Ta-da! Told you it wouldn't be a very long hiatus. That's right, Jessica Caine and Ryan Wolfe are back! Or are they? This timeline for this story is the beginning of season nine of CSI Miami. I'll be honest, too, the reason I'm unloading this story is because my other two I'm working on are almost done.
This story does have some adult material at the end, so I'm going to give it an M rating, though it's pretty clean for the most part.
Three weeks ago Ryan Wolfe's girlfriend, Jessica Caine, daughter of Lieutenant Horatio Caine, disappeared without a trace. The Miami Dade Crime Lab followed the evidence again and again, but it only led them back to one person- Dr. Jessica Caine. Is she really alive, or has someone made a fool of them?
Vanishing Acts
Anniversary
"Did you actually think I would forget? A love like ours is something that can't be forgotten."
Ryan Wolfe awoke to his alarm clock blaring. He groaned and slammed the snooze button. He rolled onto his back and laid there in his bed for a moment before he picked up his cell phone and checked the date. He sighed at the date printed in the corner of the screen and dropped the phone onto his chest. He closed his eyes and thought of her. Of her scent, the feel of her skin against his own, the way she made him feel complete. His body began to react and he gently placed his hand over his groin. A yippy bark from downstairs made him groan and cease his intentions.
"I'm coming, Lucy," he called as he walked down the stairs, lease in hand. Ryan found his small dog in her crate in the living room of his apartment. She eagerly wagged her tail at the sight of Ryan. He smiled as he clipped the lease onto her collar and led her outside. Lucy scampered around the courtyard before she finally found just the right spot. Ryan collected his mail and walked back into his apartment with Lucy. She pounced onto her to stuffed elephant and shook it vigorously. Ryan smiled at her as he climbed the stairs back to his master bathroom.
He stood under the hot spray of water and felt the stiffness melt away from his limbs. He closed his eyes and thought of her again. He poured shampoo into his hand and grasped himself. He began tugging at himself and moaned lightly as he continued to fantasize about her.
"Happy Anniversary, Jessica," he muttered to the empty room.
Ryan's phone rang as he climbed into his car. He didn't recognize the number and shrugged as he answered it. "Wolfe," he said. There was silence for a moment and Ryan listened to it. Then suddenly there was a loud screeching noise and a garbled sound. Ryan threw the phone away as his ear rang with pain. He stared at his phone where it was lying on the floor of the passenger seat, the screeching noise still ringing out. He grabbed it and hung up. "Damn it," he muttered as he started his car and began his commute to work.
Ryan and Calleigh walked the perimeter of the crime scene. Ryan stopped and knelt beside a spent casing and snapped a few pictures. He collected it using a pair of tweezers, dropping it into an evidence envelope. Slender fingers running through his hair made him stop and look up. He smiled at Calleigh as she smiled back down at him.
"How are you feeling, Ryan?" she asked.
"I'm good," Ryan smiled back.
"Are you sure?" Calleigh inquired.
"Calleigh, really I'm fine," Ryan said again, "You don't have to worry about me."
"Ryan," Calleigh said again.
"Calleigh, how many times do I have to tell you?" Ryan asked a little snippy.
"Because I know what day it is, Ryan," Calleigh quietly said. Ryan sighed and lowered his face back towards the ground. Calleigh knelt beside him and looked into his eyes. "I'm sorry you have to spend today alone, Ryan," she whispered.
Ryan smiled weakly. "I'm not alone; I have you and the rest of the team."
Calleigh smiled at him and squeezed his hand. "That's a great way of thinking about it."
"Hey Ryan," Jesse said as he walked into the lab Ryan was working in, "How's it going?"
"Well it would be going better if everyone wasn't continuously asking me how I'm doing," Ryan said as he continued to look into the microscope.
"Ryan, we're just all worried about you, that's all," Jesse said. "Your girlfriend disappeared and no one knows where she is. We're going to worry about you until she's back."
"Well then why isn't everyone asking Horatio how he's doing then?" Ryan retorted as he jotted down some notes.
"Maybe because it's not Horatio's one year anniversary with Jessica," Jesse quietly said.
Ryan stared at him silently. "Why does everyone seem to think just because it's our anniversary I'm going to off myself or something? I'm fine. Yes, I miss Jessica like crazy and I wish she was here, but there's nothing I can do about it. Everything's fine with me, I swear, ok? Everything's fine, so just lay off."
Jesse shook his head. "You know, Ryan, when someone says they're worried about you the polite thing to do is oblige them and act like what they've done has helped. You want to be an ass and fight everyone just because they're trying to help then fine. I'm done here. Come find me when Travers is done with our Trace results."
