Ok, I'd quickly like to thank everyone who's reading this. I was a little afraid no one was but I'm glad you guys are. Hope you'll stick around.
Chapter 8 The Long Night 2
Deductions and Confessions
"Hey Ryan call for you!" Damon called poling his head into the family room.
"What's up?" The silver and black clad man asked moving out into the hall.
"Don't know Leo just asked for you." The ex-green ranger replied.
"Right." Ryan replied taking the phone from the man and watching him disappear down the hall towards the TV room. "Ryan here." He said into the phone once he was once more alone.
"Listen there's a bit of a situation and I need you to come down to the morgue." Leo Corbett's voice said with out preamble.
"Why what's happening?" Ryan asked a frown on his face. Had something else happened like this morning? He wondered then was Dana ok? Where was Carter?
"Nothing, just relax will you, Dana's helping us with something but Ryan she needs you."
"I'm…" Ryan glanced back down the hall to where he'd left Kelsey and thought about how his little sister had cracked a little earlier, if Dana needed him… "On the way."
***
"Carter I'm ok now." Dana said sitting on her own once more; she was obviously trying to pull all of her feelings into her defense barriers again. There was no way he'd let her do that. No, he'd worked too hard to keep her open; if she pulled n they'd never find out everything.
"You're not pulling away again Dana." The red shirt clad man said, leaning forward, grabbing her hands in his. "I want to know what's going on and I mean now." He said his eyes gentle but intense.
"Carter…" What could she tell him? He'd never understand what she was going to do if he knew the truth.
"What's happening?" The voice had Dana's head shooting up and her eyes finding her older brother.
"Ryan? What are you doing down here? You should be back at the party." With Kelsey, Dana added silently, she really couldn't deal with him on top of all of this right now.
"Leo called, Dane, what's going on?" Her brother asked. By how she looked blonde hair tousled, eyes red and puffy, he knew something had happened.
"Nothing, you should go back and…" She was cut off once again.
"Dana, neither of us is going anywhere until you tell us what's happening." Carter said once more taking her hands as if by doing so he could make her tell him the truth. .
The figure that'd been about to wound her with the syringe missed stabbing it into the corpse instead. Before he could recover Dana was moving into ranger mode, flipping her morpher and gong ranger sooner than her attacker could recover.
"You think your so smart Pink ranger but your not or your daddy would still be alive." The voice hissed as the assailant rushed her again. It struck Dana that the black clad figure was not used to fighting. If it were her attacker would have done it all very differently.
"He killed dad…" She breathed shaken by the memory. God, she wanted t run form it, to run from all of this but if she did, if she let the fear have her…
"Dana?" Ryan saw how her azure eyes went distant, as if she were lost in a memory.
"He said…" She didn't even seem to hear him, didn't seem to even know anything as he tone changed. "You think your so smart Pink ranger but your not or your daddy would still be alive." And her voice was hollow as if it were not her speaking but some robot. Was this why she was so out of her normal bounds? Had those words… Had the killer been…? Rage filled Ryan and he looked to Carter who was also looking ready to kill. The thing was right now they needed all f it.
"That son of a…!" Ryan was on his feet his hands fisted at his sides.
Carter was hitting a button and then Leo and Mike were there.
"What's happening?" Leo asked quickly taking in the way Ryan was stalking the room, the way Dana was shaking and how Carter was staring into space. Carter nodded the men into seats and then looked to the woman whose hands he still held.
"Dana we need to get everything out on the floor, from the accident until…" Carter aid quietly even as Ryan moved to sit at her other side, to wrap a warm arm about her slight shoulders in support. It was almost as if that alone did it but within seconds Dana was speaking as distant as before but with a truth locked inside for so long.
"We were driving home from a visit to…"
The car moved along the highway with no hesitation. Dana glanced into the notes she'd made on her lap. She wondered why there was always so much to do but so little time. Her father seemed lost in his own thoughts as well so when he shouted she glanced up at him first and even as the scream of twisting metal and shattering glass hit her ears she saw him glance her way and then…
"Dana?" Ryan was asking softly shaking her slight as she'd trailed off, her face sheet white her eyes filling with tears once more. Filling with tears and fear, shame and regret.
"I…" She suddenly rested her head on his shoulder, glad when his arm tightened about her shoulders.
