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The Path
Intro:
It’s a hot, humid day in Miami; temperatures have been in the upper 90’s for the last 2 weeks. Without the help of the late afternoon thunder storms, the heat may never break. For Fiona, an Irish immigrant, this was getting old, fast. She had been fostering the latest litter of K-9 “trainees” for the last 4 months, and they were about ready to be matched up with their human partners to begin the intense Police K-9 unit training. This was always the hard part, letting them go. Sure, they’d have good homes, the officers would bond with them, and give them everything a dog could ask for, but she’d miss them. To add to her foul mood, this heat was making her curly auburn hair more unruly than usual. If she could pull off the “Sinead O`Connor look” she’d shave her head in a heartbeat!
She had just come from the Miami Dade PD to set up a training schedule, and figured she’d stop in on her friend Calleigh to see if she could meet her for lunch. Miami Dade crime lab-Callleigh and Eric are walking toward the elevator when the doors open Fiona, dressed in a black, knee-length cotton tank dress and sandals, her fair skin still flushed from the heat outside, steps out.
Eric let out a whistle, “Looking hot there, Irish rose” as he continued on to his lab.
She called back after him, in her thick Irish brogue, “Yeah, sure Delko, we need ta talk about yer low standards sometime. Calleigh, I was wonderin if ya wanted ta grab a quick lunch.”
“Great, I’m starving! I was going to call you later to see how your date went”
Rolling her eyes, Fiona replied; “You really don’t want ta know. Just do me a favor, next time I tell ya I have a date, handcuff me to somethin”.
“That bad?” As the two women stepped on the next elevator, Horatio was stepping off.
“Fiona, Frank tells me you’re ready to start a new K-9 class”
“I don’t get it Cal, he seemed so normal the first few dates, how did he just turn inta such a…..”
“You are just way too trusting, girl. I know you want to believe the best in everyone, but there are a lot of people out there that will take advantage of your good nature.”
“I just can’t believe what a wanker …. Our third date, and he tells me I’ll need ta stop taken in the strays and finding homes for them…..who does he tink he is? Oh, and the best part, he starts gettin’really creepy, askin me what kind of underwear I like, as if he’d be seein my panties anytime soon. God, Cal, how could I be such a lousy judge of character? I tink I should just swear off datin’ fer a bit.”
“Maybe you just need a better screening process.”
“Like what, ya want ta run background checks on any guy that asks me out?”
“That’s not a bad idea, but I was thinking you could introduce any prospective dates to your CSI friends, the fact that Eric, Ryan and I know how to cover up a crime should scare off any “wankers”, and if that fails, we could always …….”
“I don’t tink I want ta know . Anyway, I have more important tings on my mind just now. I have two kittens I need ta find homes fer; put the word out in the lab, will ya’?
“Sure thing, I have to get back, do you have pictures, Ryan’s a real sucker, I’m sure I can talk him into taking them.”
“I’ll email them ta ya when I get home, tanks Cal. You go on, I’ll take care of lunch.”
“Thanks, I owe you.” Giving her friends arm a quick squeeze, Calleigh headed back to the lab.
If Fiona hadn’t been so exhausted from the heat, she might have noticed that she was being followed when she left the pub. The 15 minute drive home was not even long enough for the a/c to cool her car off completely. Why was it that she stayed in this sticky, humid place? Oh, that’s right, it was for them. As she opened the door to her house, she was greeted by two cats, and the barking of her latest “class”. Going back to Ireland would mean a lengthy quarantine for her “kids”, and that was out of the question. Maybe it would rain soon, and cool things off a bit. "Hiya brats, let's not trip the only one able ta open a can, I'll feed ya, just back off a bit" Laughing at her furry family, she made her way to the back of the house where a large sun room with tiled floor housed her broods food and water bowls, and set about feeding time before treating herself to a cool shower.
Chapter 1
After a refreshing shower, Fiona, loathe to put anything on in this wretched heat, could tolerate nothing more than boxers and a tank top. She poured herself a big glass of ice water and sat down at her computer to download photos of her two latest rescues. Cute little gray kittens with golden eyes, one male, one female, already spayed and neutered, just waiting for a home. She’d keep them herself, but her female cat absolutely hated other cats, and made it very well known. Oddly enough, it was her male that took on a maternal role with the kittens. Go figure. After a few minutes the photos were emailed to Calleigh, at the crime lab. Hopefully she could get Ryan to come meet them; if he just met them, she was sure he’d give them a home.
“Hello” Silence.
“I said hello, now it’s yer turn, love, that’s how this phone ting works”.
Still, silence. She pulled the phone away to check the caller i.d., “unknown caller”. She shrugged and hung up.
“Alright, ya unruly lot, time fer ya ta get jobs!” She picked up the leashes, attached to 4 German Sheppard pups and lead them out to the waiting Miami Dade PD truck. The officer opened the door so she could load them into their crates. Once they were all settled, she closed the door.
“I’ll meet ya there, I’m goin to take my own car, I’ve got some stops ta make after the training”.
“Sure Fiona, I’ll see you there
“Hiya Ryan, what’s the craik?”
“Uh, you know that just doesn’t sound right, Fiona”
“What? It’s Irish; it just means ‘what’s happenin, what’s goin on’”
“Yeah, I know, but it sounds like a drug reference here, and ….”
“O.K, O.K., ‘what’s new’, is that better?”
“Yeah, that’s better” smiling at her, “you know, that was a pretty sneaky trick, having Calleigh show me those photos.”
Giving him her best ‘sweet and innocent’ look, she replied “I have no idea what ye’re on about, Ryan, I just wanted her ta pass them around ta see if anyone could find it in their hearts ta give the little beasties a home.”
“Yeah, sure, that’s all you did. Funny, she didn’t show them to Delko. Anyway, I ‘found it in me heart to give the little beasties a home’, happy now?”
Fiona excitedly grabbed him by the shoulders and planted a big kiss on his cheek; “Good man, yerself! I knew ya were a softie! Come by after shift, I’ll help ya shop fer everything ye’ll need, then ya can take them home.”
Horatio had walked up behind Fiona just in time to see this exchange, amused, he couldn’t resist teasing the woman; he loved to see her blush. “Miss Fitzpatrick, is there a reason you’re sexually harassing my CSI?”
Horatio was not disappointed. As she turned around, her face was flattering shade of pink; “What?!, No, it’s not what yer thinkin’ Lieutenant! Ryan is just …”
“’Finding it my heart to give the little beasties a home’. I’ll see you after work Fiona”. Ryan couldn’t help but laugh at her expense. She was such an easy mark, fell for any joke, any time, but at least she could laugh at herself. How did she keep ending up dating such creeps? Calleigh had told him about this latest guy; maybe he and Delko should go have a “chat” with him. Fiona was like a sister to both men, he felt the need to look out for her. Sweet as she was, she never seemed to get jaded and cynical, no matter how much they tried to impress upon her the need to be less trusting.
Left alone in the hallway with Horatio, Fiona felt a bit self conscious. She adored Ryan and Eric, but their flirting was just that, a bit of harmless fun, she knew neither man had a romantic interest in her, so she was ‘safe’. She was not sure what, if anything, the man standing in front of her felt. She’d always had a bit of a crush on him, but thought he’d find her foolish; therefore, she had a tendency to blush ferociously whenever he was near. She could feel the heat rising in her face, and became all the more nervous, which would mean that she would start talking really fast, making no sense at all.
“Well, I should get goin’, I need ta clean out the kennel space and buy some cat food.”
Of course this all came out as one long word, and as she turned to walk away, her foot slipped off the modest inch heel sandal she thought she could walk in comfortably. Horatio, reacting quickly, caught her by the waist before she even realized what had happened.
“Are you alright?”
Her face was a deep shade of red, as she replied; “Yeah, sure, fine, tanks.” God, she couldn’t even look him in the eye, how could she make such a fool of herself?! ‘Clean the kennels’, smooth, Fiona, and oh so graceful too, imagine if you’d worn real heels like Calleigh. He walked her to the elevator, watching that blush with amusement, and wondered if she knew the effect she had on him. Mercifully, the elevator doors opened just as they reached them. She stepped on, pushed 1, and gave a nervous smile as she waved goodbye.
When the doors closed, she breathed a sigh of relief. He, on the other hand had wished the elevator wouldn’t come, so he could enjoy her for a while longer.
Chap. 2
Fiona managed to get home, clean up the kennels and was waiting, patiently for Ryan. She had received two more strange phone calls, and was starting to get annoyed. Some kids making prank calls no doubt. She heard a car pull up in her driveway, and looked out the window to see Ryan walking up to the door.
She rushed over, opened the door; “Hey, about time! What took ya so long?”
“I know how much you hate the heat, (rolling his eyes) so I stopped and picked up litter boxes, litter and food on my way here.”
“Well, human beins were not meant ta live in heat like this! Come in an meet your beasties.”
Ryan followed her out to the sun room, when she opened the door, one long streak of gray fur whizzed past.
“There a bit energetic”
After tearing through the house a couple of times, both kittens screeched to a stop in front of her, she scooped them up, and Ryan instantly softened, talking to them in a low voice. Fiona watched, smiling as he took them from her.
“See, I knew ya’d be a perfect match.”
“Yeah, well just don’t tell everyone what a sap I am”.
“Sure ting, ye’re only takin them ta shut me up. I can go with that story. Need ta borrow a carrier?”
“Oh, yeah, I guess I did forget that.”
“I’ll get ya one, and throw in some toys too.”
Once the kittens were loaded up, she bid them farewell, giving Ryan a big hug, as her eyes began to tear up. Once Ryan had left, she sat on the couch with her own beasties, a little melancholy; “Well, we’ve got the place ta ourselves again, at least fer a while”.
The phone rang, another “unknown caller”, but she answered anyway.
“Hello” Breathing.
“Hey, bullet girl, got a minute.”
Turning around, “Sure thing, K-9 queen, business or personal?”
“A bit of both, I’m afraid. I’ve been gettin a lot of phone calls lately; they don’t say anytin, just stay on the line until I hang up. Caller I.D. is useless, “unknown caller”. I’m at my wits end.”
“Do you have any idea who it could be?”
“I thought it was just kids, playin pranks at first, but now, I just don’t know.”
She sat down next to her friend, and leaned her elbows on the counter.
Calleigh thought for a few minutes before asking; “How did Brian take it when you told him you didn’t want to see him anymore?”
“Wanker wasn’t pleased, called me a few colorful names, but it’s not like he made any threats or anytin. You don’t think he’d be the one callin me, do you? I mean, what purpose would it serve?”
“Psychological intimidation. You look like you haven’t slept; sleep deprivation can make you a bit crazy. It could be him. Want me to see if we can get a trace put on your phone? If we can get a phone number, we may be able to track a location.”
“Sure, I’m gettin desperate. If it is him, dýa tink I can get a restrainin order?”
“I’m sure you can. Don’t worry about it; I’ll take care of everything on this end.”
They talked for another 30 minutes, catching up with each other before Fiona left. Being tired, and absorbed in her own thoughts, she didn’t see him until he was right next to her.
“Why don’t you stop this “hard to get” crap, Fiona. Haven’t you toyed with me enough?”
“Look, Brian, I told ya, leave me alone. I wish ya well and all, but I want nothin more ta do with ya.”
“Did you meet someone else, you little tramp?”
He moved in closer, an inch from her face, she could see the veins in his forehead, knowing that he was getting angrier every second. ‘Little man syndrome’, she thought, she stood a mere 5 ft. tall, and he was only an inch or two taller. ‘why is it the little ones were such bullies?’
“What’re ya talkin about? Just because I want nothin ta do with ya, does not mean that someone else has ‘stolen’me away.”
He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her hard before releasing her, screaming obscenities at her. She heard footsteps behind her, felt a hand on her back as she heard a deep male voice.
“Fiona, what’s the problem here?”
She turned to see Horatio, hand on his gun.
“Um, nothin, Brian here was just leavin, seems he can’t accept that fact that I don’t want ta see him anymore.”
Great, yet again, I look like a total fool in front of Horatio Caine. Horatio gave a cold, hard stare at Brian, waiting for him to leave. Brian stormed off, throwing a few more colorful names back at Fiona. She stood there, shaking, from anger, embarrassment and a touch of fear, fighting back tears.
"Tanks Lieutenant, I guess it comes in handy, workin with the police and all.”
She gave nervous laugh as she wiped at her tears, too ashamed to look him in the eye.
“Fiona, how do you know that man?”
“We went on a few dates, and then I realized he was a bit of a perv.” Because I’m such a great judge of character, she thought.
“Is this the first time he’s harassed you?” “Yeah. No. I’m not really sure.” She told him about the phone calls, and her conversation with Calleigh.
“It’s o.k., we’ll check into the phone calls.” Handing her a card with his work, cell and home numbers printed on it; “I want you to call me if he shows up again. Make sure you lock your doors and windows, and if you have an alarm, set it.”
“Tanks.” Feeling a bit calmer, she took the card. “Why can’t I meet a nice guy like you?” Oh, crap, I said that out loud, didn’t I. She looked away, feeling the heat rise up her neck, turning her face a deep red.
Horatio raised his eyebrow, smiled. “Why just someone ‘like’ me, is there some reason I won’t do?”
She turned around, looking at him, not sure if he was serious, or just teasing her. “Um, I don’t know what you’re gettin at, if you’re teasin, I’m sorry, now just isn’t the time…..”
“I’m very serious, Fiona. “
“Oh, um, well, sure, ya’d do just fine.” She looked away, nervously. “I should go. Tanks again fer your help, I’ll, um, I’ll call if anyting else happens”.
She put her hat on, and got in the car. Horatio leaned down to look into her eyes. “Fiona, you’ve had a difficult day, and I know you just want to go home now, but I’d like to take you to dinner.”
“Oh. O.K., sure, that’d be nice. Um, when?”
“How about tomorrow? “
“O.K., tomorrow then.”
“Now, go home and get some rest.” He squeezed her shoulder, stood up and watched her back out of the parking space and pull away.
Chapter 3
Fiona was in a bit of a daze the whole way home, still a bit shaken from her encounter with Brian, but also still amazed that the whole ordeal ended with plans for tomorrow night. She parked her car, put the top up, and just sat for a minute, trying to gather her thoughts. She grabbed her purse, the card Horatio had given her, and headed for the house. Once inside, she locked the door, hearing Horatio’s voice in her head; “Make sure you lock your doors and windows, and if you have an alarm, set it.”
She picked up the phone, quickly punched in a number, after 2 rings, she heard her friend’s voice.
“Calleigh Duquense”
“Cal, got a minute?”
“Fiona, I just heard about what happened, are you o.k.?”
“Uh, how much did ya hear?”
Calleigh relayed what Horatio had told her when he came to discuss getting the trace on Fiona’s phone.
“I really don’t tink he’ll be callin again, Cal. I tink he was scared off.”
“I’m still ordering the trace. Do you want to stay with me for a few days until we can get the restraining order?”
“No, really, I’m fine. I’ll lock my doors, set the alarm, like Horatio said. It’ll be fine. Did he happen ta mention that he asked me ta dinner tomorrow?”
“What? “
“Yeah. Believe it or not, I tink I’m more nervous about that than anyting Brian might try. He’s just looking fer attention.”
“O.K., first of all, don’t underestimate Brian, he’s obviously got some issues.”
“Yes, Mother.”
“Don’t get sarcastic with me, young lady! And, anyway, you have nothing to be nervous about where Horatio is concerned. Just be your charming little self. It’s not like he’s going to bite….., well, at least not in a bad way…”
Laughing, she admonished her friend; “Calleigh, ya should be ashamed of yerself! Get yer mind out of the gutter, ye’re supposed ta be Sothern Lady”
“You know I’m not saying anything you haven’t thought about yourself, don’t play innocent with me, I’ve see how you look at that man when he walks away.”
“I just can’t keep her from chasing the squirrels,” officer Richards said, “yesterday, she nearly pulled the leash out of my hand. I don’t want to resort to a choker chain, but I’m not sure what else to do.”
“Ye’ll do no such ting ta that beautiful beast, officer.”
She turned to the dog, squatted down in front of her to look the dog in the eyes, “Bridget”, the officers humored her and let her name what were essentially their dogs, “listen ta me, ya stubborn beast, ya must leave the wee squirrels alone, they’re not botherin ya. Ya must channel all of that squirrel chasing energy inta chasing the bad guys.”
She saw a figure out of the corner of her eye, and turned to see Horatio watching with a very amused look on his face.
“Don’t laugh at me Lieutenant, that beast understands every word I’m sayin, don’t ya Bridget?”
The dog groaned. “See? Officer Richards, ye’ll need ta work with her every day, use a deep, firm voice, and when she obeys, ya must reward her with affection, don’t overdo the biscuits.”
The officer nodded, as she walked over to Horatio. “Did ya have reason ta be watchin me work, or were ya just lookin fer a laugh?”
“As entertaining as that trainer/dog exchange was, I did actually want to talk to you.”
She motioned to a bench, out of the direct sun, where they could talk. “I wanted to let you know that I’ll be stopping by earlier than expected, I’m bringing an officer to put a trace on your phone. Once he’s done, we’ll go to dinner, if you’re feeling up to it.”
“How early?”
He looked at his watch, “In about an hour, if that’s o.k.”
“Sorry, I’m not usually this bad about bein ready fer a date. Have a seat; I’ll be quick about it."
Horatio sat on the couch, and waited, patiently, flipping through channels on her t.v. He heard the shower running for only a few minutes. She wasn’t kidding when she said she’d be quick. He smiled to himself. Ten minutes later, Fiona came out of her bedroom, wild, curly hair still slightly damp, wearing a black halter style dress, and flat sandals. She’d thought about wearing a sexy pair of heals, but remembering how she had a habit of falling off her heals, decided against the risk. He stood up, and turned off the t.v.
“You look….”
She blushed and looked away. “Tanks. Ready?”
They walked to the door, his hand on her arm. As she reached for the doorknob he said “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
She gave him a confused look, “The alarm. You shouldn’t go out without setting it.”
“Right.” She quickly set the alarm, and walked out hand in hand.
Twenty minutes into the dinner date, Fiona had clearly relaxed quite a bit. She still blushed far too easily, but was far less concerned about looking foolish. He seemed genuinely interested in her, listening to how she’d moved to Miami with her parents when she was 16. Her parents bred and raced greyhounds. They loved their dogs, and were horrified when they learned of all the dogs just cast aside when their racing days were done. This compassion lead them to start a greyhound rescue, the same compassion that they instilled in their only daughter.
“I miss Ireland, but this is my path, my life’s work. I help with the rescue, train the K-9 unit, it’s what keeps me here.”
“You sick bas***d” she growled “What the hell have you done to me?”
He laughed, mimicking her accent, “You’ll tank me for it someday, darling.”
She lunged at him, scratching his face, pulling his hair, kicking like a wild animal, but he was stronger than her. He threw her back onto the mattress, her head hit the wall. “That’s a bit too feisty, red, we’ll have to work on that.”
He pulled the duct tape out of his shirt pocket; she kicked, hard, her foot making contact with his groin. He doubled over; she kicked him in the face as a cell phone fell out of his pocket. She knew she’d never get away from him, and when she saw the phone, she quickly kicked it under the mattress. To distract him, she went for the door, he recovered enough to grab her ankle and pull her to the ground. She put her arms up in front of her when she felt herself falling. She landed hard on her forearms, as he dragged her back to the mattress. He taped her wrists together behind her back, and taped her feet together.
“When you learn to behave, I’ll consider taking the tape off.” He walked out of the room, leaving the door open, he returned a few minutes later with a bottle of water. He held it up to her lips, “Drink”.
“Frank, I heard her set the alarm when I brought her home last night, why would she have disarmed it?”
“Maybe she went for a walk.”
The door now opened, Horatio, Calleigh and Frank entered. Calleigh and Horatio started the search for evidence. Frank noticed that the glass patio door was open, only the screen closed. “Horatio, look at this.” Frank opened the screen door, and the men walked out to the patio, Horatio noticed the wine glass, mostly empty immediately.
It was still dark outside when she woke, she lie very still for several minutes, listening for any sign of him. Silence. It was now or never. She managed to sit up, she struggled for several more minutes, stretching and straining to pull her arms down behind her legs until she was finally able to wiggle her legs all the way through, bringing her still taped arms around to the front. She quietly felt around for the cell phone she had kicked and stuffed under the mattress. She let out a sigh of relief, it was still there. Flipping the phone open, she turned it on; holding it close against her body to muffle the chime it would make once it was turned on. She waited; it was still quiet; the only sound she could hear was her own heart pounding in her chest. She dialed the number she had only committed to memory in the last 24 hours.
“Fiona, where are you?”
“I don’t know, there are bars on the windows, and it smells musty.”
“Good girl, I’ll have your location in just a minute”, he said more to himself than to her; he knew she had put the phone down because she sounded much more distant now. He kept the phone to his ear as he jotted down the GPS information that would lead them to her. Rushing out of his office, he found Ryan first.
“Get squad cars, now,” handing him the address, “she’s at this location.”
“Shut up!” He’d been drinking, still had the bottle in his hand. Hard liquor. He was mad, he couldn’t hold his liquor and he was a mean drunk. She was still sniffling. “I said shut up!”
“Stay”
Bridget obeyed. The hummer skidded to a stop next to him. Horatio closed the phone; he had heard only muffled sounds for the last few minutes. All three officers, guns drawn made their way to the door.
“Miami Dade PD”, Horatio yelled just seconds before he kicked the door in. Flashlights lit the way as they searched the building. They found the room with the mattress, saw the blood, he knew this was where she had been held, had been beaten, but she was gone. The house was empty. Officer Richards came to stand beside him.
“Lieutenant, I have an idea I’d like to try, if it’s o.k. with you.” Horatio nodded. “Bridget lived with her for months, she knows her, we’ve been training for drug sniffing, but ….”
“Eric, get a kit over here and a blanket, and call an ambulance!”
He covered her with his jacket as Eric brought the kit. Horatio put on gloves and pulled the tape off of her mouth; Bridget whined and licked her face. Her eyes fluttered open.
“Bridget,” she mumbled, it came out almost as a question, “good girl, Bridget.”
Horatio cut the tape away from her wrists and ankles. When she looked up at him, she smiled.
Chapter 6
Horatio rode in the ambulance with her, holding her hand. She slept most of the way there, as the EMT’s took her blood pressure and monitored her heart rate. She could feel his presence, even though she wasn’t awake. They arrived to a nearly empty ER; it was a slow night for Miami, much to Horatio’s relief. He had asked Eric to have Calleigh call Fiona’s parents. She was examined almost immediately; Horatio left the room so the nurse could complete the SAE kit. Fiona had woken up, briefly, but long enough for him to explain what the nurse needed to do, before she drifted off again. When the nurse came out of the room, her eyes showed her sadness as she handed him the evidence kit.
“Lieutenant, she’s bruised badly, poor thing; he was very rough with her. It’s a blessing that she doesn’t seem to remember any of it.”
He looked into the room and saw her lying there, drifting in and out of sleep. He looked down at the kit in his hand, the DNA collected from her, she may not remember any of the details, but he would have to tell her what that bas***d had done to her. When she opened her eyes a few minutes later and saw him sitting there, the look on his face made her want to cry. He looked so devastated, so pale.
“Sweetheart, do you feel like you can talk for a few minutes?”
Her voice was raspy, almost a whisper; “Sure, the fog is wearin off a bit.”
Tears streamed down her face when he told her.
“Why don’t I remember….I swear, I don’t….How?”
“The blood tests haven’t come back yet, but we found traces of GHB in a wine glass on your patio.”
“How did he get……..Oh my god, the phone rang, I was only in the house for a minute, I left my glass….”
The realization hit her. “He was watchin me. I never told him where I live, I only saw him a few times, I never let him pick me up”
She heard her mother’s voice, and wiped the tears away and looked at him pleadingly.
“Please, don’t tell them, they must have been sick wit worry, I don’t want ta upset them more.”
“Whatever you decide to tell them is up to you, sweetheart, but….”
“I know, the evidence will be presented in the trial, I just…”
Her father, a tall man with salt & pepper hair, the “black Irish” and mother, a petite woman with the same wild red hair as her daughter, entered the room.
“Fiona! Oh, my girl.” She gasped, hand covering her mouth when she saw the bruises on her daughter’s face. She tried to fight back the tears as she gently stroked her daughter’s face. “Oh, love, we’ve been so worried about ya.”
Her father’s face showed a mix of sadness, relief and anger. He took his daughter’s hand, “Fiona, I will make sure that man pays for what he’s done ta ya,” his voiced cracked as he tried to keep the tears of rage from falling.
“Mr. Fitzpatrick, we will find him, I promise you that, but you must let us handle this. He will pay for what he’s done, but if you take this into your own hands, you will be leaving your wife and daughter to fend for themselves.”
“Da, this is Lieutenant Caine, Horatio, these are my parents, Liam and Grace”.
Liam nodded, knowing he was right, took Horatio’s hand in both of his, “Lieutenant, you must be the one my girl had dinner with the other night. I’m pleased ta meet ya. “
Grace smiled at him, “Lieutenant Caine..”
“Please, call me Horatio.” “Horatio, tank you for bringin our girl back.”
“She made sure I could find her, Ma’am. It was her quick thinking that led us to her.”
“If ye’re sure,…. Well, we’re not going ta New York next week…”
“No, Ma, ya need ta go, ya’ve committed ta show, ya can’t back out on them.”
Fiona knew her parents had agreed to judge the Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York, knew they had been looking forward to it all year. They had a great reputation in the “dog world”, and it was a great opportunity for them.
“Ma’am, if I may, I am happy to take care of Fiona while you’re away. I had planned on having her stay with me until we catch him, she’s not safe staying by herself”.
“He’s right, Grace, she needs police protection. He’s a good man, she’d be safe wit him.” Liam knew how stubborn his daughter was, not that his wife was one to give in easily, but he thought Fiona might go mad if her mother hovered over her.
“What if someting happens?”
“Ma, I’m goin ta be fine, they’re only keeping me here over night ta monitor tings, the Dr. said I’d be fine, it’s just goin ta take a bit of time fer the bruises ta heal.”
Grace looked at her daughter, she was so independent, never wanted to be taken care of, even from a young age. She was too busy trying to take care of everyone else to let anyone take care of her. “Ye’ll be the death of me, girl.” She shook her head and sighed, “o.k.,” she looked at Horatio, “You take care of her, and ya call me, immediately, if she so much as sneezes.”
“Yes Ma’am.” Horatio smiled, he could easily see where Fiona got her fiery personality.
Chapter 7
Fiona slept fitfully, waking every half hour. Each time she woke, she saw Horatio sitting next to her bed. The next morning, Calleigh came in and insisted that he go home and get some rest, she would stay with Fiona, and call him as soon as the doctor signed her release. He reluctantly left; the hospital chair was very uncomfortable and he hadn’t slept well. When he reached his condo, he was greeted by very hungry cats. Although he had left plenty of food for them when he had briefly stopped home the day before, the bowl was now empty. He set out food, tripping over cats every step of the way, before lying down on the couch. He woke in the early evening, startled at the time, he checked to see if he had any messages, but no one had called. He dialed a number, waited while it rang;
“Calleigh, what’s going on there? I had expected to hear from you before now.”
“Horatio, the doctor just got here, you know how hospitals are; it’s been a long, boring day filled with terrible food and hourly blood pressure checks.”
“Tell Fiona I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Sure thing.”
He hung up the phone and quickly showered and dressed. By the time he arrived at the hospital, Fiona was dressed in shorts and a tank that her parents had brought in for her.
“I’m sorry I was gone so long, Fiona, I slept longer than I had realized. Are you ready to go?”
“Yeah, um, just one ting first.” She glanced at Calleigh, who quickly excused herself, “I just want ta go home. I appreciate yer offer ta stay wit ya, but I just want my own bed.”
“Fiona, it’s not safe for you to be alone right now.”
He saw the disappointment in her eyes, he hated to disappoint her. “I’ll tell you what, I will take you home, your home, but I will be staying there with you. That is the only compromise I’m willing to make, so don’t even think about arguing.”
She smiled, “O.K., I can live wit that. Calleigh told me you have my cats, I tank ya fer that, I really do. I was worried about them. Can we stop ta get them on the way home?”
“Why don’t I have Calleigh pick them up and bring them to you.”
“O.K., my Ma has gone off ta the drug store ta get some anti-biotic cream and bandages fer the cuts and scrapes, it was the only ting I could think of ta make her feel useful.”
“So, she’ll stop by with them later, then.”
“Yeah, she left just a few minutes before ya got here.”
“And, how did she know that you were going to your house, and not mine?”
Busted. “Well, ah, I ……”
“You had no intention of loosing that battle, did you?”
She bit her bruised and swollen lip as she tried to come up with an answer. He laughed at her attempt.
"Calleigh, would you please pick up Fiona’s cats and bring them back to her place?”
She looked at Fiona and couldn’t hold back the smile, “Sure, I’d be happy to.”
He handed her his key, “You knew what she was up to, didn’t you?”
“I have a spare room, so you don’t have ta worry about sleepin on the couch.” She opened her eyes and found him watching her.
“If I’d known that you were going to talk me into staying here, I would have packed a bag.”
She smiled, “Ah, sorry about that, I didn’t realize ya’d be such a pushover.”
“Well, I’ll worry about that once we get you settled.”
There was a knock at the door, Fiona’s parents had arrived. Horatio opened the door for them; they held an awful lot of bags for just picking up bandages and anti-biotic cream. Horatio took several bags from Grace as she came through the door, Liam carried several more.
“She insisted on doin the shoppin so ye’d not starve. I tried ta tell her Fiona’d have plenty of food, but there’s no reasonin with the woman.”
