Disclaimer: Any characters that you recognize from Law and Order: Criminal Intent, are not mine

A/N: It had been a long time since I posted my last fanfiction, so if you're reading this because of 'Where'd you go?', then wow, thanks! To all the new readers, thanks for stopping to check this out. The prologue takes place right after Goren leaves MCS (basically like the last season never happened). Enjoy!

Prologue

Alex stroked the little girl's hair gently. Bobby had his arms wrapped around her, looking down at the little girl in her arms. Their daughter, Rebecca. It was still amazing for them to look at their child, their daughter, and know that she was really there, and really theirs. They would both die to protect her, in a heartbeat, without question.

Alex would have liked to stay curled up like that forever, but she slowly stood up, and climbed the stairs to their daughter's bedroom. Bobby followed with one hand on the small of her back.

Rebecca was nestled comfortably in her mother's arms, her little face pressed against her mother's chest, her mouth open slightly. Alex placed her gently in her crib, and pulled a blanket over her. She leaned in and placed a kiss gently on the baby's cheek. "Goodnight baby girl," she whispered.

Bobby also leaned in to give the baby a kiss. "We love you," he added.

Together, Bobby and Alex left the room, her head resting on his chest. At first they had thought that losing their jobs at the Major Case Squad had been a bad thing. But, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Distraught after firing her partner, Alex had gone to his apartment after leaving 1PP. She had been standing on his doorstep with tears running down her face, just saying over and over again "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"

Bobby had pulled her into his arms, while she confessed that she had decided not to take the captain's job.

He had pulled back and looked at her, insisting that she should. She had shaken her head, and said she didn't want it if this was what it was going to be like, feeling like she did.

To her surprise, he had leaned in to kiss her, silencing her tears. After the sweetest kiss she had ever experienced, he pulled away, and apologized, saying he understood if she was upset. He had confessed later that he thought she was going to punch him, but it was worth it, to kiss her one time.

However, they didn't kiss just once. She pushed her way into his apartment, threw her arms around him, and confessed her feelings for him. He couldn't believe that she felt the same way as he had, all these years. That was the first night they made love. It was also when they decided that nothing was more important to either of them than each other.

After that night, since Bobby and Alex no longer worked together, they had started a relationship. They were married the following year. Now they lived in a house together just outside Manhattan. They had a beautiful daughter. Bobby had been recruited by the FBI after he left Major Case; Alex stayed home with the baby, but she was planning to return to her position with a computer crimes unit. It was the best thing for them that they had stopped working together.

Chapter One – Kidnapped

Alex pulled out of the parking lot of the daycare. She had just picked Rebecca up after leaving work.

"Mommy, Davie stuck a carrot up his nose today," four-year-old Rebecca piped up from her car seat in the back of the SUV. "Mrs. Harding told him to pull it out, and there were boogers on it! And then, Gina dared him to eat it, but Mrs. Harding made him put it in the garbage," she finished with a wide grin.

"That is disgusting Becky," Alex said, trying not to grin.

"But it was funny," Rebecca replied, giggling.

Alex shook her head, and listened to Rebecca chatter the whole way home.

Alex grinned at Bobby, who was standing on the front steps of their house. He must have gotten off of work early today.

"Daddy!" Rebecca called, sliding out of the vehicle and racing towards Bobby.

Bobby crouched down, opening his arms for the little girl.

In that picture perfect moment, no one could have guessed what would happen next. Bobby was reaching for his daughter, Alex was looking on with a smile, and Rebecca no more than ten feet from either of them.

Then, a masked figure came racing out from behind their house, arms wrapping around Rebecca and lifting her off the ground.

"Becky!" Alex and Bobby screamed, racing after the mask-clad figure.

"Daddy!" Rebecca cried, her arms reaching for Bobby.

Both Bobby and Alex raced after the figure. But he had reached a van parked on the road.

"Mommy, Daddy, HELP ME!" Rebecca screamed, tears streaming down her face while she flailed in her captor's arms.

The door to the van slammed shut, and the tires squealed as it peeled away from the curb.

Bobby made it close enough to slam his hand on the van before it sped away. Pumping his legs faster than he ever had, he raced after the van. But it turned the corner, and disappeared.

He continued racing in the direction it had gone, hopelessly trying to find it again.

He turned around and ran back in the direction of the house.

As he neared the house he heard a sound that would have made his hair stand on end if it wasn't already. Someone was screaming. No, not screaming. Wailing. A terrible wailing was echoing in the empty air.

As he neared his house, he saw Alex curled up on the front lawn. She was on her knees, with her torso resting on her legs. She was rocking back and forth and wailing.

Neighbors were starting to poke their heads out of their doors, trying to locate the sound.

Bobby rushed to his wife and wrapped his arms around her. Her wailing stopped and she looked up at him with wide eyes bright with unshed tears. She was unable to cry.

He stood up, pulling her small frame up with him easily. "We have to call 911," he told her. She nodded, and pulled away from him, heading in the direction of the house.

"What's up captain?" Detective Kevin Kirk asked as his captain walked towards him with a frown.

"We have a kidnapping – four- year-old girl," the captain replied. "There's a lot of pressure on this one guys, the victim is the daughter of an FBI agent and a cop."

