Happiness for H: Ghosts
(Letters from the past)
Emily looked at Horatio worriedly. His face had become pale and she could feel the tenseness in him where her arm rested around his waist.
"You don't look as though you believe it, Horatio," she said quietly.
Sensing that something wasn't right with the red-haired man, Ghost quietly nudged his biscuit beneath his doggie bed and walked over to where his mistress sat. Absently, Emily reached out her hand and rubbed his big ears; the familiar motion calming her somewhat jangled nerves.
Horatio was barely aware of Emily sitting there. Guilt was threatening to overwhelm him and he found he barely had the strength to fight it. The faces of Marisol, Ray, his mother and father danced before his eyes. Slowly he closed his eyes and counted to ten, but when he opened them, the images were still there in an endless loop.
How different things might have been if his mother had managed to get to the safe house upstate all those years ago. Horatio grimaced. His mother might still be alive had things gone differently. At the very least, he wouldn't have the memory of her dying in his arms. As a child, Horatio had dreamed of having grandparents and aunts and uncles to visit. It made him feel sick to realize how close he had been to having that dream come true. Had things worked out, Ray might still be alive, and Marisol would never have met him and might still be alive, her cancer in remission, enjoying the sunlight and living her life.
Emily could sense Horatio slipping away from her. She could only guess at the ghosts that were haunting his thoughts right now, but she was becoming afraid for him. Her husband was the strong one, always shouldering everyone else's load and seemingly untouched by the horrible violence that he witnessed everyday in his job. But now, sitting beside her, she sensed the fragileness of his emotional state.
"Ghost, I think these letters have been too much for him," she murmured softly, her fingers slipping through the soft fur. "I should have stopped sooner. It's not like they are going anywhere. They sat there all these years, what would a few more days have mattered?" Emily berated herself. "Why was it so important anyway? It's not like anything can be changed now. These are just cruel reminders of something that was probably better off forgotten. It wasn't my life, I shouldn't have pushed him. When am I ever going to learn to stay out of things that don't concern me?" Ghost whined and pulled his head away from his mistress. The red-haired man needed help. He knew what he was about to do might get him in big hot water with his mistress, but the situation called for a desperate measure. Before Emily could stop him, the big dog put his feet on the sofa, and leaned over and began to lick his new master upside the head and neck.
Emily was so surprised by her pet's reaction, it was some moments before she realized what he was doing.
"Ghost, no! Down!" But her pet chose to not acknowledge the command, continuing to lick Horatio's face.
Through the fog of guilt, Horatio felt something soft and warm brushing against his face and neck. When he slowly reached up to push it away, it moved but didn't go away. Emily's voice began to filter through the darkness that enveloped his thoughts and he blinked.
"Down Ghost! Horatio? Horatio, are you ok? Ghost!"
It was the fright in his wife's voice that finally brought him back to the present.
"Down, Ghost." At the sound of his voice, the big dog sat obediently before him, regarding him with solemn brown eyes.
"Horatio? Are you ok?" When he turned to look at her, Emily almost cried out in relief. The emptiness was gone from his eyes. "Oh, thank goodness. We were so worried!" Unthinkingly, Emily threw her arms around him, hugging him to her fiercely. "I love you Horatio. Whatever's happened in the past is done. It can't be changed." She looked him in the eyes. "Don't let it hurt you anymore. Let me help you if I can. Please?" Horatio nodded, his throat suddenly tight. He felt her tears where her face was hidden in his neck. Slowly his hand came up to stroke her hair and he whispered,
"It's ok, Em. I'm ok. You saved me, sweetheart." A plaintive whine came from Ghost and he looked down. Blue eyes met brown. "Thank you Ghost. You deserve an extra long walk tomorrow, I think." Horatio reached out his free hand, rubbing the dog's big head. Relieved that all was well with his human family, Ghost let Emily comfort Horatio, and trotted back to his doggie bed, intent on rescuing his biscuit from it's hiding place.
The last letter sat unopened on the table. Neither Horatio nor Emily noticed that it was addressed not to Horatio's mother, but to his Uncle John. And had they picked it up, they would have noticed it was ready to mail, but had never made it to the post office.
