She'd parked in some strange places since becoming a Wild Force Ranger, and none of them were ever convenient. She was walking down yet another kid-infested street when she saw the flashy black emergency vehicle. She almost turned and went another way, but there was a group of overdressed and undersupervised children behind her, so she kept going.

Taylor shot a covert look at the driver as she hurried past, telling herself it didn't matter which of the Silver Guardians was on duty this afternoon. To her chagrin, though, she found the driver looking back at her, and she tossed her head as she abruptly changed course. She had planned to walk up to this vehicle all along. No matter who was in it.

"Hey," she said, pausing awkwardly beside the truck. That was as far as she got before her imagination failed her. Maybe it would have been better to keep walking and let him think that their gazes had met accidentally.

"Hey," Eric answered. He stared out of the windshield through dark glasses, for all the world as though he was watching a crime in progress. She might as well have not been there.

"I hear I got off of a speeding ticket because of you," she blurted out. She'd be damned if she went to all this trouble and didn't even get a reaction out of him.

He didn't move. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Got pulled over last week," she said, scrutinizing what she could see of his expression. "The officer wrote me up, called me in and everything. Then, like it happened everyday, he came over to give me a warning and told me I had a friend in the Silver Guardians."

"Shouldn't drive so fast," Eric told the windshield. "You wouldn't get pulled over so often."

His radio came to life, and the garbled words made him reach for his seatbelt. "Gotta go," he said, clicking the buckle into place before putting his hand on the ignition. "Halloween's a busy night for us."

"Can I come?" she asked without thinking.

He met her challenging glare with one of his own, but at least he'd looked at her. Then, to her surprise, he just shrugged. "Suit yourself," he said, leaning over to unlock the passenger door.