Eric arrived at the address he'd pulled up from the database a just as the heavens opened up. He was glad that the local avis had at least not rented him a convertible as he sat in his parking space across the street, watching the rear entrance of the building. He opened the glove compartment and pulled out the 9mm automatic he'd packed for the trip. All things considered, he'd have preferred to have his Quantum Morpher with him, but Doggie had confiscated it upon his suspension, so he had to make do. Pulling out the magazine, he checked the clip to make sure he'd filled it, before slamming it back into the handle and cocking the slide. Watching intently, he saw the rear door opening, he got ready to make his move, but stopped when he saw Kimberly and two kids he didn't know being dragged out of the rear of the building by five large security guards. He could already tell from here that their hands were either handcuffed or bound behind their backs, and he could guess that the security guys were probably well armed. He noticed another guard opening the back of a nearby van, and gesturing them inside frantically. As Kimberly was bundled roughly into the back of the van, he re-fastened his seatbelt. Wherever they were planning on taking them, it was unlikely their intentions were friendly. "Yeah, send a couple of kids Tommy." He grumbled under his breath. "Thanks a lot." With that, he continued to watch, waiting for when the van moved off, hoping that not all of the guards would go with them.
"Get them inside!" Do you want the world to see?" The guard in the van asked, looking around for anyone who might be passing, though all he could see was a clapped out, rusty green Ford Cortina sitting in the parking lot opposite the van. He couldn't tell from here whether or not anyone was inside the vehicle, but he chose to ignore it seeing as it was parked outside the supermarket. The driver was probably in the building.
"Stop moaning and help us." One of the guards responded in a condescending tone, as he roughly bundled Kimberly into the back. "You want to get out of here quick, get them in the back."
"Get off her!" Colin snarled.
"I'd be more worried about what happens at the other end than what happens here." One of the guards stated. "Just because Mr Knox doesn't want anybody dying around his campaign office, doesn't mean he doesn't want you dead."
"The three of you will no doubt wash ashore eventually." Another interjected. "Of course bodies wash up from the river all the time, so not much is likely to come out of that."
"People will come looking for us." Kimberly warned them.
"They always do." The first guard retorted with a chuckle as the doors of the van slammed shut. He turned around and gestured to two of the guards. "You two, take the van somewhere quiet, and get rid of them."
The two guards took their place in the front of the van and started it up. Eric waited until the others were inside the building before he started up his own engine.
"So what's the plan now?" Colin asked.
Kimberly struggled against the rough, nylon ropes restraining her hands. "If I just had a little more slack, I could probably work them loose." She grunted, continuing to struggle in the vain hope of loosening her bonds.
"There's nothing here to work the ropes against." Colin commented, looking around the interior of the van.
"This is going to hurt." Charisma remarked, standing on her left hand. She stood up sharply; screaming loudly as a sickening crunch could be heard coming from her shoulder. "Admit!"
"What the hell was that?" Colin asked as Charisma pulled her hands over her head, bringing them in front of her body.
"She just dislocated her shoulder." Kimberly informed him. "I've seen gymnasts do it a few times."
Charisma quickly untied Kimberly, a little white faced. Kimberly quickly returned the favour, before moving on to Colin. Charisma steeled herself for a few seconds, before slamming her shoulder against the side of the van to put her shoulder back in.
"How did you do that?" Colin asked.
"A few years ago, one of my opponents in my jui jitsu class didn't release a submission hold when I tapped and dislocated my shoulder." She told them. "It hurts like hell, but it's happened a few times since then. After the second time, the doctors taught me to re-set it myself."
"Well we're untied." Kimberly stated, inspecting the door. "But the safety latch has been disabled. We still can't get out."
The van began to make a right turn onto another road. Eric took this opportunity and gunned the engine, slamming into the rear corner of the van, spinning it out of control. The three captives found themselves being rattled around inside the van.
"Quick, get ready." Charisma called out, pulling herself painfully back to her feet and heading towards the door. "We only get one shot at this. When the door opens, we move."