"Do we know the parents?" Kirk's partner Joshua Mendel asked.

"I don't think any of us know them, Robert Goren and Alexandra Eames, formerly of the Major Case Squad," the captain answered. "Agent Goren works at the New York office of the FBI now, and Detective Eames works in computer crimes."

"I've heard of him, didn't the Chief of D's call him a whack job?" Mendel asked.

"It doesn't matter, all that matters is they were both cops, and their daughter has been kidnapped. Get over there," the captain said.

"Langley and Fisher are questioning the neighbors, hoping to find witnesses," Kirk told Mendel. "They have an amber alert out on Rebecca Goren, but so far none of the calls to the tip line have panned out. There's a trace ready on the home phone and the cell phone of both parents in case they get a ransom demand."

"We need to question the parents," Mendel said. Kirk nodded in agreement. The two detectives approached the kitchen, where Bobby was pacing restlessly, and Alex was sitting in a chair, completely still and staring at the wall.

Even if there had been people in the room besides the parents the detectives would have been able to pick them out. The man was pacing, with an angry look on his face and he seemed to be deep in thought. The woman sat in a chair, her blank eyes staring at something the rest of them couldn't see, frozen.

"Agent Goren, Detective Eames?" Kirk asked.

Bobby rushed over. Alex shook her head, as if to clear it, and then slowly got up from her chair and walked over to the detectives.

"You're the detectives on Rebecca's case?" Bobby asked.

Kirk nodded. "Kevin Kirk, my partner, Josh Mendel," he said, indicating Mendel.

"Do you have any leads, do you know anything, are there any hints about who might have done this or why…" Bobby sputtered.

"We need to ask you some questions," Kirk interrupted.

"I know," Bobby replied. "So ask."

"Can you tell us what happened?" Mendel asked.

"He just took her! I wanted to get her, but I couldn't save her…couldn't protect my own daughter…" Bobby continued to repeat this over and over "Couldn't save her…my own daughter…"

"Robert, please try to calm down, we need to get your statement in order to find your daughter," Kirk said, remembering too late that this man was an FBI agent as well as a father, and probably wouldn't appreciate being addressed by his first name.

"Bobby," Alex said, speaking for the first time.

"Excuse me?" Kirk asked.

"No one calls him Robert, his name is Bobby," Alex said, her eyes still unfocused.

"Alright then," Kirk said gently. "Bobby, can you tell us what happened?"

Bobby started shaking, tears filled his eyes. Alex rested her hand on his arm. "It's alright Bobby," she said. "I can tell them. You can get them a picture of…of Rebecca."

Though each handled their shock and grief differently, they knew how to be there for each other.

Bobby nodded and left the room. Alex forced her mind to shift into cop mode, distancing herself as much as she could.

"I had just come home from picking Rebecca up at daycare," Alex started. Kirk and Mendel pulled out their notebooks. "Bobby was home from work early, he was at the front door watching for us. I opened the car door for Rebecca and she went to meet Bobby. She couldn't have been further than ten feet from either of us." Alex shook her head, tears threatening to escape, but she held them back. "Then a man in a mask grabbed her and took her to a van that was waiting at the curb."

"Can you describe the man?" Kirk asked.

"He was…5'7'' maybe 150 pounds," Alex said. "He was wearing all black, including the ski mask."

"What about the vehicle?" Mendel asked.

"It was a white van, no markings, the windows were painted over."

"And did the kidnapper get into the driver's seat?" Mendel asked.

"No, someone opened the back doors of the van so that the...kidnapper could get in, and then the van drove away. There must have been three people involved," she muttered at the end, almost to herself.

"Did you happen to-"

"I didn't see the license plate," Alex said before Kirk could finish asking the question.

"Did you?" Mendel asked Bobby as he came back into the room.

"The first letter was B, the numbers were 4501," Bobby said. "I remember, because I married Alex on the fourth day of the fifth month and we have one child," Bobby said. "Those were definitely the numbers."

Mendel raised his eyebrows at Kirk. A terrified father thought to check the license plate? But then again, he was an FBI agent. Both detectives jotted down the number. Mendel excused himself and left the room, calling the captain to give him the license plate.

"Here," Bobby said, and handed a photo of Rebecca to Kirk. It was one Alex had taken just three days before. Rebecca had been dressed up in a princess costume, tiara and all. She grinned widely up at the camera. Bobby stared at the photo until Kirk turned it to face him, looking at the little girl.

"Do either of you have any idea who could have done this?"

"Well, we've both arrested plenty of people, but no one stands out," Alex replied, and glanced at Bobby. He shook his head.

"Maybe someone you know? Someone personal?"

"I don't think so," Bobby replied, frustrated that he couldn't be more helpful.

"All right, that's everything. Do you have anyone you can call?" Kirk asked.

"I can call my sister," Alex said. "But I'd rather be alone, here, just in case someone calls, and you can reach us right away if you get any leads," Alex said, her eyes meeting Kirk's for the first time.

Kirk nodded. If he was in her situation, he could only imagine what he would do. He knew that he wouldn't call anyone either – there's nothing anyone can do.

A/N: Thanks for reading; I'd appreciate any reviews. Questions, comments, or need for clarification are all welcome :)