A/N: This story is actually to go alongside Forbidden No More, because I decided FN needs its own entry. I will blend Ashley and Grant into this story as well, but not for a while down the line. FN will serve as a sister story to give their background. Hope you enjoy both.

~Jen

PROLOGUE

"If the gods are there, help me..."

Kayla glanced over balled up, empty McDonald's bags, her laptop computer carrying case, and the bright pink purse tucked between the seats. Her mother had always taught her to be prepared for anything, but unfortunately she'd forgotten her baseball bat and Mace this morning.

Too bad she'd caved under Dr. Mommy's nagging her to apply to med school, instead of becoming a cop. A trusty firearm at her side would be more than a little reassuring right now.

The pounding and squeaking against the windshield sent shivers up her spine, and she swallowed as she reasoned, this is just a joke, get a grip. If this was real, this guy would have croaked already. The gaping neck wound and milky eyes were enough evidence for her to form that brilliant deduction.

Yes, this joke was about as lame as Diana's ghost stories.

The bloody man resembled Ranger Ted, with his slight pudginess and disheveled, salt and pepper hair, but he must have purchased his get up from a professional costume maker. Retrieving a gray remote from her purse, she eyed the three fingers that dangled loosely from the man's hand and splayed out on the glass each time the jokester struck it, leaving smudges of fake blood.

The park gate's black, spiked bars seemed to sprout from the top of his head, and he eyed her like a cat who'd just spied its prey, his snarl revealing yellow, red-tinged teeth.

"Good one, Ted!" she called with a shudder. "But I haven't even had my coffee, and I'm not in the mood! Now get out of the way before I run you over!"

When his growl filtered through the clear barrier, his insistent bangs rocking the car, she frowned. Her stomach lurched as she watched white tree buds rise and sink above the silly man's head. Usually Ted couldn't carry on a joke without bursting into hysterics. Last year on April Fool's Day, Kayla had gathered her things after a long morning stuffed inside the Nature Center with cute, giggling preschoolers, only to step outside and find a two foot, extra-fluffy squirrel shaking its fist from beneath a tulip-encircled tree. The prank hadn't lasted more than a moment, because Ted nearly fell out of the tree with the puppet strings wrapped around his fingers.

"Your expression," he'd roared as she rolled her eyes and tapped her foot on the cement. "You should see your expression!"

The rocking ceased, and she smirked. Ranger Dingbat.

She pushed the button, and the iron gates whirred open and stopped with a clang; but then the Dingbat became more vicious in his so-called attempts to get in, clawing more frantically and snarling like that stupid Doberman Pincer her mom had sworn to shoot between the eyes if he managed to chew himself loose again. Last time, the poor creature had leapt over the fence and-

"Hey!" She protested as the man climbed all the way up on the car hood and began punching the glass. "Get off now, Dufus... whoever you are! This is a new car!"

Her shiny, blue Sunbird Convertible was being devastated by this idiot!

As she reached for the door handle, the glass splintered- one, long, lightning bolt down the middle of the windshield. Ted wouldn't take the joke this far.

Drive, drive! Her mind screamed. Not with him on the car, you idiot!

Driving through the open portal would trap her inside the completely gated park with this lunatic, so she ensured the doors were locked, wrapped one hand around the steering wheel and stomped on the gas. The car lurched forward, her scream lashing out as she whipped the vehicle around and dislodged the maniac from her hood. He rolled over, his head smacking the asphalt and receiving a fresh wound as she righted the Sunbird, her hands slipping from the leather wheel.

Cursing, she flew down a pink, cherry-blossom-lined lane filled with squawking birds, and glanced into the rearview mirror just in time to see the weirdo stand and begin limping in her direction.

Her breath caught and she snapped her focus back to the street ahead, shoving her strawberry locks out of her face. A man bolted into the road.

Shrieking along with the tires as she jammed on the breaks, she peeked over her shoulder. The man behind her seemed to be gaining speed, and the man in front of her held out his hand like a traffic cop, his shoulders drooping as he limped toward the driver's side window.

