Chapter 2: Last Hope

"That was too easy." She gloated as she dumped the contents of her Wal-Mart bags on her motel bed. Taking out the hair dye and scissors, she went to the bathroom to transform herself. Shelley hummed to herself as she jumped in the shower. Thinking back, she recollected the events of the day.

She had gone to the library early in the morning to see if she could find any information on the Hammond family. She was so surprised to find they still lived in town! Of all the good luck, revenge would be hers much quicker than she had originally thought. She typed in Ashley's name and in a matter of seconds, she knew her school schedule and where she worked. Now she just had to wait for the perfect time to put her plan into action. All she had to do now was to make certain no one would recognize her. She wasn't taking any chances.

Ashley woke up with a start. Sweat poured off her head, her brown hair sticking to her face as she struggled to get her breathing back to normal. She glanced at the clock and moaned when she saw it was only 3am. She had gotten no sleep the night before, and it looked like tonight would be no different. Sighing, she got out of bed to make herself a cup of tea and grabbed a book and tried to keep her mind off the nightmares that had started to plague her.

She had no rational reason to believe that Shelley had escaped. She couldn't explain her feelings, it was the same feelings she had whenever one of her teammates, especially Andros was in danger. She had never felt that way for herself before, until now. And she was scared.

Ashley could recall with clarity, the fear that Shelley had instilled in her when she was a child. And now, though she was able to defend herself, she still was a bit fearful. Who knows what that woman was capable of? If she was able to kill her own three-year-old daughter, imagine how hate filled she must be now after twelve years in prison. Ashley shuddered. That was an image she didn't want to dwell on.

It wasn't until after the sun had risen that Ashley had finally fallen asleep. When her alarm buzzed at 8:30, she groaned as her body reacted to the lack of sleep. She forced herself up and into the shower, so she could be ready when Andros came to pick her up at ten o'clock.

Promptly at ten o'clock, there was a knock at her door. "Come in!" Ashley called as she finished eating her breakfast. Andros quickly let himself in and went to look for his girlfriend. "Hey Ash." He said as he leaned down to give her a kiss on the cheek, before sitting next to her at the kitchen table.

"What's wrong? You look tired." He observed as he pushed her brown hair off her face, revealing her blood shot and puffy eyes.

"I haven't been sleeping well." Ashley finally admitted, looking him straight in the eye. Maybe she should tell Andros her suspicions, he would believe her right?

"What aren't you telling me Ash?" Andros questioned in concern. He had never seen Ashley look so tired and worn out before, not even after all their battles against Astronema and Dark Spectre.

"I've been having nightmares again Andros." She whispered tearfully. Andros pulled his chair closer to her and gathered her in his arms. "Shh. It's alright Ash. I won't let anyone hurt you." He promised.

Andros continued on, asking her about her nightmares. "Were they the same ones you've always had?"

Ashley paused before answering. "No. They're different." She grabbed his hands as she looked at him, "I have this awful feeling that Shelley escaped from prison, and I don't know why."

"Do you have any proof Ash, that she might have escaped?" Andros asked logically.

"I thought I saw her the other day at school, and then there was the incident at the dance studio. And when I got home on Friday, my door was open."

"What?" Andros practically hollered, losing his calm. "Why didn't you tell me?" He demanded of her.

"I didn't think anything of it, until after I started having the nightmares. I was running late that morning, I might have forgotten to close it myself." Ashley replied.

Andros began to calm down. He could tell Ashley was a bit frightened, and he wasn't helping matters any. "Let's get out of here. I don't know what's going on, but I'm sure everything is okay." He tried to reassure her. She pasted a smile on for him, but inside her brain was screaming, "What if everything's not okay? What if she really has escaped?" She was so caught up in her thoughts, she didn't notice that Andros had cleared the table, and was getting her ready to leave. Ashley decided she wasn't going to ruin the first day she had with Andros in a long time, so she pushed her fears to the back of her mind, determined to forget it. The pair drove to the local beach to enjoy the first warm day of spring.

