Dislclaimer: I do not own any of the CSI:Miami characters; they belong to CBS and Jerry Bruckheimer.
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The Importance of Being a Caine
"No."
Isabelle Caine rolled her eyes at the man standing in front of her. "Please Dad...it's just for one afternoon."
"I said 'no' Izzy. Please just listen to me for once." Horatio Caine said, looking into the pleading eyes of his daughter.
"Dad, no fair! Mel has never had a cop following her around, and she's the daughter of a CSI too." Isabelle tried one more time.
"Well, Mel will be with you so Officer Carson will be following her too." Horatio said with a small smile, hoping that he had gained the upper hand at last.
Isabelle sighed, there really was no arguing with her father. Isabelle, or Belle as most people knew her, had just turned seventeen and was about to spend the afternoon with her best friend and cousin, Melissa Delko. Mel, as most people called her, was a few months older than her cousin, but the girls were inseparable. They planned to go to the mall that afternoon and then catch a movie to celebrate the end of the school year. There was only one catch, Officer Carson.
Officer Sam Carson had been hired by Horatio when Belle was about five years old to assist in CSI protection at crime scenes. Ever since he had been hired, however, he had played personal body guard to Belle. Whenever Horatio could not have full supervision of his daughter, Officer Carson became a "super spy" for him. Belle had a sneaking suspicion that her father had hired him to keep her from having any fun. She had no idea why her father was so protective of her; she knew that her father was green-lit by the Mala Noches, but why should that have anything to do with her?
Just as Belle was giving up the fight, the phone rang. It was Mel calling to tell Belle that she was ready to go. "I'll be right there" Belle said grabbing her purse from the coffee table. Then remembering something, she turned to her dad. "You said I could have the car today, right Dad?" she asked, making the best kiss-up face she could possibly muster. Horatio smiled, knowing he could never resist the brown eyes now turned up at him; they reminded him of Marisol's. He dug the keys out of his pocket and handed them to his suddenly beaming daughter. "Thanks, Dad!" she squealed, kissing him on the cheek before running out the door.
"Have fun!" he called after her, "but be careful!" As he watched his only child pull out of the drive way, Horatio sighed softly. She was growing up so fast. The older she got, the more she was beginning to look like her mother. At the thought of his wife, Horatio smiled sadly. He missed her so much. She'd been gone for almost seventeen years now and the pain was still with him, although Belle helped to soften the sting and ease it away. "Be careful," he repeated to the silence surrounding him as he watched Belle's car disappear from view.
Belle had the radio up as high as it would go, hoping to forget the argument with her father as she drove to Mel's house. Why did he have to be so protective of her? Officer Carson wasn't the first straw against her father. At the age of seven, Belle had been enrolled in gun handling classes with her "aunt" Calleigh. By age 10 she owned her own pistol and was a fair marksman. Now seventeen year old Belle, had a concealed weapons permit and her father expected her to carry her gun with her whenever he was not around. Then, as if that were not enough, Horatio attached a tracking device to the teen's cell phone so that he would always know where she was.
Her mood greatly improved by the soothing sounds of Green Day, she parked the car in her uncle's driveway and practically skipped up the walk, nearly tripping over her Uncle Eric in the process. "Hi Belle," Eric said, pulling his head out of the bush he was trimming, "Mel's inside. Go right in." "I always do," she said smiling as her uncle turned back to his work. "Mel!" she called up the stairs, "Hurry up slow poke! All the best stuff will be gone at this rate." "I'm coming," Mel said as she appeared at the top of the staircase, rummaging through her purse, looking for her favorite lip gloss. "Have fun!" Natalia said coming to say good-bye to her niece and daughter, "Make sure you're home by eight, because we've got the big CSI camp out this weekend and we've got to get ready." "Okay, Mom" Mel said, shoving Belle out the door.
Once in the car and driving down the road, the girls laughed and reveled in this feeling of freedom. "Hey," Mel said suddenly, "you got rid of the S.S, didn't you?" The S.S. was the code name that the girls had given Officer Carson. S.S. stands for Secret Service, which was a term that seemed to fit Officer Carson's constant supervision. Belle sheepishly turned to her friend, "Sorry. I tried to talk Dad out of it, but it was either the S.S. or the car, and I figured I'd rather have the car." "Bummer," Mel sighed, then perked up when a sudden realization hit her, "Hey Belle, where is good old Officer Carson?" "You know," Belle said , "I haven't seen him at all today. Maybe Dad decided to lay off after all." The girl's joy was cut short a few minutes later when Belle spotted Officer Carson's Toyota following them.
