I wasn't going to continue this series straight away, but so many of you asked for it that here goes. Posts won't be as regular as with the previous installments because this story is only in my head at the moment, so stick around and enjoy the ride.

These characters are not mine. They belong to JE.

Stephanie's POV

Morning came way too soon. Despite my lack of sleep, I got up without any fuss and made my way to the bathroom to get ready. I was aware that I had to get a move on so that Ranger could see Julie before we left town. Now more than ever, that poor girl needs to know that Ranger will always be there for her.

I was packed and ready to go by 6:20, and after a hastily eaten breakfast, Ranger and I were in the car and on the way to see Julie by 6:35. While we were driving, Ranger explained the plans for today. "We're going to talk to Julie and try to help Ron explain what's going on. We will only be able to stay a short while, but I need your help to assure Julie that everything will work out. She is going to feel abandoned once her mother and I leave, so I want her to know that I will always be there for her and that Ron and I will work something out so that she is always taken care of.

"We are booked on a flight at 10:00 to head to D.C. I have an appointment at the FBI to talk to both the General and his wife shortly after we arrive. You can accompany me to my interviews, but you'll have to watch from the observation room. I'm hoping that your skills of observation and deduction will pick up something helpful."

I nodded and said, "I'll do what I can for Julie. She's a great kid and this whole situation will be very difficult for her and her siblings. I can just imagine what they're going to have to go through at school once the kids learn that Rachel has been arrested. All three of those kids are going to go through hell."

Ranger frowned again and said, "I'll talk to Ron. I have an idea, but I need to discuss it with him first. If necessary, maybe we can change their school."

After that, Ranger slipped into his zone while I thought about how to interact with Julie and the other kids. I was thinking about possible solutions when I realised I was missing a vital piece of information. I looked over at Ranger and asked, "What is it that Ron does for a living? I don't think I ever asked."

Ranger smiled and replied, "He's a civil engineer and an architect. He works for a large contracting company here in Miami and has does rather well for himself and his family."

I looked out the window and saw that we were entering the gated community where the Martine's lived. I made a hair and makeup check in the mirror and tired to prepare myself mentally for the upcoming visit.

Ron's POV

Rachel hasn't said a word to me ever since Tank and the other RangeMan people arrived last night. I'm not really bothered about her silence, but I'm terrified about telling our children what's going on. I know Ranger and Stephanie are due soon, so I'm hoping that they'll be able to help.

The kids normally leave for school about now, but when they got up this morning, I told them that today was going to be a holiday from school and work. The kids were a bit suspicious at first, but they accepted the day off with only a little curiosity.

I watched Julie look around after hearing that they could stay home today. I knew that she was looking for her mother and that she could tell that something was wrong, but she didn't voice her concerns at the time. She simply looked at me, smiled and returned to her breakfast. Rachel is still in the house, but none of the kids have seen her yet this morning. Rachel was currently in our bedroom getting showered and dressed so that RangeMan could transport her to the local FBI offices here in Miami. She has been pretty much catatonic ever since Lula explained the way things were going to be. I should feel sorry for her, but my anger and concern for our kids overshadows my sympathy for the woman I married. Hopefully that old phrase that children are resilient will prove to be true.

I sat in the living room while the kids were playing in their rooms. I thought about the man that might hold my future with Julie in his hands. He is a good man, even though he scares me a little. He's intimidating, but he's done everything in his power to ensure that his daughter has had a good life. He even ensures that he sends gifts for all three of my kids when he sends one to Julie or that the gift for Julie can be enjoyed by all. I wondered what would happen if I lost paternal rights for Julie. Would Ranger request custody of Julie? How would I cope with that?

I headed to the door when the doorbell rang, but the kids beat me to it. Julie was very happy to see Ranger and Stephanie. When I got there, I shook hands with Ranger and accepted a quick hug from Stephanie as I welcomed them inside. Julie was all over Ranger and Stephanie. She asked about 1000 questions that they patiently answered. When Julie started asking more personal questions about Stephanie and Ranger's relationship, Stephanie deftly changed the subject and asked, "Julie, why don't you show me your room?"

Julie grinned and took Steph's hand and dragged her towards her bedroom. Her other siblings followed behind, hoping to get to hear some more funny stories from Stephanie. As soon as the kids were out of earshot, I looked at Ranger and asked, "So, what happens now?"

Ranger smiled sadly and said, "We should explain to the kids that Rachel has to go away. We don't need to give them too many details, but it would help them understand if they knew why Rachel was leaving. We can tell them that Rachel made some bad decisions and some mistakes. She needs to go away for a while because she needs to take responsibility for those mistakes.

"Once we explain this to the kids, we'll bring Rachel in so that she can say goodbye. She will then be transported to the Miami FBI field office where they will take custody of her and process her as needed. She will probably be transported to D.C. because that is where the bank fraud took place, but I doubt the girls will be able to see her during that time.