Ryan watched him walk away. He sighed and shook his head. "Man, am I dumb," he muttered.
"No you're not," Calleigh said as she walked in, "Jessica wouldn't be dating an idiot."
"Yeah but I'm apparently chasing everyone away today," Ryan said.
"Again, you're not," Calleigh giggled, "I'm still here."
Ryan smiled at her. "Thanks Cal, I appreciate it."
Ryan's phone rang and he answered it without checking the number. "Wolfe," he said as he continued to shuffle evidence around the table. A loud screeching noise made him drop his phone and grab at his ear. "What the hell!" he exclaimed as he jabbed at his phone to hang up. "That's the second time today that number's called me and blasted my ear drums out!"
"Can I see that?" Calleigh asked.
"Yeah," Ryan said, handing over his phone.
Calleigh looked at the number from Ryan's recent calls. She dialed the number in her phone and waited. A loud screeching noise came through the speaker and a garbled voice. She hung up her phone quickly and stared at it.
"That was weird," Calleigh said.
"Yeah, I've gotten it twice today and it really kills my ears," Ryan commented as he accepted back his phone.
"Well hopefully it's just a prank," Calleigh commented. "Now come on, we need to go back to the scene."
Ryan sighed as he laid his lab coat over the back of a chair. "Ok, what does Horatio think we missed this time?"
"Always thinking the negative, huh, Mr. Wolfe," Horatio said as he met up with them in the hall.
"Nope, no negative, never me," Ryan sarcastically said.
"Good because that won't get you to the altar with my daughter any faster."
A sudden smile played across Ryan's face and the tips of his ears turned red. He looked at the ground in embarrassment. "Ok fine, you've got me there," Ryan muttered.
Ryan and Calleigh worked in the AV lab on one of the computers, trying to trace calls made from the victim's cell phone. Ryan typed various commands, using different programs.
"Ta-da," Ryan blandly said, "And there you have it."
"Damn Ryan," Calleigh commented, "Maybe you should switch to AV with everything Jessica's taught you."
"Nah, I like CSI too much," Ryan responded as his phone rang again. He looked at the now familiar number on the screen. "Ok buddy, five prank calls in one day is enough for me." Ryan hooked his phone to the computer and began running the tracking programs before he hit the answer button.
"This is Wolfe," he said when he finally answered.
"Hey pumpkin, can you hear me this time?"
Ryan's jaw hit the ground when he heard the voice. He stared at the computer screen in disbelief.
"Hello? Ryan Wolfe, you there?"
Ryan couldn't speak. His heart was hammering in his chest and his tongue was thick and dry.
"Jessica, it's Calleigh, we can hear you just fine," Calleigh interjected.
"Calleigh!" Jessica's voice excitedly exclaimed, "You're there, too! Wait, am I on speaker phone right now?"
"Well yes, we're actually in the AV lab right now," Calleigh explained.
Jessica laughed. "Did Ryan try to track me?"
Calleigh couldn't help but giggle. "Actually yes he did. He thought you were a prankster and decided to track you."
"Sorry, internal cell phones suck sometimes, and my signal jammer probably isn't helping either."
Eric's head popped into the AV lab and he stared towards the computer Ryan and Calleigh were working at. "Did I just hear…" he quietly muttered.
"Eric!" Jessica's voice on the computer excitedly exclaimed, "Is that Eric I hear?"
"Oh my god, Jessica!" Eric exclaimed as he sat down next to Calleigh. "How are you, kid?"
"Hey I am not a kid," Jessica laughed, "And I'm doing great."
"Jessica?" Jesse said as he popped his head into the lab.
"Holy crap, is that my bestie?" Jessica exclaimed.
"Oh my god, I can't believe it!" Jesse exclaimed as he stood behind Eric.
"Told you it was her," Walter said as he walked in, "You owe me twenty bucks. How are you doing, Jess?"
Jessica laughed through the computer speakers. "You guys are betting on whether or not it's me? I see nothing's changed since I've been gone."
"It's only been two weeks," Jesse chuckled, "Give us a little more time."
"Is Ryan even there?" Jessica inquired, "I haven't heard him at all."
Ryan suddenly snapped out of his trance and shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Yeah, I'm here, Jess."
"Good, because there's something I wanted to tell you," Jessica said, the smile in her voice obvious.
"Um, ok," Ryan muttered, confusion running through his mind.
"Happy anniversary," Jessica cheerfully said.
Ryan sat there speechless as a silent smile crept across his face. "Thanks Jess," he quietly said.
Jessica giggled lightly. "Well I have to go now, it's almost bedtime."
"Bedtime? It's only six," Eric said.
"Well maybe there, but here it's past eleven and I have work to do in the morning," Jessica explained.
