It was late. Everyone in the Collins home was fast asleep, totally unaware of what had gone on in Newtech City. Well, almost everybody was in bed. Philips the good old butler was still awake, waiting up for Wes to return, believing he would be hungry when he got home and wanted to make sure he had a warm meal after a long day at work. Although part of it was a feeling a parent would have when it was getting late and their child wasn't home yet.

Philips looked at the clock, it was late. Wes would usually call long before this time if he was going to be late, or if he was just planning on staying at the Academy and coming home in the morning. It wasn't like him, not like him at all, not to call. The phone then rang. "Oh good." Philips got up and answered the phone. "Master Wes, thank God, we were beginning to…" It wasn't Wes, another voice was on the other end, a voice he didn't recognize. "Yes, Mrs. Collins is home, but it's very late, she's…." Philips turned to look at the clock, it was near two in the morning. "May I ask what this is about?" His face turned white as a ghost as he listened to the voice on the other end. "I understand; we'll be there right away…"

The time difference was a good twelve hours. Collins sat in a board meeting, going over several proposals with some of the main benefactors in his company. Things had been going extremely well, so well that he might be able to go home a few days before his grandson's birthday. They were just getting ready to go over the upcoming expenses when a woman walked in.

Mr. Parker looked up. It was his secretary. "Kristina, we're in the middle of something, can it wait?"

"No, I'm afraid it can't. The man on the other end said he has an urgent message for Mr. Collins." She walked up to him carrying the portable phone and handed it to him.

"I'm sure it's nothing. I will tell them, I'll call them back once we're finished here." He put the phone to his ear. "Hello. Would it be all right if….." His face turned white as a ghost and it felt as if his heart had stopped. Everyone in the board room stared at Collins, wondering what was wrong. What could have happened to cause the frightful and painful look in his eyes, and the stingy tears urging their way out.

"Alec, is everything all right?" asked Parker. But Collins didn't answer; he continued to sit in his chair with the phone to his ear, doing all he could to hold himself together. "Kristina, who called?"

She gave a faint smile with saddened eyes. "Newtech City SPD hospital, it's about his son…."

It was nearly seven in the morning. They had been sitting there for hours since Philips had dropped both her and Sky off, no one had come to see them yet. And everyone they asked didn't seem to know what was going on, or that's what they said. But somehow she knew something horrible had happened. And she knew it either had to do with Wes or Eric, or both of them. That would be the only reason why they were called down here. Any others matters of SPD wouldn't have concerned her unless it had something to do with her husband.

Another thought then crossed her mind, if it was about Eric, then Hayley would be here. But she hadn't seen Hayley anywhere, she had even tried calling her, but no one answered the phone.

She hated waiting. It only seemed to make things harder and continued to let the fear flow through her, filling her mind with all sorts of possibilities that she didn't want to think about. She sighed heavily as she turned to Sky. He had been sitting silently, not saying a word, hadn't even asked to go to the bathroom or for something to eat. He just sat there with his head down, staring at the floor. She gently rubbed his back, hoping to take some tension off of him.

Footsteps started coming towards them; she looked up and saw three uniformed men heading towards her and Sky. She recognized two of them as Tanner Wilson and Dashel Jackson, two of the A squad cadets who Wes and Eric had chosen to become A squad rangers. The other young man she didn't recognize. She had hoped when she saw them heading towards them that finally she would get some answers, but that thought withered away into nothing when she saw what Dash was holding.

Dash, Tanner and the other cadet stopped in front of her and Sky, as they stood up. For a moment they locked eyes, not saying anything. Dash sighed heavily, he had never done this before and he hoped he would never have to again, but he owed it to them, to Wes. "Ma'am." His eyes then fell onto Sky, which made this even harder to do. "I'm sorry." He bit his lip hard, trying to hold back his own grief and sorrow as he handed young Sky his father's helmet.

Sky took the helmet, looking at it and then staring up to Dash, but couldn't find the words for what he wanted to say. But he was old enough to know what this meant. His father wasn't going to be coming home.

Lisa broke down into tears, and soon found herself being consoled by Tanner and the other cadet. The man she loved, the man she was going to start a family with, was gone. All their plans and dreams were gone now. A little more than six months, that's all they had, there would be no babies, no honeymoon, no growing old together, time had taken that away from them. "No. Wes!"

Tanner didn't know what to say or do. If only they had been a little faster, if only he had stayed to help fight Mirloc, maybe then none of this would have ever happened. If only he…

Dash knelt down in front of Sky, staring the young boy in the eyes. He gripped Sky's shoulder. "I want you to know that your dad saved a lot of people. Dozens of lives were saved because of him. He's a real hero and you should be very proud." What else could he say? There was nothing he could say to make things better, make it easier. No child should have to grow up without their father.