“Ah, hush, yer the one that kept loadin the cart up. Just set those down in the kitchen and I’ll put them away.” She patted her husband on the cheek as she hurried into the kitchen.
“I thought I’d save you the trouble of fixing dinner, and she needs comfort food right now.”
“Thank you, Calleigh.”
“I’ve got to go, but call me if you want me to come give you some relief, or pick up anything for you.”
“Thanks, but I think we’re all set for groceries.”
Calleigh laughed, “Grace.”
“Ya don’t have ta do this, Calleigh would stay wit me.”
“Sweetheart, I want you to listen to me, I’m not going to leave you. I want to be here, with you. I want to help you through this.”
She tried to blink the tears away. “We only had one date. I wouldn’t blame ya if ya walked away right now.”
“Why would I do that?”
“This changes tings. How do ya know I’ll ever be normal again?”
He took her face in his hands and turned her to look at him. “We will get through this. Things are just on hold right now while you recover. We will pick up where we left off, when you are ready. We move at your pace, but I am not going anywhere. Understood?”
She couldn’t stop the tears now, she just nodded. “I need ta take a bath.”
Horatio’s cell phone rang. It was Eric, calling to check on them, asking if they needed anything.
“Eric, I need to pick up some things from my place. If you could stay with Fiona for a while, I’m sure she’d be happy to see you.”
“Yeah, I’ll be there in half an hour.”
“I’m fine, I just got dizzy when I tried ta stand, it’s nothin.”
“I’m coming in.”
Before she could respond, he had the door open, and grabbed her towel. He held the towel out, and helped her to stand as he wrapped it around her. He picked her up and sat her down on the side of the tub.
“I’m fine, please…I don’t want ya ta see me….I need ta get dressed.”
Panic showed on her face.
“It’s o.k., I’m going to help you dress.”
“But..”
“Sweetheart, just look at me. Good. Now keep looking right into my eyes.”
He reached for her shirt and pulled it over her head. “Good, now put your arms through.”
He picked up her boxers, and put her feet through the holes keeping his hands on the waistband..
“O.K., now, I want you to put your arms around my neck, and we’re going to stand up together, O.K.?” She did as he asked, and as they stood up, he pulled the boxers up over her hips, and pulled the towel out from under the shirt. He smiled at her, “Now, that wasn’t so bad, was it?”
He used the towel to dry her hair before picking her up and taking her back to the couch. He handed her the remote, and went off to get a comb.
Finally, Horatio returned and Eric said his goodbyes. When he sat on the couch next to her, he was worried how she would react. He knew she was embarrassed about needing help earlier. He held her hand.
When she spoke, her voice was soft. “Tanks fer helping me. I didn’t want ya ta see me. I’m sorry if it seemed that I didn’t trust ya, that wasn’t it.”
“I know.”
She leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder. They fell asleep, hand in hand. That was where Brian found them when he looked through the window, asleep, together on the couch.
Chapter 8
The next few days passed rather slowly. Fiona’s mother insisted on coming by every day and hovering over her daughter, which drove Fiona mad. Between her and Horatio, Fiona was barely allowed to feed herself. She was not one to enjoy this constant attention. The morning her parents left for New York, they stopped by to say goodbye. Once the door was closed, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“I do love them, but good lord, that woman was drivin me absolutely crazy!”
Horatio just smiled. He knew Grace meant well, but he could see how much Fiona needed some space. Eric had brought Horatio a laptop so he could work on the case remotely, so he wouldn’t have to leave her with alternate police protection. She had insisted on keeping up with the K-9 training, but for her comfort, the officers were bringing the dogs to her. She was not quite ready to go out in public, the bruises, though faded, were still very noticeable. Her first training session would begin today, with Bridget and Officer Richards. Horatio would go into the lab for a couple of hours while Officer Richards was there, and he had agreed not to leave until Horatio returned. She was excited to get back to some type of normalcy.
Horatio had let the officer and his K-9 partner in, and called out to Fiona to let her know they had arrived, and he would be back in a couple of hours. When she came out to greet them, Bridget held a small bouquet of flowers in her mouth.
“Ah, what a sweet girl ya are.” She bent down to take the flowers and hug the dog. “There’s my she-ro, such a smart girl”.
She spent several minutes making a big fuss over the dog, thanking her for her part in the rescue. As she put the flowers in a vase, she thanked the other half of the team;
“It was yer quick thinkin that allowed her ta find me, Officer Richards. You must have been workin very hard with her.”
They spent an hour and a half working with the dog, and Fiona was pleased with her progress. Officer Richards updated her on the man hunt efforts and assured her, as everyone else had, that they would find Brian. She appreciated his kindness and encouraging words, but still had a sinking feeling in her stomach every day that passed without his capture.
“Are you sure I can’t convince you to let me take you out to dinner?”
“There’s not enough make up in the state of Florida ta cover these bruises, and I’m not about ta go out until they fade. Let’s just order in.”
They had agreed on Chinese food and decided to eat on the patio. She finally felt comfortable being out there, but then she knew she’d be safe with Horatio there. She wasn’t sure how she would feel once he was gone. She had taken a few minutes to shower and change before the food arrived, and their dinner felt like a second date. She hadn’t felt this relaxed and happy since the first dinner they shared. When dinner was finished and the leftovers put away, they turned on the T.V. and settled on one of Fiona’s guilty pleasure, “Paranormal State”. For some reason, she loved getting scared, but always regretted it once she was lying in bed, unable to sleep.
Chapter 9
God, she made this so easy. He watched through the binoculars, dressed in camouflage, well hidden the bushes. He could see her clasp her hand over her mouth as she looked at the pictures. This was going to be fun. He just needed to get rid of her cop friends; then he could really play.
Fiona sat on the couch; curled up, chin on her knees, not looking at him, not talking to him. She had retreated into herself, cats sitting on either side of her, concerned that their human was acting so strangely. Horatio sat down next to her and waited, to see if she would speak. When she did not, he did.
“Sweetheart, I’m not going to let him hurt you. Trust me. We know, now, that he is still nearby. I will have undercover officers patrolling the area, starting immediately. Calleigh is going to talk to Frank and he will take care of everything.”
She nodded, the only indication that she had heard him. She sat like that for a full hour before she looked at him.
“He’s going ta hurt you next. You, and Cal, Eric, my parents, the beasties. He’s going ta take everythin away from me, everyone I care about.”She started to shake, “there’s nothin I can do ta stop him.”
“Calleigh and Eric can take care of themselves, they are trained to be on alert, now that we know what he is capable of, they will be watching for him. As will I. I am not going to let anything happen to you,” he looked down to see one of the cats watching him, “any of you. I want you to lie down, and get some rest now.”
“I don’t tink I can sleep.”
“I’ll get the prescription from the hospital.”
“No, I don’t want that, it makes me feel strange. Right now, I tink I’d like a whiskey.”
He smiled, “Ice?”
“No, ice melts, ruins the flavor.”
He returned a few minutes later with a small glass of dark whiskey. She took the glass, and drank, finishing it in one shot.
“Why don’t you lie down now?”
She shook her head, “I’m afraid ta sleep.” Blinking back the tears, she looked at him, “I’m sure he’s out there, watchin me, right now.”
“Shhh, it’s o.k., it’s Calleigh.”
He opened the door and let Calleigh in, she collected the evidence from the envelope before coming to sit next to her friend.
“Hey, girl. Frank has his men out there right now, watching, looking for him. It’s going to be over soon. He can’t hide much longer. Why don’t I come over tonight and we eat ice cream and watch some god-awful trash t.v.? “ Fiona smiled at her friends attempt to cheer her up.
“We can make it a party, I’ll bring Eric and Ryan, Horatio’s already here, so I guess he can stay, but it’s not much fun partying with your boss.”
This got the desired reaction, a small laugh.
Chapter 10
Early the next morning, Fiona had quietly gotten dressed in a t-shirt and sweatpants and dragged her training bag out onto the patio. As Horatio was getting dressed, he heard noises coming from outside, on the patio. It sounded violent, primal. He drew his gun and opened the door of the spare room, as he walked out, he noticed that Fiona’s door was open, her room empty. He rushed to the patio door and saw her kickboxing, her foot coming in swift contact with the training bag that was attached to a heavy duty stand. He was amazed at what he was watching; she barely paused between kicks, punches and screams. The rage emanating from her was unlike anything he had ever seen. He stood there, watching her, for several minutes, she didn’t notice him, just kept kicking. He holstered his gun, and moved closer.
When she finally paused, he spoke. “Fiona, you shouldn’t be out here alone.”
Panting, she turned to look at him. “I’m fine.”
“I can see that. Is there a reason you came out here?”
“Yeah, there is. If he wants ta watch me, he can watch this.”
She spun and kicked the training bag so hard and high that she knocked it over.
“Why don’t you come inside now, I’ll make you some breakfast.”
“You don’t need ta take care of me, Horatio.”
“I know that.”
He raised an eyebrow, “Won’t you be hot in that?”
“I did a lot of tinking yesterday. What happened ta me, it was my own fault,” he tried to interrupt, to interject some rational thought, but she held up her hand, “I don’t tink about what’s goin on around me; don’t pay attention ta the fact that people can look right in my window, inta my home, and what am I doin, walkin around here in barely more than my underpants. It’s my own fault. I need ta be afraid, I need ta avoid bein seen as weak, vulnerable. I need ta be prepared fer the next time.”
“Fiona, this was not your fault.”
“You don’t know that! It happened ta me, there is somehtin about me that drew him in, that made him tink I was an easy target.”
“What’s this?”
“That is the number of a therapist who runs a support group for women who are the victims of violent crimes. If you decide to call her, I will take you to see her, anytime you want.”
“I talked ta Nancy.” He turned to face her. “I want ta meet with her.”
“When?”
“She can see me tomorrow, 10:00.” “O.K., I’ll drive you.”
The next morning, Horatio sat in the waiting room while Fiona talked to Nancy. She told her what little she could remember. She told her what she feared. How she didn’t think she could ever be normal again. Nancy listened, she offered advice and sympathy. She told her about her own experience, how she had been raped when she was in college. Told her how she had gotten through it. Fiona knew she was not alone, that she would get through it too. When she came out of the office, Horatio was waiting. She knew he would be waiting for her, as long as she wanted him to. She wanted him to be there, didn’t know how fair that was to him, to keep waiting, not knowing when, if ever, she would ever be able to offer him anything in return.
Chapter 11
Fiona’s parents had returned from New York, she had told them nothing of the photographs, but they noticed a distinct change in her behavior. When they tried to talk to her about it, she told them she was fine, she just wanted to be left alone. Horatio saw the concern in her mother’s eyes, he wanted to tell her what had happened, but knew that Fiona would want to protect them from the horror she had known. When Grace looked at him, pleadingly, the only excuse he could come up with for the sudden shift was that Fiona was restless and anxious for the man to be caught. Once they were alone again, he sat next to her, and took his hand in hers. She stiffened.
“They are so worried for you. I know you want to protect them, but they know that you are keeping something from them, and that worries them more than know the truth.”
“I can’t tell them. I can’t handle seeing their faces when they …”
“I understand. Fiona, it will come out in the trial, you know you won’t be able to keep them away. You can’t let them hear it that way.”
When she turned to face him, she looked so lost.
“Would you like me to talk to them?” She nodded. “O.K., I will call to have an officer stay with you, and I will go talk to them.”
“Tell them I’m sorry. I just couldn’t tell them.”
“I will. They will understand, sweetheart.” He squeezed her hand before he got up to make arrangements for Fiona’s protection.
When the door opened, Nancy walked out with Fiona, and stopped to speak to Horatio. As she extended her hand, she introduced herself, “Lieutenant, I’m Nancy. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
He shook her hand, “Nice to meet you, Ma’am.”
Chapter 12
Fiona’s hands were trembling as she changed her clothes. She put on an emerald green sundress, a little make up, not much, just enough to play up her eyes, and slipped on a pair of sandals. When she opened her bedroom door, she could hear Horatio talking on the phone; she knew he was discussing her case. She was starting to wonder if they would ever catch Brian. It had been almost 5 weeks, and he was being much more careful since the undercover police were patrolling the streets around her house. She wondered what would happen if they never found him. When would they stop looking? How long would it take before they gave up? She knew the crime lab was already working other cases, in addition to hers. She went to the kitchen and started looking in the cabinets and fridge to plan something for dinner. She wanted to make something special. She opened a bottle of wine. As hot as it was, she went for a light, white wine. When Horatio was finished with his call, he came into the kitchen. He watched her for a moment before speaking.
“You look lovely.”
She smiled. “Tanks”.
“What are you up to?”
“I wanted ta make dinner, but it seems like there’s not much ta choose from, so I’m making salad.”
He came to stand next to her. “Do you want some help?”
“Ah, no, I’m fine. You have work ta do, I’ll let ya know when everything’s ready.”
“Sweetheart, this isn’t right..”
She pulled away, turned her back to him. Oh, god, he hadn’t wanted to hurt her. He put his arm around her, she was trembling.
“Sweetheart, it’s too soon. I won’t take advantage of you like this.”
“No! You’re not takin advantage, I’m the one who wanted this.” Her voice was thick with the tears she fought to hold back.
“You’ve been drinking..”
“Oh, stop! Stop makin excuses! Just admit that ya don’t want me! Ya can’t want me, couldn’t look at me the same after seein what he did ta me!”
She tried to pull away, out of his embrace. He held her tighter. “Let me go” she sobbed.
“I can’t let you go”, he whispered. “I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want you to have any regrets about us. Please.”
She only sobbed harder. “I just want ta be normal. I don’t want ta tink about everyting, ta wonder if I can ever be wit ya, and not tink about what he did.”
She was crying so hard, he could barely understand her. His heart was breaking. He held her tighter, until she had finally cried herself to sleep. He still could not let her go. He stretched out on the couch, pulling her with him. He lay awake most of the night, worrying about her, worrying that she would feel awkward, but that was still better than her looking back on the night and wishing they had not made love.
Chapter 13
When Fiona awoke, it took her a few minutes to get her bearings. Her mouth was very dry and she had to pee. She realized when she tried to sit up, that he had his arm around her waist. The events earlier in the evening started to come back to her. Her face grew hot with embarrassment and she just wanted to hide. She quietly slipped out from under his arm and made her way to the bathroom. Once she had taken care of one urgent need, she debated going back to the kitchen to get a glass of water, but she didn’t want to wake him. She would avoid talking to him about what she had done for as long as she possibly could. She turned on the water and scooped handfuls of the cool liquid up to her mouth. Her thirst finally quenched, she turned off the water and made her way, in the dark, to her bedroom, closing the door softly behind her. She sat on the bed with her head in her hands, and whispered to herself; “what have I done? I’m such an eegit.”
Sh*te! I can’t avoid him forever. “Yeah. Just a second.” She got up, and went over to the door, and opened it. She saw two cups of coffee in his hand. “Tanks”.
He handed her one of the mugs, she noticed that he knew exactly how light she liked her coffee. She did not step aside to let him in, but she didn’t close the door either. “Are you going to come out?”
“Ah, no, I don’t tink so.”
“May I come in?”
“No, I, ah, I don’t tink so.”
“Fiona, please.”
“I don’t want ta talk about this, can we just forget about it?”
“You’re angry with me.”
“No, I’m not, I…please, don’t make me talk about this. I’ve made an arse of myself; just let me lick my wounds.” She still had not looked at him.
“Fiona,” he took her hand “let’s not do this.” He gently pulled her out of the room. “We need to talk; I don’t want this to create a distance between us. I need to know that you understand why I couldn’t….”
“It’s fine; really, there’s nothin ta talk about. I’m not angry wit ya.”
He took her chin in his free hand and tilted her face up to look her in the eyes. “It’s not that I didn’t want you. Please, don’t ever doubt that. Fiona, I am very attracted to you. I do want this relationship to progress to that level. “ He could see her eyes tearing up. He had to continue. “I know you want to put this all behind you, but it is important that we move slowly. I would never want to hurt you. I just want to make sure that you are ready for the next step. We can’t just jump into this without thinking of the repercussions. “ He kissed her gently, on the lips before letting her go. She looked away, biting her lip.
“I am sorry. I know ya just wanted ta protect me.” She looked away. “Tanks fer the coffee. I’m going ta take a shower.” She slipped past him, and out the door.
Chapter 14
She felt his hand on her shoulder as she opened the door, felt him push her aside. Pain shot through her; she screamed as she fell to the floor. She heard Horatio yell, but couldn’t understand what he was saying.
“Shane!” his owner called after him, but he had the man cornered, he knew this was the ‘bad guy’, he growled, looking almost feral. The man was fighting against being cuffed. Shane could see the officer struggling to maintain control. It was his job to help the officer, even if it was his officer. He lunged and bit down hard, bringing the man to his knees.
Chapter 15
Fiona’s front yard was now teeming with undercover cops. Everything seemed to move in slow motion, and when she was lying there on the floor, it seemed like an eternity before the men patrolling the area arrived. She could hear Horatio struggle with Brian, when she heard growling, she thought she was imagining it. None of the undercover officers was K-9 unit. That would have been too obvious. Brian would be looking for K-9 units. When her vision cleared, she saw Shane and Michael. Shane had lunged at Brian, and had clamped down on his groin. ‘How fitting’ she thought. Her muscles still too sore for her to sit up, she watched as Michael helped Horatio wrestle Brian to the ground and cuff him. It was a very surreal experience. It was very handy, having a retired cop living on her street. She had known Michael for years, she had trained Shane, and they remained close friends even after Michael retired. She felt Horatio take her hand and she smiled up at him.
“It’s over, you’re safe now.”
“Will you be o.k.? I need to go in to the lab so we can get this case to the Prosecutor.”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Go get the bastard locked up.” Horatio smiled. He could see the relief in her eyes.
“I’ll come by to take you to dinner later.”
“I have an appointment with Nancy, I won’t be home ‘till Six.”
“I’ll see you then.” He kissed her on the forehead and left for the lab.
“You must be relieved.”
“Yeah, sure. But I know it’s far from over. I know the lab has the evidence ta prosecute, but I won’t feel like it’s over until he’s been sentenced. If somethin happens, and they let him go, he’ll come back fer me.”
“The chances of that happening, of the charges not sticking, are very slim.”
“I know, I do, I’m ….”
“Scared”
“Lieutenant.”
“Ma’am”
She smiled, “Come in. Although, I don’t know why I feel like I need ta ask ya, you’ve been livin here for the last few weeks. I’ll be ready in a minute.”
“So, I guess you’ll be goin home tonight?”
“Will you be o.k.? “
“Yeah, I will be now.”
He kissed her softly, he didn’t want to leave, but she needed time to herself. He hadn’t left her alone for weeks and he didn’t want to crowd her. He watched as she closed the door, and waited until he heard her set the alarm. He knew the danger had passed, but still felt the need to make sure she was being cautious.
Chapter 16
“I thought I’d stop by and have coffee with you before I head into the lab.”
“Ah, you do know the way to a woman’s heart, Lieutenant. “
She stepped aside and let him in. They sat, drinking their coffee, discussing her plans for the day. Horatio had spent a lot of time thinking as he lay awake the night before. He decided to broach the subject that had played on his mind for the last couple of days.
“Have you talked to Nancy about the other night?”
Her face flushed a deep red. She wanted to put that foolish incident behind her, just forget about it. She looked away, trying to avoid his gaze.
“Sweetheart, I know you’d rather not talk about this, but that is not going to help.”
“I know ‘twas a stupid ting ta do. Let’s just ferget about it.”
He took her hand, “I can’t imagine how hard this is for you. I want to help you, and I’m not sure how. Please, we can talk to her together if you’d like. When is your next appointment?” “Tomorrow, 9 a.m.”
Fiona and Horatio sat in the waiting room outside Nancy’s office; she was very quiet, gathering her thoughts. They had decided that Fiona would talk to Nancy for a few minutes and explain that she wanted Horatio to be with her for this session. Nancy’s door opened, he squeezed Fiona’s hand as she stood up. “Fiona, good morning. How are you feeling today?” “Fine, ah, a bit nervous…”
“Fiona, I’m not going to judge you, you know that.”
“I do, but I did somethin that was very foolish, and I put someone I care about in an awkward position.”
“Are we talking about Horatio here?”
“Yeah, that we are. I’d like fer him ta come in now, because I’ve avoided talkin ta him about what happened, out of my own shame. I owe him an apology, and I need him ta be a part of my recovery.”
“That’s fine, Fiona. I’m pleased that he wants to take part in the session.”
“Nancy, thank you for letting me be here. I know that Fiona is very nervous, though she does not need to be, and I want to help her through this.”
“It’s nice to see that you’ve taken such an active role in Fiona’s recovery. Having a support network is very important to victims of violent crimes.”
Fiona squeezed his hand; her heart was in her throat. She took a deep breath before she began to recount what had happened.
“I’m not a patient woman; I tink ya’ve both figured that out by now. I’d swooned over Horatio from the first time I met him, but I never thought he’d return those feelings. When I finally figured out that he did, I was so nervous, but happy……Well, that happiness was ripped away from me, and I have been terrified that I will never be normal again. I can’t stand the thought of not bein able ta be with him, the way I want ta be with him.”
She turned to Horatio, “Ya’ve been so good ta me, so patient and understandin”, she looked down, not wanting anyone to see how embarrassed she was, her face bright red. “I decided that I needed ta know if I could really be wit him, but I was so nervous.” The tears started to fall. “I dressed myself up, made dinner; it took most of a bottle of wine before I got my nerve up….I, ah, I kissed him, I ….. I forced myself on him….. Horatio, I am sorry I put ya in such an awkward position, and I tank ya fer carin enough fer me ta refuse my advances, fer not letting me run away from ya, from what I need ta do.”
She was sobbing openly now. He put his arms around her, pulled her close, and whispered “It’s o.k., sweetheart, I know. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”
Nancy watched as he held her while she cried.
“I just want ta be normal again. I want ta make love ta ya and not worry about how I’ll react, or if somethin is goin ta make me remember tings I don’t want ta remember. I don’t want ta loose ya…..”
“Sweetheart,” he took her face in his hands and brought her eyes to meet his “I am not going anywhere. I meant everything I said about us moving forward only when you are ready.”
Nancy was not surprised that he was so supportive and understanding, nor was she surprised that Fiona was having difficulty believing that she could accept his support. “Fiona, what you are feeling is normal. You don’t have a sexual history with Horatio to look back on, it makes perfect sense that you would want to test the waters, be sure that he would be caring and kind to you.” She looked at Horatio, “And, it makes perfect sense that you would want to be cautious, to be sure that you don’t do something she would later regret. Fiona, I can’t tell you when you will be ready to take your relationship to that next level, you’ll know the right time when you feel it. That’s not to say that you won’t be nervous and scared; just go with your heart, not your head..and wine.”
“Are you sure you’re o.k.? You could come to the lab with me.”
“No, I’m fine. I tink I’ll take a nap. Cryin always wipes me out.”
“O.K., would you like me to come over tonight?” “Yeah, I would. I don’t want ta go anywhere, I just want ta spend time with ya, without havin ta worry about him bein out there watchin.”
He kissed her forehead. “I’ll come as soon as I can.”
She smiled as she got out of the Hummer, and went in to take a nap. He knew he would have to talk to her about Monday’s hearing. He knew Brian’s attorney was going to ask for bail, and it was going to frighten her to think of that as a possibility. He never wanted to see her scared again.
Chapter 18
“Of course. I’ll go pick up some clothes and be back in twenty minutes.”
When Horatio returned, she had already changed into boxers and a tank top. She opened the door, and stepped aside to let him in. “That was quick.”
“I packed extra, thought we could spend the weekend together, and I will drive you to the courthouse on Monday. Calleigh, Eric and Ryan will be there too. You will not be alone.”
“Sweetheart, what are you doing out here, it’s late, I thought you’d be asleep”
“Ah, I couldn’t sleep. I seem ta have given it up fer Lent, except Lent is long over, and I haven’t been ta church in years.” Joking seemed to be the only way she could deal with things these days.
“I’ll sit up with you.”
“Ya don’t have ta, one of us might as well sleep.”
He sat down next to her. “I won’t sleep if I know you’re out here, wide awake.” He placed a pillow on his lap, “Lie down, I’ll stay with you.”
When she awoke, she was better rested than she had been in days. She looked up to see Horatio, still sleeping. It was still early; she sat up and gently kissed his cheek. His eyes opened and the sight of her brought a smile to his face. “Good morning.”
“Tanks for sittin up wit me.”
“Anytime. Do you want some coffee?”
“No, I tink I’d like to sleep a bit more. I’m going to try actually sleepin in my bed for a bit. It’s only” she glanced at the clock, “4 tirty”
“I think I’ll do the same.”
“Ya can lay with me, if ya like….I’m sorry, that’s not fair, I shouldn’t ask...”, she looked away, embarrassed. He put his hand on her cheek and turned her face towards him.
Chapter 19
“Good Morning sweetheart. Did you sleep well?”
“I did, tanks.” Before she could ask the same of him, there was a knock at the door. She looked out the window to see Calleigh, and opened the door.
“Hey, I thought I’d see if you were up for some ‘retail therapy’, I was heading…….” She spotted Horatio, obviously just out of bed. She smiled, “Um, you’re busy, ah, maybe another time.”
She knew Horatio had moved back to his own place after Brian had been taken into custody, so she was caught off guard, and, a bit speechless.
“Cal, this is not what yer thinkin.”
“I’m not thinking anything, no need to explain. I just thought I’d stop by and see how you were doing. You look, um, well rested. Good for you.”
“Oh, shut up and get in here.”
“Good morning, Horatio”. Caleigh could not look him in the eye, and had to bite her lip to keep from smirking.
“Oh, fer god’s sake, he only stayed here because I didn’t want ta be alone.”
“Fine, I believe you.” She said, unable to control the laughter any longer. “Either way, I’d be happy for you. Both of you, really. Can I go now, because this is just too weird, seeing my boss in nothing but a pair of sweatpants, and my friend in her underwear, I’m gonna get a visual I don’t want if I don’t leave soon.”
“Ye’ll call first next time, won’t ya?”
“Promise. Bye” Calleigh left as quickly as she had arrived.
“Would you like to go to the beach today?”
“Ah, Lieutenant, my people don’t do sun. It’s frightenin, really, a bit like a vampire in a Hammer Horror film. Practically burst into flames, we do. I only go ta the beach early in the mornin, or just before the sun starts ta set.” He laughed at her analogy.
“Well, maybe the Bass Museum then. “
“Much better, I tink museums use low lighting to protect the art, should be o.k. for my skin.”
Chapter 20
It was Monday morning; Brian’s preliminary hearing was set for 9:00 a.m. Fiona had been awake since 5:00 a.m. She got up, made coffee and waited. She didn’t want to start her shower too early and wake Horatio. They had slept in their separate rooms last night. It wasn’t that she didn’t want him near; she just thought it would be wrong to expect him to sleep next to her night after night, without other ‘benefits’. He was a good man, she didn’t want to take advantage of his kindness, and, though she wanted more, she was still a bit afraid of what that intimacy might bring out in her. At 6:30 a.m., Horatio poured himself a cup of coffee and joined her on the sofa.
“Are you sure you want to be there?”
“Yeah, I need ta be. I need him ta see that I’m not goin ta let him scare me, make me a prisoner ta my own fear.”
“O.K. I’ll be right there beside you.”
She was in a daze. She didn’t remember walking to the Hummer. As they drove home, her hands started to shake.
“Here is what we are going to do.” Horatio’s voice was firm. “First, we are going to go to my place, and I am going to pack enough things so that I can stay with you until he is back in jail. You will come to the lab with me, it’s not how I wanted you to spend the day, but it is necessary. Tomorrow, and every day after that, I will take you to the training center. You will be safe there, you can go about your training and when you are done for the day, I will make arrangements for one of the officers to bring you to the lab until I can leave for the day. I don’t want you going anywhere alone.”
She nodded. How had she gotten herself into this? It would take months, maybe a year for the trial to begin. Who knows how long it would last.
“I want ta tank ya for doin this. I’m sure it’s not how ya imagined spendin the next, what six, eight months or so.”
“Fiona, I am not just doing this for your protection. That was the catalyst for this decision, but not the reason.”
“I bet ya didn’t know what ya were gettin into when ya invited me ta dinner.”
“It wouldn’t have changed anything if I did.” They pulled into her driveway and he took her hand, “It’s going to be o.k. “
Chapter 21
Horatio’s plan seemed to be working. He dropped her off in the mornings; her last K-9 Unit “students” dropped her off at the lab when the training sessions were over. They drove home together, if Fiona wanted to go anywhere, he went with her. Weeks passed without incident. Fiona was on edge, constantly looking over her shoulder. She didn’t believe for a minute that Brian was going to leave her alone, he was an angry, obsessive man and he would wait until she let her guard down. She and Horatio spent hours talking, the arrangement only made dating easier, if a bit unorthodox. They were spending so much time together it seemed as though they had been together for years. They had fallen into a comfortable routine that others found amusing. Eric and Calleigh discussed this arrangement as they worked the latest crime scene.
“I tell you, Cal, they’re like an old married couple, they finish each other’s sentences“ , Eric joked.
“I think it’s sweet. You shouldn’t make fun; you might fall in love some day.”
Horatio cleared his throat, startling Calleigh. Eric made some excuse about having to check for blood spatter in another room, leaving her to dodge Horatio’s questions. She smiled and tried to distract him.
“We’re just about done here, I’ll check in with Alex when I get back to the lab and see if she has any more bullets for me”.
