"Beth…" Will whispered to the young girl standing next to him as their eyes locked on the desk across the precinct. He squatted next to her, his arm draped over her shoulder.
"What?" she whispered back, looking over at him with her wide, innocent six-year-old eyes.
Will was a whole three years older than her, which meant she was ready to do whatever he said.
An evil grin crept across the corner's of his mouth as he lined up the two adults at the desk in his sites. He brushed a shock of shaggy blonde hair out of his eyes and pointed at them.
"See Chief Lassiter?" he whispered.
She nodded, her eyes still wide and unblinking. "Uh-huh."
"You have to distract him while I get the keys from Detective Buzz, okay?"
"Why?"
He snorted, as if not believing she even dared to question him. "Because without the keys, we can't get into the holding cell!" he explained.
"Why would we want to get into the holding cell?"
"Because it's cool! And my dad said he got arrested once…I think he robbed a bank or something." Will shrugged off the details breezily, gently prodding the girl towards the desk. "So…" he ordered, his voice quiet so no one else could hear. "Go distract Chief Lassiter."
"Okay…" she agreed hesitantly, taking a tentative step away from Will. She looked back, her brow wrinkled in concern, but he just waved her on.
She took a deep breath and walked up to the two police officers. Detective Buzz was behind the desk, and Chief Lassiter was leaning against it, barking orders at the younger man.
"Close it today, McNab!" he was grunting as Beth approached.
"Yes, Sir," Detective Buzz nodded grimly, then smiled and waved slightly when he saw Beth, glancing over at Chief Lassiter nervously as he did so. "Hey, Beth."
"Hi, Detective Buzz," she returned his wave, smiling sweetly.
"I think you're dad's on a case with Shawn," he told her. "Were you looking for him?"
"No," she shook her head, her black braids smacking the sides of her head. "I was looking for Chief Lassiter."
"Me?" Lassiter blinked, looking surprised and somewhat peeved. "Why are you looking for me, Guster?"
"Uh…" she stammered, glancing back at the doorway where she had left Will, but he was gone. "Uh…"
"What?" Lassiter snapped impatiently, crossing his arms over his chest, clearly not caring she was only six-years-old. "I'm busy, Guster. Spit it out!"
"Uh…" her mind was completely blank as she stared at the carpet. "Where do babies come from?" she burst out suddenly, looking back up at their now terrified, pale faces.
"What?" Lassiter stammered as Detective Buzz suppressed a laugh.
"Where do babies come from?" she repeated, her eyes darting around the station looking for Will. She knew he was somewhere near by, waiting for a chance to grab the keys to the holding cell off of Detective Buzz's belt. She finally spotted him behind the plant in the corner, peering out between the leaves.
Lassiter glanced over at Detective Buzz. "McNab?" he grunted. "Do you--?"
"No, Sir!" Buzz shook his head.
Lassiter scowled. "Go close those cases!" he ordered, gesturing emphatically at the door.
"Yes, Sir!" Buzz jumped up and beat a quick retreat, still trying not to laugh. Beth followed him with her eyes, watching as Will ducked behind desks and counters as he followed him.
"Guster!" Lassiter snapped, interrupting her thoughts.
"Huh?" she asked, blinking up at him.
He hesitated, looking more than a little uncomfortable, then cleared his throat. "What was the question?"
"Um…babies."
"Right."
He leaned back against the desk, sighing heavily as he appraised the girl in front of him. "Don't you have parents for this?" he demanded.
"Yeah…" she nodded. "But dad told me to ask mom and mom said that dad needs to man up and have the talk…"
Lassiter rolled his eyes. "Well, go ask someone else," he grunted, walking away.
"Okay…" she shrugged, turning and skipping off. "If you don't know, I'll just ask someone--"
Lassiter whirled back around, his eyes narrowing. "I know!" he shouted, his ears turning red.
She turned back around and faced him, the very picture of complete innocence. "Really?" she asked, folding her arms skeptically across his chest.
"Yes!"
"Then where do they come from?" she demanded, tapping her foot impatiently.
Lassiter cleared his throat again, hesitating. "Well…" he started, but never got any further.
"Help!" a screaming voice cut through the relative quiet of the precinct. "Help!"
Lassiter jumped, looking around. "What the hell--?"
"Help!"
He quickly followed the sound down the corridor that led to the holding cells, followed closely by Beth.
"Help!" the terrified voice continued to scream.
He stopped dead when he reached the first holding cell.
Will Spencer was in it, on his hands and knees straining to reach out the bars. Detective McNab's keys were on the floor a few feet away.
"Spencer!" Lassiter growled, snatching the keys up off the floor. "What the hell--?"
"Uh..." Will stammered, quickly scrambling to his feet. "I was…just…checking the lock for you?" He cleared his throat and tapped the door smartly. "Yep…they work."
Beth laughed. "You're locked in, Will!"
He scowled at her. "Then let me out!"
Lassiter rolled his eyes and spun on his heel, marching away. "I've waited too long toget a Spencer behind bars," he grunted over his shoulder. "At least I'll know where the hell you are until your dad and Guster get back."
"Oh, come on!" Will called after him, tugging pitifully on the bars. "You can't leave me in here! Don't I have rights or something? Isn't this child abuse?"