Hector and Rodriguez left after dinner. They got assigned a room at Rangeman. It wasn't a chore for them to share. The men were close friends, but not the "friendly friends," as some suspected. Neither man dated coworkers, nor would they risk their friendship by dating each other. Their choice of partner wasn't even related to any Rangeman employee. Hector and Rodriguez had strict rules to keep their relationships from where they worked.
Rodriguez met his spouse during his first month living in Trenton. There wasn't much acceptance for alternate partner pairings in the city. It was challenging for Raphael and his husband, Patrick, to have dinner in the Trenton restaurants. They often invited Jeanne Ellen, or Carol to join them. The women enjoyed spending time with their friends and kept their secrets. Whenever Raphael and Patrick wanted a romantic dinner, they would go to New York for the weekend.
"How does Camilo feel about you leaving for a few weeks?" Rodriguez asked Hector, speaking Spanish.
"He understands I'm doing this for Stephanie," Hector replied. "Cam wants my sister to come home. He trusts me to remain faithful." Hector used an app on his phone to scramble any recording devices in the car. He didn't want anyone at Rangeman to listen to their private conversation.
"Does anyone know your secret?" Rodriguez asked, referring to Hector's fluency in English.
"My sister and brother-in-law know," Hector replied. Hector was careful to speak Spanish around the guys. Everyone relied on Hector to collect the intel from the contract workers the following afternoon.
"I'll record everything without their knowledge," Rodriguez offered. "How is Lester getting to Rangeman tomorrow?"
"He's picking up his car in the morning," Hector replied.
~~~~~
Inside the Martine's home, Ron ensured the windows were secured and nobody was listening. Rangeman provided security on the house, but could only hear conversations if Julie pressed the panic button.
"Silvia and Tyler, you can't tell anyone you saw Julie's dad or met Stephanie," Ron said.
"We know, Dad," they replied.
"Julie warned us," Silvia said, showing her dad the phone message.
Ron smiled as he read the message from Julie. "Do not tell anyone who we meet at Mr. Palmerston's house. Say you were allergic to the hamster and wondered if Conor would like to have him if anyone asks why we carried the pet to Mr. Palmerston. I'll be listening and watching. Remember, you talk, and I'll make you do the dishes for the next year. That goes for Ty, too."
"Oh, you should delete the message," Julie said. "I forgot that part."
Silvia took the phone from her dad and deleted the message. "Jules, we don't discuss our plans or anyone we meet. After you got kidnapped, Sylvia and I were afraid people would use everything we say to hurt you," Tyler explained. Tyler was three years younger than Julie. At eleven, he was mature for his age. Having a deranged man kidnap your older sister made you grow up fast. It also changes your opinion of people you meet.
"I know, but it doesn't hurt to have a reminder. What are we doing tomorrow?" Julie asked.
"Staying home. We don't want to interfere with Ranger's plans indirectly," Ron replied.
"Okay." Julie went to her bedroom to complete her homework. She couldn't wait for Stephanie to get freed from the confines of Mr. Palmerston's house. Julie was surprised Paulina Palmerston was Stephanie's aunt. Paulina explained her relationship to Stephanie during dinner. It, indeed, was a small world. Julie sighed, then got to work. Her math homework wasn't going to finish itself.
Seeing Stephanie married to Ranger made Julie smile. She loved Stephanie the moment they met during the Scrog kidnapping. Stephanie didn't know Julie from Eve, yet Stephanie placed herself in danger to keep Julie safe. "What if they have babies?" Julie mumbled into her empty room. Julie couldn't wait to see the perfect blend of Ranger and Stephanie in a child's face. Shaking her head from thoughts of Stephanie carrying Ranger's baby, Julie got to work.
~~~~~
Stephanie crawled into bed to cuddle with Ranger. She mentally chastised herself for not thinking of his name as Carlos. She rested her chin on Ranger's chest and looked at his handsome face. Ranger's eyes were closed, and his breaths were even. Stephanie knew he was still awake.
"Babe?"
"I can't believe we got married," Stephanie replied. "It seems like a fairytale. I'm afraid to wake up in the morning to realize it was just a dream."
"We're having the same dream," Carlos replied, chuckling. He opened his eyes to look into Stephanie's gorgeous blues. "I never planned to remarry. You changed my mind."
"I did? How?"
"By being the amazing woman you are," Carlos answered, stroking his finger down Stephanie's cheek. She closed her eyes and moaned.
Stephanie opened her eyes. I love the part where you wrote, "I want to sleep with you, but not to make love. I want to fall asleep while holding you in my arms. As our naked bodies entwine, I want to feel your heart beating against my chest, mingling our breaths as we drift gently into each other's dreams. Babe, I want to have our someday. I want the promise of forever with you. I don't need a ring to signify our commitment. All I need is someday with you."
Carlos chuckled. "I read that poem somewhere and integrated it into the letter. It said everything I wanted you to know," he confessed. "I also asked you to live with me in that letter."
Giggling, Stephanie replied, "I can make that happen. Once you catch those bastards, I'm moving into your apartment. How did I change your stance on marriage?" Stephanie was too nosy and curious about why Carlos changed his mind.
"Those bastards stole you," Carlos replied. "When I realized how close I got to losing you, I had to put my past behind me. It was time, as you so eloquently put it on the chopper, "I said yes, now it's time to shit or get off the pot," to commit to you. I knew it was the right decision. Babe, I can't live in a world where you don't exist. You're my light, home, love and best friend. I need you for survival. I love you more than anything else."
