A/N: I have decided to make this story a ten chapter story. Now, don't worry. Laila and Horatio's story will continue in the sequel, Repairing the Present. I will also write some one-shots about their relationship. Enjoy your reading and don't forget to review!


Laila heard Horatio speaking quietly into his phone. He was talking to someone named Frank about an interview. An interview with her. She knew something had happened yesterday, something that had driven her and Horatio to stay together during the night. Laila remembered feeling numb for the majority of yesterday afternoon. It all came back in a rush. Sanders, the contract, all the blood. When she gasped Horatio pulled her tighter, his attention back on her.

"No, I'm fine. Just, remembering." She sighed, slowly blinking the sleep out of her eyes.

"It's alright. I'm going to have you come down to the lab with me. One of our detectives is going to interview you about what you remember and what your work was like." Horatio spoke calmly, smiling at her. Laila yawned and nodded. She quickly changed while Horatio got ready. He stopped the Hummer for coffee on the way down to the police department. He took her inside, then nodded to an officer. "Now, Josh here is going to take you to be interviewed. You can come see me when you're done."

"Okay. I'll see you later." Laila smiled then followed Josh. He gestured for her to take a seat, across from a balding man. The man had a notepad in front of him, alongside a pen. When he spoke, he had a Texan twang to his voice.

"Hello Laila, I'm Detective Frank Tripp. Now, what can you tell me about the murder of your boss, Zachary Sanders?" Tripp didn't sound angry at all. In fact, he didn't even sound suspicious.

"Well, I was just working in my office and I had a report I needed to bring to him. So I went over and I just found him, in a pool of blood. I called the cops," Laila lowered her voice, "and then I called Horatio."

"Horatio?" He asked, looking up.

"Yeah, I had lunch with him before." Laila was a little stricken, she didn't want him to get in trouble.

"Are you and Lieutenant Caine..." He paused for a few moments. "Involved?"

"Yes."

"Well, that explains why he wanted me to interview you." Tripp muttered, glancing at his note. Laila cocked her head slightly, biting her lip. Why would he not want to interview me himself?

"It would be a conflict of interest, he'd be biased towards you." Frank said, looking up. Laila mentally slapped herself, twice.

"I said that out loud didn't I?"

"Yep." He didn't seem that surprised. This must have happened before. "Now, what exactly was your office like?"

"Well, everybody just tried to stay out of Sanders' way. He had a temper." It all came spilling out, how Sanders was known to explode at the slightest provocation, how people were often fired for just making him mad. Frank recorded everything she said, thanked her for her time, and told her she could leave. She found herself waiting in the lobby after she had sent a text to Horatio. He came out a short time later. She found she enjoyed the way that he was always dressed in suit with the top button of his shirt undone and his badge clipped to his slacks.

"How did it go?" He asked, settling into a chair. Horatio's legs were almost too long for the chair, he used them as an armrest.

"I think it went fine, we talked for awhile. He just wanted to know what work was like. I told him I didn't know who killed Sanders." Laila smiled at him. "I think I'm going to be at home for the rest of the day. I can walk to the garage to get my car."

"If that's what you feel like." He said, "Call me later." Laila smiled and got up. It was only a fifteen minute walk to the garage and a quick drive back to her apartment. Laila had decided to spend the day out on her balcony, reading.


For Horatio Caine, it was going to be a very busy day. After Frank had interviewed Laila he had helped in the process, garnering statements from every employee of GlobalGraphics. They had all said the same thing, mean boss and quick terminations. The secretary, Molly, had been the most eager. She had quickly divulged that security cameras weren't in the office because of something Sanders was doing. Molly thought it was either an affair or he was screwing with the numbers.

"That doesn't make any sense though, that Laila chick is the one who always winds up keeping everything going." Molly popped her gum, then leaned closer to Frank and Horatio. "She was the real one in charge. Sanders started everything, but as time went on he just stayed in his office. She took over more and more of the day to day things. All she would do was give Sanders reports on how the company was doing. In fact, I saw her go into Sanders' office. She walked out with something."

"Okay, when was that?" Horatio asked, suddenly interested.

"Before lunch. She disappeared right after." The bleached blonde shook her hair. "I think she did it. Zach never gave her credit. She probably got pissed, smashed him."

"Thank you. Officer James here will escort you out." Horatio gestured for her to leave. It didn't take very long for evidence to begin to flow. Eric had dusted the bottle, finding three set of fingerprints. That meant they would have to get ten cards from all the staff. Wolfe and Valera had found that the blood only belonged to Zachary, so he had no lead DNA wise. It was going to become a series of elimination case.

"H we're going to need those ten cards before we can get any farther in this case." Delko said, looking up as Horatio entered the break room. "We've got to go on prints. Without any cameras or witnesses we've got nothing." Horatio poured himself a cup of coffee before responding.

