Sunday, March 29, 2008; 4:49 PM EST

Sunday, March 29, 2008; 4:49 PM EST

'Delko.'

'Hey, Eric, man, am I glad to hear your voice! How are my plants? Did you empty the trash before Wednesday's pickup? Make sure to check the expiration date on the milk and toss it before it goes bad. And… ummm… could you wash…'

Eric began to laugh; he just could not stop himself. He leaned against the stucco covered wall by Ryan's condo door and slid gently down it, dropping the door keys in the process, his shoulders shaking with mirth. Calleigh plucked the phone from his grasp before it also fell unceremoniously to the ground. She held out her hand to Eric and he placed the keys in her palm as she rolled her eyes at him.

At the other end of the line, Ryan looked stunned. His gasp brought Jess' eyes up from her book to meet his. Her blue eyes answered his confusion with a simple yet directed, 'What?' He shrugged, and then held up his finger.

'This is CSI Duquesne; with whom am I speaking?'

'Calleigh, this is Ryan. What is wrong with Eric? I started asking him some questions about the status of my condo and all of a sudden he's busting his gut laughing at something. What is going on there? Are you at some weird crime scene or something?'

'Well, hi, Ryan. No, we are actually right outside of your place. Eric brought me so I could make sure that everything is taken care of properly.'

'This is the first time he has been over there?'

Calleigh smiled, the only hint that indicated her amusement as she unlocked the door. 'I am not really sure about that Ryan. You will have to ask Eric about that when he calms down.' She paused and crinkled her nose. Eric, do you smell that?

What do you think it is? It smells like something died in here.

'Calleigh! Calleigh! Oh, man, I knew that I should never have asked Delko to watch my place. He has killed the plants, hasn't he? And did he take out the trash on Wednesday? If he used my towels I am burning them when I get home, Calleigh!!' Ryan was spiraling quickly into his obsessive compulsive disorder OCD and began counting the ceiling tiles again. He already knew there were thirty-two whole tiles, eight horizontal half tiles and five vertical half tiles from his struggle through yesterday's meeting with Jess and the team.

Calleigh was beginning the worry that their call had been dropped when she heard Ryan's quiet counting into the hospital room. 'Ryan, it is me, Calleigh and I need you to pay attention to me right now. There is nothing to worry about here. Eric did forget to take out the trash, but it is taken care of now. I am going to check up on your plants while the condo airs out a bit. When do you come home?'

'Ummm… ummm… looks like I will be coming back to Miami on Tuesday evening. They want me to get there before the San Diego personnel fly in on Saturday. Horatio wants this team protected while they are with us.'

'No episodes like this week, right?' Calleigh had already been briefed by Horatio on the status of the Evans case.

'Exactly. This Homeland Security agent on the case, Charles Dewey looks like he will be staying with me. I am not sure what H has planned for Jess, but I suppose that is why I am flying back early.'

'It seems logical to have her stay with me… what was her name again?'

'CSI Jessica Mitchell. The thing is, Cal, is that, she is, well… she… she is quiet and shy, especially around guys. And with you and Eric…' He let the thought hang. Maybe talking about this over the phone was not such a great plan. Either that of maybe she will be over her anger by th…

'Ryan Wolfe, are you insinuating that I cannot have a week without Mr. Delko staying at my house?'

'Well, no, I, ummm…'

'Good. Could you please put CSI Mitchell on the line for a moment? It was nice to talk to you, Ryan. Good bye.'

2:05 PM; PST

Ryan was dumbfounded as he reached between his and Jess' beds to hand her the cell phone. 'Calleigh… I mean, CSI Calleigh Duquesne would like to speak with you, J.'

Her eyes pled with his to not force her to take the call; he shrugged and tossed the phone onto her bed. Ryan Wolfe felt slighted by his friends, in no mood to argue.

Jess cautiously raised the phone to her ear. She could hear a man and a woman talking about when cacti should or should not be watered. One of them must be CSI Duquesne. 'Ma'am, excuse me, ma'am.' She knew she sounded mousy, but too worried about the conversation itself to do a thing about her voice. 'Excuse me!'

A soft southern accent answered her this time. 'I am so sorry, CSI Mitchell. My colleague and I are attempting to take care of Ryan's plants while he is with you. Eric, just do it the way that I told you to, please. Like I said, I am sorry, Ms. Mitchell. I am CSI Calleigh Duquesne, Miami-Dade Crime Lab, one of Mr. Wolfe's teammates.'

'Hi, CSI Duquesne and please call me Jess or Jessica. Ry, mentioned that someone out there might be able to find me a hotel for our stay. Agent Dewey will be at Ry's place, so I just need to find a place for myself.'

'Don't be silly, Jess; you will stay with me, of course. And please, call me Calleigh or Cal.'

'Cal, I just do not want to be a bother. It is probably easier for you if I stay in a hotel.'

'Well, no, because then we would have to rent you a car and drive two cars to the lab every morning and eat dinner alone. Above all, it was the purpose of Ryan's visit to protect you, right? Well, you still need protection when you are here and I am the best shot on the team.'

Jess heard loud protestations from the background; it sounded like the man was saying something about unfounded rumors and lies. She assumed the man was Calleigh's boyfriend, which would make staying with her even more uncomfortable.

'And, Jess, sweetie, do not worry your mind about Delko, here. He will be just fine on his own for a little while.' Calleigh lowered her voice to whisper conspiratorially, 'it reminds him of why he loves me as much as he does… even though he would never admit that in public.'

'If you are sure, Cal…'

'Absolutely! Now tell me, when does Ryan come in and when do you and Agent Dewey fly in? The boys are so bad about finding out the important details.'

Other than a few close friends, Jess did not really do the 'girl talk' thing, so she was grateful to have information that she could relay to CSI Duquesne. Her Southern accent was oddly soothing, for a California native, but the social aspect of the conversation still made Jess begin shrinking into herself figuratively and literally. When the women ended the call ten minutes later, details arranged, Jess was curled up in a ball, facing away from Ryan and crying soundlessly as she clutched the sheets. All she could do was think; think about the small life that she used to have and live and love. So she thought, and she knew that her next call would be back to Miami, to her safety net.