Horatio woke up to an empty bed. Neither he nor Calleigh were late sleepers but it was very early for her to be up. Calleigh's side was still warm. He smiled, slipped out of bed and followed the sound of her singing to the kitchen. Her back was to him and he leaned against the doorframe, just looking at her. She wore nothing but one of his shirts and her fluffy pink slippers. He admired her bare legs for a moment before going up behind her and sliding his hands around her waist.
"Good morning, beautiful."
"You know, the point of breakfast in bed is for you to be in bed."
"I was missing you too much."
She chuckled. "I've been in here for five minutes!"
"Five minutes too long." He nuzzled her neck. "Come back to bed. We don't have to be at work for another hour."
She continued making the coffee, deliberately bumping against him. "I'm too wide awake to go back to sleep."
He slipped a hand under her shirt. "Who said anything about sleeping?"
Calleigh turned to face him and held out his mug. "Why, Lieutenant Caine, if you're not careful, I'll tell my mother on you."
"Your mother's in Darnell." He set the mug on the counter and lowered his mouth to hers. "And she likes me."
"My daddy, then."
"Your daddy likes me too."
Calleigh laughed. "You've got an answer for everything, don't you?"
Horatio took her wrists and pulled her back to the bedroom. "We have to be quiet. My wife's around here somewhere."
"I don't know if this is such a good idea then. I've heard she's a jealous woman."
Horatio shook his head, then picked Calleigh up and carried her the rest of the way. Laughing, he said, "I'll take the blame."
Speed wiped the beads of sweat from his brow as he walked up the flight of stairs to his apartment. It was strange, he thought with a smile, how quickly it had gone from being just a place to live to a home. Ada was responsible for that.
He grinned. She was responsible for most of what was good in his life right now. He'd never thought that interpreting for her would be the best thing that had ever happened to him. He had his mother to thank for that; it was at her urging that he'd learned sign language. Like most rebellious teenagers, he'd balked at the idea, but eventually his mother had her way and now he was as fluent in sign language as if he'd been speaking it all his life.
He should call his mother, he thought. Or he could surprise her by visiting for her birthday next month. Maybe Ada would be willing to go with him. By the time he reached his floor, he knew he couldn't wait for her to meet his mother.
Just that morning, Ada had teased him about it. She'd waited for him to finish tying his running shoes before she signed, "It's because you're embarrassed to take me home."
"No, I'm not. How can you say that?"
She shrugged. "Because it's true. I know you only want me for my body—"
He pushed her down onto the bed, tickling her. It still blew his mind that she couldn't hear her own laughter. "Well, you got me there, babe."
"That's okay. You don't think I'm with you for your mind, do you?"
He smiled in memory of the conversation. Yes, he thought, time for his mother to meet Ada. He was certain they'd hit it off. He had a feeling that Ada might even be the first girl his mother approved of.
He pulled his shorts off as he entered the apartment. He'd been so busy daydreaming that his jog had taken longer than usual. He would have to shower quickly if he was going to get to work on time.
There was a note from Ada taped to the bathroom mirror. Gone to meeting at gallery. See you tonight. Love you, Ada. P.S. Pop Tarts don't count as breakfast! There are muffins in the kitchen. A.
Speed smiled. Maybe it was time to think about making this permanent.
"Babe, I have to go to work." Delko stood at the foot of the bed. The figure under the covers moved, then Genevieve's head appeared. Her hair was tousled and her eyes were bleary from lack of sleep.
"So go."
"I just . . . Are we okay?"
"We're fine." She disappeared again, pulling the covers up over her head.
Delko wished that were true. He'd hardly seen Genevieve at all last week; she'd got a part in a physical theater piece and had been rehearsing almost all day, every day. Delko wasn't sure exactly what physical theater was – he figured it was some kind of dancing – but he was happy for her. He'd thought this meant her nights would be free, but when she wasn't rehearsing, she was sleeping.
He realized that he couldn't remember the last time they'd actually had a proper conversation. The physical side of their relationship was still great, but they didn't talk anymore.
Delko didn't want to lose her.
"Okay. I'll see you later. Maybe we can go out for dinner."
Genevieve mumbled something incoherent. Delko held back his sigh and left.
Will held her down. Her eyes were wide with fright as she gasped desperately for air but found only water. She tried to fight him, but he was bigger and stronger.
It was over quickly. She stopped struggling, growing limp in his arms. A few final bubbles escaped her lungs.
Will stepped out of the pond and studied his handiwork. He closed his eyes and compared it to the picture in his mind.
Almost perfect.
He brushed a strand of blonde hair away from her face and turned her hands so the palms were facing up. He carefully placed a lily in her right hand and closed the fingers around it.
There. Perfect.
Ophelia was ready to be seen.
An anonymous caller dialed 911 shortly before noon. The location came as a surprise; murders rarely happened in cemeteries. Alexx and Adele were already there when Horatio and Calleigh arrived. Alexx stood as they made their way through the headstones to the memorial garden. When Calleigh saw the tears in Alexx's eyes, she knew this was really bad.
Looking past Alexx at the body in the pond, it wasn't clear what had upset the ME. When Calleigh got closer, it hit her. The woman's unseeing blue eyes were raised to the sky. Her hair floated in long blonde strands, a halo of death. Just yesterday, Calleigh had laughed with her.
She looked back at Horatio. "Oh, my God."
He stared at the body for a long time, his expression unreadable. Then he reached into his pocket, pulled out his cell phone and dialed. His voice was tinged with pain as he said, "Eric, I have some bad news."
Calleigh didn't want to eavesdrop on the conversation. She set her field kit down and mechanically started to process the scene. She tried to distance herself in the hope that it would hurt less, and could see that Alexx was doing the same. Neither of the women felt like talking and worked in silence until Alexx burst out with, "This is going to kill him."
Calleigh nodded. She raised her camera to take another photograph, and felt Horatio's arms encircle her from behind.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Not really. You?"
He shook his head, then released her. "Eric's with Tim now. He said he'd tell him."
They were quiet as they documented the evidence, took photos and walked the scene. If the dead woman were anyone else, they'd be talking to each other and sharing opinions. This case was different. This was personal.
Alexx had just zipped up the body bag when Speed arrived.
"Where is she?"
Horatio intercepted him before he reached the stretcher. "Tim."
"Where is she? I want to see her! I have to—"
"Tim."
"Please."
Horatio stepped aside. Speed approached the stretcher and slowly pulled the zipper down. He reached out to touch Ada, then stopped mid-gesture. Calleigh couldn't watch; she felt like she was intruding on something very personal.
"I'm so sorry," Horatio said.
"I didn't even know she was missing." Speed's voice was expressionless. "I thought she was at the gallery. She was supposed to be at the gallery. She was going to have a show."
"Go home, Tim."
Speed shook his head. "I want this case."
"Tim—"
"I have to help. I have to solve this."
Horatio gently drew him away from the body. "You're barely functioning. Go home. Get some rest."
Speed nodded but it was clear his mind was elsewhere. "Her parents. I should tell her parents."
He looked at the body again. Alexx came up to him and touched his arm. "I'll take care of her, Timmy."
"Yeah . . ."
Horatio motioned for an officer to approach. "Please could you make sure Detective Speedle gets home?"
When Speed left, looking as if he were in a trance, Horatio hugged Calleigh again. He brushed her hair away from her face, kissed her forehead, then pulled away. "Come on. We've got work to do."
