Author's note: This one is for our angst queen. Angsty enough for you?

The Relapse

"Where's my sister?" Eric asked, eyes half open after his afternoon nap. His physical therapy had gone well, but had worn him out. As soon as he regained enough strength in his leg, they'd release him. "Why hasn't M-Mari come by?"

Calleigh's heart skipped a beat. "You don't remember?"

Eric was confused. He'd been in the hospital at least a week and still Marisol hadn't stopped by to see him. Did he tick her off so badly that she was still too angry to visit him? He knew there was a reason

that she hadn't shown up yet. Horatio had told him, but he couldn't remember what it was again. "No, Cal; I don't. P-Please tell me. You've n-never lied to me and I need to know."

She took a deep breath, steeling herself for what she had to say. "Eric, Marisol was killed last spring by the Mala Noche. It was a single shot to the abdomen. I'm so sorry."

Eric squeezed his eyes shut at the sudden rush of grief. "No."

Calleigh rubbed his shoulder trying to offer comfort. "It happened."

"You're lying!" He flung the accusation at her as tears slipped from his eyes. His sister...his Mari...she couldn't be dead, he'd have remembered that. Surely he would have remembered something so important.

"I'm not. I wish to God I were Eric, because the last thing in the world I want to do is to cause you pain." Calleigh fought with the tears welling in her own eyes seeing his grief so fresh and raw. She reached out further, trying to soothe him, comfort him. She sat on the bed and tried to wipe the tears from his cheeks.

Eric bat her gentle hands away and turned his back to her. "Leave me alone."

"Eric?"

"Go away and leave me a-alone." His voice was misery personified.

She fought to keep her voice steady as she rose from the bed and backed toward the door. Tears were welling in her eyes and threatening to spill down her cheeks at any second. "I'll be back to check on you later."

The only answer she received was a choked sob as all the pain of the tragic loss of his elder sister flooded through him for the third time in one year. She backed out the door and leaned against the wall for support. Unable to hold back her own tears any longer, she put her face in her hands and sobbed. She hadn't wanted to tell him but she had known that he would only persist and agitate himself into a frenzy if she didn't. It was a lose-lose situation no matter how you looked at it.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Alexx asked, drawing Calleigh into an embrace.

"It's Eric. He forgot about Marisol and I had to tell him again. It's worse than when she died. At least then he had Riaz to focus on but now he has nothing. I'm afraid I set him back, Alexx. He won't accept any comfort from me and just threw me out of his room. I don't know what to do. I'm terrible at this stuff. What do I do? How can I help?" Calleigh poured out in between sobs.

"First of all honey, is that you take care of you. I know you well enough to know that you came here straight from the Lab and that you haven't had any dinner yet. Go get something to eat and then go home and rest." Alexx advised gently.

"I'm not hungry and I won't be able to sleep knowing how Eric is right now. I'll just sit up all night and worry," Calleigh protested. She extricated herself from Alexx's embrace and wiped her eyes.

Alexx eyed her stubborn friend. She knew arguing with her would get her nowhere, but she was worried. Calleigh wasn't given to tears and this was the second time in a week that she'd broken down. She wanted to know what was going on underneath, but knew that Calleigh would talk only when she was ready. "Alright, let's compromise. You go out and get something to eat, go home and change into something more comfortable and come back. I'll stay with Eric the whole time you're gone. I was coming to visit him anyway."

"Alexx-"

"Nothing doing. You need to see to your needs if you intend on helping Eric. If you keep this up baby, you're going to worry yourself sick; literally. Do as I say and trust me." Alexx said in her sternest voice.

"Alright you win. I'll be back in a while. See if you can-"

"Calleigh."

She nodded in defeat. "Okay."

Alexx watched her walk away, get on the elevator and go. She knew Calleigh would probably go to the cafeteria and find some tasteless bland thing and then drive home, rush into the house, change clothes and be back in about an hour if there was traffic, in less time if there wasn't.

