It had been nearly two weeks, since Wes's passing. The funeral had taken place just a couple days after he had died. It was both wonderful and sad at the same time. Wes had been honored for his bravery and would go down in SPD history for being a great ranger and true hero, unfortunately he died young just, leaving behind a young son, who still needed him, a newly wife and a father who shouldn't of had to bury his own son.
There still had been no change in Eric's condition and each passing day made it even less likely he would wake up and recover. Hayley hadn't left his side, while her parents stayed at her home taking care of Megan. Everyone was hoping that somehow Eric would pull through and give some light to this tragedy, but part of Hayley was dreading that, because when and if Eric woke up, that would mean she would have to tell him what had happened. She would have to tell him what happened to Wes, his best friend, the man he thought of as his brother. She wasn't sure what was worse losing him or having to tell him about Wes. Both were unimaginable.
Sky's birthday came and went, as if it was just another day. There was a party, a few friends and family. No one, especially Sky, felt like celebrating his seventh birthday. His heart just wasn't in it. His grandfather tried to make it a happy day, but it seemed no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get his grandson to smile.
And then there was Lisa who had slowly been drawing away from him and Sky. She was hurting a lot more than she was admitting to. He knew all too well what she was going through, which was one of the reasons why he didn't push too much when she said something about moving back to Ohio to be with her family, as hard as it would be for Sky. He knew she needed to do what she felt was right for her. He couldn't force her to stay here, not even for the sake of his grandson. After all, she had no legal rights towards him. Wes had died before they had a chance to go through the process.
"You know you're welcome to stay here," he told her with a loving smile. "This is will always be your home."
She smiled faintly at him as she packed up her things. "I know. But it just doesn't…" She tried to hold back her tears. The memory of losing Wes was still very fresh in her mind. Everything about this place reminded her of him. It hurt too much.
"I know." He paused for a moment and turned towards the hallway where he saw Sky standing watching as Lisa packed her things. The boy's face was sad, maybe even angry, feeling as if everyone was leaving him all at once. He took off running when he saw Lisa staring at him.
"Sky..." Things wouldn't be so hard, if it weren't for having to leave Sky. She loved him very much, like a son, but things were different now, more complicated. She hated to leave him, but she was afraid she'd only drag him down with her if she stayed.
"You know you can visit him whenever you want." Collins knew Wes would want her to still be part of Sky's life.
She didn't answer, just gave a weak smile with tears still sparkling in her eyes as she continued to go on her way of getting her things together and bringing whatever memories she could. They had only been married six months, but she would never forget the time they had together as a family. She would treasure the time they had together always.
Collins stayed for a moment and then left the room and started to head towards Sky's room. He then saw Philips exit out of Sky's room, closing the door behind him.
"He asked to be left alone for a while."
Collins nodded his head, sighing. He knew it wasn't fair to Sky. His father had just died. His mother had died two years ago and now Lisa was leaving him. It didn't occur to him until then that, that was how Wes must have felt all those years ago after the death of his wife. He hated realizing how alone Wes must have felt. He saw Philips start to head down the stairs. The man who has stayed with him through it all and had never asked for anything in return. The man who had been more of a father to Wes then he had in those earlier years. "I never really thanked you, for being there for Wes all those years ago. You were more of a father to him than I had ever been."
"There is no need to thank me," Philips answered.
"No, back then I was wrong," Collins answered. He needed Philips to know how valuable he was, that he always had been right. "You had been right; if it weren't for you he probably have ended up hating me and never spoke to me again."
Philips turned. "You're wrong. Wes loved you very much. I was just the old kindhearted butler, but you will always be his father."
Collins smiled. Philips had put up with a lot from him over the years and through it all he had stuck with him and now years later he needed him more then ever. He couldn't have asked for a better friend. "I'm going to need your help again. Just in case I get lost along the way."
"And I'll be right there to help you up, sir."
"Don't you think we've known each other long enough for you to call me Alec?" He smiled faintly. "After all we're practically family."
Philips just answered with a smile.
A few days later, Lisa left the Collins home, her home. The goodbyes were painful and hard, as she hugged both Alec and Sky goodbye. She wished she could stay, but being in this house, their room, without Wes; it was unbearable. Because every night when the clock clicked seven, she expected, she hoped to see Wes coming through the door, just like he always had, but when he didn't come, then it came back to her, Wes was gone. He wouldn't be coming home this time. He was never coming home.
Not being able to handle one more goodbye, Sky ran into the house and up to his room. Tears were in his eyes, not being able to understand why everyone he loved was leaving him. It just wasn't fair. All the kids at his school had both their parents and now he had no parents, never had he felt so alone.
"I'm sorry," whispered Lisa as she stared Collins in the eyes, tears sparkling.
"I know." He sighed heavily. "He'll be okay. One day he'll understand," Collins told her, giving her one last hug before she got in her car and drove off. Hoping one day, when she was ready she would return, but somehow deep inside he knew this really was goodbye.
