A Child's Cry---A Loss Of Innocence

by Loreal

While investigating a case of domestic violence turned into murder, Sgts. Richard Hunter and DeeDee McCall must protect their only witness. Plus, the two partners find out that they both have feelings for one another. (Note: this is a very difficult sto

A CHILD'S CRY-A LOSS OF INNOCENCE

By DeeDee_McCall

Prologue

I've been sitting here, just thinking about what has happened in the last few months. For some strange reason, it feels like an eternity since things have changed. It seems like nothing ever stays the same, but rather things are always changing. Sometimes, the changes are for the better. Even though it doesn't look that way in the beginning, in the end things have a way of working themselves out just fine. That's how this whole thing started. At first I thought things couldn't get any worse, or any better for that fact, but life has proven me wrong, once again. I know that things won't be the same for anyone involved, but maybe it's just as well. I've learned that much over the course of my life. Maybe all of this was a part of a destiny. I've said it before, its not the tune the fiddle plays, but rather it's the one playing the tune. Even though we have a great amount of control over where our lives take us, there are some things we just can't predict.

Part 1

It was nearly 6:30pm on a Monday afternoon. My partner and I had been working on a case for the past two weeks and had finally wrapped it up, and were contemplating going somewhere for dinner. I was driving my beat up clunker of a car, when the call came through over the radio.

"Any available units in the vicinity of Wilshire Blvd. and 8th Ave. we have a domestic dispute and possible homicide at 3648 Wilshire."

The call sounded again. I kept my eyes on the road and noticed out of the corner of my eye, my partner who was trying to hide her uneasiness. My partner picked up the mike and responded. "L56 to dispatch. We'll take it."

"I guess this cancels out dinner." I was trying my hand at humor, which had no effect on my partner. She just rolled her eyes at me and turned on the flashing lights.

Her bruised and battered form lay sprawled across a kitchen chair. The kitchen was an absolute wreck. Broken glass was strewn all over the floor, the remaining pieces of the table, and then there was the other woman. The kid looked to be still alive, but the woman lying on her stomach didn't look to be all right at all. I've seen so many horrific things in my many years as a cop, but this is one of the worst sights. There isn't much gore, but just the sight of a six-year old child lying over a chair like that is enough to make anyone's stomach turn. The abuse and all it's horrors is bad enough when it's an adult. But a child, well that's an entirely different story. Now I'm not trying to say that when the victim is a child the case becomes more important than that of an adult. Just the sight of abuse is enough to break anyone's heart, especially those of us who deal with it almost on a daily basis.

She looked so frightened, but wouldn't move when anyone went near her. My partner, as smart as she was, was still human and wanted to go over to help the little girl and see if she was all right. I approached my partner and pulled her aside.

"McCall, I think we should let someone else handle the little girl. I don't think..."

She looked at me and scowled. "That's a problem of yours, Hunter, you don't think. There's no way we can just let that little girl go with some officers who have no experience with children. Especially this type of case. Now come on. You've taken care of a kid before, how difficult can it be?"

"We don't have much experience either. And besides, I took care of a two-year old toddler for one night. We're homicide cops, not babysitters. But you're right. Let's get her out of here." I said. My partner saw what had changed my attitude and headed for the child. I watched my partner head for the child and seeing that it might help if I came along too, I headed in that direction.

When I reached the area of the room where the girl lay across the chair, I could see my partner reaching out to help the child up. I gently stretched out a hand and helped lift the girl from the chair. Her shirt was stained with dark red spots. There was glass in her hair and several small cuts on her arms, face, hands, and legs. We both took notice of the handprints on her face and the marks on her arms, probably from being grabbed. The bruises had already started to form, and there was a purplish tint to her skin around each of the ugly-looking marks.

I felt my heart drop in my chest. It bothered me emensly that nothing had been done until this little girl had been beaten so badly. I noted, however, that she didn't seem to have any broken bones, but it was still a very bad sight to see. As I stood there just looking at the child, my partner decided it was time to talk to the kid.

"Hi. I'm DeeDee. What's your name?"

No response. But this didn't affect my partner. She seemed to have a knack for this type of thing. I thought she was pretty good for not having much experience with kids. Seeing that the little girl was staring intently at the ring on DeeDee's right hand, my partner chose this topic of conversation.

"You like this? It's pretty isn't it? It was my mom's."

"Did...she...give it to you?" I noticed how hesitantly the girl spoke. DeeDee nodded and continued talking to the child.

"It was my mom's wedding ring. She gave it to me when I got married."

"Where's your wedding ring?" Boy. Once this kid started asking questions she didn't quit did she? I thought it was cute in a weird sort of way. I guess not having any kids of my own makes me think how cute all these other kids are. But at least we got her to talk to us.

"I don't wear it anymore."

Just then I heard Terwiliger's grating voice cut the air around the three of us. "Well well well, if it isn't the department's dynamic duo. I'll take it from here, seeing as how I've had more experience with kids. Come on, little girl. Time to take you to Juvie."

He made as if to reach for the little girl, but she cringed backward. "Nooo!"

The child's shriek sent Terwiliger reeling back for a second. I stepped in front of my partner and the child and looked at Bernie.

"It's okay, Bernie, I think we can handle this." This didn't sit too well with the department's top ass kisser, but he didn't look like he wanted to deal with a screaming kid, and it appeared that she didn't have too much of a fondness for him either.

"I hope you two are planning on handing this kid over to child welfare. You know the rules, and if either of you screws this case up I'll make sure the chief has your badges for it!"

The kid started to cry and tried to get away from everyone around her. She backed away another step and almost fell backwards over a piece of a broken chair. My partner caught her as she slipped.

"Now look what you did, Bernie, you scared this little girl. You should be ashamed of yourself." McCall said as she lifted the girl up and put her on her shoulder.

"McCall, why don't you take the kid outside and wait by the car for me. I'll be out in a minute." I said. DeeDee did a quick examination to make sure the girl didn't require immediate medical attention and then disappeared out the door. I watched as my partner exited the crime scene with the kid perched on her shoulder. I couldn't help but notice how much like a natural she looked holding the kid. But that wasn't my main focus at that particular moment. I turned to face Terwiliger. Several minutes later I exited the crime scene and found my partner and the little girl sitting in the front seat. She had ceased crying for the moment and was contentedly sitting in DeeDee's lap while my partner had begun the task of removing the glass from her hair. I stood there watching my partner and the little girl just as I caught sight of Captain DeVane heading in my direction.

"Hunter!" he barked. "Just so you know I'm not pleased that you and your partner are on this case, but since I don't have anyone else to give it to at the moment, and the fact that the little girl has become attached to you two, I'll let you take it. Juvie is still reeling from the last time you took a kid. You've got other cases on the books now, but I can spread some of the more pressing ones between Henderson and Navarro. But either keep the kid in protective custody or hand her over to child welfare. The person who did this hasn't been caught, and maybe we can get something from the kid."

"He hurt my mommy. He hurt Mommy and me." DeeDee had almost finished pulling the glass from the child's hair.

"Who hurt your mommy, honey? Who did this to you?"

The kid looked from DeeDee to me and then at the captain. Then without warning she began to cry uncontrollably. I suddenly realized why. She had seen the captain's gun in his holster. She was afraid of the gun.

"My daddy," she said between sobs. "Daddy hurt mommy and me."

The captain backed a considerable distance away from the little girl's line of vision. "Hunter, if the father did this, then he'll be looking for her. If he knows she's alive then he'll want to get rid of her so she can't talk."

I agreed and then said that we'd keep her in protective custody until child welfare was able to take care of her or we found a family member willing to take on the responsibility. Charlie looked at me for a moment and then said quietly, "Even I wouldn't have let Terwiliger take the kid. I'd have taken her in myself before letting him handle this one."

After making sure it was all right with the captain if we left, I climbed in the driver's side of the car and took off with my partner and our little charge.

After a very thorough exam at Wilshire Memorial Hospital, my partner and I left with a child who had been patched up, and the wounds covered and bandaged. As I drove through the streets, I couldn't help but notice how the child hadn't said more than two words since we'd left the house.

"Hey. I'll bet you're hungry," DeeDee said. "What do you say we go get you something else to wear and then get some dinner? Sound good to you?"

I couldn't help but notice how the little girl's eyes widened at the suggestion. I figured that maybe she hadn't gotten to go out and get anything new for a while. Not if there was an abusive father around.

"By the way, what's your name, honey? That's DeeDee and I'm Rick." I said. I didn't know how to approach the kid without scaring her.

"Chrissy."

I was amazed that she'd spoken to me at all. She'd been very silent for the time being, but then again, it seemed that a lot of things were surprising me today.

I drove to a local shopping center and parked in a space near the front entrance. DeeDee and Chrissy got out. Chrissy pointed at me and looked at McCall. She gave me one of those long questioning looks.

"Come on, Hunter. Come with us." I protested but Chrissy looked at me and for a second I thought she would start crying again. I got out and locked the car.

Once inside the store we headed for the kids' section. Chrissy saw all the colorful clothing displayed and was immediately in heaven. I couldn't help but smile at the sight of those cute designs on the kids' clothing. I noticed she especially liked the Rug Rats shirts and accessories.

"Babies! Like on TV." DeeDee smiled.

"Is that what you want, Chrissy?" She nodded.

An hour later, the three of us emerged from the store with two large shopping bags filled with kids' clothing. We had bought everything from Rug Rats to Blue's Clues. When I saw the amount we were spending on these items I gave DeeDee a quick sideways glance.

"Tax write off," she mumbled.

Chrissy was in heaven at McDonalds. She loved the happy meal with the little toy she got. I took a look at it and decided that it had to be a girl's toy.

"It's a barby." Chrissy said confidently. "I used to have one until Daddy broke it. He threw it away. Then he hurt Mommy because she got it for me."