"I told the gang we'd meet up at Kat's café around one o'clock. Is that okay?" Andros inquired as the two enjoyed a sunny day at the beach. Ashley just nodded, the sun was relaxing her and she soon fell asleep, getting some much needed rest. Andros watched her as the tension eased off her face as she slept. He was worried about her. Maybe he should talk to Jeff. But the rest of the morning Ashley seemed fine, so Andros decided he and Ashley had simply overreacted.

The group gathered at the café for lunch. Andros and Ashley were the last to arrive just in time to hear Cassie's statement. "There's going to be a wicked cool band playing tonight at Element. You all should come check it out." Cassie advised her friends, as they caught up with each other. They had such busy and different schedules, but somehow always made time for each other every Saturday. The whole team was there except for TJ, who was on duty with the police department this weekend.

"That sounds great, Cass. I'm in." Carlos declared. "Me too." Jeff added. He looked to his sister. "What about you Ash? Are you guys going to come?" Ashley was not paying attention, she was focused on the events of the last two days, when Andros squeezed her hand and she jumped. "What?" she asked guiltily. The others laughed at her confusion, except for Jeff and Andros, whose worry for her continued to grow.

"Are you and Andros coming to the club tonight?" Jeff repeated, looking at Ashley in concern. Ashley looked to her boyfriend for an answer.

"It's up to you Ash." He said impassively. "I don't care either way."

"Let's go. I think it will be lots of fun." Ashley declared, trying to break out of the gloom she was mired in. Maybe she could just forget everything that had been happening. Glancing at her watch, she realized she would not make it to the bank if she didn't leave now. She bid everyone goodbye, giving Andros a kiss goodbye and a promise to meet up with him later at Cassie's.

"Is Ashley okay, Andros?" Cassie asked as her best friend raced out of the cafe. "She doesn't seem like herself." She acknowledged cautiously.

"I'm not sure. She said she's been having nightmares again." Andros informed the group, a worried expression on his face.

"What brought this on? I thought she had gotten over that." Carlos asked in bewilderment.

"I don't know." Jeff admitted. "She called me the other night all upset. But these nightmares are different than before. She thinks that Shelley has escaped from prison." His statement caused the group to turn their eyes upon him.

"Is it possible?" Carlos asked, wanting desperately to believe that it wasn't true.

"No." Jeff stated firmly. "They had her parole meeting just last week, and once again she was turned down. It's a well secured prison." Carlos didn't like the implications of Jeff's statements. If it were so impossible for Shelley to have escaped, then what was going on with Ashley?

They paid the bill and got into their cars and traveled over to Cassie's. No one noticed the dark pools of liquid on the ground where Ashley's car had been.

Ashley turned on her car just as Matchbox Twenty came on the radio. Ashley rolled her eyes. This was one of her favorite bands, but this song hit too close to home right now.

"All day, staring at the ceiling making friends with shadows on my wall. All night I'm hearing voices telling me, that I should get some sleep because tomorrow might be good for something. Hold on I'm feeling like I'm headed for a breakdown. I don't know why."

Ashley joined in and sang the chorus. " I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell. I know right now you can't tell."

Isn't this appropriate? she thought as left the bank parking lot.. Jeff thought she was crazy and Andros was being overprotective. She was getting into the song so much she didn't notice when the light turned yellow in front of her. Slamming on the brakes, Ashley tried not to run through the light. To her horror, nothing happened as she continued to speed through the light, just missing being in an accident. Shaken, she slowed down and pulled into the auto shop down the street.

"Can I help you?" the man behind the counter asked. Ashley nodded as she tried to speak. Her heart was pounding so fast; it was all she could do to breathe. "Can you take a look at my brakes? They went out when I was driving down the road." She explained to the mechanic.