"That's all of it?" Leo asked and the other man in red frowned shaking his head.
"You were trapped in that car for hours waiting for help weren't you?" He asked her softly and only then did she remember he still warmed her hands in his window.
"Yes and with him… I shouldn't have been scared but God he was burned and I couldn't move…" She breathed trying not to let her grief overwhelm her once more.
"It's understandable." Mike murmured, to him it was a miracle she'd come through it sanely. He doubted he'd have.
"You didn't see anyone?" Ryan asked her and Dana thought for a minute.
"No, no one, I lay there for hours alone…" She said and slowly the tears fell, silently.
"No, not alone." Ryan told her gently. "He might have been out of his body but Dana you know dad wouldn't have left you for the world."
"But…" the image of his charred skeletal face hit her again.
"No buts, he was there and you know it." Carter told her now too seeing what Ryan was trying to do. He was telling her the truth.
"So who ever it wasn't' there that night." Leo surmised.
"No but its odd there were no signs of tampering with the car." Ryan remembered.
"But they didn't look for them." Dana reminded him.
"No, it was an accident why would they look for any tampering?" "Not true, we did look." Carter said and all eyes went to him. "Look, I can't tell you much but just know that any time something happens to someone ranger related there are some who check it out."
"But you didn't find anything." Mike guessed.
"No." Carter admitted.
"So they knew about you." Dana said sitting up, not really fazed by Carter's admission.
"No, not that I'm aware of. I think they just used some other method." Carter admitted and Dana nodded thoughtfully.
"What like magic?" Mike asked frowning at the thought.
"Yes." Carter nodded grimly
"I know…" Dana was standing then holding up the locket she always wore. "This must be why I came through the accident."
"What is it?" Leo asked frowning.
"Jet." Carter said without missing a beat.
"Yes, Dad gave it to me on the day before the accident."
"It makes sense." Ryan nodded. "Jet is one of the gemstones which ward off demonic evil."
"Do you think he knew what was going on?" Ryan asked and Dana looked at the locket wondering that same thing herself.
"I don't know but it's a good thing, maybe we should have jewelry made for everyone."
"But this is assuming that our foe is demonic." Leo reasoned. "If Bansheera and Trakeena are working together we can't' be sure about anything."
"It's more related to Queen Bansheera." Dana said and all eyes went to her.
"What makes you Say that?" Mike asked.
"Our guy only attacked one of the lightspeed Rescue team." She reasoned.
"But why? That doesn't make sense." Mike frowned.
"If it's Queen Bansheera and Trakeena wouldn't they come after us all together?" Leo purposed logically.
"Well since they failed with Dana maybe they wanted to go to work elsewhere." His brother suggested but for some reason it just didn't make much sense.
"No it doesn't jive." Dana spoke aloud.
"Then what does!?" The police detective asked throwing his hands in the air. His wedding was the day after tomorrow and there was a killer on the loose. This was so not fair damn it!
"I still don't get it why take out Dana first? She wasn't our leader."
"True but in most cases the pink rangers the heart of the team." Mike noted.
"We all care a great deal about Dana." Carter noted.
"Yes, she's literally my sister and she's like a sister to everyone but Carter." Ryan added meeting the other man's blue gaze.
"What do you mean?" Dana asked confused.
"Dana he's been in love with you for a long time." Ryan explained.
"What are you…?" Dana couldn't believe it, true he was being sweet and forcing her from her shells but in love? Carter?
"This isn't the time for this." Mike stepped in when it looked like there might be more complications to this whole thing.
"No, Carter's been fighting it forever and what if something happens again and you don't get another chance?" Ryan demanded looking right at his friend.
"Ryan stop, please." Dana broke in and she looked so confused and embarrassed that Carter wanted to carry her away from all of this.
"Dana?" He gazed at her and saw the fear and pleading in her soft blue orbs.
"I know you think you're helping but right now the main thing we have to focus on is stopping whoever is doing this." She told him sternly and amazingly enough her voice was perfectly even.
"How?" Mike broke in.
"Well I think that I have a theory." She announced and got up dropping Carter's hands and the arm from about her shoulder.
"What?" Carter asked and she then looked to Mike.
"Who ever is doing this we have already decided is linked to both villainesses, I'd wager by blood." She explained.