“Nice try, Calleigh, but it’s not me you need to worry about. Wait until I tell Fiona that you and Eric have been discussing our arrangement’.”
“Oh, you wouldn’t. Would you?” He smiled and raised one eyebrow. “Don’t you dare, you know she is a vengeful little thing. You will be solely responsible for anything she does to me if you tell her.”
Later that afternoon, Fiona was ‘delivered’ to the lab, as promised, by one of the officers. She checked in with Horatio to let him know she had arrived safely. She stood in the doorway of his office, watching him work for a minute before speaking.
“I’m here. “
He looked up and smiled at her. “How was your day?”
“Not bad. Bridget has made loads of progress. She’s followin every command. She may turn out ta be the best one yet.”
“You’re biased.”
“Yeah, yeah, say what ya will, that beast is a genius. I’m goin ta find Calleigh.”
“Hiya bullet girl.”
“Hey Fiona. How are you holding up?”
“O.K., I guess. I just keep waitin fer the other shoe ta drop, so ta speak. I wanted ta talk ta ya about somethin.”
“Sure, what’s up?”
She took a seat, and motioned for Fiona to do the same. Fiona sat, and took a deep breath.
“I want ya ta teach me ta fire a gun.”
Caleigh looked at her, a bit surprised “Why?”
“I plan on buyin a gun, and thought it’d be a good idea if I knew how ta fire one first.”
“Fiona, I don’t think that’s such a good idea. I know how you hate the sound, and I’ve seen how uncomfortable you are when you come in here. It’s not in your nature to pull the trigger, and even a second’s hesitation could cost you your life.”
“Then I guess I should practice. Look, I appreciate yer concern; I do, but yer not talkin me out of this.”
“Have you discussed this with Horatio?”
“No, and I wasn’t plannin ta talk wit him about it. I know he’ll be against the idea. I asked ya because yer my friend and I thought ya’d be more reasonable that him.”
“I’m not being unreasonable. I’m trying to keep you from harm.”
“What better way ta keep me from harm than ta teach me ta protect myself?”
Calleigh was quiet for a moment. “Let me think about this for a few days.”
“Fine. Call me when ya’ve reached a decision.” Frustrated, Fiona left the lab. She waited for Horatio’s call in the break room and passed the time reading.
“Horatio, I need to talk to you. “
She recounted her conversation with Fiona, and what her opinion of the matter was. Horatio’s face betrayed no emotion as he listened. Why wouldn’t she come to him? Why did she feel like she needed a gun when he never left her alone? She didn’t trust him, it was that simple.
“Thank you Calleigh. I’ll talk to her, not that I think I have any chance in changing her mind.”
Calleigh could tell, though he had tried to hide it, that he was hurt that Fiona hadn’t come to him. “She only came to me because ….”
“I know. Don’t worry, Calleigh. I’ll take care of it.”
“Hiya. Yer done work early. I thought ya’d still be at the lab.”
He seemed distracted. “I thought we’d head home early today.”
He was quiet on the ride home. When they entered the house, Fiona could take the silence no more.
“What’s wrong?”
“Calleigh came to talk to me today.”
“Ah, I should have guessed that she would.”
“Why didn’t you come to me?”
“I knew ya’d be against the idea.”
“Fiona, I’m not going to let him…..”
“I know,” Her voice was raised now, “but I want ta know that I can take care of myself! I don’t want ta have ta rely on everyone else ta protect me! Why can’t anyone believe that I can handle a gun?”
“Do you really think you could pull the trigger? Could you take a life?”
“I could take his life, if he ever comes near me again.”
He stood, hands on his hips thinking about what to do. He knew that she believed that. She could imagine herself in danger again, see herself pulling the trigger. He didn’t think she could really do it.
“I guess Cal was right, this just isn’t in my blood.”
“If this is still something you want to do, we can come back. Your aim will improve, but I’d like you to wait until it does before you purchase a gun.”
She shook her head, “It’s pointless. Yer right, I couldn’t pull the trigger if I had ta. I’d hesitate, just like Cal said.”
He took the gun from her, and took her hand as they returned the gun. He hated to see her disappointed, but he was relieved that she had changed her mind about the gun. Fiona had no trainings scheduled, so she went to the lab with Horatio. She had offered to type up reports for the team, she had nothing better to do; it wasn’t like she could go for a walk, or run errands. She set up a laptop in Horatio’s office and started on the stack of files.
“Let me know if you need anything, o.k.”
“Sure…..Horatio?”
“Yes”
“Tanks fer lettin me try. I’m sorry I didn’t come ta ya first. I didn’t mean ta insult ya.”
He smiled, “It’s o.k., sweetheart. I understand.”
Chapter 22
“Horatio, are you o.k.? You seem distracted.”
He turned to face her. “Just thinking. I took Fiona to the gun range this morning.”
“Oh.” Calleigh was a bit surprised, she never thought he’d go along with Fiona’s request for a gun. Sensing her concern, he relayed what had happened.
“She was so disappointed in herself.”
“You did the right thing, Horatio. You know she had to figure this out for herself, she’s not the kind of girl that just listens to reason. When she gets an idea in her head, she wants to see it through.”
When she noticed him staring at her, she flushed a deep red. “What are ya starin at?”
“I was just wondering what you were thinking.”
She couldn’t meet his eyes, she was starting to get nervous again, her heart beating faster; afraid she’d make a fool of herself again. “Ah, I’ll tell ya later.”
He decided not to press her to talk. He paid the check when it came, and they headed home. She was still quiet, but she had a look in her eyes that told him she was up to something.
Chapter 23
Horatio watched her as she slept. He was awake early, as usual. The sun shone in, making those red curls look like fire. He brushed a curl away from her face, and she stirred. He kissed her gently on the lips before getting out of bed. She stretched, and sighed, but did not wake. He pulled on his pants and quietly left the room, leaving her to sleep a little longer. He made coffee, his mind drifting back to the night before. When it was ready, he poured two cups. He knew by now exactly how she took her coffee, and this made him smile. “Sweet, and about as light as my skin.” “That hardly qualifies as coffee.” He teased.
When he walked back into the bedroom, he saw that she still had not woken up. He set the cups down, and sat on the bed next to her.
“Sweetheart, wake up” he said as he gently shook her arm. Her eyes opened, she blinked a few times.
“Good mornin, Lieutenant”, she said coyly, “Why don’t ya come back ta bed?” She sat up and kissed his cheek.
“Mmmm. I have to go to work, and so do you. You have dogs to train.”
“Ah, haven’t ya learned by now? I train their humans, the beasts need no trainin.”
“Either way, we need to get ready for work.” He handed her the mug, “I’ll shower first.” And with that, he was gone.
She sat, back resting against the pillows, sipping her coffee, thinking about last night. She was grateful that he’d had the presence of mind to refuse her advances the first time. She wanted to remember every moment; if they had rushed this, she wouldn’t have this….memory. She had been drinking that night, a bit too much drink, and had just wanted to ‘get it over with’, so to speak, just to see if she could bear the touch of a man. How foolish. Another man might have gone along with it, taken advantage of her, and left her feeling even worse. Horatio was not the kind of man to do such a thing. He had made her feel loved, safe. She heard the shower stop, looked at the clock, and groaned. As much as she loved her job, she just wanted to stay in bed today. She walked into the bathroom, coffee in hand, and found him putting shaving cream on his face. She walked up behind him, leaned into his back and kissed him, just below his shoulder blade.
“Tanks” she whispered.
He turned around, “For what?”he asked, a bit confused.
“Takin care of me. Not lettin me rush tings. Fer bringin me coffee. Fer makin me feel like I’ve not felt before.”
She set her mug down on the counter of the sink and turned on the shower. He watched her, knowing that she found it difficult to talk about such personal things, she usually laughed them off. He shaved, she showered. Just normal, everyday things that couples did, yet it seemed so romantic to her.
“Grand. How was yours?”
“Just got better.”
Chapter 24
“What’re ya doin for lunch?”
“What did you have in mind?”
“I don’t have anythin goin on today, d’ya tink we can head home early?”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart, we’re trying to process the evidence from three crime scenes, I can’t get away early today. I may even have to work a little later than expected.”
“He hasn’t tried anythin since postin bail, can’t ya just drop me off and go back ta the lab?”
“He hasn’t tried anything yet.” They each argued their points, over and over, but by the end of lunch Horatio had agreed to take Fiona home, provided she didn’t leave the house, and she set the alarm. He pulled up in the driveway and walked her to the door. He kissed her, and as she walked through the door, reminded her;
“Fiona, don’t forget to set the alarm”.
“Yes, Lieutenant.” She sarcastically replied as she rolled her eyes. He stood at the door and waited until he heard the alarm beep.
“Did you enjoy your day?”
“That I did, Lieutenant. I got loads done, had a bit of exercise, twas lovely. Look in the closet. I made room for yer tings. No point in keepin everthin in the spare room, when ya spend yer nights in here.”
“Thank you, Ma’am.”
He loved the coy tone of her voice. He thought to himself, Irish women have a way with flirting. He walked over to the bed, sat down and kissed her.
“Brian. If she wanted you to come in, she would have given you a key.”
Brian turned around; he wanted to kill this man. He reached for the knife he kept at his hip.
“Don’t do it.”Horatio yelled.
Fiona, having heard the noise at the window, had quickly pulled on her robe and was at the window. She saw Brian pull the knife out, knew that Horatio would only shoot if he had no other choice. They were so close now, close enough for Brian to plunge the knife into Horatio and she could not stand by and watch. She grabbed the lamp from her nightstand, pulling the plug out of the wall. In one swift movement, she raised the lamp like a bat, over her shoulder and ran to the window, bringing the lamp down on Brian’s head through the open window.
Chapter 25
As they drove in to give their statements, Fiona was very quiet, still shaking. She felt sick. “How long do ya tink he was out there?” she asked. Her voice was shaking and the sound of it startled him.
“I don’t know sweetheart.”
“Was he watchin us…..?”, the unfinished sentence hung in the air.
“I don’t know….I think so.” He reached out and held her hand.
“The first thing we do tomorrow is get better curtains.”
“I like my lace curtains, they remind me of home. Everyone in Ireland has lace curtains.”, she said as she looked at him, her eyes were absolutely pitiful.
“Then we will get shades that you can pull down” he said, tenderly as he gave her hand a squeeze.
“Fiona, I’m sure this isn’t easy for you, but the more information we can give the court, the better. He’s violated the conditions of his bail, now we need to show that it should be revoked.”
She nodded as she whispered, “o.k.”
“When Horatio took you home, did anything seem unusual?”
“No, I had a great day; tidied up, cleaned out my closets, exercised. I didn’t see anythin strange. I wasn’t really payin attention. How long dýa tink he was watchin me? “, her voice shook as she asked.
“Horatio, I’m gonna wait for Caleigh to get here before I question him.”
Horatio nodded. He knew that Brian’s attorney would pick apart the evidence and statements because of his relationship with Fiona. If he were to be in the room for questioning, it would only add fuel to the fire.
“She clocked him pretty good with that lamp “Frank said as he nodded towards Brian, sitting at the table, holding an ice pack to his head. “your girl’s quite a fighter, Horatio.”
“That she is, Frank, that she is.”
Frank left the room, left Horatio standing there, watching. He wanted to smack the smirk right off Brian’s face. His lawyer had just arrived, and he could hear them talking.
“Violating the conditions of your bail is very serious, not to mention pulling a knife on a police officer.”
“Maybe, but I found out what I needed to know.”
“And that would be?” “She’s a wh**e. You should have seen her….”
“Brian, you’re not helping your case here.”
“Horatio, whoa, you can’t go in there.”
“Calleigh,” his voice was very quiet “step aside, please.”
“No, I will not. I know you’re upset, but….”
“You have no idea.”
“O.K., maybe not, but I do know that if you go in there, you are going to hurt him. Now as much as we both know he deserves it, you know it will only hurt the case.”
“Sweetheart. I need to talk to you.” Her eyes met his, they were red and swollen; he knew she had been crying. “He was out there for quite a while. Watching us, but this was what we had expected. It’s just confirmed now.”
“Are you just stuck on stupid?” Frank barked out. Calleigh stared.
Finally, she spoke. “What were you doing there, Brian?”
“Finding out what a wh**e your friend is.”
Calleigh wanted to jump across the table and claw his eyes out. “What do you think you have to gain from violating your bail conditions?”
He laughed.
Ryan and Eric had returned from the crime scene, Fiona’s home. They had searched for foot prints, made casts of the imprints, found that he had been across the street, found some broken branches beneath the tree that he had sat in. They passed by Horatio’s office, started to walk in, when Ryan saw that Fiona was crying. He held his hand out, a signal to Eric to stop. They looked at each other, Eric nodded and they changed directions, heading instead to Eric’s lab.
Chapter 26
Fiona had fallen asleep. She didn’t hear Frank come into Horatio’s office. Frank noticed that she was sleeping, so he motioned to Horatio to meet him in the hall. Horatio slid Fiona’s head onto the couch so he could stand up, thankful that she didn’t wake. He stepped out into the hall to talk to Frank. Frank whispered.
“Take her home and get some sleep, Horatio. We go back to court tomorrow. I’ll let you know what time, but it probably won’t be until afternoon.”
“Thanks, Frank.” Horatio woke Fiona and told her it was time to go home. She was quite, drifting in and out of sleep on the ride. When they arrived, he helped her out of the Hummer and led her into the house. She stood in the doorway to her bedroom, when he walked up behind her, placing his arm around her shoulders, she turned to him.
“I don’t tink I can sleep there tonight.”
“It’s o.k., sweetheart. We can sleep in the spare room tonight. Frank is going to call in the morning to let us know what time the hearing will be. We should set the alarm so we can be ready.”
She looked at the clock, it was past midnight. “O.K., 6:30?”
He nodded. They undressed and curled up together, Fiona clung to him as if her life depended on it.
The alarm rang all too soon. Horatio reached over and turned it off. He looked at Fiona, her face still tear stained, and decided to let her sleep a little longer. He put the coffee on before heading into the shower, taking his cell phone into the bathroom with him, in case Frank called.
Fiona heard the shower, smelled the coffee brewing, but could not bring herself to get out of bed. She did not want to face Brian today, any day for that matter. She heard Horatio turn off the shower, she knew she should get up, but she just lay there. When he opened the door, he saw that she was awake and went to sit on the bed next to her.
“How are you this morning?”
“I’ll be o.k.” She forced herself to get up and shower. When she came out of the bathroom, she could hear Horatio on the phone. She came to stand next to him, just as he hung up, and turned to face her.
“We don’t have to be at the courthouse until 3:30.”
“Oh, good, a whole day fer me ta worry about what will happen.”
“Fiona, you have nothing to worry about. Judge Andreen will not allow bail a second time. She has a very low tolerance for people who do not follow her orders.” She nodded.
Court was called to order, Judge Andreen spoke first. “Well, here we are again.”
She looked at Brian’s attorney, the look on his face said it all, he knew he had no hope here, but had to do his job. “Your Honor, I would like to request bail for my client, with the condition that he remain on house arrest.”
“Counselor, your client not only violated the conditions of his bail, but he was armed as well.”
“My client carries a knife for his own protection.”
She shook her head, “Please, stop while you’re ahead, you’re only embarrassing yourself…”
Brian interrupted, “I had good reason to be there, Your Honor.”
“Brian,” his attorney tried to stop him, “I cannot help you if you do this.”
“That is enough! Bail is denied. Get this man out of my courtroom.”
He was taken away; Fiona stood up and pushed her way past Horatio and Frank and out of the courtroom as fast as she could. Calleigh was right behind her.
“Fiona, wait!” she yelled as she ran after her. She caught up with her just as she ran outside, and grabbed her friend by the arm. “Fiona, its o.k. Take a deep breath.”
The look on Fiona’s face was unlike anything Calleigh had expected. She had expected anger, what she saw was shame.
“Calleigh, what he said,…..it wasn’t like that, I mean, yeah, I said those tings, ….did those tings, but it wasn’t like that…..”
“Mr. Fitzpatrick.”
“Horatio, I told ya before ta call me Liam.” His voice was low, and shook a bit when he spoke.
“Liam. I’m sorry. Things are not what they seem…”
“I know that.” He finally looked at Horatio, “He is a sick man. He took a private moment, made it in ta somthin ta humiliate my girl.”
“I don’t want you to view Fiona differently because of this.”
“Love, don’t cry. Twas a mean ting he did just then. Meant ta make ya cry, make ya feel shame. That’s not how we raised ya. Don’t let him win.”
“Ma, I can’t face ya right now.” “Fiona, don’t talk like that. Ya know yer father and I don’t judge ya. I see how ya look at the man, I know ya love him. There is nothin wrong with ya enjoyin yerselves.” She took Fiona’s chin in her hand and turned her face to look at her. “Yer still our girl. Yer man’s in there now, talkin to yer Da, feelin just as shamed as you, and I know yer Da is tellin him the same ting I’m tellin you.
Chapter 27
As if sensing Fiona’s mood, the weather changed. Clouds rolled in and the wind picked up, an afternoon thunderstorm was imminent. They made it into the house just before the skies opened up. Fiona stood at the window watching the storm.
“How are you doing?”
“Embarrassed, angry, feelin like I want ta crawl under a rock. You?”
“Well, I will say that it was awkward, sitting next to your father once you and your mother left.”
She cringed. “Ah, yeah, sorry about that.”
“It went better than you think.” He told her what her father said, what she should have known all along. “No one in that court room thinks any less of you Fiona. I know you are embarrassed, I am too, my team heard every word, and Calleigh was already unable to look me in the eye after the day she showed up unannounced.”
“Ah, she has that visual she didn’t want. She may never look at ya again.” The doorbell rang, just as a flash of lightning lit up the room. Fiona looked out the window to see her father at the door.
“Ah, shite. I was hopin ta avoid him fer a few days.”
She opened the door and Liam rushed in from the rain. He nodded to Horatio and turned to his daughter. “Fiona, I want ta talk ta ya.” She looked away, as if she wanted the floor to swallow her up.
“Now, just be calm, I’m not here ta lecture ya girl, I know that’s not what yer needin right now.” He put his arm around her shoulder, “Come sit with me.”
He took a deep breath, “There’s some tings I need ta tell ya about yer Ma and me, tings we should have told ya long ago but we just never did.” “I met yer Ma when she was 16, and I was just shy of 18. She was raised in a very strict Catholic family; her father wanted her to join the convent. Yer Ma was havin none of that, even before she met me. We kept our relationship from her family for months before we were found out. They wanted ta send yer Ma to the Magdalene laundries when they caught us neckin in the back seat of my car. We left Gallway that night, we found out yer Ma was pregnant soon after. We swore we’d never let ya be shamed fer what nature gave ya. Don’t let that little bastard shame ya, Fiona.” “Da, I had no idea……” “Ya wouldn’t, it’s an ugly side of yer heritage, the way women are made ta feel that they should be ashamed. We didn’t want ya ta know that yer own grandparents could tink of doin that ta yer Ma.”
“Tanks, Da. I know it was awkward fer ya, hearin….”
“Twasn’t awkward, ya are yer Ma’s daughter”, he said with a chuckle.
“Oh, god, Da! I don’t want ta hear that!” Her face turned a deep red.
He laughed, “Ya have ta laugh it off, Fiona. If ya don’t it’ll drive ya mad. Yer O.K. now?”
“Yea, I’m o.k. “she smiled as she put her head on his shoulder.
“I see ya got some better curtains. Ya may want ta get better widows, some sound proofin “ he teased. She swatted his arm.
At 10:00, she announced, “I’m goin ta bed”
“I’ll be in soon”, he kissed her as she got up. He watched to see which room she would go to, not sure if she would ever sleep in her room again, if she would ever feel safe there again. She stood in the hall for a moment before she decided. She walked in to her room, pulled the curtains and started to reclaim her life.
Chapter 28
It had taken a few days before Fiona was back to her old self. She slowly regained her sense of humor, and had started driving herself to work. Brian was back in prison, so she was able to regain her independence. It was strange at first, breaking from the routine of recent weeks, but it was nice to come and go as she needed, working from home when possible without having to ask Horatio to change his schedule.
“How was your day?” he said as he sat down next to her. She smiled, still fighting the debate going on in her head.
“Good. Your’s?”
“Better, now.”
When he said things like that, it only confused her more. She knew he was enjoying being with her, but were they just having fun, or was this serious for him?
“Hey, did you get any sleep?”
“Not really.” Her heart still beat faster when he walked in the room. Maybe it was better not to know his plans, just enjoy however long he chose to stay.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
She shook her head, “It’s silly, nothin ta worry about.”
“It’s obviously worrying you, so it worries me as well.”
Oh, god, she was too far gone now, head over heels for him. “I was just wonderin if ya were plannin on stayin, I mean now that it’s over and all.”
He was a bit taken aback; they hadn’t discussed him going home. He really didn’t want to, but maybe that was what she wanted. “I could stay if you like.”
“Ah, I was hopin ya’d tell me what yer plans were.”
“I hadn’t really given it much thought. “
Well, that was clear. Clear as swamp water. “Well, let me know what ya decide.” She stood up, cup in hand, heading to the kitchen for a refill.
“Fiona, what are you telling me?”
Irritated now, “I’m tellin ya ta make up yer mind and tell me what ya want, what were doin here.”
His voice was very quiet now, “Fiona, you know how I feel about you, don’t you?”
“No. I mean, I don’t know. Ya haven’t said if ya want ta stay here wit me, but ya haven’t moved out, I don’t know what it is ya want. Ya moved in ta keep me safe, and I’m grateful ta ya, I really am, but now that I’m safe, I don’t know …..”
“Fiona, my desire to protect you was never out of a sense of duty.”
He looked away, genuinely hurt that she would think he was only here out of duty. She saw the hurt in his eyes and hated herself for being the cause of it; she had never meant to hurt him.
“I love you, Fiona.” He said, very softly. She blinked back the tears. “Horatio…..”
Chapter 29
Fiona didn’t know what she had expected him to say. She certainly had not expected him to say ‘I love you’, and it had left her speechless. She stared at him for a moment, not really sure she had heard it, maybe she just wanted to hear it so badly that she imagined it. One tear slid down her cheek. He watched her, she said nothing. Maybe she hadn’t heard him. Maybe she didn’t feel the same, maybe she wanted him to leave. He saw the tear slide down her cheek. He wasn’t sure what to say next. She walked over to where he sat, put her cup on the ground and sat next to him.
“I will leave if that’s what you want, Fiona, but I’d like to stay.”
He turned to look at her, hoping to see some sign that she wanted him to stay.
“I’d like to move in, unless you’d like to find another house, this one holds some bad memories for you…”
“No, I don’t want ta leave here, for every bad memory, there are a dozen good ones.”
Chapter 31
Horatio left for work early the next morning. Fiona had a light day, and slept in a bit. He kissed her lightly on the cheek before he left, not wanting to wake her. He would call her later to let her know he would be late.
Fiona hadn’t even heard him leave, the heat sapped all of her energy and she had slept later than she thought. It was strange that he didn’t say goodbye when he left for work. She always worried when he left, she knew the dangers he faced every day, and she had made a point of kissing him every morning. She went to the kitchen to find that the coffee was made and waiting for her, and smiled. As she poured herself a cup, the phone rang. She checked the caller i.d. and saw that it was him.
“Good mornin, Lieutenant. “
“Did I wake you?”
“No, I just got up; my bed was lonely without ya.”
He smiled, “As much as I would love to have stayed there with you, I had to get some work done. I just wanted to let you know that I am going to be late tonight.”
“Tings busy at the lab?” she asked, of hand, just wanting to know how his day was going.
“No, not so far, anyway. I just have some errands I need to run.” He seemed distant to her, she wondered what was bothering him, but didn’t want to press him.
“O.K., want me to keep dinner fer ya?”
“No, I’ll bring something home for us.”
“Sounds grand, I hate ta cook in this heat.”
“I know. I’ll see you later. I love you.”
She smiled, and he could hear it in her voice when she replied, “”Love ya too. Be safe.”
“Liam, do you have a minute?”
“That I do, Horatio. Come in ta the house, I could use a cold drink.”
Liam took two bottles of water out of the refrigerator, and motioned for Horatio to sit. He took a long drink, and nodded.
“Now, what is it I can do fer ya?”
Horatio paused only a moment before getting to the point of his visit. “Liam, I think you know how I feel about Fiona.”
“That I do. Tis a bit obvious” he joked.
Horatio smiled, “I guess it is. Liam, I would like to ask Fiona to marry me.”
Liam raised an eyebrow, “Then ya should ask her” he replied, knowing full well that he had come to ask his permission, and he couldn’t make it too easy on the man.
“Liam, I think you know why I am here…”, Horatio knew he was being strung along.
“I do” he laughed. “Ya want my permission, ya don’t need it. Ya do have my blessin, I can tink of no one else my girl would be happier with. When do ya plan on askin her?”
“Tonight. I’m going to pick out a ring when I leave here.”
“Wanted my answer first?” Liam could not hide the wicked grin, so much like his daughters, Horatio thought, when she was in a teasing mood. "What would ya have done if I’d said ‘no’?”
“I would ask her, either way, hoping you would come around in the end.”
“Good man, yerself. She’ll say yes, no matter what my response was.” Horatio spent a few more minutes talking with his future father in law, before heading out to find a ring.
“What took ya so long!? I was startin ta wory.”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t realize how late it was.”
She took the bag containing the sushi, and headed towards the kitchen to get plates. “I always worry when yer late. I know it’s silly…”
He opened the champagne, when she heard the pop of the cork, she turned in surprise. “What dýa have there? Celebratin something?”
He smiled, I hope so, he thought. He took two glasses from the cabinet and carried them with the bottle to the table. She followed behind with the sushi, soy sauce and bowls, eyeing him suspiciously. He took the plates from her, set them down and pulled out her chair. He wasn’t sure when he should do it, before or after dinner. It was late, she was probably hungry. He decided to wait until after dinner.
He spoke very softly. “Fiona, I’m sorry I kept you waiting, I hadn’t meant to be so long. I had no idea it would be so difficult to find…..Fiona,” he paused; she couldn’t read the look on his face, “Will you marry me?”
“Fiona, if you’re not ready, it’s o.k….”
“What? Horatio, put that ring on my finger. Ya should know what my answer is. I want nothin more, I...” When he took the ring from the box, the tears came. “Oh, god, it’s lovely.”
He slipped the ring on her finger; he even knew the way it needed to be worn, at least for now, on the ring finger of her left hand, the point of the heart faced out to signify that she was spoken for. It would be turned the other direction when they exchanged their vows, so that the point of the heart faced in, pointing to her own heart to signify that she was a married woman.
“Do you think you could just say ‘yes’ for me?”
She took his face in her hands and kissed him, “Yes. Ya know I will marry ya.”
He finally let out the breath he had been holding. He thought she would say yes, but until she actually did, there was just that little bit of doubt…..
The End. (of part one, I am currently writing part 4, and if you all like part one, I'll post the others)
It’s a hot, humid day in Miami; temperatures have been in the upper 90’s for the last 2 weeks. Without the help of the late afternoon thunder storms, the heat may never break. For Fiona, an Irish immigrant, this was getting old, fast. She had been fostering the latest litter of K-9 “trainees” for the last 4 months, and they were about ready to be matched up with their human partners to begin the intense Police K-9 unit training. This was always the hard part, letting them go. Sure, they’d have good homes, the officers would bond with them, and give them everything a dog could ask for, but she’d miss them. To add to her foul mood, this heat was making her curly auburn hair more unruly than usual. If she could pull off the “Sinead O`Connor look” she’d shave her head in a heartbeat!
She had just come from the Miami Dade PD to set up a training schedule, and figured she’d stop in on her friend Calleigh to see if she could meet her for lunch. Miami Dade crime lab-Callleigh and Eric are walking toward the elevator when the doors open Fiona, dressed in a black, knee-length cotton tank dress and sandals, her fair skin still flushed from the heat outside, steps out.
Eric let out a whistle, “Looking hot there, Irish rose” as he continued on to his lab.
She called back after him, in her thick Irish brogue, “Yeah, sure Delko, we need ta talk about yer low standards sometime. Calleigh, I was wonderin if ya wanted ta grab a quick lunch.”
“Great, I’m starving! I was going to call you later to see how your date went”
Rolling her eyes, Fiona replied; “You really don’t want ta know. Just do me a favor, next time I tell ya I have a date, handcuff me to somethin”.
“That bad?” As the two women stepped on the next elevator, Horatio was stepping off.
“Fiona, Frank tells me you’re ready to start a new K-9 class”
“Don’t remind me, Lieutenant, ya know I hate ta give them up.”
Horatio smiled, as he watched the elevator doors close, he never understood why she’d gotten into socializing the police dogs when it was obviously so hard for her to let them go.
Calleigh and Fiona sat at a table in a small pub a few blocks from the crime lab. Horatio smiled, as he watched the elevator doors close, he never understood why she’d gotten into socializing the police dogs when it was obviously so hard for her to let them go.
“I don’t get it Cal, he seemed so normal the first few dates, how did he just turn inta such a…..”
“You are just way too trusting, girl. I know you want to believe the best in everyone, but there are a lot of people out there that will take advantage of your good nature.”
“I just can’t believe what a wanker …. Our third date, and he tells me I’ll need ta stop taken in the strays and finding homes for them…..who does he tink he is? Oh, and the best part, he starts gettin’really creepy, askin me what kind of underwear I like, as if he’d be seein my panties anytime soon. God, Cal, how could I be such a lousy judge of character? I tink I should just swear off datin’ fer a bit.”
“Maybe you just need a better screening process.”
“Like what, ya want ta run background checks on any guy that asks me out?”
