I don't know why, for some reason I had the feeling that the reviewing was slower for the second chapter - but when I just checked to reply to everyone before updating, I noticed that wasn't the case at all. Just some who reviewed the first, but not second chapter - therefore once again some new names (Always very welcome! :-)) - You guys really rock! Thanks SO much for everything - picture a very broad smile on littlesheep's face in front of the monitor...

This chapter is my favorite of this story - it had been written over a year ago already, I just edited it a little and added some more cute stuff. And I added the song - once again the note:

Song featured here is "Through The Eyes Of A Child" by Reamonn (to be found in my profile if you would like to take a listen and see WHY this is such a perfect match for this story).

Chapter Three

The next morning

After a night with hardly any sleep next to Mac's bed at the hospital, Stella drove to the stable where the horse was about to be prepared for being transported to the clinic. Mac was still asleep and since she didn't want to wake him, she had written a short note so he wouldn't drive the clinic personnel crazy if he woke up and she was gone.

When she arrived, she saw a blonde woman with a little girl sitting on a bench opposite the horse's box. The girl looked sad and Stella could see from her face that she had cried. Her mother gently stroked her hair as she spoke to her. The girl absentmindedly looked over to the horse as Stella approached them. When she saw the veterinarian coming along the way, she signaled him to wait for a moment. He nodded and left again.

"Mrs. Como? I'm Detective Bonasera. May I talk to your daughter for a moment?" Stella asked as she reached the bench where mother and daughter were waiting.

The woman nodded and got up. She touched her daughter's cheek.

"I'll go and talk to Blue's doctor, I'll be right back with you, okay honey?"

The girl nodded. Stella sat down next to her.

"Hey there, I'm Stella. What's your name?" she asked softly.

"Emily..."

"Emily? That's a beautiful name," Stella smiled. Then she got more serious. "You know, Emily, a friend of mine has been hurt by a bullet."

"Like Blue?" the little girl asked, her gaze wandering from Stella to the horse and back.

"Like Blue," Stella confirmed, "he's at the hospital now and he is very sick."

"Oh..." Emily's expression grew serious.

"See, and we need to have the bullet that hurt Blue. When we have this bullet, we can do some tests and find out if the bullet that hurt my friend came from the same gun. And then we may be able to find out who the shooter was and arrest him for what he did. That is why we need to do the operation on Blue. Can you understand that?"

The little girl looked up to Stella.

"So the same bad man might have hurt Blue and your friend?"

"Yes, that could be possible," Stella nodded.

"And he could hurt someone else if you don't find him?"

Stella nodded again.

Emily thought for a while, her small lips pressed together in concentration. Then she looked at Stella again.

"I love Blue very much. Do you love your friend?" she asked with all the seriousness a five year old child could express.

Stella looked at her in surprise. She hadn't been prepared for a question like this. Then she remembered that after all it was just a little girl asking. Nevertheless, she seriously thought about it for a moment.

"Yes, dear. I do," she admitted quietly. "And that's why I want to find out who did this to him, it's the only thing I can do for him at the moment..."

"But the doctors will help him, won't they?" Emily asked with honest concern in her voice.

"They will do their very best to make him better," Stella replied. "And so will the horse doctors for Blue. They will make sure that he's gonna be alright," she smiled at the girl.

Emily looked her straight in the eyes.

"Are you scared?" she asked.

Stella knew she needed to give her an honest reply, but at the same time confidence.

"Yes, Sweetie, I'm very scared. But we have to trust that everything will be good, right?"

The little girl nodded.

"Yes! And we can pray that God makes the doctors help Blue and your friend, can't we?" she expectantly asked.

"That's right, honey," Stella confirmed. "We can do that."

Emily kept looking at her for a moment. Then she nodded firmly, got up from the bench and over to the horse's box.

"Blue? Listen to me... You need to be a brave boy now, you need to help Stella's friend. Don't be afraid, Blue. It's gonna be fine, do you hear me?"

The horse pressed its nose against the door and snorted softly into Emily's face as if it wanted to show it had understood and agreed.