"I've got officers calling all employees, telling them to come in tomorrow to get fingerprinted." He almost yawned. Why was he so tired right now? "I'll be working on our drowning case for the rest of the day." A young woman had washed up on Miami Beach, her lungs filled with water, but bruises consistent with strangling around her throat. Her bathing suit had some trace evidence inside of it, glass shards. Wolfe had determined the type of glass used, a very high end brand. They were doing a system search for any sales in the Miami area, and from the list of buyers narrowing it down by buyers with boats. The results would be on his desk inside of an hour.

"Alright H, I'll call if anything comes up." Delko looked back to the papers in front of him. They were all pictures of the bottle, the body, and other evidence they had collected from the office. Horatio looked over his shoulder. A brandy snifter, bearing fingerprints, had been photographed. Underneath it was written Found in Laila Collins' desk drawer. Odd, she hadn't said anything about that to Frank. Damn, I can't ask her about any of it. I probably shouldn't even see her until the case is solved. He frowned. Shouldn't even call her.


Laila had enjoyed her day off. From what she had read, in situations like these it was better to be relaxed. Laila read a lot. She had received a call in the early afternoon, but not from Horatio. An officer of the Miami-Dade Police Department had called to tell her to be at the Crime Lab at ten o'clock tomorrow. He had also said that she should expect to remain at the Crime Lab for the entire day. She would be okay with that.

What hadn't happened though, was Horatio calling her.

It was already night. Laila glanced over her shoulder to the clock on her microwave. 9:30. Horatio should have left by now, he should be back in his apartment. He should have called. Don't be obsessive. Obsessing only makes it worse. She shook the thoughts out of her head. Just remain calm, remain calm. She got up, wandering to her shower. She took a long, hot shower. Using the best stuff she could find in her bathroom she scrubbed, shaved, and conditioned herself until she felt clean.

It took awhile to get that far.

She ate a small dessert, a teacup of ice cream, and grabbed a book. She used that to distract herself until her eyelids began to droop. She placed a book mark in the book, closed it, placed it on her nightstand and turned off her bedside lamp. When her head hit the pillow, she knew something was off. She flipped, laying on her side, back, stomach, anything. She tried adjusting her pillow. It didn't help. She felt cold. Laila grabbed an extra blanket, it just made her hot. She kicked off her covers, then shivered. With a sense of determination she shut her eyes, but all that sprang up was her boss lying in his blood. She looked up at the ceiling. She knew what she needed. She needed someone to be in her bed, someone to hold her.

Laila needed Horatio.


It had been a long day for Horatio. They had managed to track down the family that owned the boat which had the glasses. They had admitted to having a party on their boat, and seeing the victim. They would be brought in tomorrow for questioning. As would Laila's entire office. He sat down in a chair placed in a corner of his apartment. He rubbed his head, thinking. He had been in several relationships over the years. He remembered the pretty public defender, she had cared. She had also cared about a cop killer though, that had been what turned him off. She didn't have morals, she was just after money and being promoted. Truthfully, it seemed to be that way with most of the women he dated. things would start out fine, but eventually he'd find something that just didn't feel right and he'd end it.

He needed a drink.

While Horatio's apartment may have been small, it did hold a liquor cabinet that he stocked with some of the best. Currently, he felt like a scotch. He sipped the drink, turned on the TV, and tried to relax. There was a football game on, and for awhile he was successful. The Vikings were holding the Jets off, and playing pretty well at that. He flipped the station, moving from news, to entertainment, to movies and back. Eventually he just turned the TV off. Tonight was not going to be an easy night, he decided as he walked to his shower. He found a sort of peace in running through the motions, cleaning himself under the steady stream of hot water.

His bed was the problem.

He couldn't get comfortable. He tried anything he could think of. He counted backwards, he let his mind wander. He talked to himself, anything to rid himself of the silence. Nothing worked. All that came to his mind was the memory of the woman he had held for the past few nights. She had whispered and talked to him when they lay together. He missed that. He wanted that back. She's part of an investigation. She might have killed her boss. It wouldn't be right to make her think that just because the two of you are together, she can get away with murder.

"It's not like that." He muttered. Horatio's mind often did this, presenting him with the good and the bad as if it were an argument. Sometimes it was helpful, other times it was annoying.

Oh, of course not. The ever unflappable Lieutenant Caine would never let the guilty part get away. It's who you are. But, say this Lieutenant decided to let this one slide, all for a woman.

"That would never happen."

It might. If she's guilty, would you charge her? Or would you let her go, just for your own personal needs?

"My job takes precedence over my love life. If she is guilty, I would see that she pays."

Even at the cost of the rest of your sanity? Even if you could never sleep again? Not without seeing her in a cell, or maybe on Alexx's table. Those prisons can be awfully violent you know. Would you convict her if it had to be done?

"Yes."

Well, enjoy your night Lieutenant. Tomorrow will tell us all we need to know.