“That’s not a bad idea, but I was thinking you could introduce any prospective dates to your CSI friends, the fact that Eric, Ryan and I know how to cover up a crime should scare off any “wankers”, and if that fails, we could always …….”
“I don’t tink I want ta know . Anyway, I have more important tings on my mind just now. I have two kittens I need ta find homes fer; put the word out in the lab, will ya’?
“Sure thing, I have to get back, do you have pictures, Ryan’s a real sucker, I’m sure I can talk him into taking them.”
“I’ll email them ta ya when I get home, tanks Cal. You go on, I’ll take care of lunch.”
“Thanks, I owe you.” Giving her friends arm a quick squeeze, Calleigh headed back to the lab.
If Fiona hadn’t been so exhausted from the heat, she might have noticed that she was being followed when she left the pub. The 15 minute drive home was not even long enough for the a/c to cool her car off completely. Why was it that she stayed in this sticky, humid place? Oh, that’s right, it was for them. As she opened the door to her house, she was greeted by two cats, and the barking of her latest “class”. Going back to Ireland would mean a lengthy quarantine for her “kids”, and that was out of the question. Maybe it would rain soon, and cool things off a bit. "Hiya brats, let's not trip the only one able ta open a can, I'll feed ya, just back off a bit" Laughing at her furry family, she made her way to the back of the house where a large sun room with tiled floor housed her broods food and water bowls, and set about feeding time before treating herself to a cool shower.
Chapter 1
After a refreshing shower, Fiona, loathe to put anything on in this wretched heat, could tolerate nothing more than boxers and a tank top. She poured herself a big glass of ice water and sat down at her computer to download photos of her two latest rescues. Cute little gray kittens with golden eyes, one male, one female, already spayed and neutered, just waiting for a home. She’d keep them herself, but her female cat absolutely hated other cats, and made it very well known. Oddly enough, it was her male that took on a maternal role with the kittens. Go figure. After a few minutes the photos were emailed to Calleigh, at the crime lab. Hopefully she could get Ryan to come meet them; if he just met them, she was sure he’d give them a home.
“Right, time ta give the kittens some play time”. She walked out to the sunroom to let the “kids” out of their cage. Now that she was home, she could keep an eye on everyone and make sure the kittens weren’t bullied too much by the bigger cats. As she walked through her house, curtains open, oblivious to the fact that her every move was being watched.
Fiona got up early the next morning, showered and dressed casually in black pants and an emerald green sleeveless top. The black pants, she hoped, made her ample curves a little less “large”, and the green top contrasted nicely with her auburn hair, and made her eyes look even greener. At 8:00 a.m., Fiona’s phone rang; she’d just finished feeding everyone and was getting ready to pack up the pups to meet their new partners. “Hello” Silence.
“I said hello, now it’s yer turn, love, that’s how this phone ting works”.
Still, silence. She pulled the phone away to check the caller i.d., “unknown caller”. She shrugged and hung up.
“Alright, ya unruly lot, time fer ya ta get jobs!” She picked up the leashes, attached to 4 German Sheppard pups and lead them out to the waiting Miami Dade PD truck. The officer opened the door so she could load them into their crates. Once they were all settled, she closed the door.
“I’ll meet ya there, I’m goin to take my own car, I’ve got some stops ta make after the training”.
“Sure Fiona, I’ll see you there
She got into her silver convertible, put a wide brimmed straw hat on her head to shield some of the sun, and followed the truck to the police training facility.
Once she had met with the officers who would work with and care for her pups, given them some feeding and bonding suggestions, and set up the daily training schedules, she headed over to the lab to see if Calleigh had any luck convincing Ryan he needed two very cute kittens. Stepping off the elevator, she spotted Ryan, walking over to him, she smiled. “Hiya Ryan, what’s the craik?”
“Uh, you know that just doesn’t sound right, Fiona”
“What? It’s Irish; it just means ‘what’s happenin, what’s goin on’”
“Yeah, I know, but it sounds like a drug reference here, and ….”
“O.K, O.K., ‘what’s new’, is that better?”
“Yeah, that’s better” smiling at her, “you know, that was a pretty sneaky trick, having Calleigh show me those photos.”
Giving him her best ‘sweet and innocent’ look, she replied “I have no idea what ye’re on about, Ryan, I just wanted her ta pass them around ta see if anyone could find it in their hearts ta give the little beasties a home.”
“Yeah, sure, that’s all you did. Funny, she didn’t show them to Delko. Anyway, I ‘found it in me heart to give the little beasties a home’, happy now?”
Fiona excitedly grabbed him by the shoulders and planted a big kiss on his cheek; “Good man, yerself! I knew ya were a softie! Come by after shift, I’ll help ya shop fer everything ye’ll need, then ya can take them home.”
Horatio had walked up behind Fiona just in time to see this exchange, amused, he couldn’t resist teasing the woman; he loved to see her blush. “Miss Fitzpatrick, is there a reason you’re sexually harassing my CSI?”
Horatio was not disappointed. As she turned around, her face was flattering shade of pink; “What?!, No, it’s not what yer thinkin’ Lieutenant! Ryan is just …”
“’Finding it my heart to give the little beasties a home’. I’ll see you after work Fiona”. Ryan couldn’t help but laugh at her expense. She was such an easy mark, fell for any joke, any time, but at least she could laugh at herself. How did she keep ending up dating such creeps? Calleigh had told him about this latest guy; maybe he and Delko should go have a “chat” with him. Fiona was like a sister to both men, he felt the need to look out for her. Sweet as she was, she never seemed to get jaded and cynical, no matter how much they tried to impress upon her the need to be less trusting.
Left alone in the hallway with Horatio, Fiona felt a bit self conscious. She adored Ryan and Eric, but their flirting was just that, a bit of harmless fun, she knew neither man had a romantic interest in her, so she was ‘safe’. She was not sure what, if anything, the man standing in front of her felt. She’d always had a bit of a crush on him, but thought he’d find her foolish; therefore, she had a tendency to blush ferociously whenever he was near. She could feel the heat rising in her face, and became all the more nervous, which would mean that she would start talking really fast, making no sense at all.
“Well, I should get goin’, I need ta clean out the kennel space and buy some cat food.”
Of course this all came out as one long word, and as she turned to walk away, her foot slipped off the modest inch heel sandal she thought she could walk in comfortably. Horatio, reacting quickly, caught her by the waist before she even realized what had happened.
“Are you alright?”
Her face was a deep shade of red, as she replied; “Yeah, sure, fine, tanks.” God, she couldn’t even look him in the eye, how could she make such a fool of herself?! ‘Clean the kennels’, smooth, Fiona, and oh so graceful too, imagine if you’d worn real heels like Calleigh. He walked her to the elevator, watching that blush with amusement, and wondered if she knew the effect she had on him. Mercifully, the elevator doors opened just as they reached them. She stepped on, pushed 1, and gave a nervous smile as she waved goodbye.
When the doors closed, she breathed a sigh of relief. He, on the other hand had wished the elevator wouldn’t come, so he could enjoy her for a while longer.
Chap. 2
Fiona managed to get home, clean up the kennels and was waiting, patiently for Ryan. She had received two more strange phone calls, and was starting to get annoyed. Some kids making prank calls no doubt. She heard a car pull up in her driveway, and looked out the window to see Ryan walking up to the door.
She rushed over, opened the door; “Hey, about time! What took ya so long?”
“I know how much you hate the heat, (rolling his eyes) so I stopped and picked up litter boxes, litter and food on my way here.”
“Well, human beins were not meant ta live in heat like this! Come in an meet your beasties.”
Ryan followed her out to the sun room, when she opened the door, one long streak of gray fur whizzed past.
“There a bit energetic”
After tearing through the house a couple of times, both kittens screeched to a stop in front of her, she scooped them up, and Ryan instantly softened, talking to them in a low voice. Fiona watched, smiling as he took them from her.
“See, I knew ya’d be a perfect match.”
“Yeah, well just don’t tell everyone what a sap I am”.
“Sure ting, ye’re only takin them ta shut me up. I can go with that story. Need ta borrow a carrier?”
“Oh, yeah, I guess I did forget that.”
“I’ll get ya one, and throw in some toys too.”
Once the kittens were loaded up, she bid them farewell, giving Ryan a big hug, as her eyes began to tear up. Once Ryan had left, she sat on the couch with her own beasties, a little melancholy; “Well, we’ve got the place ta ourselves again, at least fer a while”.
The phone rang, another “unknown caller”, but she answered anyway.
“Hello” Breathing.
“Listen ta me ya little sh*te...., I am goin ta find out who ya are, and when I do, they’ll be hell ta pay.”
Three days later, several phone calls later, some in the middle of the night, a very weary, frustrated Fiona had had enough. Time ta talk ta Calleigh and get some advice. Unplugging the phone was out of the question, she had to be available for any K-9 training issues that may arise. She pulled up to the crime lab, leaving the top down in hopes that the car might at least not hold the heat in so much that way. She parked, and walked into the building. She was pretty well known in the lab, she and Calleigh had been friends for a few years now. She had a Miami Dade PD i.d. badge because of her work with the officers and police dogs, so she just made her way back to the ballistics lab. She found Calleigh examining bullets from the most recent crime scene. “Hey, bullet girl, got a minute.”
Turning around, “Sure thing, K-9 queen, business or personal?”
“A bit of both, I’m afraid. I’ve been gettin a lot of phone calls lately; they don’t say anytin, just stay on the line until I hang up. Caller I.D. is useless, “unknown caller”. I’m at my wits end.”
“Do you have any idea who it could be?”
“I thought it was just kids, playin pranks at first, but now, I just don’t know.”
She sat down next to her friend, and leaned her elbows on the counter.
Calleigh thought for a few minutes before asking; “How did Brian take it when you told him you didn’t want to see him anymore?”
“Wanker wasn’t pleased, called me a few colorful names, but it’s not like he made any threats or anytin. You don’t think he’d be the one callin me, do you? I mean, what purpose would it serve?”
“Psychological intimidation. You look like you haven’t slept; sleep deprivation can make you a bit crazy. It could be him. Want me to see if we can get a trace put on your phone? If we can get a phone number, we may be able to track a location.”
“Sure, I’m gettin desperate. If it is him, dýa tink I can get a restrainin order?”
“I’m sure you can. Don’t worry about it; I’ll take care of everything on this end.”
They talked for another 30 minutes, catching up with each other before Fiona left. Being tired, and absorbed in her own thoughts, she didn’t see him until he was right next to her.
“Why don’t you stop this “hard to get” crap, Fiona. Haven’t you toyed with me enough?”
“Look, Brian, I told ya, leave me alone. I wish ya well and all, but I want nothin more ta do with ya.”
“Did you meet someone else, you little tramp?”
He moved in closer, an inch from her face, she could see the veins in his forehead, knowing that he was getting angrier every second. ‘Little man syndrome’, she thought, she stood a mere 5 ft. tall, and he was only an inch or two taller. ‘why is it the little ones were such bullies?’
“What’re ya talkin about? Just because I want nothin ta do with ya, does not mean that someone else has ‘stolen’me away.”
He grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her hard before releasing her, screaming obscenities at her. She heard footsteps behind her, felt a hand on her back as she heard a deep male voice.
“Fiona, what’s the problem here?”
She turned to see Horatio, hand on his gun.
“Um, nothin, Brian here was just leavin, seems he can’t accept that fact that I don’t want ta see him anymore.”
Great, yet again, I look like a total fool in front of Horatio Caine. Horatio gave a cold, hard stare at Brian, waiting for him to leave. Brian stormed off, throwing a few more colorful names back at Fiona. She stood there, shaking, from anger, embarrassment and a touch of fear, fighting back tears.
"Tanks Lieutenant, I guess it comes in handy, workin with the police and all.”
She gave nervous laugh as she wiped at her tears, too ashamed to look him in the eye.
“Fiona, how do you know that man?”
“We went on a few dates, and then I realized he was a bit of a perv.” Because I’m such a great judge of character, she thought.
“Is this the first time he’s harassed you?” “Yeah. No. I’m not really sure.” She told him about the phone calls, and her conversation with Calleigh.
“It’s o.k., we’ll check into the phone calls.” Handing her a card with his work, cell and home numbers printed on it; “I want you to call me if he shows up again. Make sure you lock your doors and windows, and if you have an alarm, set it.”
“Tanks.” Feeling a bit calmer, she took the card. “Why can’t I meet a nice guy like you?” Oh, crap, I said that out loud, didn’t I. She looked away, feeling the heat rise up her neck, turning her face a deep red.
Horatio raised his eyebrow, smiled. “Why just someone ‘like’ me, is there some reason I won’t do?”
She turned around, looking at him, not sure if he was serious, or just teasing her. “Um, I don’t know what you’re gettin at, if you’re teasin, I’m sorry, now just isn’t the time…..”
“I’m very serious, Fiona. “
“Oh, um, well, sure, ya’d do just fine.” She looked away, nervously. “I should go. Tanks again fer your help, I’ll, um, I’ll call if anyting else happens”.
She put her hat on, and got in the car. Horatio leaned down to look into her eyes. “Fiona, you’ve had a difficult day, and I know you just want to go home now, but I’d like to take you to dinner.”
“Oh. O.K., sure, that’d be nice. Um, when?”
“How about tomorrow? “
“O.K., tomorrow then.”
“Now, go home and get some rest.” He squeezed her shoulder, stood up and watched her back out of the parking space and pull away.
Chapter 3
Fiona was in a bit of a daze the whole way home, still a bit shaken from her encounter with Brian, but also still amazed that the whole ordeal ended with plans for tomorrow night. She parked her car, put the top up, and just sat for a minute, trying to gather her thoughts. She grabbed her purse, the card Horatio had given her, and headed for the house. Once inside, she locked the door, hearing Horatio’s voice in her head; “Make sure you lock your doors and windows, and if you have an alarm, set it.”
She picked up the phone, quickly punched in a number, after 2 rings, she heard her friend’s voice.
“Calleigh Duquense”
“Cal, got a minute?”
“Fiona, I just heard about what happened, are you o.k.?”
“Uh, how much did ya hear?”
Calleigh relayed what Horatio had told her when he came to discuss getting the trace on Fiona’s phone.
“I really don’t tink he’ll be callin again, Cal. I tink he was scared off.”
“I’m still ordering the trace. Do you want to stay with me for a few days until we can get the restraining order?”
“No, really, I’m fine. I’ll lock my doors, set the alarm, like Horatio said. It’ll be fine. Did he happen ta mention that he asked me ta dinner tomorrow?”
“What? “
“Yeah. Believe it or not, I tink I’m more nervous about that than anyting Brian might try. He’s just looking fer attention.”
“O.K., first of all, don’t underestimate Brian, he’s obviously got some issues.”
“Yes, Mother.”
“Don’t get sarcastic with me, young lady! And, anyway, you have nothing to be nervous about where Horatio is concerned. Just be your charming little self. It’s not like he’s going to bite….., well, at least not in a bad way…”
Laughing, she admonished her friend; “Calleigh, ya should be ashamed of yerself! Get yer mind out of the gutter, ye’re supposed ta be Sothern Lady”
“You know I’m not saying anything you haven’t thought about yourself, don’t play innocent with me, I’ve see how you look at that man when he walks away.”
They chatted for a while longer; Calleigh was happy to hear her friend laugh again. Maybe she was right, maybe Brian would go away now that he’d made a scene, embarrassing her. She was safe at home, and she knew Horatio wouldn’t let anything happen to her when he was around.
Fiona had spent the night, alarm set, lights on all over the house and her cell phone in hand. God, she hated that he had this power over her, she’d never been afraid to be on her own before, but was too proud to take Caleigh’s offer, so she stayed home. The next morning, she went about her normal routine, training the dogs and their officers. One very stubborn little dog was giving her new human quite a bit of trouble, so she spent some time after the training working with them. “I just can’t keep her from chasing the squirrels,” officer Richards said, “yesterday, she nearly pulled the leash out of my hand. I don’t want to resort to a choker chain, but I’m not sure what else to do.”
“Ye’ll do no such ting ta that beautiful beast, officer.”
She turned to the dog, squatted down in front of her to look the dog in the eyes, “Bridget”, the officers humored her and let her name what were essentially their dogs, “listen ta me, ya stubborn beast, ya must leave the wee squirrels alone, they’re not botherin ya. Ya must channel all of that squirrel chasing energy inta chasing the bad guys.”
She saw a figure out of the corner of her eye, and turned to see Horatio watching with a very amused look on his face.
“Don’t laugh at me Lieutenant, that beast understands every word I’m sayin, don’t ya Bridget?”
The dog groaned. “See? Officer Richards, ye’ll need ta work with her every day, use a deep, firm voice, and when she obeys, ya must reward her with affection, don’t overdo the biscuits.”
The officer nodded, as she walked over to Horatio. “Did ya have reason ta be watchin me work, or were ya just lookin fer a laugh?”
“As entertaining as that trainer/dog exchange was, I did actually want to talk to you.”
She motioned to a bench, out of the direct sun, where they could talk. “I wanted to let you know that I’ll be stopping by earlier than expected, I’m bringing an officer to put a trace on your phone. Once he’s done, we’ll go to dinner, if you’re feeling up to it.”
“How early?”
He looked at his watch, “In about an hour, if that’s o.k.”
“Sure, I just need ta tie up some tings here, I should be home in an hour. And, yes, I’m still up fer dinner.”She turned and smiled as she walked away. “See ya then.”
It had taken longer than expected to get home, she arrived just a few minutes before Horatio. She let him in, showed him where the phone was and went to get some water. The officer had the trace installed in less than 30 min. She looked down at her clothes, dirty and sweaty from dog training. “Sorry, I’m not usually this bad about bein ready fer a date. Have a seat; I’ll be quick about it."
Horatio sat on the couch, and waited, patiently, flipping through channels on her t.v. He heard the shower running for only a few minutes. She wasn’t kidding when she said she’d be quick. He smiled to himself. Ten minutes later, Fiona came out of her bedroom, wild, curly hair still slightly damp, wearing a black halter style dress, and flat sandals. She’d thought about wearing a sexy pair of heals, but remembering how she had a habit of falling off her heals, decided against the risk. He stood up, and turned off the t.v.
“You look….”
She blushed and looked away. “Tanks. Ready?”
They walked to the door, his hand on her arm. As she reached for the doorknob he said “Aren’t you forgetting something?”
She gave him a confused look, “The alarm. You shouldn’t go out without setting it.”
“Right.” She quickly set the alarm, and walked out hand in hand.
“I miss Ireland, but this is my path, my life’s work. I help with the rescue, train the K-9 unit, it’s what keeps me here.”
He was impressed with her passion to do everything in her power to help make the world a better place. Horatio walked her to her door, she stood on the step, he on the sidewalk, and kissed him on his cheek, and blushed. He watched her unlock her door, turn off the alarm, then waited until he heard the door re-lock and the alarm re-set before he got back into his hummer and headed home.
Fiona, still ‘over the moon’ at how well the date went, decided to sit on the patio and have a glass of wine before heading to bed. She disarmed the alarm, poured her wine, and went out to the patio, closing the screen door behind her. She was only there a few minutes when the phone rang. She sighed, set her glass down and went back inside to answer. He watched from the shadows, only a few feet from where she had been sitting. He was so quiet, she never knew he was there, never even heard when he had dialed the cell phone. He had watched her long enough to know exactly how long it would take her to get to the phone, but he wasn’t worried, it would only take him a few seconds. She made it to the front of the house, picked up the phone on the 4th ring.
“Hello” Silence. He was pouring the powder in her glass as she said “hello “again. He picked up the glass with his gloved hand and swirled it a few times and he could hear her talking to the silence.
“I know it’s you Brian, It’s not workin, I am not afraid of ya. I won’t give ya that power.” He was safely back in the shadows, so he ended the cell phone call. “Damn it!” She knew she hadn’t kept him on the phone long enough.
She went back out to her patio, closing the screen door behind her, sat down, and drank her wine. When she started to feel dizzy, she tried to stand up, but lost her balance and sank back down, falling off of the chair. He was right there; within seconds he flung her over his shoulder and silently made his way to the van he had parked a block away.
Chapter 4
She had made it almost too easy for him. He had watched from the shadows. Had seen her come home with that cop, seen her kiss him. He almost blew it when he saw them together, almost confronted her then, but he would have protected her, again. He had to get her away from him. Brian waited. He watched the lights come on throughout the house. He expected to wait until she had gone to bed and then broken into her house, silently, had planned to slip the GHB (gamma hydroxybutyric acid) (GHB is a common date rape drug that causes dizziness, black outs, blurred vision and difficulty remembering what happened when under the influence of the drug) into her coffee. He knew she made a pot every single morning. He had watched her, two cups, every day. He had no idea that she had started using the alarm system, and that his original plan would have failed as soon as he had opened the window. When he saw her come outside with a glass in her hand, he knew it was meant to be.
Fiona, still ‘over the moon’ at how well the date went, decided to sit on the patio and have a glass of wine before heading to bed. She disarmed the alarm, poured her wine, and went out to the patio, closing the screen door behind her. She was only there a few minutes when the phone rang. She sighed, set her glass down and went back inside to answer. He watched from the shadows, only a few feet from where she had been sitting. He was so quiet, she never knew he was there, never even heard when he had dialed the cell phone. He had watched her long enough to know exactly how long it would take her to get to the phone, but he wasn’t worried, it would only take him a few seconds. She made it to the front of the house, picked up the phone on the 4th ring.
“Hello” Silence. He was pouring the powder in her glass as she said “hello “again. He picked up the glass with his gloved hand and swirled it a few times and he could hear her talking to the silence.
“I know it’s you Brian, It’s not workin, I am not afraid of ya. I won’t give ya that power.” He was safely back in the shadows, so he ended the cell phone call. “Damn it!” She knew she hadn’t kept him on the phone long enough.
She went back out to her patio, closing the screen door behind her, sat down, and drank her wine. When she started to feel dizzy, she tried to stand up, but lost her balance and sank back down, falling off of the chair. He was right there; within seconds he flung her over his shoulder and silently made his way to the van he had parked a block away.
Chapter 4
She had made it almost too easy for him. He had watched from the shadows. Had seen her come home with that cop, seen her kiss him. He almost blew it when he saw them together, almost confronted her then, but he would have protected her, again. He had to get her away from him. Brian waited. He watched the lights come on throughout the house. He expected to wait until she had gone to bed and then broken into her house, silently, had planned to slip the GHB (gamma hydroxybutyric acid) (GHB is a common date rape drug that causes dizziness, black outs, blurred vision and difficulty remembering what happened when under the influence of the drug) into her coffee. He knew she made a pot every single morning. He had watched her, two cups, every day. He had no idea that she had started using the alarm system, and that his original plan would have failed as soon as he had opened the window. When he saw her come outside with a glass in her hand, he knew it was meant to be.
Fiona was starting to wake up. Her mind was waking up, but she had trouble getting her eyes open. Her body ached, she felt like she was in a fog, she felt like she couldn’t breathe. When she finally got her eyes to open, things were blurry, nothing looked familiar. She tried to sit up, but as soon as she lifted her head, the dizziness started. It took her several more tries to actually sit up. When she looked around, she saw that she was in a small room, lying on a mattress, just the mattress, no bed, there were two windows, but both had bars no more than an inch apart, on the outside of the window. Her dress was ripped. The tears came, silently. She had no idea what had happened to her, no idea how long she had been here, no idea if anyone even realized she was missing.
Frank walked into the crime lab, looking for Calleigh. He found her at reception, collecting her messages.
“Calleigh, have you seen Fiona?”
“No, I thought she had a training class today, she should be in the K-9 yard.”
“She never showed up. Not like her to be late.”
The blood drained out of Calleigh’s face. “Frank, we need to get a patrol car over to her house now. I’ll meet you there, I need to tell Horatio.”
When Calleigh told Horatio that Fiona had not shown up for her class, he immediately dialed her number. No answer.
“Calleigh….”
“Frank is on his way over there now, I told him we’d meet him there.”
Brian was sitting outside the door, he hear her when she had tried to sit up, heard her when the sobs finally came. He smiled. He wanted to play.
The door finally opened, she looked up. She knew it would be him. Hatred filled her eyes. This amused him. He locked the door behind him and came towards her; she instinctively scrambled to her feet. She would fight him to the death if she had to. “Calleigh, have you seen Fiona?”
“No, I thought she had a training class today, she should be in the K-9 yard.”
“She never showed up. Not like her to be late.”
The blood drained out of Calleigh’s face. “Frank, we need to get a patrol car over to her house now. I’ll meet you there, I need to tell Horatio.”
When Calleigh told Horatio that Fiona had not shown up for her class, he immediately dialed her number. No answer.
“Calleigh….”
“Frank is on his way over there now, I told him we’d meet him there.”
Brian was sitting outside the door, he hear her when she had tried to sit up, heard her when the sobs finally came. He smiled. He wanted to play.
“You sick bas***d” she growled “What the hell have you done to me?”
He laughed, mimicking her accent, “You’ll tank me for it someday, darling.”
She lunged at him, scratching his face, pulling his hair, kicking like a wild animal, but he was stronger than her. He threw her back onto the mattress, her head hit the wall. “That’s a bit too feisty, red, we’ll have to work on that.”
He pulled the duct tape out of his shirt pocket; she kicked, hard, her foot making contact with his groin. He doubled over; she kicked him in the face as a cell phone fell out of his pocket. She knew she’d never get away from him, and when she saw the phone, she quickly kicked it under the mattress. To distract him, she went for the door, he recovered enough to grab her ankle and pull her to the ground. She put her arms up in front of her when she felt herself falling. She landed hard on her forearms, as he dragged her back to the mattress. He taped her wrists together behind her back, and taped her feet together.
“When you learn to behave, I’ll consider taking the tape off.” He walked out of the room, leaving the door open, he returned a few minutes later with a bottle of water. He held it up to her lips, “Drink”.
She took a sip, he forced more down her throat than she was expecting, and she coughed. He sat watching her, not saying anything. She started to feel dizzy again, and realized that he must have drugged her. Her eyes wend out of focus; she drifted off to an unconscious oblivion.
Horatio and Frank stood at Fiona’s front door, they had knocked, no answer. An officer stepped forward with a Rabbit tool (a rabbit tool is a hydraulic device that exerts force to open doors) “Frank, I heard her set the alarm when I brought her home last night, why would she have disarmed it?”
“Maybe she went for a walk.”
The door now opened, Horatio, Calleigh and Frank entered. Calleigh and Horatio started the search for evidence. Frank noticed that the glass patio door was open, only the screen closed. “Horatio, look at this.” Frank opened the screen door, and the men walked out to the patio, Horatio noticed the wine glass, mostly empty immediately.
“Calleigh, let’s get this back to the lab. Let’s take her phone and see if the caller I.D. shows any calls after 10 last night.”
Horatio looked into the sun room and saw the empty bowls on the floor.
“Calleigh, where are the cats?”
“Check under her bed, the sound of the door being broken in probably scared them.”
Horatio found his way to Fiona’s bedroom; he could smell her perfume as he walked through the door. He stooped down to look under her bed and saw two pairs of eyes looking back at him.
“Hey there, come on out, it’s o.k.”
They wouldn’t budge. He figured that they had not been fed, so went to the kitchen to find their food.
“Calleigh, can you find a carrier and get them to my place.” He handed her two cans of food; “I’ll keep them until we bring Fiona home.”
“Sure, I’ll take care of it.” Calleigh saw the fear in his eyes, she squeezed his arm as she walked past him to get the carrier. “We’ll find her, Horatio. She’s a strong girl, she’ll be o.k.”
He gave her a sad smile, he hoped she was right.
Word spread quickly throughout the lab as well as the K-9 unit. The entire Miami Dade PD would gladly work this case, on their own time. Fiona would have blushed to know how well loved she was. Calleigh took on the unenviable task of calling Fiona’s parents. She had met them a few times; she knew they would take it hard. Horatio looked into the sun room and saw the empty bowls on the floor.
“Calleigh, where are the cats?”
“Check under her bed, the sound of the door being broken in probably scared them.”
Horatio found his way to Fiona’s bedroom; he could smell her perfume as he walked through the door. He stooped down to look under her bed and saw two pairs of eyes looking back at him.
“Hey there, come on out, it’s o.k.”
They wouldn’t budge. He figured that they had not been fed, so went to the kitchen to find their food.
“Calleigh, can you find a carrier and get them to my place.” He handed her two cans of food; “I’ll keep them until we bring Fiona home.”
“Sure, I’ll take care of it.” Calleigh saw the fear in his eyes, she squeezed his arm as she walked past him to get the carrier. “We’ll find her, Horatio. She’s a strong girl, she’ll be o.k.”
He gave her a sad smile, he hoped she was right.
Night fell, Fiona still slept; her tear stained face contorted by the pain. It was a fitful sleep, tormented by dreams of trying to find her way home, hearing Horatio’s voice calling out to her, telling her to set the alarm.
Chapter 5 It was still dark outside when she woke, she lie very still for several minutes, listening for any sign of him. Silence. It was now or never. She managed to sit up, she struggled for several more minutes, stretching and straining to pull her arms down behind her legs until she was finally able to wiggle her legs all the way through, bringing her still taped arms around to the front. She quietly felt around for the cell phone she had kicked and stuffed under the mattress. She let out a sigh of relief, it was still there. Flipping the phone open, she turned it on; holding it close against her body to muffle the chime it would make once it was turned on. She waited; it was still quiet; the only sound she could hear was her own heart pounding in her chest. She dialed the number she had only committed to memory in the last 24 hours.