I could see the sadness in her face and hear it in her voice as well. But somehow she didn't dwell on it. One minute she was talking about her mother and father and the barby, and the next she was happily devouring her dinner.

After the meal we went back to DeeDee's apartment. Since my apartment had little more than a bed, couch, and coffee table we decided that McCall's place would be the best choice. Everything was going fine until DeeDee tucked the little girl into her bed and started walking out. She started crying. She wouldn't let go of DeeDee's shirt.

"No! Don't leave me. I'm scared." My partner immediately sat down on the bed beside the little girl. I watched as DeeDee reached out and gently began to stroke the little girl's hair.

DeeDee motioned me into the room. "I think you'd better get some paper. I think she's starting to realize what's just happened." she mouthed the words to me rapidly. She sat down on the bed beside the child as she spoke to her.

"Why are you so scared? What are you so afraid of, huh?"

I got my notebook and pen out of my jacket pocket. I turned back to face McCall and the little girl.

"I'm afraid. Daddy hurt Mommy. You didn't arrest him and make him go away. He's gonna get me isn't he?" The tears ran down her face in a long and steady stream.

"Nooo. Chrissy, I'm not going to let anyone hurt you. Your daddy won't get you. I promise. Rick and I won't let that happen okay? You're going to stay with Rick and me until your daddy is caught and put in jail."

I watched as my partner's words had a soothing effect on the child. She began to calm down. In a few minutes she was asleep. DeeDee covered her up and left the room.

Part 2

In less than ten minutes, my partner was pacing the living room and staring at the bedroom door. I could see she was distracted, but thought better of saying anything. She would talk when she was ready.

"Hunter, this kid's scared. We've got to ask her some really tough questions when she gets up in the morning. It's got to be done. But how is this little girl going to handle telling us the information."

I looked at my partner and noticed how this case was taking its toll on her. Something inside me wished that for one moment, I could just make it all go away for both McCall and the kid. The kid was too young to have to deal with a situation of this sort. Then there was McCall. She wouldn't come right out and say it, but I could tell this case was bothering her more than she was willing to let on.

"I don't know, McCall. I just don't know. This kid's scared. She quite possibly saw her father murder her mother and came damn close to being killed herself. I just don't know about this one." Something didn't seem right. My partner finally said something that I had completely forgotten about.

"Hunter, would you run down to the station and see what you can find out on the case? We're the ones working it and it's not like the information's just gonna fall in our laps."

I wished it would but didn't say it out loud. I went to the phone and called the precinct. After requesting a line to the captain's office, I got some information I hadn't known about earlier.

The girl's name was Chrissy Drake, daughter of Martin and Connie Drake. According to hospital records, Chrissy wasn't the only child of the Drakes. They had an older child, a girl named Kathy. We hadn't stayed long enough to find out that the older sister had been found in her room with a gunshot wound to her chest and slash marks on her wrists. Chrissy's mother had been literally beaten to death, but what had been the cause of her death was a broken neck. The coroner's report had shown that Mrs. Drake's neck had been nearly snapped in two. However, that wasn't the only startling revelation about the Drake family. Chrissy's father had been in and out of trouble with the law for several years with everything from speeding, to driving while intoxicated, to being jailed for thirty days for starting a bar-room brawl, and on and on and on.

After I related this to McCall, I asked: "So do you want to talk about it?"

"What?"

"The reason this case has you so side tracked. And don't tell me it's just the kid and her situation, because I know better."

"Sorry, Hunter. Don't know what you're talking about." She was trying to blow me off, but she wasn't going to get away with it. Not this time.

"Come on, McCall. We've been partners for a while now. I think I know you better than that." However, our conversation went no further. Just as I finished my sentence we both distinctly heard a small crying sound coming from the bedroom.

We flew into the room, my partner to the bed and me to the wall nearby just in case the little girl didn't want me near her.

"He killed her! He killed my mommy! He hurt her and then me. I saw him. I saw it." Chrissy began sobbing uncontrollably. DeeDee held her and I kept my distance. I watched my partner, who always said she wanted kids, holding the frightened six-year old girl in her arms. Chrissy didn't calm down right away this time. It took her a while to realize that she was safe. DeeDee held her until her cries had ceased and she appeared to be drifting back into sleep.

"DeeDee," came the timid little voice. "I know what happened. I saw my Daddy hurt Mommy. Then he hurt me when he saw me in the doorway. He turned Mommy's neck. Kathy heard it too and came out."

"Shh. It's all going to be all right, Chrissy. Everything's going to be okay."

My partner kept this up for a while, but Chrissy wasn't calming down. The rest of the story came pouring out in between intermittent periods of sobbing, shaking, or just little cries. This kid was seriously aware of what had happened, and no amount of reassurance would help calm her. Within a period of about four hours, Chrissy had fallen asleep in DeeDee's arms. I helped her shift the little girl under the blankets and made sure she was covered up. I kept the light on and let DeeDee go out ahead of me. Then I followed behind, leaving the door open just in case.

I hoped Chrissy wouldn't wake up again. She'd been through so much. She needed to sleep, but more importantly, she needed to stay protected until her father was caught and put in jail.

DeeDee and I both decided it was time we too got some much-needed sleep. I opted that DeeDee take the guest room, but she said no on that note. She suggested we share the guest room, arguing that the couch wasn't the most comfortable piece of furniture in the world, and that I would end up doing irreparable damage to my back.

"After all Hunter we're both mature adults and partners for god's sake. And besides, you're going to need all the sleep you can get. You're baby-sitting tomorrow."

"Okay, Sergeant, make my night." I knew retaliation was coming and ducked as the pillow sailed across the room at my head.

"Just for that, you're doing the paperwork on this one. Now it's time we both got some shut eye." She relaxed beside me and I soon found myself sound asleep.

Part 3

I awoke to find that it was just near eight in the morning. I could hear DeeDee already up doing what I figured was dishes. I got up, threw on my shirt and headed out to the kitchen. The sight I saw was unbelievable. I saw Chrissy sitting in DeeDee's kitchen eating breakfast and smiling. She seemed like such a different child now compared to last night. I looked at DeeDee who flashed me a grin that said: "Don't knock it."

"How are you doing this morning, Chrissy?" I asked her. She looked at me, then at the plate of scrambled eggs, to DeeDee, and back at me.

"Okay. DeeDee says you're gonna stay with me today. She's gonna go catch my daddy."

I couldn't help but smile. For a six-year old, she certainly seems so much more understanding of the way things work in the world around her. I looked at Chrissy for a moment and then at my partner.

"You wait right there, honey. I've got to talk to DeeDee for a minute. It's a surprise."

Once in the other room, I looked at my partner and scowled. "I'm not that great with kids. Besides, last night I thought you were joking about the whole baby-sitting thing. I don't know about this."

"Hunter, don't argue with me on this one. I'm just going out to find some more information on her father. We already know his criminal record, and besides, there's nobody else to take the fieldwork. The captain said himself he didn't have anymore manpower to spare on this case."

I hated it when she got me with that logic and woman's intuition of hers. "All right. By the way what type of surprise do you think we should come up with?"

"You're the one who opened your mouth. You figure it out."

So, two-and-a half hours later, Chrissy and I were walking together in a toy store. Chrissy needed something to play with, and since DeeDee had bought her the clothes, I'd get the toys. My theory was that the best course of action would be to let her pick out the toys she wanted. I wasn't exactly your average father figure, nor was I Mr. Rogers. First she spotted a doll she took a liking to instantly. Next came a few coloring books, crayons, colorful construction paper, kid friendly scissors, a squishy ball, a stuffed dog, and finally a few cartoons on video.

I almost died from shock when the cashier rang up the total. And even if I couldn't get them as a tax write off, then at least the kid had something to keep her mind busy. I was thankful though, that she steered clear of the water pistols or those little toy cap guns that kids like to play with nowadays.

After the toy store, something came over me. It was like I was this kid's father or something, and I was thinking of what she needed now, rather than what she wanted.

"Just one more stop and then we'll go get some lunch. How's that sound?"

"Where we goin'?"

"The shoe store. You need a new pair of shoes." After we'd accomplished the task of fitting Chrissy with a brand-new pair of sneakers, it was time for some lunch. I decided that we would stop off at the station and see if DeeDee wanted to join us. Chrissy liked the station. To her, it was a whole new place just waiting to be explored.

We entered the building and headed for the homicide division. I wasn't about to let Chrissy hear any of the gruesome details of what had happened at her house just one day before. Seeing it was bad enough, and having to live with those images for the rest of her life would be terrifying. So, my first stop after entering my division was to Captain DeVane's office. I figured I could put her in there for a moment while I talked to my partner about the case. To my surprise, the captain was perfectly agreeable to the idea of watching her for a few minutes while I went and found out what information had been gathered since last night.

I soon found my partner sitting at her desk with her nose buried in a file and an untouched cup of coffee, cold no doubt, by her right hand. I asked her if she'd found anything out yet and she shook her head.

"Nothing on the father, but you're not going to like this. No next of kin. Mother was a victim of the child welfare system, and the father, as it turns out, was in homes for juveniles since the age of twelve. I got a court order to release his file from before he turned eighteen. His mother was murdered right in front of him when he was just six years old, same age as Chrissy."

"Well, isn't that just wonderful. He sees his mother killed at age six, and then kills his own wife when his youngest daughter is just six. But something isn't right here partner. Why not do it when the other girl Kathy was just six? Why wait until the second child?" She handed me the file she'd been reading. I scanned it quickly and found the answer to my question. "Mrs. Drake was pregnant with Chrissy when Kathy was six.

"Oh, and by the way, McCall, another reason we stopped by was to see if you wanted to join us for lunch."

She shook her head. "I can't. I'm going to check out a few of the places he used to hang out at and see what I can turn up. How's Chrissy doing?"

