Twenty years later…

I wiped a tear from my cheek. My baby was all grown up and heading off to basic training. Hector wrapped his arms around me as we watched our son, Frankie, enter through the airport security gate. "Mom, he's going to be fine," Ricardo said.

"I know, darling, but I still worry," I replied.

"As much as you did while pregnant with me?" he asked.

"Nothing scared me more that day," I confessed.

"Tio Carlos said you prayed to every higher power and entity," Ricardo teased. I gently slapped my oldest son's shoulder.

"That was your father," I replied. Hector laughed behind me. Ricardo smiled when Hector buried his face in my neck. My oldest son resembled Hector too much. The only difference was the tattoos. Ricardo had a spiderweb tattoo on his chest. In its center was a black widow spider with a brilliant blue in place of the red.

"Your mother's quick reflexes killed the shooter," Hector said.

"Dad, I know. Tio Carlos told me," Ricardo groaned. I know Ricardo had more questions, which I promised to share when he got older. It must be time to tell him everything.

I waited until we got home before sharing the story of how he survived against all odds. Ricardo listened intently as I described that night. He gasped when I said, "I felt a sharp, burning pain in my left side a second before hearing the echo of a weapon discharging. Without realizing it, I removed the knife strapped to my thigh and threw it using all the strength I possessed. The knife hit its target in the shooter's neck. She stupidly removed the knife and died within minutes."

"You knew where to throw it?" Ricardo asked in amazement.

"Yes. I let my instincts guide me," I replied.

"But how did you get shot? Didn't you sense the woman?" Ricardo wondered. I rubbed between his eyes to remove the wrinkle caused by furrowing his brow.

"That, my dear, is what the other guys wondered. She didn't arrive until Aunt Jeanne and I left Infernos," I explained. "I felt her a fraction of a second before she shot me."

"Where did you get hit?" Ricardo asked.

I raised my shirt slightly and lowered the left side of my pants to reveal the scar. "You were sitting here," I pointed a few centimetres to the right. "The bullet nicked my uterus. I had to stay in the hospital for two months before they released me." I pulled my shirt down to cover the four inch scar.

Hector chuckled, "Your mother was furious about getting chained to her desk."

"I wasn't that bad, Hector. Stop telling tall tales," I teased. Technically, I was furious, but not about getting confined to the office. I was angry that I put my baby in danger by going into the field. There was more to the story, a part that nearly devastated me.

"As you wish, my love," Hector replied.

"Who was the woman?" Ricardo finally asked after processing the information I shared.

"Madam Zaretski," I replied. "She loves her whips and chains." I shook my head. My fuckwit of a cousin told the skank where I went that night. Rangeman severed ties with Vincent Plum Bail Bonds. Within a few months, Harry the Hammer begged Rangeman to return. We did, but on our terms. Rangeman became the owner of the bonds office. Harry the Hammer went on his merry way and dealt with my traitorous cousin.

I know precisely what happened to Vinnie. Harry the Hammer got his daughter, Lucille, to divorce Vincent Plum, using every connection he had available to expedite the ruling. A few weeks after Rangeman took over the Bail Bonds office, Vinnie, my slime-ball cousin, killed himself. He was found in the Pine Barrens sitting in the driver's seat of his car. A suicide note was on the dash. The forensics team only discovered his fingerprints on the weapon and note. Nobody saw anything, and the homicide detectives ruled it as a suicide. Lucille received a hefty sum from the insurance company after his death. She was living her life in peace.

"When do you leave?" Hector asked Ricardo.

"I have a few more months before Rangers training starts. You know I have another six-month tour to complete first. I leave in two weeks," he replied. My son wanted to follow in his uncle's footsteps. Ricardo loved his Tio Carlos. He trained with his uncle to prepare for training. I assumed Ricardo would first get a college degree to move up the ranks quickly. He decided to take courses online between his deployments. I was proud of his military achievements.

Ricardo hugged me and chuckled when Hector wrapped his arms around us both. "I love you so much," I mumbled. I kissed Ricardo's cheek.

"You know that I love you," Ricardo replied. "I'm excited to start training."

Chuckling, Hector reminded Ricardo that he already started Rangers training with his uncles. They built an obstacle course to assist with giving Ricardo an advantage. It was training on that course which spurred Frankie into joining the Army. Like his brother Ricardo, he enlisted the day he turned eighteen.

