It was time to go. The fat lady sang the high note, threatening to break the glass when she held it longer than Stephanie thought possible. With the curtain closing, she knew it was the end. For some, having the opportunity to play a role had the best experience of their lives. At least, they appeared to enjoy themselves. Those who had no other choice, like Stephanie, found it devastating. Was it all an act?
Stephanie wiped the tears off her face and finished packing her bags. There was nothing left for her in that town. Looking at her alarm clock, Stephanie saw it was 02:14 am. The meagre light in her bedroom barely cast enough light to see inside the closet. "Why don't they put lights in closets?" Stephanie mumbled. She shook her head at the thought of adding light to the tiny space. It didn't matter. Stephanie wasn't staying.
Everything Stephanie planned to move could fit inside two large suitcases. The dresses she used for distraction jobs hung inside the closet. Stephanie shook her head, then dropped them into the donation box with the matching shoes after removing the tracker from the bottom, tucked by the heel. She hoped someone could use them.
"Are you ready?" Mary Lou asked from the doorway. Stephanie shrugged. Mary Lou entered the bedroom to tug the black Rangeman shirt from Stephanie's hand.
"Wait!" Stephanie cried. Mary Lou smiled, then shoved the shirts into the front pocket of Stephanie's suitcase. Stephanie immediately removed them. It was time for her to move on and start a life post-Ranger.
"Sweetie, you should take them with you," Mary Lou said. "Are you sure he's moving to Miami?" Stephanie stopped Mary Lou from putting them in her bag. Mary Lou sighed, then placed the shirts on the kitchen counter with the trackers for someone at Rangeman to collect. Stephanie refused to take anything Ranger, Ella or her Merry Men bought for her. She couldn't trust them to be tracker free.
"Yes. Ranger had already gone. I don't want the reminder of him," Stephanie replied. "Lou, we had one amazing night. I should have known it was our last time together. The sex was better. It felt like it was something more. When he woke up the next morning, he sent me back to Morelli. Again. I was no better than a toy. A snatch he would hit whenever he got the urge. I was stupid to fall in love with a man who doesn't do relationships." Stephanie's memories haunted her as she remembered everything she wanted. All she wanted was Ranger. She didn't want marriage or his children. Stephanie only wanted a committed relationship with Carlos Manoso. It was something Stephanie thought she had. But it was time to move on.
"But you broke up with Joe over a year ago," Mary Lou reminded Stephanie, who shrugged. "Have you told him?" Mary Lou was worried Stephanie was making a mistake leaving her family behind. They could help with all the trials and tribulations Stephanie would experience during the next few years.
"No," Stephanie replied. Stephanie didn't want her mother forcing her to marry an eligible Burg man. Getting married would cause the poison to set in. She didn't want to get married and die a slow, agonizing Burg death.
Mary Lou understood how Stephanie felt. However, Ranger deserved to know. Stephanie felt Mary Lou's concern for her mental health. Raising her hands high, Stephanie confessed, "I probably should, but I refuse to force someone to choose me. I'm not about to become someone's obligation. He showed his hand when he sent me back to Joe despite how often I said Joe and I were over for good. Ranger and I were always meant to say goodbye. I have to do this, or I'll die." It was overly dramatic, but it was the truth. Stephanie couldn't live in Trenton with all the constant reminders of the man she couldn't have.
"Where are you going?" Mary Lou whispered her question. She helped Stephanie pack the remaining clothes and shoes into the donation box. The furniture inside her apartment would remain for Stephanie's Grandma Edna to use.
"Lou, we discussed this. I can't tell you where I'm going. It's best that you don't know," Stephanie said. She was going to the one place where she knew Ranger would never go.
Lenny Stankovic, Mary Lou's husband, entered the apartment. He grabbed the boxes destined for the donation bin, then left. Mary Lou watched his ass when he left the bedroom. "My husband is still sexy," Mary Lou sighed. "Steph, I know everything seems like it went upside down and backwards, but it will all work out in the end."
Stephanie shrugged because she didn't have an opinion on the matter. She knew her life was upside down and had no solution to make it right. Nothing could make things right in her eyes. All Stephanie could do was walk away before more people got hurt.
"Did you get the purse?" Stephanie asked. Mary Lou nodded and grabbed it from her messenger bag. "Thanks, Lou." Stephanie emptied her bag on the bed. She removed the credit cards from her wallet, passed them to Mary Lou and asked her to cut them.