"What do you say about trying to ditch him, just for today?" Mel asked, a devilish smile curling her lips. "I'd say right on!" Belle said laughing and she quickly turned down an alley. Carson was able to follow them for awhile, but the girls eventually lost him after one too many side streets. "We are so going to get busted for ditching the S.S., so we might as well make it worth our while." Belle said pulling into their high school parking lot. With Mel's help, Belle gathered up her cell phone, her gun, and her weapon's permit and stuffed them into her school locker, along with the tracking device that Horatio had carefully attached to the car without her knowledge(she was smarter than he thought), knowing they would be safe there til she could come back for them. Finally free of all restraints the girls headed to the mall.
After meeting up with several of their friends, the girls cruised the mall in search of the latest fashions and other things a girl just couldn't live without. After hours of shopping Mel and Belle ran into some people from school who invited them to the opening of a new nightclub down the street. Normally this wasn't something the girls would do without their parent's permission, but since they were already living on the wild side, they decided one more thing couldn't do too much damage. Since the girls were not wearing nightclub appropriate fashions, they decided to splurge on a brand new outfit.
"Wow, you look amazing!" Mel gushed as Belle paraded around the dressing room in a mini skirt, tank top, and cute strappy sandles. Her dad would kill her if she wore something like this home, but she figured she could ditch it before they went home and no one would be the wiser. After Mel chose her outfit (low-rise capris, tube top, and four-inch heels), they headed to Accessories Unlimited, the ultimate in outfit extras. They left the store with their purses considerably lighter, but they had both found flashy jewelry that would accent their outfits nicely. After a quick trip to the beauty salon, the girls felt ready to conquer anything.
They went to dinner at a nice café just down the road and changed into their outfits in the restaurant's bathroom. As Belle caught sight of herself in the mirror, she hardly recognized the girl staring back at her. Her hair hung down her back, the bounce of the waves making her appear much more energetic than she really was. Her make-up, courtesy of the beauty salon, made her look ten years older and the clothing she was wearing made her look the part of a fashionable clubber. Mel stepped out of the stall next to her, checked her make-up one last time, and then turned to her cousin. "Ready to go?" she said smiling mischievously. "You bet!" Belle grinned as they walked out to the car.
As the girls walked toward the door of the club, Belle pulled her friend back for a moment. "How are we going to get in?" Belle said, suddenly concerned, "The Raven doesn't allow kids under the age of nineteen." "Don't worry," Mel said, "Bryan's meeting us here with a couple of his friends. His brother is the bouncer and he'll let us in no questions asked." A few moments later they found Bryan and were let into the club.
Belle was amazed by all the lights and people crowded onto the dance floor. A funky rock rhythm blared out of the speakers while a D.J. was spinning on stage. The girls promised each other that they would not drink (that was a line they were just not ready to cross yet), but they planned on enjoying every second of this experience. On the dance floor she met a young man named Enrique who seemed very interested in her. She spent most of the night dancing and flirting with him. Mel, who had also found a guy, spent her evening in much the same way. Around three in the morning the two couples were dancing together in the middle of the dance floor, laughing and carrying on; Belle could never remember having so much fun before!
All of a sudden the music stopped mid-beat and someone yelled, "Miami-Dade Police! Everyone out now!" "Oh, no, " Belle groaned miserably, having recognized the voice. She looked up to the stage, only to have her worst fear confirmed: Standing center stage, with one hand holding a broken electrical cord and the other pushing back a suit coat to reveal a badge, was Horatio Caine looking angrier than Belle had ever seen him. He caught Enrique's eye as he growled, "Let go of my daughter." "What's going on?" Enrique asked in confusion. "It's a long story," she said stepping away from him, "You'd better go." Enrique took one last look at Horatio and hurried out the exit with the rest of the nightclub patrons.
As the nightclub emptied, Horatio did not speak or move, he just continued to stare down at his daughter, who avoided his gaze. She looked up only briefly to see her uncle Eric standing just behind Horatio, hand on his gun, with an equally livid look on his face. She felt Mel slink up behind her and take her arm. "We are so busted." Mel said in the most serious and frightened voice that Belle had ever heard her use. "Yep" was all that Belle could manage.