I told her about the trip to the toy store and the shoe store. DeeDee said I was spoiling the kid, but what could I do? I couldn't help it. She was just so sweet and lovable. When I returned to the captain's office I found a smiling, giggling little girl waiting for me. The captain motioned me to come over to his desk and handed me an envelope.

"Take the kid to lunch and somewhere else afterwards. Oh, and Hunter, whatever you and your partner have already spent on her, write down the amount. I'll see that you're reimbursed."

Chrissy bounded over to the captain. "Show him the picture I made you." The captain got up and proudly retrieved a colored piece of paper from a shelf. "It's a policeman's uniform." Chrissy said proudly. "He doesn't have to carry the big belt with the loud thing on it."

Both the captain and I knew what she meant. There was no doubt in either of our minds that she had heard the struggle between her father and sister shortly before he shot and killed her. But did she know her sister's wrists had been slashed? I didn't think so, and for her sake I hoped she never found out.

"Come on, honey, time to go get some lunch. Say good-bye to the captain, and tell him thank you for letting you stay here for a few minutes."

"Bye. Thank you, Captain." DeVane smiled and laughed. He waved to us as we left the office.

We went to a Friendly's restaurant for lunch, and afterwards Chrissy said she wanted to go home. At first I thought she meant DeeDee's place, but when she saw the street her house was on she pointed that way.

"I'm sorry, sweety, you can't go there. That's not home anymore. Your daddy might think you're there, and I promised DeeDee I'd keep you safe. Your daddy won't get you, but you can't go back there. Okay?" She seemed to understand, and after I got back to DeeDee's I put a video in for her to watch and that was the end of the going home discussion.

Chrissy seemed to be interested in the video. I figured she would at least be occupied for a while, so I found myself sitting at the kitchen table with the phone book and phone nearby. I began looking through the yellow pages for phone numbers to most of the bars in and around the general area where Chrissy lived.

The first few bars I tried said that Drake had been seen frequenting the bars, but none had seen him in the last few days. At about the time I had almost run out of bar listings to check, Chrissy came bounding into the kitchen holding a big book.

"Would you read a story out of this to me?"

I took the book from her little hands and saw that it was an encyclopedia. I explained that it wasn't a storybook, but that I was sure I could find something to read to her. "I just need a few minutes to finish some work and then I'll come find something to read to you."

She seemed satisfied with this answer and wandered out of the room. I reached for the phone to dial the final number, hoping for a response, but expecting none. The listing was for a Jack's Bar And Grill.

"Jacks!" Why did these guys have to scream so loud into the phone? Okay, the music and customers were pretty loud, but not loud enough to not hear a bartender over the phone.

"Is Martin Drake there?"

I listened to the bartender partially cover the mouthpiece and call out the name I'd given. There was a long pause of silence and then, "Yeah. He's here. Just a second."

I dropped the phone quickly and quietly onto its cradle. I lifted the phone again and dialed the station. Once patched through to my partner I began talking quickly.

"McCall, I found Martin Drake. He's at Jack's Bar and Grill. It's on..."

"I know where it is. Thanks. Hey, how's Chrissy doing?"

I told her that the kid was fine and explained about the discussion on going home. She said she would go over to the bar and take care of Drake.

"Okay, I'll stay right here."

Part 4

I knew my partner was more than capable of handling this. I figured that it was about time I started doing something with the kid rather than just leaving her to the videos and toys. I headed into the living room and found Chrissy curled up on the couch with a coloring book and one of McCall's highlighters. Uh oh, what was I going to have to replace?

She saw me and smiled. I smiled back at her and went over to sit down near her.

"Chrissy, I don't think you're supposed to be playing with that."

She gave me one of those cute questioning looks. I didn't know just what to say to her, but I knew I had to say something.

"It's not like a crayon or pencil. If it gets on your hands it's hard to get off." On that note I took a quick inspection of the six-year old's little hands. Too late. She had permanent marker all over her wrists, palms, and fingertips.

"I painted my nails." Chrissy announced proudly, as she held out her hands so I could see them more closely.

"I can see that." I gave her a small grin, but quickly replaced it with a serious look. "You really should have asked before you did that though."

DeeDee would have a field day with me if the kid had gotten marker on anything else in the house. I started looking around the room to see if I could see any marks.

"Did you paint anything else?" I asked. She pointed to her earlobes. "Anything else?" I asked with a very small grin.

Chrissy shook her head no. Then she looked at me with one of those cat that swallowed the canary expressions. "You mad?"

"No. Just don't take something like this without asking first, okay?" She nodded and looked back at her hands. I reached out and took the highlighter from her and started to head out of the room.

"Come on into the kitchen. I've got to get this stuff off your hands before DeeDee gets home."

It took me over twenty minutes to get the marker off her hands, and then to get the little marker splotches off her earlobes. By the time I'd finished, it was nearly 6:30pm. DeeDee was due home soon, but I wasn't too sure of exactly when she would be arriving.

I decided it was cruel to make her eat take out two days in a row. I called my mother and asked her to make some lasagna. She had no problem doing it, and told me she would drop it off in a little while.

"I've already got some made up."

"Thanks, Mom, I really appreciate this."

"You just like my cooking don't you, Ricky? Let me guess. This is for your friend DeeDee, isn't it." I had to laugh at my mother's comment. It was true I loved her cooking, but in reality I didn't get to see her as much as I'd like to. Being a cop sometimes had its disadvantages.

At 7:30 DeeDee came through the door. Chrissy was busy with another video and her coloring book with a box of crayons this time. I greeted her as soon as she entered the apartment, and gave her the once over. She looked as though she'd just been in a fight. My partner's usually neat outfit was uncharacteristicly wrinkled and I could see that she had one or two red marks maring her wrists.

"So what does the other guy look like?" I teased.

"Our friend Martin Drake is now sitting behind bars for the night. He completely denied killing his wife and daughter, but we got him for assaulting a police officer."

"Who'd you take for backup?"

"I had to take Terwiliger with me. Everyone else was jammed up. Navarro was busy on the Harris file, and O'Hern was running down leads for the Bensen case. Bernie was the only one free to help."

"Terwiliger? I hope he didn't give you too much trouble."

"Drake assaulted Terwiliger. Both the captain and I spoke to Terwiliger about this case, and the severity of how dangerous Drake is. But do you think he listened to a word either of us said? Not a chance. He goes into the bar like gangbusters, gun in hand and demands that every guy in the place get up against the wall. Drake takes this opportunity to try to take him out. Bernie's got a few bruises, but he'll live."

DeeDee looked so tired. All I wanted to do was to wrap my arms around her and help her release some of that tension she'd kept in all day at the station.

"So how's Captain DeVane taking it, our keeping the kid again?"

"He's okay with it, but first thing tomorrow we've got to bring Chrissy down to see if she recognizes her father. We've also got to sit her down in front of the captain and get her to tell him what she told us the other night. It isn't going to be easy, but she's got to. She's our only witness to a double homicide."

I thought about that for a moment. "But, McCall, that's where we're going to have to be careful. She most likely saw her father murder her mother, but she probably doesn't even know her sister is dead."

We decided to leave it at that for the moment and get some dinner. I told DeeDee that I had dinner sitting out on the table for the three of us. DeeDee went in to get Chrissy and I went to set the plates out on DeeDee's table. A few minutes later the two of them came into the kitchen.

"What's that?" Chrissy asked pointing to the pan of lasagna.

"It's lasagna," I said. "Have you ever had this before?"

That was something else that had occurred to me. I didn't know what this kid would eat except for pancakes and fast food.

"Mommy made something with the noodles in it one time." She sat down and started picking at the food on her plate.

In a few minutes Chrissy was eating just as much as the rest of us. She had consumed two helpings and was looking for a third when DeeDee got her attention with something else.

"Don't you want dessert afterward?" DeeDee's dessert, as it turned out to be, was a box of peanut butter cookies. When Chrissy had finished her dinner she was given three cookies and a large glass of milk. The kid seemed to enjoy them and remembered her manners.

The rest of the night went smoothly. We all sat and watched a cartoon together, and then DeeDee put her to bed. She went down without any trouble, but we were both convinced she would most certainly have a nightmare or something later on.

We decided that the sensible thing to do would be to get some sleep. I turned out the light and slipped into the double bed beside my partner. If only my partner really knew how much restraint I had to use to keep from reaching over and kissing her goodnight.

"Hunter," I heard DeeDee's voice say my name and turned to look at her.

"What?"

"Have you ever thought about having some little ones someday?" I tried not to be sarcastic, wasn't sure if it would work or not.

"Yeah, sometimes, why? You're not thinking about gaining custody of Chrissy are you?"

"Well, to be honest, I have thought about it. We both know that Drake isn't one to cave when it comes to his kids. For God's Sake, he killed his wife and one child and damn near beat the other one to death as well. I was just wondering what you thought on the subject."

"Well, on the subject of Drake, I think he's a lowlife son of a bitch who needs to be put some place where even the sun doesn't shine. But on the subject of you going for custody of Chrissy, I'm not sure where I'd stand. You know how difficult things can get in situations such as this."

I suddenly knew what she was trying to say in a round about way. She was trying to ask for my help, but not trying to all at once. She was too proud to ask for help. She would ask for my advice on the matter, and then do what she thought was best. I looked at her fully and completely, and in that moment I knew the time was either now or never.

"DeeDee," I began. "I think there's something I have to tell you first before we continue this discussion. I love you. I've loved you ever since the day I met you. But I never said anything because I was afraid it would ruin our partnership as well as our friendship." I tried to read a reaction, but didn't see one at first. Then the woman I'd worked with for so long a time did something that shocked me more than I thought it would.

"To be honest with you I've felt the same about you too. You were there for me after the rape, and later when I was attacked again. I don't know if you realized it at the time, but as much as I wanted to tell you what was going on, I couldn't. I was afraid you'd think there was something wrong with me. I was also very embarrassed for letting this happen a second time."

