Eric's heart literally stopped in his chest. Everything went blank for a moment before Mr. Collins continued.

"Her squad was attacked on the ground," the older man said slowly. Eric sank into a nearby chair.

"Is she…" he got out. He couldn't even make the words come out of his mouth.

"She was injured, but she's alive." Eric took a deep breath and put his head in his hands. "They want you to call this number," he said as he handed a small piece of paper to him.

Without words, Alan placed a hand on Eric's shoulder and he knew that that was all he really could do.

"Go… take care of Alec," Eric said at last.

"Are you going to be alright?" Alan asked. Eric slowly stood and walked towards his office.

"I hope so," was the whispered reply he got back. Eric stepped into his office and dialed the number as fast as he could. "Damn it, pick up!" he yelled into the phone. When he finally got an operator he calmed down a bit.

The conversation was brief, but Eric was assured that Taylor was alive and stable. She was being sent back to the states for further medical treatment.

"I want her sent to Silver Hills Memorial," he said. "They have one of the best trauma centers in the country." The operator confirmed that she was being sent there and Eric hung up. All he could do now was wait until she arrived back home. The woman on the phone had said she and a few others would be arriving by the end of the day.

He knew what he had to do next, and was dreading it… He picked up the phone and dialed Alyssa's number…

Several hours later found Eric sitting in the waiting room with Mr. Collins. Alec was in having a few tests and his parents were with him.

The Quantum Ranger on the other hand was on pins and needles. Taylor was due to arrive within minutes. His call to Alyssa was easier than he thought. Luckily Cole had answered and was faced with the task of explaining everything to his fiancé.

They still weren't told the full extend of Taylor's injuries, but Eric knew there was some reason as to why they hadn't disclosed the information. All they knew was she had suffered some burns and a broken wrist. Anything else was going to be news to them.

"Eric Meyers?" a doctor called.

Eric was immediately on his feet and the doctor made his way towards him.

"I'm Doctor Gallant. Lieutenant Earhardt just arrived and is having a work up… She's asking for you," the doctor said. Eric looked at Alan and then turned back to the doctor who led him to an elevator.

The entire way up Eric was nervous as hell… more nervous than he had ever been.

"Now Mr. Meyers, Lieutenant Earhardt had a concussion and a few minor burns to her back and legs. Her left wrist is broken, but it was casted. There was an explosion and a few pieces of debris stabbed her right leg," the doctor said.

Eric paled. He didn't realize it had been that bad. "Is it serious?" he asked.

"They cleaned out most of the wounds at the hospital over there, but there's still a few that will require surgery to take out."

"When?"

"We've scheduled it for as soon as we're done the workup. There are a few things that the field doc mentioned that we want to check out before we do anything."

"Like what?" he asked annoyed. Why hadn't anyone told him she had been hit!

"According to the field physician, she's been getting spells of nausea and fainted a few times… we should have a better understanding of her condition in a few minutes."

Eric listened, but nothing registered. All he wanted to do was see her and hold her in his arms. The elevator reached the recovery ward and Dr. Gallant showed him to her room.

Taylor lay in bed with several bandages around her arms and back and a cast on her wrist. Her stomach hurt severely, and the nurse told her that she would be getting an ultrasound to rule out any internal bleeding. Her leg was numb from a medication and covered by bandages, but she knew it didn't look pretty.

There had been a large piece of what she assumed was the semi that exploded, that literally stuck out a few days ago. The docs had removed it, but there was still a deep wound and a few pieces left in there.

Her head ached and her body hurt as well, but all she wanted was to see Eric. She knew he must be worried, and in all truth she was worried as well. It had been two long months overseas and she had been sick.

"Taylor," she heard softly from the doorway. Her head turned and she saw Eric rush into the room. He stood over her and placed his hand on her face. His eyes shone with unshed tears and he leaned down and kissed her lips softly. "Thank God," he whispered as he leaned his head against hers.

Taylor reached her arm around him as best she could and just took in his scent and the feeling of having him near. She kissed his cheek and he looked at her.

"What happened?" he asked softly as he ran his finger along her jaw line. Eric sat in a nearby chair as Taylor closed her eyes slowly and remembered what had happened.

"We were getting ready to head out to the hanger when one of the semi's just blew up… Teresa and I got tossed a few yards away, and then I felt a stabbing pain in my leg… I think it was a piece of the truck or something… but it was in there pretty good… I don't remember much after that, I passed out," she said.

Eric clung to her hand as best he could without causing her pain. "They said you'd been sick and that you fainted a couple times… are you sure you're alright?" he asked nervously as he glanced down and saw a tiny spot of blood on her right leg.

She pulled away a little. "Yeah… it's probably just from the environment changing. A few others had a bug right after we got over there."

"Well, you're home now… you don't have to worry about going back again." Taylor sighed. Her friends were still over there, but from what she had been told, the group they were trying to stop had had their numbers reduced. Her squad would be returning home soon to their families. "What about the others?"

Taylor sighed. "Teresa was fine… she's still over there, but we lost two men and about fifteen others were injured. Two others and me were the only ones that were really injured badly enough to come home."

"I don't know what I would have done if…" he said softly as he felt her run her thumb along his hand.

"They said I need surgery to get the rest of the stuff out of my leg," she almost whispered. "I don't think I'll be able to climb the stairs for a little while… you're going to have to carry me," she said smiling a little.

Eric grinned and kissed her hand. "Anything you want," he said as he smoothed her hair back with his free hand.

"Be careful what you say… I could hold you to that."

They sat there for almost a half an hour, just content to finally be back together. Eric told her about Anubis and Kat and she seemed to like the idea… anything to get her mind off her current situation. He decided to put off telling her about Alec for now… she didn't need any other kind of stress right now.

"Lieutenant Earhardt," Dr. Gallant said as he reentered with her chart in hand. "We have you test results back and they're ready for you in surgery… but there were some interesting findings with your blood work…"

Both Eric and Taylor sat up a little straighter ass he said this. "Findings?" she asked nervously.

"Yes," Gallant said. "I think it would explain the fainting and nausea." The doctor paused a moment before he dropped the biggest bombshell on both rangers. "You're pregnant."