Horatio’s team had been working non-stop since learning of her disappearance, analyzing the evidence, searching her house a second time; to be sure they had missed nothing. It was 2:30 a.m., they had estimated that Fiona had been missing since approximately 10:30 the night before. He sat in his office, debating sending the team home; they had reached a dead end. His cell phone rang.
Fiona knew she had to be fast, and quiet. She heard him answer, held the phone close to her mouth and whispered; “Horatio, I don’t have much time…” “Fiona, where are you?”
“I don’t know, there are bars on the windows, and it smells musty.”
She heard a noise; she had to hide the phone before he came back. She started crying, to cover the fact that she had been talking, maybe he’d think she was talking to herself, she had to hope. She stuffed the phone between the mattress and the wall, leaving it on, Horatio was still on the other end of that phone.
As soon as he heard her voice, he had set in motion the GPS search. She was crying now, though it sounded muffled. “Good girl, I’ll have your location in just a minute”, he said more to himself than to her; he knew she had put the phone down because she sounded much more distant now. He kept the phone to his ear as he jotted down the GPS information that would lead them to her. Rushing out of his office, he found Ryan first.
“Get squad cars, now,” handing him the address, “she’s at this location.”
"Eric, Hummer, now.” He tossed him the keys and gave him the address as they ran to the parking lot. Horatio got in the passenger side, something he never did, but he wanted to focus on this call.
She kept sobbing, as Brian entered the room, hoping to avoid suspicion. “Shut up!” He’d been drinking, still had the bottle in his hand. Hard liquor. He was mad, he couldn’t hold his liquor and he was a mean drunk. She was still sniffling. “I said shut up!”
Horatio heard the slurred words, heard the slap, heard the thud as she hit the mattress. His face turned pale. They were almost there. Just a few more minutes. The squad car would make it there first. He hoped they would be in time.
Brian heard the sirens of the squad car and panicked. She heard the sirens and cried tears of relief, but he was not about to give up that easily. He grabbed her by the wrists; drug her out of the room, into an equally small, empty room. He taped her mouth shut and stuffed her into a small space in the wall, sliding a panel in place over the opening. He’d come back for her later, he had to move fast.
Officer Richards was the first on the scene. He was off duty, had heard the call on his way home. It had been a long day, he had worked a 14 hour shift, but he knew what this call was about, he was close, so close, he had to respond. Bridget was in the car, having had a very successful first day of “work”. They had to respond. He came to a screeching halt in front of the abandoned house. He knew back up was on the way, could hear the sirens, hand on his gun, he got out of the car. “Stay”
Bridget obeyed. The hummer skidded to a stop next to him. Horatio closed the phone; he had heard only muffled sounds for the last few minutes. All three officers, guns drawn made their way to the door.
“Miami Dade PD”, Horatio yelled just seconds before he kicked the door in. Flashlights lit the way as they searched the building. They found the room with the mattress, saw the blood, he knew this was where she had been held, had been beaten, but she was gone. The house was empty. Officer Richards came to stand beside him.
“Lieutenant, I have an idea I’d like to try, if it’s o.k. with you.” Horatio nodded. “Bridget lived with her for months, she knows her, we’ve been training for drug sniffing, but ….”
“Bring her in, Officer.”
Seconds later, Officer Richards returned with Bridget, fully alert, ears up. “Search”. Bridget sniffed around the mattress, pawed at it a bit, and took off, making her way through the house, followed by Horatio and Officer Richards. She came to a section of the wall where the paneling was just slightly loose, Horatio might have seen it once the room was brighter, she was barking excitedly, digging at the paneling. They shone their lights and saw that the paneling was loose. Officer Richards pulled it aside and they saw her feet. Bridget pushed her head through the opening. Fiona was dizzy again, she heard Horatio’s voice, but kept drifting in and out of consciousness. She heard a dog barking. There was a bright light; then she felt a dog licking her foot.
Horatio crawled into the opening and gently lifted her just enough to get her out. She was naked, bruised, her face was bloody. “Eric, get a kit over here and a blanket, and call an ambulance!”
He covered her with his jacket as Eric brought the kit. Horatio put on gloves and pulled the tape off of her mouth; Bridget whined and licked her face. Her eyes fluttered open.
“Bridget,” she mumbled, it came out almost as a question, “good girl, Bridget.”
Horatio cut the tape away from her wrists and ankles. When she looked up at him, she smiled.
“It’s o.k., sweetheart.” He stroked her hair, and she looked up at him and smiled.
Chapter 6
Horatio rode in the ambulance with her, holding her hand. She slept most of the way there, as the EMT’s took her blood pressure and monitored her heart rate. She could feel his presence, even though she wasn’t awake. They arrived to a nearly empty ER; it was a slow night for Miami, much to Horatio’s relief. He had asked Eric to have Calleigh call Fiona’s parents. She was examined almost immediately; Horatio left the room so the nurse could complete the SAE kit. Fiona had woken up, briefly, but long enough for him to explain what the nurse needed to do, before she drifted off again. When the nurse came out of the room, her eyes showed her sadness as she handed him the evidence kit.
“Lieutenant, she’s bruised badly, poor thing; he was very rough with her. It’s a blessing that she doesn’t seem to remember any of it.”
He looked into the room and saw her lying there, drifting in and out of sleep. He looked down at the kit in his hand, the DNA collected from her, she may not remember any of the details, but he would have to tell her what that bas***d had done to her. When she opened her eyes a few minutes later and saw him sitting there, the look on his face made her want to cry. He looked so devastated, so pale.
“Sweetheart, do you feel like you can talk for a few minutes?”
Her voice was raspy, almost a whisper; “Sure, the fog is wearin off a bit.”
Tears streamed down her face when he told her.
“Why don’t I remember….I swear, I don’t….How?”
“The blood tests haven’t come back yet, but we found traces of GHB in a wine glass on your patio.”
“How did he get……..Oh my god, the phone rang, I was only in the house for a minute, I left my glass….”
The realization hit her. “He was watchin me. I never told him where I live, I only saw him a few times, I never let him pick me up”
She heard her mother’s voice, and wiped the tears away and looked at him pleadingly.
“Please, don’t tell them, they must have been sick wit worry, I don’t want ta upset them more.”
“Whatever you decide to tell them is up to you, sweetheart, but….”
“I know, the evidence will be presented in the trial, I just…”
Her father, a tall man with salt & pepper hair, the “black Irish” and mother, a petite woman with the same wild red hair as her daughter, entered the room.
“Fiona! Oh, my girl.” She gasped, hand covering her mouth when she saw the bruises on her daughter’s face. She tried to fight back the tears as she gently stroked her daughter’s face. “Oh, love, we’ve been so worried about ya.”
Her father’s face showed a mix of sadness, relief and anger. He took his daughter’s hand, “Fiona, I will make sure that man pays for what he’s done ta ya,” his voiced cracked as he tried to keep the tears of rage from falling.
“Mr. Fitzpatrick, we will find him, I promise you that, but you must let us handle this. He will pay for what he’s done, but if you take this into your own hands, you will be leaving your wife and daughter to fend for themselves.”
“Da, this is Lieutenant Caine, Horatio, these are my parents, Liam and Grace”.
Liam nodded, knowing he was right, took Horatio’s hand in both of his, “Lieutenant, you must be the one my girl had dinner with the other night. I’m pleased ta meet ya. “
Grace smiled at him, “Lieutenant Caine..”
“Please, call me Horatio.” “Horatio, tank you for bringin our girl back.”
“She made sure I could find her, Ma’am. It was her quick thinking that led us to her.”
Fiona smiled. This was not how she had imagined him meeting her parents.
“Really Ma, I’m fine. Ya don’t need ta spend the night here. Please, go home, both of ya, and get some rest.” “If ye’re sure,…. Well, we’re not going ta New York next week…”
“No, Ma, ya need ta go, ya’ve committed ta show, ya can’t back out on them.”
Fiona knew her parents had agreed to judge the Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York, knew they had been looking forward to it all year. They had a great reputation in the “dog world”, and it was a great opportunity for them.
“Ma’am, if I may, I am happy to take care of Fiona while you’re away. I had planned on having her stay with me until we catch him, she’s not safe staying by herself”.
“He’s right, Grace, she needs police protection. He’s a good man, she’d be safe wit him.” Liam knew how stubborn his daughter was, not that his wife was one to give in easily, but he thought Fiona might go mad if her mother hovered over her.
“What if someting happens?”
“Ma, I’m goin ta be fine, they’re only keeping me here over night ta monitor tings, the Dr. said I’d be fine, it’s just goin ta take a bit of time fer the bruises ta heal.”
Grace looked at her daughter, she was so independent, never wanted to be taken care of, even from a young age. She was too busy trying to take care of everyone else to let anyone take care of her. “Ye’ll be the death of me, girl.” She shook her head and sighed, “o.k.,” she looked at Horatio, “You take care of her, and ya call me, immediately, if she so much as sneezes.”
“Yes Ma’am.” Horatio smiled, he could easily see where Fiona got her fiery personality.
Chapter 7
Fiona slept fitfully, waking every half hour. Each time she woke, she saw Horatio sitting next to her bed. The next morning, Calleigh came in and insisted that he go home and get some rest, she would stay with Fiona, and call him as soon as the doctor signed her release. He reluctantly left; the hospital chair was very uncomfortable and he hadn’t slept well. When he reached his condo, he was greeted by very hungry cats. Although he had left plenty of food for them when he had briefly stopped home the day before, the bowl was now empty. He set out food, tripping over cats every step of the way, before lying down on the couch. He woke in the early evening, startled at the time, he checked to see if he had any messages, but no one had called. He dialed a number, waited while it rang;
“Calleigh, what’s going on there? I had expected to hear from you before now.”
“Horatio, the doctor just got here, you know how hospitals are; it’s been a long, boring day filled with terrible food and hourly blood pressure checks.”
“Tell Fiona I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Sure thing.”
He hung up the phone and quickly showered and dressed. By the time he arrived at the hospital, Fiona was dressed in shorts and a tank that her parents had brought in for her.
“I’m sorry I was gone so long, Fiona, I slept longer than I had realized. Are you ready to go?”
“Yeah, um, just one ting first.” She glanced at Calleigh, who quickly excused herself, “I just want ta go home. I appreciate yer offer ta stay wit ya, but I just want my own bed.”
“Fiona, it’s not safe for you to be alone right now.”
He saw the disappointment in her eyes, he hated to disappoint her. “I’ll tell you what, I will take you home, your home, but I will be staying there with you. That is the only compromise I’m willing to make, so don’t even think about arguing.”
She smiled, “O.K., I can live wit that. Calleigh told me you have my cats, I tank ya fer that, I really do. I was worried about them. Can we stop ta get them on the way home?”
“Why don’t I have Calleigh pick them up and bring them to you.”
“O.K., my Ma has gone off ta the drug store ta get some anti-biotic cream and bandages fer the cuts and scrapes, it was the only ting I could think of ta make her feel useful.”
“So, she’ll stop by with them later, then.”
“Yeah, she left just a few minutes before ya got here.”
“And, how did she know that you were going to your house, and not mine?”
Busted. “Well, ah, I ……”
“You had no intention of loosing that battle, did you?”
She bit her bruised and swollen lip as she tried to come up with an answer. He laughed at her attempt.
“Don’t think that I’m always so easy. Now, come on, lets get you home.”
Calleigh was waiting outside the door and looked up as they came out. Horatio was pushing Fiona in a wheel chair, hospital policy, much to her chagrin. "Calleigh, would you please pick up Fiona’s cats and bring them back to her place?”
She looked at Fiona and couldn’t hold back the smile, “Sure, I’d be happy to.”
He handed her his key, “You knew what she was up to, didn’t you?”
“Me? No, not at all, she didn’t say anything to me.”, she said in her smooth Southern accent as she gave him an innocent me’ look. He just shook his head and kept pushing Fiona towards the exit.
Fiona was still very stiff as they made their way into the house. Relieved to finally be home, she sank onto the couch the minute they reached it. She lay her head back and closed her eyes with a sigh. “I have a spare room, so you don’t have ta worry about sleepin on the couch.” She opened her eyes and found him watching her.
“If I’d known that you were going to talk me into staying here, I would have packed a bag.”
She smiled, “Ah, sorry about that, I didn’t realize ya’d be such a pushover.”
“Well, I’ll worry about that once we get you settled.”
There was a knock at the door, Fiona’s parents had arrived. Horatio opened the door for them; they held an awful lot of bags for just picking up bandages and anti-biotic cream. Horatio took several bags from Grace as she came through the door, Liam carried several more.
“She insisted on doin the shoppin so ye’d not starve. I tried ta tell her Fiona’d have plenty of food, but there’s no reasonin with the woman.”
“Ah, hush, yer the one that kept loadin the cart up. Just set those down in the kitchen and I’ll put them away.” She patted her husband on the cheek as she hurried into the kitchen.
Fiona smiled; she loved the way they pretended to fuss at each other. She knew the great affection behind the game they played.
Thirty minutes after they had arrived, her parents left, to allow Fiona to settle in, but as they left, Calleigh was walking up to the door. She wished them a good night as she walked in, cat carrier in one hand, and a pizza box in the other. She set the carrier down as Horatio closed the door. The cats rushed out as soon as she opened the door, neither very happy about being cooped up even for the short drive. She stood up and handed the pizza to Horatio. “I thought I’d save you the trouble of fixing dinner, and she needs comfort food right now.”
“Thank you, Calleigh.”
“I’ve got to go, but call me if you want me to come give you some relief, or pick up anything for you.”
“Thanks, but I think we’re all set for groceries.”
Calleigh laughed, “Grace.”
He nodded.
Once the pizza was gone, Fiona decided she needed a bath. A long, hot bath to soothe her sore body and try to forget what little she could remember of the ordeal. She remembered him hitting her, remembered him taping her hands and feet. Remembered the cell phone and hearing Horatio’s voice. She did not remember the sexual assault, thank god for that. But what if that memory came back to her? As Horatio sat down next to her, he took her hand in his. She looked up at him. “Ya don’t have ta do this, Calleigh would stay wit me.”
“Sweetheart, I want you to listen to me, I’m not going to leave you. I want to be here, with you. I want to help you through this.”
She tried to blink the tears away. “We only had one date. I wouldn’t blame ya if ya walked away right now.”
“Why would I do that?”
“This changes tings. How do ya know I’ll ever be normal again?”
He took her face in his hands and turned her to look at him. “We will get through this. Things are just on hold right now while you recover. We will pick up where we left off, when you are ready. We move at your pace, but I am not going anywhere. Understood?”
She couldn’t stop the tears now, she just nodded. “I need ta take a bath.”
He kissed her forehead, and helped her get up.
Fiona set her boxers and tee shirt on the sink, closed the bathroom door and undressed as the tub filled up. She stepped into the tub, and let the water envelope her. She stayed like that for a long time before reaching for the soap. When she had scrubbed herself until she was pink, she let her head sink into the water and reached for the shampoo. The simple act of washing her hair hurt. Her back was badly bruised from punches and kicks she didn’t even remember. Moving her arms over her head put strain on the muscles that ached from fighting. Once her hair was rinsed, she let the water out of the tub. Horatio’s cell phone rang. It was Eric, calling to check on them, asking if they needed anything.
“Eric, I need to pick up some things from my place. If you could stay with Fiona for a while, I’m sure she’d be happy to see you.”
“Yeah, I’ll be there in half an hour.”
Just as he hung up, he heard a splash, and a thud. He rushed to the bathroom door.
“Fiona, what’s wrong?” “I’m fine, I just got dizzy when I tried ta stand, it’s nothin.”
“I’m coming in.”
Before she could respond, he had the door open, and grabbed her towel. He held the towel out, and helped her to stand as he wrapped it around her. He picked her up and sat her down on the side of the tub.
“I’m fine, please…I don’t want ya ta see me….I need ta get dressed.”
Panic showed on her face.
“It’s o.k., I’m going to help you dress.”
“But..”
“Sweetheart, just look at me. Good. Now keep looking right into my eyes.”
He reached for her shirt and pulled it over her head. “Good, now put your arms through.”
He picked up her boxers, and put her feet through the holes keeping his hands on the waistband..
“O.K., now, I want you to put your arms around my neck, and we’re going to stand up together, O.K.?” She did as he asked, and as they stood up, he pulled the boxers up over her hips, and pulled the towel out from under the shirt. He smiled at her, “Now, that wasn’t so bad, was it?”
He used the towel to dry her hair before picking her up and taking her back to the couch. He handed her the remote, and went off to get a comb.
When he returned, he heard the knock at the door. He let Eric in, and explained to Fiona that Eric was going to stay with her for a few minutes so he could gather some things he would need while he was staying with her.
Fiona enjoyed her visit with Eric, they talked about Ryan and how Eric had seen his new screensaver the other day. It was a picture of two gray kittens, and Eric would never let him live that down. Finally, Horatio returned and Eric said his goodbyes. When he sat on the couch next to her, he was worried how she would react. He knew she was embarrassed about needing help earlier. He held her hand.
When she spoke, her voice was soft. “Tanks fer helping me. I didn’t want ya ta see me. I’m sorry if it seemed that I didn’t trust ya, that wasn’t it.”
“I know.”
She leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder. They fell asleep, hand in hand. That was where Brian found them when he looked through the window, asleep, together on the couch.
Chapter 8
The next few days passed rather slowly. Fiona’s mother insisted on coming by every day and hovering over her daughter, which drove Fiona mad. Between her and Horatio, Fiona was barely allowed to feed herself. She was not one to enjoy this constant attention. The morning her parents left for New York, they stopped by to say goodbye. Once the door was closed, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“I do love them, but good lord, that woman was drivin me absolutely crazy!”
Horatio just smiled. He knew Grace meant well, but he could see how much Fiona needed some space. Eric had brought Horatio a laptop so he could work on the case remotely, so he wouldn’t have to leave her with alternate police protection. She had insisted on keeping up with the K-9 training, but for her comfort, the officers were bringing the dogs to her. She was not quite ready to go out in public, the bruises, though faded, were still very noticeable. Her first training session would begin today, with Bridget and Officer Richards. Horatio would go into the lab for a couple of hours while Officer Richards was there, and he had agreed not to leave until Horatio returned. She was excited to get back to some type of normalcy.
Horatio had let the officer and his K-9 partner in, and called out to Fiona to let her know they had arrived, and he would be back in a couple of hours. When she came out to greet them, Bridget held a small bouquet of flowers in her mouth.
“Ah, what a sweet girl ya are.” She bent down to take the flowers and hug the dog. “There’s my she-ro, such a smart girl”.
She spent several minutes making a big fuss over the dog, thanking her for her part in the rescue. As she put the flowers in a vase, she thanked the other half of the team;
“It was yer quick thinkin that allowed her ta find me, Officer Richards. You must have been workin very hard with her.”
They spent an hour and a half working with the dog, and Fiona was pleased with her progress. Officer Richards updated her on the man hunt efforts and assured her, as everyone else had, that they would find Brian. She appreciated his kindness and encouraging words, but still had a sinking feeling in her stomach every day that passed without his capture.
When Horatio returned, she said her goodbyes, and off her little protégé went to fight crime.
“Get those bad guys, Bridget.” She received a bark in response.
She liked having Horatio around, they spent hours talking, getting to know each other. He didn’t look at her like she was crazy when she had conversations with the cats. She even caught him talking to them a few times, not that he would admit it. In the evenings, they had dinner and watched movies. Netflix was a godsend during this ordeal, since he would not leave her, and she was not about to go out in public looking like she did. “Get those bad guys, Bridget.” She received a bark in response.
“Are you sure I can’t convince you to let me take you out to dinner?”
“There’s not enough make up in the state of Florida ta cover these bruises, and I’m not about ta go out until they fade. Let’s just order in.”
They had agreed on Chinese food and decided to eat on the patio. She finally felt comfortable being out there, but then she knew she’d be safe with Horatio there. She wasn’t sure how she would feel once he was gone. She had taken a few minutes to shower and change before the food arrived, and their dinner felt like a second date. She hadn’t felt this relaxed and happy since the first dinner they shared. When dinner was finished and the leftovers put away, they turned on the T.V. and settled on one of Fiona’s guilty pleasure, “Paranormal State”. For some reason, she loved getting scared, but always regretted it once she was lying in bed, unable to sleep.
When they said ‘goodnight’ she kissed him, on the lips this time. He was a bit surprised, but returned the kiss, tenderly, holding her face in both hands.
The next morning, another officer and dog arrived for their training session, but when Horatio let them in, the officer handed him an envelope that he had found lying on the doormat. When Fiona opened it, her face went pale, and she started to shake. Chapter 9
God, she made this so easy. He watched through the binoculars, dressed in camouflage, well hidden the bushes. He could see her clasp her hand over her mouth as she looked at the pictures. This was going to be fun. He just needed to get rid of her cop friends; then he could really play.
Fiona felt like she was going to throw up. Horatio saw the look on her face he moved to stand behind her. He saw the stack of photos, took them from her hand. There were 10 photographs in the stack. The one on top was Fiona, much like they had found her, hands and feet bound with duct tape, naked, lying on a mattress. The next was Horatio helping Fiona into the Hummer as they left the hospital, Fiona sitting on her couch, bruised and swollen, Fiona an Horatio asleep on the couch, her head on his shoulder, Fiona talking to Eric, Fiona hugging Bridget, Fiona and Calleigh, followed by shots of Fiona, alone in the kitchen, looking out the window. The last photo in the stack was Fiona kissing Horatio goodnight, on a post it note on the final photo was written “NEXT TIME IT WILL BE MY LIPS YOU’RE KISSING, SLUT.”
Modern technology was a wonderful thing. It allowed Brian to watch her from a safe distance. Allowed him to take photographs in low, or almost no lighting. Allowed him to print the photos from his own home, any time, day or night. And, most important, allowed him the instant gratification of seeing her face when she saw what he had been up to.
Horatio bagged the evidence and called Calleigh to pick it up. He sent the officer home and asked him to contact the other K-9 officers scheduled for training and let them know that all training was cancelled for the remainder of the week. Fiona sat on the couch; curled up, chin on her knees, not looking at him, not talking to him. She had retreated into herself, cats sitting on either side of her, concerned that their human was acting so strangely. Horatio sat down next to her and waited, to see if she would speak. When she did not, he did.
“Sweetheart, I’m not going to let him hurt you. Trust me. We know, now, that he is still nearby. I will have undercover officers patrolling the area, starting immediately. Calleigh is going to talk to Frank and he will take care of everything.”
She nodded, the only indication that she had heard him. She sat like that for a full hour before she looked at him.
“He’s going ta hurt you next. You, and Cal, Eric, my parents, the beasties. He’s going ta take everythin away from me, everyone I care about.”She started to shake, “there’s nothin I can do ta stop him.”
“Calleigh and Eric can take care of themselves, they are trained to be on alert, now that we know what he is capable of, they will be watching for him. As will I. I am not going to let anything happen to you,” he looked down to see one of the cats watching him, “any of you. I want you to lie down, and get some rest now.”
“I don’t tink I can sleep.”
“I’ll get the prescription from the hospital.”
“No, I don’t want that, it makes me feel strange. Right now, I tink I’d like a whiskey.”
He smiled, “Ice?”
“No, ice melts, ruins the flavor.”
He returned a few minutes later with a small glass of dark whiskey. She took the glass, and drank, finishing it in one shot.
“Why don’t you lie down now?”
She shook her head, “I’m afraid ta sleep.” Blinking back the tears, she looked at him, “I’m sure he’s out there, watchin me, right now.”
“I’m right here, sweetheart”, he pulled her against him, so her head rested on his shoulder, “just close your eyes now.”
Twenty minutes later, there was a knock at the door, Fiona jumped. Horatio could see out the window. “Shhh, it’s o.k., it’s Calleigh.”
He opened the door and let Calleigh in, she collected the evidence from the envelope before coming to sit next to her friend.
“Hey, girl. Frank has his men out there right now, watching, looking for him. It’s going to be over soon. He can’t hide much longer. Why don’t I come over tonight and we eat ice cream and watch some god-awful trash t.v.? “ Fiona smiled at her friends attempt to cheer her up.
“We can make it a party, I’ll bring Eric and Ryan, Horatio’s already here, so I guess he can stay, but it’s not much fun partying with your boss.”
This got the desired reaction, a small laugh.
Chapter 10
Early the next morning, Fiona had quietly gotten dressed in a t-shirt and sweatpants and dragged her training bag out onto the patio. As Horatio was getting dressed, he heard noises coming from outside, on the patio. It sounded violent, primal. He drew his gun and opened the door of the spare room, as he walked out, he noticed that Fiona’s door was open, her room empty. He rushed to the patio door and saw her kickboxing, her foot coming in swift contact with the training bag that was attached to a heavy duty stand. He was amazed at what he was watching; she barely paused between kicks, punches and screams. The rage emanating from her was unlike anything he had ever seen. He stood there, watching her, for several minutes, she didn’t notice him, just kept kicking. He holstered his gun, and moved closer.
When she finally paused, he spoke. “Fiona, you shouldn’t be out here alone.”
Panting, she turned to look at him. “I’m fine.”
“I can see that. Is there a reason you came out here?”
“Yeah, there is. If he wants ta watch me, he can watch this.”
She spun and kicked the training bag so hard and high that she knocked it over.
“Why don’t you come inside now, I’ll make you some breakfast.”
“You don’t need ta take care of me, Horatio.”
“I know that.”
She pushed past him and went into the house. He heard her door slam.
When she finally emerged from the bathroom, her hair still wet, she was dressed in baggy sweatpants and a sweatshirt at least 2 sizes too big. She walked into the kitchen and poured a glass of water. Horatio looked at her, a bit surprised, the heat wave had not broken, and he knew she hated being hot. He raised an eyebrow, “Won’t you be hot in that?”
“I did a lot of tinking yesterday. What happened ta me, it was my own fault,” he tried to interrupt, to interject some rational thought, but she held up her hand, “I don’t tink about what’s goin on around me; don’t pay attention ta the fact that people can look right in my window, inta my home, and what am I doin, walkin around here in barely more than my underpants. It’s my own fault. I need ta be afraid, I need ta avoid bein seen as weak, vulnerable. I need ta be prepared fer the next time.”
“Fiona, this was not your fault.”
“You don’t know that! It happened ta me, there is somehtin about me that drew him in, that made him tink I was an easy target.”
Horatio could only watch as she walked away. He didn’t know how to reach her, didn’t know what to say to help her.
Fiona had never felt so alone. She knew that she had shut him out, but didn’t know how to let him in. She knew he wanted to help her, but she felt too ashamed to let him. She felt guilty that he was sticking around, and she had no idea if she would ever be normal again.
When Horatio knocked on her door, he had expected her to tell him to go away. When she opened the door, her face was stained with tears. He wanted nothing more than to hold her, but he was afraid he would frighten her. He handed her a piece of paper, with a phone number written on it. “What’s this?”
“That is the number of a therapist who runs a support group for women who are the victims of violent crimes. If you decide to call her, I will take you to see her, anytime you want.”
She nodded, and when she looked up, she could see the sadness in his eyes. “Tank you. I do appreciate what yer tryin ta do fer me.”
He nodded and walked away.
She spent the next hour on the phone talking to Nancy. She was still not sure about joining a support group, but did agree to meet with her, one on one, and just talk. When she emerged from her room, Horatio was on his cell phone, she could hear only parts of his conversation, but knew it was about her case. They still had not found Brian. When he hung up, she spoke. He nodded and walked away.
“I talked ta Nancy.” He turned to face her. “I want ta meet with her.”
“When?”
“She can see me tomorrow, 10:00.” “O.K., I’ll drive you.”
The rest of the day passed slowly. There was an uncomfortable silence between them now. She had thought that she could move on; pretend that nothing had ever happened. She had even felt happy for a few days. When she had seen the photographs, she couldn’t get that image out of her head, the image of herself, bound by tape. It haunted her. How could Horatio ever look at her the same way after seeing her like that? He had carried her out of there; he had cut the tape off. He would never forget that. How could he want her after that?
The next morning, Horatio sat in the waiting room while Fiona talked to Nancy. She told her what little she could remember. She told her what she feared. How she didn’t think she could ever be normal again. Nancy listened, she offered advice and sympathy. She told her about her own experience, how she had been raped when she was in college. Told her how she had gotten through it. Fiona knew she was not alone, that she would get through it too. When she came out of the office, Horatio was waiting. She knew he would be waiting for her, as long as she wanted him to. She wanted him to be there, didn’t know how fair that was to him, to keep waiting, not knowing when, if ever, she would ever be able to offer him anything in return.
Chapter 11
Fiona’s parents had returned from New York, she had told them nothing of the photographs, but they noticed a distinct change in her behavior. When they tried to talk to her about it, she told them she was fine, she just wanted to be left alone. Horatio saw the concern in her mother’s eyes, he wanted to tell her what had happened, but knew that Fiona would want to protect them from the horror she had known. When Grace looked at him, pleadingly, the only excuse he could come up with for the sudden shift was that Fiona was restless and anxious for the man to be caught. Once they were alone again, he sat next to her, and took his hand in hers. She stiffened.
“They are so worried for you. I know you want to protect them, but they know that you are keeping something from them, and that worries them more than know the truth.”
“I can’t tell them. I can’t handle seeing their faces when they …”
“I understand. Fiona, it will come out in the trial, you know you won’t be able to keep them away. You can’t let them hear it that way.”
When she turned to face him, she looked so lost.
“Would you like me to talk to them?” She nodded. “O.K., I will call to have an officer stay with you, and I will go talk to them.”
“Tell them I’m sorry. I just couldn’t tell them.”
“I will. They will understand, sweetheart.” He squeezed her hand before he got up to make arrangements for Fiona’s protection.