"But how none had mates or children did they?" Leo asked confused.
"No but…" Dana tried to remember something but it was such a rocky memory.
"What? Dana what is it?" Carter was on his feet and in front of her in a flash.
"I need everything you guys can get me on Queen Bansheera and Trakeena ASAP." She said looking to Carter she didn't know what he was or anything but she got the sense he knew more about this than any of them.
"What kind of things do you need?" Carter asked and the doctor looked thoughtful a moment.
***
8:45 PM
They withdrew to a conference room on the Simudeck of the reconstructed megaship. Each sat with the files scattered about the table. Now all eyes were on the doctor. They all had come up with various facts.
"Ok I have a feeling that who ever our killer is has to be related in some way to both, most likely by love or blood." The blonde doctor told the others.
"Love?" Carter frowned; he'd nover thought of the demons as capable of love. Hell he didn't think this monster they were tracking could feel such a soft emotion.
"Well yes, I don't know how but it would make sense, maybe Bansheera had a brother or something, you know someone who fell for Trakeena or something related like that." The doctor said thoughtfully.
"How are we going to find that out?" Mike asked.
"Well, we do have an advantage here." Carter smiled smugly getting the drift.
"Me." Ryan nodded smiling too but his was nasty, like the tiger on the prowl.
"Exactly, Ryan can you remember anything like that about the demons? Not just Bansheera but also about the others?" His sister asked and he closed his eyes trying to actually bring back the images he's worked so hared to forget.
"Not really." He said slowly adding. "Most of my time was spent with Diabolico."
"Didn't Vypra grow up with you then since she was his daughter?" Dana asked and Ryan nodded.
"Yes but how…?" The sliver clad performer asked looking at his little sister.
"There was just something about them. Anyway do you think either of them could have been linked?" Dana asked her brother and Carter sat back watching the siblings, it was as if they were rangers once more. True Dana was still distant but not nearly as bad as before.
"I…" Ryan thought a long moment then looked to his little sister. "Come to think of it there was something, Vypra had a half sister."
"Hmm, demon?" Dana asked and Ryan shook his head. Apparently her mother had not been the queen but an earth woman by the name of Allison Craft."
"Wait I think I know that name." Mike said frowning as he moved to a computer and began punching up data. Soon a list of the candidates for the program that had been left on earth appeared. Then they saw it.
Name: Alison Craft
Age 47
Hair: red
Eyes: green
Children: Vanessa, Tracy
"But they didn't live on earth did they?" Mike frowned; this was just so far out there. He was really glad his little brother had gone home. The further they got into this the worse his feeling got. That and he didn't like leaving Maya alone.
"No, I'd say not, at least not Vypra, she lived with us." Ryan said slowly bringing Mike back to the topic at hand. "Why then would Trakeena? From the way she had acted she'd lived with her. So how would the insectress have been conceived if her mother was from earth?"
"Mike do a search on past villains the rangers have fought from outer space." Dana ordered and the ex-magna-defender was already on it.
"That's her." Dana said frowning as the data came up for Scorpina appeared.
"So she was not even human." Ryan murmured a little surprised. He'd never really thought about it, not in all of the years he lived with her.
"No and it explains so much."
"But how would she have been around Diabolico?" Mike asked reaching for his rapidly cooling coffee.
"Think about it, she was trapped in another dimension, if it was the shadow world…" Carter trailed off letting the others draw their own conclusions.
"Thus the connection." Dana nodded.
"Exactly."
"But how could she have gotten here?" Ryan asked frowning at that. Granted the idea of her being tonight the dark dimension made sense but this…
"She's not who she was." Dana said adding. "With the being Zordon's passing the evil ones from then were restored to their good forms."
"Thus Alison Craft." Mike nodded as he fiddled with more files trying to find more on her.
"Exactly."
"So what's to say she didn't have another child?" Dana murmured rising to pace the floor. She didn't know a lot about this but she knew they had to catch this guy, more so than any other case or ranger matter she'd ever been in on. This was very personal they killed her father for God's sake. "One who found out and is out to avenge the deaths of his or her sisters." She muttered aloud. Feeling the hand on her shoulder and looked up to find Carter, his dark gaze fintent as he moved his hand down her arm to take her hand.
"Carter?"
