Five Years Later…

Bobby and Tank entered the meeting room with Julius Manoso, the oldest Manoso sibling, down from New York where he was an investment banker. Les and Ranger were sitting at the conference table with their uncle, General Marco Santos, who was detailing all the reasons he wanted to be their second silent partner in RangeMan Miami's expansion. Marion's father, the General was behind some of their early business success.

"My contacts in the Alphabet City that is the US government are impressed with the work your teams have done for them since the opening of your storefront operation."

So impressed that the group was constantly working with one agency or another, and so lucrative that each of the Core team was now ready to expand in a large way.

"Tio is right. In reviewing the strategic plan you outlined when you came up with the idea for RangeMan, I believe and expansion is wise at this point in the commercial real estate arena." Julius assured the group. "The business can afford to move into a much larger space, but renting on such large scale makes buying the building a better business decision. And with the amount of work you're turning down, you need more personnel which means a bigger foot print here in Miami. I recommend looking for a building in the industrial section of Miami. We don't need to do full renovations immediately, but we can look at what's available on the market."

Ranger and Tank had been in the wind for the last eighteen months, finishing out their contracts, and both men were ready to move forward with the dream. Bobby had just finished his intern year in New York and had moved back to Miami with his family to start his four-year Residency- his plan had been surgery, but after the complicated fracture of his forearm, he decided to shift his focus to Emergency Medicine. He had four hard years ahead of him, but RangeMan could only benefit from his expertise. Les was glad everyone was back in Florida. He had been in charge over the last eighteen months and needed a vacation. He told the group that Tank could vote for him on any property they were considering because he and Val were going away- Abuela Rosa and Ella were going to stay in the Santos house and help Lula run the childcare center while Val was gone.

"You know she will end up pregnant again, Santos." Bobby joked with his friend and all the men laughed.

"You're one to talk. In the last five years, you've added three to your nursery." Les scolded.

"And now the girls outnumber the boys in the Brown house." Tank smiled. "Lula has her heart set on at least one more. And I really love the idea."

Ranger needed to change the subject. "Les, where are you planning to travel?"

"We will spend a few days in New York then we fly to Paris for a week."

Lester didn't say they were going to see Stephanie but of course they were. Nobody ever mentioned Stephanie around Ranger. Not since…

But that was five years ago. Five years. Ranger spent the last five years putting out fires around the globe. Jungles, deserts, and ice-covered landscapes had all featured in his missions. Tank joined him for the last one- the worst and longest. But he was home and Julie was so excited to see him. She had grown so much and was so smart. He loved his little girl with his whole heart. Well, except for the piece that would always belong to Stephanie. He swallowed hard and then discussed a price point for the new headquarters.

The building was almost 45,000 square feet. It was an existing office building and fully site plan approved at the heart of Miami. It had six stories zoned for mixed use. Each Floor held 6,000 square feet of office space and there was already a three level underground garage parking

Located close to I-95and the Turnpike, it would improve response times.

The property was already highly secure, as Hans Müller owned it and RangeMan was his security team for all the Miami holdings. There was also an adjoining lot, secured with a fence and gate that could be built to suit- apartments and the daycare center were both options, since Val and Lula were quickly outgrowing their space too.

The building was being renovated when there was a fire. The construction company and Hans Müller were in a legal turmoil for several years, but that recently ended with no judgement against the builder so now Hans wanted to off load the property "as is" and thought the RangeMan Core team should have first option.

"Clear ceiling height on all levels is twenty feet, with 4 dock-high Doors for cargo delivery as well as a drive-in grade-level door to access the underground garage." The realtor showing Ranger and Tank the building was a young woman from the Real Estate group Hans frequently worked with. It was a whisper from Lester that had Hans threaten to take his business away from the group two years ago. Marcus Turner was horrified when Hans told him about what Lance and his friends had done. Hans described how "LT to the 3rd Power" broke into the home, the damage, the theft, and drug use. Marcus knew his nephew and his two idiot friends used that stupid name, so he knew Hans had the right person. Lance was drug tested by the office manager when he came in the next day and ecstasy and cocaine were both present. Lance was fired on the spot.

Ranger and Tank both thought the building was exactly what they needed. The next step of the RangeMan dream was at hand.

Author's note: I know, a time jump- But I needed to get Bobby through Medical School and I have more surprises in store- so I hope you stick with me… Oh, and I haven't forgotten the other LTs… Karma is real!