Sand and ocean water at his feet. The sun beating down on his shoulders. A light breeze in the air. It was a calm, quiet setting. A nice change from the chaos that had been the past twenty six hours. Another case with Britt. Yes, they solved it and collected their generous pay, but Hank was worn out physically because of it. Due to falling out of a two story window into some bushes. Not as fun as it sounds.

Britt, of course, got a kick out of it. After asking if he was okay twice, he went into a hysterics fit that lasted the entire drive back. Hank grunted silently, trying to ignore the increasing back pain and pain in his ass that was his partner. He loved him, but yeah. He was a pain in the ass.

Sand. Water. Sun. Breeze. The dream was going so well. But per usual, something had to interrupt the serene fantasy world that was being created for himself...

...ring, ring.

Shit.

Hank groaned, turned over, and checked his buzzing cell phone on the nightstand. His eyes narrowed and then widened when he saw the name.

"Gretch? What's wrong?" Hank asked, concerned. Only breathing in response. He was on his feet, pulling on jeans, in less than a second. "How long?"

"Um, I don't know." His ex-wife choked out, sounding more than a little embarrassed. "She shut the door after dinner at around seven-thirty. I heard her music until nine. I checked on her at ten and... we had a fight before, but she seemed okay. You know how she gets."

"Mm-hm. She gets it from me. The miraculous wonder of conception." Hank muttered into the receiver, trying to find a t-shirt. "And when you checked in on her she was gone?"

"Yeah. I'm... I hate it when she does this, Hank. Should I call the police?"

"No. I've always been able to find her. Haven't I?" Hank asked her. "I know where she goes. She doesn't hide from me."

"What does that mean?" Gretchen spat.

"Nothing... it doesn't mean anything. What I'm trying to say is it's a phase, Gretch. She's fourteen. We're divorced. We live apart. You're getting married again. We have full time jobs. She's almost in high school. I could go on. She deserves a little acting out time, don't you think?"

"It's destructive behavior. You've seen what happens in this city. You know the risks she's taking."

Hank was about to answer, but stopped himself. She was right. Anything could happen nowadays it seemed like. He heard Gretchen take a deep breath and then she got quiet for a few seconds. That meant she was close to tears, but was forcing herself not to let anyone know it. He knew the emotion well. In the last few years of their marriage, she did it at least once a week. Still it wasn't easy to watch or listen to and made his heart sink every time.

"You gonna be okay after I hang up? I can stay on the phone with you."

"Just find our daughter and bring her back, okay? Then I will be."

"Roger that. I'll call you when I find her."

Hank reached for his keys on the counter top after hanging up. "Goddamn it, Max." He mumbled, heading to the door. "Never a break."