Grace felt sick. Liam’s face showed the rage he was holding in. What they had feared had become reality. They both worried for their daughter’s mental state. Horatio assured them that she was now seeing a therapist, but was still reluctant to talk to those closest to her. He assured them that this was not unusual, but that didn’t make it any less painful for them, or him, for that matter. She may never talk to them about what she was feeling.
As the days passed, Fiona continued her morning kickboxing “therapy”. She was meeting with Nancy three times a week, and working hard to make progress. As with any therapy, a large part of her progress depended on her, on how hard she was willing to work. She was a very determined woman. When she wanted something, she did what she had to do to get it.
Horatio drove her to her appointment, she was quiet, but in a contemplative way, she was not trying to shut him out, just trying to figure things out. He waited, patiently, as always. When the door opened, Nancy walked out with Fiona, and stopped to speak to Horatio. As she extended her hand, she introduced herself, “Lieutenant, I’m Nancy. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
He shook her hand, “Nice to meet you, Ma’am.”
Their exchange was brief, as she had another appointment, but she had wanted to meet the man that had, after such a short time, been so patient and supportive to Fiona. He was a constant in her recovery. She admitted, shamefully, yet freely, that she pushed him away and shut him out repeatedly, yet he remained by her side. He could easily order police protection, and walk away. It was obvious, as she watched him with her, that he would not even consider that an option.
As they drove home, Fiona finally opened up a bit and talked to Horatio about what she talked about in her sessions. Much of the work she was doing was very internal, and there was nothing that he could do to help, just listen when she was ready to talk. When they arrived home, Fiona told him she wanted to be alone for a while, and went to her room. He spent the next few hours discussing leads with Frank and reviewing evidence reports.
Fiona knew that she was making progress in therapy, but she was not a patient woman. She wanted immediate results and although Nancy assured her she was seeing how far she had come in just a few weeks, she had a hard time believing it. She wanted a relationship, she had thought she just might have a shot at one, and then her life was completely torn apart. She didn’t want to lose him; she didn’t know how long it would take for her to feel comfortable with a man again. She had made up her mind. She had to know. She knew what she would do, how she would do it. She just had to work up the courage. Chapter 12
Fiona’s hands were trembling as she changed her clothes. She put on an emerald green sundress, a little make up, not much, just enough to play up her eyes, and slipped on a pair of sandals. When she opened her bedroom door, she could hear Horatio talking on the phone; she knew he was discussing her case. She was starting to wonder if they would ever catch Brian. It had been almost 5 weeks, and he was being much more careful since the undercover police were patrolling the streets around her house. She wondered what would happen if they never found him. When would they stop looking? How long would it take before they gave up? She knew the crime lab was already working other cases, in addition to hers. She went to the kitchen and started looking in the cabinets and fridge to plan something for dinner. She wanted to make something special. She opened a bottle of wine. As hot as it was, she went for a light, white wine. When Horatio was finished with his call, he came into the kitchen. He watched her for a moment before speaking.
“You look lovely.”
She smiled. “Tanks”.
“What are you up to?”
“I wanted ta make dinner, but it seems like there’s not much ta choose from, so I’m making salad.”
He came to stand next to her. “Do you want some help?”
“Ah, no, I’m fine. You have work ta do, I’ll let ya know when everything’s ready.”
She poured herself a glass of wine while she worked, and Horatio went back to his laptop to review case files. Thirty minutes and two glasses of wine later, she took plates, garlic bread and a huge bowl of salad out to the patio. When she went back for the wine, she called out that dinner was ready.
Horatio was concerned. She was acting nervous, and he wasn’t sure what she was up to. The bottle of wine was empty by the end of dinner, and he had only had one glass. He cleaned up the dishes while she scooped out ice cream, and poured a generous splash of whiskey on top. He noted this, with concern because she was already a bit tipsy from the wine, but said nothing, deciding instead to just keep an eye on her. She had not been sleeping well, and maybe the drink would help. They sat on the couch and ate their ice cream in companionable silence. When Horatio returned from taking their bowls into the kitchen, Fiona had turned on the T.V., They sat watching a movie; she put her head on his shoulder. She was still feeling a little nervous, but she had convinced herself it was now or never. She leaned in and kissed his neck.
Although a bit surprised, he didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable. He kissed the top of her head, seeing this as an innocent acknowledgement of the affection he felt for her. She was unsure how to take his response, but it was clearly not a refusal. She turned his face towards her and gave him a deep, passionate kiss. Her heart was pounding, god, she was so nervous, but she didn’t want to stop.
Horatio was torn. This kiss was amazing, but he couldn’t…..she was not ready for this, no matter what she thought, she had been through too much, this was moving too fast…he had to put his feelings in check. He started to pull away, but she leaned in further. When she reached to unfasten his belt, he caught her hand, and abruptly broke off the kiss. She looked so hurt, so confused. Although a bit surprised, he didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable. He kissed the top of her head, seeing this as an innocent acknowledgement of the affection he felt for her. She was unsure how to take his response, but it was clearly not a refusal. She turned his face towards her and gave him a deep, passionate kiss. Her heart was pounding, god, she was so nervous, but she didn’t want to stop.
“Sweetheart, this isn’t right..”
She pulled away, turned her back to him. Oh, god, he hadn’t wanted to hurt her. He put his arm around her, she was trembling.
“Sweetheart, it’s too soon. I won’t take advantage of you like this.”
“No! You’re not takin advantage, I’m the one who wanted this.” Her voice was thick with the tears she fought to hold back.
“You’ve been drinking..”
“Oh, stop! Stop makin excuses! Just admit that ya don’t want me! Ya can’t want me, couldn’t look at me the same after seein what he did ta me!”
She tried to pull away, out of his embrace. He held her tighter. “Let me go” she sobbed.
“I can’t let you go”, he whispered. “I don’t want to hurt you. I don’t want you to have any regrets about us. Please.”
She only sobbed harder. “I just want ta be normal. I don’t want ta tink about everyting, ta wonder if I can ever be wit ya, and not tink about what he did.”
She was crying so hard, he could barely understand her. His heart was breaking. He held her tighter, until she had finally cried herself to sleep. He still could not let her go. He stretched out on the couch, pulling her with him. He lay awake most of the night, worrying about her, worrying that she would feel awkward, but that was still better than her looking back on the night and wishing they had not made love.
Chapter 13
When Fiona awoke, it took her a few minutes to get her bearings. Her mouth was very dry and she had to pee. She realized when she tried to sit up, that he had his arm around her waist. The events earlier in the evening started to come back to her. Her face grew hot with embarrassment and she just wanted to hide. She quietly slipped out from under his arm and made her way to the bathroom. Once she had taken care of one urgent need, she debated going back to the kitchen to get a glass of water, but she didn’t want to wake him. She would avoid talking to him about what she had done for as long as she possibly could. She turned on the water and scooped handfuls of the cool liquid up to her mouth. Her thirst finally quenched, she turned off the water and made her way, in the dark, to her bedroom, closing the door softly behind her. She sat on the bed with her head in her hands, and whispered to herself; “what have I done? I’m such an eegit.”
Horatio had woken as soon as she had gotten up, but decided to wait, hoping she would return and spend the rest of the night in his arms. When he heard her door close, he knew she would avoid him out of embarrassment. Guilt ate away at him for the rest of the night. He hadn’t wanted to hurt her; he had tried to be as kind as possible in his refusal of her advances. How could he make her see that he only wanted to protect her?
As the sun came up the next morning, he could hear the birds chirping. He got up and went into the kitchen and made a pot of coffee. He stood there for a long time, wondering what he should do. When the coffee was done, he had made his decision. He got two mugs out of the cabinet and poured the coffee, added cream and sugar to her cup. Both cups in hand, he made his way to her bedroom, switched both cups to one hand and softly knocked. She hadn’t slept the rest of the night. When she heard the knock, she hesitated, not wanting to answer. She could feel her face turning red. She heard him knock again, and held her breath, willing him to give up.
“Fiona? Sweetheart, are you awake?” Sh*te! I can’t avoid him forever. “Yeah. Just a second.” She got up, and went over to the door, and opened it. She saw two cups of coffee in his hand. “Tanks”.
He handed her one of the mugs, she noticed that he knew exactly how light she liked her coffee. She did not step aside to let him in, but she didn’t close the door either. “Are you going to come out?”
“Ah, no, I don’t tink so.”
“May I come in?”
“No, I, ah, I don’t tink so.”
“Fiona, please.”
“I don’t want ta talk about this, can we just forget about it?”
“You’re angry with me.”
“No, I’m not, I…please, don’t make me talk about this. I’ve made an arse of myself; just let me lick my wounds.” She still had not looked at him.
“Fiona,” he took her hand “let’s not do this.” He gently pulled her out of the room. “We need to talk; I don’t want this to create a distance between us. I need to know that you understand why I couldn’t….”
“It’s fine; really, there’s nothin ta talk about. I’m not angry wit ya.”
He took her chin in his free hand and tilted her face up to look her in the eyes. “It’s not that I didn’t want you. Please, don’t ever doubt that. Fiona, I am very attracted to you. I do want this relationship to progress to that level. “ He could see her eyes tearing up. He had to continue. “I know you want to put this all behind you, but it is important that we move slowly. I would never want to hurt you. I just want to make sure that you are ready for the next step. We can’t just jump into this without thinking of the repercussions. “ He kissed her gently, on the lips before letting her go. She looked away, biting her lip.
“I am sorry. I know ya just wanted ta protect me.” She looked away. “Tanks fer the coffee. I’m going ta take a shower.” She slipped past him, and out the door.
Horatio waited, he heard her turn the shower off, and knew she’d be out in a few minutes. When the door opened, she was wrapped in a green terrycloth robe; she glanced at him as she passed. He decided to give her a bit of space; they could talk more over breakfast, after he had showered.
The man in the brown UPS uniform did not arouse suspicion among the undercover officers. He walked down the street, watching them. He carried a package and clipboard. Nothing unusual; nothing that would make anyone look twice. She had felt like a fool, felt horrible for putting Horatio in that position. She decided to make pancakes as a peace offering. She heard him come out of the spare room, but when she turned to look, she saw a figure at her front door. Spatula in hand, she went to open the door, not thinking anything of the consequences. She knew there were undercover officers everywhere; surely, Brian was not stupid enough to come back here.
Horatio saw her as he walked out of her spare room; she was heading towards the door. He had told her not to answer the door, to let him answer. Why would she be heading to the door? He saw the figure through the window, couldn’t see the face, but it looked like UPS with a delivery. He didn’t see a truck, hadn’t even heard a truck drive past. Hand on the hilt of his gun, he came up behind Fiona, put his hand on her shoulder, just as she opened the door. Chapter 14
She felt his hand on her shoulder as she opened the door, felt him push her aside. Pain shot through her; she screamed as she fell to the floor. She heard Horatio yell, but couldn’t understand what he was saying.
Brian, hat pulled down so the shadows hid his features, knocked on the door and waited. When she opened the door, he pulled the tazer out of the hole he had cut in the underside of the box he was carrying. He had expected to use it to get the cop out of the way, but she opened the door. He didn’t even think, he just made his move. Getting overly excited was always his downfall. If he had been more focused, he would have seen that she was not the only one at the door.
Horatio slammed the door on his wrist, causing him to drop the tazer. He grabbed his hand and spun him around to cuff him, and noticed a dog running towards him.
This was no ordinary, neighborhood dog. He had broken loose from his owner when he heard her scream. He had been well trained, he knew this house, knew the woman he saw on the floor just inside. It had been a few years since he had been “on duty” but, oh, how he still longed for the chase. “Shane!” his owner called after him, but he had the man cornered, he knew this was the ‘bad guy’, he growled, looking almost feral. The man was fighting against being cuffed. Shane could see the officer struggling to maintain control. It was his job to help the officer, even if it was his officer. He lunged and bit down hard, bringing the man to his knees.
An older man, retired now, but still quick to join in the fray, ordered the dog to release as he forced the man to the ground. Horatio knew he had retired three years ago, but he had not forgotten his training either. By the time the undercover officers arrived, Brian was cuffed, lying face down on the sidewalk, guarded by a growling dog.
Horatio knelt down beside Fiona, talking softly to her as he held her hand. Chapter 15
Fiona’s front yard was now teeming with undercover cops. Everything seemed to move in slow motion, and when she was lying there on the floor, it seemed like an eternity before the men patrolling the area arrived. She could hear Horatio struggle with Brian, when she heard growling, she thought she was imagining it. None of the undercover officers was K-9 unit. That would have been too obvious. Brian would be looking for K-9 units. When her vision cleared, she saw Shane and Michael. Shane had lunged at Brian, and had clamped down on his groin. ‘How fitting’ she thought. Her muscles still too sore for her to sit up, she watched as Michael helped Horatio wrestle Brian to the ground and cuff him. It was a very surreal experience. It was very handy, having a retired cop living on her street. She had known Michael for years, she had trained Shane, and they remained close friends even after Michael retired. She felt Horatio take her hand and she smiled up at him.
“It’s over, you’re safe now.”
She heard the sirens as the patrol cars came to take him away.
She called to reschedule her appointment with Nancy, explaining the morning’s events. She was able to get an appointment for late in the day. She needed to talk, but she wanted to settle her nerves first. “Will you be o.k.? I need to go in to the lab so we can get this case to the Prosecutor.”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Go get the bastard locked up.” Horatio smiled. He could see the relief in her eyes.
“I’ll come by to take you to dinner later.”
“I have an appointment with Nancy, I won’t be home ‘till Six.”
“I’ll see you then.” He kissed her on the forehead and left for the lab.
Her next call was to her mother. She spent the next 45 minutes re-assuring her that she was fine, and it was finally over. Grace wanted to know how long it would take until he was locked away for good, but Fiona didn’t have an answer to that question.
She sat in Nancy’s office, recounting the attempted attack that morning. “You must be relieved.”
“Yeah, sure. But I know it’s far from over. I know the lab has the evidence ta prosecute, but I won’t feel like it’s over until he’s been sentenced. If somethin happens, and they let him go, he’ll come back fer me.”
“The chances of that happening, of the charges not sticking, are very slim.”
“I know, I do, I’m ….”
“Scared”
“Yeah, scared.”
Horatio pulled into her driveway just a few minutes after her. She heard him pull up, and waited by the door for him. “Lieutenant.”
“Ma’am”
She smiled, “Come in. Although, I don’t know why I feel like I need ta ask ya, you’ve been livin here for the last few weeks. I’ll be ready in a minute.”
He waited, patiently, while she fed cats and changed. He loved that she was not the kind of woman that needed hours to get ready. Within five minutes, they were on their way to the Japanese restaurant a few miles away.
They spent a few minutes discussing the case, the amount of time it would likely take to come to trail, what the attorney would expect from her, but the majority of their dinner was pleasant and light. When he took her home, he walked her to the door. “So, I guess you’ll be goin home tonight?”
“Will you be o.k.? “
“Yeah, I will be now.”
He kissed her softly, he didn’t want to leave, but she needed time to herself. He hadn’t left her alone for weeks and he didn’t want to crowd her. He watched as she closed the door, and waited until he heard her set the alarm. He knew the danger had passed, but still felt the need to make sure she was being cautious.
It was strange, having the house to herself again. It wasn’t that she was lonely; she’d lived alone for the last 15 years and never felt lonely. She had always kept herself busy with friends, hobbies, and, of course, her beasties. It was just….she missed him. Just knowing he was there, hearing him clear his throat, or comment on whatever was on T.V. She sat on the couch, cats fighting over who was going to sit on her lab, and wondered what she was going to do.
Horatio drove home, his mind wandering to thoughts of Fiona. It was going to be strange waking up in his own home; having no one to share a pot of coffee with; eating breakfast alone. He should be used to that, he was never one to need company. This was different. He was missing her, already. She spent a restless night, tossing and turning. Finally, she got up and went in to the spare room. She crawled into the bed he had slept in and curled up, hugging his pillow. She breathed in his scent, still strong on the sheets and finally drifted off to sleep. He lay awake most of the night, thinking of her. Wondering if she was sleeping, was she dreaming? Was she having nightmares, or were her dreams pleasant? Would she dream of him? By the time his alarm rang, he’d had a full two hours of sleep.
She hadn’t made arrangements to start up her training schedule yet. She planned to set the schedule up today, but she had hardly slept and decided stay in bed a while longer. She heard a knock at her door, and groaned. She stumbled out of the bedroom and looked out the window to see who had ruined her shot at sleeping in. She saw Horatio standing there with two cups of coffee and smiled. She could sleep in another time. Chapter 16
“I thought I’d stop by and have coffee with you before I head into the lab.”
“Ah, you do know the way to a woman’s heart, Lieutenant. “
She stepped aside and let him in. They sat, drinking their coffee, discussing her plans for the day. Horatio had spent a lot of time thinking as he lay awake the night before. He decided to broach the subject that had played on his mind for the last couple of days.
“Have you talked to Nancy about the other night?”
Her face flushed a deep red. She wanted to put that foolish incident behind her, just forget about it. She looked away, trying to avoid his gaze.
“Sweetheart, I know you’d rather not talk about this, but that is not going to help.”
“I know ‘twas a stupid ting ta do. Let’s just ferget about it.”
He took her hand, “I can’t imagine how hard this is for you. I want to help you, and I’m not sure how. Please, we can talk to her together if you’d like. When is your next appointment?” “Tomorrow, 9 a.m.”
“I will pick you up.”
Horatio had left for work, and Fiona set about organizing her training sessions. Brian’s preliminary trial was scheduled for Monday and she left the entire day clear, deciding not to return to her routine until Tuesday. It would be nice to have a long weekend, now that he was no longer out there, watching her. Once she had lined up her schedule, she decided to get out of the house for a while. She needed to go grocery shopping, and was surprised at how that simple chore seemed like such a wonderful treat. She spent another night, tossing and turning, thinking of him, for hours before she finally fell asleep.
Horatio had kept himself busy with work. Checking and rechecking every piece of evidence connected to Fiona’s case. He wanted to make sure there was no possible loop hole, no way Brian’s attorney could get the charges dropped. He knew his team was the best there was, but he had to make sure everything was perfect. The fact that Fiona had such a close relationship with the members of the lab and police department would not go unmentioned in the trail, so they had to make sure there was no reason for the jury to question the evidence. When he finally went home, it was past 9 p.m. The lack of sleep the night before, and a day spent checking and rechecking evidence had left him exhausted. He set his alarm, and was asleep before his head hit the pillow. He showed up at her door, two cups of coffee in hand, at 7:30, it was early, but he couldn’t wait to see her. She looked so tired when she came to the door, he hoped that she had not lost sleep thinking about this morning’s appointment.
“Yer spoilin me, Lieutenant.” “You deserve some spoiling, Maám”
Chapter 17 Fiona and Horatio sat in the waiting room outside Nancy’s office; she was very quiet, gathering her thoughts. They had decided that Fiona would talk to Nancy for a few minutes and explain that she wanted Horatio to be with her for this session. Nancy’s door opened, he squeezed Fiona’s hand as she stood up. “Fiona, good morning. How are you feeling today?” “Fine, ah, a bit nervous…”
The door closed behind her. Horatio waited.
“There’s some tings I need ta tell ya, and I feel quite the fool…” “Fiona, I’m not going to judge you, you know that.”
“I do, but I did somethin that was very foolish, and I put someone I care about in an awkward position.”
“Are we talking about Horatio here?”
“Yeah, that we are. I’d like fer him ta come in now, because I’ve avoided talkin ta him about what happened, out of my own shame. I owe him an apology, and I need him ta be a part of my recovery.”
“That’s fine, Fiona. I’m pleased that he wants to take part in the session.”
Fiona smiled as she got up to let him know that it was time.
When the door opened, Fiona stood in the doorway, Horatio stood up and went to her, and she took his hand as she closed the door, and led him to the loveseat to sit next to her. “Nancy, thank you for letting me be here. I know that Fiona is very nervous, though she does not need to be, and I want to help her through this.”
“It’s nice to see that you’ve taken such an active role in Fiona’s recovery. Having a support network is very important to victims of violent crimes.”
Fiona squeezed his hand; her heart was in her throat. She took a deep breath before she began to recount what had happened.
“I’m not a patient woman; I tink ya’ve both figured that out by now. I’d swooned over Horatio from the first time I met him, but I never thought he’d return those feelings. When I finally figured out that he did, I was so nervous, but happy……Well, that happiness was ripped away from me, and I have been terrified that I will never be normal again. I can’t stand the thought of not bein able ta be with him, the way I want ta be with him.”
She turned to Horatio, “Ya’ve been so good ta me, so patient and understandin”, she looked down, not wanting anyone to see how embarrassed she was, her face bright red. “I decided that I needed ta know if I could really be wit him, but I was so nervous.” The tears started to fall. “I dressed myself up, made dinner; it took most of a bottle of wine before I got my nerve up….I, ah, I kissed him, I ….. I forced myself on him….. Horatio, I am sorry I put ya in such an awkward position, and I tank ya fer carin enough fer me ta refuse my advances, fer not letting me run away from ya, from what I need ta do.”
She was sobbing openly now. He put his arms around her, pulled her close, and whispered “It’s o.k., sweetheart, I know. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”
Nancy watched as he held her while she cried.
“I just want ta be normal again. I want ta make love ta ya and not worry about how I’ll react, or if somethin is goin ta make me remember tings I don’t want ta remember. I don’t want ta loose ya…..”
“Sweetheart,” he took her face in his hands and brought her eyes to meet his “I am not going anywhere. I meant everything I said about us moving forward only when you are ready.”
Nancy was not surprised that he was so supportive and understanding, nor was she surprised that Fiona was having difficulty believing that she could accept his support. “Fiona, what you are feeling is normal. You don’t have a sexual history with Horatio to look back on, it makes perfect sense that you would want to test the waters, be sure that he would be caring and kind to you.” She looked at Horatio, “And, it makes perfect sense that you would want to be cautious, to be sure that you don’t do something she would later regret. Fiona, I can’t tell you when you will be ready to take your relationship to that next level, you’ll know the right time when you feel it. That’s not to say that you won’t be nervous and scared; just go with your heart, not your head..and wine.”
“Horatio, it is absolutely imperative that you let her take the lead, but I think you already know that. The two of you will get through this, together. You have to be honest, with yourselves and each other, about your feelings.
They sat in the Hummer, parked in Fiona’s driveway, he didn’t want to leave her, but he had to go in to the lab. He held her hand for several minutes before speaking. “Are you sure you’re o.k.? You could come to the lab with me.”
“No, I’m fine. I tink I’ll take a nap. Cryin always wipes me out.”
“O.K., would you like me to come over tonight?” “Yeah, I would. I don’t want ta go anywhere, I just want ta spend time with ya, without havin ta worry about him bein out there watchin.”
He kissed her forehead. “I’ll come as soon as I can.”
She smiled as she got out of the Hummer, and went in to take a nap. He knew he would have to talk to her about Monday’s hearing. He knew Brian’s attorney was going to ask for bail, and it was going to frighten her to think of that as a possibility. He never wanted to see her scared again.
Chapter 18
Fiona’s plans for an afternoon nap never came to fruition. Twenty minutes after she got home, her parents stopped by to check up on her. Her mother spent the next few hours fussing over her. When she finally had the change to lie down, sleep eluded her.
Horatio arrived at 5p.m. and could see Fiona through the window. He watched for a few minutes, she was doing yoga. At least she was not angry enough for kickboxing, he thought, she was beginning to feel more relaxed. He hoped he would not upset her when he talked to her about the preliminary hearing. He knocked on the door, she looked out the window before answering; something she never used to do.
“Hey, yer earlier than I thought ya’d be. Come on in, I just need a shower before I start dinner.”
“Why don’t I take care of dinner?”
“I’ll not refuse that offer. Ya know where the kitchen is; I’ll even let ya choose what ta make. The refrigerator’s full.”
Horatio arrived at 5p.m. and could see Fiona through the window. He watched for a few minutes, she was doing yoga. At least she was not angry enough for kickboxing, he thought, she was beginning to feel more relaxed. He hoped he would not upset her when he talked to her about the preliminary hearing. He knocked on the door, she looked out the window before answering; something she never used to do.
“Hey, yer earlier than I thought ya’d be. Come on in, I just need a shower before I start dinner.”
“Why don’t I take care of dinner?”
“I’ll not refuse that offer. Ya know where the kitchen is; I’ll even let ya choose what ta make. The refrigerator’s full.”
By the time Fiona had showered and dressed, Horatio had prepared a simple pasta and shrimp salad. They talked about the latest crime scene that the team had been called out to while they ate. When they finished dinner, he decided to broche the subject he had been avoiding, Brian’s preliminary hearing.
“Fiona, I need to talk to you about the preliminary hearing.” He watched the expression on her face change from calm and happy to fear almost immediately. “His attorney is going to request bail. The prosecutor is going to recommend that it be set very high, and it’s likely that he will not be able to meet the amount set.”
“And if he does?”
“That’s very unlikely”
“But it could happen.”
“It could.” He could see the fear in her eyes and it broke his heart. “If that happens, I will be right here until he is back in jail. Fiona, I am not going to let him hurt you again.”
“Ya can’t be with me every minute of the day.”
“Fiona, I need to talk to you about the preliminary hearing.” He watched the expression on her face change from calm and happy to fear almost immediately. “His attorney is going to request bail. The prosecutor is going to recommend that it be set very high, and it’s likely that he will not be able to meet the amount set.”
“And if he does?”
“That’s very unlikely”
“But it could happen.”
“It could.” He could see the fear in her eyes and it broke his heart. “If that happens, I will be right here until he is back in jail. Fiona, I am not going to let him hurt you again.”
“Ya can’t be with me every minute of the day.”
“I can if you need me to be.”
Once the sun started to set, and the temperature had dropped, they went for a long walk. Fiona was very quiet and he knew that she was trying to hide how frightened she was. He held her hand and hoped that he had done the right thing in telling her what to expect. Maybe he should have let her have one peaceful weekend… As they walked up to her door, she asked “Can ya stay wit me tonight? I promise I won’t attack ya again,” she joked “it’s just that I don’t want ta be alone.” “Of course. I’ll go pick up some clothes and be back in twenty minutes.”
“Tanks.”
When Horatio returned, she had already changed into boxers and a tank top. She opened the door, and stepped aside to let him in. “That was quick.”
“I packed extra, thought we could spend the weekend together, and I will drive you to the courthouse on Monday. Calleigh, Eric and Ryan will be there too. You will not be alone.”
“Tanks, I need ya there, all of ya.”
When it was time for bed, Fiona kissed him goodnight, and they went to their separate rooms. She tossed and turned for two hours before giving up. She went out to the living room and turned on the t.v. The sound woke Horatio up. He pulled on sweatpants and followed the sound. “Sweetheart, what are you doing out here, it’s late, I thought you’d be asleep”
“Ah, I couldn’t sleep. I seem ta have given it up fer Lent, except Lent is long over, and I haven’t been ta church in years.” Joking seemed to be the only way she could deal with things these days.
“I’ll sit up with you.”
“Ya don’t have ta, one of us might as well sleep.”
He sat down next to her. “I won’t sleep if I know you’re out here, wide awake.” He placed a pillow on his lap, “Lie down, I’ll stay with you.”
She put her head in his lap, he stroked her hair and neck, until, eventually, she fell asleep. He leaned his head back and fell into a deep sleep as well.
When she awoke, she was better rested than she had been in days. She looked up to see Horatio, still sleeping. It was still early; she sat up and gently kissed his cheek. His eyes opened and the sight of her brought a smile to his face. “Good morning.”
“Tanks for sittin up wit me.”
“Anytime. Do you want some coffee?”
“No, I tink I’d like to sleep a bit more. I’m going to try actually sleepin in my bed for a bit. It’s only” she glanced at the clock, “4 tirty”
“I think I’ll do the same.”
“Ya can lay with me, if ya like….I’m sorry, that’s not fair, I shouldn’t ask...”, she looked away, embarrassed. He put his hand on her cheek and turned her face towards him.
“I’d like that very much.”
They slept, curled into one another, for another six hours. Neither one had ever had a better night’s sleep. Chapter 19
Fiona awoke to the sound of purring in her ear. She opened her eyes and looked at the clock. She was surprised they had let her sleep so late. She looked at Horatio, still asleep, and wondered how she would ever sleep alone again. It was strange how quickly she had gotten used to his presence. She quietly got out of bed and went to feed cats before they mutinied.
The aroma of coffee filled the air and woke Horatio from a deep sleep. He noticed that she was not lying next to him immediately, and wondered how long he had been asleep. He got up and found her standing at the kitchen window, lost in her own thoughts. She turned around when she heard him behind her. She looked so well rested; the dark circles of the last couple of weeks were gone. “Good Morning sweetheart. Did you sleep well?”
“I did, tanks.” Before she could ask the same of him, there was a knock at the door. She looked out the window to see Calleigh, and opened the door.
“Hey, I thought I’d see if you were up for some ‘retail therapy’, I was heading…….” She spotted Horatio, obviously just out of bed. She smiled, “Um, you’re busy, ah, maybe another time.”
She knew Horatio had moved back to his own place after Brian had been taken into custody, so she was caught off guard, and, a bit speechless.
“Cal, this is not what yer thinkin.”
“I’m not thinking anything, no need to explain. I just thought I’d stop by and see how you were doing. You look, um, well rested. Good for you.”
“Oh, shut up and get in here.”
“Good morning, Horatio”. Caleigh could not look him in the eye, and had to bite her lip to keep from smirking.
“Oh, fer god’s sake, he only stayed here because I didn’t want ta be alone.”