When the nightclub was totally empty, save for the four of them, Horatio stepped down off the stage, throwing the cord as hard as he could onto the stage as he did so. He walked over to his daughter with Eric close behind. "We're going home. Get in the car." Horatio said when he reached his daughter. Belle had never heard such anger or malice in her father's voice as she did then. The two girls meekly followed their fathers out to the waiting Hummers. Belle glanced over at Mel just before they reached the cars. "Good luck," she whispered. "You too," was Mel's only reply.
Belle climbed in the front seat of the Hummer and her father drove off. Horatio Caine was not a man of many words, but he did not speak so much as one word to his daughter as they drove. Belle glanced over at him once during the ride. His face kept changing from an angry red to a ghostly white and his lips were set in a hard line. He was beginning to scare her. When she realized that they were not going in the direction of the Caine residence, she didn't dare speak up about it.
Eventually Horatio stopped the Hummer at an empty stretch of beach. Had the circumstances been different, Belle would have found the view breathtaking. Horatio got out, slamming the door with enough force to knock over an elephant, and walked a short distance away from the car. He stood there for a long time, his hands on his hips and his back to her. Belle carefully slipped out of the Hummer, deciding that she had to try to apologize. She drew a breath and began to walk towards the shadowed figure of her father.
"Dad...I...," she tried to speak, but before any real words could escape her lips her father whirled around, cutting her off.
"Isabelle Marisol Caine! What were you thinking?" he yelled at her at the top of his voice. She winced at the sound of her full name; her father had never called her anything but Izzy, even when he was really mad at her. She must have really done it this time. "How dare you disobey me! Do you realize what could have happened to you? Do you know what you put me through the last seven hours? I had no idea where you were. You could have been kidnapped or killed." Horatio continued his tirade, yelling with more fury that Belle had ever seen him show before. Belle stood there in silence, tears running down her face as Horatio's voice rose in volume. She tried to tell him what had happened, she tried to tell him she was sorry, but he didn't given her a chance. He continued yelling for several more minutes, until his fury began to ease. Eventually a sobbing Belle managed to say, "I'm sorry Dad, I'm so sorry." Horatio, calmed down a bit now, took his daughter in his arms and held her tightly against him as she sobbed. Horatio's anger was now replaced by relief and he began to cry silently with her, tears carving two paths down his cheeks. After a long while the tears ceased, but Belle still held onto her father, wanting the comfort he provided. He eventually stepped back a little and looked into her eyes. "I was so worried about you," he said softly, pulling her back into a hug. After a few more moments he said, "I think we should head home." "Okay, Dad." she said as they walked back to the Hummer together.
The ride home was just as quiet as the ride to the beach, but this time it was out of emotional exhaustion instead of anger. When they pulled into the driveway, Horatio said "I think its time we both went to bed, we still have that camping trip tomorrow."
Just before Belle went into her room, her father stopped her. "Just because I am thrilled that you're safe doesn't mean that you've escaped punishment." he said with a slight smile, "We'll discuss your punishment in the morning. Until then, goodnight, sweetheart." "Night, Daddy"she said, giving him a hug. He kissed the top of her head before she went into her room and closed the door.
As soon as Belle heard her father's bedroom door close, she rolled off her bed and began rummaging around under her bed for her "emergency" phone. When her had touched the cool plastic of the phone she pulled it out, plugged it in, and then dialed Mel's "emergency" phone number. The girls had rigged this system of phone lines when they were thirteen so that they could still talk to each other even when they were grounded. After two rings, Mel answered the phone, "Belle, is that you?" "Yeah it's me," Belle said scooting herself partially under the bed, "How'd it go?" "Well, let's just say this summer is really going to stink," Mel said, "What kind of punishment did you get?" "I don't know yet, Dad's reserving judgement until morning," Belle explained rolling over onto her stomach, "So, are you grounded?" "I am so way more than just grounded," Mel said, rolling her eyes, "First of all Dad's hired a guy named Officer Riley to watch me twenty-four seven, kinda like Officer Carson, only all day, everyday, no matter what. I get to have him circle me like a vulture until school starts again. To top that off, I don't get to go to the camp out this weekend, I have to stay behind with Alexx and clean out the drainage system in the morgue. Mind you, I don't think its ever been cleaned in the history of the crime lab. Gross!" "Eww," Belle had to agree, "If you're getting all that, I hate to think what Dad's waiting to dish out." "By the way," Mel added after a moment, "Dad said that we're not allowed to be alone together all summer, even though he said that we'd both be at the crime lab tomorrow." "Great," Belle groaned to herself, "I wonder what evil thing my dad's planning on making me do." "Uh oh," Mel said suddenly, dropping her voice to a whisper, "I hear my mom coming. See you tomorrow!" The phone line went dead. After putting the phone back in its hiding place, Belle climbed into bed exhausted and quickly fell asleep.
