's eye. "Who is that woman?" she asked.
"Her name is Stephanie, ma'am. Do you know her?" Miller asked.
"No. You said her name is Stephanie?" Miller nodded. "She resembles the dead woman. I didn't see the man hurt the woman. He didn't notice my phone camera in the window. Would you like to see the video?" she wondered. "It was light enough to capture the dump. I was about to call the police when those two men arrived." Charlotte motioned toward Kyle and Corey Morrison.
"If you don't mind, I'd like a copy of the footage," Miller replied. He patiently waited for the woman to attach the video to an email. "My email address is miller(dot)adam(at)atlapd(dot)com."
"My name is Charlotte Barker. I hope you find the man who did this," she said.
"That's our goal, ma'am," Miller replied. He thanked her for assisting with the case. Charlotte slipped into the stairwell and locked the door.
Miller approached the others and opened the email. He played the video, stopping at a clear shot of the suspect's face. "Does he have dark brown hair and pale eyes?" Stephanie asked. She overheard the conversation. Sounds travel more at night when other noises aren't polluting the air. Miller checked the image and nodded. "He's six foot two and weighs roughly one hundred eighty pounds."
"How do you know?" he asked, raising a brow.
"It's the man I keep seeing in my dream. Except his cheekbones are fuller than in your video," Stephanie explained. She unlocked her phone to show Officer Miller the images they had captured in Miami three years earlier. "He's wearing a latex mask and dyed his hair, but it's the same man."
Miller's phone rang before he could reply to Stephanie. The officer on the other end said the child was found safe and sound with the woman's roommate. They moved them to a secured location until the man who murdered the boy's mother got arrested. Miller quickly relayed the message.
Stephanie approached the medical examiner. "May I see the injuries?"
"Sure," the man replied. He unzipped the bag to show Stephanie the torso. "Do you need light?"
"Please," Stephanie replied. She got him to shine the light on the belly button. "It's the same." Morrison had moved to look over Stephanie's shoulder. He photographed the navel, then sent it to the director. The injury was identical to the other victims. Kent Huntington was not a serial killer. His greediness put him in the line of fire. Kent Huntington was merely another casualty in the quest to find the murderer and missing children.
Morrison smiled when he read the message on his phone. "The FBI reopened the case. Ranger, I am officially asking for your assistance on the case. I need to see everything you gathered over the years," Corey said. He hoped they could close the case immediately. That case could make or break Morrison's career with the FBI.
Ranger nodded. "I'll bring him to Rangeman," Kyle promised. Ranger contacted Trenton to have Tank send digital copies of the case files.
Stephanie and Ranger were quiet as they returned to Rangeman. She wasn't sure what to make of Agent Corey Morrison. He seemed more career-goal oriented than wanting to find justice for the women who died during the last decade. Stephanie expressed her concerns to Carlos when they parked in the Rangeman garage.
The men gathered in the conference room on the second floor. David had the photos printed for the FBI agent to view. Stephanie and Carlos passed the time, waiting for the others to arrive by organizing the images.
"Wow. How did you know about the navel nick?" Morrison asked. He reviewed the images of over a dozen murdered women from the past thirteen years.
"I found it," Stephanie said. "You can tell from the tearing on the navel that someone used a serrated blade. It's the killer's mark. The other women with similar stab wounds didn't have the nick. Also, they have bruises from the knife hilt hitting the skin. A different weapon got used on those victims, and the angles were wrong. Those women weren't murdered by the same one as the others."
Carlos and Stephanie shared their theory about Patrick killing the women to sell the children. "He didn't want to worry about someone catching onto his plan by reporting the children as missing," Stephanie explained.
"Why cut the navel?" Corey asked. "It doesn't make sense."
"Stephanie has a theory," Carlos replied.
Corey turned his attention to Stephanie. He noticed Stephanie was an attractive woman. "Every woman with that mark was a single mother. Their children are missing and presumed sold on the black market. I included these five women in the file because they were fertility specialists, and their abrasions matched the other victims. IT forensics proved their patient databases got hacked and bank accounts emptied."
"But how did you know?" Corey wondered what made Stephanie tick and how she connected cases his colleagues across the country couldn't do.
"Stephanie is known for her spidey sense," Carlos replied. "Rangeman's capture rate is nearly one hundred percent because of my wife."
Corey felt a pang of jealousy. His wife left him several years earlier because he worked too hard. Corey paused when viewing the attractive red-haired woman. "Victoria," he whispered.
"Do you know her?" Stephanie quietly asked.