I finally decided that the time was now. I reached out and gently pulled her to me. We began kissing; slowly at first and then it grew more passionate and intense as it stretched into many long moments. I had finally told her. She finally knew the truth of my feelings for her. But most importantly, I now knew what her feelings towards me were.

Eventually things intensified even further, and soon I found myself in her arms, just as she was in mine. I cradled her in my arms and began to rub her back. I remembered that the door to the other bedroom had been shut, and was reassured when I saw that the door to this room was shut as well. More time passed, and we soon found ourselves making love to one another. I wasn't sure if this was what she really wanted at first, but she gave me a look and a nod when she caught on to where this was going. I didn't want to do anything to cause regrets after the fact. I suddenly understood all those wise-ass comments we'd been making back and forth to one another over the years.

Part 4

But all too soon the night of bliss ended with the ringing of the phone. I sat up with a jolt and looked at the clock on DeeDee's bedside table. The clock read five-thirty.

"Damn." I thought. "Why can't these people let us sleep in long enough to enjoy this?"

"My sentiments exactly, but one of us had better get the phone before it wakes Chrissy." DeeDee rolled onto her side and faced me. After a quick kiss I grabbed the phone from the table.

"Holiday Inn, how may I help you?"

"Can the jokes, Hunter." DeVane's voice cut through my little speech. "We've got a problem. Martin Drake, the one your partner brought in for assault on an officer and questioning in the murders of his wife and eldest daughter."

"Yeah, what about the guy? Don't tell me he's confessed and wants to make it easy for Chrissy."

"No, he hasn't confessed. He hasn't said anything to anybody since he was brought in last night. But what is happening is that we've got a woman down here claiming she's his sister and that she wants the kid. Like now."

"Well, that's not going to happen. We've ruled out the possibility of any surviving family members. She's probably some girl he hooked up with at some point who he convinced to get the kid for him."

"I think I know where you're going with this, Hunter, and if what you say is true about there being no surviving family members, then the kid either stays with you two until the whole thing is over or we find a suitable placement for her in the system."

This wasn't something I hadn't heard before. The only person who didn't know what was going on around her was Chrissy. Next DeVane told me to make sure we all came down there by nine to go over Chrissy's statement with him. He also said that the District Attorney would be present for this meeting. We ended our conversation and hung up. I relaxed again beside DeeDee's warmth. I could feel that it was beginning again, but slower this time, with just a little kiss here or there.

"So what's the deal?" She asked as she ran her fingers through my short hair. I gave her the rundown and waited for her response.

"So what you're saying, Hunter, is that it looks like we've got ourselves a little family for the time being. You okay with that?" DeeDee asked. "I know you wanted kids someday. So do I, it's just shes getting attached to us and we're becoming attached to her."

"I think I can manage," I said. "but I want to know if you can handle me and everything else that's going on."

She smiled and gently nudged me with her elbow in the ribs. "You know I can. If I've handled you for all these years, I think I can handle you now."

By nine that morning the three of us all trooped into the captain's office. We could see a female assistant district attorney sitting with him. Chrissy looked at the woman and shrank back between DeeDee and me.

I tried to stop her, but my partner gave me a look that said: "Don't try pushing anything." I watched as DeeDee turned around and scooped Chrissy up in her arms. She crossed over to the other side of the room, away from the captain and the assistant DA

"It's okay, Chrissy. You remember the captain don't you?" The little girl's nod was barely visible. "Good. Well this is a friend of his. He just wants you to tell him and his friend what you told Rick and me. Can you do that?"

"I don't want to. Daddy will get me."

The captain got up from his seat and approached McCall and Chrissy. "Honey, I'm not going to let that happen, and neither is Michelle." He pointed at the assistant DA "She's really nice. How would you like to meet her?"

Chrissy started to let go of DeeDee's neck. My partner bent down and gently put the small girl on her feet. She stepped back a few feet and turned towards the woman still seated near Charlie's desk.

Chrissy went running back for DeeDee, and this time it was my turn to step in.

"Give me a minute with her, guys." I said. DeeDee and I took Chrissy out of the office and into an empty interrogation room.

I picked Chrissy up and held her at eye level with me. I turned toward the one-way mirror so she couldn't see Charlie and the assistant DA entering the room behind my partner.

"Okay, Chrissy. I know you're scared to talk about what happened to your mother, but you've got to. I promise that nothing will happen to you."

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Charlie inching his way over to me. Then Chrissy spotted him.

"When Daddy's in jail, can I stay with them?" She pointed a finger at me and another at McCall. Charlie looked at us, his eyes blazing. He couldn't chew us out here and now, not in front of Chrissy. But then I saw something in his face that I had seen many times when those wheels in his head were spinning.

"We'll see. I can't make any promises, but we will try and figure something out." Charlie said to her. "You like them an awful lot don't you?"

"Yes. They're nice to me. Not like Daddy was. He hit me and Mommy and Kathy. He made us cry."

"How would you like to come back to my office, and I'll get you an icecream cone. Will you tell me and Michelle about what happened the night Rick and DeeDee came and got you?"

Chrissy seemed to ponder this offer suspiciously. I could tell she was taken in with the icecream idea, but aside from that she wasn't too sure what to make of the whole situation. I could see the indecision written into her little face. She looked first to DeeDee and then back at me.

"Okay. Can they come too?"

Charlie, figuring she meant us, said it was all right if we came along too. Then he mumbled to McCall as we all exited the room.

"You two aren't going to ask for icecream cones now are you?"

We headed back into the office and sat down. Chrissy told Charlie what she'd told us. Next came the hard part. We had to get her to identify her father.

Charlie motioned for the assistant District Attorney and myself to follow him out into the hallway. "Rather than go through what we just went through, why don't we show her pictures of the guys in the lineup. Would your office take that as an acceptable form of identification?" Charlie inquired of Michelle.

"I wish it were that simple. But unfortunately we can't accept identification through a photograph. We're going to have to put her through a lineup. I'm sorry." She looked no more unprofessional than did Charlie, but I could read compassion in her face.

Next Charlie turned his attention to me. "Hunter, do you think you and McCall can calm her down enough to get her to look through the glass and point to her father?"

"We'll do our best, but you know as well as I do Charlie, McCall and I will not be permitted to enter the viewing room with her. Its going to have to be you and the assistant District Attorney."

If only we'd known how easy that would be, compared to how everything else had gone. All Captain DeVane had to tell Chrissy was that she'd have to look through a window and point to her father. He explained that the people on the other side couldn't see her. While Charlie took Chrissy in the room to identify her father, McCall and I decided to go out to our desks and see what was on our voicemail. The only thing on our desks was a note from Kitty O'Hern. She told us that she'd gotten a break in the Bensen case, and that she'd been able to track down a witness we'd been trying to find for three weeks.

When we saw Charlie and Chrissy again, she was eating a large icecream cone, which was dripping down her chin and onto her shirt.

"She's really something," commented the assistant D.A. "I just hope we don't have to put her on the witness stand. I'm not too sure if she can handle it."

"Well, you never know." I smiled at Chrissy and continued. "She just might surprise us all."

An hour later we exited the precinct and headed for home. DeeDee held a folder with all the necessary forms petitioning the courts to make the two of us legal guardians for Chrissy indefinitely. After Chrissy told the assistant District Attorney and the captain what she had told DeeDee and myself, my partner took her out of the office so I could talk to DeVane and the woman without little ears being present. DeVane had said that the woman claiming to be Chrissy's aunt had split when DeVane told her that the girl was in protective custody pending the outcome of a murder trial. He also advised her that if she wanted the kid now he would have to call child wellfare and that they would be checking into her background. In a lot of ways I was glad that we got to keep her for a while longer. It gave me the sense that I had a family for a little while, and it gave Chrissy the stability and security she needed right now.

Part 5

It had been almost a month since the night we first met Chrissy. We had been staying in DeeDee's apartment, Chrissy in the spare bedroom and DeeDee and myself in the other room. We hadn't been getting too carried away with our newfound relationship, but we had been giving it a chance to develop into something. I was seriously considering asking DeeDee if she wanted to make the move permanent, but I wanted to find out what was going to happen with Chrissy first. It wasn't as if we had to have Chrissy in order to keep this relationship going. But it would be nice if we could keep her and make the guardianship permanent. And, I wanted to take things very slowly with DeeDee.

We had been taking turns going into the station to do some of the work on other cases, but we had also invested in a hightech computer system so one of us could do the searches at home too. We checked into different schools around the area for Chrissy and finally made a decision to enroll her in a private school near the apartment. We had taken her shopping for school supplies and a few more toys and things three days before the start of school. Then the big day arrived. It was a warm september morning when DeeDee and I walked into the main office of the school. We met the principal and Chrissy's teacher there, who reassured us that Chrissy would be all right there.

"Don't worry about a thing, Mr. Hunter. Chrissy will be just fine. Believe me you aren't the first parents who were a nervous wreck when their little one went off to school for the first time." Chrissy's principal agreed to keep an eye on her for the first few weeks, at least until we were certain that she would adjust well.

"I understand how it is. She is only allowed to leave with either you or your wife. Anyone else tries to pick her up from here, we'll call the police."

DeeDee gave the woman the direct number into Captain DeVane's office. "This is the number for Captain Charles DeVane who is our boss. If neither of us is able to pick her up call him and he will do it."

I didn't know whether DeeDee had talked to the captain about that, but I was sure he would go for it. He seemed to like Chrissy so I was pretty certain it would be okay. After giving Chrissy a quick hug and telling her to be a good girl, DeeDee and I left the school.

We headed off for the station and our captain's office. "Time to tell him what we told the principal," I thought as I pulled into the parking lot in front of the station. I took a look at DeeDee and realized that she hadn't said a word to me since we left Chrissy at the school.

"Hey. What's up?"

"Oh nothing. I was just thinking about what my first day at school was like for me. I hope Chrissy has fun there."

"I'm sure she's going to have a great time there."

