AN - I meant to say at the beginning of the last chapter – many thanks to the person who pointed out some of my dialogue was tricky to follow. Hopefully I've made it much clearer from here on in. I'll go back and look at the other chapters when I get chance! Sorry for how long this is taking, real life keeps getting in the way.
As Eric drove them back to the lab, Calleigh called Horatio to fill him in.
"Horatio, we think we have a lead. Eric and I just paid a visit to a glass sculpting warehouse. They use metal poles to handle the melted glass."
"That sounds like something that could make a hole through someone…" Horatio was pleased. Maybe this would be the break the team needed.
"That's what we thought. We spoke to someone at the warehouse. He said the only person who wasn't at work today was a David March. He could be our vic."
"Or he could be the killer. I'll have Ryan look into it. Good work."
Calleigh ended the call and shifted her attention to the city outside. The sky had cleared and the warm Florida sun baked the damp sidewalks. Eric had rolled down the window and rested his left arm casually on the door, using his right hand to steer. Calleigh relaxed back into her seat, enjoying being out of the lab.
They wove their way through the streets, reaching the crime lab in good time. Eric slipped the Hummer into a spot in the parking lot. As they walked towards the lab, Eric slipped his hand in to Calleigh's, intertwining their fingers. Calleigh flashed him a smile. They took advantage of the seclusion of the lift for just one more kiss before they had to return to work. As the doors whooshed open, they automatically stood apart from one another, not wanting to start the rumour mill going before they'd had chance to speak to Horatio. They were barely out of the lift before Ryan rushed up to them.
"Hey guys – I ran that name – David March. He's our vic."
"What was he in the system for?" Calleigh asked, as she took the manila folder out of Ryan's hands and began to flick through it.
"Suspected embezzlement, but the DA dropped it. Not enough evidence. That was in Ohio."
"Says here he was suspected of siphoning money off the company he worked for, but they couldn't figure out how he was doing it." Calleigh read the police report out to Eric and Ryan.
"I've already subpoenaed his financial records, they should be here soon." Ryan gushed with the excitement of a lead.
"Good work, Mr Wolfe." They turned to see Horatio standing behind them. "It's about time we made some progress on a case. Keep going through the records, get Natalia to help you. Eric…" he turned to his friend "you and Calleigh head over to the vic's place. See what you can find."
"You got it, H". Eric replied, before retracing his steps back to the parking lot, with Calleigh next to him.
The house was tidy, but not the sort of tidy you get when a person is naturally neat, or hires a maid. The sort of tidy you get when somebody doesn't really live in their house. All the right components were there – the pictures of family, the books, the CD collection – but they didn't gel to make a home. Calleigh felt as though she was walking through a show-home for a new built apartment complex. She sighed as she picked her way around the apartment, finding nothing distinct. Nothing of use.
Eric pressed his foot onto the pedal of the trash can. He peered in. Empty. The fridge contained a few condiments, but was otherwise empty.
"OK, this is weird." Calleigh turned to face Eric, placing her hands on her hips.
"You got that right". Eric continued glancing around. "There's nothing here."
"So what? Was he some kind of compulsive neat-freak?" Calleigh pushed an ornament aside, revealing a ring of dust. "obviously not…" she muttered.
"He didn't live here. You don't keep a place this tidy and then forget to dust." Eric stated, confident in his assessment.
Calleigh didn't argue. "You're right. So what is this? Why have a house you don't live in?"
"You got me."
They stood in silence for a few moments, each thinking about what to do next. Calleigh broke the silence. "OK, we're not going to get anywhere here. Let's head back to the lab. Maybe the financial records will throw something up."
They began to move towards the door, when Eric's cell chirruped to life. He glanced at the screen.
"It's Wolfe." He pressed the answer button. "Hey Ryan. What's up?"
"We got the financial records, but something's weird. March's Correspondence address is a different address than his recorded address."
"That makes sense. This place doesn't look lived in. What's the new address?"
Another 20 minute drive and Eric and Calleigh reached Coral Gables. Neat houses stood in well-manicured lawns, lining the letter-free streets. Miami's very own Stepford.
Eric pulled up outside one of the houses – the address Ryan had found. "So…" he began, as they stepped out of the car and started walking up the driveway. "Fancy buying a place out here someday?"
Calleigh laughed. "Are you kidding me? Way too many rules for my liking. I like to let the lawn grow from time to time." Eric smirked at the irony of Calleigh, with her passion for the law, baulking at the idea of living in the by-law obsessed Gables.