The first of the two guards got out of the van, pulling out his gun. Seeing him as he ran towards the vehicle, Eric opened fire, scoring a hit on the upper thigh. The guard collapsed to the ground, screaming and began rolling around on the floor in pain. The driver got out the other side and opened fire with his TEC-9. Eric barely managed to duck behind another car as the volley struck the side of the vehicle. Eric popped his head over the hood, firing a couple of shots in his direction, before ducking back down. Hearing the distinctive click at the end of the clip, he sprinted as quickly as he could towards the assailant, kicking him hard in the face just as he had finished re-loading. Checking the two men were not likely to be getting up any time soon, he reached into the van and retrieved the keys from the ignition. He ran around to the rear of the vehicle, he unlocked the rear door, only to find it being kicked back into him hard.
"Eric!" Kimberly called out as she realised who had opened the door. "I'm sorry, we were trying to escape."
"Glad I could help." He groaned, getting back to his feet. "Now, let's get out of here before tweedledumb and tweedledumber call for help."
"The car looks a little thrashed." Charisma remarked as they bundled into the Ford.
"What do I care? It's a rental." Eric replied as he accelerated away from the scene.
Knox sat in his office, looking over his notes as he prepared for yet another PR appearance on the local radio when his cell phone rang. Noting the number on caller ID, he presumed it would be his henchmen calling to confirm they had rid him of his problem.
"You're calling earlier than I would have expected." He commented.
"They got away." One of his security guards informed him as he tended the bullet wound in his leg.
"They got away?" He shrieked. "How exactly can three people with no weapons who are tied up in the back of a locked van overpower and escape from two former marines?"
"They weren't alone." He responded. "Some guy slammed into the van and started shooting the place up like G.I. Joe or something."
"What can you tell me about him?" He asked.
"I've never seen him before." He answered a little dejectedly. "He could definitely handle himself. He's probably been a cop, or maybe military."
"Well just get yourselves patched up and make sure none of this gets back to me." He hissed in a sinister manner. "While you're at it, have the men sweep the city. The last thing I need is any more unexpected visitors."
He hung up the phone and turned back to his notes, but quickly gave up on them. Whoever this group were, they knew about his involvement with Dr. Black. This couldn't have come at a worse time for him. This had the potential to drag up a whole storm of trouble. Even if they couldn't prove his involvement with the Baby Theft Syndicate, the inevitable investigation had the potential to turn up a whole host of illegitimate dealings. No, he needed to end this problem, and end it soon.
Eric returned what was left of his rental car to the depot, and had walked out on the inevitable shouting match before they could really get going. He knew the car was ready for the scrap heap anyway, and really didn't care about losing the security deposit. It was probably worth more than the car anyway. He arrived back in their motel room in the early evening, to find them discussing their next move.
"Well you two appear to have been a big help." Eric snapped sarcastically. "You could have got yourselves, and Kim killed!"
"We were working on escaping." Charisma growled back, clearly unhappy at the tone in which Eric was speaking to her.
"Oh, let me guess, your plan was to get shot, let them put you in a plastic bag and run away when no one was looking." He retorted. "You're lucky I arrived when I did! You were as good as dead when I found you."
"Hey, I don't care who in the hell you are Quantum Ranger!" Colin yelled, getting to his feet and approaching him slowly. "You do NOT talk to us like that. We were Rangers too."
"Let me guess. Tommy did all the work for you." He said condescendingly, eyeing up the pair of teenagers with an arrogant smirk on his face. "Tommy's lost his mind. You two will do more harm than good. Get out of here and let the grown-ups handle the real work."
"You self-righteous piece of…"
"Eric, that's ENOUGH!" Kimberly interrupted before Charisma could get started. "They went in to support ME. I didn't think the plan through. If it hadn't been for them I'd probably have gone in with no plan whatsoever."
"Well they don't seem to have done much to help the situation." Eric told her. His tone softened a little as he spoke to her. He had to remind himself the emotional nature of her investigation to avoid plunging in with both feet. "Kimberly, I know it's pointless to ask you to step back and leave it to the professionals, but please. If you must stay, get the kids out of here. Because of that little stunt you pulled, Knox now knows you're looking for him and is probably looking to find you right now."
