"Whats the plan? Any news on Ranger? Do we have more information on Cannon? How can I help?"I started questioning Tank first thing in the morning.

"Steph its only been 6 hours. We are negotiating with Cannon but these things take time. We demanded he give proof of life throughout our discussions but the next one isn't due for 6 hours. We've got a ransom protocol and a plan is in place for these kinds of situations." Tank said tiredly. "If you want to help why don't you head to your usual desk and run some searches on Cannon."

I shook my head. "But I wanted to help you guys…I can be useful making the plan. I could be bait or a distraction. You've had others do searches by now."

"Yeah maybe but that doesn't mean that there is no point in looking again. New eyes may see something someone missed. I'm not going to tell you our plan to get Ranger back. You'll want to be involved and I wouldn't put it past you to try even against orders. Your safety is our top priority as per Ranger's order. So do the searches, or you can sit around if you prefer."

"I can't just do nothing!"

"Would you prefer to stay in Ranger's apartment and do nothing?" With that he turned away and I watched as he entered a conference room with Cal, Manny, and Ram the door locking behind them. I wanted to yell, knowing I should be in that room.

Instead I turned away and headed to my desk, nodding at Zero on monitors and Junior at another station. As annoying as it was to be kept out of the loop I knew Tank was right about multiple people going over the information. Maybe if I found something and proved I could be useful, I could convince them to let me in on their plan.

Six hours later and I was ready to smash the computer. I knew a lot about Cannon but nothing that seemed useful. He was born 35 years ago in Detroit. He was an only child and his dad walked out when he was 12. His mom died 5 years later. He spent a year in the foster system and then joined the army. He excelled and eventually joined the marines, re-enlisting after his first term was up. He won several medals for his bravery and chose to leave after his second term. He joined Rangeman shortly after. No red flags. In fact the only thing of interest was that he was stationed at the same base as Ricky before he was dishonourably discharged.

I quietly went over to the conference room and knocked on the door. Tank opened the door and listened as I passed on the information. He nodded and gestured me into the room. The original group had been replaced with Lester, Hal and Hector. "Cannon has sent us his next proof of life. He's in rough shape but holding on. We're continuing our negotiation but he isn't being realistic with his demands." He pulled up the email with the photo of Ranger. I hesitated but decided I needed to see for myself. Ranger was in the same position but looked worse than before. His face was a mess of colours, with his eyes swollen almost shut. There was blood dripping down his arms from the cuffs and his 3 fingers on his right hand were bent in an unnatural angle.

"He did this in 12 hours! We can't keep waiting." I said horrified.

"Steph, Ranger has had training to withstand torture. None of us like it but he will keep himself alive while we work to rescue him." Lester interjected. "Besides there's no way we can give him what he is asking for."

"You mean me." I said bluntly. "Shouldn't I be involved in the decisions?"

"You're not the only things he's asking for. He's getting nothing from us regardless. We're just buying time while we locate him."

There was another knock at the door and I watched as an unfamiliar Rangeman entered. Tank nodded at him and they clasped hands in a quick shake. "Steph this is Roman. He's a lead Rangeman from Miami. We've recruited some of their senior men to come and chip in with normal Rangeman duties so there will be some new faces around but they are cleared for duty." He then escorted me back out of the room and I watched as once again, I was shut out.

I glowered at the door for a second but his words rang a bell in my mind. There was something I could do that might yield more information. Ranger had mentioned wanting to interrogate Chip right before we were shot at and I wondered if anyone had actually gotten around to it. I didn't bother trying the door again but instead wandered over to Junior.

Though we weren't close, Junior had been assigned to babysitting duty enough that we could have comfortable conversations… I also knew some of his weaknesses. "Hey Junior. Quick question, where is Chip being detained? I'm supposed to talk with him but Tank forgot to mention where he is and I don't want to interrupt them again."

" Uh lets see. He was one of the men flagged for possible connections to the Ricky incident and since we have been short on men, he's being detained in apartment 4. But you can't go in there alone… We don't know if he's involved yet."

I laughed. "Of course not. I'm supposed to bring you with me."

He hesitated. "I'm supposed to clear more of our men for duty." He glanced at the closed off conference room worriedly.

"Yeah Tank didn't think this would take too long. He told me to make it quick. But if you want to check with him, he is just going over the situation with Roman." Come on, come on, come on, I prayed to myself. Please go with it, you don't want to bother leaders with your indecision.

He shook his head and signed out of his computer. "Alright then. Let's go. But remember, keep at least 2 meters away from him and I stay in between at all times. If he makes a move, you get out immediately and get help." I nodded and we headed over to the elevator, nodding at Zero on the way. I felt a little guilty for lying to him but I needed to do something useful.

