BACK ON EARTH

HAYLEY

I can't help but grin in satisfaction as I send the message back to Zedd. It took a little while, but once I hit on the key, it was a snap. I head out of my office and glance around the Cybercafe, ever thankful that taking the Black Ranger powers hasn't interfered too much with business. Though if Tommy could manage teaching and lesson plans and grading I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised I can manage the orders for the week and the books.

Just about to lock said doors as it's well past closing time I pause as the door opens and my attention is drawn to the tall, broad shouldered, dark haired man that enters. Oh hell no. Anger flares in me as he strolls across the room as though nothing was wrong.

"Hey, Hayley. How's it going?" Hey Hayley, how's it going? Oh fine, just fine, never mind you didn't answer one of my messages, calls, or texts. Never mind I had to rely on Zedd of all people to do what YOU should have done.

"Fine." I spit the word out through my teeth. Is he kidding? Or does he just have a death wish.

"I went by Tommy's house, but he wasn't home. Do you know where he is?"

I can't help but stare at him. "Jason," I begin uncertainly, "Are you kidding me or did you suffer brain damage too?"

"What?" Looking lost, I suddenly feel some, not all mind you, but some of my anger fade.

"You didn't get any of my messages, did you?"

His jovial look changes to one of concern and he lowers his voice. "What happened?" Great, just great.

"Let's go in my office." I signal Trent that I'm going to my office and lead Jason there. "You should probably sit down."

He perches on the edge of the couch. "What's going on?"

"Just so you know, I left you several messages." He nods and motions for me to get on with the story. "Tommy was hurt. Severely. So severely that the power left him."

Immediately, he's on his feet, but I shake my head. "Sit down. There's more." I wait for him to sit down once more before I continue. "He and the Rangers were in a battle in the woods. The kids had just morphed when the monster appeared and shot Tommy with a laser in the head."

"Okay, but he's a Ranger." Yeah that's not the end all be all of safety there Jason. Seeing my look he's fast to add, "He's been shot in the head before. A few times actually." Suddenly seeing a pattern here, but all right.

"Well regardless of his past injuries this one is different. I don't know what happened, but he flew back and hit a tree. A few minutes later, the battle was over and we had to call an ambulance. They nearly lost him on the way to the hospital. He survived, but there was some pretty severe brain damage. The doctors suggested that he go into rehabilitation. As his medical proxy, I agreed and sent him to the best one I could find that was also closest to us."

"Okay," Drawing the word out and eyes narrowed I can see him ticking away at what the next problem will now be.

Now comes the hard part. "I went to see him the day after I dropped him off. They told me that he was refusing to see anyone and they thought it would be a good idea to give him a few days to adjust."

"That's not like Tommy, a loner he may be most of the time, but he'll always make exceptions when it comes to those he considers family." Yes Jason I get that now, thank you, I know I'm an idiot.

"I know, but with how badly he was hurt and how much he really didn't want to go, I thought it wasn't too farfetched that he might be mad at me and not want to see me."

"Maybe," Looking unconvinced Jason is pressing my nerves, as if he'd ever answered me then perhaps he could have put his two cents in at a time it could have helped.

"Being me though, I still checked in the next several days. They always told me that he was still refusing to see anyone. Then came the day that we had a visitor."

I know that I am going to have to edit this carefully. "Zedd came and asked to see Tommy. He said that he owed Tommy and that he could help him. I don't know how he found out he was hurt, but he clearly knew something was up and thus why he came. He exchanged words with Conner, but Kira seemed to touch some shred of humanity in him and he promised her to more or less not cause unneeded problems."

"She reminds him of Tommy." Yes, well I was just glad she- wait what?!

"What?"

"She reminds him of Tommy." He repeats in much too calm of a tone. "Zedd was obsessed with Tommy when he was younger, I don't know why, I don't want to know why, but I've seen and talked to Kira before, the way her personality is, and the way she looks, she's basically a female version of him at sixteen, be it a bit more of an outspoken one, but still. I'd wager when she talked to him, she gave him those big brown eyes of hers and asked in a very soft spoken way for him to not cause unneeded trouble, which chances are is why he agreed if he did. Unlike Conner who very likely ran his loud mouth and tried to challenge the great evil one." Pretty much.

"Well however she did it, the upshot of the conversation was that if Tommy was doing well, he'd leave well enough alone. If not, then Zedd was going to help him."

"I don't like where this is going." Just wait, it gets worse.

"I got a call later. The short version was that Tommy had been taken and I knew that Zedd had done it. A little while later, I got an email from Zedd informing me that Tommy - had actually been worse off there."