My sons inherited my spidey sense and Hector's stealth. I knew they would keep themselves safe during their missions. Hector and I raised them to trust their abilities and be true to their beliefs. We raised them to have a solid moral compass pointing due north. Fortunately, the boys didn't get sucked into the local gangs. They prevented their friends from recruitment.

Valerie's only son, Grayson, almost fell prey to the gangs in Trenton, NJ. Hector, Ranger and Lester approached the gang leaders and showed what would happen if they attempted to recruit another child in the city. They waited until the boys were at least sixteen before trying to sweet-talk them into the gang life.

At seventeen, Grayson killed the gang leader as he attempted to protect his younger sister, Lisa, from becoming another victim of the initiation process. The remaining gang members moved from the area in fear. Lisa wasn't physically harmed, but she had to speak to a child psychologist for several years to get over the mental trauma she endured.

Grayson joined the Army with Ricardo. Unlike my son, Grayson decided to finish his mandatory tours and work for Rangeman. I couldn't wait until my sons started working for the company.

"Where's Pete?" Ricardo asked.

"He's with Tio Bobby," I replied. "Why?"

"Nothing. I hope you're prepared for Pete to attend medical school," Ricardo laughed.

"We're prepared," I replied. My youngest son, Pete, turned fifteen a few weeks earlier. Hector and I wanted to have a girl, but she wasn't meant to be. It was probably for the best. I never wanted to replace Aria. Frankie was a perfect blend of Hector and me, while Pete looked more like me with his dad's skin tone. I missed Aria more than ever. She was somewhere in the cosmos, keeping her brothers safe.

I wondered if Pete would join the Army or volunteer with Doctors Without Borders when he finished medical school. We had at least another ten years before Pete would make that decision. Unless, he decided to join the Army and learn to become a medic like his Tio Bobby.

There were worse jobs for the boys than joining the military. During school, I let them work at Rangeman with the guys. They help file paperwork, clean the guns, sweep shells and wash the cars. Hector and I didn't want them working at a fast food restaurant or another one of the small businesses in Trenton. The Burg may have accepted Rangeman for their security needs, but I noticed some of the same prejudices existed with the elderly residents, especially women around my mother's age.

Things got really tense when my mom got released after serving her sentence. She tried to get other people to drop Rangeman security. We knew it wouldn't work. Mom tried to move in with Valerie, but Binkie refused to let that happen. I used my savings to put Mom in a retirement home. She was not happy with me.

Mom barely made it a year before breaking her parole by drinking and driving. She wrapped her car around a telephone pole. Mom claimed her brakes were faulty, but the mechanic proved they were in perfect working order. The lack of skid marks before impact showed she never used the brakes. Mom had to return to prison. She lived for six months in lockup until one of the Stark Street whores shanked Mom to get the tasty kakes Valerie sent her for Christmas.

My sons didn't like their grandma. I never forced them to visit her. We went to Valerie's for dinner a few times while Mom was there for the boys to meet Grandma Mazur. Dad was adamant about her changing her name after the divorce. Mom reluctantly did as Dad asked. She didn't have a choice.

Dad was happy to have four grandsons. I know Dad was excited when Ricardo joined the Army. He wasn't too amused when Frankie, his namesake, followed suit. Dad was living in Georgia, running the restaurant he inherited from my grandpa Plum. I was somewhat surprised to learn Dad was a fabulous cook. No wonder he asked for more gravy whenever Mom cooked a roast. Dad's pot roast was the best I had ever had. He taught Valerie and me how to make it better than using Mom's recipe.

I wondered if Frankie would visit his grandpa during his weekend leave. Dad would love to have his grandson at the restaurant. He enjoyed having Ricardo visit frequently.

"Hey, Mom, have you met Melinda yet?" Ricardo asked. I shook my head. Whenever I visited Dad in Atlanta, Melinda wasn't working. She was busy with her daughter or son. Melinda's daughter was a year younger than me, and her son was a few years younger. I haven't met them either.

"She's never at the restaurant whenever we visit," I replied. "The last time we went to Georgia, Melinda was in Virginia helping Sabrina with the twins."

"Hopefully, you get to meet her when we visit for Thanksgiving. She's supposed to be helping grandpa at the restaurant to serve the soldiers who couldn't get time off to visit their families," Ricardo announced. I immediately grabbed my phone to book the time to visit Dad for Thanksgiving.

After adding the information to the calendar, I received texts from Ranger, Lester and Tank. "Take a few extra days," Ranger said.

"It's about time. Don't come back until you visit Frankie," Lester replied.