Junior knocked at the door and unlocked the apartment, we entered to find Chip sitting on the couch. I studied him quickly. He was taller than Junior but while Junior had the framework of a footballer, Chip was more runner. He also lacked the typical Rangeman skill of taking up more space than physically possible. He would stand out in normal company but there was a reason I couldn't picture him prior to this meeting.

"Against the wall Chip, I've got to do a pat down." Chip stood up and faced the wall quietly and Junior did a quick check of the couch and then his body. "Clear. Sit down on the couch and stay there." He slowly moved back to the couch and sat with his hands clearly visible on his lap.

"I'm not involved Junior. I swear. I know I screwed up on the cameras but I'd never betray Ranger. I just helped a fellow Rangeman when he called for help. I barely know him!"

"It's not me you need to convince Chip. So answer the woman's questions and don't try anything."

Ok, this was my chance. I went to step forward to talk to him and Junior immediately blocked me with his arm. Right, 2 meters. I could see how tense Chip was at even the mention of Cannon. I was never going to be able to intimidate him or force him to comply but I had my own ways. I smiled at Chip softly and started some small talk, waiting for him to relax before starting our interrogation. "Look Chip, I don't want to make any accusations here. I'm sure you did what was best. But Ranger is in danger and we're getting nowhere on Cannon. We just need to hear about the other day. Even the smallest detail might make all the difference."

"I was on the monitors, there were the usual calls and I'd been on for 4 hours. At 11:12 there was a shout from the stairwell. I saw in the stairwell camera that Cannon had been escorting a cuffed male up to level 3 and it appeared that there had been a struggle. Cannon had been knocked down and the cuffed male was running up to level 4. I left my station to apprehend the male and returned him to Cannon's custody. At 11:16 I returned to the monitors and saw a male leaning against the building and after seeing no movement, I called down to front desk to have a man check on the situation. When they found him deceased, I went back through the tapes to see what happened."

"Is that usual? To bring men up in the stairwell?"

"Yes and no," Junior replied. "We have some holding rooms at level 2 and we typically use the stairs to bring them to the interrogation rooms on 3. But the rules state that 2 men must be present." He looked disapprovingly at Chip.

"Yes sir, I asked him about that and he told me that he had been out front having a smoke and didn't want to waste time dragging his partner down when he was walking past that level anyways. The man was a low level informant, he didn't think he would be a problem. I know I shouldn't have left the desk but I knew Cannon was having a rough time and I didn't want him to get any flak about letting this guy get the jump on him."

"Wait, I thought you barely knew Cannon, so how did you know he's having a rough time?" I asked Chip.

Chip blushed. "I mean he mentioned it to me the other day."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Chip, you guys do not overshare your personal lives with people you don't really know. Hell it's almost impossible to get personal information on you guys when we're friends." Junior cleared his throat and crossed him arms, making biceps bulge.

Chip stared at me but couldn't keep his eyes from flitting over to Junior. "We've been on shifts together and maybe hung out a couple of times after work. But I didn't know anything about this."

"So you lied." I sighed. "Tell me about the rough time."

"He just got the news that his dad is in the hospital with liver failure and he needs an organ transplant. His dad was trying to guilt him into being his donor. He hasn't even spoken to the man since he walked out on him and his mother. But since his brother died, Cannon is his best chance for a successful match and his dad says he owes him." Chip spilled.

"God that asshole. Cannon doesn't owe him shit! I'd like to give him a piece of my mind, and kick his…" I started ranting angrily but was interrupted by the door flinging open and a pissed off Tank stormed into the room.

"What the hell are you doing in here!" Tank snapped as Junior and Chip jumped to attention. I flinched at the glare Tank was shooting at me. "You two OUT." I quickly slipped past the angry man in black with Junior on my heels. The door locked behind us and next thing I know, Tank's hand was wrapped around Junior's shirt and he was pressed against the wall. "Do you want to explain to me why you left your station and brought Stephanie into a room with a dangerous and possibly hostile suspect? I ought to fire your ass right now!" He snarled.

"Tank stop! Please! It was my fault, I lied to him. I told him you gave us orders. He was just trying to keep me safe!" I said grabbing at his arm and trying to push in between the men.

Tank released his grip but pointed his hand in his face. "Mats tomorrow 0600. You're on thin ice and officially off high level clearance. You're not to be within 6 ft of Steph and god help you when Ranger gets back." Junior nodded and half bolted to the stairwell.

"Junior! I'm sorry." I called after him, trying to look around Tank's bulk. Junior shot a glance of betrayal at me before the door shut and I was left with a pissed off Tank.