Mac opened the door, stepping back and holding it for Leigh and Stella. Leigh ducked her head slightly, voicing a small 'thank you' to both of them as she stepped out. As they stepped out of the room, Stella reached out, and placed her hand gently on Leigh's shoulder.

"Hey…you alright?" Leigh moved her hand to wipe away the couple of tears from her cheek.

"I found a good friend of mine murdered in her bedroom this morning…yeah, I think I'm okay," she replied, shaking her head.

"With your help, we can put away whoever did this. Leigh…this is Detective Flack. If you want to go with him, he can help you put together a composite of the person you saw leaving Katy's house, okay?" Stella offered, placing a hand against Leigh's arm as she motioned to Flack, who approached and stood a few feet away. Lifting her eyes, Leigh nodded.

"Sure…okay."

"Alright…C'mon, I'll lead the way…and Stell…Danny's lookin' for ya, said for you t'swing through when you were done," Flack added, reaching for Leigh's arm as he glanced at Stella. She nodded, her curls bouncing a little around her head, before looking back at Mac.

"Just stay with Flack – I'll be back soon, and we'll have someone take you home, okay?" Stella asked. Leigh nodded, and watched as Mac and Stella headed away before following Flack to his desk, where he tossed his jacket, and moved the chair for her to sit.

PAGE BREAK

Stella leaned around the doorframe, glancing around before crossing the lab to meet up with Danny.

"What've you got?" she asked, leaning against the table.

"Hey, Stell. Well, we managed to pick up a print in the bedroom, just a few feet from the body. I'm runnin' it, but what I got right now is that it's a man's size twelve…Linds found a partial print on her neck, which she's runnin' now. And Hawkes is helpin' Adam run through everythin' else we found, to see if we can find anything that could pin down someone specific." Stella nodded, and looked over her shoulder.

"Alright, just keep me updated, alright?"

"Always. Hey. How's Leigh?" he asked, turning his seat to face her. Raising an eyebrow, Stella turned back to see Danny, a curious look on her face.

"She's struggling to come to terms with this, like expected. You know her?" Danny shrugged, but nodded.

"Yeah. Well…I used to – it's been a few years since I've seen her or talked to her, though," he replied. Stella thought for a moment, and motioned for him to follow.

"C'mon, why don't we go see how she's doing, and you can give her a lift home?" Stella asked, but headed out without waiting for an answer. Chuckling, Danny tugged off his gloves, dropping them into the trash, and hung his lab coat up before following her down to the elevator.

"You're incredibly sneaky, aren't ya' Stell?" he snickered, shaking his head as the doors closed.

Flack leaned against his chair, head cocked, as he watched Leigh click a few times, and move her hands into her lap.

"There…he was moving fast, but…I think that's what he looked like," she replied, biting her lip and looking at Flack. He leaned towards the screen, looking at the image before nodding and standing.

"Well, let me get ya' some water, you think about it for a minute, alright?" he asked, patting her shoulder. She smiled, and nodded, pushing her fingers through her hair as she looked back at the screen. A couple moments passed where she sat quietly, hands folded in her lap, looking over the picture as she thought, before she heard the chair scratch and creak as he sat, and the cup of water came into her peripheral vision. Smiling, she reached out, and took it, taking a sip.

"Thank you, Detective Flack."

"Well, you're welcome, but last I checked, I wasn't Flack," Danny chuckled, clasping his hands in front of him as he leaned forward. She turned her head, and smiled, blushing.

"Danny Messer…Oh, God," she replied, shaking her head and chuckling. "I wasn't expecting to see you…but it's nice to see you," she added, smiling at him. He watched her place the small paper cup onto the desk, before reaching over and putting his hand around her shoulder.

"I'm gonna drive ya' home, okay?" Danny asked, tilting his head a little.

"That sounds good, Danny. Uh…thank you," she replied, smiling. Flack leaned his hands on the back of her chair, looking at the monitor.

"Make any changes?" Leigh turned, slightly surprised, before blushing, and shaking her head.

"No…no, I looked him over, I'm positive that this is the person I saw leaving Katy's house," she answered, nodding to Flack.