Sky didn't answer, just looked from the helmet to Dash. And then for several seconds his eyes remained on his father's helmet, trying to envision how his father looked when he wore it. How it made him feel everyday to know his father was a hero, out there in the world saving lives. How he wanted so much to be just like him. But now all he wanted was to have his dad back.

He was on the verge of tears, trying to hold them back, trying to be brave, but that all stopped when he heard footsteps behind him and found his grandfather and Philips heading towards him. "Grandpa!" Sky ran towards his grandfather, jumping right into his arms, dropping his father's helmet in the process.

"It's okay, Sky. I'm here now." Collins wrapped his arms around his grandson, holding him tightly in his arms, trying to take all the pain away, but he knew it wasn't going to be that simple. Nothing would ever be the same again. He would soon be joined by Lisa. It was in that moment an all too familiar feeling he thought he had put behind him came back, he was reminded of the days of when his wife had died and he nearly lost Wes, and now eighteen years later, he had lost Wes after all. His only son, only reminder of his wife, who he loved so much, was gone….

He sat in the bar, drinking his third? Fourth? Maybe, fifth beer? He wasn't sure; he had lost track sometime after the news report came in. The sound was turned off, and mostly everyone wasn't paying a bit of attention to the report, they were too much involved with their own lives to care about what had happened. But he didn't need the sound to know what it was about, who it concerned.

He had already known. He had always known. He knew when he walked into the bar just hours before. He had known for the past two years that this would happen. That there was a chance that Wes, his double, Sky's father, and the man Jen would love forever could….. He sighed heavily, feeling a pang of guilt and sadness overwhelm him. After saving dozens of lives, that's how it would all end for Wes.

They showed Wes's photo over the TV, but he didn't need to worry, these days he no longer resembled Wes. He had grown a beard, a nice clean cut one; just enough for him to get by without anyone calling him Wes or asking if he was related to the Collins family.

He took a sip of his beer, but kept his eyes on the TV, but then it was gone; someone had switched it to the sports station. But they must have noticed the look in his eyes. "Sorry pal, were you watching that?"

Alex turned to him briefly. "No. I was finished anyways." He finished his beer off and then set some cash on the bar and left.

It was dark out, slightly cold. He buttoned up his jacket and started walking down the sidewalk, not sure where he should go now or where he would end up. He was a long way from Silver Hills. He wasn't even in California anymore. He had thought about going back; checking in on Sky, see how he was doing. But…Something told him that would be a bad idea. It would be too confusing for Sky; he knew the farther he stayed away the better.

But that didn't take away the guilt. Maybe if he had told Wes, maybe things would have turned out differently. Or even a bigger maybe. Maybe he should have taken Wes's place, but that would only cause problems. Time Force would find out that the future had changed, and that could change everything he had worked so hard for, getting Sky here. Whether for the better or worse, what's done is done.

Alex found his mind wandering over a lot of people that night, as he walked along the sidewalk, passing by homes, watching through the windows as families and friends enjoyed each other's company. Sky. Wes's father, Eric, who was lying in a coma with Hayley at his side. Trip, Katie, and Lucas. People he knew he would never see again. He'll never know what would become of his three friends, if they would marry, start families.

For the past two years he hadn't really made too many friends. He wasn't in one place long enough, always passing through, working where he could for a little cash. The truth was, the last friend he had been in any contact with was Tommy, that was two years ago.

He had nothing going for him. No friends, no family, nothing. He was just a wanderer really. Not that it was bad, traveling around, seeing places, meeting people. It was a kind of life many would dream of, but….He was alone.

He thought about starting over, creating a new name, finding someone to spend the rest of his life with. Landon, his ancestor, had done it and somehow had gotten away with it, but for some reason he couldn't find himself doing that. He had a family. And those were the happiest five years of his life.

He found it ironic, that losing family had become a factor in his family's generation, as if the Drakes and Collins families were cursed. Alex only hoped that the curse would skip a few generations and that Sky would have a long and happy life with whomever he chose to spend it with, but not before going through some troubling years. He knew that the once young, caring, kindhearted boy he had known would be no more. The Sky he had known would be gone…

Alex looked down at his wrist. The time device that had brought him and Sky here, he still had it. He bit his lips, wondering if he should stay or if he should go. He had done all he could here, perhaps it would be for the best for him to return to the future and start a new life somewhere else, on another planet maybe. It would at least take away the temptation to go to Silver Hills and see Sky. It would take the temptation of a lot of things away. If only things had been different, if only there had been another way, if only…

Alex slumped down on the sidewalk, bowing his head down, trying to figure out what the next step was. What was he supposed to do now? He didn't know. He remembered when he had always known what he was going to do, and now he was coming up empty on an answer.