(The next morning)
The soft buzzing of Horatio's alarm woke Emily. Quickly she reached over him, intent on turning it off before he awoke. As she clicked it off, he mumbled and rolled over, his bare arm coming in contact with her body. The familiar tingle ran through her at his touch and she held her breath as she slowly eased away from him. Thankfully, he didn't wake up and she sat back against her pillows watching him sleep. Her fingers itched to gently brush the hair off his forehead.
'He looks so vulnerable right now,' she thought protectively. A soft whine came from the other side of the door, and Emily whistled softly. Ghosts' black nose slowly pushed through the crack of the door, opening it wider until he could fit his big furry self through. He went to her side of the bed, and sat, resting his chin on the mattress, ready for his morning ear scritchie.
"I'll get up and put you out in a few minutes, Ghost. I don't think he should go to work today, do you?" Brown eyes looked up at her, as if to say, 'No, but do you really think he'll go for it?'
"I agree," Emily sighed. "At the very least I think he should sleep in until noon today. He barely slept two hours at a time last night." Her pet seemed to nod his head in agreement. Indeed, he had heard the muffled groans of the red-haired man in the night. Each time Ghost had rose to his feet, ready to help. Then his sensitive ears had heard his mistress's soft murmurs and then all would be quiet once more. After the second time he had been awakened from a dream of chasing bunnies through the forest, Ghost had left his doggie bed and chosen a spot in the hallway. He had settled down for a long night of keeping a watchful eye and ear on the closed door.
Afraid to linger any longer in case Horatio should wake up, Emily carefully slid out of bed. Ghost followed at her heels and she quickly set about the morning routine of putting him outside and getting the coffee brewing. As she watched the liquid pour into the carafe, Emily kept a watchful eye on the hallway. For the life of her, she couldn't remember Horatio ever taking a sick day. She reached for her cell phone.
Eric was surprised to see who was calling when he glanced at his phone as he swung his car out of the lot at his condo.
"Hey, Emily, a little early for our dog park date," he teased, as he steered through the morning traffic. As soon as he heard her voice say good morning, he knew something wasn't right.
"Are you all right Em?" he asked, ready to turn the car in the direction of the Caine house.
"Yes, I'm fine, Eric. It's Horatio." He noticed the slightest catch in her voice.
"What is it, Em? You can tell me," he said reassuringly, but beginning to worry.
"I … He … Horatio won't be in to work today, Eric." Her voice sounded stronger now. "He had kind of a bad night, didn't sleep very well. I … I don't want to wake him since he's finally able to rest."
"What happened, Emily?" Eric pulled into the parking lot of a Publix. Putting the car in Park, he tried to remember if Horatio had mentioned anything amiss at home.
"Long story, Eric," Emily sighed, "it was family stuff - his parents, Ray, Willow. I think it was too much for him. He had nightmares all night." Normally, Emily would never divulge such personal information to anyone but her grandmother, but Eric was family. She and Horatio's brother-in-law had become close since their dog park surveillances. It was obvious that the younger man would do anything for his friend.
"I don't know what to do Eric. Can you cover for him or let whoever is supposed to know that he won't be in? I would imagine he'll want to go into the office when he wakes up, but I'm going to do my best to make him stay in that bed today." After she said it, Emily groaned, feeling her face turn red. "That didn't come out quite right."
"I bet you are!" Eric teased, then sobered. "Of course we'll cover for him, Em. He's saved our backsides more than we can remember. Stetler is the only one who might cause a problem, but we'll keep him busy. Take care of him. By the way, how do you plan on keeping him home today?"
"I'm thinking of putting Ghost on guard duty with orders to bite if he attempts to leave the house." Emily smiled into the phone as Eric laughed.
"Sounds like it might work Emily. Don't worry about CSI – we'll be fine. Call me later and let me know how he's doing?"
"Of course," Emily said relieved. "Thank you Eric."
"Not a problem, Em."
After saying goodbye, Emily turned to let Ghost inside, letting out a little squeak as she saw the object of her phone conversation leaning wearily against the wall.
"Who were you talking to Emily?"
TBC