"Once Rachel is processed and we have a better idea of her charges and how they will proceed, you'll be able to decide whether or not to set up visitations with the kids. I know this is going to be hard for you, but I will do everything in my power to help you during this time."

I looked at Ranger and said, "Should I still proceed with the divorce?"

"That's up to you Ron. Take this time apart from Rachel and think about what you want. If you're worried about losing Julie, don't. You are a huge part of her life and I wouldn't keep you apart."

I know Ranger has said this before, but I've never really thought of Julie as anything other than my own daughter. She was 2 years old when I married her mother, so I've brought her up as if she was mine most of her life. I don't know what I'd do if I lost her because of the mistakes her mother made.

Ranger patted me on the back and said, "I won't take her away from you Ron. I couldn't do that to her. I will want to see her more often, but I could easily just spend more time down here in Miami. She will need stability and you have been a constant in her life. I don't see that changing any time soon."

I sighed with relief and said, "I've been wondering about how to shield the kids from this mess. I've been thinking about relocating. I don't know where yet, but once the news gets out about Rachel, life for us might get a little unpleasant. Some distance from Miami may be a good idea, especially since the girls are just about finished school for the year. There's only about 3 weeks left."

"Ron, I have a house in Trenton that is very isolated. It has a pool, lots of space and lots of privacy. I also have a project that would keep you busy. We have outgrown our RangeMan headquarters much faster than I ever imagined. I have purchased some land, but I have not yet hired anyone to design the new building."

I looked at Ranger like I was hearing things. "Are you serious? You'd hire me to design an entire building?"

Ranger nodded and said, "Even before this whole nightmare began, I thought about asking you. I was going to invite you and your family up to Trenton for the summer. You could work on this project and I could spend more time with Julie. It was a win-win plan. Now, the plans would have to be a bit different, but the idea is still sound. Also, my family is close by so they would be able to spend time with the kids."

I have never single-handedly designed a building. The idea of designing a building from the ground up was very attractive. I thanked Ranger and said, "I'll talk to the kids later today and give you an answer in a few days. I appreciate the opportunity."

A few minutes later, the kids came back dragging Stephanie. She looked a little shell-shocked and said, "Well, I've seen three very tidy rooms and more toys that I even knew existed. There's no reason for any of them to ever be bored."

I smiled at her and said, "Come kids, we need to talk."

Ranger's POV

I stood there and watched as Ron did his best to explain to his children that there are always consequences for your actions. He then went on to tell them that Rachel had made some mistakes and those mistakes had some severe consequences.

The kids seemed to take the news very well. I don't think they really understood what was going on. They didn't cry or complain when Ron told them that their mother would have to go away for a while. They held up really well when Rachel came in to say goodbye. The youngest asked how long Rachel would be away, so Ron knelt down and said, "We don't know yet son, but you'll see each other as soon as possible."

I saw Rachel's anger towards Ron and the rest of the adults in the room, but she didn't take it out on her kids. In fact, she genuinely looked sad when she said goodbye and walked out the front door. We all stood in the window and the kids waved as Rachel walked out to the SUV parked at the street. She smiled at her kids one last time and then she was gone.

Tank's POV

This morning was a difficult morning for Lula. She needed to supervise Rachel at all times, including when she was in the shower. During that time, Rachel was quite abusive to Lula. I could tell by the look on Lula's face when they came out of the bedroom that she was having an unpleasant time. I looked at Rachel and said, "Ron is in the other room explaining why you are leaving. He isn't giving them specific details, he's simply telling them that you've made some mistakes and that you have to pay for those mistakes. When he's done, you can go in and say goodbye. We have a schedule to keep, so we can't take all day."

Rachel was clearly seething with rage right now. She paced back and forth in the kitchen, waiting to see her kids. Hal is out in the car waiting for us. He's been in touch with the FBI agents that we are supposed to meet, keeping them appraised of our situation. We have an hour to meet up with them so we can hand Rachel over to their custody.

A second SUV is parked outside so that Lula and the rest of the guys can head back to the RangeMan offices. Hal and I will meet up with them and head back to Trenton later this evening. I planned on using the free time between to spend some time with Lula. Maybe we could go for a walk along the beach or for a quick meal before heading to the airport.

I'm not sure spending the afternoon with Lula would qualify as a formal date, but I'm willing to start small and work my way up. If this whole situation wasn't so screwed up, it would be funny how a disaster for Ranger has awoken my feelings for Lula. Maybe those feelings would have emerged even without this change now that she's working for RangeMan, but we'll never know.

We made ourselves scarce when Rachel was visiting with her kids. We stood outside the front door and waited until Ranger and Ron escorted Rachel outside. We allowed her to remain unrestrained until she was out of sight of her children. This meant that we had to pull over once we were around the corner from the house. We locked her hands to the bar on the floor of the RangeMan SUV with handcuffs.

