Chapter 16

In the week that followed, all Elizabeth's remaining stuff was transferred to the DuCaine apartment. She hadn't had much, but that changed drastically after an afternoon of shopping with her half sister, and the credit card of the Lieutenant of Miami-Dade Crime Lab himself. There had only been two cardboard boxes left before that, with clothing, her laptop and cell phone, her dad's old guitar, and some personal things: her diary and a few old pictures. Her parents had left her with tons of debts and after the building was released as a crime scene, a public sale had been unavoidable.

Horatio had done everything he could to give her the chance to pick some last pieces, but she hadn't really wanted anything, and had agreed to sell the villa she had grown up in with all possessions.

Elizabeth looked up. "Yes?" she said, hoarsely, when her mind had convinced her she had definitely heard a soft knock.

CSI Duquesne pushed the door open further and popped her head in. "Hi... What are you doing in here? I haven't seen you yet today."

"I'm trying to decorate my room a little. You know... personalize things."

"Need some help with that?"

"Sure," Elizabeth answered with her soft voice, throwing a halfhearted smile in Calleigh's direction, as her half sister entered the room and wandered over to the bed to pick up the other bright green curtain, just as Emily's crying filled the room. Calleigh had left the door ajar in case her daughter woke up. She had already had the feeling the little one was going to wake up soon. "Emily's awake," Calleigh said, stating the obvious as she put the green curtain back down on the bed and navigated towards the bedroom door.

Elizabeth finished hanging her curtain and turned around. "Calleigh?" Her half sister stood still and turned around to face her. When she was facing her, Elizabeth softly asked, "May I?" Her expression showed some insecurity at whether it had been the right thing to ask. She had longed to lift her half niece out of her crib so many times, but had never dared to put her question in words. Emily seemed to like her, but maybe…

Calleigh smiled. "Of course."

Elizabeth's smile grew a little wider, as she happily maneuvered through her room to the adjacent baby room, leaving Calleigh behind. She lowered herself on Liz' bed and sighed a long sigh, as Emily's crying seemed to stop. It would work out, she was sure, but it would be different with a teenage girl in addition to their own infant daughter.

When she looked up again, Liz was walking into the room with the four-month-old girl on her hip. The baby seemed to be happily snuggled up in Elizabeth's arms and eagerly sucked on her thumb.

"Have you thought about a little brother or sister for Emily?" Liz asked, softly rubbing the little one's back, and looking up to see Calleigh's pain filled expression. "Have I said something wrong?"

The young mother swallowed the lump in her throat, and explained, "Right after Emily's birth, my womb and ovaries were removed. It was unavoidable since I had severe internal bleeding."

Elizabeth suppressed the question of how it had happened and hung her head. "I'm sorry."

"You couldn't have known," Calleigh whispered and tried her best to smile.