The junk yard was quiet, too quiet in Erin's opinion. Being surrounded by piles and piles of cars made her feel like she was in a maze, an impossible one at that. Mac was behind her, Langston in front of her, and the three of them were stalking silently through the city of old automobiles. Flack and Danny were searching the outside of the junk yard, and Erin knew that he had to be somewhere close by.
"Mac," Langston pointed in the direction they were headed; in front of them was a trailer, which sparked a little hope in Erin. However, what lay inside the trailer spurred less enthusiastic thoughts. The bathroom was filled with traces of former inhabitance, most likely of the young woman from the cargo truck, and also of Madeline Briggs. The one person there was no trace of, sadly, was Steele. Erin was angered, but she kept her gun pointed dead in front of her and continued searching the trailer, before voicing her conclusion.
"Clear."
Mac sighed, noting the look of disappointment on Erin's face, "We'll find him, don't worry."
She glanced at him momentarily, before nodding in agreement and continuing her search.
"He kept her here," Langston examined the bath tub, noticing the scuff marks from shoes and the obvious sign of inhabitance.
"There's blood, which means that this could be where he harvested the liver," Erin stated, pointing to the large pool of blood on the floor.
The New York detective nodded, "Let's check the perimiter. He could still be here."
Heat from the sun above them made Erin's shirt cling to her back with sweat, and between the kevlar vest over it and the intense nausea she was experiencing, she felt as if she could pass out any minute. She fidgeted with a strap on her vest as she stood outside the trailer with Flack and several officers, their eyes scanning the area.
"It's a maze in here, he could be anywhere," Langston stated.
Mac's face was hard with determination, "Then we find him," he started off in one direction, keeping his gun ready.
Flack handed Langston a shot gun, "Little welcome gift."
Erin smirked, shaking her head, "A little too much, don't you think Don?"
"In this situation, nothing is overkill," Langston stated, loading several casings into the large gun before following Mac.
"I like him," Flack nodded, walking back to the group of police officers, leaving the young woman standing, staring in the direction her two colleagues had gone.
She sighed, "Alright you son of a bitch, where are you hiding?" she walked towards one of the many aisles of scrap, keeping her gun in front of her at all times, not wanting to be surprised by anything that came her way.
"Erin? Where are you?" Mac's voice came over her walkie talkie.
"I'm about three rows over from you, I'm going to look towards the waterfront."
"Be careful."
She smirked, "Aren't I always?"
Suddenly, a crash of metal caught her attention; she saw Steele trying to sneak behind one of the many cars, but the loud hubcap that had hit the ground gave away his hiding spot.
"Casey Steele, NYPD put your hands in the air!" she screamed after him, noticing the revolver that he had tucked in the waistband of his jeans as he took off.
She growled inwardly, "I hate when they run. Mac! Ray! I've got him!" she bolted accross the dirt terrain, squeezing through tower after tower of piled cars, keeping her eyes locked on the man several feet in front of her, "STOP!"
He took a hard left, and as Erin followed, she felt the sole of a boot land square in her stomach, knocking her back against something sharp, "GODDAMMIT!" Erin reached behind her to feel piece of glass from a door mirror protruding out of the back of her shoulder; it had slipped into the one spot not covered by her vest. The sticky crimson liquid stained her shirt, pain shooting through her entire left arm, but her stomach hurt even more.
"Erin! Are you alright?" Danny ran over to her, noticing the glass in her shoulder, "Let's get you outta here, Mac and Langston caught Steele."
She nodded, following her friend out of the labyrinth of metal, "Thanks Danny."
"What happened, Erin?" Mac questioned, watching the female medic patch his friend's shoulder.
She winced, "Nothing. I chased him down, he kicked me, and the next thing I know I've got glass in my back."
He sighed, "Something always has to happen to you doesn't it?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" her gaze turned hard and angry, resenting the implicatoin.
"Just that," Mac sat next to her when the medic finished, "are you sure you're alright? You've been distracted lately. I know you, Erin, you could've caught that guy, something stopped you; what was it?"