"Eric. Those 'kids' were Rangers just like us, and they did save the world from a danger your team didn't know about." Kimberly reminded him. "As well as that, Tommy trusts them, and that's good enough for me."
"OK, but from now on I'm staying for as long as we're in New Orleans." Eric put down. He turned back Colin and Charisma. "And from now on, I call the shots."
"Well if you're calling the shots." Charisma began, getting into Eric's face. "What do you suppose we do now?"
"First of all, we collect the information we have already." He told them. "Then we try and gather more information, and more importantly, evidence to prove it. Once we have something, ANYTHING we can bring him in on, then we can get as much information out of him as we need."
"What about the guys looking for us?" Kimberly asked.
"Well, I guess we have to be careful." Eric replied. "I'm just going to ditch this gun. I'll be right back."
"Are you serious?" Charisma asked. "The only gun we have and you want to throw it away?"
"Keeping it's too much of a risk. The bullets at the shoot out can be traced to the gun." He reminded her. "It would probably strike Knox as funny calling the cops to put an APB out on us for shooting up his staff."
"So what do we do in the meantime?" Kimberly asked.
"I suggest recon." He answered. "Change into something inconspicuous, then follow him, see where he goes and who he talks to." He reached into his backpack and pulled out a digital camera, tossing it to Charisma. "Take pictures. If we're going to use any information against him, we need physical evidence."
"We'll handle it." Colin responded, looking into his bag for a change of clothing. "It's time Mr. Knox found his laundry in a public forum."
"I'll be back within the hour." Eric told them as he turned to leave. "Unless someone's kicking the door in, no-one leave the motel until I get back."
"Is he always like that?" Charisma asked. The look on her face clearly showed that Eric had angered her with his undiplomatic manner.
"He gets on everyone's nerves at first." Kimberly informed her. She'd known Eric herself for a few years now, and knew all about his gruff personality. "He's very much a military minded guy. Once you earn his respect, he'll ease up."
"So how long does that take?" Charisma inquired.
"It all depends on circumstances." Kimberly replied. "What I can tell you is that he knows what he's doing. There's not many I'd rather have helping us out."
Eric arrived back a short time later, minus the gun.
"You two take up positions near the campaign office." Eric told them. "Let us know if Knox moves. I'll stay here and take care of Kimberly. Remember, stay out of sight, and call us immediately if he goes anywhere."
Colin just grabbed Charisma and left the room with her before she could say anything. He knew that Eric knew what he was doing, and he also knew that fighting wasn't going to help them, and he could tell that if Charisma and Eric stayed in the same room together for any length of time then that was inevitable. Eric turned back to Kimberly as they left.
"I really hope this lead turns up something for you Kim." He said as he placed a hand on her shoulder.
"They'll be fine." She responded, placing her hand on his and looking into his eyes. She knew that it was a slim hope at best, but if they could somehow get Knox into custody, then they could make him tell them everything he knew, but she already knew that it wasn't
certain he'd know anything useful after so long. Her daughter had been taken almost five years ago now, and she still had no idea how many babies were missing, so it was unlikely he would remember her child specifically. That said, it was the best shot she had, so she had to take it, even if it did cost her dearly. She sighed and played with her wedding ring thoughtfully as she thought about the last time she'd seen David. She had grabbed a few things and left virtually as soon as she had heard about Knox. He'd tried to reason with her. She knew he felt the loss as painfully as she did, she knew he only wanted her to slow down and let Cruger arrange some form of investigation, but she was as stubborn as always, and just screamed at him and stormed out. She just hoped he wouldn't have taken her careless words to heart.
"He's fine." Eric informed her, noticing her body language and guessing what she was thinking about. "He's just worried about you. All he wants is to see you come home safely."
"I really wish I hadn't been so short with him." She sobbed a little as her tears began. "I really hope he forgives me. It's been so hard!"