"Wake up! Time to grace the world with your presence this morning, Miss Caine." Belle groaned and rolled over to look at the clock. "Dad, its seven o'clock in the morning. I haven't even been in bed four hours yet." she said blinking up at her already dressed father. "As I recall," Horatio said with a half smile, "It was your fault you were up that late, so I don't want to hear it. I want you downstairs in fifteen minutes so we can discuss you punishment." He ruffled her hair and then left the room. Sometimes she hated the fact that her father could be so awake after hardly any sleep. 'He must have learned it from Aunt Calleigh' she thought as she stumbled into the bathroom.
Fifteen minutes later Belle walked into the living room to find her father already there, standing by the large bay window. "So what's the verdict?" she asked as she plopped onto the nearest chair. "The verdict is," Horatio said turning to his daughter, "that you are in serious trouble young lady. You never should have done any of those things, but putting them all together was not a wise decision on your part." His eyes twinkled as he said this and Belle knew she was already on the road to being forgiven, although she knew her father would still follow up on the punishments he had planned last night while still furious with her. Sometimes having a cop for a father could be a great disadvantage, especially when it came to deciding on punishments for misdeeds. "So," her father continued, "because you did several things you weren't supposed to, you're getting several punishments. First of all, Officer Carson is going to be closer than your own shadow until school starts again. You will be under his watchful eye from the moment you leave the house, until the moment you return. Understood?" "Yeah, Dad," Belle sighed.
"Second, you are not allowed to go do things with Mel for the rest of the summer. You can 'hang out' when we go over to their house or when they come here, but other wise, no contact with Mel. Okay?" "Got it," Belle said smiling to herself, thinking of the emergency phone that could help bypass this rule. "By the way, this," Horatio said, pulling her emergency phone out of his pocket, "will stay with me until the end of the summer." Belle's jaw dropped. "How did you find out about that?" she asked in total disbelief. "The same way you found out about the tracking system on the car, I'm smarter than you think," he said smiling at her expression.
"Third," he continued, "there will be no phone, computer, T.V., or Playstation privileges for two months." "Is that all?" Belle asked, hoping that she had gotten off this cleanly. "One more thing," Horatio said dragging out the sentence until Belle could hardly stand it any longer, "you will not be going to the camp out this weekend. Instead you will spend the next three days cleaning the ballistics lab from top to bottom under Calleigh's supervision. This includes scrubbing the walls of the firing range, filling in the cement where stray bullets have taken notches out of the walls, cleaning and polishing all the guns in the gun library and sorting and documenting all of the ammunition in the lab." "Dad..." Belle whined, "do I have to?" "Yes, as a matter of fact you do," Horatio said moving over to the chair where she was sitting, "and don't expect your Aunt Calleigh to help, she's in no condition to do so and Ryan would have my neck if anything happened to her. She'll be there just in case you have any questions. You'll also be staying with her while I go on the camping trip." "Wait," Belle said, standing up, "you're still going on the trip, without me?" "Why should I be the one missing out because of some choices you made?" Horatio said, raising one eyebrow at his daughter with a hint of a smile on his lips, "Besides, this way Ryan will feel better knowing Calleigh will be with someone while he's gone." "Okay, I guess," Belle mumbled. "Alright then," Horatio said standing back up, "we're leaving in two hours, so you'd better go get packed." "I'm all over it." Belle said heading back up the stairs, grumbling to herself about her father's idea of punishment.