"She's my ex-wife. I agreed to the divorce five years ago. She never appeared in court, but I got the judge to sign the divorce decree. I couldn't find her anywhere. Did she have a child?" Corey asked.
"Yes," Stephanie whispered. "Victoria Banting gave birth to a boy four and a half years ago. He's one of the missing children." Stephanie used the Rangeman laptop to retrieve the photos Victoria posted on her Facebook page. She turned the screen for him to see the images. "I'm sorry."
"It fuels my desire to find the man," Corey said. He touched the image of his son and wondered if the child was the reason Victoria divorced him.
"About that," Stephanie said. She explained the dream to Morrison. He listened but didn't put much stock into her ability to predict the future. Stephanie could read the skepticism on his face. People either believed or not.
"I have to meet with my partner," Corey announced. Carlos passed him a business card with a number to contact him through Rangeman.
Stephanie waited until Ryan escorted his brother from the conference room. "Who's your contact at the FBI?" Stephanie asked.
Grinning, Carlos replied, "Zander Torres."
"Isn't that your brother-in-law?" Stephanie asked, shocked by the news. She knew Celia's husband worked for a government alphabet agency, but she never realized it was the FBI. "Small world."
"Zander's been working on the child trafficking case. They didn't have any leads until I shared the details regarding Sadie," Carlos confessed. "He may have located a few children. Now that we have DNA from the potential mothers, Zander's confident he can match the children to their families."
Stephanie cocked her head and raised her brows. "How could he do that?" she wondered. "If the children got sold, how do you have their DNA?"
"Babe, a few adoptive parents get their children's genome mapped for congenital health issues. Their DNA is entered into the database. Some medical facilities sell the data to the government to assist with finding a murdered victim's family or a suspect who left DNA at the scene," Carlos explained.
"And the FBI has access to these results?" Stephanie asked.
"They do."
"But only for the children whose parents submitted the sample for testing," Stephanie said. She understood what Carlos was trying to convey. It made sense to her. Stephanie wondered if they had Sadie's DNA on file somewhere.
"Sadie's genetic testing got conducted in a private lab. Lester paid for anonymity," Carlos replied, correctly reading her expression. "Let's get you to bed."
Stephanie and Carlos found the men sleeping on the sofa. They had the seats reclined for comfort. The children, not wanting to sleep alone, cuddled on the recliner chair. Stephanie couldn't resist getting a picture of them. Hector opened an eye, then smiled. He winked at Stephanie before going back to sleep.
Carlos helped Stephanie get ready for bed. Stephanie tried to be quiet as he made love to her, swallowing her moans with his mouth when she got too vocal. They fell asleep as they cuddled.
"Why are you waiting outside the bedroom?" Tito asked the following morning. Most children would enter their parents' rooms minutes after waking up.
"Papa said we had to knock," Max replied.
"Why?" Tito asked.
"Because Mama and Papa are naked," Alex whispered. She giggled.
"Are you sure?" Tito asked. Bobby and Hector were smirking behind Tito's back.
"Yup," Ricky said. "Papa has to let us in."
Tito glanced over his shoulder at Bobby and Hector, wearing matching grins. "Is there something I don't know?" Tito asked, raising a brow.
"Ranger and Steph like to sleep naked," Bobby replied. "To do naked things during the night." Tito mouthed "naked things" before he realized what Bobby meant.
"Ah. Okay. Um…what's for breakfast?" Tito awkwardly asked.
A soft knock sounded on the door as Bobby's phone chimed. "That's Marla bringing our breakfast," Bobby announced.
Hector got the kids to wash their hands before eating breakfast. He put their food on the coffee table for them to sit on the floor. The apartment didn't have seating in the kitchenette area.
"Save some for me," Stephanie said, peeking from the bedroom. Stephanie grabbed her yoga pants and shirt to dress for breakfast. She entered the bathroom to wash her hands, then joined her children at the table. "Were you kids good for your uncles?"
"Yes," they replied.
"Why were the children told to wait outside the bedroom?" Tito asked, speaking Italian.
In Italian, Stephanie replied, "A year ago, they walked in on us having sex. Carlos told them to wait outside the closed door until he let them enter." Her face flushed red as she explained the situation. "Thankfully, they didn't see anything besides my bare back."
"Why don't you get a door that locks?" Tito asked.
Hector and Bobby burst out laughing. "They picked the lock," Stephanie deadpanned. Their uncles felt it was an appropriate skill for three-year-olds.
Carlos used the washroom to take a quick shower. He dressed in a Rangeman uniform. Stephanie smiled when he sat on the floor between the boys. "Did you save any food for me?" Carlos asked.