Erin sighed defeatedly, he had to know didn't he? "Mac...remember when you were worried if I was pregnant again or not?"
His answer was hesitant, "Erin what's going on?"
"Mac...I'm pregnant, but the problem is...I don't know who the father is."
Now it was Mac's turn to look angry, "What?"
She glared at him, "Don't give me that look, the only two people that can be considered are Ryan and..."
"Who? Who's the other person Erin?" he prodded.
Erin stood, pulling her coat on, "You," and with that she walked away, leaving Mac to sit there with his mouth hanging open in shock. He could be the father of Erin's next child...this was a disaster.
"Erin," he ran after her, catching her arm, "why the Hell didn't you tell me sooner?"
She turned to him, tears now in her eyes, "Mac what did you want me to tell you! I don't know who the father is!"
Mac wrapped his arms around her, he could feel her sobs against his shoulder, "We'll figure this out, Erin, I promise."
The young woman choked, "An-And what if i-it's not R-R-Ryan? Wh-What do we d-do then-n-n?"
He sighed, pressing a kiss to the side of her head, "I'll take care of you. Both of you."
"You say that as if Ryan would leave me," she looked up at him, not anger or sorrow, but fear in her aquamarine stare.
Mac wiped the tears from her cheeks, "If the baby is mine, I promise you I will do everything in my power to help you support it. If it's Ryan's, then there's nothing to worry about is there?"
Erin sighed, nodding with a soft smile, "I knew there was a reason I still loved you Detective Taylor."
He chuckled, kissing her forehead, "I know you do."
"Well, I should get back to the airport, I've got a flight to Miami in an hour and Ray has to get to Vegas," she hugged him tight, "I'll keep you informed."
Mac nodded, "You need to tell Ryan when you get home."
The young blonde wiped her eyes, "I know, and I will. I'll call you when I land."
Ray walked over, "Ready to go?"
She turned to him, "Yeah, let's get you back to Vegas so we can find this guy."
He smiled, "Thank you for your help, Erin."
"Anythime, Ray," she nodded, putting her sunglasses on, glancing at Mac over her shoulder as she walked away.
Ryan stood outside Gate 4C, Michael and Horatio with him. Four days felt like four months, and he couldn't wait to see her again.
"Where is she dad?" Michael complained.
The young CSI chuckled, six years old and he still got annoyed when his mother wasn't there, "She'll be here soon, bud."
Horatio smiled, "And she'll be just as happy to see us as we are to see her."
Michael nodded with a smile, "I know...mom!" the young boy rushed through the crowd of people filing off of the plane, wrapping his arms around his mother.
"Ooh honey! I missed you so much," she pressed a kiss to the side of his head, "Did you behave?"
He nodded, "Did you bring me anything from New York?"
She chuckled, "I did, you can have it when you get home."
Ryan walked over, taking her small suit case, "Hello beautiful," his lips found hers longingly.
Erin smiled against his mouth, "Mmm, hello yourself," she wrapped her arms around his neck, "I missed you."
"I missed you, too," he kissed her cheek.
Horatio smiled, "No hug for me?"
Erin chuckled, "I was getting there," she hugged him lovingly, "hi dad."
He rubbed her back, "Good to have you back."
She sighed, letting him go, "Good to be back. Now," she turned to Michael, "who are you riding with?"
Michael looked at Horatio, "Grandpa!"
Horatio chuckled, "Alright."
Erin smirked, "You can ride in the front seat."
The little boy beamed, "Really? You the best mom!"
Ryan laughed, "Oh no, that's going to go to his head."
The young woman chuckled, "A trait he gets from you. Let's go," the four of them walked out of the airport to the parking lot, Horatio and Michael getting into his car, while Erin and Ryan got into theirs, "Ryan, when we get home there's something I need to talk to you about."
He looked at her as he buckled his seat belt, "OK...everything alright?"
She nodded, "Yeah, fine, let's go though," she gestured her head toward the car waiting for them. Erin relaxed into the warm leather seat of the Lexus as she felt the warm Miami sun on her face as they drove down the highway; it was good to be home.
AN: Please review! It makes me happy!