Two hours and fifteen minutes later Horatio and Belle entered the crime lab. To her surprise, Mel was already in the lobby with Eric, overnight bag in hand, looking throughly disgusted at the thought of what the day held in store for her. Belle snuck up by Mel while their fathers were discussing something case related. "So," Mel whispered, "What'd you get?" "I have to scour the entire ballistics lab, including cleaning all the guns in the gun library." Belle explained, "The only bright side of all this is that I get to stay with Calleigh this weekend." "Lucky," Mel said, "I mean lucky that you get to stay with Calleigh, not lucky that you have to do all that. I have to stay with Alexx this weekend. She can be fun, but she's a little weird at times, you know?" "I totally agree with you!" Belle said, giggling at her friend's remark. "Hey you two," Eric said, turning to face the teens, "I believe you both have jobs to do, so say goodbye for now." The girls hugged each other, and then went their separate ways, Mel following her father to the basement where the morgue was, and Belle following Horatio down the hall to the ballistics lab.
When they entered the lab, they found Calleigh absorbed in a magazine. Calleigh Duquesne, now Calleigh Wolfe, set down her forensics journal and stood to greet the Caines. "Hi, Horatio, Belle," she said in her southern twang, "How's everything?" "Great," Horatio said, smiling, "Ryan's still going on the trip, I hope?" "Yeah," Calleigh said, "He was still a bit reluctant about leaving me 'all alone', but Josh and Emily begged until he couldn't tell them no." She smiled at the mention of her two children, Josh, who had just turned eight, and Emily who was nearing four. "They do have Dad wrapped around their little finger, don't they?" Horatio said chuckling. "They sure do," Calleigh grinned, "Which reminds me, will you keep an eye on them for me? Make sure Ryan gets Emily's hair brushed out every day, and make sure he doesn't feed them ice cream for breakfast." "Will do Calleigh," Horatio said, "If you'll keep track of my daughter for a few days." "My pleasure," Calleigh said, putting her arm around her surrogate niece, "We've got plenty to keep us busy." "Well, I'd better be going," Horatio said, coming over to give his daughter one last hug, "I'll see you later, sweetheart, and don't forget you're here for punishment, not for enjoyment." "I won't" Belle assured her father, "Have fun without me." "Okay" he said, slipping on his sunglasses and heading out the door. Calleigh turned to Belle with a smile on her face. "Well now," she said, "you heard your dad, let's get to work."
A few hours and several buckets of soapy water later found the ballistics lab looking better than Calleigh ever remembered seeing it before. Calleigh looked up from her paperwork to see Belle on her hands and knees with yet another bucket of water, scrubbing the floor of the firing range. "Hey kiddo," Calleigh said standing and stretching, "What do you say we go get some lunch?" "Sounds good to me," Belle said, dropping the rag she was using back in the bucket, "But is that punishment approved?" Calleigh laughed, "Well, I don't know if you're dad's approved it, but this little baby's going to be very upset with me if we don't get some food soon." Calleigh was expecting the newest addition to the Wolfe family in August, a little girl who was bound to be adored. Belle smiled and followed her aunt out of the lab.
Later that afternoon Belle sat at the long counter in the lab, cleaning guns with Calleigh. They were talking about this and that when Belle dropped a gun on the floor. "Hey, careful," Calleigh warned her, "Your dad would have a fit if anything happened to you." "Sorry," Belle said, stooping to pick up the gun. After a moment of silence Belle looked up at her aunt hesitantly, "Calleigh...could you answer a question for me?" "Sure, Belle," Calleigh said looking at her niece, wondering where this conversation was going, "anything." "Why is my dad so protective of me? I mean I know most parents are, but he's a little on the extreme side." Belle asked. Calleigh sighed "I don't think I'm the one you should be talking to. I think your dad would have a much better answer." "Please Aunt Calleigh." Belle pleaded. Calleigh hesitated another moment before giving in. "I guess it has to do with the way your mom died." Calleigh began slowly. "How did she die?" Belle asked. "You mean you don't know?" Calleigh asked a look of shock and confusion written all over her face, "Wow, I really should not be the one to tell you about it, especially if your dad hasn't said anything." "He never talks about her. Sometimes he acts like she never existed." Belle explained, ducking her head. "That's just because he misses her." Calleigh said, putting an arm around the young woman, "After she died he never was quite the same. I think he blames himself for her death." "Why would he do that?" Belle asked, looking up, "Please, Aunt Calleigh, tell me what happened." "Okay," Calleigh finally agreed, "But you didn't hear this from me if your dad ever finds out." Calleigh had never agreed with Horatio's decision to keep the circumstances of Marisol's death a secret, she always believed that Belle had a right to the truth.