"Eleven?" Walter said, "Where are you that it's almost eleven?"
"Not telling you, Wally," Jessica sassed, "That's for me to know and none of you to find out. At least not yet."
"Jess, when are you coming home?" Ryan asked.
Jessica sighed quietly. "I'm sorry Ryan, I can't tell you that yet. But I can tell you this. I love you very much and I miss you tons."
Ryan smiled shyly and looked at the computer screen. "I love you, too, Jessica."
"I have to go now, pumpkin, I'm sorry," Jessica quietly said.
"Alright Jessie," Ryan said disappointed, "I miss you and I love you."
"I love you, too, Ryan," Jessica said, "Happy anniversary pumpkin."
"Happy anniversary Jess," Ryan quietly said.
The line clicked and a dial tone rang out in the lab. Ryan hung up his phone and silently sat there staring at it. Dozens of emotions were running through him at that moment and he wasn't quite sure what he was feeling. He silently stood from his chair and turned to leave the lab. Horatio stood in the doorway looking at him.
"She called you," he said to Ryan.
Ryan nodded his head. "Yeah, she did."
Horatio looked at him for a moment before he turned and walked away.
Ryan had to mask the smile on his face as he and Calleigh entered the interrogation room. The suspect was a woman in her forties. She had killed the man in cold blood, accusing him of having murdered her young son.
"So Mrs. Williams," Ryan said as they sat down across from her, "How long had you been stalking Eric Hansen?"
"I wasn't," she snipped, "He was stalking my son."
"What makes you say that?" Calleigh inquired.
"He was a pedophile, it's in their nature," Williams hissed.
"Mrs. Williams, Eric Hansen lived four miles away from you, that's within his legal limits set out in his probation," Ryan explained, "And there's no evidence that shows Hansen was anywhere near your house."
"He was there," she hissed again, "I know it!"
"Mrs. Williams, you can't make accusations like," Ryan said to her.
"Officer Wolfe, you have no idea what I'm going through!" Williams snapped.
"Alright and that would be what?" Ryan inquired.
"My son was murdered!" she exclaimed, "My son was murdered by that man! I needed to make him feel the pain that I felt! Do you know what it's like to loose a child?"
"Actually yes, I do," Ryan muttered.
Williams stared at him shocked. "Your child died?"
"Yeah, my daughter was murdered," Ryan quietly said, "But she wasn't twelve years old like your son. She was just an infant with Downs's syndrome. She didn't have a clue what was happening to her. I just wish there was someway I could tell her what happened. I just wish I could actually tell her that I love her and have her understand that I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect her. I wish there was a way I could apologize for not keeping my promise to protect her. Do you know what that's like, Mrs. Williams? Do you know what it's like loosing a child who doesn't understand the world around her and having no way to tell her?"
Williams sat there, staring at Ryan in disbelief. Ryan looked at her one last time before he stood from his chair. "Book her," Ryan muttered as he left the interrogation room.
He walked through the hall, suddenly exhausted. He flopped onto a couch in the break room and hung his head in his hands, fighting the anger that flowed through him. He suddenly wanted to hurt someone. He wanted someone to feel the pain he was feeling.
Ryan jabbed and punched at the punching bag that hung from the ceiling in his study in his apartment. He beat it hard, using every fiber in his body to inflict pain onto the inanimate object. His fists ached and the muscles in his arms strained under the pressure.
He gave it a few more good hits before he finally collapsed to his knees, leaning his forehead against the worn material. Sudden tears flowed down his face and he cried with heaving sobs. A frightened Lucy cowered in the doorway and Ryan looked towards her when she whimpered. Ryan sniffed and held out his arms for her. She slowly walked to him and nuzzled her nose against his neck. Ryan held the tiny dog in his arms and cried more, Lucy licking his tears from his cheeks.
"You want her back, don't you?" a voice asked him from the door. Ryan turned to see Horatio standing in the doorframe looking at him. Ryan smiled weakly at him before the tears began creeping down his cheeks. "Yeah, I do," Ryan said.
Horatio walked over and knelt beside Ryan. He scratched behind Lucy's ear as he looked into Ryan's hazel eyes. "I'm sorry, Ryan," he whispered, "Had I known this case was going to bring back bad memories…"
"It's ok, H," Ryan whispered, "You didn't know this was going to happen."
"She would have been born next month," Horatio quietly said.
Ryan nodded his head. "Yeah, she would have."
Horatio held Ryan's hand and squeezed it gently. "You would have made a wonderful father, Ryan," he whispered to him.
Ryan looked at Horatio and smiled. "Thanks H," he said, "I've had a great role model the last few months."