Eric held her in his arms, feeling a little awkward. He'd quite happily faces vastly outnumbering enemy forces, evil mutants, vicious aliens and even dinosaurs, but something about emotional women always made him feel uncomfortable. Even it they were his friends. "Like I said, I talked to him before I left. It was him that convinced me to come here." He began, cradling her gently into his chest as she wept. "He hasn't given it a second thought. If you come home safely, that's all he needs."
Colin and Charisma took his bike back to the campaign office, this time electing to set up in the multi storey car park across the street as opposed to trying to get any closer. They'd already had one close call with security and they weren't keen to repeat the experience. Colin pulled a pair of binoculars out of his jacket and checked through the window of the top floor office to make sure Knox was still there.
"We're in luck." He told her. "He hasn't left yet."
"There's a car pulling up at the front." She pointed out. Colin took a closer look and noted a member of his security detail getting out of the vehicle.
"Security." Colin stated. "I don't think we'll have too long to wait." He glanced back at the window and noticed Knox answering his phone, before hanging up and getting up from his desk. "We're on."
They re-mounted the bike and made their way down, to just inside the entrance, taking care not to draw too much attention to themselves as they waited for Knox to make his move. Charisma took this opportunity to hit speed dial, calling Eric.
"He's on the move." She told him.
"Keep on him." He answered. "Let me know if he stops, but don't get too close. The last thing we need is for him to know he's being followed."
"Not an issue." Charisma stated. As Knox got into the car and began his journey, Colin pulled out of the parking complex and followed him at a safe distance. They pulled up on the pavement across the street as the car pulled into a parking space by the docks. They watched as Knox disembarked with two security guards and an unknown blonde woman in a flowing red dress and made his way aboard a large yacht sitting in the marina. Charisma took a few shots quickly as Colin looked around for signs they had been seen, satisfying himself that they had not been spotted. Charisma again dialled Eric.
"He just boarded a yacht at the marina." She informed him. "The name on the boat appears to be…" She craned her neck to get a better look at the side of the hull. "Fair and True."
"It seem Knox has a sense of humour." Eric commented. "OK, just sit tight and wait until they return. I'll be there by the time they get back."
"I think I can see a way to get on board." Colin interjected.
"No, don't do anything stupid." Eric told them. "Just sit tight until I get there."
"The evidence we need might be on that ship." Charisma shot back. "If we can get aboard, we should check it out." She hung up before Eric could protest any further. "So what's your plan?" She asked her accomplice.
"Damn kids!" Eric roared as the phone cut off in his ear. "They're going to screw this whole thing up. Come on, let's go." He grabbed his jacket and made his way to the door, gesturing for Kimberly to follow suit.
As the ship pulled out of the harbour, Colin lifted the awning of the lifeboat they had hidden in.
"This plan really sucks." She whispered. "When you said you had a plan, I thought you meant finding disguises or something, not playing dangerous ninja games."
"It was the best I could come up with at short notice." He told her. "Anyway, no-one's down this end, the party appears to be up the back. Let's go."
They quietly got out of the small boat, they kept low, out of sight of the crew in the control room. Charisma gently opened the hatch into the hold, and the two slid carefully below deck.
"OK, I think we might want a few pictures." Colin gasped, looking at the contents of the hold. He moved over to a pile of plastic bags and poked a hole in one with his finger, carefully inspecting the white powder inside. "Something tells me this isn't sugar." He looked around the ship in total disbelief. "There must be tons of it in here."
"I guess we know how he's been funding his campaign since he lost his contacts in baby theft." Charisma remarked as she began snapping photographs. "OK, now we need a plan as to how exactly we get out of here."
"He doesn't seem to have much of a storage system." Colin remarked. "He seems to have all this crap down here with the food and the drink for his little soiree."
"Check this out." Charisma stated, calling his attention to a couple of crates marked as explosive. Grabbing a nearby crow bar, she forced open the nearest crate, and pulling out a large rocket. "It seems Mr. Knox wanted to cap off the evening's festivities with a fireworks display."
"That could come in handy for a distraction." Colin remarked.