"Where do I start..." Calleigh began, "I guess it all started when Horatio first met Marisol. Eric had been suspected of buying marijuana and when Horatio confronted him about it, he told your dad about his older sister, Marisol. You see, Marisol was very sick; she had cancer and although it was in remission ,she was still in a lot of pain. The drugs helped ease the pain and nausea. Horatio told Eric not to worry about it, that he'd take care of it, and he did. Your dad helped Marisol through a lot of tough situations and to thank him, your mom made him dinner. I guess they started to fall in love. Two months later they got married in a small ceremony at the court house." "I've seen a picture of their wedding," Belle said," It's the only one I've ever seen of her." Calleigh smiled sadly, "Your mom was a very beautiful woman; Horatio loved her very much and I don't think I've ever seen him as happy as he was the day he married her. About a month and a half after they got married, they found out about you. I remember the day Horatio told everyone at the lab that he was going to be a dad. He was so excited," Calleigh said with a giggle, "I'd never thought the words 'Horatio Caine' and 'Dad' would ever fit in the same sentence, but he proved me wrong in a hurry. He even picked out the colors for your room and painted it himself." "Really?" Belle asked, a grin spreading across her face.
"Yep," Calleigh said, "I'll never forget the day you were born. Marisol had sent Horatio to the lab because he wouldn't stop bugging her and she needed a break. She even asked me to keep his car keys with me so that he couldn't dash home every five seconds to find out how she was doing. Horatio and I were in the lab, working on some old unsolved cases. He was so scatterbrained that day! Every time a timer went off or the P.A. system paged someone, he'd jump and reach for his cell phone. Eventually his cell phone did ring; it was Marisol telling him it was time to go to the hospital. He ran out of the lab so fast, he forgot his car keys and I had to chase him down to give them to him. About eight hours later you were born. Your dad was so proud! He'd show you off to anyone and everyone, whether they wanted to see you or not. I have some pictures from that day at my house, maybe later we could look at them together." "I'd like that," Belle said smiling.
"Anyway, Horatio went from being the best cop this side of the Mississippi to the most doting dad in the world in a matter of minutes. It was a shock the first time I went to your house after you were born. Instead of the suit coat-wearing, gun handling, tough cop with sunglasses, I was used to, I found a man in worn out jeans and a T-shirt with the words '#1 Dad' on it, snuggling a little bundle of pink in a rocking chair. It was quite the eye opening experience." Calleigh smiled. "I don't even think Ican picture my dad like that, and I've known him my whole life!" Belle said, enjoying this different view of her father.
"About a month after you were born, the Mala Noches surfaced again in Miami. Horatio feared for you and Marisol's lives. He had a cop posted outside your house when he wasn't home, trying to protect you from anything the Noches might try to do to you. When you were barely two months old, tragedy struck. Your mom wanted to go out to lunch with your Uncle Eric, so she left you with Horatio for the afternoon. She told the police protection that she'd be alright for a couple of hours, since she would be with her brother who was also a cop. She met Eric at a plaza in the center of town. They had only been together a few moments when gun fire rang out. Eric was shot in the arm, but your mom wasn't so lucky. She was shot in the stomach, the bullet piercing her kidney and spleen. Horatio was at the crime lab when he heard the news that she had been shot. He left you in my care, jumped into the Hummer and sped to her rescue. He rode with her to the hospital, only leaving her side when the circumstances forced him to. The doctors tried everything they could, but it was too late. Marisol died five hours later, Horatio by her side." Belle just sat there for several moments, a tear slowly making its way down her cheek. "I had no idea," Belle said after a moment, her voice slightly shaky, "I can't believe it." Calleigh put her arm around the girl to comfort her.
"It was a sad day for all of us when your mom was buried. I don't think I've ever seen as much grief on any one person's face as there was on Horatio's. Throughout the service he just held you tightly with a blank look on his face." Calleigh continued, her voice also showing signs of strain, "Horatio was never quite the same after Marisol died. You were his only light through during this time; I hate to think what could have happened if he had not had you to live for. You made him smile when the rest of us could not. Eventually he found joy again, but it took a long time. He loved her so much and I can see it in his face that he still misses her deeply. He feels that her death was his fault because he was the one that was green lit; it should have been him that was killed, not his lovely wife who still had so much of her life ahead of her."