"He says it's okay," Emily said after she turned back to Stella who had watched the scene with a lump forming in her throat. She sent a quick prayer for the horse's safety upwards. It would be tough for the little girl if something happened to the animal during surgery. And she didn't even want to think about Mac at this moment.

XXXXX

Early evening at the hospital

Stella was standing at the window in Mac's room, light from the corridor shone through the open door. The light in the room was turned off except for a little lamp next to the bed. She looked out of the window, watching people down on the street walking in the light of street lamps, cars moving along in all directions, a man with a dog entering the park near the hospital. A nurse had told her that Mac had been taken to the x-ray room about 15 minutes ago when she had arrived.

She didn't hear them returning, but she knew he was there. When she turned around, she saw him sitting in a wheelchair, the light from the corridor behind him making it hard for her to see his face in the darkness of the room. The nurse who had brought him back had already left after Mac had told her he would be alright. Stella went over to him and pushed the chair inside, closing the door behind them.

"How's the horse?" Mac asked when they were alone.

"Looks very good, docs said he will fully recover," Stella informed him.

Mac slowly nodded. "That's good."

Stella sighed slightly. Yeah, that was good. She vividly remembered the overflowing happiness on Emily's face when they had watched the horse fighting to get up to its own four legs in the recovery box and when it had finally managed to balance himself again. 'Now the worst part is over, he should be fine very soon,' the vet had told them. Emily had beamed as if it were Christmas and her birthday on the same day.

"You look tired," Mac remarked after Stella had helped him back into bed and pulled the covers over his legs.

He had slept almost all day and already looked much better than he had the previous night. Yet he was still weak and the color of his face resembled that of the bed sheets.

"Didn't really sleep last night," she replied slowly. "How do you feel?"

"Better, I guess," he said. "My doctor is very satisfied with me."

"Does it hurt a lot?" Stella asked, gesturing at the bandage that covered his rib cage.

"Only when I'm laughing…" Mac returned.

Stella raised one eyebrow at his comment.

"In that case there's not much to worry about, hum?"

Mac gave her a questioning look, wondering what she had intended to say with this, but she didn't elaborate any further.

"What's in that bag?" he asked curiously, pointing at the paper bag that was sitting on top of Stella's jacket on the chair.

"I brought some cookies, I didn't have anything to eat since 10 a.m.," Stella replied warily.

"You gonna eat them all?" Mac pressed her carefully.

"You can't have cookies," she returned. "You just had major surgery, I'm not even sure if you are allowed to eat anything yet. Certainly not cookies…"

"So you would just let me starve?" he tried a whining tone. "I took a bullet in my side, but my stomach hasn't been hurt. It is hungry… and it would like a cookie," he added. "Or maybe two?"

Stella sighed with an eye roll, reached for the bag and took one cookie out. Then she handed the bag over to Mac and started eating her one cookie.

XXXXX

After the horse has been operated on successfully and Stella had stayed the whole time, Emily had wanted to see Stella's friend as well. Her mom had asked Stella if it would be possible and an hour after Stella's return to the hospital, Mrs. Como had dropped Emily off at Mac's room. She hadn't wanted to stay, but had told Stella she would pick her daughter up in a half hour.

After they had talked for a while, Emily suddenly smiled at Mac.

"You are a really nice man," she announced in all honesty.

"Thank you, Emily, that is very nice of you," Mac smiled back at her.

Emily nodded.

"I can really see why Stella said she loves you," she finished seriously.

-

Sweet innocent child with your open eyes
You've seen us for who we really are

-

Stella blushed while Mac grinned to himself without looking at her. He was curious, secretly wondering if she was probably looking for a mouse hole to hide in. She was sitting in a chair at his side, but he wasn't able to see the expression on her face without turning his head.

"So… She said that? What else did you girls talk about??"

-

And I know that there'll be tomorrow
So that hope can have its glory day
And I wish that this world would embrace you
For magic stars and mystery
My open heart

-

TBC

So - say for yourselves: Do the lyrics match or what? And isn't it just too cute - Stella with the little girl? I just need to think about such moments and see photos of Melina and her cute girls and this stuff just writes itself SO easily :-)

Hope you liked it - let me know, please? Thanks once again - xxxlittlesheepxxx