"I love you too, Batman," Stephanie reciprocated. Saying those words to Ranger was easy—once she got past the squishy sensation in her stomach.
Stephanie wrapped a leg around his hip. Carlos shifted slightly to enter her. They made love as Carlos swallowed her moans. After cleaning up, Carlos pulled Stephanie against his chest. "Let me hold you," he whispered.
"Okay," she replied. They fell asleep entwined as one.
~~~~~
Bones, Pete, Chas and Erik entered Rangeman for their shift beginning at 1400. They met with Marco to sign the paperwork for their assignments. Chas and Erik got assigned to research, which they felt was beneath them. Bones and Pete worked the monitor shift. "This sucks," Bones said after Charlie vacated the chair.
"Yup, but beggars can't be choosers," Pete replied. "We should take advantage of what we got offered and prove we are team players."
"Speak for yourself," Bones said. Bones was not a team player unless it was profitable to be one. He tried to prove himself with Ranger during a special ops deployment, but it got Bones banned from assisting on subsequent missions. Nobody pushed Ranger from the Rangers Alpha team when he asserted his dominance. What was so special about Manoso? So what if he topped the charts of Rangers recruits? Manoso should be following orders, not issuing them. Bones had to digress. Those thoughts wouldn't make Ranger hire him.
"Have your contacts found her?" Pete asked.
Bones glanced around the control room floor. He saw the man named Hector from the Trenton office installing software on the computers closest to the monitor station. "Nobody spotted the Plum woman in Trenton. Why didn't you tell me she had a hamster? Everyone is looking for her," Bones snarled.
"I didn't know. It didn't show in her background," Peter replied, watching Hector for a reaction.
"The midazolam didn't stay in her system long enough. We had the correct dose for her weight. Why wasn't her propensity to metabolize drugs quickly in her medical file?" Bones asked.
Hector continued working on the computer upgrades, pretending not to understand the conversation. "No clue. The chloroform didn't last long either. Hey, do you think he understands?" Pete asked, pointing to Hector.
"No. Hector only speaks and understands Spanish," Bones replied. "¿Qué estás haciendo?" (What are you doing?)
"Programas de fijación," Hector replied. (Fixing programs.)
"What are you doing?" Bones asked again, speaking English.
"No entiendo," Hector answered. (I don't understand.)
Bones returned to his discussion with Pete, unaware Hector understood their conversation.
Hector recorded every word the assholes uttered during their shift. Bones and Pete were unaware of their surroundings. Neither man noticed the camera above the monitors, recording them and their conversation.
After Hector upgraded the programs on the computers closest to the monitoring station, he went to Rodriguez, sitting behind Erik and Chas. Hector looked over Rodriguez's shoulder to view the image on the phone. He was recording every keystroke on Chas and Erik's keyboards. Rodriguez had cameras pointed at the monitors to see what the men were doing and recording their conversation.
Hector used his phone to link to the temporary cameras. He saw Erik pass Chas a note. Chas wrote a response and passed it back. They didn't know Hector could see the writing. Chas and Erik sent letters back and forth a few more times.
Erik: Did you research Plum?
Chas: Yes. The file was updated on Sunday. She checked into the hotel in Point Pleasant. We're off the hook.
Erik: Thank goodness. Hopefully, she turns up dead, and one of us can get her job.
Chas: It won't be you. Your research sucks.
"Fuck you," Erik said. He grabbed the notes from Chas and tore them into tiny pieces. Instead of tossing them in the garbage, Erik ate them.
"Man, you're going to get constipated," Chas teased. "This has got to be the most boring job here."
"I disagree. Watching monitors is much worse. Surveillance is slightly better. I heard Ranger doesn't even work at the monitoring station. He makes everyone else do the shit jobs," Erik said.
"Shh. Rodriguez understands English. We don't want him ratting us out to Ranger. I'm hoping Ranger reconsiders and hires me," Chas snarled.
Rodriguez pushed the chair back to stand. Speaking in Spanish, he asked Hector to install the upgraded software. Turning to Chas and Erik, Rodriguez said, "Don't worry about me telling the boss. I happen to agree with you." It was a lie, but Chas and Erik bought it.
Hector sat behind the men and listened as they discussed what happened to Stephanie. They were furious when Stephanie signed a full-time contract. Chas and Erik applied for part-time positions. They had another three years on their military contracts. Ranger preferred to hire ex-military to work full-time. The part-time staff still had responsibilities with the military. Rangeman occasional workers signed an agreement stating they would be called into Rangeman no more than six weeks per year. The men would remain occasional workers until another position opened within the three branches.
According to the website, Rangeman wasn't currently hiring. Erik wanted to know why Ranger offered Stephanie a full-time position. He received a letter from Tank stating he was permanently an occasional contract worker. In other words, Erik would never work for more than thirty days per year for Rangeman. Bones, Chas and Pete received the same letter.
"Do you think they know about our past?" Chas asked.
"What? Are you suggesting they know about our addictions?" Erik asked. "That's not possible." Erik dove into the background check programs. There wasn't a clue of his alcohol addiction. He searched through his financial records, not finding anything amiss. After confirming his clean background, Erik searched Bones, Chas and Pete's backgrounds.
"Did you find anything?" Chas asked.
"No. I told you there was nothing there," Erik replied.
Hector smiled, knowing there was one place Erik had never searched. Erik didn't have clearance to access the files. Stephanie could access them but could only view specific documents unrelated to missions. It was where she uncovered the issues with the men. Checking the time, Hector locked the system and let the update run in the background.
Bones, Chas, Erik and Pete's four-hour shift was over. It was time to play.