Calleigh paused to look at her niece and saw that she was shaken by this revelation. "Hey," she said looking at her watch, "What do you say we go home for tonight? We can talk about this more later." Belle nodded, numbed by what she had just heard. Calleigh locked up the ballistics lab and then the two women headed home.
After a good meal and some light-hearted joking, Belle and Calleigh sat down on the couch to finish their conversation. "Do you have any pictures of my mom?" Belle asked as they settled themselves in. "Sure do," Calleigh said, walking toward the closet, "Here we go," she said after a moment, "These are all pictures I took during the year your mom and dad were together." They settled back down on the couch and Belle began leafing through the photo album. As the two looked through the album, Calleigh would point out certain pictures, and occasionally tell a funny story.
Belle stopped at a particular picture of Marisol and looked at it closely, memorizing each curve of her face, the way she smiled and the look in her eye. "You look a lot like her you know," Calleigh said after a moment. "Really?" Belle questioned. "Yes," Calleigh said with a smile, "I would bet that Marisol looked exactly like you when she was seventeen. I think that has a lot to do with the reason your dad is so protective of you." When Belle looked at her quizzically, Calleigh elaborated, "I think your dad feels like he made a mistake in taking care of Marisol. He thinks that if he had been more protective of her, she would not have died. In you he sees a chance to correct that mistake. If he were to lose you too, I think it would be his undoing. I don't think he'd ever be able to overcome his grief and move on. He'd be a ruined man. You remind him everyday of the one woman that he loves more than anything in the world. She lives on through you. Having you around is like having her near him again. If he were to lose that, he would have lost everything."
Belle continued to look down at her mother's smiling face. "I'm beginning to understand why he was so mad last night." she said quietly. Calleigh nodded slowly, "Before last night, I didn't think fear was in Horatio Caine's vocabulary, but I heard it in his voice and saw it in his face when he told us you were missing. I have never seen a man so scared in all my life, and I definitely never want to see it again. He thought he had lost you for good for a few hours last night." Belle was silent for a while, looking at the woman who had caused so much heartache in her family. She wished she could remember her mother, but the truth was she had no memories of her at all. "Thank you," Belle said after a moment, "for telling me." "My pleasure," Calleigh said.
Two days later Belle was just finishing putting away the last of the carefully counted and documented ammo when she heard a familiar voice behind her. "Wow, who knew the lab could look like this. Good job!" "Daddy!" Belle squealed, hurrying over to give her father a big hug. "Hey Izzy," he said, looking down at his smiling daughter, "How was your weekend?" "Great... I mean, I'm feeling properly punished now." she said catching Calleigh's eye with a wink. "Good" he said smiling and then turning his attention to Calleigh added, "She is telling the truth, right?" "Yep, the honest to goodness truth," Calleigh said with her trademark grin, "How was the trip? Any mishaps I should know about?" "Nothing life threatening," Horatio said with a mischievous smile, "but I will never understand how your husband gets into scrapes the way he does." "Oh no," Calleigh moaned, "What did he do this time?" "I think I'll let him tell you that." Horatio said with a smile. Turning back to his daughter he said, "Are you ready to go?" "Yep, let me grab my bag and we'll be on our way." "I'll walk you out." Calleigh said following the father and daughter out of the lab.
Half way down the hall the group heard two giggling voices as a pair of children rounded the corner, full speed. As soon as they spotted Calleigh they yelled, "Mommy!" and seconds later Calleigh had enveloped her two children with hugs and kisses. Both children looked as though they had rolled in the dirt all day, and Emily's usually pristine pigtails were lopsided and loose, but other than that they looked no worse for the wear. "I missed you," Calleigh said hugging each of her children, "Did you have fun?" As soon as the words were out of her mouth the kids started prattling off about something at light speed. "Whoa, whoa," Calleigh said smiling at her over- enthusiastic offspring, "One at a time, and go more slowly." "Daddy took us hiking up to the lake," Josh began. "And we saw some deer!" interrupted Emily. "Yeah, and then we went fishing at the lake and Daddy fell in and got all wet!" Josh added joyfully. "A fishy jumped out of his shirt!" Emily giggled. Calleigh giggled a little too at the description she was getting from her two children.