Alexx shook her head, wondering over the bond that Eric and Calleigh shared. She remembered having to talk Eric down after Horatio had alerted the team that something had happened to Calleigh on the way back from a crime scene. He had been talking to her on her cell and said there was a loud bang and then the phone went dead. Eric had been processing the triple on the causeway when she got there.

"Hey, Eric, what do we have here?" Alexx asked casually as she knelt down beside the closest vic.

"It looks like road rage. He's got a shot to the chest and another to the temple. It seems pretty straight forward but we're gonna be here a while and it's gonna screw up evening traffic if we don't release the scene before three," Eric said as his cell went off. "Delko...yeah I'm at the causeway and-...where is she?...right H, I'll be there as fast as I can."

Alexx had looked up at the abrupt change in Eric's tone. He looked like he was going to jump out of his own skin. "Eric, what's wrong?"

"That was H. He was talking to Calleigh on her way back from that jumper scene and suddenly the phone went dead. He said it sounded like she might have been hit or shot at. He also thought he heard a splash. He's been trying to raise her, but he can't. Coop is using her GPS signal to track her," Eric said, gathering his kit.

"She said she was taking the back roads because of this causeway. The main one that she would use runs right next to the canal," she replied, thinking. She took a good look at Eric as he was packing his things. There was an almost imperceptible tremor to his hands as if he were terrified but didn't want it to show.

"Her Hummer could have gone in," Eric breathed. "I know I could make it up but Calleigh isn't as an experienced swimmer. What if she's too injured to get out or unconscious? Alexx, Calleigh could die if-"

"Eric, that's not going to happen. Calleigh is a smart woman and will get herself out of whatever situation she's in. Even if she sustained injuries, she knows what to do," Alexx said soothingly even though she had the same doubts herself. She had the urge to drop everything and follow Eric to wherever he needed to go to find Calleigh. She was NOT going to lose her baby girl. "She'll be fine; you'll see."

Eric stood, hefting his kit. "I hope you're right Alexx, because I don't think I can stand another loss of someone so important to me so soon after Mari."

Alexx watched him leave as another departmental Hummer rolled up and two other CSI's got out. "No, I don't believe you can, baby."

Alexx pushed open the door and stepped inside. Eric had his face buried in the pillow and his body shook as he vented his grief. She quietly walked to his bedside and sat next to him. She reached out and rubbed his back.

"I thought I told you to l-leave me alone."

"You didn't tell me that honey," Alexx said softly. When he rolled over to face her she asked, "Now why are you so angry at Calleigh? You know the last thing she'd ever want to do is hurt you."

"Sh-sh-she said-" Eric stuttered miserably.

"I know what she said and it's the truth and it ripped her heart out to watch you go through the grief again," Alexx told him frankly. "I don't know what hurt her more; watching you grieve again or your refusal to accept her comfort. Eric, honey, I know you've been through a lot in the last week, but you need to accept that there are some memories that you lost. The fact that you forgot that Marisol was killed, even though Horatio told you a couple of days ago means that that was such a painful memory that your brain didn't want to remember it. And in your fresh grief and anger you lashed out at the messenger and that happened to be Calleigh. Isn't that what happened?"

Eric lay silent for a long time, thinking over what Alexx said. He realised that she was right. He was in so much pain and so angry that he lashed out at Calleigh and he probably hurt her in the process. "Where is she?"

Alexx watched the change wash over Eric as he thought about what had happened. "I sent her out for some dinner and to calm down. Eric, when I came up here she was outside your door and for the second time in seven days, in tears. I want you to think about that because the Calleigh you and I both know does not cry unless the circumstances are overwhelming. She'll be back in a little while and when she does come back I think you two need to have a little talk. You got me?"

Eric nodded, the revelation about Calleigh's feelings and behavior becoming a point of concern in his mind. "I'll try but you know, if Calleigh d-doesn't want to talk, she won't."

"I know, baby, but you try anyway."