"Yes, Papa," Alex replied. "We save the smelly fish." Alex turned up her nose at the salmon that Carlos liked to put on his bagel for breakfast.
"Did you have a sleepover?" Carlos asked, pointing to the blankets on the couch and chair.
"Yes," Alex screamed.
"The kids woke up fifteen minutes after you left. They cuddled with us for a bit, then I talked them into sleeping on the chair," Tito explained. Stephanie thought Tito would be a great father. She knew Tito and Hector were interviewing surrogates to carry their children. They were searching for the perfect egg donor.
After breakfast, Stephanie got the kids showered and dressed for the day. She added curl serum to Alex's hair. Alex loved how the soft curls to her shoulders. She giggled and ran to the living room to show her papa and uncles.
"You look beautiful, mi hija," Carlos said.
"Thank you, Papa," Alex replied. She loved compliments from her papa.
Stephanie got dressed in her Rangeman uniform, tucking knives into her boots and throwing stars in her pocket. They were meeting a group of security experts at the local community center. The organizers had activities for the children on the grounds. Stephanie dressed her children in shorts and shirts since it was warm outside. She didn't want them to get overheated in their Rangeman clothes.
Carlos got the contract workers to manage the office while most of his staff attended the event to watch for Patrick to materialize. The men had a photograph of Patrick with his known disguises. Stephanie saw Max holding Alex's hand. He refused to let go. When she wanted to play a game, Max approached Hector and Tito and asked them for protection. Stephanie thought it was sweet. However, she felt the heaviness of impending doom as it settled on her shoulders.
"Bobby, where's Ricky?" Stephanie asked, having lost sight of him while watching Alex and Max. "He was with Joel's children. I don't see him." Bobby called the others for assistance and ordered Tito to stay with Alex and Max.
Stephanie suddenly felt Ricky was in danger. She moved her phone to her back pocket. Joel approached Stephanie. "I saw Ricky at the water fountain," Joel said when he heard Stephanie's question. Joel pointed toward the building containing the washrooms. There was a row of houses to the left of the community center. They were a few hundred yards from the outdoor bathroom facilities. She searched until she saw Ricky.
"Get Carlos," Stephanie yelled. She took off toward the houses where a man was coaxing Ricky to follow him. Ricky glanced over his shoulder to see his mom running toward them, knowing she would protect him. Stephanie ran faster than she thought possible. Adrenaline coursed through her body, fuelling her urge to move faster. The muscles in her legs screamed in agony, demanding she slow down. "I have to save Ricky. Legs, don't give up on me now," Stephanie thought.
"Come inside," Patrick said. "I have wieners cooking in the kitchen. Are you hungry?" Ricky nodded, refusing to take his eyes off the evil man.
Patrick approached the pot on the stove. He reached inside to grab the single wiener from the hot water. Ricky focused on the man, refusing to see if his mama was entering the house. Patrick had an insensitivity to pain, but he didn't have CIPA. He still had the ability to sweat.
Stephanie raced into the house after her son, grabbing a throwing star from her pocket. She realized what Patrick planned and threw the star into his arm. They had to keep Patrick alive to find the children he had sold. Her dream was becoming a reality.
Patrick laughed as his gaze turned deadly. Stephanie grabbed the pot of boiling water and tossed it into his face. "Get back," Stephanie told Ricky, who reached into her back pocket to get the phone. Ricky used the option to call emergency.
"Help," Ricky said when a woman answered the phone. "Send an ambulance now."
"Is someone hurt?" the woman asked, hearing the fight in the background.
"Mama's hurt," Ricky said. Stephanie ignored Ricky's conversation to handle Patrick. Pieces of latex dropped from Patrick's face. He added thicker latex on his cheeks, making them appear more defined.
"That was foolish. I feel no pain," Patrick said as he lunged at Stephanie. His hands wrapped around her neck. She realized too late that she had packed her knives in unreachable spots. Stephanie slammed the hot pot against Patrick's head, hoping to distract him from Ricky. Her arms were tired, and Patrick's right hand released its grip. Something sharp pierced her side as the echo of a gunshot filled the room. Patrick collapsed on Stephanie, pushing the knife deeper.
"Hurry," Ricky yelled at the emergency dispatcher before grabbing a towel off the counter.
Hector stood in the doorway with his weapon dropped to his side. He jerked Patrick off Stephanie and pressed the towel against the wound. "Don't touch the knife, Ricky," Hector ordered. Hector scooped Ricky into his arms when Carlos entered the house.
Carlos screamed, "No! Stephanie! Babe, talk to me."