Head in hands for a long moment, he looks ready to yell or kill something. "I go off for one month, one damn month and this is what happens. So Zedd has Tommy."

"Yes."

"And none of you are doing squat to get him back?"

"Well…no I guess as such not at the moment." I really don't like where this is going. "But the reason for that is again Zedd is helping him."

"Hayley, this is Zedd you're talking about! Again obsessed with my best friend since he was the Green Ranger, Zedd! He could and for all argumentative purposes probably is lying!"

"No, Jason, he isn't." I swallowed hard, remembering the pictures. "He provided proof."

Jason's face hardened. "I want to see the email and the proof."

My heart sinks and I know that if he wasn't furious before he will be in a minute as I was afraid of this. "If that's what you want, but I'd advise against it."

"Show me."

I go around the desk and open the first email from him. "There."

Coming around the desk and reading the snarky but still somewhat helpful email, he sets his jaw and reaches for the mouse to open the attached pictures.

I put my hand on his wrist, hoping for once he'll listen. "Don't. Jason-"

"I have to know."

I look into his eyes and can't refuse him, but I also won't stay either. "Don't say I didn't warn you." I've looked at those pictures far too many times since I had received them and I've no desire to do it again. I back away so that I wouldn't see them again, but don't tear my eyes away from him. This was part of my penance for taking Tommy to that awful place and not being more insistent on seeing him. I watch as my best friend's brother destroyed by what I had allowed to happen.

I refused to take my eyes off him as he grew paler and paler. Still not looking away, I open the door to my private bathroom in case his reaction was anything like mine. A minute later, it is. My stomach twists and I sink to my knees. "I'm sorry, Jason. I'm so sorry. I didn't know, but that's no excuse. I should have checked on him. I-"

"Stop." I wince at the harshness of his voice, knowing now how much he blames me, and knowing that it's still not nearly as much as I blame myself. "This - what happened - is not your fault. It's the fault of the jerks that did this."

Wait, what? "But-"

"No. No buts. Have you heard anything else since Zedd took him?"

"Yes." I was scrambling to keep up with the subject change. "After I got the email from him, I started proceedings against the clinic and got his records. In the process, we found out that all the patients were being treated the same way and some of them were being experimented on. I sent his records to Zedd. He recently sent them back saying that parts of them were encoded. I had just broken the code and sent it back before you arrived. I'm still having trouble with the idea that Dr. Creepy was letting the orderlies - abuse people."

"Dr. Creepy?" Jason almost sounds amused.

"Zedd apparently let Tommy dictate a good bit of some of the messages he sent, as some of the stuff added in I just can't see Zedd adding. See, in this passage he quoted him saying, to use Tommy's words, he creeped me out. That along with the fact Goldar is acting like a rotten five year old, and Zedd still insists on calling him Thomas, and it's annoying, didn't seem very Zedd-like to me."

"No, that's probably Tommy's add ins, however Zedd not calling him Tommy is something he's always seemed to do for some reason. I don't know why, but I think at least back in the day it was done to annoy the hell out of him, as Tommy's hackles always raised when Zedd would use the proper version of his name. And him still doing it doesn't make me look any more favorably upon the evil one."

"Yes, well that aside, the doctor's name is actually Dr. Franklin."

Jason's head snaps up from where he's reading another bit about Zedd's intense fear of needles. "Dr. Franklin? Dr. Douglas Franklin?"

"Yes, why?"

"Hayley, show me the code that you broke." Clearly a command, I return to my computer and pull up the files. He looks the code over. "How long did it take you to break this?"

Puzzled, I answer, "I don't know. A few hours, I guess."

He raises an eyebrow. "Are you serious?" I nod and he chuckles. "Well, the boss will not be happy to hear this. Hayley, you couldn't reach me because I was on an undercover mission. This code - supposedly unbreakable - was stolen. Dr. Franklin was discarded early on as a suspect. That's all I can really tell you, but Dr. Franklin is going to be in serious trouble when I report this."

He pulls out his phone. "I think I can get him in more trouble then he even realizes."

"How?"

"My boss considers the theft of the code to be traitorous and possibly an act to precipitate war. If he plays his cards right, he can claim the patients as prisoners of war and horribly mistreated under the Geneva Convention. If he works it right, it would call for Dr. Franklin to come before a military tribunal and that will be - less than pleasant."

I start to grin, but sober at his next words. "After I get the ball rolling on that, I'm going to work on a way to go see Tommy, so make certain Zedd knows he better be happy and in good health when I do or else needles won't be the only damn thing Zedd will be terrified of."