A/N: I don't really know how psychologists or custody battles work, so I just made it up as I went along. I hope you don't mind. Oh and I'm hoping to make the next chapter somewhat comedic. I'm not really very funny so we'll see how that goes.
Disclaimer: Does anyone read this and think I own CSI: Miami and its characters? I didn't think so.
****************************************************************************
The woman was kind looking, with big brown eyes and hazelnut hair. She shook Horatio Caine's hand firmly while offering him a seat.
"Thanks for meeting with me, Dr. Young," Horatio replied. He took a seat across from her desk. He was glad that she was an amiable person; this might have felt more like an interview.
"I'm glad to finally meet you," Dr. Young commented as she settled herself behind her desk. "Kyle has told me quite a bit about you."
Horatio raised his eyebrows a bit. "That's why I'm here, doctor. I'm planning on going to court to win custody of Kyle."
If she was surprised, the doctor didn't show it. "I thought that might be it. I have to warn you, even though you are his parent, there are confidentiality rules I have to abide by. It's the school's policy not to divulge anything a student has said to me to anyone except their legal guardian."
Horatio looked down, processing the information. It was not what he had hoped for. He knew from the experience of working with foster kids that Kyle had most likely seen a therapist while in foster care. He thought it was possible that he was still seeing a psychologist. He was right. It took only one call to the school to learn that Kyle had monthly visits with the school shrink.
Dr. Young seemed to take the look on Horatio's face as that of being discouraged. She tried to help. "I can, however, tell you my own personal observations as a licensed psychologist. I am also allowed to state those opinions in court, as long as they don't include anything that Kyle has specifically said to me."
Horatio looked up with a kind smile. "That would be most helpful m'am."
She sighed, glad that he was not upset. She struck Horatio as the type of woman who hated to see people displeased. "Kyle was sent to me a few weeks after starting here. He was having a problem with one of his teachers. And given his history of foster care the administrative board felt that it would be best that he continued to have sessions with me. We attained permission from his mother, of course."
Horatio nodded, encouraging her to continue.
"From what I've seen of his academic record, and from my observations of his vocabulary, I ascertained that he is quite bright and capable of advanced education." She paused and looked down, then looked up and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "However, I also noticed that he was very…" She searched for the right word. "—angry and frustrated. He seemed to have trouble dealing with authority figures, particularly male ones."
Horatio wasn't surprised to hear this. It was something he himself had noticed. Kyle responded differently to adult men than he did to women. He was less trusting with men. He couldn't be sure, but he thought it came from bad experiences with foster fathers in his early childhood.
Dr. Young continued on a different note. "When I first met with him, he seemed somewhat optimistic for the future. His grades were…decent. At least, he was working hard for what he managed. He was very far behind what with being incarcerated and with having to transfer schools. As time went on, he did appear to become somewhat restless."
Horatio gave her a confused look. "Restless?"
She nodded. "He was…discontent. Not unhappy, exactly, but something was definitely bothering him. Of course, I'm not at liberty to say exactly what he told me." She stopped. She looked Horatio straight in the eye. "Off the record, and I shouldn't even be telling you this," She said with a quiet voice, "things aren't going well at home. The lifestyle of wealth and upper social class doesn't suit him."
She straightened, realizing that she had been leaning towards Horatio. "I can't say any of that in court. I only tell you because…you seem to have Kyle's best interest at heart." She was nervous, like a girl who had just cheated on her spelling test.
Horatio didn't ask how she knew his intentions. He could only guess that Kyle had been feeding her information about their times together. And he could also only guess that Dr. Young didn't think that Julia was doing that great a job.
Dr. Young made one last comment. "In the last few months I've been seeing him, I've noticed a decline in his well being. He is less happy, less healthy, and doing a great deal worse in school. That I can tell to the court."
Horatio nodded and sighed. He should be happy that he had information to use in his custody battle, but he was not. There was no reason on this earth that he could hear that his son was wasn't doing well and be happy about it.
He stood. "Thank you very much, Dr. Young. You've been a great help. I'll contact you more about this later." He shook hands with her and headed for the door.
"Lieutenant?" She said hesitantly. He turned. "I think you ought to know, Kyle looks up to you a great deal." She spoke volumes with her eyes.
He understood. He wasn't going to let her or his son down. He headed out to the hummer. Right before he turned the key in the ignition, his phone buzzed. There was no way he could have known that he was about to receive the most terrifying phone call of his life.
***************************************************************************
Kyle Harmon, on his way home from school, cruised down the pike with his radio blasting. It was sunny and warm, perfect Florida conditions. He let one arm hang out the car window, and nodded his head to the beat of the music.
He pulled off the pike, now within a few miles of his home. He approached a red light and slowed to a stop. The song on the radio had ended and was replaced by annoying mattress sale commercials. "When aren't mattresses on sale?" he said to no one in particular. He reached down and fiddled with the tuner knob, searching for a good station.
Vaguely he was aware of the light turning green. Being the first person at the stop line, he jammed his foot down on the gas. He glanced at the road, and then went back to tuning his radio. He never found the station.
A/N: I really need some reviews! They fuel the creative fire!
Coming up: Someone's going to need a little TLC. And in the meantime Horatio might learn some things he didn't want to know.
