A/N: Ok, I skipped all my little details I wanted for this story and just dove into my main plot. This takes place a few days after Marisol threw her welcome home party. Thanks for all the good reviews I got!

Disclaimer: only Ella is my character, everything else belongs to CBS.

"Good Mornin'."

Eric looked up from the lab microscope to see Calleigh grabbing her white lab coat off the rack hanging up.

"Hey, your late." He wasn't mad though, and she could tell but offered an explanation anyway.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry. Late night.." she sighed.

His heart dropped, but he didn't want Calleigh to know that. He forced a laugh.

She looked at him with disbelieving amusement, "Not like that! Horatio asked me to clean some of the gun's in the vault."

His heart sored, but once again he covered it up, acting casual. "Bullet girl.." he chuckled, looking back in the microscope. He heard Calleigh laugh her little tinkling laugh, and he smiled widely, glad for the cover of the microscope.

"What are you workin' on?" She asked moving closer and picking up the plastic evidence bag next to Eric's microscope.

"The child-killer sent a note to the lab. No return address, no distinctive markers to the naked-eye..." He said, not looking up from the microscope.

"Which is where we come in." She finished for him. "Do you know what the newspapers are calling him?"

Eric lifted his face from the microscope confused. "No...I didn't even know the case went public.."

"Yeah, Horatio released a statement to the press for any help in case. We're not getting much closer to a break, and kids are getting killed." She tucked a piece of blond hair behind her ear.

"And all the public can do is give him a name." It wasn't a question, it was a disappointed statement.

"Yep, their calling him the 'toddler snatcher'." She scoffed.

She and Eric met eyes. "The toddler snatcher?" his lower lip stuck out and his hands gripped the lab table.

"The sooner we get this guy the sooner it ends. You got anything off this letter?" She looked at it closely. The words were all separate letters cut out of magazines, with a letter missing here and there where someone had taken it for examination. It read:

To whom it may concern:

What I do in my own time for my own amusement is my own business. Sticking your nose where it doesn't belong only gets you into trouble. The more you look into me, the faster I kill and the more personal it gets.

"The glue and paper are generic, no fingerprints, no hairs, no distinctive ink's. But I did find a gritty-substance caught in the glue under a 'B'." he pushed the microscope toward her. "Check this out."

She peered in the Microscope.

"Piscidia piscipula." Eric said matter of fact.

"Jamaica Dogwood? I don't see how this helps, this tree is everywhere in the Key's." she was disappointed, Eric was great and trace and she was hoping he'd find a case closer.

"Yeah. But," he said walking over to a map of South Florida, picking up a red marker. "All our victims were from, this area," he circled an area a little north of Dade county. "and their bodies were found largely in, this area," he circles an area west of Dade county. "He wouldn't have time to get to the Key's."

Calleigh sighed. "So he brought the leaf bits with him. At least we know where he's been..."

"Yeah," he speed-walked back to the lab table, switched the slides. "But check out this one. Found it under " He pushed the microscope back to her eagerly.

She looked in and murmured a few of the components. "Beach sand?" she asked.

"I ran it through Mass-spec, its only found in," he took quick strides back over to the map with the red marker un-capped again. "this area." he circled a small section of the Miami coast.

"Ok.." Calleigh nodded.

"So, I did a little research, and the closest Jamaica Dogwood trees are, here." he placed a dot close to the outer edge of the Miami coast circle.

"So at the least we found where he put the note together!" she beamed. "Eric, I love you! We have to find Horatio."

He was thankful his skin didn't blush, or when Calleigh said 'Eric, I love you!' clearly as a friend, he would have been red head to toe.

Calleigh had already started fast-walking toward the glass door when Eric noticed Horatio storming down the Hallway.

"Looks like he found us." Eric joked.

Horatio threw open the door, nearly hitting Calleigh.

"I need everyone in field, NOW!" he barked out barely opening the door, and he was already halfway down the hall before it closed again.

Calleigh and Eric exchanged a concerned look. They rarely heard his boss loose his soft, knowing voice, unless of course he was barking orders at criminals. They pulled off their lab coats, Eric grabbed his cell phone from the table and followed Calleigh out of the door, practically running to keep Horatio in sight, who was periodically giving out quick, loud commands to passer-by's.

Horatio snapped, "Wolfe!" as he passed a doorway.

Ryan stepped into the hallway, gloves on, first casting a confused glance at his bosses back, then watching Calleigh and Eric jogging after him.

"What's going on-" He asked as they starting getting close.

They didn't answer and Calleigh grabbed his wrist and started dragging him along.

Horatio glanced and nodded at someone who sat outside the interrogation rooms, near the elevator and impatiently pressed the down button.

Passing the interrogation rooms himself, Eric stopped.

Calleigh and Ryan took a few more strides toward the elevator before realizing Eric had stopped.

"What? Eric let's go." Calleigh cried after him.

Eric ignored him. He took a tentative step toward a woman on the waiting bench outside an interrogation room. Her head was in her hands and her body shook. Dangling from her wrist was a tiny Dora the Explorer backpack. Her light brown curls tumbled down both sides of her head, covering her face, but when you grow up with someone, you know them anywhere.

"Mari?" he called softly, a little disbelieving.

Ryan looked at Calleigh. "Eric...?" she asked.

He indicated for them to go, and walked over to Marisol.

"Marisol." he called again.

This time she looked up, her mascara was streaked and her eyes were red. A damp tissue was clenched in her hand.

She answered with a choked sob.

"What? Where's Ella, Marisol?" he said it a little firmer then he wanted, but he needed to know.

Marisol looked away, ran a hand under her nose then turned back to Eric. "She's gone." Her face contorted in agony.

"Gone?" Eric sat next to Marisol, he didn't look her in the eye, but started at the little backpack.

"I signed her up for daycare when we were still in England so she'd be able to meet friends." she choked out. "Today I went to pick her up from her f-first day, and the careless, stupid, bitch owner said that her dad already picked her up. But Horatio d-didnt have her...I found this in the bushes," she weakly lifted her wrist with the backpack on it. "Then I called the police. Then we got th-this." she passed Eric a sheet of photo paper and wrapped her arms around herself sobbing.

It was a department taken picture of a letter. A letter with mismatching magazine letters forming the words:

Don't Bother.