"I've got you covered," Tank added. "And we'll have a care package for little Frank."

I wiped a tear from my eye. Hector came up behind me to wrap me in his arms. I showed him the messages. He chuckled and turned me to face him. My handsome husband stroked his thumbs across my cheekbones to remove the tears. "They love you," he whispered. "Let's get dinner ready. You know how impatient Pete gets." I giggled. My youngest son was a lot like me. He loved to eat.

Bobby's text arrived when Hector and I were cooking dinner. "Pete and I booked the flights." I mumbled about Bobby spending his money when I had enough to afford airfare.

Amusement was evident as Hector replied, "Let him do this for you."

We barely used our money to pay for everything. I put my foot down when I discovered Rangeman paid for groceries to fill my cupboards and refrigerator. When I approached them about the issue, Ranger and Tank gave me a sheepish grin.

They didn't want me to worry about anything. I argued that they should have extended the same courtesy to Valerie. The men stopped expensing my groceries to Rangeman when I started purchasing food for Valerie's family. Incidentally, it was Binkie who approached me and the others. He told us to stop the grocery wars. I had to admit it was hilarious.

As I set the table, I heard Pete enter the house through the side door, "I'll tell Mom to set the table for eight." I shook my head and grabbed more place settings.

"It's a good thing we made extra," I joked. I wasn't surprised when the others entered the house behind Pete.

"You were right," Hector laughed. He grabbed extra glasses from the cupboard to place on the table. Pete sat beside me, leaving Ricardo with his namesake across the table. I raised my glass and toasted my family.

It saddened me that Ranger never settled down with a woman. One seemed promising, but I ran a background check and learned she only wanted his money. Ranger kicked Shauna to the curb when she claimed he impregnated her. The dumb bitch never realized Ranger had a vasectomy. Ranger couldn't get anyone pregnant. He has no swimmers.

Bobby dated a woman for five years. Ginny was a lovely woman around the men but a psychotic bitch to me. Bobby dumped her publicly after she accused me of sleeping with him and getting pregnant with Pete. The silly woman tried to hook up with Ranger and Lester. She blamed me for her problems. What did I ever do to her?

Tank dated an ex-hooker named Lula for a few years. He doesn't believe in marriage, which is within his rights. However, it wasn't good enough for Lula. The skanky bitch bought herself a fake diamond engagement ring and slipped it onto her finger. She claimed Tank proposed to her the previous night. I checked Lula's background and discovered she was one of Benito Ramirez's regular women. She hoped to get to me through Tank. It didn't work. I saw through her plan and told Tank. He used the intel I provided to get rid of her for good. Lula absolutely hated cats. She was highly allergic. Not even allergy medication could prevent her from reacting. Armed with the intel, Tank rescued five kittens. Lula was gone faster than you could say, "Macy's has a sale on spandex."

My friend Lester was another breed. He had a series of short-term relationships. A few women tried the pregnancy trap on Lester. He proved it was impossible and dumped them. It seemed the men couldn't find a decent woman to date.

Ranger read the expression on my face and laughed. "Stephanie, don't feel sorry for us not finding a suitable mate. Those women believe the Burg lies about you servicing our sexual needs and desires," Ranger explained.

I heard those rumours from my nieces. They didn't appreciate people spreading those lies about me. Angie and Mary Alice left New Jersey when they went away for college. Valerie and Binkie had to visit them because they refused to come home. Who could blame them?

My sweet, know-it-all niece, Angie, married her best friend, Chloe. Valerie was devastated that her clone was gay. Mary Alice told her mother to overcome the notion of Angie being the perfect Burg wife and mother. Valerie never realized she was projecting her ideals on her oldest two children. Once Valerie got over herself, she accepted Chloe as her daughter. Angie and Chloe were expecting their second child. Chloe was a second-grade teacher, and Angie was a cardiologist.

Mary Alice got married to Kevin Stankovic. It pleased Mary Lou that we were extended family, but she was angry when Kevin moved his wife and children to Miami. He worked for Rangeman. Mary Alice owned a daycare. I was proud of my nieces.

Lester interrupted my thoughts, "You know, there is only one woman we all love."

"Oh? Who?" I asked.

"You," the four men replied. Ricardo and Pete laughed. I knew the guys loved me.

"I don't share," Hector growled.

"Neither do I," I added. We toasted our close friendship.

I glanced around the table before serving the food. Life was great. Hector and I couldn't have chosen our family better.