Just then Ryan Wolfe staggered around the corner. Calleigh wished she had had her camera because this was definitely a Kodak moment. The normally collected and carefully groomed Ryan was no where to be found. Instead there stood a Ryan who's clothes looked as if they had been slept in for the past week. His hair was messy and matted together with large clumps of dirt and all sorts of vegetation. His eyes had large dark circles under them and he had three days worth of a five o'clock shadow. He looked beaten, tired, and ready to collapse at any moment. 'Drama King' Calleigh thought.
When Ryan finally made it over, he embraced Calleigh and gave her a kiss (to which Josh and Emily let off a round of Ewwww's). "Remind me never to take them alone camping ever again," he said smiling at Calleigh. "Come on, it couldn't have been that bad!" Calleigh said, laughing at him. "Oh it was," Horatio said, his eyes twinkling, "and I've got the video to prove it." They all laughed and talked for a few more minutes until Horatio told Belle it was time to go. After giving Calleigh one more hug to thank her, Belle followed her father out to the car.
A week had passed when Belle found her father one morning in his office, a picture in his hands and a wistful look on his face. Belle came silently up behind him and found that he was looking at a picture of Marisol. He let out a small sigh. "You miss her, don't you?" Belle asked quietly, breaking the silence. Without surprise or hesitation he said, "Everyday." He turned to look at his daughter who had perched herself on the back of a nearby sofa. "I wish I remembered her." Belle said quietly. After a few moments he began to speak, "She loved you so much. She wanted to be there for every milestone in your life, to see you grow up. Before she died, she made me promise that I'd let you know how much she cared about you. I guess I haven't done a very good job of it, have I?" Belle was surprised to hear her father talk about her mom with no hesitation and no restriction. She kept silent, letting her father continue. He seemed lost in his own thoughts as he began again, "She wrote you a lullaby when you were born. She'd sing it to you every night before you went to sleep. The first part she'd sing in Spanish and the second part she'd sing in English. She had the most beautiful voice. After she died, I tried to sing the lullaby to you, but I couldn't do it. It brought back too many painful memories." "Do you still remember the words?" Belle asked. "I'll never forget them," he said as he began softly humming a melody and then began singing. It was a simple song, about the moonlight and the stars. While he was singing, Belle marveled at her father. He had never spoken Spanish to her, and she didn't know that he could sing. When he finished, they both had tears in their eyes. Belle hugged her father tightly and he placed a kiss on her forehead.
After a moment he said, "You look just like her." "Really?" Belle asked, echoing the question she had asked Calleigh the week before. "Yes you do," he said smiling down at her, "She would be so proud of you. You are exactly the daughter she always wanted." Belle smiled at the thought.
"Dad," Belle asked after a moment, "How come you never talk about her?" Horatio sighed and looked away for a moment. "I don't know," he said quietly, "I guess I didn't like to think about what could have been. I messed up really bad. I'm the reason she's dead." "No, you're not. It was not your fault the Noches killed her. There was nothing you could have done. You are not the reason she died. You were the reason she lived." Belle said turning her father's face toward hers, "Without you she would have lost her battle with cancer, and she would have been arrested and put into jail. Without you, she never would have married and had a family. Because of you, her dreams came true." Horatio looked into her eyes, confused, "How do you know all that?" "Let's just say a friend was looking out for us." She said smiling. He ran his fingers through his hair. "I guess I have a lot to make up for, don't I?" he asked. "Nothing that can't be forgiven." Belle said smiling reassuringly at her father.
Later that day Belle and her father walked up the grassy slope of the cemetery. They reached a headstone, carefully shaded by a large weeping willow tree. Belle traced the lettering on the stone with her fingers, Marisol Delko Caine. She helped Horatio put the bouquet of roses in the vase and set them next to the grave. Father and daughter stood there for a moment, his arm around her, both lost in their own thoughts. They talked quietly about the woman who was buried here. When they were ready to leave, Belle turned away so her father could have a moment alone with his wife. He knelt down next to the grave and smiled at the picture of her on the headstone. "Thank you sweetheart," he whispered," for such a wonderful daughter. I'll see you soon." As he stood, he pressed a kiss to his fingers and then touch his fingers to the stone. As they walked down the hill Horatio said, "By the way, remind me to thank Calleigh for looking out for us." He smiled his mischievous smile. Belle started to say, "How...?", but instead settled for a sweet smile. Father and daughter continued down the hill, both finally at peace.