He took a step back, and scooted her chair, so she had room to stand up, before smiling.

"Take care of yourself, Leigh," Flack replied. "You probably already know that you're in good hands with Danny," he added. She climbed to her feet, slowly, but nodded.

"He is a great protector," Leigh said, smiling and she turned to look at both Danny and Flack. "Thank you, Detective Flack…Everyone here has been so kind, I'm incredibly grateful."

"It's no problem. Stay safe," he replied, as Danny led her outside.

PAGE BREAK

Leigh made her way up the front steps, and opened the door, peering around.

"Looks like Don's not here," she smiled, pushing the door in further and stepping aside so Danny could come in. He glanced around, and smiled, reaching for the handle to close the door behind them.

"Let me guess, Leigh…still working from home?" She shrugged, grinning very slightly, before nodding.

"As always. I'm in between turn-around's right now, but that might be why Don's gone."

"You have an assistant?" Danny asked, following her to the kitchen.

"He started helping me about two years ago…" She opened the fridge, and after a second, closed it again, handing him a bottle of water.

"Why the change? You were incredibly adamant about working by yourself for as long as we were together," he replied, cracking the lid and taking a sip. Leigh hesitated, before setting her bottle down, hiking up her long shorts, and showing him the scar that traveled across her knee.

"I was visiting my sister, in California…Some loose screw ran a red as I was crossing, completely destroyed my car, snapped my leg, busted my arm. I couldn't do this on my own, and I couldn't shut everyone out. They needed me. So…I talked to Don. He was one of the first I brought through…said he was more than happy to help. Still hurts to run and take inclines, but I manage," she explained, lowering the fabric and sitting down with her water in hand.

Danny reached over, and patted her hand, nodding. She lifted her head, and smiled a little bit.

"I know how ya feel, Leigh. I, uh…I was in a wheelchair for a while. Shot in the back. I was so determined to get out of that chair, it just wasn't funny," he said, nodding. Leigh raised an eyebrow.

"What had you so determined, Danny? I'm not sure…that I have seen that look before," she said, moving her hand to point at his eyes. He smirked, but shrugged, before reaching into his pocket, and pulling out his wallet. Leigh turned her chair a little to see as he opened it, and held out a picture of him, a red-head, and a little girl.

"My wife, Lindsay, works at the lab with me, Stella, and Mac. And that is our daughter Lucy." Leigh took the picture, and Danny saw her expression become one of awe and love.

"Danny, that is so wonderful….and Lucy is so beautiful! Oh…Lindsay is too, of course," she added, glancing up before looking back down. "Danny Messer, you have become a family man, I just can't believe it," she laughed, shaking her head and handing the image back.

"You ain't the only one, Leigh," he said, putting the image away, and patting her knee. She reached out, and laid her hand over his, sighing.

"…it's good to see you again, Danny," she spoke, her voice full of emotions, but not wavering. He looked up, and nodded.

"You too…you too. Look…I gotta get back…" he said, after pausing for a moment. She lifted her head when he stood, and picking up the pen she had dangling by the phone. "Here…call if you need anything, alright?" he asked, dropping the pen a few seconds later, and moving to show he'd written down a phone number.

"Of course." Leigh stood, and led Danny to the door, turning to see him as she took the handle in her hand. "I know it's not protocol…but could you, uh…do you think you could keep me in the loop? Tell me if you find the guy?" she asked, raising an eyebrow and biting her lip.

She watched Danny bob his head a little, debating on the answer, before finally shrugged, and smirking a little, glancing up at her through his glasses.

"Yeah, I can do that. I got your number, so I'll call ya later, check on ya, 'kay?" he asked, curling the corners of his lips up as she blushed, but smiled.

"That'd be nice, Danny. Now go on – you should be working…." She paused, tilting her head. "Didn't I get you a shirt that said 'I should be working' on it?" she asked, snickering.

"Yeah…yeah ya did. Still got it," he added, before moving closer and pulling her in for an embrace. "Go lie down or somethin', Leigh. You've had a long day," he said, giving her shoulder a squeeze, before heading out the door, and down the street. She watched him go, before sighing, locking the door behind her, and heading up the steps to her bedroom.