Lockdown
A CSI Miami fiction


Chapter One: Get Down

The gray-brown Hummer, the words Miami-Dade CSI scrawled on the side, pulled to a stop at the red light. To the right was a blue pick-up truck and a white sedan sat to his left. Behind the crime lab vehicle was a familiar sight, a black and white patrol car. Speed looked in his rear-view mirror at the uniformed officer, a man that had joined the force while he was away on leave. So much had changed in his time away, laid up for months in order to recuperate after the shooting that nearly killed him. The lab had a new forensic investigator in the way of Ryan Wolfe, an obsessive man that emulated Horatio. There was the new detective on the block, a Mr. Jake Berkeley, and if he understood correctly the guy had a past with Calleigh. Then there was the fact that Tripp had moved from detective to sergeant and they had a new audio-visual tech named Cooper. He hated trying to remember all the new names and how things had changed in the lab since he'd left. However the biggest thing to have happened was an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation using their mole, Natalia. Speed was happy that he never got the chance to meet her because he wouldn't have had anything nice to say to her. The lab was his home away from home and she nearly brought the place down. He was happy knowing that she'd been removed from the lab and sent to spy on other people.

There had been so many changes...so many lost months.

His first week back on the job and he was happy that today, a Friday, he was finally out of the lab. He understood that Horatio was a little reluctant to let him back out into the world but the apron strings had to be cut. Not that he mind working in the lab, at least it meant that he wasn't still sitting in his apartment reading books and watching daytime television. When the others could find the time outside of work to visit him they would hang out, hit the clubs or maybe check out a new movie. But always hanging over them like an oppressive fog was their worry for him. He'd been shot in the chest, the bullet barely missing his heart and lungs. Though he'd read the reports on the shooting and the stories written in the newspapers he couldn't really recall that day detail for detail the way he wanted. He remembered the blood, the way Horatio looked at him with worry, the cold feeling that settled over his body…

Looking at the steering wheel he saw that his knuckles were white from holding it too tightly. He let the memory of the shooting fade from his mind but the ache in his chest persisted. A ghost pain, that's what the doctor called it. Still, it hurt and he found himself rubbing the spot in an attempt to drive the pain away. Hidden underneath his black t-shirt was an ugly scar, a constant reminder of how close he'd come to dying. Just thinking about it sent a shiver down his spine, could make him break out in a sweat.

The light turned green as the radio began to crackle. He turned-up the volume to better hear what the dispatcher was saying. There had been a hit and run near the center of town, any officers in the vicinity were to respond. He wasn't close enough so he let it slide as he started through the intersection. But before he reached the other side the radio crackled to life again. This time he heard the familiar tone of his boss. The crime scene was only a few blocks away. He flipped on the sirens as the officer in the patrol car did the same. People cleared out of their way as best they could but it was lunch time in Miami and the streets were clogged with cars. As he cut through traffic where he could he thought about what he was heading into. His first day out of the lab and now it was finally getting exciting. He'd been sent to transport a piece of evidence, which remained locked up in the back of the Hummer, but now it looked like he was actually going to get to do his job.

Ten minutes later he pulled up in front of the scene behind the other Hummer on the scene. Yellow crime tape cordoned off the area. There were uniformed officers talking to a few stragglers to see if maybe they had seen anything. Speed climbed out of the vehicle and went around back to get his kit. He looked at the house before him, a palace compared to where he lived. There was blood on the driveway and a body covered with a white sheet between a closed garage door and what looked like a brand new Mercedes convertible. He waved at Alexx, the medical examiner, who was putting something into her kit. The front door of the place hung open, a gaping hole that led him to the crime scene within. He noticed the smear of blood across the otherwise untouched door. Following the sound of voices he found himself in the rather high-ceilinged living room.

Delko, his best friend, turned to look at him, smiling. They hadn't seen each other all day, Speed having been sent one way and Delko the other. Now his friend was beaming from ear to ear with amusement. "Nice shirt, nice to see that you still have a sense of humor."

Speed looked down at his shirt. The solid black was broken up by the simple statement of 'I see dead people'. He looked at Delko. "My mom sent it to me."

"Your mom still picks out your clothes? That's sweet," Delko barbed.

"At least she has a sense of style," said Speed as he set down his kit. "I'm not sure what to call what you have but it definitely isn't style."

"It's good to have you back."

"So you've said about a hundred times since Monday."

He shrugged. "What can I say? I missed working with you."

At that moment Calleigh came walking through the doorway out of what looked to be the kitchen. She saw Speed and set her camera down on the table before rushing up to give him a hug. He inhaled the aroma of her shampoo, welcomed the warmth in her hug. Of all of them she seemed to be the one most worried about him. He couldn't help but wonder if it had something to do with Hagen's attempted suicide in her gun lab. Last he'd heard the detective was still on forced leave because he failed to pass the psychology tests. They slipped apart.

Calleigh smiled, her eyes twinkling. "Your first scene back on the job and it's a triple homicide, how thrilling."

"You have a wonderful sense of looking at things," Speed commented.

"Let's get to work people," Horatio said as he walked into the room. "I've just learned that the missing father is a friend of the mayor. This case is now the only one we have and the faster we can close it the better off everyone will be."

Without another word they got started doing their jobs. Calleigh collected all the evidence related to the firearm used to commit the crime; casings, bullets, and even a silencer that someone had taken the time to hide in the toilet upstairs. Delko busied himself photographing the scene, paying special attention to the blood spatter and the position of the bodies. Speed spent his time collecting evidence of the bodies; fibers, hairs, and anything else that looked out of place and possibly useful. Horatio conversed with Alexx in hushed tones about the victims; a mother, a teenage son, and a five-year-old girl. The hours passed and before any of them realized it the sun was hovering above the horizon. None of them had been back to the lab with all the work the scene demanded. Horatio turned to look at Speed and Delko, about to tell them that it was time to back up and head back when Calleigh yelled from the direction of the garage. It sounded like she'd said something about a dog. Horatio and Delko started in that direction. Speed stood.

And the wall of glass that looked out at the water behind him exploded.

"Get down!" Horatio yelled as he pulled his weapon and ducked into the safety of the doorway. Delko hit the floor behind the sofa and Speed froze, his mind racing back to the jewelry store. "Speed!"

The shooter fired again, more glass broke and Speed hit the floor. People were yelling, shots were returned as the cops that had been around front raced toward the backyard. But from the sounds of things it was too late, the shooter escaping on a waiting boat. Someone yelled into a radio for help from the coast guard. Silence settled over the house until Calleigh came down the hallway, her heels clicking on the tile floor. Delko peeked out from behind the couch. Horatio holstered his gun, the color draining from his face. Speed was lying on the floor on his back gasping for air, his hands bloody.

"Speed," Horatio cried out, racing toward his fallen friend, his mind going back in time to a similar day. He fell to his knees in the field of shattered glass, his hands reaching out to Speed. The minute he touched the fallen investigator Speed reacted, pushing against the floor with his feet. In a matter of minutes his back was pressed against Horatio's chest and his boss embraced him to offer comfort and a sense of protection. The worry and panic that filled the air began to dissipate as they realized that the blood was from cuts to his hand that he'd sustained when he hit the ground, the broken glass littering the floor. Speed's own panic, however, took longer to subside, his heart racing a mile a minute. While Delko and Calleigh headed outside to investigate Horatio remained where he was holding his panicked friend.