Just as she lamented the finding of another freak, he shook his head, pleading, blue eyes meeting hers as he bent and wrapped on the window. "Open up!"

She shook her head, glancing behind them again. "Either get in or get out of the way! There's a-"

"I can't!" He yelled, his wagging head shaking loose a dark curl. "I can't! Roll down the window!"

"What!"

"Just do it!" He shouted. "Do it now!"

"What the hell?"

"Trust me, OK? I can help you!"

She must have been crazy or delirious, or so used to being Kayla the pushover that she couldn't think straight; but there was something about this man...

The sun illuminated his hair as though he wore a halo, and his bushy brow curled in a stern look that begged her compliance. His white, priest collar suggested integrity, but who knew?

Acid crept up her throat when she spotted the creep limping and snarling like something from The Night of the Living Dead. He must have been about forty feet and closing, and here this man was, standing out here like... like... She pressed the window button and with the disappearing glass came the strong scent of lilacs. Large, calloused hands cupped under her jaws, and the man frowned down at her with tears shining in his eyes. "It's started," he said huskily.

She blinked several times, squirming under the feel of his hands but not sure what the heck to do. "There- there's a lunatic down there-"

"I have something for you."

Before she knew it, he'd pressed his mouth into hers, and she froze like those bronze statues that dotted the park. Froze so stiffly that the breath seemed to have drained from her lungs, and she gripped the man's arms in a plea for mercy. It was like... like he was stealing her freaking breath!

Unable to scream, she felt her insides throb and shudder as her lungs struggled for air.... Her mother's big, brown eyes filled her mind, along with her father's thick, accusing finger, and she felt as though she were falling... falling and spinning in a black and white spiral into Wonderland- one filled with bright light and rushing sounds... like... Warm wind caressed her hair, and a babbling brook joined in with chattering birds. From the distance came the sound of laughter- childish laughter that grew in volume as her lungs filled with oxygen and yellow dandelions popped from the green strands of shiny grass in the field that stretched out in front of her. It reminded her of days spent at the park with her parents... days long past that she thought she'd forgotten.

Vaguely, she recalled climbing into a treehouse, her father's hand... She shivered with the memory. She thought she'd imagined it and had brushed it off. She'd thought it was a mistake. All sorts of thoughts had crossed her mind, but only one had stuck with her, day after day and birthday after birthday- without him there to explain.

Hugging herself, she sank to her knees. Her tears plopped onto the tile floor, and she could hear her mother's high heels clicking in a half circle behind her. Her father cursed gruffly and tossed her dolly so hard that her shoulders jumped; and her lip quivered as she stared at Alice's cracked, porcelain head. Her right, spiral pigtail sank into the cavity.

"It was her fault, Talia," her father roared, "and I can't believe you're defending her!"

What? She glanced around, unable to bring herself to look her parents in the face. How the hell had she found herself back at this moment in time? Did that priest have some sort of magical powers? Was he some sort of supernatural being? Had he taken her from one Hell, only to drop her into another?

This wasn't real, she decided. Wasn't real, couldn't be real! It was just an illusion... or... or a flashback. Yes, that's it, she decided, even though she could smell the tangy aroma of her mother's pasta sauce. Things like this just didn't happen, and she hadn't spent all these years burrying herself in Science books, only to believe that something weird like this could actually take place.

Inhaling deeply, she felt fingers digging into her arms. She wouldn't cry. She wouldn't even flinch under her father's scrutiny.

"Kayla," whispered a man, but he didn't sound like her father. She opened her eyes to complete blackness. Shivering and blinking back tears, she reached her trembling fingers into nothingness, and her arms throbbed from squeezing pressure. "God, what's happening?" She cried, and the invisible vice loosened as quickly as it had seized her.

"Give it a few moments, Kayla," came the warm voice that had whispered her name. Her shaking shoulders sank, and her eyelids slammed shut with his final words: "You'll be fine. I promise you, you'll be fine."