"Come on we can both use a minute to stretch our legs." He reasoned leading her from the room.
***
10:35
"Maybe this was a bad idea." Kendrix said gazing out over the landscape allotted from the balcony of the guest room in the Corbett complex.
Without a word Leo came up behind her and turning her to face him, he lifted her face so he could see her eyes.
"You love me right?" He asked confidently.
"Oh, Leo you know I do." She said and her eyes were moist.
"And you know I love you." He said then after a deep breath he went on. "Listen, all of none of the other stuff is important. What is is that we love each other. That won't change." His kiss was sweet and it made her melt against him.
"I know. It's just that after I stopped that evil ranger, I never thought this would really happen. Then I came back and…" there were tears glistening in her soft eyes. Gently he pushed her head down to rest on his shoulder.
"I know. You'll have your wedding. I promise. Just don't worry." He stroked her hair back from her brow. It still amazed him how much he loved her. He had known from that first moment in the shuttle port that she would be special to him but he hadn't known how much until she'd not been there anymore. For the first time in his life he had felt as if his whole world was crumbling around him and he hadn't even known if she knew how much she'd always meant to him. After all he had never told her. Sure they had been good friends but he had never let her know he loved her heart, body, and soul. Now, he told her every chance he got. It was one of the big reasons he wanted this killer finished, he couldn't stand it if anything ever happened to his golden angel.
"I'm sorry," She looked away. "I know I must drive you nuts with my worrying." Kendrix finished and he tightened his hold on her until she thought she would break.
"Don't worry about it angel, it's one of the reasons I love you so much." He kissed her a short but very sweet kiss.
**** **
"Carter what are you doing? We need to catch this creep." Dana said when he pulled her into the nearest room.
"We will but Dana we need to talk too." He explained once the door had closed behind them. Then he added. "Lights on ten percent."
"Carter…" hat could she say? She'd known this was coming from that first kiss but she truly didn't know if she could handle it now, after she'd already been through the emotional ringer.
"Dana Ryan was right," he said as he adjusted his hold on her arm so he was holding her shoulders. I do love you, have since that first day."
"Carter…" She breathed feeling his heat and the familiar comfort of him so close. It was funny she'd not realized just how accustomed to his touch she'd gotten in the last two days. Not that he'd never touched her back when they were rangers but somehow this was different.
"I have been thinking since you got here and do you know I decided?" He asked tilting her chin up so she wads forced to meet his gaze.
"Carter this is hardly the time for this." She tried to pull back, to break this feeling if she let him in more than he was…
"Time be dammed, Dana, for all we know either one of us could die and then I'd never have this." And he as kissing her hard, his mouth possessive, his hands moving on her back even as she kissed him back.
"Dana…" Carter breathed raggedly when they finally pulled back slightly. "I know it was scary losing your father and especially like that. The thing is you are not going to say that because of you I could die. We all die sometime and I'd rather have five minutes with you than an eternity alone and safe."
"Carter I…" She thought of all she'd always felt for him and how well he knew her. She knew the feelings she'd felt in his arms last night and knew she was already lost to him. She was fully in love with this man, Carter Bartholomew Grayson. "I love you too." She breathed and he let out a loud gust of air against the side of her neck.
"I was afraid you'd never say it." He admitted and moved so he was staring down into her blue eyes. "Afraid I'd never say it to you." He confessed.
***
The watcher stood there, just beyond the window, his breath still slightly hissing in pain. He'd not thought that the pink lightspeed ranger would be so tough when caught off guard but she'd nearly had him.
Now though studying her little friend, another of the little monsters the spectator decided she'd have to do. The girl wasn't quite the heart of the team but she was a big part of it.
***
Kelsey sat in the living room wandering where the others were. She'd known that Dana had left early, but then Ryan had gotten some phone call and vanished. She wanted to talk to a friend but Angela and Joel were off doing something, Chad was probably meditating and Kendrix was still with Leo. That meant she was on her own.
Sighing she began flipping the channels once more. It was when she was on her second time around that she heard the sound, slowly she put down the remote her mind on the body they'd found that morning as she turned…
TBC
***
Sorry it's taking me so long I had some problems with my internet connection. *shrugs*Anyway I hope you liked this chapter. The next is coming very soon. In any event please let me know if you liked this one.