"Who the hell are you two?" One of the security guards yelled as he entered the hold. Another entered behind him and levelled his gun at them, only to have it shoved towards the floor by his comrade. Colin and Charisma didn't question the move, and just made a b-line for cover.
"Don't fire that in here you idiot!" He screeched. "That white's worth more to the boss than you are. Now put it away." He did so reluctantly, before they both pulled out flick knives and began stalking the hold looking for the two intruders. Colin and Charisma squatted behind a stash of the product out of sight.
"You hear that?" Charisma whispered. "They can't use their guns down here."
"We can use that to our advantage." Colin replied, realising what she was getting at. Charisma handed him the crowbar as he rounded the stash in one direction, and she went the other.
"Over here." Colin called out. The thug lunged for him with the knife, only to find the air driven from his lungs as the crowbar connected with his ribcage. Hooking one of his legs, Colin whipped it from under him, sending him crashing to the floor before driving his heel into the side of his head, knocking him out cold.
As the second approached, Charisma grabbed him from behind, twisting his arm painfully, causing him to drop the blade, before elbowing him hard in the face, watching his unconscious body slump to the floor.
"That's those two dealt with." Colin remarked as they dragged the unconscious guards out of sight. "They must be meeting up with another ship to make a trade."
"Well, let's arrange a little surprise for them." Charisma suggested, nodding her head in the direction of the fireworks.
"You know, I really love the way that evil little mind of yours thinks." Colin told her.
"Well we can celebrate properly when we're back on dry land." She told him. "Now, help me find some packing tape."
The party was going well up on the top deck. Knox had assembled most of the city's glitterati for the occasion, and was really giving the performance of his life among the movers and shakers aboard.
"So how did you afford this marvellous ship." A man in an expensive white suit asked him.
"I'm from this town born and bred." He began the rehearsed speech. "My dad used to run this ship as a fishing boat. Once he retired, I simply didn't have the heart to sell it, but I didn't have a stomach for seafood, so I had it converted."
"Well it looks wonderful." He told replied. "If I were a suspicious man, I'd ask how you could afford this refit and still run a strong campaign."
"It's just as well suspicion isn't guilt then." He joked, causing the other guests in earshot to laugh. "I would have expected a more objective approach from the current DA."
"I'm just making a comment." He replied with a grin as he lit up a cigar. "I'm well aware of how damaging a libel case can be."
"It looks like our other guests are arriving." Knox interjected as another ship approached. They touched each other, rail to rail and the crew quickly lashed the sips together. "Enjoy the rest of the party everyone." He continued to a huge cheer. "I would call it a victory party, but the votes aren't in yet."
Colin had just finished taping some fireworks to the underside of the hatch to the cargo area when he heard a noise from the side of the hull. As he and Charisma hid behind some of the drugs, they watched as a small hatch in the side of the hull opened up.
"Set those smoke bombs here." He said to Charisma as they prepared to quietly make their way back onto the front deck of the ship. As they arrived back, they saw the other ship at the side where the hatch had been opened.
"So he quite literally moves the gear under everyone's nose." Colin remarked.
"You've got to admit, he's one cheeky son of a bitch." Charisma responded. "You deal with the lifeboat; I'll get the last few photos."
Colin began cranking the lifeboat down the side of the ship as slowly and quietly as he could while Charisma climbed onto the top of the ship. Laying on the roof on her belly, she began snapping a few shots, careful to time it as the guests were taking photos to avoid attracting attention. "Everyone and his uncle's here." She remarked. "No wonder he never gets raided."
Quickly making her way back down to the deck, she tossed the camera to Colin in the boat, before leaping overboard into the river. Colin quickly grabbed her arm and helped her back into the boat. "Time we got out of here." She commanded.
"Your wish is my command." Colin replied, lighting the touch paper. With that, they started up the engine, only now drawing attention to their presence. Knox and some of the party guests looked over to where their boat was. They stopped briefly a short way from the yacht.
"Hey, Knox." Charisma shouted. "We just wanted to play you our favourite tune." She took the camera back and began snapping more pictures.
"The 1812 Overture." Colin Concluded as the hatch to the storage area blew off. A short time after that, huge clouds of bright green smoke billowed several feet into the air, attracting a nearby law enforcement ship.
