I do not own any of these characters, although I would really like to meet
up with Ranger in a dark room somewhere. I simply borrow and gently use
them for my amusement.
Chapter Eleven
I was in the middle of "interrogating" another Slayer when I got the call. I recognized the number right away- Lester, who was supposed to be watching Stephanie. "Talk," I barked.
It had taken a few minutes for my man to realize that Stephanie was gone. Those were precious minutes that might cost her life. Lester's voice was shaking; if I were him, calling someone like me to give a message like this, I'd be scared shitless, too. "Ranger, she disappeared."
My heart stopped. "She's not in the hall?" Why hadn't Lester followed her inside?
"Her mother can't find her. She never even got into the hall. Apparently, Steph said something about moving the Buick, but the Buick is gone." Lester paused. "I'm sorry, man. I was watching the entrance, not the exit."
I bit off a string of curses in Spanish. "Call the control room. I put a tracer on the Buick. Find out where it is, NOW."
Tank looked at me, holding the Slayer upright by sheer force. My interrogation had been quick and violent; I needed information, and I needed it now. Now that I had it, I didn't really care what happened to the boy. He had told me, after a great deal of persuasion, where the event would occur. "Leave him. They got her."
The control room called back in less then two minutes, just as I was pulling away from the curb. Bobby confirmed my worst fear. "The Buick is stopped at the seven hundred block of Comstock." Unstated- Slayerland.
"Fuck." I cut the call short and concentrated on driving. Tank would be right behind me, and the rest of the guys on their way, too. I only hoped that I could make it in time to keep her alive. I didn't think I'd be able to save her from being raped. Why hadn't she stayed at the apartment? Why hadn't I stayed with her?
Why hadn't I let her know how I felt?
That one sobering thought pierced my heart. She couldn't die. She couldn't go away without knowing.
I drove recklessly, speeding between cross streets, brakes screeching to a halt at corners. Sometime around Stark, I picked up the procession of cop cars, lights flashing. I pulled in, cutting off a blue-and-white. Morelli, a Kojak red light slapped on top of his SUV, was right behind me. A quick look in the rearview showed me what seemed to be the entire Trenton police force behind us. The blue-and-white, then me, and then Morelli were the first on the scene.
I was afraid of what we would find, and I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to handle it. Fear was a new emotion for me, one that I didn't like. I was used to facing near-certain death situations calmly. Each close call for Stephanie seemed to sap more of that ability form me. It was one of the ways I knew that I loved her.
Barely stopping, Morelli and I both hit the ground running, weapons drawn. There was a yellow school bus blocking our view. Rounding the bus, we both slowed when we saw Steph standing in the middle of the what couldn't be called less than a massacre, next to a huge, ugly drag queen dangling an Uzi from his/her trigger finger.
Stephanie smiled at Morelli and me, then gave us a small, shaky, smart-ass wave.
She was alive. She looked okay, if a bit bruised and disheveled. But not raped, and not dead.
"My heroes," she said, arms crossed. "Upstaged by a guy in a red dress and heels."
"Freakin' humbling.," the drag queen said.
Robin Russell, the cop ahead of Morelli and me, was already securing the crime scene with tape. We slipped under the tape and picked our way around the bodies. It was truly an impressive body count for anything less than a small invasion.
"Hi," Steph said, with a small smile. "What's up?"
"Not a lot," Morelli said. "What's up with you?"
"Same old, same old."
"Yeah, I can see that," Morelli said.
"You remember Sally Sweet," she said.
I shook Sally's hand, then Joe and Sally shook hands.
"Sally mowed all these Slayers," Steph motioned.
"I made sort of a mess," Sally said. "I didn't mean to run over them like this. I tried to stop, but the brakes aren't what they used to be on old Betsy. And it's friggin' hard to, you know, brake in heels. But what the hell, it turned out okay, right? All's well that ends well."
Morelli and I were both trying hard not to smile too wide. Relief flooded my system, and made it harder not to laugh. Morelli had a harder time than me.
"There's a nice reward being offered on Junkman," Morelli said to Sally, trying to keep his voice normal. "Ten big ones."
I looked at the gun Sally was holding, trying to think of something to say. "Do you always carry an Uzi?"
"I keep it in the bus," Sally said. "Got to protect the little dudes. I tried an AK-47, but it wouldn't fit under my seat. I like the Uzi better, anyway. It looks better with the dress. The AK seems to casual to me."
"It's important to accessorize properly," Steph said.
"Fudgin' A," Sally said.
I shook my head. I didn't know what to do. Steph wasn't moving in Morelli's direction or mine. I very much wanted to grab her and kiss her until we both ran out of air. But Morelli beat me to her, and held her in a tight hug, whispering in her ear. She hugged him back, and I decided not to approach. Another time would be more appropriate. Her emotions, after such stress, didn't need a Ranger "I love you" on top of the rest of this night.
After all, her things were at my place. I could wait a few more days; it had already been almost two years. I can be a very patient man.