"Are you sure?" Mary Lou asked.
"Yes, Lou. I'm sure." Stephanie knew if compelled; Ranger could track her using credit card purchases. Ranger told Stephanie to repair her relationship with Morelli. That was not possible. Joe was dating several women and had no desire to settle down with only one. He preferred the variety. It was because of that desire that ended their off-on-again relationship. Joe was incapable of monogamy, and Stephanie refused to participate in his philandering ways.
Stephanie wondered if Ranger had another woman in his bed. Thinking he was in a committed relationship with someone else while Stephanie shared his bed broke her heart. Stephanie should have known better. A gorgeous, sexy Adonis would never settle for a pasty, below-average white girl from the Burg.
Jeanne Ellen Burrows was more Ranger's type. Stephanie used to think they had a sexual thing, but Jeanne Ellen assured Stephanie that was not the case. For one, Ranger was the wrong sex, and they were related. Jeanne Ellen's words were, "Gross. I would never sleep with my cousin. Besides, I prefer women." However, her proclamation didn't change a thing. Ranger didn't want Stephanie for more than scratching an itch. Stephanie felt she deserved better.
Frank Plum, Stephanie's father, was the only person who knew where Stephanie was heading. He arranged the passport for Stephanie in their proper surname of Palumbo. It didn't take a bribe or an exorbitant fee to get the identification with the new name. Frank produced a copy of his grandfather's birth records with the correct spelling. Luckily, it was good enough to get the passport.
Lenny and Mary Lou dropped Stephanie off at the bus terminal, where Frank Plum waited for his youngest daughter to arrive. Stephanie thanked Lenny and Mary Lou for their help. They promised to watch out for Edna at the apartment. After hugging her friends, Stephanie and Frank loaded the luggage into the back of the cab. Nobody would guess that Stephanie was about to leave the States. She was moving on to a new life in a new country.
"Thanks for helping me, Dad," Stephanie said as Frank took the on-ramp to the highway. Stephanie was catching the red-eye flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Rome Fiumicino Airport, where she would catch another flight to Florence, Italy. Stephanie could hardly wait to see her grandparents. It had been much too long.
"Are you planning to tell Manoso about his child?" Frank asked.
Shaking her head, Stephanie replied, "No. He would want to get married to give our child his name and medical benefits. I'm not willing to make Rachel's mistake. She got married to Ranger. Then they divorced after Julie was born. Ranger doesn't love me enough, and I love him too much to trap him with an unplanned pregnancy."
Stephanie sighed. She didn't want to have that conversation with Ranger or her father. "Where is Manoso these days?" Frank asked.
"He moved to Miami after disabling my fob for Rangeman. Dad, he doesn't want me," Stephanie whispered, wiping the tears off her cheeks with the back of her hand. Frank passed Stephanie a handkerchief. She giggled as she accepted the cloth.
"Are you sure he wasn't confused?" Frank wondered.
"Dad, he told me to fix my relationship with Morelli. Maybe we got too serious for comfort," Stephanie replied. Frank knew Stephanie had ended her relationship with Joe Morelli the previous year. He had hoped Manoso would step up to the plate. "Or maybe he got bored with me. Hey, I should just throw out that one of his enemies is watching him for a girlfriend to torture. Heck, Dad, I have no fucking idea what went through that man's head. But I know with certainty that Ricardo Carlos Manoso was not confused."
"Is there a chance Manoso would change his mind?" Frank asked.
"It doesn't matter, Dad. I waited three years for him to give me the someday he promised. There will never be a someday. It was a line Ranger used to get me into his bed. I'm nothing but a fool," Stephanie explained. "The cars and pity jobs were payment for my services. I have never felt so used in my life."
Frank arrived at the terminal. He parked in the loading zone and helped Stephanie get her luggage from the back. "Here's your boarding pass. Your grandfather sent them to me for safekeeping," Frank said, passing Stephanie the papers. He touched Stephanie's cheek to wipe the tear before it ran down her face. "Your birth certificate and passport are in the envelope. Please, don't lose them."
"Thanks, Daddy. I appreciate everything you've done to get me here," Stephanie replied. Stephanie kissed her father's cheek before disappearing inside. She removed the identification from the envelope. Her dad included a driver's license with the new name.
