Prologue

The morning sun had just begun to rise, casting an orange glow upon the city. Streetlights were still on, areas still dark and full of shadows. The lights were still on over one of the playgrounds in Cunningham park, and one could imagine they were spotlights on the playground equipment. There was no breeze, no birds, no nothing. All was eerily still in the playground. In the distance, the faint noise of running feet could be heard. The lone runner, a man in his early thirties, was jogging towards the playground. Jared Nasmith was running out of breath as he continued to jog, his legs feeling heavier with each step. He'd been jogging since 4:56 AM and it was now 7:15 AM. He was an avid jogger--it helped with his stress. He was a 10th Grade Math teacher and needed the stress-relieving effect a nice jog gave him. Normally, he would be getting ready and already be at the school but today was Saturday. Saturday, May 12th to be exact. Ah, school was letting out very soon. That was something he was looking forward to. A smile spread across his face.

He was rounding the corner, the corner that led him by the playground. There was a waterfountain at the edge of the courtyard, where he planned on stopping to take a drink. He was getting tired.. perhaps he would take a cab back to his apartment.. He shook the idea off. No, he'd just stop to rest for a bit. Maybe go to a coffee shop and get a latte and some breakfast. There was a little place on the other side of the park he liked.. He rounded the corner, feet pouding the concrete as he drew closer to the playground. He smiled when he saw the water fountain and slowed down as he came to it, finally stopping and bending over, resting his hands on his knees. For a few minutes, he struggled to regain his breath and leaned over to take a sip of water.

That's when he noticed it.

A kid, probably no older than four or five was laying on the slide, near the swings. Another kid was still, sitting in the swing. And another was perched on top of the monkey bars, slumped. He frowned. Who would let their kids out this early alone? Looking around to see if he could see their parents, he began to walk closer to the kid on the slide.

"Hey, son... are your parents around?" He called, still walking closer. He got up to the slide and frowned, putting a hand on the kid's shoulder. "Son?" He let loose a scream as he pulled his hand back--it was covered in blood.

CSI NY

It was eerie.

Lindsay Monroe, Crime Scene Investigator, approached the scene with a lump in her throat. Don Flack had told her the situation on the phone, but it was much more gruesome than he'd described. There wasn't blood, guts or any kind of gore, but it was disturbing to see the lifeless bodies of children lying all over the playground. She glimpsed Mac Taylor snapping photos of a body on the swings, Stella Bonasera near one on a slide. She saw a few other Investigators she had met before, but couldn't remember their names. Tears burned her eyes as she saw one particular kid, a little girl no more than five, who was in the sandbox. She quickly blinked them away, however. A crime scene was no place to get emotional. Straightening her jacket, she pulled her brown hair into a pony-tail and approached the crime scene tape blocking off the area.

Stella looked up, green eyes filled with sadness though she smiled at Lindsay. "Hey. Had any caffiene today?"

Lindsay returned the smile half-heartedly, looking around and sighing. "Yeah, on the way... so, what happened?"

Stella shrugged. "A jogger found the scene, totally freaked out. We got called about thirty, fourty minutes ago and even though we haven't finished everything, there's no outward signs of death."

Lindsay was staring at the body Stella had been photographing. "So.. no stab wounds, laceration marks, gunshot wounds, anything?"

Stella shook her head, snapping a picture before continuing. "Nothing. Of course, Sid'll have to take a look, but we can't see anything."

"Maybe they were posioned?" Lindsay turned around to stare at a nearby water fountain, just at the edge of the crime scene tape. She also saw the man she assumed had found the scene, talking with Don in by one of the Police Cars. He glanced up briefly, making eye contact with her, before looking away.

"Its possible. But in such a large quantity? There's fourteen kids out here. If it were something airborn, more people would be dying-- or you'd think they would be, anyway." Stella put her hands on hips, glancing around with a frown. "Lindsay, does anything seem odd to you?"

The younger girl paused before answering, turning her tired face to Stella. "Yeah... who leaves fourteen kids alone in a park this time of morning, and doesn't even come to check on them?"

Author's Note: I'm back! (Though its been what.. a few days?) I'm just posting the Prologue for now, to test the waters and see how you like it. Hopefully, you'll like it even though its a bit more morbid than my other fics. Anyway, please review but no flames! (please!)

Jade