“Fine, I believe you.” She said, unable to control the laughter any longer. “Either way, I’d be happy for you. Both of you, really. Can I go now, because this is just too weird, seeing my boss in nothing but a pair of sweatpants, and my friend in her underwear, I’m gonna get a visual I don’t want if I don’t leave soon.”
“Ye’ll call first next time, won’t ya?”
“Promise. Bye” Calleigh left as quickly as she had arrived.
Fiona couldn’t help but laugh once she was gone.
Horatio made pancakes. As they ate breakfast, he asked “Would you like to go to the beach today?”
“Ah, Lieutenant, my people don’t do sun. It’s frightenin, really, a bit like a vampire in a Hammer Horror film. Practically burst into flames, we do. I only go ta the beach early in the mornin, or just before the sun starts ta set.” He laughed at her analogy.
“Well, maybe the Bass Museum then. “
“Much better, I tink museums use low lighting to protect the art, should be o.k. for my skin.”
Once the breakfast dishes were cleaned up, they each took their turn in the shower and got ready to head out to the museum. They spent the day walking hand in hand, looking at amazing works of art, went out to dinner, and finished the evening with a walk along the beach. She took her shoes off to walk barefoot along the water’s edge. The last couple of weeks had been like an exercise in extreme dating, they were together all the time, mostly due to her need for protection, but they were also enjoying each other’s company. They had essentially lived together, albeit as roommates, and had fallen into a comfortable, not quite platonic, groove. She was falling in love with him; it was silly, she knew, he was just protecting her. She shouldn’t read too much into this, that’s how you get your heart broken.
He was enjoying spending so much time with her; he would have made excuses to be with her even if it hadn’t become a necessity to her safety and well being. She was a kind and gentle woman. She deserved a life untouched by violence and fear. She was young and light hearted. Could he really expect her to be happy with him? He saw so much of the horror in humanity; it made him a serious man. Could she love someone like him? Chapter 20
It was Monday morning; Brian’s preliminary hearing was set for 9:00 a.m. Fiona had been awake since 5:00 a.m. She got up, made coffee and waited. She didn’t want to start her shower too early and wake Horatio. They had slept in their separate rooms last night. It wasn’t that she didn’t want him near; she just thought it would be wrong to expect him to sleep next to her night after night, without other ‘benefits’. He was a good man, she didn’t want to take advantage of his kindness, and, though she wanted more, she was still a bit afraid of what that intimacy might bring out in her. At 6:30 a.m., Horatio poured himself a cup of coffee and joined her on the sofa.
“Are you sure you want to be there?”
“Yeah, I need ta be. I need him ta see that I’m not goin ta let him scare me, make me a prisoner ta my own fear.”
“O.K. I’ll be right there beside you.”
“My parents will meet us there. I should go get ready.”
Fiona was quiet on the way to the court house. She just wanted to get this over with; she hated the waiting, not knowing what was going to happen. They arrived at 8:15 a.m., went through the security check points, went into the court room and waited. It went quicker than she had imagined. Horatio sat on her right, her parents on her left. Calleigh, Eric and Ryan sat behind her. Several of the K-9 officers were scattered around the room. They brought him in; he sat with his lawyer just a few feet away. He had the balls to look at her and smile. It was a cruel, smarmy smile. She wanted to knock that smile off his face. The charges were presented, Kidnapping and Sexual Assault. She felt like she was watching a movie, it didn’t seem real; it was as if she was in a fog. Bail was set, to her dismay, at $350,000.00, but with the condition that he was not to come within 100 feet of said victim. He was only required to post bond of $35,000.00. His lawyer had a bail bondsman lined up, Brian had put up the title to his boat, and the bondsman would handle the rest. He would be out on the street again in a matter of hours. Her mother squeezed her hand, Horatio whispered that it would be o.k., he wouldn’t leave her alone. She felt sick, but her face remained calm, when he turned around and looked at her, smiling that cruel smile, she gave him a look as cold as steel. She was in a daze. She didn’t remember walking to the Hummer. As they drove home, her hands started to shake.
“Here is what we are going to do.” Horatio’s voice was firm. “First, we are going to go to my place, and I am going to pack enough things so that I can stay with you until he is back in jail. You will come to the lab with me, it’s not how I wanted you to spend the day, but it is necessary. Tomorrow, and every day after that, I will take you to the training center. You will be safe there, you can go about your training and when you are done for the day, I will make arrangements for one of the officers to bring you to the lab until I can leave for the day. I don’t want you going anywhere alone.”
She nodded. How had she gotten herself into this? It would take months, maybe a year for the trial to begin. Who knows how long it would last.
“Sweetheart, I don’t want you to worry about this. I can’t order police protection indefinitely, but this will work. You will be safe.”
Horatio had packed several bags and loaded them into the Hummer. They stopped at bookstore on the way so Fiona could get something to read while he worked. She spent the rest of the day, sitting on the couch in his office, reading a book about Grace O’Malley, the Irish pirate. She needed inspiration to maintain the strength she was going to need to get through this. On the drive home, she thought about how nice it was to have him around; she just wished it was under different circumstances. She wondered how he was feeling about needing to move in to her house to protect her. “I want ta tank ya for doin this. I’m sure it’s not how ya imagined spendin the next, what six, eight months or so.”
“Fiona, I am not just doing this for your protection. That was the catalyst for this decision, but not the reason.”
“I bet ya didn’t know what ya were gettin into when ya invited me ta dinner.”
“It wouldn’t have changed anything if I did.” They pulled into her driveway and he took her hand, “It’s going to be o.k. “
Chapter 21
Horatio’s plan seemed to be working. He dropped her off in the mornings; her last K-9 Unit “students” dropped her off at the lab when the training sessions were over. They drove home together, if Fiona wanted to go anywhere, he went with her. Weeks passed without incident. Fiona was on edge, constantly looking over her shoulder. She didn’t believe for a minute that Brian was going to leave her alone, he was an angry, obsessive man and he would wait until she let her guard down. She and Horatio spent hours talking, the arrangement only made dating easier, if a bit unorthodox. They were spending so much time together it seemed as though they had been together for years. They had fallen into a comfortable routine that others found amusing. Eric and Calleigh discussed this arrangement as they worked the latest crime scene.
“I tell you, Cal, they’re like an old married couple, they finish each other’s sentences“ , Eric joked.
“I think it’s sweet. You shouldn’t make fun; you might fall in love some day.”
Horatio cleared his throat, startling Calleigh. Eric made some excuse about having to check for blood spatter in another room, leaving her to dodge Horatio’s questions. She smiled and tried to distract him.
“We’re just about done here, I’ll check in with Alex when I get back to the lab and see if she has any more bullets for me”.
“Nice try, Calleigh, but it’s not me you need to worry about. Wait until I tell Fiona that you and Eric have been discussing our arrangement’.”
“Oh, you wouldn’t. Would you?” He smiled and raised one eyebrow. “Don’t you dare, you know she is a vengeful little thing. You will be solely responsible for anything she does to me if you tell her.”
Later that afternoon, Fiona was ‘delivered’ to the lab, as promised, by one of the officers. She checked in with Horatio to let him know she had arrived safely. She stood in the doorway of his office, watching him work for a minute before speaking.
“I’m here. “
He looked up and smiled at her. “How was your day?”
“Not bad. Bridget has made loads of progress. She’s followin every command. She may turn out ta be the best one yet.”
“You’re biased.”
“Yeah, yeah, say what ya will, that beast is a genius. I’m goin ta find Calleigh.”
“I’ll call you when I’m ready to leave.”
She found Calleigh in the Ballistics lab trying to match bullets found at the morning’s crime scene. “Hiya bullet girl.”
“Hey Fiona. How are you holding up?”
“O.K., I guess. I just keep waitin fer the other shoe ta drop, so ta speak. I wanted ta talk ta ya about somethin.”
“Sure, what’s up?”
She took a seat, and motioned for Fiona to do the same. Fiona sat, and took a deep breath.
“I want ya ta teach me ta fire a gun.”
Caleigh looked at her, a bit surprised “Why?”
“I plan on buyin a gun, and thought it’d be a good idea if I knew how ta fire one first.”
“Fiona, I don’t think that’s such a good idea. I know how you hate the sound, and I’ve seen how uncomfortable you are when you come in here. It’s not in your nature to pull the trigger, and even a second’s hesitation could cost you your life.”
“Then I guess I should practice. Look, I appreciate yer concern; I do, but yer not talkin me out of this.”
“Have you discussed this with Horatio?”
“No, and I wasn’t plannin ta talk wit him about it. I know he’ll be against the idea. I asked ya because yer my friend and I thought ya’d be more reasonable that him.”
“I’m not being unreasonable. I’m trying to keep you from harm.”
“What better way ta keep me from harm than ta teach me ta protect myself?”
Calleigh was quiet for a moment. “Let me think about this for a few days.”
“Fine. Call me when ya’ve reached a decision.” Frustrated, Fiona left the lab. She waited for Horatio’s call in the break room and passed the time reading.
Calleigh sat staring at the floor for the next ten minutes. She knew her friend was a capable, strong woman, but firearms were not in her blood. She had seen too many cases where the victim was shot with their own gun because their sense of compassion outweighed their instinct to survive. She would never forgive herself if Fiona ended up on Alex’s table because she couldn’t pull the trigger. If she refused to teach her, would she still buy a gun? If she refused, and Fiona didn’t buy a gun, would she end up there anyway because she had no means to defend herself? She knew she was safe with Horatio, so she didn’t think there was much chance of Brian getting near her.
Fiona’s phone rang, she checked the caller I.D. “Yes, lieutenant” “Are you ready to go?” “I’ll meet ya at the elevator.” She closed the phone and headed out the door. When she reached the elevator, he was already waiting for her. They chatted about what to have for dinner as they drove home. It was nice to have someone to talk to about the normal every day things. Horatio was enjoying the companionship. He had lived alone for a long time, and found the minutia of daily routine with her comfortable.
The next morning, Horatio arrived at the lab to find Calleigh already waiting in his office. She looked up when he walked in; he noticed that she looked concerned. “Horatio, I need to talk to you. “
She recounted her conversation with Fiona, and what her opinion of the matter was. Horatio’s face betrayed no emotion as he listened. Why wouldn’t she come to him? Why did she feel like she needed a gun when he never left her alone? She didn’t trust him, it was that simple.
“Thank you Calleigh. I’ll talk to her, not that I think I have any chance in changing her mind.”
Calleigh could tell, though he had tried to hide it, that he was hurt that Fiona hadn’t come to him. “She only came to me because ….”
“I know. Don’t worry, Calleigh. I’ll take care of it.”
She knew the conversation was over. She just hoped that she had done the right thing, telling him.
When Fiona finished her last training session of the day, she looked up and saw Horatio watching her. She said goodbye to the officer and dog she had just worked with, and walked over to him. “Hiya. Yer done work early. I thought ya’d still be at the lab.”
He seemed distracted. “I thought we’d head home early today.”
He was quiet on the ride home. When they entered the house, Fiona could take the silence no more.
“What’s wrong?”
“Calleigh came to talk to me today.”
“Ah, I should have guessed that she would.”
“Why didn’t you come to me?”
“I knew ya’d be against the idea.”
“Fiona, I’m not going to let him…..”
“I know,” Her voice was raised now, “but I want ta know that I can take care of myself! I don’t want ta have ta rely on everyone else ta protect me! Why can’t anyone believe that I can handle a gun?”
“Do you really think you could pull the trigger? Could you take a life?”
“I could take his life, if he ever comes near me again.”
He stood, hands on his hips thinking about what to do. He knew that she believed that. She could imagine herself in danger again, see herself pulling the trigger. He didn’t think she could really do it.
“I will take you to the gun range tomorrow. We’ll see how you feel after you’ve fired a few rounds.”
The next morning found Fiona at the gun range, Horatio standing behind her, hands holding hers, showing her how to grip the gun. She pulled the trigger, and jumped. He would have laughed had he not been so worried that he wouldn’t be able to talk her out of this. She emptied the first clip. He showed her how to reload, the whole time hoping she’d see how wrong this was. When she had fired a few more rounds, he pushed the return button to bring the target close. She had only hit the target two times. He could see the disappointment in her eyes. She took off the goggles and ear protection. “I guess Cal was right, this just isn’t in my blood.”
“If this is still something you want to do, we can come back. Your aim will improve, but I’d like you to wait until it does before you purchase a gun.”
She shook her head, “It’s pointless. Yer right, I couldn’t pull the trigger if I had ta. I’d hesitate, just like Cal said.”
He took the gun from her, and took her hand as they returned the gun. He hated to see her disappointed, but he was relieved that she had changed her mind about the gun. Fiona had no trainings scheduled, so she went to the lab with Horatio. She had offered to type up reports for the team, she had nothing better to do; it wasn’t like she could go for a walk, or run errands. She set up a laptop in Horatio’s office and started on the stack of files.
“Let me know if you need anything, o.k.”
“Sure…..Horatio?”
“Yes”
“Tanks fer lettin me try. I’m sorry I didn’t come ta ya first. I didn’t mean ta insult ya.”
He smiled, “It’s o.k., sweetheart. I understand.”
Chapter 22
Fiona spent the day typing reports, monotonous as it was; it gave her time to think. Her thoughts turned to Horatio, as they often did. He had been more reasonable than she had thought he would be, he let her try, letting her find out for herself that she was not really the kind of girl that would own a gun. She envied Calleigh, wished that she had felt more comfortable with that power in her hands. She hated feeling helpless, hated relying on anyone, even Horatio, to keep her safe. She had never really had to think about needing someone to protect her. Cal was right, she was a bit naive, always giving people the benefit of the doubt, and that had finally backfired. If nothing else, this ordeal had given her a dose of reality. She no longer assumed the best of everyone. Her sessions with Nancy had decreased to once a week at this point, she would tell her about this next week. It was progress of a sort, and for that she was grateful, thought a little disappointed in herself for not being as tough as she thought she was. What she saw as a weakness, others saw as endearing.
Horatio was called out to a crime scene, and spent the day questioning witnesses, checking on the processing of evidence, and thinking back to the disappointment he saw in Fiona’s eyes. He was relieved that she had changed her mind about having a gun, but felt a sense of guilt when he saw how disappointed she was. He knew that disappointment was in herself, no one else. He knew she would feel somehow inadequate. He wished that she could see herself as he did. He was deep in thought, standing with his hands on his hips, staring at a cluster of evidence markers, when Calleigh came to stand beside him. “Horatio, are you o.k.? You seem distracted.”
He turned to face her. “Just thinking. I took Fiona to the gun range this morning.”
“Oh.” Calleigh was a bit surprised, she never thought he’d go along with Fiona’s request for a gun. Sensing her concern, he relayed what had happened.
“She was so disappointed in herself.”
“You did the right thing, Horatio. You know she had to figure this out for herself, she’s not the kind of girl that just listens to reason. When she gets an idea in her head, she wants to see it through.”
Fiona had completed the files she was given, and was sitting in Horatio’s office, deep in thought. He was a good man. She had never known anyone like him; she still couldn’t believe the path her life had taken. She’d known him for a few years, through visiting Calleigh at the lab, and various interactions with the police department. She never imagined that he’d be essentially living with her, although in an unusual circumstance, and for the moment, somewhat platonic manor. He had been a gentleman, held her while she slept, never pressing her for more than what she could give him, building an emotional bond, an intimacy that was not sexual, but something deeper. This endeared him to her even more. Nancy had told her to follow her heart, and her heart was telling her she wanted more. She knew he would be concerned, not wanting her to experience any emotional distress. She smiled at the thought of how kind he was. She trusted him like she had trusted no other; she knew it would be o.k. A sense of calm enveloped her and she felt more sure of herself than she had in a long time.
Horatio had noticed that Fiona’s mood had lightened during the day. He suggested that they stop for dinner on the way home. She was quiet, but seemed so much more relaxed than she had earlier. He watched her as she ate, wondering what she was thinking. When she noticed him staring at her, she flushed a deep red. “What are ya starin at?”
“I was just wondering what you were thinking.”
She couldn’t meet his eyes, she was starting to get nervous again, her heart beating faster; afraid she’d make a fool of herself again. “Ah, I’ll tell ya later.”
He decided not to press her to talk. He paid the check when it came, and they headed home. She was still quiet, but she had a look in her eyes that told him she was up to something.
They spent the evening quietly. They watched a movie, talked about some of the cases she had typed up earlier in the day. It was just an average evening. Fiona told him she was going to take a bath, and he thought nothing of it, she often went to soak in a hot tub to relax. He sat on the couch, channel surfing for a while. It was nearly an hour later when Fiona returned. He looked up from the news program he had been watching to see her standing in the doorway wearing a cream colored silk robe. Horatio struggled with his emotions. He knew he shouldn’t stare, but he couldn’t take his eyes off her. The fabric clung to her; it was so light, almost transparent. She came to sit next to him and he forced himself to look away. He knew he needed to tread lightly, as much as he wanted to tell her how lovely she looked, he didn’t want make her uncomfortable. She trusted him, he couldn’t break that trust. She probably had no idea how intense her effect on him was.
She saw him look at her, saw the struggle going on in his eyes. He watched her walk towards him, she should have told him it was o.k., that she wanted him to look at her. She was nervous, didn’t want to explain what she wanted, it felt too awkward. She sat next to him and he quickly looked away. There was a time when she would have misread this for disinterest, rather than what it was; an attempt to maintain her trust. He had no idea just how much she trusted him. She moved closer, felt him tense and this gave her a sense of power that was thrilling. She leaned into him and kissed his cheek. He turned to look at her, his nervousness barely concealed.
He turned to her when she kissed him. He had no idea he could be so nervous. He had waited for this moment, dreamt of it, but that was before she had been so hurt. She had no idea how long he had dreamt of her. She was so calm, as he put his arm around her, he was shaking. He would never forgive himself if he caused her any harm. He had to remain focused, give her exactly what she needed, think of her, not himself, oh, god, could he manage to put his needs aside when he wanted her so badly? “Are you sure?”he whispered. She answered him with a deep kiss, filled with passion. His heart was racing now.
She knew he would be concerned, it only made her want him more. As she kissed him, her robe fell open, just a bit, when she broke off the kiss, his eyes trailed down to see how the fabric had shifted. She stood and took his hand, leading him to her bed. The full moon shone through the lace curtains, as her robe fell to the floor, she stood bathed in the moonlight. He couldn’t take his eyes off her now, she pulled him towards her and she turned all control over to him, trusting him completely with her heart and soul. Chapter 23
Horatio watched her as she slept. He was awake early, as usual. The sun shone in, making those red curls look like fire. He brushed a curl away from her face, and she stirred. He kissed her gently on the lips before getting out of bed. She stretched, and sighed, but did not wake. He pulled on his pants and quietly left the room, leaving her to sleep a little longer. He made coffee, his mind drifting back to the night before. When it was ready, he poured two cups. He knew by now exactly how she took her coffee, and this made him smile. “Sweet, and about as light as my skin.” “That hardly qualifies as coffee.” He teased.
When he walked back into the bedroom, he saw that she still had not woken up. He set the cups down, and sat on the bed next to her.
“Sweetheart, wake up” he said as he gently shook her arm. Her eyes opened, she blinked a few times.
“Good mornin, Lieutenant”, she said coyly, “Why don’t ya come back ta bed?” She sat up and kissed his cheek.
“Mmmm. I have to go to work, and so do you. You have dogs to train.”
“Ah, haven’t ya learned by now? I train their humans, the beasts need no trainin.”
“Either way, we need to get ready for work.” He handed her the mug, “I’ll shower first.” And with that, he was gone.
She sat, back resting against the pillows, sipping her coffee, thinking about last night. She was grateful that he’d had the presence of mind to refuse her advances the first time. She wanted to remember every moment; if they had rushed this, she wouldn’t have this….memory. She had been drinking that night, a bit too much drink, and had just wanted to ‘get it over with’, so to speak, just to see if she could bear the touch of a man. How foolish. Another man might have gone along with it, taken advantage of her, and left her feeling even worse. Horatio was not the kind of man to do such a thing. He had made her feel loved, safe. She heard the shower stop, looked at the clock, and groaned. As much as she loved her job, she just wanted to stay in bed today. She walked into the bathroom, coffee in hand, and found him putting shaving cream on his face. She walked up behind him, leaned into his back and kissed him, just below his shoulder blade.
“Tanks” she whispered.
He turned around, “For what?”he asked, a bit confused.
“Takin care of me. Not lettin me rush tings. Fer bringin me coffee. Fer makin me feel like I’ve not felt before.”
She set her mug down on the counter of the sink and turned on the shower. He watched her, knowing that she found it difficult to talk about such personal things, she usually laughed them off. He shaved, she showered. Just normal, everyday things that couples did, yet it seemed so romantic to her.
Horatio dropped her off with only minutes to spare before her first training of the day. He watched how the dogs reacted to her for a few minutes before he drove off to the lab. He arrived a few minutes late, unusual for him, but no one was about to ask him why. He had the look of a man who would not welcome questions about his personal life.
Fiona went about her daily routine, smiling even more than usual. It had not gone unnoticed. She was having so much fun with the dogs; she had let her guard down. She hadn’t noticed the sedan with dark tinted windows that had parked across the street about 15 minutes after Horatio left. She had lunch with some of the officers at a local sandwich shop. They ate at the tables outside so the dogs could join them. She hadn’t noticed the same car, less than a block away.
She was taken to the lab, as usual, by her last training officer of the day. When she walked into Horatio’s office, he looked up. “How was your day?” “Grand. How was yours?”
“Just got better.”
They spent the next few minutes talking about the events of their day. Fiona went off to the break room to read while he finished up.
As much as Brian had hated his time in the military, he had to admit, the training he had received came in handy. He was an expert at stalking. He could blend into any crowd, completely unnoticed. He had watched her all day, those idiot cops didn’t even notice. He did not dare to follow the Hummer though, he was not that foolish. He didn’t need to follow, he knew where she lived. He just had to wait until they let their guard down. Chapter 24
Fiona had been accustomed to working primarily from home. Falling into the daily routine of driving into work with Horatio was easier than she had thought, but on days, like today, when her schedule was unusually light, it drove her crazy to have to sit and wait, when she could think of so many other things she could be doing. She had finished up what little paperwork she had to do, and sat in her tiny office starring out the window. She had forgotten to bring her book, so the time passed even more slowly. It was not even time for lunch and she was board out of her mind. Not having a training session today meant that there was no one free to drop her off at the lab. There were officers around; they were just busy doing other things. She sighed and decided to call Horatio.
Horatio was in the lab when his cell phone rang. He checked caller i.d. and smiled as he answered. “What’re ya doin for lunch?”
“What did you have in mind?”
“I’ve finished everythin I have ta do here, if ya can get away ta pick me up, we can stop out for a bite.”
Fifteen minutes later, Horatio arrived to find a very ‘antsy’ Fiona waiting for him. Ten minutes after that, they sat at a table in the local sandwich shop having a light lunch. “I don’t have anythin goin on today, d’ya tink we can head home early?”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart, we’re trying to process the evidence from three crime scenes, I can’t get away early today. I may even have to work a little later than expected.”
“He hasn’t tried anythin since postin bail, can’t ya just drop me off and go back ta the lab?”
“He hasn’t tried anything yet.” They each argued their points, over and over, but by the end of lunch Horatio had agreed to take Fiona home, provided she didn’t leave the house, and she set the alarm. He pulled up in the driveway and walked her to the door. He kissed her, and as she walked through the door, reminded her;
“Fiona, don’t forget to set the alarm”.
“Yes, Lieutenant.” She sarcastically replied as she rolled her eyes. He stood at the door and waited until he heard the alarm beep.
Brian, dressed in camouflage, watched from his perch in the trees across the street. He saw Horatio get back in the Hummer and drive off. Good, he thought, she’s letting her guard down. So is her cop friend.
Fiona was thrilled to have the afternoon to do some things around the house. She turned on the stereo and sang along with the music as she tidied up. When she did laundry, she took the opportunity to re arrange things in her closets and dressers so Horatio would have room for some of his things. He had stayed in her room ever since that night. She smiled as she remembered it. She didn’t want him to feel like a guest, wanted him to have space for his things along side hers. Brian watched through binoculars, using them to follow her from room to room as she worked. He couldn’t believe his luck when she went back into her bedroom and started to undress. He watched, with a sickening grin on his face. Fiona had finished her tiding and re organizing and decided it would be a good time to get in a bit of exercise while she waited for Horatio to come home. She went to her bedroom and changed into a sports bra, shorts and sneakers. She walked back into the living room, turned off the stereo and put on an exercise video. She stretched and followed along with the moves. It was a dance workout, one of her favorites, a great way to unwind. Brian watched intently as she moved along with the video. She was sexy; she just needed to be broken, like one would break a wild horse. Horatio had called just past 5:00 to let her know that he would be home by 7:00. She asked if he wanted her to save dinner for him, but the team had ordered out since they were all working late. She spent the extra time doing a second work out, then took a bubble bath. She put her robe on, went out to the kitchen for a bowl of ice cream. She had a weakness for the stuff and figured the extra work out more than earned her the right to at least 3 scoops. She chose coffee ice cream and poured a generous dram of Jamesons on top. She picked up her book on the way back to the bedroom. When Horatio came home, he found her sitting in bed, reading and eating her ice cream. He stood back, watching her through the door from the living room.
Fiona knew that Horatio was home, she’d heard him open the door and turn off the alarm. She also knew that he was standing there, trying to get a glimpse of her. “Ye’ll have a better view if ya come a bit closer.” He walked over to the bedroom door, leaned against the door jamb as he spoke. “Did you enjoy your day?”
“That I did, Lieutenant. I got loads done, had a bit of exercise, twas lovely. Look in the closet. I made room for yer tings. No point in keepin everthin in the spare room, when ya spend yer nights in here.”
“Thank you, Ma’am.”
He loved the coy tone of her voice. He thought to himself, Irish women have a way with flirting. He walked over to the bed, sat down and kissed her.
Brian watched through the binoculars. That b**ch is screwing him. Look at how she lets him into her bedroom. Stupid b**ch, did she really think those lace curtains could keep anyone from looking right in, seeing what she was doing with him? He became more and more agitated, grinding his teeth. He watched them for a few minutes before climbing down and making his way silently across the street.
Horatio woke in the middle of the night feeling thirsty. He pulled on a pair of pants and made his way out to the kitchen for a glass of water. When he returned to the bedroom a few minutes later, he had planned on getting back in bed. He watched her for a moment; she looked so peaceful when she slept. Before he could take his pants off, he noticed one of the cats staring out the window, and heard the low growl coming from the creature. He listened for a moment before leaning down, putting his hand on Fiona’s back, when she stirred he whispered in her ear. She nodded in agreement, and lay there, feigning sleep. Horatio picked up his gun from the nightstand where he had hastily placed it earlier.
Brian had crept up to her house. He sat on the ground beneath her bedroom window, fuming. He had heard and seen things that made him angrier than he had ever felt before. The room had been quiet for some time now, so he took a chance and peered into the window. He saw her alone in the bed. I guess you were only good enough for the one thing, Fiona. He can’t bear to sleep next to you, left you alone, he laughed to himself.
Horatio made his way silently, gun drawn, around the outside of the house. He had grabbed shoes and a shirt from the spare room, he hadn’t taken the time to move his things, other activities had distracted him. He spotted Brian opening her bedroom window, and he could barely contain the rage that threatened to explode. Brian had crept up to her house. He sat on the ground beneath her bedroom window, fuming. He had heard and seen things that made him angrier than he had ever felt before. The room had been quiet for some time now, so he took a chance and peered into the window. He saw her alone in the bed. I guess you were only good enough for the one thing, Fiona. He can’t bear to sleep next to you, left you alone, he laughed to himself.
“Brian. If she wanted you to come in, she would have given you a key.”
Brian turned around; he wanted to kill this man. He reached for the knife he kept at his hip.
“Don’t do it.”Horatio yelled.
Fiona, having heard the noise at the window, had quickly pulled on her robe and was at the window. She saw Brian pull the knife out, knew that Horatio would only shoot if he had no other choice. They were so close now, close enough for Brian to plunge the knife into Horatio and she could not stand by and watch. She grabbed the lamp from her nightstand, pulling the plug out of the wall. In one swift movement, she raised the lamp like a bat, over her shoulder and ran to the window, bringing the lamp down on Brian’s head through the open window.
It had happened so fast. He fell to the ground when the lamp made contact with his head. Horatio pinned him to the ground and pulled the hand-cuffs out of his pocket. He looked up at Fiona to tell her to call for a patrol car, but she was already on the phone.
It only took a few minutes for the patrol car to arrive. The officer took Brian away. Fiona stood in the doorway, leaning against Horatio. He kissed the top of her head. “Let’s get dressed. We need to give statements. Chapter 25
As they drove in to give their statements, Fiona was very quiet, still shaking. She felt sick. “How long do ya tink he was out there?” she asked. Her voice was shaking and the sound of it startled him.
“I don’t know sweetheart.”
“Was he watchin us…..?”, the unfinished sentence hung in the air.
“I don’t know….I think so.” He reached out and held her hand.
“The first thing we do tomorrow is get better curtains.”
“I like my lace curtains, they remind me of home. Everyone in Ireland has lace curtains.”, she said as she looked at him, her eyes were absolutely pitiful.
“Then we will get shades that you can pull down” he said, tenderly as he gave her hand a squeeze.
She merely nodded. The thought of Brian watching them make love made her feel violated all over again.
Frank had come in, off duty to take their statements. He knew Fiona would rather talk to him than someone she didn’t know as well. She was distant, even with him. “Fiona, I’m sure this isn’t easy for you, but the more information we can give the court, the better. He’s violated the conditions of his bail, now we need to show that it should be revoked.”