After giving the captain a brief summary of what had been mentioned to Chrissy's principal, DeVane smiled. "Any time you need a hand just give me a shout. By the way I've got something for you two. It's a summons for the two of you to appear in front of the judge this morning at ten. I think it's about your petition to adopt her. Child wellfare isn't going to be a problem. Her father is in jail awaiting a trial, and there are no other living family members."

DeeDee looked at the captain thoughtfully and then asked, "Captain, what if they decide that we can't keep her? Will we have to give her up right away or do we get a chance to appeal?"

I spoke up. "McCall, if we don't get her this morning then I'm going to every family court judge until I get the okay for us to keep her. It takes months sometimes for child protective services to find suitable foster homes for kids. Besides, you've got to think positively about this."

We left the captain's office and headed out to our desks. I spotted a woman heading in our direction and motioned for my partner to look in the woman's direction. She was a medium-sized woman with greying hair, brown eyes, and a dress made out of some form of material I was sure had gone out of style somewhere around 1975.

"Are you Sergeant Rick Hunter?" I nodded and motioned for her to come over to our desks.

"Sergeant Hunter, my name is Grace Flanders. I used to be a neighbor of the Drake family."

"Hello, Ms. Flanders. This is my partner, Sgt. McCall. How may we help you?"

"Well, I think I might have some information for you." I took out my notebook and began writing down the woman's name and address. She continued speaking.

"The night of the murder, I heard Mr. Drake tell Mrs. Drake that he was going to make sure she never left him. She tried once or twice before, but he found out and beat her up pretty badly. I used to go over when he wasn't there and help her with the girls. I'm too old to take care of the youngest, otherwise I would have filed a petition long before now. But I've seen her with you two since then and I figure you and your partner are a better choice than an old lady with a bad hip. But you see, Sergeants, I'm here today to help you out. I have photographs of all three of them. I have photos of Mrs. Drake's face with two black eyes, hand marks and bruizes, of her oldest girl Kathy with a broken arm and some bumps and bruizes, and of the little one with a whole bunch of bruises and other marks on her body from her father."

She withdrew an envelope from her handbag and passed it to me. I opened the envelope and carefully extracted the assortment of photographs. What my partner and I saw nearly made us violently ill. The pictures were all that Grace Flanders had said they were, but just the sight of what this monster had done was enough to cause even the coldest heart shatter into a million pieces.

"Mrs. Flanders," I questioned, "why is it that you didn't come to speak with us before now?"

She looked down at the floor and then back at my partner and me. "Sergeant, I know I should've reported what I know sooner. But I've been under an awful lot of pressure from a few people in my neighbrhood not to get involved. It's not that the people aren't caring or sympathetic, they're just afraid of retaliation."

DeeDee asked Mrs. Flanders if she would sign a statement to that effect, to which she readily agreed. I typed up everything she said and handed it over to her to read before she signed it. After she signed the statement, I looked at the clock.

"McCall, we've got to be in court in fifteen minutes." We thanked Mrs. Flanders for coming down and talking to us and then left the building.

One of the family court judges was waiting for us when we arrived at the courthouse. He explained that in order for this petition to be accepted, a social worker would have to come and investigate the conditions of DeeDee's apartment.

"Sergeant Hunter, as I understand it you still keep your apartment here in the city. Yet you've been staying with your partner at her residence. Why is this?"

"I've kept the apartment for several reasons. First of all we weren't sure if we would ever get this far into the adoption proceedure, and second, I have a lot of things still in the apartment that I haven't put into storage or sold yet."

"Well, I like what I've seen so far. Now what you have to do is to bring the child in so I can talk to her and ask her a few questions. I'm going to sign this petition and get in touch with child protective services. You should be hearing something from them in a few days either at your home or at the station. Now I'm sure you heard this from your captain already, but I'm going to stress this to you loud and clear. If there is a relationship between you two, either cool your relationship, or one of you has to transfer. You know what will happen if IA gets a hold on something like this."

"I think this calls for a celebration." DeeDee commented as we exited the courthouse. "What do you say we all go out for dinner tonight?"

"I think that's a great idea. I also think it would be a good idea to fill Chrissy in on our plans to gain custody of her."

Part 6

Chrissy seemed to understand the concept of what we were saying to her. At first I thought she wouldn't get it right away, but then once she found that she could ask questions things went easier. DeeDee and I explained the situation with the foster home. In the end, Chrissy determined that she wouldn't have to leave DeeDee's apartment and that she was staying right where she wanted to be.

We took Chrissy to see the judge the next morning, and he spoke with her. She seemed to understand his questions, and answered each one without being prompted. Once or twice he had to explain a question to her, but in the end she understood everything.

It wasn't until a week later that we got the call from the department of social services. Cindy Dawson, the case worker assigned to oversee this case, came knocking at the front door on a Friday evening. DeeDee and I were in the kitchen cleaning up the dinner dishes, and Chrissy was in the living room watching a cartoon. I answered the door, dish rag in hand. At first glance, she looked more like a teenager. She was nearly five-feet-five inches tall, with brown eyes, wavy dark brown hair, and little dimples in her cheeks when she smiled. I looked a little skeptical, but she smiled warmly and spoke up.

"My name is Cindy Dawson, and I'm with Social Services. I'm looking for Detective Sgts. Richard Hunter and DeeDee McCall."

I introduced myself and explained that my partner and the child were here at this time. She looked at me with the dish towel in my hand and then tried to peer around me into the area behind the door. It wasn't easy for her since she was at least a foot shorter than myself.

"Please, come in. DeeDee's in the kitchen and Chrissy is in the living room watching some television." I stepped aside and allowed her to pass me and enter. She headed straight for the kitchen and DeeDee. After introductions were made, she explained the reason for her visit.

"As I'm sure you're well aware," she began, "it's standard proceedure for social workers to visit the homes of those requesting permission for long-term custody of a minor. We're also obligated to oversee not only the living conditions in which the child is currently in, but also the child's history: medical, family, you name it."

After about ten minutes of talking to us, she asked to see Chrissy. I pointed in the direction of the living room, and DeeDee proceeded to follow Ms. Dawson in.

"Sgt. McCall, I need to speak with her alone for a few minutes. I'll call you when you can come in."

I sat down at the kitchen table beside DeeDee and let out a long sigh. I could see a look of worry creeping into her face, but damned if she was going to let that worry show. "Don't worry." I took her hand and squeezed it tightly. "I'm sure there won't be any reason for Ms. Dawson to remove Chrissy from our custody. I wouldn't be surprised if she pushes the paperwork through a little faster, since we're both cops."

DeeDee looked a little nervous, at least to me. I knew that deep down in her heart she was praying this wouldn't turn out like the last time she had tried to gain custody of a child. The mother had been shot, and listed as a Jane Doe. Once it had been determined that Jane Doe was pregnant, DeeDee had fought tooth and nail to keep her on life support. DeeDee had volunteered to take custody of the baby once it was born, until either the mother regained consciousness, or a next of kin could be found. Finally, the baby was delivered. I'd found my partner at the window of the nursery, just gazing at how beautiful the baby was. I had to tell her that a next of kin had been located. I remember it had been difficult on her, but she put on a brave face and dealt with it.

She looked at me, and for a moment I thought she would start crying.

"It's not that I think we're going to lose her now, but what if somewhere along the line, they do find a next of kin for Chrissy?"

"We'll fight it. Seeing as how we have nothing on either her maternal or paternal grandparents, I don't see how there could be a problem. I think the only thing we need to really keep in mind now, is whether or not I should move in altogether or whether or not I should keep going back to my apartment on occasion for certain things."

Our conversation was interrupted when a little voice came from the living room. "Rick, DeeDee, you can come in. Ms. Dawson says it's okay now."

We both entered the livingroom and stood just beyond the doorway. We could see Chrissy sitting on the couch with Cindy sitting beside her. Chrissy had a coloring book on her lap and she was pointing to a page. Looking at the picture upside-down, I saw what I thought to be a family standing by a house. The family members were all stick figures, of course, and the house itself was a box with a peaked top.

"Chrissy drew a picture of the family she wants to stay with. She also drew a picture of her other family, the one she says she doesn't have anymore." Cindy Dawson held up another piece of paper. On it DeeDee and I could see four figures: two larger ones and two shorter ones. One of the larger ones was trying to hit the other figures in the picture. Cindy continued speaking as she removed the picture Chrissy held on her lap. "This one is of the family she wants to be with." We saw three stick figures standing by the stick house. The larger figures had circles on their chests and the smaller one held a stick doll in one hand and a book in the other.

"I asked her if it was okay if I stay here and she said it was. I told her about school and how you don't hit me or yell at each other. And I told her about Daddy and what he did to me and Mommy and Kathy."

Cindy stood up from the couch. "I need to go and talk with Rick and DeeDee for a minute, but when I'm done I'll come and say good-bye to you." She ruffled Chrissy's hair a little, and then followed us out of the room.

Once in the kitchen she began speaking. "I don't see any reason she should be removed from your home and placed in another. But I do feel, both professionally and personally, that this little girl will need counciling and some therapy to help her deal with the trauma she suffered for the past six years. She's very honest about what has happened to her. She doesn't hesitate to answer questions, and that's a good thing. I'm going to recommend that you be made her legal guardians indefinitely, and I'm also going to be getting you in touch with a list of councilors and therapists who deal specifically in this particular field. I also think you make a great family together, and if you don't mind my saying so, if you are able to adopt her, you might want to think about which name you'll adopt her under. I noticed you aren't exactly married or anything, but I'm sure that's something you two will have to figure out on your own. But I do have a question for the both of you. Have either of you discussed her sister's death with her?"

"No. Chrissy brings up the events of the night her mother was murdered, but she hasn't asked about her sister yet. As far as we can tell, Chrissy has no idea her sister is dead." I looked between the two women in the room.