Stephanie boarded her flight as Ranger entered his apartment in Miami. Ranger was exhausted from the long drive. He fobbed his way to the sixth floor. The housekeeper, Abigail, ensured he had clean uniforms and food in his cupboard. "Thanks, Abigail," Ranger said. "That would be all."
"Will Stephanie be joining us?" Abigail stupidly asked. Abigail heard many beautiful things about Stephanie Plum, Ranger's girlfriend, though he never admitted it. Her friend, Ella, in the Trenton office, loved Stephanie as a surrogate daughter. Abigail hoped to meet the woman every man in the Trenton branch loved.
"Do not say her name," Ranger said, his voice taking on a deadly tone he never gave Abigail or the other Rangeman housekeepers.
"Sorry, sir. I won't ask again," she replied. "I heard so much about your girlfriend from the men and wanted to meet her."
"Clean out your apartment and leave," Ranger growled. Abigail was surprised. She had known Ranger since he moved to Miami as a teen. His grandmother Rosa and Abigail were neighbours. Her children were Ranger's age.
"I'll be out by the morning," Abigail said. She turned on her heels to contact her husband, Joel. They didn't need the money because Joel was independently wealthy.
Ranger pulled up the trackers on Stephanie's car, purse, phone and shoes. Everything was where it should be at Stephanie's apartment. He had no clue Stephanie was already gone. Stephanie would be safer without him. The threats from his enemy were not to be taken lightly. Someone was watching.
~~~~~
Nobody had seen Ranger for two days. He disappeared one night, taking his Porsche 911 turbo with him. It wasn't unusual for him to leave during the night for parts unknown. Everyone assumed Stephanie went with Ranger because she, too, had disappeared. They couldn't have been more wrong.
Music played on the radio as Vincenzo Bianco's alarm sounded. He smiled at the song called Already Gone by Kelly Clarkson. It wasn't the best song to wake up by, but it was one of Stephanie's favourites. He couldn't wait to see what hijinks Stephanie would experience for the day. She was hilarious and resilient. Vince loved how Stephanie would joke about the skips that got the best of her.
He had the day off and wondered if Stephanie needed a hand with her skips. Vince pulled on his jeans when his phone chimed. He read the message from Tank. There was an emergency meeting at Rangeman in twenty minutes. Vince checked the time and pulled a shirt over his head. Luckily, he lived in an apartment on the fourth floor and would make it to the meeting in time.
Not wanting to miss the opportunity for breakfast, Vince went to the fifth-floor break room to grab a bagel with eggs. He sat on the chair to eat the egg sandwich made by the Rangeman housekeeper. Ella treated them as her sons. She didn't have children of her own. Vince noticed Ella's red-rimmed eyes. He was curious about what had upset her.
"Are you okay?" Vince asked Ella. She shook her head, then promptly left the break room. It was unlike Ella to avoid conversation with the men. He instinctively knew the meeting was about Stephanie Michelle Plum. Vince assumed Stephanie wouldn't be at the meeting.
Everyone gathered in the largest conference room. Some workers had to stand since there weren't enough seats for everyone. Tank called contract workers to cover the monitors for the full-time and part-time Rangeman employees to attend the meeting.
Tank was exhausted. He knew a few men would take the news the hardest. Hector glared at Tank, making him wonder if Hector had figured out the announcement. It wouldn't surprise Tank if he had. Hector was the man called for installations and equipment recovery.
Bobby and Lester sat in the chairs on either side of Tank. Lester looked murderous. Vince knew something happened with Stephanie. The guys chatted, unaware of the tension building inside the room.
"Attention!" Tank ordered when the men wouldn't stop talking.
Vince caught Hector's eye and raised a brow. Hector nodded. Stephanie was persona non grata at Rangeman.
"I have an important notification. Bobby Brown, Lester Santos, and I are relocating to the Miami branch. Jose Rodriguez, Cal Holden, and Hal Summers are the first, second and third in command. Jeanne Ellen Burrows is the woman we contact for distractions," Tank announced.
"What about Stephanie?" Manny asked.
"Stephanie is no longer welcome inside Rangeman. Her fob got deactivated a few days ago. Any man who offers her assistance will get terminated immediately," Tank replied.
"Not like that matters," Lester mumbled. He jutted his chin at Hector, who emptied the contents of his pocket on the table. "Those are her trackers. I found them on her counter this morning. She's gone."
"What do you mean?" Manny demanded.
"Stephanie's clothes are gone. She moved without telling anyone," Lester replied.