About a half hour later Collins opened Sky's bedroom door and went and sat next to him on the bed. It only took a moment for Sky to throw himself in his grandfather's arms. "You aren't going to leave me, are you grandpa?" he whimpered.
"No." He gently rubbed Sky's back. "Not for a long time." At least that's what he hoped, but through his years he has learned that sometimes things don't always turn out how you plan them to, sometimes life has a plan of its own. He wrapped his arms around his grandson, holding onto him, trying to take away whatever pain he could, but ultimately knowing some wombs would never heal.
He turned his head to Sky's nightstand where a picture of Wes and Sky rested. It was the first photo they had taken together and now there would be no more, this photo, that moment would be forever frozen in time.
"Yes. Thank you, I'll give him the message," Philips hung up the phone and walked over to the kitchen table where Alec was eating his breakfast and reading the newspaper.
"Who was it?"
"It was Mrs. Lee, asking if we were still interested in…" He couldn't even get the words out. It was almost too painful to think about.
Collins sighed and turned to the next page of the paper. "I don't know. It might not be a good time." He turned his head towards the window, looking at the backyard where Sky was practicing his martial arts, some of the moves Wes and Eric had taught him.
"Maybe it would help," Philips assured him. "It's the last thing he left behind for Sky." Without another word Philips picked up Alec's empty plate and went to go wash it, while Collins continued to look out the window, watching his young grandson.
Sky was lying in his bed under his covers, holding the picture of his father and him, just staring. They had been so happy back then, two of a kind, father and son, and now... He took a deep breath, knowing he had to be strong, be brave, that's what his dad would want. "I promise one day I'll make you proud, I'll be the best Red Ranger I can be, just like you, Dad." In that moment that was all he wanted. He knew that one day he would go to SPD, train hard every day to one day become a Red Ranger, just like his dad. He carefully set the picture back on his nightstand. He was getting ready to turn off his lamp, when he heard a knock at his door.
"Sky, are you still up?" he heard his grandpa say.
"Yeah," he quickly brushed away his tears.
Collins opened the door with a smile on his face. "I have a surprise for you; actually it's your birthday present from your dad." Sky looked at him, confused, he didn't see anything in his grandfather's hand. He then saw his grandfather move a little ways away from the door. And once his grandfather came back into view, he saw something that he never expected to see.
"A puppy!" He sat up and the biggest grin came onto his face as he watched his grandfather place the Great Dane puppy on his bed. Sky laughed when the dog licked his face. Which brought a smile to his grandfather's face, it seemed like forever since he had seen his grandson happy. "But I thought that you're allergic to dogs."
"They have medicine for that, and shots."
"You hate shots."
"Well, this time it's an exception," he smiled as he put his arm around Sky. "He's all yours, Sky."
"Thank you!" Sky threw his arms around his grandfather. "I love you."
"I love you too," He gripped Sky's shoulder. "So what should we call him?"
Sky looked at his new puppy, who was wagging his tail. "Um, how 'bout Trip?"
"Trip?" A concerned look crossed his face. Wes had told him that Sky's memories had been altered and he had no memory of Trip or any of the others. So where had the name come from? "How'd you come up with that name?"
"I don't know. He just looks like a Trip, don't you think so, grandpa?"
Maybe he had nothing to worry about, after all. "Yeah, he does." He sneezed, but never lost the smile on his face. It was a small price to pay, to see his grandson smiling again.
A few days later…
His eyes stirred open. What happened? He was confused and unsure of his surroundings. The last thing he remembered…the battle….the explosions….people getting hurt…Mirloc and armed men shooting at him…The building collapsing…Wes. He jolted up, feeling groggy and dizzy.
"Easy. You're still weak," consoled Hayley as she gently pushed him back down onto the bed of the hospital room.
"Hayley?" Eric turned to her, everything seemed so blurry and hazy, but slowly everything came together, one piece at a time. He looked around, taking in the scene. He was in a hospital room. He noticed several flowers, cards and balloons all over the room. There seemed to be so many as if he had been here for a while. "How long?" His voice was soft and dry. "How long have I been here?"
"Eric, you need to-"
"How long, Hayley?" He raised his voice, but then felt an surge of pain in his chest, he winced. His body hurt all over, like he had been hit by a truck, or large blocks of bricks had been dumped on top of him. It was then he noticed that both of his legs were in casts.
She sighed heavily. "A few weeks."
"A few weeks?" He couldn't believe it. It didn't seem possible. He had been hurt badly before, but he had always came out of it within a couple of days. "A few weeks. How?"
"You were hurt pretty bad." She began crying heavily as the last few weeks came back at her at full force. "The doctors didn't think you'd ever wake up." Hayley leaned forward and put her arms around him, crying heavily. She had been so afraid.
He gently put his arms around her, trying to sooth her pain away. "It's okay. I'm here now."
"Don't ever leave me."