And I knew she'd have to come and pick up Rex at some point.
Chapter Eleven
I was in the middle of "interrogating" another Slayer when I got the call. I recognized the number right away- Lester, who was supposed to be watching Stephanie. "Talk," I barked.
It had taken a few minutes for my man to realize that Stephanie was gone. Those were precious minutes that might cost her life. Lester's voice was shaking; if I were him, calling someone like me to give a message like this, I'd be scared shitless, too. "Ranger, she disappeared."
My heart stopped. "She's not in the hall?" Why hadn't Lester followed her inside?
"Her mother can't find her. She never even got into the hall. Apparently, Steph said something about moving the Buick, but the Buick is gone." Lester paused. "I'm sorry, man. I was watching the entrance, not the exit."
I bit off a string of curses in Spanish. "Call the control room. I put a tracer on the Buick. Find out where it is, NOW."
Tank looked at me, holding the Slayer upright by sheer force. My interrogation had been quick and violent; I needed information, and I needed it now. Now that I had it, I didn't really care what happened to the boy. He had told me, after a great deal of persuasion, where the event would occur. "Leave him. They got her."
The control room called back in less then two minutes, just as I was pulling away from the curb. Bobby confirmed my worst fear. "The Buick is stopped at the seven hundred block of Comstock." Unstated- Slayerland.
"Fuck." I cut the call short and concentrated on driving. Tank would be right behind me, and the rest of the guys on their way, too. I only hoped that I could make it in time to keep her alive. I didn't think I'd be able to save her from being raped. Why hadn't she stayed at the apartment? Why hadn't I stayed with her?
Why hadn't I let her know how I felt?
That one sobering thought pierced my heart. She couldn't die. She couldn't go away without knowing.
I drove recklessly, speeding between cross streets, brakes screeching to a halt at corners. Sometime around Stark, I picked up the procession of cop cars, lights flashing. I pulled in, cutting off a blue-and-white. Morelli, a Kojak red light slapped on top of his SUV, was right behind me. A quick look in the rearview showed me what seemed to be the entire Trenton police force behind us. The blue-and-white, then me, and then Morelli were the first on the scene.
I was afraid of what we would find, and I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to handle it. Fear was a new emotion for me, one that I didn't like. I was used to facing near-certain death situations calmly. Each close call for Stephanie seemed to sap more of that ability form me. It was one of the ways I knew that I loved her.
Barely stopping, Morelli and I both hit the ground running, weapons drawn. There was a yellow school bus blocking our view. Rounding the bus, we both slowed when we saw Steph standing in the middle of the what couldn't be called less than a massacre, next to a huge, ugly drag queen dangling an Uzi from his/her trigger finger.
Stephanie smiled at Morelli and me, then gave us a small, shaky, smart-ass wave.
She was alive. She looked okay, if a bit bruised and disheveled. But not raped, and not dead.
"My heroes," she said, arms crossed. "Upstaged by a guy in a red dress and heels."
"Freakin' humbling.," the drag queen said.
Robin Russell, the cop ahead of Morelli and me, was already securing the crime scene with tape. We slipped under the tape and picked our way around the bodies. It was truly an impressive body count for anything less than a small invasion.
"Hi," Steph said, with a small smile. "What's up?"
"Not a lot," Morelli said. "What's up with you?"
"Same old, same old."
"Yeah, I can see that," Morelli said.
"You remember Sally Sweet," she said.
I shook Sally's hand, then Joe and Sally shook hands.
"Sally mowed all these Slayers," Steph motioned.
"I made sort of a mess," Sally said. "I didn't mean to run over them like this. I tried to stop, but the brakes aren't what they used to be on old Betsy. And it's friggin' hard to, you know, brake in heels. But what the hell, it turned out okay, right? All's well that ends well."
Morelli and I were both trying hard not to smile too wide. Relief flooded my system, and made it harder not to laugh. Morelli had a harder time than me.
"There's a nice reward being offered on Junkman," Morelli said to Sally, trying to keep his voice normal. "Ten big ones."
I looked at the gun Sally was holding, trying to think of something to say. "Do you always carry an Uzi?"
"I keep it in the bus," Sally said. "Got to protect the little dudes. I tried an AK-47, but it wouldn't fit under my seat. I like the Uzi better, anyway. It looks better with the dress. The AK seems to casual to me."
"It's important to accessorize properly," Steph said.
"Fudgin' A," Sally said.
I shook my head. I didn't know what to do. Steph wasn't moving in Morelli's direction or mine. I very much wanted to grab her and kiss her until we both ran out of air. But Morelli beat me to her, and held her in a tight hug, whispering in her ear. She hugged him back, and I decided not to approach. Another time would be more appropriate. Her emotions, after such stress, didn't need a Ranger "I love you" on top of the rest of this night.
After all, her things were at my place. I could wait a few more days; it had already been almost two years. I can be a very patient man.
And I knew she'd have to come and pick up Rex at some point.