"Well, either that or she knows in her subconscious, but isn't able to accept the fact just yet. Well, like I said before," the social worker continued. "I'm going to recommend that you both be named as her legal guardians. Congratulations, Sgts."

DeeDee was the first to speak. "Thank you very much Ms. Dawson. This means the world to us. I wish you could have seen the way she took to Hunter the first day he was with her. It was as if he was the perfect father figure."

"Okay okay enough. You make a better mother than I would. You know more about the scraped knees and bad dreams than I do." I had to stop her. I could almost see myself in an apron baking cupcakes and DeeDee outside mowing the lawn and repairing something like the fuel pump of an automobile. Cindy laughed. She said she would be in touch and soon after, she left.

Part 7

One week after Cindy Dawson visited the house, Charlie called us into his office. when he motioned for the door to be closed, we knew that whatever the reason for this visit, it had to be serious. We tried reading his facial expression, but it didn't work.

"Hunter, McCall," he began. "I've got something to say to the both of you, and it needs to be said now. I got a call from the District Attorney's office this morning, and also one from Deputy Chief Wyler. We're going to have to put Chrissy on the stand to testify against her father."

"But why? This kid is scared to death of her father Charlie. There's no way she'll be able to stand there in a courtroom and testify to what she saw her father do to her mother, not if her father's right in the room with her."

DeeDee interjected. "She's scared of him. "It took us weeks to get her to sleep without having at least one or two nightmares a night. Just imagine what this will do to her."

I looked at my partner and friend, and then I looked at our captain. Of course he knew about the nightmares. He hadn't said anything to either DeeDee or myself when either of us were in late the next morning after a particularly bad night.

"What if Chrissy were to testify on video tape? I know they only allow it for sexual abuse cases, but this is a six-year old child we're talking about. She suffered abuse at the hands of her father for six years before anything could've been done about it."

Charlie looked at the two of us for a moment and then said, "Okay. Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to get on the horn to the District Attorney's office and to Deputy Chief Wyler, and I'm going to throw them both the idea of testifying via video tape. I hope they'll go for it."

No sooner did we leave the captain's office, than the phone on my desk rang. I went to retrieve it and signaled for my partner to stay near by.

"Homicide, Hunter."

"Detective Hunter this is the principal over at the elementary school. We have a slight problem here with Chrissy Drake."

"What's wrong?" I could see my partner's features tighten with increasing worry.

"Well, we have a woman here in the office claiming to be Chrissy's aunt. She approached the child on the playground at recess and tried to convince her to go with her. Fortunately Chrissy's teacher was nearby and saw the whole thing."

It took us five minutes to reach the school. I don't think we stopped for any lights, and I'm almost certain my partner hit the siren and lights. When we arrived at the school we made a mad dash for the principal's office. Upon entering we saw Chrissy, her teacher, the school's principal, a security officer, and a strange woman. DeeDee made her way over to Chrissy and took her hand.

"Hey, Chrissy, you okay?"

"Don't let her take me away. Please, DeeDee, please don't let her take me."

My partner held onto Chrissy's hand and turned her attention toward the teacher. "I'm taking her home for the rest of the day. She will be needing any missed work."

I watched as she led Chrissy away and then turned angry eyes on the stranger. She wasn't too incredibly attractive, but she did have a prettiness about her. Her hair was pulled back into a long braid behind her back, and she wore one of those dresses which was probably sold at the salvation army for twenty-five dollars. I could tell something wasn't right with her, but I wasn't going to be able to figure anything out until I got this conversation rolling.

"Okay. I want some answers and I want them now. Just who are you, and why are you just now laying any sort of claim on this little girl?"

"My name is Sharon Lennix. My brother's name is Martin Drake, and I'm here to collect my niece, Chrissy Drake. When I went up to her on the playground I was just going to talk to her and tell her who I was. I fully intended to take her to the principal's office and explain the situation."

"Bull! Chrissy Drake has no living family. Her father has no syblings. That's because her father was abandoned after his mother was murdered. You're no relation of Connie Drake either. She had no family at all. So Ms. Lennix, I'm only going to ask you just this once. How much did Drake pay you to come in and take the kid?" I knew I'd hit a nerve, because she got defensive awfully quick. I also noticed how she kept one hand on her jacket pocket. I made my way toward her and proceeded to check her pocket. In it I found a very fat envelope. "What's this? It looks like it's payoff money. My guess is you're the same woman who showed up at the precinct a few weeks ago claiming to be the girl's aunt. And I know just how to prove it."

I reached for my cellphone. After dialing my captain and requesting he make an appearance at the school, I put it back in my pocket. Charlie entered in less than ten minutes.

When he entered the office he looked at me and then Sharon Lennix.

"Hunter, where's your partner and the kid?"

"McCall took her home for the rest of the day. Captain we have a woman here who claims she's Chrissy's aunt. She says her name is Sharon Lenix, and that she's Martin Drake's sister. I found this in her left-hand jacket pocket."

"Yeah, I've seen this woman before. She showed up at the precinct early one morning. In fact it was the morning Chrissy came in and gave her statement. Let's book her on attempted kidnapping and see what comes out of it. We're also going to run her prints and find out what's in this envelope."

I went to put the cuffs on her and Charlie stopped me. "I'll book her and do the leg work for the rest of the afternoon. I'll drop by later on and see how the kid is. In the meantime, you go home and help your partner with that little girl."

"Thanks, Captain."

Upon entering the apartment I noticed it was too quiet. I went into the bedroom DeeDee and I shared and saw DeeDee and Chrissy curled up on the bed. It looked as though both of them were out cold, but when I entered and made my way toward the bed DeeDee slowly sat up. She slipped off the bed, and covered Chrissy with a quilt. We headed out into the livingroom and sat on the couch.

"It took me forever to get her calmed down. She was terrified. So what's up? How come you're here?"

"Charlie identified our mysterious woman from a few weeks ago. She's being booked on an attempted kidnapping charge. We also found a very thick envelope in the woman's left jacket pocket."

I took DeeDee's hand in mine and just held it. I could easily forget I was a cop and seek revenge against Martin Drake. But my feelings for my partner and this little girl who had brought us together outweighed my anger and hatred for this man who had beaten his wife and children for years. At that moment all I wanted to do was take DeeDee in my arms and just hold her and keep Chrissy from having to testify and keep her safe from people like Sharon Lennix.

"I think we both need this time to ourselves, just the three of us. Christmas break is coming up soon. What would you say we plan a little vacation for the three of us and we go somewhere special?" I could see a glint of something hopeful in DeeDee's eyes, but wasn't sure how to answer her. I just sat there with her beside me, and our new daughter sleeping in the next room.

"DeeDee, I think it's a wonderful idea, but there is one other thing we need to consider. How are we going to get a full week or two weeks off from work? Besides that fact we've got the Drake trial to worry about. I don't know if now is the right time to start making vacation plans."

"Rick, you weren't here. You didn't see the fear in that child's face when I took her out of the school. She's deathly afraid of someone taking her away from her new family. And there is something else. I just want her to know she's in a safe place and that we're not about to let anything happen to her."

I looked at her. One of the hardest things I had ever done was tell her exactly how I felt about her. It wasn't as easy as I'd orriginally thought. I had only experienced something slightly similar to it when I almost proposed to Terry Barns, an old flame. It wasn't something I just went and did naturally like doing the laundry, or arresting a particularly hostile suspect.

"How does this sound? We wait and see what Charlie digs up on this Sharon Lennix. Then we find out if we have to bring Chrissy into court to testify against her father. After that we can make all the vacation plans we want to and I don't think Charlie will have a problem with it in the slightest. He really has become quite attached to Chrissy. You should've seen him the first day we had her."

"I remember. You left her with him for a few minutes when you came out to talk to me about the case."

DeeDee wrapped one arm around my shoulders and leaned her head against my chest. She looked so peaceful, but I couldn't resist the urge to lean down and kiss her. The kiss was soft and tender. I had no second thoughts or conflicting emotions about what was happening between us. I knew how we felt for one another, and I also knew how hurt DeeDee had been over the years I'd known her. Her husband's death had been hell on her, and then there was the rape. That had brought her to a point in her life at which she had seriously considered quitting her job on the force.

We were suddenly pulled from our own world by the sound of knocking on the front door. I stretched and went to answer it.

Charlie greeted me with a half smile. "Well, what do we have here?" Charlie teased. "And I thought partners weren't supposed to get that close."

"If only you knew the truth." I thought as I stepped aside to allow him entrance. "So what's on your mind this glorious afternoon Charlie?"

"I've got some information for you and McCall on Sharon Lennix. Her real name is Karla Demsy. She's a high priced working girl out of the Beverly Hills Hotel. She's also wanted in San Diego in connection with several scams. We figure Drake headed out to Beverly Hills and hooked up with her somewhere along the line. But where he got the means to pay her off I have no idea."

As he spoke he reached into his briefcase and pulled out a thick folder containing all the pertinent information on Karla Demsy, aka Sharon Lenix, aka Jackie Tate, aka Loran Thomas, and about half a dozen other names. DeeDee came in and added her two cents worth into the conversation.

"You know what I think, I don't think it was Drake who paid Demsy to take the girl. You said she's a call girl, so isn't it fair to assume she could have made the money turning tricks? Drake isn't exactly the wealthiest man in his neighborhood you know. I mean take a look at his attorney. Michael Snowe is one of the city's sleeziest criminal attorneys. He'd take anyone's case if he thought he could win, and even some he knew he would eventually lose."

Both Charlie and I had to admit that she was right. We had been going up against Michael Snowe for years, and we had a pretty good track record when it came time to beat him at his own game. But there were cases that we had lost due to slight technicalities. Charlie looked at the two of us. I peered at my partner out of the corner of one eye. Her hair was almost neatly pulled back from her face, except there was one thing. It looked as though it had been pulled back rather hastily. I hoped he wouldn't take notice of it, but then again Charles DeVane was a great cop and a damn good captain. If anything was out of place, the guy picked up on it.