She nodded as she whispered, “o.k.”
“When Horatio took you home, did anything seem unusual?”
“No, I had a great day; tidied up, cleaned out my closets, exercised. I didn’t see anythin strange. I wasn’t really payin attention. How long dýa tink he was watchin me? “, her voice shook as she asked.
I’d like to choke that little punk ,Frank thought, but remained calm as he replied. “I’m not sure, Fiona, but I’m going to make sure he never watches you again.” With that, he left the room, patting her on the shoulder as he left.
Horatio stood looking through the mirrored glass into the interrogation room, hands on his hips, jaw clenched. Frank came to stand next to him. “Horatio, I’m gonna wait for Caleigh to get here before I question him.”
Horatio nodded. He knew that Brian’s attorney would pick apart the evidence and statements because of his relationship with Fiona. If he were to be in the room for questioning, it would only add fuel to the fire.
“She clocked him pretty good with that lamp “Frank said as he nodded towards Brian, sitting at the table, holding an ice pack to his head. “your girl’s quite a fighter, Horatio.”
“That she is, Frank, that she is.”
Frank left the room, left Horatio standing there, watching. He wanted to smack the smirk right off Brian’s face. His lawyer had just arrived, and he could hear them talking.
“Violating the conditions of your bail is very serious, not to mention pulling a knife on a police officer.”
“Maybe, but I found out what I needed to know.”
“And that would be?” “She’s a wh**e. You should have seen her….”
“Brian, you’re not helping your case here.”
“The hell I’m not! When the jury hears what she was up to tonight, they’ll know she was asking for everything I gave her.”
Horatio yanked the door open and made his way to the interrogation room, rage in his eyes. Calleigh had just stepped into the hallway and saw where he was heading. “Horatio, whoa, you can’t go in there.”
“Calleigh,” his voice was very quiet “step aside, please.”
“No, I will not. I know you’re upset, but….”
“You have no idea.”
“O.K., maybe not, but I do know that if you go in there, you are going to hurt him. Now as much as we both know he deserves it, you know it will only hurt the case.”
He looked at her for a few moments, trying to calm down. “I know.”
Was all he said as he walked away. He could not watch the questioning. His stomach was turning.
Horatio stood outside his office, watching Fiona through the open door. He knew he had to tell her what he had heard. She would find out eventually, at least he could comfort her when he broke the news. He stepped inside, walked over to her and squatted down in front of her. He looked up, into her eyes. Was all he said as he walked away. He could not watch the questioning. His stomach was turning.
“Sweetheart. I need to talk to you.” Her eyes met his, they were red and swollen; he knew she had been crying. “He was out there for quite a while. Watching us, but this was what we had expected. It’s just confirmed now.”
He moved to sit next to her, and held her tight as she sobbed.
Frank and Calleigh had sat in the interrogation room for several minutes, starring down Brian, his lawyer even looked disgusted with him. “Are you just stuck on stupid?” Frank barked out. Calleigh stared.
Finally, she spoke. “What were you doing there, Brian?”
“Finding out what a wh**e your friend is.”
Calleigh wanted to jump across the table and claw his eyes out. “What do you think you have to gain from violating your bail conditions?”
He laughed.
Ryan and Eric had returned from the crime scene, Fiona’s home. They had searched for foot prints, made casts of the imprints, found that he had been across the street, found some broken branches beneath the tree that he had sat in. They passed by Horatio’s office, started to walk in, when Ryan saw that Fiona was crying. He held his hand out, a signal to Eric to stop. They looked at each other, Eric nodded and they changed directions, heading instead to Eric’s lab.
Chapter 26
Fiona had fallen asleep. She didn’t hear Frank come into Horatio’s office. Frank noticed that she was sleeping, so he motioned to Horatio to meet him in the hall. Horatio slid Fiona’s head onto the couch so he could stand up, thankful that she didn’t wake. He stepped out into the hall to talk to Frank. Frank whispered.
“Take her home and get some sleep, Horatio. We go back to court tomorrow. I’ll let you know what time, but it probably won’t be until afternoon.”
“Thanks, Frank.” Horatio woke Fiona and told her it was time to go home. She was quite, drifting in and out of sleep on the ride. When they arrived, he helped her out of the Hummer and led her into the house. She stood in the doorway to her bedroom, when he walked up behind her, placing his arm around her shoulders, she turned to him.
“I don’t tink I can sleep there tonight.”
“It’s o.k., sweetheart. We can sleep in the spare room tonight. Frank is going to call in the morning to let us know what time the hearing will be. We should set the alarm so we can be ready.”
She looked at the clock, it was past midnight. “O.K., 6:30?”
He nodded. They undressed and curled up together, Fiona clung to him as if her life depended on it.
The alarm rang all too soon. Horatio reached over and turned it off. He looked at Fiona, her face still tear stained, and decided to let her sleep a little longer. He put the coffee on before heading into the shower, taking his cell phone into the bathroom with him, in case Frank called.
Fiona heard the shower, smelled the coffee brewing, but could not bring herself to get out of bed. She did not want to face Brian today, any day for that matter. She heard Horatio turn off the shower, she knew she should get up, but she just lay there. When he opened the door, he saw that she was awake and went to sit on the bed next to her.
“How are you this morning?”
“I’ll be o.k.” She forced herself to get up and shower. When she came out of the bathroom, she could hear Horatio on the phone. She came to stand next to him, just as he hung up, and turned to face her.
“We don’t have to be at the courthouse until 3:30.”
“Oh, good, a whole day fer me ta worry about what will happen.”
“Fiona, you have nothing to worry about. Judge Andreen will not allow bail a second time. She has a very low tolerance for people who do not follow her orders.” She nodded.
“First, I am going to take you out for breakfast. Then, we are going to look for some shades so you can keep your lace curtains.”
Horatio measured windows while Fiona dressed, writing down how many windows, which rooms, etc. They had breakfast at the diner next to the home improvement center. The next hour was spent choosing shades that Fiona was content with. She didn’t want blinds, too many cords for cats to tangle each other up in, and she had visions of stray kittens making a run for them as soon as they were let out of cages. Eventually, she decided on curtains that she could close over the lace ones to keep the romantic look of Ireland, but give her privacy as well. Once they were home again, Horatio hung curtains and she called her mother to tell her of the latest drama. Grace insisted on knowing the time and court room. She and Liam would be there, there was no point in arguing.
As they drove to court, Fiona fought the urge to be sick. She knew Brian would not make this easy, but she had no idea what he was planning. They sat, waiting, once again. Horatio on her right, her mother and father on her left, Calleigh, Eric and Ryan sat behind her. It was like déjà vu. Frank came to sit next to Horatio a few minutes before Brain was brought in. She couldn’t even look at him. Court was called to order, Judge Andreen spoke first. “Well, here we are again.”
She looked at Brian’s attorney, the look on his face said it all, he knew he had no hope here, but had to do his job. “Your Honor, I would like to request bail for my client, with the condition that he remain on house arrest.”
“Counselor, your client not only violated the conditions of his bail, but he was armed as well.”
“My client carries a knife for his own protection.”
She shook her head, “Please, stop while you’re ahead, you’re only embarrassing yourself…”
Brian interrupted, “I had good reason to be there, Your Honor.”
“Brian,” his attorney tried to stop him, “I cannot help you if you do this.”
Brian continued, against the advice of his attorney, Judge Andreen looked at him over her glasses, fascinated at the stupidity of this man. He went on to describe, in great detail, everything he saw, and heard from outside Fiona’s bedroom.
Fiona started shaking. She knew he had watched, and listened. It made her sick to think of him hearing what was meant for Horatio’s ears only. Now a courtroom full of people was hearing it. The color drained from her face; she couldn’t breathe, oh, god, my Da and Ma are hearin this. He’s makin it sound so vile. She was visibly shaking now. Judge Andreen slammed the gavel down. “That is enough! Bail is denied. Get this man out of my courtroom.”
He was taken away; Fiona stood up and pushed her way past Horatio and Frank and out of the courtroom as fast as she could. Calleigh was right behind her.
“Fiona, wait!” she yelled as she ran after her. She caught up with her just as she ran outside, and grabbed her friend by the arm. “Fiona, its o.k. Take a deep breath.”
The look on Fiona’s face was unlike anything Calleigh had expected. She had expected anger, what she saw was shame.
“Calleigh, what he said,…..it wasn’t like that, I mean, yeah, I said those tings, ….did those tings, but it wasn’t like that…..”
“Hey, you don’t have to explain anything to me. I know you. I know what…that….means to you. No one that heard what he said thinks any less of you.”
Horatio was speechless. He looked at Fiona’s father; he couldn’t read the look on his face. Grace had gone after her daughter. He knew he had to say something. He stood and walked the few steps to where he sat. “Mr. Fitzpatrick.”
“Horatio, I told ya before ta call me Liam.” His voice was low, and shook a bit when he spoke.
“Liam. I’m sorry. Things are not what they seem…”
“I know that.” He finally looked at Horatio, “He is a sick man. He took a private moment, made it in ta somthin ta humiliate my girl.”
“I don’t want you to view Fiona differently because of this.”
“She’s a grown woman, near forty. I’m no fool. I know her feelins for ya, and I know what goes on in a relationship. Her mother and I, well, let’s just say, we enjoyed each other’s company before we married. Fer me ta expect different from her would make me a hypocrite.”
Grace had found Fiona and Calleigh on the steps to the courthouse. Fiona’s head was buried in her hands. She sat down and put her arm around her daughter. “Love, don’t cry. Twas a mean ting he did just then. Meant ta make ya cry, make ya feel shame. That’s not how we raised ya. Don’t let him win.”
“Ma, I can’t face ya right now.” “Fiona, don’t talk like that. Ya know yer father and I don’t judge ya. I see how ya look at the man, I know ya love him. There is nothin wrong with ya enjoyin yerselves.” She took Fiona’s chin in her hand and turned her face to look at her. “Yer still our girl. Yer man’s in there now, talkin to yer Da, feelin just as shamed as you, and I know yer Da is tellin him the same ting I’m tellin you.
Chapter 27
As if sensing Fiona’s mood, the weather changed. Clouds rolled in and the wind picked up, an afternoon thunderstorm was imminent. They made it into the house just before the skies opened up. Fiona stood at the window watching the storm.
“How are you doing?”
“Embarrassed, angry, feelin like I want ta crawl under a rock. You?”
“Well, I will say that it was awkward, sitting next to your father once you and your mother left.”
She cringed. “Ah, yeah, sorry about that.”
“It went better than you think.” He told her what her father said, what she should have known all along. “No one in that court room thinks any less of you Fiona. I know you are embarrassed, I am too, my team heard every word, and Calleigh was already unable to look me in the eye after the day she showed up unannounced.”
“Ah, she has that visual she didn’t want. She may never look at ya again.” The doorbell rang, just as a flash of lightning lit up the room. Fiona looked out the window to see her father at the door.
“Ah, shite. I was hopin ta avoid him fer a few days.”
She opened the door and Liam rushed in from the rain. He nodded to Horatio and turned to his daughter. “Fiona, I want ta talk ta ya.” She looked away, as if she wanted the floor to swallow her up.
“Now, just be calm, I’m not here ta lecture ya girl, I know that’s not what yer needin right now.” He put his arm around her shoulder, “Come sit with me.”
Horatio left them alone, heading to Fiona’s bedroom, closing the door to give them privacy.
They sat on the couch, Liam speaking very softly. “Fiona, I know yer not the kind of girl he’s makin ya out ta be. If yer sharin yer bed with Horatio, I know it’s because ya love him, and I think yer lucky ta have found him, and he you. I know that bastard twisted tings around ta make ya look bad, and it’s him that should be ashamed, not my girl.” He took a deep breath, “There’s some tings I need ta tell ya about yer Ma and me, tings we should have told ya long ago but we just never did.” “I met yer Ma when she was 16, and I was just shy of 18. She was raised in a very strict Catholic family; her father wanted her to join the convent. Yer Ma was havin none of that, even before she met me. We kept our relationship from her family for months before we were found out. They wanted ta send yer Ma to the Magdalene laundries when they caught us neckin in the back seat of my car. We left Gallway that night, we found out yer Ma was pregnant soon after. We swore we’d never let ya be shamed fer what nature gave ya. Don’t let that little bastard shame ya, Fiona.” “Da, I had no idea……” “Ya wouldn’t, it’s an ugly side of yer heritage, the way women are made ta feel that they should be ashamed. We didn’t want ya ta know that yer own grandparents could tink of doin that ta yer Ma.”
“Tanks, Da. I know it was awkward fer ya, hearin….”
“Twasn’t awkward, ya are yer Ma’s daughter”, he said with a chuckle.
“Oh, god, Da! I don’t want ta hear that!” Her face turned a deep red.
He laughed, “Ya have ta laugh it off, Fiona. If ya don’t it’ll drive ya mad. Yer O.K. now?”
“Yea, I’m o.k. “she smiled as she put her head on his shoulder.
“I see ya got some better curtains. Ya may want ta get better widows, some sound proofin “ he teased. She swatted his arm.
When the storm stopped, Liam went home to his Grace. They decided that he should be the one to tell Fiona, she needed to know that he was not ashamed of her. Grace had already assured her as much as she could; she needed to hear it from him. He couldn’t resist teasing her, it was his way. He didn’t want her to ever doubt his love; he had promised Grace he would be a better man than her father had been that he would raise their girl to be proud and strong. She had always been so, until Brian knocked it out of her. He wished that he could take that pain away from her. He knew that Horatio would be there for her, the way he had been there for Grace, always would be.
Horatio opened the bedroom door when he heard Liam leave. Fiona was at the door when it opened, she walked in and sat on the bed, he sat next to her and listed to the story of her mother’s family, her near escape from what would surely have been her personal hell. How her father swore he’d never let his daughter feel shame. Fiona was quiet the rest of the night. She had a tendency to retreat deep into her own thoughts when she was upset. Horatio gave her space; he knew she needed to work things out in her own way. At least she was no longer worried about what everyone else was thinking. At 10:00, she announced, “I’m goin ta bed”
“I’ll be in soon”, he kissed her as she got up. He watched to see which room she would go to, not sure if she would ever sleep in her room again, if she would ever feel safe there again. She stood in the hall for a moment before she decided. She walked in to her room, pulled the curtains and started to reclaim her life.
Chapter 28
It had taken a few days before Fiona was back to her old self. She slowly regained her sense of humor, and had started driving herself to work. Brian was back in prison, so she was able to regain her independence. It was strange at first, breaking from the routine of recent weeks, but it was nice to come and go as she needed, working from home when possible without having to ask Horatio to change his schedule.
A full week had passed since Brian’s second arrest, Horatio had not moved out, but he also had not talked about moving more of his things to her house. She had not mentioned it either, not sure of where things stood between them. She knew how she felt about him, knew what she ultimately wanted, but didn’t want him to feel obligated to her in any way. She didn’t want to be the first to say ‘I love you’, didn’t want him to feel like he had to say it if he didn’t want to.
When Horatio came home, Fiona was deep in thought, she hadn’t heard him come in; she was sitting on the patio, staring into the yard. He came up behind her, startling her. “How was your day?” he said as he sat down next to her. She smiled, still fighting the debate going on in her head.
“Good. Your’s?”
“Better, now.”
When he said things like that, it only confused her more. She knew he was enjoying being with her, but were they just having fun, or was this serious for him?
He noticed that she seemed distant when he got home. He wasn’t sure what was bothering her, but she had been through so much, it seemed like a normal reaction to have days where she just needed time to think. He didn’t want to pressure her; she would talk when she was ready.
Over dinner, the conversation was light and friendly, but still somehow distant. They went for a walk, he held her hand, hoping this would comfort her, whatever the problem was, he just wanted her to know he was there. When they went to bed, he held her close, listening to her breathing, knowing she was not sleeping. Maybe there were too many memories here to allow her a good night’s sleep. It was Friday night, they didn’t set the alarm; Horatio was not on call this weekend. She couldn’t sleep. She lay awake wondering if she should just ask him what his plans were, if he was going to stay, or go back to his own place. She heard the birds chirping as the sun started to come up, she had hardly slept, no point in lying there now. She got up and made a pot of coffee, taking her cup out to the patio.
He woke up to find that she was not lying next to him; he could smell the coffee and knew that she had been up for a while. He fixed himself a cup, seeing that she was sitting outside, he went to join her. He could see the dark circles under her eyes. “Hey, did you get any sleep?”
“Not really.” Her heart still beat faster when he walked in the room. Maybe it was better not to know his plans, just enjoy however long he chose to stay.
“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”
She shook her head, “It’s silly, nothin ta worry about.”
“It’s obviously worrying you, so it worries me as well.”
Oh, god, she was too far gone now, head over heels for him. “I was just wonderin if ya were plannin on stayin, I mean now that it’s over and all.”
He was a bit taken aback; they hadn’t discussed him going home. He really didn’t want to, but maybe that was what she wanted. “I could stay if you like.”
“Ah, I was hopin ya’d tell me what yer plans were.”
“I hadn’t really given it much thought. “
Well, that was clear. Clear as swamp water. “Well, let me know what ya decide.” She stood up, cup in hand, heading to the kitchen for a refill.
“Fiona, what are you telling me?”
Irritated now, “I’m tellin ya ta make up yer mind and tell me what ya want, what were doin here.”
His voice was very quiet now, “Fiona, you know how I feel about you, don’t you?”
“No. I mean, I don’t know. Ya haven’t said if ya want ta stay here wit me, but ya haven’t moved out, I don’t know what it is ya want. Ya moved in ta keep me safe, and I’m grateful ta ya, I really am, but now that I’m safe, I don’t know …..”
“Fiona, my desire to protect you was never out of a sense of duty.”
He looked away, genuinely hurt that she would think he was only here out of duty. She saw the hurt in his eyes and hated herself for being the cause of it; she had never meant to hurt him.
“I love you, Fiona.” He said, very softly. She blinked back the tears. “Horatio…..”
Chapter 29
Fiona didn’t know what she had expected him to say. She certainly had not expected him to say ‘I love you’, and it had left her speechless. She stared at him for a moment, not really sure she had heard it, maybe she just wanted to hear it so badly that she imagined it. One tear slid down her cheek. He watched her, she said nothing. Maybe she hadn’t heard him. Maybe she didn’t feel the same, maybe she wanted him to leave. He saw the tear slide down her cheek. He wasn’t sure what to say next. She walked over to where he sat, put her cup on the ground and sat next to him.
“I will leave if that’s what you want, Fiona, but I’d like to stay.”
He turned to look at her, hoping to see some sign that she wanted him to stay.
“Please stay. I don’t know what I’d do witout ya. I’ve loved ya from the moment I saw ya sittin there next ta me in the hospital. I knew then that ya were the only one I wanted, that it wasn’t just a crush anymore.”
He wiped the tears from her face and put his arms around her and breathed a sigh of relief. They sat like that for a long time before he spoke. “I’d like to move in, unless you’d like to find another house, this one holds some bad memories for you…”
“No, I don’t want ta leave here, for every bad memory, there are a dozen good ones.”
They talked about moving, how to begin to blend two homes, what to pare down, what t
o keep. When Fiona’s stomach growled, they noticed how late it was, nearly noon.
When they had finished a very late breakfast, showered and dressed, they started the task of clearing out space. Fiona was not one to hold on to things, but by the end of the day, she had weeded out more than she ever imagined she could. They had not stopped to eat since breakfast and it was nearly 8 p.m. Boxes and furniture had been stacked in the sun room until the charity pick up could come to claim them. As empty as the house looked, it finally felt full. They would deal with Horatio’s things tomorrow, tonight; both would sleep well, exhausted, feeling content, and once the dinner they had ordered arrived, full. Chapter 30 It had been two weeks since Horatio had completely moved in to Fiona’s home. There was no real adjustment period; they had already lived together for so long. Fiona was content, no, more than content, she was truly happy. It’s funny how you don’t know what you were missing until you found it. o keep. When Fiona’s stomach growled, they noticed how late it was, nearly noon.
Calleigh had noticed the change in Horatio early on. As soon as he had moved in to Fiona’s house, the first time, before Brian had been arrested, she saw that he smiled more, looked happier and more relaxed than she had ever seen him. Now that he was there to stay, it was obvious that this was just what each of them needed. It was nice to see them both so content.
Fiona was spending a great deal of time preparing herself for the upcoming trial. She knew now what to expect from Brian and vowed that she would not be caught off guard again. Everyone that mattered to her had already heard his version of a very intense evening she had spent with Horatio, and no one cared. What difference did it make if he repeated it for the jury? The evidence was there; surly it was enough to convict him. She knew Horatio and his team had made no mistakes, they were always thorough, but had checked and re-checked a dozen times to be sure they had him dead to rights. She just wanted it over with, she was ready to move on and leave this behind her. She saw Nancy once a month now, and would continue until the trial was over. She knew, no matter how prepared she was, she would need support until the very end. Horatio was amazed at how far Fiona had come. She was back to her old self, laughing, joking; she had resumed her playful banter with Eric. Eric was often the one to blush when she would make a joke about his boss knowing enough tricks to keep her entertained, she just had no time left for him. He wondered if she would be ready for the emotions the trail was sure to bring up. He wondered if this was the right time to bring up something that had been playing in his mind since before he had moved in. He knew that this was where he wanted to be, had already put his condo on the market, which seemed to be fine with her; more than fine, really. He wondered how she would react to what he was planning next. Miami was experiencing another heat wave, and it was supposed to be nearly autumn. Fiona was working from home, and thankfully did not have to go out in the heat. It was nearly 5pm, Horatio was due home in another hour. She had made salad with cold tuna steaks for dinner, it was too hot for anything else.
Horatio came home to a cool house, a welcome relief from the heat. Fiona was on the phone, making arrangements for the next litter of pups for the K-9 unit. He listened to her talk, loving the sound of her voice, how animated she was when talking about her ‘beasties’. When she hung up, she noticed him watching her, and rewarded him with a blush that still made his heart skip a beat. After dinner, Horatio sat on the couch, Fiona came to join him, lying down with her head in his lap. He looked down at her, stroking her hair. They talked about the events of the day, about when the next litter of pups would arrive and what he could expect as far as the level of chaos and how long that would last. She was used to it, but wanted to make sure he would be ready for the adventure. He listened, knowing that however chaotic it may get, there was nowhere else he’d rather be. Chapter 31
Horatio left for work early the next morning. Fiona had a light day, and slept in a bit. He kissed her lightly on the cheek before he left, not wanting to wake her. He would call her later to let her know he would be late.
“Good mornin, Lieutenant. “
“Did I wake you?”
“No, I just got up; my bed was lonely without ya.”
He smiled, “As much as I would love to have stayed there with you, I had to get some work done. I just wanted to let you know that I am going to be late tonight.”
“Tings busy at the lab?” she asked, of hand, just wanting to know how his day was going.
“No, not so far, anyway. I just have some errands I need to run.” He seemed distant to her, she wondered what was bothering him, but didn’t want to press him.
“O.K., want me to keep dinner fer ya?”
“No, I’ll bring something home for us.”
“Sounds grand, I hate ta cook in this heat.”
“I know. I’ll see you later. I love you.”
She smiled, and he could hear it in her voice when she replied, “”Love ya too. Be safe.”
Fiona spent the day preparing for the next litter of pups, cleaning, and grocery shopping. When she looked at the clock, it was 5:30, she wasn’t sure how late Horatio would be, she poured herself a glass of iced tea, and sat down to watch the news.
Horatio had left the lab early, eager to get started on his plans. He pulled up at the Greyhound rescue at 4:00, and found Liam cleaning the kennels. Horatio was not surprised that Fiona had such a way with animals. He watched as Liam spoke softly, soothing one of the latest rescues. Fiona had yet to meet this one, he had just come in yesterday; Grace had called to tell her. Fiona worked two days a week at the rescue, mainly to help her parents out, but also because she loved the work so much. He waited until Liam turned around to speak. “Liam, do you have a minute?”
“That I do, Horatio. Come in ta the house, I could use a cold drink.”
Liam took two bottles of water out of the refrigerator, and motioned for Horatio to sit. He took a long drink, and nodded.
“Now, what is it I can do fer ya?”
Horatio paused only a moment before getting to the point of his visit. “Liam, I think you know how I feel about Fiona.”
“That I do. Tis a bit obvious” he joked.
Horatio smiled, “I guess it is. Liam, I would like to ask Fiona to marry me.”
Liam raised an eyebrow, “Then ya should ask her” he replied, knowing full well that he had come to ask his permission, and he couldn’t make it too easy on the man.
“Liam, I think you know why I am here…”, Horatio knew he was being strung along.
“I do” he laughed. “Ya want my permission, ya don’t need it. Ya do have my blessin, I can tink of no one else my girl would be happier with. When do ya plan on askin her?”
“Tonight. I’m going to pick out a ring when I leave here.”
“Wanted my answer first?” Liam could not hide the wicked grin, so much like his daughters, Horatio thought, when she was in a teasing mood. "What would ya have done if I’d said ‘no’?”
“I would ask her, either way, hoping you would come around in the end.”
“Good man, yerself. She’ll say yes, no matter what my response was.” Horatio spent a few more minutes talking with his future father in law, before heading out to find a ring.
It was 5:00 by the time he reached the jewelry store. He spent more time than he thought he would, unable to decide what she might like. A diamond would be traditional, but that just didn’t seem quite right for Fiona, too common. He looked some more, but found nothing that really seemed to fit. He moved on to another store, losing all track of time. By the time he saw it, it was just after 6:00, but it was perfect. A gold Claddagh, the heart was an Emerald, the same shade as her eyes. It was perfect. He pulled a ring that he had borrowed from her jewelry box to make sure the size would be right. It was sheer luck that the ring was the right size, her hands were so small. He paid for the ring, putting it in his pocket and phoned in a takeout order for dinner.
It was 6:15, and Fiona was starting to worry. Surely he was o.k., she had watched the news, as had become her habit, if anything had happened to him, it would have been on the news. He was fine. This was silly to worry. She picked up the phone, started to dial his number, and thought it would be silly to check up on the man. Horatio picked up champagne, and sushi, and headed home, ring in his pocket.
At 6:35, Fiona heard him pull up, and let out a sigh of relief. Damn that man for making her worry! When he walked in the door, looking disheveled, she had to smile. “What took ya so long!? I was startin ta wory.”
“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t realize how late it was.”
She took the bag containing the sushi, and headed towards the kitchen to get plates. “I always worry when yer late. I know it’s silly…”
He opened the champagne, when she heard the pop of the cork, she turned in surprise. “What dýa have there? Celebratin something?”
He smiled, I hope so, he thought. He took two glasses from the cabinet and carried them with the bottle to the table. She followed behind with the sushi, soy sauce and bowls, eyeing him suspiciously. He took the plates from her, set them down and pulled out her chair. He wasn’t sure when he should do it, before or after dinner. It was late, she was probably hungry. He decided to wait until after dinner.
He was very quiet. She noticed that he was fidgeting. When dinner was done, she took the plates into the kitchen and put them in the dishwasher. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that he had taken the bottle and glasses out to the patio. It had cooled down a bit once evening had come, and she joined him there.
The sky was the colors of a Maxfield Parish painting. The sun had almost set completely; she sat down next to him and took her glass, closing her eyes, enjoying the cool drink. She hadn’t noticed that he had taken something from his pocket. He took her hand and she turned to face him. His face was covered by shadows. He spoke very softly. “Fiona, I’m sorry I kept you waiting, I hadn’t meant to be so long. I had no idea it would be so difficult to find…..Fiona,” he paused; she couldn’t read the look on his face, “Will you marry me?”
What did he say? She didn’t respond for a moment, not sure of what she just heard. She had no idea that pause was causing him great stress. She looked down at his hand and saw the box. Oh, my god, he did just ask…. “Horatio, that’s what ya were up to?”
Why wasn’t she answering the question? It was too soon, why didn’t I wait a while longer, I knew I shouldn’t rush her into anything. “Fiona, if you’re not ready, it’s o.k….”
“What? Horatio, put that ring on my finger. Ya should know what my answer is. I want nothin more, I...” When he took the ring from the box, the tears came. “Oh, god, it’s lovely.”
He slipped the ring on her finger; he even knew the way it needed to be worn, at least for now, on the ring finger of her left hand, the point of the heart faced out to signify that she was spoken for. It would be turned the other direction when they exchanged their vows, so that the point of the heart faced in, pointing to her own heart to signify that she was a married woman.
“Do you think you could just say ‘yes’ for me?”
She took his face in her hands and kissed him, “Yes. Ya know I will marry ya.”
He finally let out the breath he had been holding. He thought she would say yes, but until she actually did, there was just that little bit of doubt…..
The End. (of part one, I am currently writing part 4, and if you all like part one, I'll post the others)
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| filmfan24 | wow | 0 | Jun 10 2010, 4:59 PM EDT by filmfan24 | ||
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Thread started: Jun 10 2010, 4:59 PM EDT
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i luv it. i think it is a really awesome story, v. long but really good story line!!! :D i <3 it!!!
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| caleigherickbelong2g | The Path | 0 | Jul 15 2009, 12:56 PM EDT by caleigherickbelong2g | ||
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Thread started: Jul 15 2009, 12:56 PM EDT
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I Think its too long. I cant even finnish the rest of the story because of how long it is.
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| crzycatlady | The Path | 4 | Oct 19 2008, 1:01 PM EDT by crzycatlady | ||
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Thread started: Sep 24 2008, 8:17 PM EDT
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This fanfic is very heavy on the H factor. There are some adult only supplements that I will be happy to send via email or PM to those who are interested and OVER 18. If you are over 18 and want the supplements, please just PM me. Hope the story does not dissapoint.
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