DISCLAIMER: Nope not mine.
SUMMARY: Billy's arrived on the scene and Tara's trying to hide from him.
Tommy was sitting at the end of the couch farthest from the kitchen. Tara was curled up next to him shaking like a leaf on a breeze.
"Tara? Tara, look at me, sweetheart." She slowly lifted her eyes. The look on her face reminded him of the day he had first met her. "Deep breaths, Tara. Deep breaths."
She felt herself start to relax as she did what he asked of her. She kept her eyes locked on his as he breathed with her. "Close your eyes." When she did, he continued. "You and I are standing on a deserted beach, just within reach of the high tide. You're wearing that outfit you had on the other day. Your hair is down, loose. I'm wearing a white t-shirt and slacks. Both of us are barefoot and the tide is starting to come in. The water is bathtub warm and the sun is shining on us." He paused for a moment, taking her hand and rubbing it with his thumb.
"We start walking down the beach, holding hands. I'm closer to the ocean and I keep stopping to kiss you. After several minutes, we see a picnic set up just slightly out of reach of the tide. We sit down and enjoy potato salad and fried chicken with ice cold lemonade. By the time we finish eating, the sun is beginning to set and the sky is blazing with reds and oranges. We pack the food back in the basket. I pull you to your feet and we walk back along the beach to where I had left my jeep."
Tara opened her eyes to find Tommy gazing down at her intently. "Better?" he asked.
"Thank you," she said, nodding and smiling. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead.
"Shall we go back to the kitchen now?" he whispered. She nodded. He stood up and held his hand out to her. She took it and pulled herself off the couch. They started toward the kitchen. Tommy saw a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye just in time to shelter Tara as the living room window broke.
The glass breaking brought the four running from the kitchen.
Tommy was making sure Tara wasn't hurt. Jason walked over to the window and picked up the rock that had come through the window. Pulling the note off of it, Jason scanned it.
Everyone looked at him as he crumpled the paper and threw it on the floor. "That sick ---"
Kim walked over and picked it up. Opening the piece of paper, she read the note, her face going whiter as she read.
'Hello pretty. Maybe I should introduce myself to your little friend. She looks like she could be a lot of fun. I wonder if she'll scream when I take her.'
Kim was shaking when Jason took the note from her and pulled her against his chest. Clutching her tight, he rested his cheek against the top of her head. His eyes squeezed shut against the image the note evoked. He was so grateful that Kim hadn't read the note out loud.
Unfortunately, he forgot that Tommy would want to know what would have upset Kim so badly.
Before Jason could react, Tommy had taken the note from his hand and started reading. "Tommy, bro, don't."
Tommy looked up at Jason when he'd finished reading. "He'd better not," growled the former Green Ranger. Jason was shocked as he saw his friend's eyes flash green.
Suddenly, everyone heard a door slam. They all looked around but Kim was the first to notice.
"Tara's gone!" she whispered, staring at the spot where Jason's baby sister had been standing just seconds earlier.