A/N: Hi! Back again! And just in time for the new season! This would be Part IV of my series and it picks up between Season 7 (gotta catch up), but arc wise, 4 months after Dog Soup. Well, then let's get this show on the road! I'm saying this now, I apologize for sporadic updates! Reviews are welcome!

DISCLAIMER: H, his team (C) CBS, Daikonran and Sexie (c) my sister, the rest (c) me

I, Thanatos

Mark Wrangler, a successful divorce attorney, started his day with his usual morning routine; morning hygiene and a cup of coffee. Last night, he and Rachael Parker, the host of the firm's party, had a one-night stand that was beyond he had ever experienced in his life. Said woman somehow managed to disappear from their bedside for a moment while Wrangler dressed himself for the day. Both had decided to exit his Coral Gables house in different times, to throw off any suspicions.

"You know this was just a one-time deal, right?" Mark commented off-handedly as Rachael stepped out the shower, wearing only a bath robe. "And you know that if you want to keep your job, you won't say anything to our coworkers," the fellow lawyer added as she put on her wedding ring and the rest of her clothes while he exited the building and into the garage.

Suddenly, Rachael felt the light sting of sunburn and recoiled back inside. When she took a look at her hand, it was burned to the second degree, way too fast to be just the sun. "What the?!" In that instant, she heard a desperate scream of anguish as Mark exploded in flames. Rachael watched in horror as the man fell to the floor and dialed 911 on her cell phone, all the while staying inside…

0000

Lt. Horatio Caine loomed over the charred body, perplexed at the sheer severity of the burns. "Looks like this man was burned alive," he commented while removing his sunglasses. "More like broiled; by the look of the foam around his mouth, I'd say his insides are probably well-done too." Secondet "Sexie" Lainhart added as he stood up from the corpse. After his mentor, Alexx Woods, left abruptly, Sexie was assigned a full-time shift alongside Dr. Tara Price. "Any witnesses?" Caine further inquired. "Other than the woman inside, no one. Frank's with her right now," the angel informed as he commanded the ME personnel to take the body away.

Ryan Wolfe arrived none the wiser and spotted the corpse as he met up with fellow CSI Eric Delko. "Barbecue's revenge?" "If it were that easy, we wouldn't have been called. Kino called in; he wants first dibs on the body." Eric replied with a sarcastic chuckle as they both prepared to process the car. "Door handle's scorched; that's quite a feat considering that the plastic polymer used for car making can stand temperatures higher than 300 degrees Fahrenheit." Wolfe noted while applying fingerprint powder. "Meaning that whatever fire caused the victim's death had to be 500 degrees or more." Delko added, even more confused; nothing available at the scene could make such a fire.

0000

"Ma'am, my name's Horatio Caine and I'm with the Miami-Dade Police Department. Did you see anything that seemed out of sorts with Mr. Wrangler?" Horatio inquired as he sat down besides the shell-shocked woman. Rachael Parker had a clear distress about her, clutching her bandaged hand close to her heart as she shook her head as a response. "We came home from a party at our law firm, spent the night together and suddenly, he bursts into flames for no good reason!"

Sergeant Frank Tripp picked up the wounded hand and asked, "What happened to you?" The question made Mrs. Parker flinch but allowed the two officers to remove the bandages. The wound had degraded into an infectious burn, covered in pus and blood. "That looks serious, you need to see a doctor right away-" Tripp's advice was cut short when Rachael whipped her hand back to her. "I am not stepping outside…" "Mrs. Parker, we can guarantee police protection, if you like." Horatio offered but to no avail. "I'm not coming out while the Sun's still up." Rachael hissed, causing concern between the two. "Please leave; I swear I won't go anywhere." She continued while changing her cloths.

As Mrs. Parker disappeared from sight, Frank said, "Something ain't right in this picture; the woman seems like she's terrified of the sun than anything." Horatio nodded in agreement as he bagged the bandages. "I'll send these to Kino over at Dade Memorial to see if I can isolate whatever's causing her allergy. Frank, I need everything you can find on that party."

00000

Meanwhile, Calleigh Duquesne arrived at the Peterson home just as her partner raised the yellow police tape. "We finally get to work together, huh Speedle?" "What can I say, I'm unavailable." The ragdoll smirked as he let her in. The home had been ransacked, belying the kidnapping that had taken place. "Lucinda Peterson, age 18, cheerleader at the local high school. Mother called it in thirty minutes ago," Tim explained to the ballistics expert while she took some base photographs of the home.

Annie Peterson, the victim's mother, was inconsolable by the time the CSIs entered her home. "She was a good girl; never missed a practice, never did anything…she was going places," she wept soundly as Rudolph, the victim's brother, tried to comfort her. Both Calleigh and Speedle could see the woman's suffering and adjusted their questioning methods to minimize any discomfort.

"Ma'am, did Lucinda have any enemies in school? Anybody who didn't sit right?" Duquesne inquired while Tim went up to the girl's room. "Not that I know of; she was very well-liked among her friends," Mrs. Peterson responded while wiping a tear from her mascara-ridden eyes. Upstairs, Speedle gave the room a quick sweep for anything that seemed out of place; any presence that didn't belong. The bed was hastily made with clothes hangers laid strewn across; the shoe rack was a bit ransacked but nothing too much.

Looks to me like she just went off on holiday, Speed thought as he picked up a small pink box decorated with hearts. A condom wrapper fell out of the tiny space, further corroborating his theory. But, just to make sure, black light, he concluded while setting up the device and closing the window shields. As soon as he fired the black light on, the bed lit up like a firefly; splotches invisible to the naked eye suddenly jumped at the CSI. "Whoa, didn't see that one coming," Tim commented rather ironically, taking out swabs to collect samples from the covers to the floor under the bed. He then peeked down the stairs and called out, "You might want to see this, Cal."

By the time Calleigh came up to Lucinda's room, Speedle was already testing his samples. "What did you find?" she asked, kneeling beside her living-impaired coworker. The cotton swab turned to bright pink: there was blood present in the room. "I think we're dealing with an aggressive kidnapper," Tim replied heavily; this wasn't a turn for the best.