I do not own CSI Miami but I do own Mercedes, Rascal and Samson.

Mercedes Sinclair walked into Miami Dade crime lab on her first day and still couldn't get over the beauty of it. She was given her badge and gun by Horatio Caine and shown around the crime lab the day before. Mercedes look forward to meeting her co workers and starting work in the trace lab and field.

Horatio met her this morning and saw her to the lab.

"See me if you need anything Ms. Sinclair," Horatio said kindly.

"Thank you Lieutenant, "Mercedes said gratefully. She walked around the lab and familiarized herself more with where everything was.

Eric and Ryan walked by and noticed the new brunette. She was tall with long curly brown hair and light green eyes. Her skin was lightly tanned and she wore all back with polished cowboy boots. The two men walked in and introduced themselves.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Mercedes Sinclair," Mercedes introduced herself in a light southern accent.

"Ryan Wolfe."

"Eric Delko," Eric and Ryan introduced and shook hands.

"Nice to meet both of you." Mercedes said. They talked to her for a minute then moved on to do their jobs. Mercedes started to run the trace samples from a few cases and record the results. Calleigh came in for work and went to meet Mercedes as well.

"Hi are you are new trace expert?" Calliegh asked.

"Yes I am."

"Calliegh Duquesne, I'm in ballistics," Calliegh introduced.

"Mercedes Sinclair," Mercedes said and they shook hands.

"Nice to meet you." Calliegh said. "I don't want to be rude but did you run the White case samples?"

"Yes I did, the sample was a mix of sugar and cocaine." Mercedes said and gave her the results.

"Thank you, did Horatio give you a case to work?"

"Not yet," Mercedes shrugged.

"If we get another call which we probably will I will get you on it," Calliegh said.

"Thank you ma'am," Mercedes said and finished the work on her desk. She was done in two hours and went to get something to drink from the break room.

"How are you doing Ms. Sinclair?" Horatio asked her.

"Fine Lt. I love the lab," Mercedes said and poured herself some coffee.

"I'm glad you do. You can go out in the field the next call in, it's actually a slow day," H chuckled.

"Sounds good," Mercedes said.

She worked with the team for the rest of the week and worked on her small flat on the outskirts of Miami on the weekend. She had grown up in Worthville Kentucky and worked in Lexington as a CSI for 10 years. Mercedes had looked for a new change of scenery and found a steady job and nice house in Miami.

The flat had been vacant for about three years and the yard and some of the inside needed work. Growing up on a farm Mercedes had learned to fix anything from fences to roofs. They had raised horses, corn, tomatoes, apples, peaches, pears, and a few other vegetables.

She started on the linoleum floors which had rotted in some places, fixed some of the piping, and worked on the flowerbeds and overgrown bushes. Her two cats, Rascal and Samson explored the gardens and climbed around in the attic. Rascal's striped grey coat disguised him in the shadows but Samson's bright white fur and dark spots gave him away. Boxes were still stacked in the living room and she was in the process of organizing the rooms.

Mercedes owned two horses, Minerva and Aslan. Minerva was a grey Arabian mare and Aslan was a chestnut appaloosa gelding. Her saddles and bridles were still in the house but were covered up to prevent the cats from ruining the leather.

After working at the yard and floors all day she took a long break for dinner and started unpacking the rest of the boxes in the living room. By the time Mercedes finished it was well past midnight.

She woke up late in the morning and took her saddles and other horse supplies out to the horse complex. The horses seemed to be settled well and Mercedes spent the rest of the day on the beach.

On Monday morning she was woken by the heat of sun across her back. Mercedes looked to her alarm clock which was not on.

"Damn!" she cursed and jumped out of bed. The cord on her digital clock was chewed in two. "Rascals!" she called but the offender was nowhere to be seen. Samson purred and rolled onto his back to expose his white belly and look innocent. Mercedes sighed and dashed into the refurbished bathroom to take a quick shower.

By the time she arrived at the crime lab she was 45 minutes late. Mercedes crept into her lab and was relieved at not being confronted. She set her purse down and looked at the work load on her desk and began to take care of it.

"Ms. Sinclair," Horatio said softly from the doorway and made her jump.

"Yes Lieutenant?" she asked.

"You were late this morning." Horatio stated.

"My alarm clock was vandalized but I have a suspect and he is in custody," Mercedes said with a straight face.

"Puppy?" Horatio asked.

"A spoiled and stressed out kitty," Mercedes said.

"Make sure he is seen by the prison therapist. Good police work Ms. Sinclair," Horatio said.

"Thank you lieutenant," Mercedes said.

"Call me Horatio," H said with a smile.

"Ok Horatio," Mercedes smiled back.

"Oh and IAB is on a rampage today just to let you know," H said.

"Great," Mercedes groaned and Horatio left her chuckling to himself. She worked for another half hour before being interrupted. Rick Stetler walked through the trace lab door and shut it behind him.

"Mercedes Sinclair?" Rick asked.

"Yes sir?" Mercedes cringed, this IAB didn't seem like he gave a lot of slack.

"You were late this morning am I correct?" Rick asked in a clipped tone.

"Yes sir."

"And why were you late?"

"My cat ate my alarm clock cord and it didn't go off," Mercedes explained weakly.

"He must have issues. I thought my cat was the only one who did things like that," Rick chuckled. Mercedes relaxed a little bit.

"That's not even scratching the surface," she said.

"What are you doing Friday?" Rick asked innocently.

"I will be sitting at home," Mercedes said.

"Would you like to go out?"

"To where?"

"Texas Road house," Rick offered.

"Sounds good," Mercedes agreed.

"See you then right after work?"

"Okay."

"Don't mention this to anyone and you are forgiven for being late," Rick said and left the lab. Mercedes hummed to herself and went through the hectic day in Miami with a new outlook.

She went home and was greeted by her chirping cats. Mercedes picked Rascal up and hugged him.

"You will be released on bail and get a treat," she cooed and put the cats on the counter to feed them. Ming? Rascal meowed and looked at her innocently. "I love your feline intuition," Mercedes clarified and fed the cats a little bit of tuna. "And I forgot to get a new alarm clock."