"Did the brake light come on? Have you had any problems with your brakes before?" The man asked politely. Ashley answered no to both questions. Satisfied that there was a legitimate problem, the man pulled the car inside the garage and raised it up so he could look underneath. Ashley sat impatiently in the waiting room, hoping there was a problem, proving she wasn't paranoid, yet scared that if there was a problem, then her sense of danger was real.

"Something did a number on your brakes there ma'am. All the brake fluid was drained. It's no wonder they didn't work." He reported to her. "If you want it'll take about an hour to fix."

"Thanks. I'd appreciate that." Ashley responded. "Did the brakes drain by themselves?" She questioned the mechanic.

"If that were the case it would have been noticeable and more gradual. Since you didn't have a problem this morning I would say something or someone caused the draining of the brake fluid." He replied as he went back to the garage to begin the repairs.

Ashley was shocked. "What's going on?" she thought to herself. "This can't be happening."

"It's amazing what a person can learn in jail." Shelley laughed to herself as she threw the dirty gloves into a dumpster behind the motel. She was suddenly grateful for taking the auto shop class in prison. These skills were coming in handy. And soon she would have what she wanted.

"What took you so long?" Carlos demanded as Ashley joined the group gathered at Cassie's house. She was quiet and thoughtful as she sat down on the couch next to Andros. The group had been watching a movie, but paused it when they heard Ashley's Volkswagen beetle pull up.

Ashley debated about telling them or not, but she finally decided to tell them about her car problems. Maybe Cassie and Carlos would take her side, and maybe the brakes would convince Jeff and Andros she wasn't crazy. "I had to stop at the mechanics on the way here." She said non-chalantly, trying not to make a bigger deal out of it then it already was. She was just starting to breath normally again, and didn't want to get herself upset.

"What for? Your car should be running fine." Jeff wondered, puzzled. "I just checked it last week."

"I know Jeff. But on way out of the bank, the light turned yellow, and I slammed on the brakes, only." Ashley paused as she choked back the tears. "Only they didn't work. I ran through the red light, barely missing another car. I managed to slow down and get to the auto shop."

The others gazed at her in horror. Andros wrapped his arms around her to comfort his distressed girlfriend. "It's alright Ash. You're okay now. Everything will be fine." His tone made Ashley pull away. "What if everything is not fine Andros? My brakes didn't go out on their own!" she shouted as her emotions overwhelmed her, and she leapt off the couch. Her outburst shocked her friends. Ashley was never this emotional.

Across the room, Jeff jumped out of his chair to try to calm down his sister, but she just shook him off. "Don't say it Jeff. Don't tell me I'm making it up, because I'm not. They were working fine this morning, and all of a sudden they just stopped working. Even the mechanic said that something caused my brakes to go out." Ashley spat out angrily as she paced the room in a panic. Carlos stared at her in alarm as she ranted and raved.

"Listen Ash. I know you're upset. I'm sure the whole incident with your brakes going out scared you. But let's not jump to any conclusions just yet." Carlos tried to rationalize with her.

"I know you all think I'm crazy, that Shelley couldn't possibly have escaped. But I know what I saw. And all these incidents prove I'm not crazy." She pleaded with them to believe her. Looking in their eyes, the sympathetic glances she saw was too much for her to stand. She didn't need their pity. She would have to get to the bottom of this on her own. Nobody said anything in support of Ashley's statements. They just couldn't believe what they hadn't seen. And they didn't believe that Ashley had seen Shelley either. It was too incredible.

"Listen Ash, even if she did escape, why would she come after you? Wouldn't she want her freedom and leave the country?" Cassie asked in a quiet voice, causing Ashley to calm down.

"I don't know Cass. But I know something's not right." Ashley whispered. "I just feel it." She added miserably. No one said a word as quiet tension filled the room.

"Lets get you home Ash." Andros decided, breaking the silence. To their astonishment, Ashley didn't argue. She was quiet and compliant with his request and they left.