"Somebody help me!" Alex jumped quickly to his feet and ran towards a house where he saw a young woman being attacked by mugger with a knife.

"Shut up lady, or I'm going to kill you!"

"Or how about you get your ass out of here before I kick it?"

The mugger turned around and just smirked at Alex who looked like he lived out on the streets. "You, kick my ass? Don't make me laugh, if I were you pal I'd turn around and walk away."

"Sorry, can't do that."

"Fine. You'll be sorry."

"We'll just see about that." Alex watched as the mugger came at him with the knife, but Alex was quicker and faster. He grabbed the mugger's wrist and twisted it behind his back, until the knife dropped to the ground. Alex then shoved the mugger to the ground. "Get out of here!"

The mugger took off, running like the wind. Alex bent down and picked up the knife and tossed it in the trash, before turning to make sure the young woman was unharmed.

"Thank you. I thought I was dead."

"It was nothing. Glad I could help." He smiled briefly and started walking away.

"Wait, I didn't even get your name!" She ran after him. "I'm Jill. Jill Marks."

He stopped. He wasn't sure why, but something was telling him to turn around and answer. "My name's Al….I mean my name's Drake Alexander." He shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you." She smiled, looking him in the eyes. She could see so much sadness and loneliness behind those blue eyes, a lost soul.

"Well, I should be going." He turned away.

"Wait, I'd like to repay you for helping me."

"You don't have to," he answered. It felt good to help, it reminded him a little of the life he left behind. "Just think of it as kindness amongst strangers."

"But we're not strangers anymore," she smiled kindly. "I know your name and you know mine."

Alex stopped and turned around. It had been so long since someone seemed to care about him. "Really, you don't have to give me anything."

"How about something to eat? You look like you haven't had a home cooked meal in a long time."

He was hungry, now that he thought about it, but he wouldn't be staying here for long. He had to get moving, think about what his next move was. He should go, but there was just something about her smile, so warm, seeming to care. It seemed so long since anyone had looked at him in that way. "Aren't you afraid that I could be some crazed murderer or something?"

"I think if you were, you would have done something by now." There was just something about him, something in his eyes that said he was a trust worthy person. "Besides, you look like the trustworthy type. Come on, it's just a little dinner." She smiled. "Think of it as kindness amongst strangers."

Alex had to laugh at that. She had used his own words against him. "Well, I guess a little dinner couldn't hurt."

The two then started towards Jill's front door. "So Drake, where'd you learn to fight like that? Were you a cop or something?"

"Something like that. How 'bout I tell you over dinner?" Of course leaving out a few minor details. Maybe he could start a new life here; after all he had just created a new name for himself and was at the beginning of creating a friendship. Just maybe things have a way of working out in the end.

It was like he was dead. This couldn't be the strongly built and willed man she had married. The man she married would never have allowed this much damage to himself. Both legs broken, heavy bruising to his ribs, a massive head injury, this couldn't be him. This had to be some mistake.

She held his hand in hers and stared at his face, but unlike so many times before, he didn't react to her touch. "You can't leave me. I need you. Your daughter needs you." Megan, their daughter, just a little more than a month old, who might now never know her own father. A thought Hayley couldn't bear to think about. Megan had already lost her uncle; she couldn't lose her father too.

She felt tears run down her face, knowing that somehow she was the lucky one, Eric had survived the attack, whereas Wes had died before they could get to him. There was no chance of saying one last goodbye; no more I love you. She couldn't even want to imagine what Alec and Lisa were going through, what Sky… Sky, his father died just a few days shy of his seventh birthday. The little boys life would never be the same again.

"How is he?" Hayley turned to see Collins standing by the door. He didn't even look like the prominent business man she had known. He was a broken man, a broken up father who just lost his son.

"The same," she answered with a heavy heart. "The doctors don't think he'll make it."

He bit his lip as he slowly walked in and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "If there is one thing I know about Eric, it's that he's a fighter." He couldn't give up an Eric, he had already lost one son. He couldn't lose another.

"Yeah he is," she whispered, giving him a faint smile, as she wiped her eyes. "How's Sky doing?" But even as she asked it, she knew...

"About what you'd expect. I can't seem to get him to eat. It's just going to take some time." Collins sighed. He was never good at these kind of things, but this time around he was going to do things right. He couldn't make the same mistakes with Sky that he had made with Wes, after his mother had died. His grandson needed him now more then ever. He gently placed his hand on Hayley should. "If you need anything at all, please don't hesitate to call. We're family."

Hayley smiled, grateful for his concern and kindness. "Thank you. Please tell Sky and Lisa I'm thinking about them."

"Of course," he answered.