"I think you may have used too many smoke bombs." Colin told her. Charisma just shrugged and continued snapping photos as Colin gunned the engine to facilitate their escape.
"Everybody stay where you are." One of the police officers ordered as they began boarding the ship. "We'll have everything under control in a minute."
"Sir, I think you'll want to have a look at this." One of the officers yelled as the smoke began to clear enough to see into the hold. The cops surrounded the hatch, pointing their guns down to where the crew were trying to exchange the goods when the smoke bombs went off. "It looks like there's enough snow down there to give EVERYONE a white Christmas."
The chief turned to Albert Knox, knowing full well it was his ship. "I think you have some explaining to do." He said sarcastically. The DA approached the hatch and looked down himself.
"I guess now I know how you afforded your campaign." He said dryly. "I suggest you find a good lawyer."
Eric and Kimberly arrived at the marina to see the pandemonium unfolding in the middle of the river.
"What the hell have they done?" He screamed. "Didn't I tell them to be subtle?"
"You did, but just look at the police presence." She pointed out. "If there is anything on that ship, then it'll have been found."
"It was." Charisma interrupted them, arriving behind them, wearing Colin's jacket, which was by now the only dry piece of clothing she was wearing. She gave the camera a gentle underarm throw to Eric who caught it. "Here. Get that to the police, they're going to want a very serious talk with our friend there."
"It turns out he has a new method of financing his political aspirations." Colin told them. "He had at least a couple of tons of coke in the hold of his ship. Something tells me that fancy speeches aren't getting him out of that any time soon."
"What can I say, I'm impressed." Eric responded, offering his hand. "You two did great."
Charisma thought about it for a second before accepting the gesture. "Thanks."
"Yeah, we just wanted to help." Colin carried on, accepting a handshake as well.
"It was unorthodox, but it got the job done." Eric stated with an uncharacteristic grin. "Sorry I was such a jerk, sometimes I make judgements about people a little too quickly. I know a lot of trained professionals that wouldn't have pulled off what you two did."
"I really appreciate your help guys." Kimberly chipped in gratefully.
"So, I'll just make a copy of this and send it to the DA." Eric began, removing the memory chip from the camera. "Then maybe we can get something to eat?"
"Could we just order in pizza or something?" Charisma asked, clearly shivering despite Colin holding her tightly. "I really need to get into some dry clothes."
And with that, they all made their way back to the motel.
The following morning, Knox was wakened early in his cell by a pair of police officers. He sat up on his bed, analysing them thoughtfully. "Am I being interviewed?" He asked.
"Not here, and not by us." One of the officers replied. "A letter came in from the DA's office. Another agency has requested you be transferred to their custody."
A blonde man in a suit walked in, standing a short way from the disgraced politician.
"I'm agent Wesley Collins." He introduced himself. "I'm here to transfer you to New Tech City. There's a lot of questions we need to ask you."
The following day, Kimberly and Eric were preparing to make their way back to New Tech City, packing their few belongings before they headed for the airport.
"I know I've said it a thousand times, but thank you." Kimberly told the teens. "What you did for me really means a lot."
"Hey, we were all Rangers once right?" Colin put down, waving off the thanks.
"Anyway, you two enjoy the rest of your road trip." Eric said, shaking each of them by the hand. "You did great. I would be proud to serve with either of you again."
"Well, we wanted to talk to you about that." Charisma began. "Colin and I were talking, and we were kind of thinking we'd like to come with you."
"We were only planning on touring for the next couple of years before we enrolled in college." Colin told them. "But we think your quest is far more important."
"I really couldn't ask you to put yourselves out any more." Kimberly responded.
"We wouldn't mind." Colin told her.
"Well I would." She told them. "I really appreciate everything you did, but you have to live your own lives.
"At least let us give you our cell phone numbers in case you need something." Charisma pleaded. "We wouldn't feel right about leaving you like this."
Kimberly accepted their numbers and programmed them into her own cell phone.
