Emma's heart pounded in her chest on the dark drive to the hospital. A call in the early hours of the morning had woken her up. She knew Gia would be home late, so it was just her and the two kids at home. She had reached for her phone on the nightstand, praying that this call was just Gia letting her know she was finally on her way home.

It wasn't. Gia wouldn't be coming home. Not tonight, at least.

She was Gia's emergency contact while Jake was away, so the hospital called to let her know they had Gia. Emma rushed out of bed in a blind panic and nearly raced out the door before she remembered she had the kids and Tiger. She had to pull them out of bed and strap them into their car seats. Joe was crying. The last time he had been woken up so abruptly and placed in the car, his father had died. Emma tried to reassure him everything would be fine, but she didn't know herself, and the panic in her voice let Joe know he had a right to be worried.

Ciara was visibly upset, but she wasn't crying. She was stone-cold silent. Her expression said it all. The same thought was running through her mind. Something terrible had happened. Her aunt Emma never pulled her out of bed. Her aunt Emma was always sweet and gentle. This wasn't normal.

Emma got Tiger into the back of the truck and sped to her mothers' house. She smashed the doorbell until Claire was up, then barely explained anything to her mom as she dropped off the kids and the cat and ran out to her car. She promised her mother that once she knew more, she would call.

It was dark on the drive. It was the middle of the night, and the darkness amplified everything. Emma's heart was beating so loud, she could hear the echo. Her hands trembled so much, she couldn't drive straight. Her eyes watered to the point where she had to stop, pull over and wipe them until they were somewhat dry.

She eventually made it to the hospital and flashed her Silver Guardian badge and ID to the lady waiting at reception. Gia's career meant she needed a lot of privacy. She dealt with people who would be glad to see her hurt daily and if she wasn't careful, they could easily take advantage of her injuries or illness to get revenge. The hospital wanted to confirm Emma was who she claimed to be before they gave up any information, then told her she would have to wait until Gia was out of surgery.

Shane rushed in about an hour later in nothing but pyjama pants and an oversized shirt. They didn't match at all, so Emma assumed he had been pulled out of bed as well. Kelly was right behind him, rolling in without shoes on her feet. It seemed she couldn't be bothered losing any time. Shane did exactly what Emma did as soon as he arrived and rushed to reception. He didn't need to show ID before the lady told him what she told Emma. They would know more once Sarah was out of surgery. Shane grabbed his head in his hands, visibly panicked. He hadn't been Sarah's guardian for a full month, and already he was making hospital trips.

He sat down across from Emma while Kelly followed nervously. She shifted in her seat as she recognized the former pink Ranger and it occurred to her that Sarah had gone to visit Gia for the night. She had texted that she was on her way home, so Kelly assumed whatever happened had happened on the way. Emma's presence meant otherwise.

"Gia?" she asked and Emma looked up. She barely recognized Kelly but remembered Gia talking about a current Ranger – green – who had recently been paralyzed. Kelly's pyjamas were green, and she knew who Emma was waiting for. The pink Ranger nodded her head. "Do you know what happened?"

Emma shook her head. She hadn't bothered to ask. Knowing what happened wouldn't fix Gia.

"I don't."

Shane got up from his chair. He couldn't sit still. He walked back to reception and spoke to the lady.

"Sarah just had surgery."

"We have that on record," the woman informed him. "Everything's electronic now. It's a real time saver."

"She has a brain injury too."

"We're aware," the woman told him. "Sir, I promise, someone will be out to talk to you as soon as they can."

"I…"

"Sir, we're doing everything we can," the woman promised him. "I know it's hard, but you just have to sit and wait."

"Can you tell me what happened?"

"We aren't sure," the woman said with a shrug. "The fire alarm at the Silver Guardian's HQ was tripped. The fire department showed up and there was no fire, but your niece and an officer were found on scene."

"Gia?"

"I can't share any information about the other patient," the woman said. "Confidentiality. You understand."

"Was Sarah awake?"

"Not when she arrived. She had her student ID on her, so we were able to track down her information that way."

"With the brain injury…"

"Sir, I assure you, the doctors are aware of her past and they are doing everything they can," the woman said as she gestured to the chairs. "I have calls to take and files that need sorting. I'm really sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to sit and wait."

Shane nodded. He knew she was just trying to do her job, so he obliged. He took his seat back and looked to Kelly and Emma with a sigh.

"One of them had to be awake," he said. "Someone tripped the fire alarm."

"I can ask someone to check the cameras," Emma offered and wished she had thought of that sooner. She took out her phone to call Wes. He wasn't in town, but he did have access to all the security cameras in everyt Silver Guardian HQ. He would be able to see the footage remotely.

He responded to the text almost instantly and promised he would go through the footage right away. Ten minutes later, a file was emailed to Emma. She opened it and angled her screen so the three of them could watch it at the same time.

Oedius stepped into the HQ lobby. Since Gia was still in the building, the locks were minimal, and the security alarm wasn't set yet. Oedius had no trouble as she took a seat on the couch and used what appeared to be a burner phone to make a call.

"How did she get that?" Kelly asked. Emma shrugged.

"My guess is illegally."

The footage continued. Oedius was on just a quick call then hung up the phone. She got up and stood by the elevators. Emma knew what would happen next. Gia only worked in her office and would have to come down the elevator to leave. It happened just as Emma predicted, with Sarah right behind her. They bumped into Oedius and it wasn't long before a fight broke out. Oedius was stronger by far, but it seemed like the girls held their own. Emma wasn't sure how Oedius took back the advantage on Sarah, but she did, and the younger pink Ranger hit the ground hard. Shane winced as he watched, and Kelly let out a loud gasp. Her helmet would have protected her, but when Sarah didn't move at all afterwards, they had to know there was some serious damage done.