"Wow." Carlos said to no one in particular. Jeff was lost in thought and worried about his sister. Maybe he should go talk to their dad.

"I've never seen her like this." Cassie agreed, stunned by the revelations of the last hour. She didn't believe Jeff and Andros when they told her that Ashley had been acting weird, but now she had seen Ashley's behavior first hand. How could she believe all this?

The room that had been alive with conversation and laughter before now was somber. Jeff finally elected to go talk to his dad. Maybe Ashley wasn't completely over their ordeal, as they had thought she was. Whatever the reason, she needed help that he couldn't give her.

"Hey Jeff. I'm surprised to see you here on a Saturday night." Mr. Hammond commented upon greeting his son at the door. Both his children stopped in regularly, but rarely on the weekends. He noticed the strained look on his son's face, and knew of only one reason for Jeff to be so serious. Jeff had always been Ashley's protector, as her older brother, it was a role he loved and dedicated himself to. "What's wrong?" He asked anxiously, as Jeff entered the house and the two sat themselves down in the family room.

"Dad, Ashley's been having nightmares again." Jeff began, wishing he didn't have to tell his dad what was going on. "She thinks she's seen Shelley, she believes she escaped from jail."

"What?" Mr. Hammond whispered incredulously. On one hand the story was too incredible for Ashley just to make up, but on the other, it didn't make any sense. "I thought she was okay." He said dazed by his son's information.

"We all did Dad. I don't know what brought this on. I think she needs help." Jeff advised his dad. "I don't know what else to do." He admitted, feeling completely helpless to aid his little sister.

"The lawyer gave me a couple of numbers for some world class counselors in the area. I'll give them a call and set up an appointment." Mr. Hammond decided.

Ashley sat in her favorite chair in her living room feeling more alone than she ever had felt before. Why wouldn't they believe me? Why would I make this all up? She wondered to herself. "Now I know where they stand. I know I'm not crazy! I'll have to figure out this mess by myself." She promised to herself. Exhausted she finally collapsed on the couch, getting a few much-needed hours of sleep.

Sunday morning.

Ashley decided to go for a run to burn off some tension and restlessness. Running always made her feel better and it gave her time to think, and time to be alone. Setting the timer on her watch, Ashley sprinted down the sidewalk, not noticing when a car down the street pulled out of the driveway.

"God is there nothing this girl doesn't do! She's a cheerleader, a dancer, runs every morning, is on honor roll in school, works a steady job, and has a boyfriend." Shelley ran down the list of Ashley's accomplishments in disgust. But her anger hid her envy of her stepdaughter. "Doesn't seem like the last twelve years have been too hard on her." She grumbled to herself. "But that's all about to change." She vowed as she followed the girl down the street.

Ashley was setting new records with her run that morning. All the frustrations came pouring out of her as her feet pounded the pavement. She pushed her body further and faster than ever before in a futile attempt to forget. Images of her friend's faces flashed through her memory. Cassie's concerned gaze, Carlos's look of shock and disbelief, Andros's worried expressions, and Jeff's disappointment, and fear of losing another sister. "TJ!" She thought suddenly, as hope surged through her that the former blue ranger wouldn't let her down. Adrenaline pumped through her body as she raced towards the police station in anticipation of finding him there.

Ashley was across the street from the police station, waiting for the WALK sign to appear. She jogged in place to keep her momentum, and started across as soon as it lit up. Eager to find her friend, Ashley didn't notice the car barreling towards her. Instinct took over as the car came closer and closer. She left her feet to avoid hitting the car. Curling into a ball to protect her head, she rolled across the rough pavement, violently colliding with the curb. Grimacing she pulled herself up to her knees and stared at the car, looking for any clues as she attempted to breathe.

"Are you okay miss?" The officer asked as he knelt down to assess her injuries. Ashley tore her gaze away from the street to look at the man next to her. "I'm fine, really." She reassured the officer. "Can you tell me if Officer Johnson is in?" She questioned him as he helped her off the street.

