Chapter 1
"Holy pineapple! Jules, I got it! I know who did it~" Shawn yelled. Juliet glanced over at the 5' 10" man. His shiny brown hair glistened in the sun. "Who is it? Is it the head of the gang? I knew it!" She assumed and cheered quietly. "No, it was that emo assistant. She has the guy!" Shawn said, with two fingers on his temple. "But her alibi checked out." Juliet's smile faded and she lowered her eyebrows. "Exactly. The bar she was at, showed her leaving at eight thirty-four. Austin left his house at eight. The bar is thirty minutes from Austin's house, which means he probably went to the bar, where he was kidnapped. So, if we go to that emo chick's house, we should find Austin!" Shawn stood up and pulled Juliet out of her chair. "Are you sure?" She asked uneasily. "More sure than I'm sure that we'll be getting married." He joked. Juliet felt her cheeks heat up and she rolled her eyes. Shawn always flirted with her. He liked her a lot, but she didn't feel the same way. Sure, he was a great guy, with a silly personality and great looks, but she just didn't want to date him. She didn't even really want a boyfriend. And when she did want one, she would want one who was romantic and made her feel special. She didn't think Shawn could really do that. He just seemed so immature. They got into Juliet's green Volkswagen bug and began driving. They already knew where she lived. Shawn would usually be working with Gus, but he was on a company field trip. So, Juliet and Shawn were partners for the day.
As they approached the house, Shawn stopped Juliet. "You might want to have your gun ready, and I hope you have your 'probable cause' door kicking shoes on. Oh, and can I have a gun?" He rambled. "I'm ready and no you may not have a gun. You are technically not a detective." She explained cocking her gun. "But Juleeees, what am I going to do when the emo girl pulls out her razors?" He joked, stretching out her name, like he always did when he wanted something. "Just use your hand as a fake gun." Juliet suggested and pulled her arm from Shawn's hand—which she hadn't noticed until now, was grabbing her arm.
She stood at the door and took a deep breath. She lifted her foot and kicked down the door effortlessly. "SBPD! Come out with your hands up!" She yelled. Shawn held his hand up like a gun and made fake shooting noises. Juliet eyed him. "Wait, Jules!" His voice was serious. "What is it, Shawn?" She asked turning towards him. "I'm out of ammo." He joked and she shook her head. She went to a bedroom, after seeing the living room was empty, and kicked down the door. Inside, the emo assistant held Austin at gunpoint. His mouth was gagged with a rag and he had a look of horror on his face. The woman cocked her gun and pointed it at Austin. On the bed behind her, was a lifeless body. "T-take another step and h-he dies." She stuttered. "Don't move. I have a hand-gun. Ooh, Jules, can we make sure that goes on the report?" Shawn asked laughing at his own joke. Juliet ignored him. "This wasn't supposed to happen." The woman muttered. "I was supposed to kill my daughter, then Austin, then me." She paced the room. "Where is your daughter?" Juliet asked moving her gun to follow the woman. "She's on the bed. I already killed her. Look, you can take Austin, but you can't take me." She lifted the gun to her head. "No! Don't do it! Think about your daughter!" Juliet tried to convince her. "She's dead." She said, and with a bang, she fell to the floor.
"Damn it." Juliet cursed and checked her pulse. "I'll get the kid." Shawn ran to the pale girl's side. He pressed his fingers to her neck and felt it pulsing. "Oh my—she's alive!" Shawn's mouth fell open and his eyes fell on a pill bottle next to the young girl. "Jules! We need to go now. This girl was drugged. Bad. Call someone to get Austin." Shawn demanded and picked up the nearly dead body in his arms. Juliet got out her phone and began calling Lassiter. She helped Austin out of the chair he was strapped in. "Hurry!" Shawn yelled.
Soon, they were in Juliet's car. Shawn checked the young girl's pulse every few seconds to make sure she was still alive. The small child had bleach blonde hair. Her skin was pale, and she had dark circles under her eyes. Shawn ran his fingers through her long knotted hair. "Hurry, Jules! You're going slower than a snail." He rushed her. "Shawn I'm going eighty! No snail can go that fast." She said passing a red light. "Go ninety!" Shawn yelled checking her pulse. It took just ten minutes to get to the hospital, but it felt like years to Shawn.
Shawn rushed in holding the girl he had become attached to and pounded on the secretary desk. "Get doctors now! This girl isn't going to live much longer!" Shawn exclaimed. The secretary quickly ordered doctors to the room over the intercom. Shawn's heart raced as two doctors ran in and placed the dying girl on a stretcher. "Are you two her parents?" The doctor asked. Shawn nodded. They don't need to know. He thought. Juliet looked at him, and went along with it. "We will alert you when she's done with her treatment." She explained and left.
Shawn sat down in a chair and ran his fingers through his hair. "Are you okay? You're acting like this actually is your daughter." Juliet nudged him. "It is my daughter for now. Her mother just died, and I doubt she has a father." Shawn leaned back in his chair and sighed. Juliet had never seen him take something so seriously.
Thirty agonizing minutes later, a doctor came out. "Sir, your daughter is doing okay. She is still asleep, but you can go see her." He explained. Shawn stood up without hesitating, thanked the doctor, and walked to the room. Juliet followed close behind. When Shawn saw the scraggly girl in the bed, his heart melted. Her chest moved up and down with each breath she took. Shawn pulled a chair up to her bed. His heart longed for her to wake up and thank him for saving her, but he knew it was a bad time. Juliet cooed at the girl, who looked so helpless. "Sh-should we wake her up?" Shawn asked really hoping the answer was yes. Juliet shrugged. "You should probably let her sleep. Those sleeping pills can make you really tired." Juliet explained. Shawn looked at the girl. She looked about five, maybe four. Don't worry. I'll take care of you. He thought. With that, the girl began to shuffle in her bed. The girl reached out her hand, as if she was trying to grab something. Shawn grabbed her tiny hand. The girl instantly sat up. She looked at Shawn and pushed his hand away. At first, he was disappointed, until she threw up right on herself. "W-w-where's m-my m-m-m-mommy?" The girl asked. "Sweetie, your mommy isn't here right now. What's your name?" Juliet asked. The girl shuddered. "E-Eliza. Why isn't my mommy here?" She asked with tears brimming in her eyes. "She's in trouble. She'll be back soon." Shawn lied easily. The girl squeezed her eyes shut and then opened them again, causing tears to drip down her cheeks. "Eliza, my name is Shawn, and this is Juliet. We'll take care of you until your mommy is back." Shawn smiled. Juliet glanced at him. "W-what if my m-mommy doesn't come back? Last time, she went to jail. I almost had to get a new home." Eliza asked pulling her knees to her chest. "We'll make sure you get a good home." Juliet chimed in.
A few minutes later, a doctor came in and saw the mess on her sheets. "Should I go get her some new bedding?" The doctor inquired. Shawn nodded. "When can I leave?" She asked the doctor. "In about four or five hours. We have to wait for the medicine to wear off." The doctor explained. Eliza kicked the soiled bed sheets away from her. The doctor collected them and left. "I don't want another mommy. They're bad." She mumbled. Juliet lowered her eyebrows. "My mommy said she was dying soon. Is she dead?" She asked innocently. Shawn felt his heart sink. Right as he began to say something, the doctor walked in with new blankets and sheets.