He pointed toward the two bedrooms. "So where's that beautiful little angel of yours hiding?"

"Sound asleep. It took me almost an hour to calm her down after we left the school." DeeDee relaxed a little. "She was afraid of someone else who might try to take her away. But I'm enjoying being a mother figure. And I'm sure he's enjoying being a father figure." She jabbed a finger at me and smirked.

"Yeah, well, I'd think very long and hard about what you want out of this, you two. I'm giving you this advice as a friend, not as your captain. What I will say is this. If you're both serious about adopting her, you might want to make plans for new partners. The department frowns heavily on partners becoming romantically involved with one another. If Caine ever caught wind of something like that, you'd both be investigated and probably transfered as well as split up. And as far as I'm concerned, I don't want to lose the two best detectives in my department."

McCall and I nodded our understanding. I could almost swear I saw a glint of something resembling a grin on the captain's face. He knew how much we both cared about one another as partners, and maybe he had his suspicions about the two of us. If he did though, he never voiced them.

"So what do you want to do about this whole Lennix Drake thing? She's been booked on attempted kidnapping charges, and she'll likely be transfered to San Diego for the other charges. But do you think we can tie her to Drake in any way the DA would find acceptable?" DeeDee looked at Charlie and then at the folder I held.

"When we searched her at the station, we found over one thousand dollars in cash on her. We also found an unsigned note giving her your address, the Drake residence, and a list of elementary schools in the Los Angeles area. If we can get a writing sample from Drake, and if it matches, we can charge her with being an accessory to murder after the fact. Two counts should just about do it."

"Yes, but Charlie there's also that little thing of actually obtaining the writing sample from Drake. He knows what you and McCall look like. Let me in there with him for five minutes and you'll get your writing sample." Charlie gave me a look that said: "What the hell do you think I am, suicidal or what?"

"Hunter if I let you in there you've got to promise me that you won't lay one hand on him. We don't want this case getting thrown out on any technicalities, and Michael Snowe would use it to create a strong case. He might even say the writing sample was forced. If he doesn't volunteer it, we get a court order."

"I promise I won't lay a hand on the guy. Besides that, I haven't had my rabies vaccination yet this year."

A moment later the bedroom door opened and Chrissy came out. She looked like she'd just woken up, hair all in tangles, eyes half opened, and the slowness of her walk gave even more weight to the theory. She looked at the three of us and then went over to DeeDee.

"Hey. Look who's awake." DeeDee lifted Chrissy up onto her shoulder. Chrissy looked at Charlie and then at me.

"Is she going to come back? Is she going to try and take me away again? I don't want to go away."

She pointed to me and motioned for DeeDee to put her down. My partner complied and she came bounding over to me. She gave no sign of wanting to be picked up, but instead she nuzzled her head into my ribs.

"No honey she's not going to come and take you away. She's in jail like your father is. DeeDee and I won't let anything happen to you."

"Chrissy I promise nothing's going to happen to you, sweet heart."

Charlie seemed like he was good with kids. I made a mental note of asking him someday if he had ever had any experience with working with kids. Chrissy looked at me and pointed up. I bent down and picked her up off the floor. She seemed so light and tiny in my arms, that I had to keep looking at her to make sure she was still there. Charlie stood there looking at the scene before him. I don't think he ever expected to see me holding a child in my arms, or that he expected this little girl to come running to a man when she had been abused and beaten by her own father for so many years. In fact, I'd have thought she would run to McCall before ever trusting me. She turned her head and stared at Charlie standing there in his uniform.

He turned and made as if to leave, when Chrissy pointed to his belt. "He's not wearing the loud thing!"

Charlie laughed and turned to face her. "That's right. I promise you I won't wear it around you if you're scared of it. But I want you to promise me that you're going to come back in and draw me another picture sometime real soon." Chrissy smiled, nodded, and watched as Charlie left the apartment.

The next day It was decided that I would go in to see Martin Drake and get that writing sample. I even gave Charlie the opportunity to sit in the room and watch to make sure I did everything by the book. He refused, saying he would do his watching through the one-way mirror in the interigation room.

I entered the room and sat down across from Drake. His hands were still in handcuffs, but I wasn't too worried. If he got out of line all I had to do was knock him cold and put him back in his cell. Drake gave me his best intimidation look, which had no affect on me at all. I withdrew a pen and slip of paper and set them in front of Drake.

"I need a writing sample from you, Mr. Drake."

"You ain't gonna get no writing sample from me. You're not charging me with writing to my wife and daughter, just their murder. By the way, where is my other kid Chrissy? My sister pick her up yet?"

"You will be giving me that sample one way or the other. We can do it the easy way or the hard way, it's your choice. Oh, and as for your little girl Chrissy, she's not with your sister because you don't have a sister. You just had some con artist show up and try to kidnap your daughter. And just in case you didn't know, Karla Demsy is being charged with attempted kidnapping charges as we speak."

"I don't know no Karla Demsy or who ever the hell she is. My sister's name is Sharon Lennix. She's married and lives in Beverly Hills."

This guy was starting to annoy me. Did he really consider cops to be that stupid, or was he really that dense to believe his own fabrications?

I glared at him and waited for him to pick up the pen. "I want that writing sample, Drake. Start writing or I'll get a court order to make you give me a writing sample."

He lifted the pen and wrote something. I took the paper and read it quickly.

"You wanted a writing sample and now you've got one. So just leave me alone."

I rose from my chair and approached him. I'd promised Charlie I wouldn't lay a hand on this guy, but he was really starting to piss me off.

"Let me tell you something, Drake. I would much rather you write out a confession of how you murdered your own wife and daughter and how you convinced Karla Demsy, also known as Sharon Lennix, to come down here and kidnap your daughter. But somehow I don't think that's going to happen, so here's what I want you to write. I want you to write down a full sentence using the name of a school here in Los Angeles, your daughter Chrissy's name, and the word please. Now do you think you can manage that? Or do I have to go get a court order? Now if I have to do that I'm not going to be in a good mood when I come back here."

"Go to hell, Pig." Drake grinned at the piece of paper in my hand. I glared at him and finally turned my back to him.

"Oh and just one more thing, Drake, you're not my type. However, I will recomend you see someone about that problem of yours."

I picked up the pen and signaled for someone to come and collect Mr. Drake and return him to his cell. Charlie met me at my desk.

"You did good in there. You didn't touch the guy even though I could see you really wanted to. By the way, what did he write on that piece of paper?"

I handed Charlie the slip of paper and watched him read it. "Let me guess." Charlie began. "Drake's not your first choice is he?"

"No he isn't." I answered and walked away.

Part 8

Another two weeks passed before we heard anything about the Drake case. Charlie telephoned us late one evening shortly after we had put Chrissy to bed. We hoped for the best, but we expected the worst. Charlie explained that the District Attorney had convinced the judge to allow Chrissy to testify on video tape. We were thrilled about that response. We didn't want her to testify period, but it was something she had to do. If we were going to put her father away, then the DA's office needed her testimony not in the form of a statement.

The next day we booked off work and kept Chrissy home from school. We were going to spend the whole day with her, and eventually try to make her understand the whole testifying thing. It wasn't going to be easy on any of us, but DeeDee and I had decided to take Chrissy away on a vacation after this whole mess was solved.

We started the day out by making a big breakfast. As usual, DeeDee made all the wrong foods, but Chrissy seemed to like them. I ate a healthy breakfast, complete with a banana, fruit juice, and a bowl of Grape Nuts cereal. After the breakfast dishes had been cleared, I went into DeeDee's bedroom and retrieved a small package. I headed into the livingroom where I found Chrissy cuddled in McCall's lap in an overstuffed armchair.

"Hey, honey, I've got something for you." I said handing her the package. She slowly opened the paper and pulled out a little book.

"What's this?"

"It's a diary. You write in it when you don't want anyone else to know things: like when you're happy about something, or if you're sad about something."

"You mean like Mommy and Kathy? I can write about them in here?" I nodded. Then DeeDee explained that she kept a diary too when she was about Chrissy's age.

After that we began to explain to her about what would be happening in the next few months. Between the two of us, we told her that her father would be put on trial for the murder of both her mother and sister. Now came the hard part.

"Chrissy," I began, "what we need now is your help. We need you to come into the captain's office and answer some questions. We need you to tell some people what happened, and they're going to have a video camera on while you're talking."

"I already told you what happened. Daddy hurt Mommy till she couldn't get up. He hurt her."

Now she began to cry uncontrolably. DeeDee wrapped her arms around the child's sobbing form and just sat there holding her. She gently began stroking Chrissy's golden colored hair until she was calm again.

"It's all right. It's all going to be okay. You remember last time right? Well this time is going to be just like that, and just like last time we'll be there with you." DeeDee was making a very good attempt to get Chrissy to calm down.

"That's right, honey. We'll be there and so will Charlie. None of us will let anything bad happen to you. We promised you. Do you remember that promise?" Chrissy nodded her little head slowly.

Once we arrived at the station, Charlie met us at the door to his office. He saw how upset Chrissy looked and reached out a hand to her. She took his hand tentatively and he led her into the office. He reached onto his desk and gave her a large pad of paper and a box of brightly colored crayons.

"I've been waiting for you to come back and draw me a new picture. I hung your other one right over here." He pointed to the wall beside his desk. Chrissy's earlier picture hung proudly on it by a piece of tape. With in a few minutes, Chrissy was busily drawing away.

"Chrissy," DeeDee said. "Charlie needs to talk to Rick and me. We're going to be just outside the door. Wait right here, and don't go anywhere. If you need us come to the door and knock."

Once outside the office, we explained the situation to Charlie. "I don't think it'll be a problem. I have a video camera here in the building and I'm pretty sure I can get the prosecuting and defense lawyers down here in a minute."