"Oh, I don't know. You can pretty much guarantee the neighbours won't be a pain."
Calleigh shot him a wry look. "I'll reserve judgement on that until we find out who killed the guy".
They reached the front door, and Calleigh rang the bell.
"Didn't Ryan say the guy was single?" Eric asked.
"Yeah, why?"
"Well, who's gonna answer the bell if the only occupant is laying on a slab in the morgue?"
"You never know. Maybe he has a housekeeper. It's rude to just barge in." Calleigh chastised him.
She was right. The door was pulled open a few inches. An eye peered through the narrow gap. "What do you want?" a woman asked, defensively.
"I'm CSI Duquesne, this is CSI Delko. We're from the Crime Lab." Calleigh flashed a sunny smile, even though she couldn't be sure the woman could see her clearly.
"Do you have any ID?" The woman wasn't taking any risks. Eric always complained at how laissez-fair the citizens of Miami could be when it came to security, but now that he was faced with this woman, doing everything right, he found himself irritated. Nevertheless, he pulled his ID out of his pocked and held it up for her to see. Calleigh did the same.
The woman's eye shifted from the pictures on the ID to their faces, trying to decide if they matched. Eventually, she decided that they did. The door closed whilst she pulled the chain off, and Eric and Calleigh were finally admitted.
The woman was slightly built, with a shock of red, curly hair. Calleigh guessed she was in her late twenties. Her skin was pale, unusual for the Miami climate, but not everybody spent hours clad in a bikini soaking up the sun. Some people had better things to do with their time.
The woman led them through to the back of the house, into an immaculately kept kitchen. But unlikely the previous house, this place was obviously lived in. Evidence of life was everywhere – notes pinned to a board, keys hanging on hooks, some unopened mail on the counter.
"Ma'am, can I ask your name, please?" Calleigh gently began the interview. She had no idea who the woman was, or how she would react to finding out about the murder. She needed to be tactful.
"Miranda. Miranda Collins. I'm the housekeeper. What's this about?" Calleigh looked uneasily to Eric. She hated this part. Get it over with. Rip off the band-aid.
"Ms Collins, I'm very sorry but we have some bad news. Mr March has been murdered."
Miranda stared at Calleigh for a few moments, before sinking into a stool at the counter.
"Ms Collins, are you OK? Do you want us to call anybody for you?"
"No. No, I'm fine." The woman visibly rallied herself. "I guess you have some questions for me."
"If you don't mind." Calleigh spoke gently. Eric wondered if this woman was somehow more intimately connected with March than she had let on.
Miranda shook her head. "Anything I can do to help."
Calleigh smiled "Thanks. When was the last time you saw David?"
"Two days ago, in the morning. He had this week off work and he said he was going to stay with his girlfriend for a few days."
Eric's ears pricked up. There was a girlfriend. "Do you have the name and address of this girlfriend?"
"Sure…" Miranda stood up and crossed to a drawer, where she pulled out a notebook. She flicked through before stopping on a page, and handing the book to Eric.
"Thanks" he said, taking the book from her and beginning to duplicate the contents.
Calleigh continued her questions. "Had you noticed anything strange going on lately? David going out at odd times, unusual visits, that kind of thing?"
The woman thought for a while, before shaking her head "No… nothing really. His girlfriend, Mona, visited sometimes. A couple of the guys from David's office…"
"Wait, David's office?" Eric picked up on the inconsistency. David didn't work in an office. "Ma'am, where did David work?"
"David's an accountant… well, he was. He had his own firm." Miranda pulled open another drawer, rummaged around for a while, and eventually produced a business card. She handed it to Calleigh.
Calleigh took it, smiling. "Thank you" she said, not missing a beat, not letting Miranda know what was up. "Do you know who the men were who visited?"
"Not really… he called one of them Peter, I think. I remember the car they drove though – it was a Mercedes Benz. Like in the song. And the plate was personalised. L0AD 3D
Calleigh smiled "Thank you, Miranda. That helps a lot. Will you be staying here or do you have someplace else to go? Just in case we need to speak again."
Miranda's face fell. "Oh… I hadn't thought. I don't know, I've always lived here. My mother was David's housekeeper before I was even born. We always lived with him…" she trailed off, confused.
Calleigh placed a comforting hand on the girls arm.
"Don't worry, there's no need for you to go anywhere just yet. Why don't you take this. Call me if you need to." Calleigh handed the girl her card, and Miranda smiled gratefully.