The traffic was typical and we were running behind schedule. Hal called the FBI to let them know that we were stuck in traffic and running behind. The FBI agent was annoyed at our delay but he lived here and was well aware that the traffic in downtown Miami isn't very cooperative during rush hour. Hal estimated that we were still at least 20 minutes away and agreed to provide further updates if we were delayed further. I looked over at Hal and sighed as we fought our way through the morning rush hour traffic. It looked like my plans to spend some time with Lula may not be possible after all.

Stephanie's POV

After Rachel left, her younger two kids headed back to their bedrooms to play. Julie on the other hand, stuck around and asked a few questions that Ron and Ranger felt obliged to answer. Julie looked up at Ranger and said, "Can you tell me what Mom did to end up in so much trouble? I'm not a baby you know. I can handle the truth."

Ranger looked at Ron and after a few minutes of silent communications, Ranger said, "Well, your mother got involved with some pretty nasty people. They did some bad things and people could have been seriously hurt."

Julie rolled her eyes and said, "That was a lot of words to say not a whole lot."

I had to agree with Julie. Ranger talked around the problem instead of actually answering Julie's question. I looked up at Ranger and said, "Just tell her Ranger, she's clearly smart enough to know when you're placating her by talking around at topic. I should know, I'm an expert in being placated."

Ranger smiled at me and then looked back at Julie. "OK little one, I will tell you the truth, but you should know that your mother was influenced. She didn't do this all on her own."

Julie nodded and Ranger explained how Rachel got involved with some people who wanted to hurt him. When he talked about Rachel's desire for money, Julie actually started to laugh. "I know Mom isn't the smartest person in the world, but she really was gullible. I still love her, but that was a stupid thing to do. Even I know that if you had left us money, it would be protected in some way so I could use it for college or later in life."

She really was a smart kid. I smiled at her and said, "You'll have to be brave and strong for your brother and sister. They may not understand exactly what happened, but they will definitely miss your Mom."

Julie nodded and had a very serious look on her face. She turned to Ron and asked, "Will you still let me see Ranger? I know Mom always avoided it if possible, so I'm hoping you will be a bit more open to me visiting with him."

I saw the look of surprise on Ron's face. He walked closer to Julie and pulled her down onto the sofa beside him. He said, "As long as it doesn't interfere with your schooling, you can visit with Ranger much more frequently from now on. They have to leave now, but I'm sure we can make arrangements for your next visit soon."

Ranger nodded in agreement with Ron. He said, "I will call you tomorrow once we have a bit more information on our upcoming schedule. We'll be back to see you soon."

Julie grinned at me and hugged me. As she was hugging me she whispered, "I'm glad you and Ranger are finally together. You're perfect for him."

Julie hugged Ranger and whispered something to him and then left the room to play with her brother and sister. Ron looked at us after Julie left and said, "That girl is one smart cookie. I think I will discuss your offer to spend the summer in Trenton with Julie before I make my final decision."

I smiled at Ron and said, "Julie is one year younger and one year older than my nieces. I'm sure my nieces would love to have some new friends if you do decide to join us in Trenton."

Ranger looked down at his watch and said, "We hate to leave you to deal with this alone Ron, but we need to get going if we're going to make our plane. We have to go to D.C. to sort out this whole mess. I will call you later with information about the formal charges against Rachel. Please call either of us if you have any questions or if you simply need to talk."

Ron thanked us for all of our help and I gave him a big hug. He repeated Julie's comments about Ranger and me and then moved on to shake hands with Ranger. I moved towards the door to give the men some privacy, but I still overheard their conversation. Both men promised to keep in touch and discuss solutions for any problems. I actually smiled when I heard Ranger say, "With Rachel gone for the time being, we are her family. I intend to be involved as much as you'll let me, not just with Julie, but with her siblings as well."

"I appreciate that Ranger. I will talk to the kids about the summer and let you know soon."

I heard some pats on the back and then Ranger and Ron joined me at the door. I smiled at Ron, we yelled our goodbyes to the kids, who ran out to hug us goodbye. I got hugs from all three kids. Julie was the only one to hug Ranger, but her brother and sister both waved at him.

The Martines followed us out to our car and we waved as we drove away. Ranger immediately fell into his zone and I made myself comfortable so I could take a short nap.

Alright, for those of you who wanted another story, you'll have to be patient with me. First drafts of all of the other stories were complete before I actually posted the first one. This story on the other hand is being written as I go. I will attempt to get a few chapters ahead before I continue posting. That way I can always make changes if I feel that the story is going in the wrong direction.

Thanks for all your feedback, encouragement and comments. Thanks in advance for your patience as I embark on this new story.