Bill knew his choice was unforgivable. He had told Oedius who to kill, effectively destroying a family and hurting the people who were close to his daughter. At the same time, because Oedius had exposed him to the Rangers, he had lost his daughter's and his wife's trust. More than that, though, he had hurt his own family.

He had no choice in the matter, though. Oedius was far stronger than he was. Oedius had way more power than he could ever imagine. She had his life, and the life of his family in the palm of her hands. If he didn't choose to kill Anne, or anyone else, she would go after the people he cared for most. He had to think, if the roles had been reversed, if it had been Mr. Foster who had been in his position, he would have made the same choice.

"You did well," Oedius announced to Bill as she appeared before him. Bill hated how she could never just walk up to him. She always had to be mysterious. Perhaps that's what made her feel so powerful to him. "That went off without a single hitch."

"My wife won't let me see my daughter anymore," Bill growled. "And my daughter wants nothing to do with me anyway. You promised you wouldn't hurt either of them if I did this."

"I didn't hurt them," Oedius said. "I left your wife out of it. Your daughter barely received a scratch in that fight…"

"But you outed me," Bill said. "You told the Rangers I picked Anne. You let them know I was working for you."

"Aren't you?"

"Yeah, but…"

"You did choose Anne yourself."

"You left me with no choice."

"You could have chosen anyone," Oedius smirked. "You chose to kill the white Ranger's mother, knowing it would cause the most pain."

"You said I had to hurt the team."

"And you did."

"Exactly. I did what you asked. Why would you out me to the Rangers? Why would you do that to my daughter?"

"Because I don't care about your relationship with your daughter," Oedius told him bluntly. "As a matter of fact, the thought of her hating you just makes my plan work so much better. The Rangers are falling apart. The white Ranger is devastated, the green Ranger just lost another parent at my hands, the yellow Ranger's upset for his girlfriend and the pink Ranger has to live with the guilt of knowing her father is responsible for all of this. If I play my cards right, they'll be begging for my mercy by the week's end."

"I did what you asked because you promised me…"

"Well, I lied," Oedius told him. "As long as the Power Stars are in my hands, I don't care about your, and I don't care about the deal we made. I'm a monster to you, remember?"

"So you aren't going to spare Sarah?" Bill asked. "You just said that to make me work for you?"

"Now you're catching on."

"So… Anne didn't have to die. I could have told the Rangers about what you did from the start and nothing would be different."

"If you had, I wouldn't have been able to pull this off so effortlessly," Oedius said. "I wouldn't have been able to find the exact right family member to kill. I probably would have gone with my first choice and attacked the red and gold Rangers' father."

"But you'll kill them all, in the end?"

Oedius shook her head, "Bill, as long as I have the Power Stars in my hands, I don't care who lives and who dies. If the Rangers turn over their Power Stars willingly, in an act of defeat, then they can live under my rule if they wish."

"They won't do that. They'll never give you the Power Stars. Not after they know that's what you want."

"So you'll tell them?" Oedius asked. "You'll turn your back on me, knowing that if you do, I'll be the one demanding the Power Stars from the Rangers. Knowing that if it's me asking, the Rangers will never turn them over and I'll have to claim them over their dead bodies?"

"You can't be trusted…"

"But you can," Oedius said. "You tell them what happened here. You tell them how I betrayed you and how you were a fool."

"Why would you want me to do that?"

"Because you'll take the Power Stars for me."

"My own daughter doesn't trust me," Bill frowned. "Why the hell would you think any of the other Rangers would?"

"Because, they'll have to," Oedius said. "Because you'll tell them that if I don't have all seven of their Power Stars in my hands, then one by one, I'll kill everyone they love."

"You want them to hand the Power Stars over to me, who they don't trust, to give to you, who they'll never surrender to?"

"You can figure out the finer details. Maybe you'll take the Power Stars somewhere fake. Maybe you know where you can make perfect replicas. Get creative. I don't pay you just to be a pretty face."

"You don't pay me at all."

"Maybe that can change. When I rule, I will need a trusted servant," Oedius shrugged. "Though, sparing the life of your only child should be payment enough."

"You're sick," Bill frowned.

"The choice of what to do is yours," Oedius said. "But someone will die if I don't get the Power Stars in a timely manner."

"How long do I have?" Bill asked.

"Depends on my patience," Oedius said. "Depends on how much I can trust you'll get the job done."

"And you won't kill the Rangers if you have the Power Stars?"

"They might wish I did," Oedius said. "But I won't order an execution."

"Fine," Bill sighed. "I'll do it. I'll work for you."

-Ninja-Steel-

Hayley returned to the hospital waiting room. A doctor had come to get her, Kelly and her father just moments ago… or hours… she hadn't kept track of time. The doctor took them to another room to break the news of her mother's death. As hard as they tried, the damage was done.

Anne Foster was officially dead. Hayley was without a mother. It had yet to sink in and still it hurt so much.

Calvin, Sarah and Jenny were waiting. When they saw Hayley, followed by Kelly, they knew it was bad news. They knew the minute the doctor took them away. Hell, Jenny knew from her talk with her husband.

"Your dad?" Jenny asked. She wanted to be with him. She had lost a husband before, so she knew what the pain was like. If she could help him through it, maybe it would help ease her guilt a little.

"He's staying with mom," Hayley whispered. "He can't leave her yet."

"Are you… I mean… can I…" Calvin stumbled, unsure of what to say because no, Hayley wasn't okay, and no, there was nothing he could do about it. She was hurt and she had every right to be. Time, and only time, would make her feel better. "Do you want to stay or…"

"We should head home," Hayley said. "Or just… somewhere else. Dad… he said we shouldn't stay."

"I'll wait for him," Jenny promised. "I'll make sure he's taken care of. I've been through this before."

"Thank you," Hayley whispered. Calvin put his arms around her and squeezed her tight. He promised her she wouldn't be alone if she didn't want it.

Sarah turned to Kelly, guilt etched all over her face. This was the third parent she lost, and the third parent to die because of Sarah. In some twisted way, Sarah's name was always somewhere in the story. Her father died because he couldn't deal with the thought of Kelly dating Sarah. Her mother died after kidnapping Sarah, and now Mrs. Foster was dead because Sarah's father had chosen her.

Kelly looked to Sarah and didn't know what to say. Her girlfriend wasn't to blame, but right now, she couldn't be the person to comfort Sarah. She couldn't put aside her own pain to help Sarah. She turned away, kicked a chair, then headed outside. Sarah watched her go, deflated – defeated.

"We'll get ice-cream," Calvin suggested. "The four of us."

Sarah shook her head. She didn't feel much like eating. In fact, she had no appetite at all. Even ice-cream, bought by Calvin, couldn't compel her to eat.

"I think I'm just going to go for a walk."

"We'll come with you."

"Alone," Sarah insisted. "I'll take my hoverboard and clear my head."

"You shouldn't be…" Calvin started, but received a threatening look from the pink Ranger. He sighed, knowing there was nothing for him to argue. Sarah wasn't ready to listen to reason. All she knew was that she wanted to be by herself. "Fine, but just… check in in an hour or so, just so we know you're okay."

"Whatever," Sarah muttered as she walked out the door. Calvin looked to Jenny, who was busy asking around the hospital for where she could find Mr. Foster. Calvin gave his girlfriend a gentle squeeze.

"The offer for ice-cream is still on the table."

"Couldn't hurt, I guess," Hayley said as Calvin walked her out.