It only took about twenty minutes to get the video camera and the lawyers into one room. Among those assembled was a trial court judge. In fact, she was the same judge who we would later meet at the trial. She sat to the right of DeeDee. Charlie sat between Michael Snowe and myself. Michelle Peterson sat on Michael Snowe's other side. Michael Snowe took one look at Chrissy and frowned. Assistant District Attorney Michelle Peterson sat across from Chrissy, notebook and pen both in hand. McCall and I took the chair on either side of her and waited. Michelle signaled for the camera to be turned on and looked straight at the camera's lens.

"October sixteenth, 1988, Assistant District Attorney Michelle Peterson in case number 25903, State of California Vs. Martin Drake." She positioned herself so she could look at Chrissy and the camera both at the same time during questioning. She flipped through the pages in her notebook and began asking her questions.

"Chrissy, who are you staying with?"

"Rick and DeeDee. They don't yell or fight at all."

"Do you like it there with Rick and DeeDee?"

"Yes. They tell me stories and play with me and don't do anything to make me cry. DeeDee cooks good and sometimes we get pizza. I don't like the other food we get sometimes, but Rick says that vegetables will make me big."

"When did you go to stay with Rick and DeeDee?

"After Mommy died. They came to the house with the man who yells."

I smiled and laughed to myself. We all knew she was talking about Terwilligger, but nobody said anything. Michelle continued.

"Why did the man yell?"

"He doesn't like Rick and DeeDee very much. He's a mean person. I don't like people who yell. Daddy did that a lot."

"Chrissy, can you tell me what happened to you the night Rick and DeeDee found you?" Chrissy's face tightened but she didn't cry.

"My mommy and daddy were fighting. Daddy was yelling at Mommy and he hit her hard."

"How hard did he hit your mommy?"

"Really hard. She fel and didn't get up. She was crying. I was scared for Mommy 'cause Daddy hurts Mommy a lot." Everyone watched intently as Michelle jotted down things in her notebook, and as Michael Snowe did the same in his.

"How did you see all of this? Where were you when your dad pushed your mom down?"

"I was in the kitchen with Mommy and Daddy. I was helping Mommy with dinner when Daddy came in screaming and yelling at Mommy and Kathy."

"How old is Kathy?"

"She's real big, bigger than me. She yelled back at Daddy too and he got really mad."

"Did your dad ever hurt you or your mother and your sister before the night Rick and DeeDee found you?"

"Lots of times. He broke Kathy's arm once and pushed Mommy into the table once too. He hurt her face an awful lot. Sometimes she had booboos all over her face and arms. He hit me too. He even made my eye hurt one time."

"Chrissy, what happened after your dad knocked your mother down and made her cry? Did he come after you?"

"No. He kept hitting her and hitting her over and over again. I saw her bleeding from her face and I heard something else breaking."

"What broke, Chrissy?"

"He had dishes in his hands and then he was breaking the chairs. Kathy came out and tried to stop him but he kept on breaking things. Kathy tried to push me out of the room but Daddy grabbed her before she could."

"What happened next?"

"Daddy hit Kathy like he hit Mommy. He wouldn't stop, he just kept hurting them. Kathy ran into her room when he let go of her and shut the door. Then Daddy came after me. He grabbed me and pushed me over hard. I fell on something sharp and got a booboo from it. He slapped me and told me that I was just like Mommy. He said that it was our falt he couldn't get a better job and that he hit us."

"What happened after he hit you?"

"He picked me up and threw me onto a chair. Then I heard him kick Kathy's door. He was screaming at her. He called her a really bad word. He called her a lot of really bad words."

"I know you're not supposed to say those words Chrissy, but I need to know what your daddy called Kathy."

Chrissy froze. I thought for a minute it would pass, but she looked at everyone in the room.

"I don't know. I don't say bad words. My mommy always said that I was a good girl if I didn't say any bad words. Won't Mommy be mad at me?"

Michelle looked as if she wanted to reach out and hug Chrissy. Instead she reached out and took her hand and squeezed gently. "I don't think your mom would be mad. I think she would be proud of her brave little girl."

"Okay then. Daddy called Kathy a bitch, a slut, a tramp, and another wor.d But I can't remember it though."

"What happened when he was done yelling at Kathy and calling her names?"

"He came out of her room and went into the living room. He always had a big loud thing. I think mommy said it was a gun. She always said I wasn't supposed to go near it. She said it would hurt me very badly."

"What happened after that?"

"He went back into Kathy's room. Kathy screamed really loud and then there was a big bang. He came in the kitchen and waved it at me."

"Did he say anything to you?"

"He said if I said anything about it he would get me like Mommy and Kathy. Where's Kathy? I want to see Kathy. DeeDee, where's Kathy staying? She with another police officer?"

McCall looked first at the camera, then from Michelle to Chrissy. Michelle nodded and motioned for DeeDee to get Chrissy's attention. "When you heard that big bang that meant your dad did something really bad. You know how he hurt your mother right?"

Chrissy nodded. "He made Mommy die. I hate him."

DeeDee continued. "Well, honey, your dad did the same thing to Kathy. Kathy isn't with another police officer, she's in heaven with your mom. Do you understand what I'm saying to you, Chrissy?"

The little girl nodded, and then with tearfilled eyes she asked, "Is he gonna get me too? Is he gonna hurt me like he did Kathy and Mommy?"

"No, sweety, he's not going to get you or anyone else ever again."

Michelle looked back to Chrissy. "I'm done asking my questions. Now Michael needs to ask you some questions. Is that okay?"

Chrissy looked like she was holding up pretty well. I figured everyone else thought the same thing, but I didn't know how Michael Snowe was going to deal with this little girl. He had a reputation for chewing up grown men and women. How was he going to counter the prosecuting attorney's questions? He seemed to read our thoughts and began.

"Chrissy, you said before that your dad hit you and your mother and sister an awful lot, right?"

"Yes."

"Do you know the difference between the truth and a lie Chrissy?" She nodded and he continued. "Tell me what it means when someone tells the truth."

"When you tell the truth you tell something that's real. And when you tell a lie you say something that didn't happen like Peter. He said there was a wolf by his sheep and people thought it was true, but he said it too many times. Then when it really did happen nobody wanted to listen."

Michael Snowe looked like he was about to crack a smile right there in front of everyone! In all my years as a cop, and after the numerous times I've dealt with the man, I had never once seen him with a look of pure contentment.

"Who told you the story of Peter and the wolf, Chrissy?"

"Mommy. She said that Peter made a mistake, and that I was a good girl, and that I shouldn't say things that aren't true."

Snowe smiled broadly, surprising not only myself but even DeVane. "Okay. So if I told you Rick and DeeDee weren't police officers would that be true or would it be a lie?"

Chrissy gave him a look that said, "how dum do you think I am" and replied, "That would be a lie. Rick and DeeDee are real policemen. If they weren't then I couldn't live with them."

"Why do you like living with Rick and DeeDee, Chrissy?"

"They're nice to me. They sit with me when I have a bad dream and can't sleep. DeeDee stopped me from being kidnapped. She took a nap with me when we went back home and Rick put the bad lady in jail."

"Do you have any aunts or uncles Chrissy?" She shook her head. Snowe grinned and then said: "You can't shake your head. You have to say "yes" or "no."

"No I don't have any aunts or uncles."

"Are you sure your father killed your mother?"

"Yes. He killed her and sent her away from me."

"Okay, Chrissy. I just have one more question for you. Did your father ever tell you or your sister or your mother that he would kill you?"

Chrissy froze. She didn't look at anyone, but instead she stared blankly at the wall. I could see DeeDee tense a little at the question. I could almost feel the breath that several of us in the room were holding while we waited for Chrissy to answer Snow's question. Snowenoticed Chrissy's frozen stare and repeated the question.

Did your father ever tell you or your sister or your mother that he would kill you?"

At first no response, and then, "He did one time when Mommy tried to take Kathy and me away from him. He said we'd never leave alive and that if she tried it again he'd kill us all."

Michael Snowe then looked at the camera and clearly stated that he had no more questions for this witness. He rose from his chair and came around to Chrissy's side of the table.

"You did a great job today. I think your mom would be proud of you."

"Are we done here, guys? I think we've got a little one who is really tired of answering questions and who wants to go home." Charlie smiled at Chrissy as he addressed the lawyers.

The judge rose from her chair and made her way toward me. "Yes. I think you are finished for now. But first I think I need to say something to Chrissy." She placed a gentle hand under Chrissy's chin and brought her drooping head upward for a moment. "I think you're a brave little girl. Not a lot of kids can do what you just did today. I also think you're a very smart girl. You remember a lot of things don't you?"

"I remember what Daddy did because of my bad dreams. Sometimes they scare me a lot but when I wake up DeeDee tells me it's gonna be okay. She says she won't let anything happen to me."

As we left, we could hear the lawyers making their closing remarks on the video camera. I distinctly heard Michael Snowe remark, "And I, as acting council for the defense, hereby remove myself from this case."

Eppilogue

Over the next three months we all went through changes. Martin Drake was convicted of two counts of first degree murder, one count of attempted first degree murder, an accessory to an attempted kidnapping, and assult on a police officer. He was sentenced to prison for life with out the possibility of being paroled.

I asked DeeDee to marry me, and she accepted. The adoption papers went through without a hitch, and DeeDee made up her mind to transfer out to Juvenile Services. I'm still working as a detective in the Homicide division under the direction of Captain Charles DeVane. And one more thing. Chrissy started going through therapy to help her deal with everything that had happened to her. She has been doing quite well in therapy and hasn't had anymore nightmares since.

Now, I'm just sitting here reflecting on how all our lives have changed from this. I've got a wife, a beautiful daughter, and the three of us have a wonderful life ahead. I here something outside and get up to look out the window. DeeDee has just returned home, and she looks incredibly happy. I wonder what could cause her to have such a happy glow to her face.

The end.