A/N : I hope you're still here :) Thank you! This is the instalment chapter for this story and I hope you love it. R&R?
"Hey Eric, where's Horatio?" Calleigh asked in her chirpy tone.
"No idea. Have you checked his office?"
"Yeah I did. Even asked around but no one has seen him. This is so unusual of him; being late. Usually he's the first to come in."
"I don't know. Try giving him a call. Maybe he went to a scene?"
"Well if he's at a scene, then why are we here." Calleigh chuckled. "Yeah okay I'm goin' to call him." She continued as fished out her cellphone and made a call to Horatio's.
"No answer." Calleigh said. "Try again?" Calleigh then tried again but the result were the same. There was still no answer. She waited another 10 minutes to dial his number again. "Still no answer. Did he say anything to you? Maybe he's goin' somewhere?"
"Nope. Try asking Frank. Maybe he knows." Eric said. Deep down he was getting worried as seconds passed by especially after yesterday's talk he had with Horatio. "You know what Cal, I think I'm going to check on him at his place. It's already 10. He was supposed to be in 2 hours ago. He knows better to inform us if he's going to be late."
"I'm taggin'. I have the key to his apartment. For emergency." Eric nodded. He wouldn't want to break into Horatio's apartment without any concrete reasoning. During the ride, Eric sped his way, hoping that Horatio hadn't done anything stupid. He knew that Horatio was devastated and distraught. As soon as they reached Horatio's place, they rushed to the door and knocked on it but there was no response. Calleigh used her set of keys to open the door and both she and Eric split up to check on Horatio. Eric took the second floor while Calleigh took the first.
"Calleigh! I've got something!" Eric shouted and rushed down to the first floor with an empty unlabeled bottle.
"What is it Eric?" She asked, panicking and waiting for him to catch his breath. He showed her the bottle and Calleigh gasped. "Oh my god. What's going on Eric?" She asked.
"We better find him. Search every corner of the house. I've covered the top floor. So you'll cover the house, I'll cover the perimeter of the house. Call for help Cal. This doesn't look good." Eric instructed and Calleigh nodded, fishing out her cellphone and immediately called for help. She quickly continued her search for Horatio.
She suddenly stopped, froze at the sight of Horatio lying on his back on the kitchen floor with white foam formed in his mouth.
"ERIC! YOU NEED TO GET IN HERE QUICK!" She hollered Eric immediately as she rushed to Horatio's side and saw an empty bottle of whiskey by his side. "Oh Handsome. What happened to you. You shouldn't have resorted to this and you know it." She whispered as she wiped of the foam around his mouth.
"Wha-" Eric gasped as he stood there flabbergasted at the view right before him. "Oh my god H." At that moment, he saw the empty bottle of whiskey and he summed it up. 'Oh God H. Didn't I tell you to come to me. I should have known you better not to leave you alone yesterday.' He thought to himself.
"Eric, he's not breathing." Calleigh said as tears formed in her eyes. He quickly went over and crouched beside him. Just then, the paramedics came in.
"Ma'am, Sir, please step aside." They instructed as they started working on him.
"He's not breathing." Calleigh told them.
"We're doing our best here Ma'am." They tried to revive him by shocking his heart. "We got a pulse!" The paramedic hollered as they quickly lifted him up onto the stretcher and put him into the ambulance.
"Ma'am, can you tell me what happened?" The paramedic asked as he attended to Horatio.
"We don't know. We arrived and found him lying there on the floor."
"Alright. We'll do our best." At that point, there was a beep, indicating that his blood pressure was decreasing. "We're losing him! Get the defibrillator!" They shocked him twice before getting him back. "He's back!"
"Hang on Horatio. Just hang on. Don't give up just yet."
As they reached the hospital, they quickly transferred him onto the gurney and was brought into the emergency room. Eric and Calleigh had to wait at the waiting lounge. Eric was pacing up and down, worried about what might happen to Horatio while Calleigh was seated on the couch, just staring into blank space. She too, was worried about what might happen to Horatio because his condition wasn't looking good at that point of time.
"Eric, what happened?" Calleigh finally broke the silence.
"I don't know Cal. I thought he was fine yesterday after we talked. He sounded fine." Eric leaned his body on the wall.
"Talked? What about?"
"About Rio. And Marisol. He couldn't get over the fact that Marisol is gone. He blamed himself for her death."
"What? Oh my god." Calleigh gasped.
"I told him that it wasn't. And that he has already avenged her death. But it didn't seem enough. Looks like he still blames himself."
"Riaz is dead?"
"Yes. He was attacking me with a knife and Horatio tried to protect me." By now, Eric was already crouching on the floor, leaning onto the wall. "I didn't know this would happen. I shouldn't have left him alone. I should have known he wouldn't get over it. I should have stayed with him!" Eric said with his head hanging. He was sobbing.
"Eric, don't blame yourself. You didn't know."
"I knew Cal. I was there. His eyes were empty and sad. I knew something was wrong."
Suddenly Calleigh's phone rang. It was Frank.
"Yes Frank? A letter? No we didn't see any letters. Oh you're coming down? Alright. Thanks."
"They found a letter." She stated. "Frank's coming down with it."
A moment later, Frank came in with the letter and he had a remorseful look on his face as he handed out the letter to Calleigh.
"It wasn't an accident Cal. He tried to end his life." Both Eric and Calleigh looked at each other and back to Frank, giving him a nod of acknowledgement.
Both of them started reading.
I'm sorry for what I have done. Maybe, by the time you read this, I'll be gone already, walking towards Marisol and being happy with her. I am really sorry for this. I just couldn't go on. Especially not without Marisol. I've tried, trust me but I just can't. There's nothing left for me here. There's nothing for me to live for, to fight for. Everybody is gone. Speed, Ray and now Marisol. She was my love, my life and I don't want to go on without her. I didn't mean to hurt anyone. Believe me. I am truly and deeply sorry for the pain I have caused. I had so much to live for especially with Marisol. I had envisioned my future with her, having a family together but all that was taken away from me. In just a split second. I can't go home to an empty house anymore. I don't want to wake up in an empty bed.
Thank you for the joys and memories I have had through the great team, family and friends. Perhaps I am not as strong as you thought I am. I'm just as weak, vulnerable and pathetic. I'm a coward but I'd like to think what I'm doing as an act of resolution.
Eric, my brother, I'm really sorry. I don't want you to blame yourself on this. I did this on my own. I brought this upon myself. I loved her so much and I don't think I can move on anymore. Everyone has left me and I've got nothing else.
Calleigh sweetheart, if you're reading this, I love you. Marisol is my present and my future but you, sweetheart, were my past. I loved you before and there will always be space for you in my heart. I have never told you about this but I have loved you from far.
To the team, thank you for looking up on me and I'm sorry if this changes your view on me. I'm not as strong as you thought I am. I am still human, with flaws and weaknesses. There is so much more that I could say and want to say, but I have to be satisfied and hope that this is all I should say.
I'M SORRY.
HORATIO CAINE
TBC... :)