Sarah's defeat sparked fury in Gia, as it always did when someone in her care was hurt. Emma watched her sister give her blaster all the power she had before she fired it at Oedius. Gia seemed to black out after that, her injuries mostly self-sustained, but it seemed she had done what she wanted to do. Oedius was knocked back into the wall by the front door. She crashed into it hard, and there was blood splattered around her. She lay unmoving for a second, then started to pull herself up. She was very visibly hurt and the blood pouring from her chest proved to be too much trouble. She looked to the two defeated Rangers, but couldn't find the strength to finish them off. She needed to care for herself, otherwise it would be her end.

As she pulled herself up to her feet, she grabbed whatever she could to help. Her hand reached for the fire alarm and when she pulled, the alarm went off. Once on her feet, Oedius disappeared, and the alarm tipped off the fire department. They were at HQ in mere minutes and rushed Gia and Sarah out of the building themselves.

Emma closed the file. She didn't need to watch it again. She knew everything she wanted to know. Shane grabbed his head in his hands. He had given Sarah permission to stay out so late. If he had asked her to come home, he could have protected her.

Kelly whipped her phone across the room. It was all she had to throw and all she could do to let out some of her anger. The only consolation she had was that Gia had done real damage to Oedius. For the first time, the evil fox was in real pain. It was the least she could suffer after all she had caused, but it was something.

"Family for Gia Holling?" a doctor called out and Emma rushed to see him. He pulled her aside, but they never left the room.

"Surgery was a success," he said. "We manage to close up all the wounds and there is no sign of further damage."

"She'll be okay?"

"Her leg has a small fracture, which we repaired. She won't be able to work for a few months, but it will heal. Right now, we have her sedated to help with the pain."

"Can I see her?"

"We're transferring her right now. We'll let you know once she's settled," the doctor promised. Emma let out a huge sigh of relief. The doctor added, "That heart of hers is a real-life saver. Despite all the trauma her body suffered, it continued to beat without fail. Without it, I'm sure this could have been much worse."

"Thank you," Emma said, then went back to take her seat. It would be some time still before she could see Gia, but at least she knew everything would be alright.

"So?" Shane asked, and Emma explained what the doctor said. He looked relieved, but only for a second before his worry for Sarah returned. There was still no news.

"I have to call my moms," Emma told them. "No doubt they're freaking out."

Shane let her go, then shifted his attention to Kelly. The green Ranger seemed very uncomfortable. He put a hand on her leg and squeezed it. Kelly couldn't feel it, but she saw him reaching out.

"Sarah's tough."

"So is concrete," Kelly muttered. "But give it a few good slams and even it will start to crack."

Shane nodded his head. Kelly had a point. Sarah hadn't been at her best before the attack. If anything was going to kill her, this would be it.

Emma returned later after making the call to her mothers. She told Shane and Kelly how she had been chewed out for not telling them more initially, but over all they were happy Gia was okay. She mentioned how Vanessa would be at the hospital with Ciara in the morning, once Gia was ready for visitors. It was another hour still before a doctor stepped out and called for Sarah's family. Shane got up and promised Kelly he wouldn't leave out a single detail as he went to talk to the doctor.

The doctor took Shane aside before he started to speak, "Sarah arrived to the ER with a brain edema – or swelling of the brain."

"She hit her head," Shane told him.

"She burst an artery," the doctor said. "The impact must have caused a build up of pressure, which caused the bleed. The excess fluid caused the swelling."

"Did you stop it?"

"We did," the doctor confirmed. "We repaired the artery and the swelling is starting to decrease. We hope that's a good sign for recovery."

"So she'll be okay?"

"We can't promise that," the doctor told him honestly. "There is brain activity. Your niece is very much alive and she's already showing signs of improvement, but with trauma like this, especially the second time around, we won't know for sure until she wakes up."

"What might happen?" Shane asked.

"Well, we'll be looking for a variety of symptoms," the doctor said. "Sleeping too much or sleeping too little could be an indicator of damage. If she lacks attention or has trouble sorting her own thoughts, or has an increase in the amount of headaches, or the severity, shows signs of depression…"

"She just lost her mother," Shane told him. "She's likely already going to be showing signs of depression."

"We'll make a note of that, but you'll have to be prepared for the depression to worsen."

"Is that all?"

"Her communication skills might suffer."

"She had a stutter last time," Shane told him. "It… improved over time, but…"

"She might also have trouble with fine or gross motor skills," the doctor said and looked to the worried uncle. "This is just a list of potential side effects. I can't promise she won't suffer from any of them, but you need to be prepared in case we're up against them. The sooner we can identify a symptom, the sooner we can begin treating it and the better her odds of recovery."

"What are the odds she'll bounce back?" Shane asked. "Like I said, she just lost her mother, her girlfriend was just in an accident that paralyzed her. She's had a rough go. If we throw that on top of everything else…"

"It's not hopeless," the doctor said. "But as I told you, I can't promise a full recovery. But your niece is showing brain activity. A lot of patients with second traumatic brain injuries aren't so lucky."

"Can I see her?"

"We'll let you know when she's ready for visitors," the doctor said. "I promise you, we'll keep you up to date on everything as soon as we know it."

"Thank you."