"I'm not going anywhere." He gently rubbed her back for a few moments. He couldn't even imagine what the past few weeks had been like for her, wondering, hoping, praying, that he'd make it through. "Where's Megan?" He didn't even want to think about what it would have been like for his daughter if he hadn't made it. He had grown without his parents, he didn't want her to grow up without him.
Hayley sat up, taking Eric's hand in her own. "At home with my parents." She smiled brightly. "Waiting for her daddy to come home."
Eric smiled as he gently ran his thumb over Hayley's hand. "Well, you be sure to tell her that I'll be home as soon as I can."
"I'll do that." She smiled. She watched as Eric leaned over for the phone, "Eric, you need to rest, you can't be calling people right now."
"Just one call." He placed the phone in his lap. "I need to tell Wes I'm okay." Eric remembered how concerned Wes had been for him when he got shot several times over. "He's probably been a mess. You know how he gets." Hayley's heart fell as she grabbed the phone away from her husband. "Hey! What's the deal, Hayley?"
"Eric..." She sighed heavily and soon her eyes filled with tears as her face began to break apart over what she needed to tell him. What she had been dreading telling him.
The look in her eyes made his heart stop and he slowly felt himself saying the very words that scared him. "Hayley. What's wrong?" Then a deadly chill went down his back. "You're scaring me." And he wasn't one who scared easily. But the look in her eyes and the sound of her heartbroken voice terrified him more than anything. He could feel his heart racing. He searched her eyes praying it wasn't what he feared. "He got out okay, right? Wes, he's okay, isn't he?"
Her face fell. How could she tell him? Wes, his best friend, the man he called his brother. How could she tell him what had happened? How could she tell him that Wes was gone? She took a deep breath, finally gathering up the little courage she had, she looked back up, staring right into his face as she placed her hand on top of his own. "Eric, about Wes," she started, her voice was breaking apart.
"What about him?" But he already knew, in the pit of his stomach he knew. Something terrible had happened. "What happened to Wes?" he asked. When she didn't answer, he demanded. "Tell me! Please, I have to know. Is Wes okay?"
"Eric." Hayley knew this would hurt him more than any of the injuries that had been inflicted on him just weeks before. It was greater then any kind of pain in the world. It was the kind of pain that wouldn't go away anytime soon. She shook her head. "I'm sorry." She bit her lip, looking him right in the eyes, knowing she needed to be the strong one. He was going to need her to be strong. "Wes is gone."
And his world came crashing down, with those three little words. He shook his head. It couldn't be true. "No! No, no!" Hayley wrapped her arms tightly around him as he struggled with his anger, pain, his disbelief. This couldn't be happening. Wes couldn't be... He can't be... "NO. NO!" She just held onto him knowing that he needed her more then ever. "He can't be gone. He can't…"
"Shh," she kissed him gently on the cheek. "It's going to be okay," she cried. "I promise."
How could things be okay? Nothing would ever be okay. His friend, his partner, his brother, was gone. Gone forever. His life would never be the same again, nothing would be. And then Eric's thoughts took a turn for the worse, Sky. Sky, Wes's seven year old son, who two years before had lost his mother, had now lost his father as well.
Eric gently pulled away from Hayley and got control of his emotions as best he could. "Sky?" And that's all he had to say through his tears.
She smiled faintly. "He's okay. Alec has been doing his best, took a leave of absence from work, just to be with him."
"What about Lisa?" Wes's wife, they had only been married for six months, they were talking about having a baby together. And now, all their dreams of a future together had been shattered.
Hayley sighed again, as if losing Wes wasn't bad enough, but things had only gotten worse. "She was pretty messed up. She tried to stay strong for Sky, for Alec, but," she bowed her head. "It was just too much for her, being in that house, too many memories." She sighed heavily. "She left for Ohio a few days ago. She has family there."
Eric wanted to be angry. How could she just leave like that? How could she do that to Sky, to Alec, after everything Wes had done for her? But the look in Hayley's eyes told him that Lisa was heartbroken by the loss of Wes and it was just too much for her to handle. He pushed his anger aside, knowing that it would only make things harder getting through this. He needed to be strong for Sky and Alec. "I want to see them," he stated firmly.
"As soon as you're released from the hospital, we'll go see them. I promise."
"Good." A few moments passed with him just taking everything in. He had just woken up from being in a coma for a few weeks, to a world that was no longer the world he remembered. Everything had changed; people who he thought would always be around were no longer there. "What about Mirloc?"
"He's alive and has been charged with murder," Hayley assured him wanting him to know the one responsible for Wes's death had been caught and wouldn't be able to hurt anyone ever again.
"Good," he stated firmly as he continued to look at the blank wall in front of him.
"You want to talk about it?" she asked him. "About what happened out there?"
"No. There's nothing to talk about," he answered all too quickly. He couldn't talk about it with her. With anyone. There was only one he could have talked about it with and they were gone.
In the pit of her stomach she knew it wasn't over. This was just the beginning to a long road of recovery for Eric. From this day forward things would never be the same again.