"Follow me." He said as he assisted her inside the police station. "By the way my name is Lt. Gibson. TJ is my partner." He informed her. Ashley limped besides him as he continued his introduction. "How do you know him?" He said in an easy-going manner that made Ashley relax.

"We went to high school together." She disclosed to the friendly man. He stopped to knock on a door in the station. Peeking his head in he announced, "Johnson, you've got a visitor."

"Alright, send them in." TJ declared without looking up from his work. He finally looked up when the visitor didn't say anything. "Ashley!" he declared. "What a surprise. Sit down." He then took in her appearance. Her jogging suit was blackened from her roll across the pavement, holes worn in the fabric and blood and bruises evidence of her ordeal.

"What happened?" He asked gently of his old friend as he took down a first aid kit from his shelf. Lt. Gibson excused himself, leaving the two friends to talk.

"I was crossing the street and a car came barreling down the street and almost hit me. IT would have hit me if I hadn't jumped out of the way." Ashley reported.

"So what brings you down here?" TJ asked curiously as he bandaged the wounds on Ashley's legs.

She paused for a minute. Seeing that the door was securely shut, she continued. "Teej, I think I'm in trouble. No one believes me, you're my last hope." She pleaded with him. Her statement caused him to look up at her. He had never seen Ashley seem so frightened or discouraged before. "Tell me about it." He encouraged her to tell him everything. "You know I'll do whatever I can to help you."

"I started having nightmares, Thursday night I guess. I dreamt that Shelley had escaped from prison. If that wasn't bad enough, I swore I saw her Friday at AGU on my way to meet Carlos. Then I saw somebody looking in the window at the dance studio but they were gone before I saw them. And my apartment was unlocked when I got home that night." She summarized the first few events for him.

"Did you tell Jeff and Andros?" TJ asked in concern. Ashley nodded. "They don't believe me. Everyone thinks I'm crazy, but I know I'm not TJ." She said as tears filled her eyes, begging him to believe her.

"I don't think you're crazy Ash." He admitted. "What else happened?" He pushed her to continue her story.

"Saturday afternoon, I had just left the bank and I was driving down the road, when the light turned yellow. I hadn't been paying attention so I slammed on the brakes to avoid running through the light but nothing happened. I barely missed hitting another car, and I slowed down in time to reach the garage further down the street. The mechanic told me that all the brake fluid had been drained." Her account intrigued him. There were too many coincidences; something was definitely going on. Looking at his old friend, he noticed the upbeat; cheerful demeanor was gone, replaced by a somber and distressed attitude.

"Do you have a report of the repairs he did?" He asked as he tried to gather as much information as possible. Ashley nodded. "And then there was the car that just tried to run me down." She brought him up to date.

"Can I ask you a favor Teej?" She asked softly. TJ nodded at her to go on with her request. "Would you be able to find out if Shelley did indeed escape from prison?"

"I don't see why not. That would be the first logical step to take in finding out what is going on." TJ replied simply.

"So you'll help me?" She said incredulously. TJ smiled at her shock. "Of course Ash. I'll do whatever I can." He promised her. "Now how about I take you home and you can rest."

"Thanks TJ. You don't know how much this means to me." She asserted as he walked her out to his squad car.

A few minutes later they pulled up at Ashley's apartment. TJ insisted on walking her in. "You don't have to Teej, I'll be fine." She told him, but he wouldn't reconsider. "It would make me feel better if I did Ash." He confided to her as he followed her into her apartment. The first thing to catch his eye was the blinking messages on her machine. "How long have you been gone?" He questioned, slipping into his officer mode.

Ashley looked at the clock. "About an hour and a half." She answered him. "And you have 14 messages?" He declared suspiciously. "That seems strange." Ashley agreed with him and pressed play as she set up the coffee maker.

The only sound that came across her answering machine was what sounded like breathing noises. Ashley dropped the mug she was holding when she realized that all fourteen messages were the same.