"Just remember, call us if you need anything, and we'll be there." Colin reiterated the sentiment.
"Thanks." Kimberly said again as she hugged them both. "Goodbye. Enjoy the trip."
"I'm sure we will." Colin told her. "Besides, it's Mardi Gras, and I'm sober. I need to rectify that problem soon."
"Well if you acquire any beads, then we're through." Charisma warned him light-heartedly. "After I've kicked your ass of course."
"Have I ever told you you're cute when you're jealous?" He asked her as they waved off the cab taking Eric and Kimberly back to the airport.
"When have I ever been jealous?" She retorted.
"Do you really want me to answer that?" He quizzed her cheekily as they made their way into the centre of town.
Back at SPD headquarters, Kimberly and Eric arrived back to a warm reception from David and Wes.
"You got him." Wes greeted them cheerily as they arrived. "We're going to interview him in the next couple of hours."
Kimberly stepped forward a little. "David I…"
"You were right." He interrupted her. "We should check out every possible lead." He held her close to reassure her he didn't hold anything against her. "In future, could you just wait for us to arrange support for you?"
"I'll try." She said, pulling away a little and wiping her eyes dry.
"Myers, come to my office." Cruger's voice announced over the PA system. Eric made his way sheepishly to Cruger's office wondering what else Cruger would do to him. Arriving, he saluted and stood to attention.
"What you did was against protocol and could potentially have exposed SPD to the public eye." He began. "But it was noble and commendable." He looked Eric square in the face as he continued to address him. "Your investigation showed compassion, forethought and intelligence. All the things I felt you lacked because of the Tate incident."
"I'm sorry sir." Eric said, trying hard not to show his tears at the mention of his friend's name. "I miss him very much."
"We all do." Cruger told him. "You will finish out the original months suspension, then return to duty." He handed Eric back his morpher. "Wesley had agreed to resume his role as Red Ranger until we find a suitable replacement. He'll interview Knox with David shortly."
"Thank you sir." Eric said, saluting. As he was about to leave, he suddenly found himself stopping.
"Is there something else Myers?" Cruger asked.
"Two teenagers helped us with our investigation." He told his commander. "They were part of the Soulfire Ranger team. In my opinion they showed real promise. I just wanted you to know it might be worth keeping an eye on them."
"Who says I'm not?" Cruger asked in return. "We will have our own morphing technology within the next couple of years, at which point we will be looking for suitable candidates to assume those powers."
"I can think of few I would rather serve with." Eric replied honestly.
In the interview room, Knox just stared at Wes and David thoughtfully.
"So when do you start beating me with a phone book?" He asked with a chuckle. "I know I'm bang to rights on the coke, so I won't bother denying that charge."
"We're not interested in the coke." Wes told him. "Like you said, we have enough to convict you with or without your testimony. We want to know about your involvement with Dr. Black."
"Who?" He asked with a feigned ignorance.
"We already know you were involved with the theft and distribution of newborn babies." Wes continued.
"Well it doesn't matter what you know." Knox reminded him. "It only matters what you can prove, and if you could prove it, then we wouldn't be having this little chat."
"We found enough gear on your boat to put you away for life." Wes reminded him. "It doesn't matter to you if you're convicted of this offence. We only want to return the children to their rightful families."
"I would feel the same way in your position." Knox replied, slumping back into his chair. "But like you said. It doesn't matter to me one way or the other, so even if I did know something, why should I say anything?"
"I guess it's time to bring out the big guy." Wes stated.
"That should scare him into testifying." David commented.
"Oh so now you're going to beat me?" He laughed. "Please do. After I sue whatever agency this is for every dime I can get, I'll waltz out of here on a plea bargain to prevent dragging your names through the tabloids."
Wes got up, unfazed by this statement and made his way to the door. "Sir, the prisoner is uncooperative. I would like you to assist with the interview." He said.
"Please, what could…" His words were interrupted as he took in the figure he'd just seen step into the room. He almost fell out of his chair in shock. "Holy mother of God, You're…"
"Not human." Cruger answered, standing across the table from Knox. "Now, about those contacts of yours."