Nick wandered around the abandoned house trying to figure out why he and Sara were even there. Brass had received a call from an anonymous caller saying they had found a dead body in the house that Nick now stood in. So far neither he nor Sara has seen anything expect dust, cobwebs, and old cans of diet coke with lime.
"I think this was all a hoax." Sara replied joining Nick in the living room.
"Yeah, me too." Nick turned to face her and smiled. "At least it got us out of the lab for a while."
"That's true. I think if I had to hear Greg do his imitation of the Swedish Chef from the Muppet Show one more time, we would have another crime scene to investigate."
"Greg needs a girlfriend."
Sara nodded. "I guess we can leave. There's nothing here." She and Nick began walking out of the house when they heard a noise coming from upstairs. Nick shot Sara a look.
"I thought you checked up there?"
"I did. There was nothing up there." She said with a bit of nervousness in her voice.
"Okay, I'm going to upstairs and check it out. You stay here."
"Oh no, I'm going with you." She started walking before Nick could argue. Carefully they made their way up the stairs. They checked each room and came up empty.
"I don't get it. You did hear that noise right?" Nick asked making sure he wasn't losing what was left of his sanity.
"Of course I heard it." She shivered slightly and wrapped her arms around herself. "Can we leave now?"
Nick smiled at her. "Scared?"
She punched his arm. "No, just cautious."
He was about to say yes but they both heard a bang coming from the room on the other side of the hall. "I heard that." Nick said and pulled out his gun. Sara did the same and they walked silently down the hall to the room. Nick reached the door and glanced at Sara. She nodded and he slowly opened the door. They entered the room with their weapons ready. The room had a bed, a dresser, and a broken full-length mirror. There was a closet door beside the bed.
Nick pointed to it and mouthed. "I'm going to open the door."
Sara bit her bottom lip and nodded. She watched as Nick approached the door and carefully opened it. He glanced inside the closet; his gun was aimed and ready for anything. He reached for the clothes that were hanging and pulled them back. A scream caused him to jump. Rushing out of the closet was a kid not more than five or six years old. She ran right into Sara.
Sara put her gun away and grabbed the little girl's shoulder. "It's okay, we're not going to hurt you." She told the girl.
The little girl glanced up at her. "I want my mommy."
Sara bent down to her level. "My name is Sara and that's Nick." She pointed to Nick who was now beside her. "What's your name?"
"Cassie."
"That's a pretty name Cassie. How did you get here?"
"My mommy brought me here and then she went away." Cassie's green eyes began to water.
"We'll help you find her." Nick told her.
Cassie smiled at him. "You talk funny. Are you a cowboy?"
Sara laughed at the honesty of the little girl.
Nick bent down beside Cassie. "I'm from Texas, but I'm not a cowboy. I bet you're hungry? How about we all get something to eat and then we'll look for your mom?"
Cassie nodded her blonde curls bounced against her face. "Okay."
Nick and Sara both stood up and Nick reached for Cassie's hand. She gladly took it along with Sara's hand as well. Together the three made their way out of the house.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Nick, Sara, and Cassie walked along the halls of CSI. Cassie was holding the hippo beanie baby she got out of her happy meal. They made their way into the break room and sat down on the couch. "Do you want anything else to eat Cassie?" Nick asked.
"Sure. What have you got?"
"Let's see." Nick stood up and walked to the refrigerator. He opened it and found some thin mint Girl Scout cookies, a banana, and some soda. On top of the fridge was a box of saltines and some beef jerky. He repeated the items to Cassie and she decided she wanted some cookies. "Good choice." Nick told her and grabbed them. He walked back over to the couch and sat down beside her.
"Thanks." Cassie said as she began eating the cookies.
Warrick came in the break room and noticed that Nick and Sara were sitting on the couch. He then noticed the little girl between them. At first glance, he thought it was Lindsey, but she was too small. "Hey guys. What's going on?"
"Hey Warrick." Sara greeted. She nodded toward Cassie. "This is Cassie. She's staying with us until we can find her mother."
"Oh." Warrick smiled at Cassie. "Hey Cassie, I'm Warrick. Have these two been good to you?"
"Yeah, they bought me supper."
"I bet I have the perfect desert." He said.
Cassie's face lit up and she was curious at to what he had.
Warrick smiled and left the room. He came back in a few moments later holding a box of Godiva chocolate. "It just so happens that I had some left over." He handed her the chocolate ignoring the looks that both Nick and Sara were giving him.
Catherine and Grissom both came in the room and noticed Cassie immediately. Grissom glanced over at Sara and Nick. "What's going on?"
Nick began to explain about the so-called crime scene and then finding Cassie in the closet. "We couldn't leave her there."
Grissom only nodded. "Have you started the search yet?"
"We were fixing to." Sara said and stood up. "Come on Cassie, let's find your mom." Cassie stood up and grabbed Sara's hand. They left the room together leaving the others to discuss the situation.
"How long do you think she's been in that house?" Catherine asked.
"Not long. I have this feeling that the person that called Brass was her mother." Nick answered.
"Why would someone do that to their own children?" Warrick wondered.
"I know I would die if I didn't have Lindsey around."
Grissom only nodded. "Well, keep me posted." He turned to Warrick and Catherine. "Don't you two have cases to be working on?"
"Yeah. We're on it." Warrick replied and walked out of the room muttering something along the lines of Grissom being a slave driver. Catherine smiled and followed him out.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Greg was passing by the computer lab when he noticed that Sara was in there with a little girl standing beside her. Both were chatting quietly and staring at the computer screen. He decided to go in and see what's going on.
"Hey Sara."
She turned around and smiled. "Hey Greg."
"And who is this pretty girl?" He asked giving Cassie a smile.
"I'm Cassie. Do you work with Sara?"
"Yep, Sara and I are tight." He said giving both girls a huge grin.
"In your dreams Greggo." Sara laughed.
"Always."
"I really didn't need to hear that Greg." Nick stated as he came in the room.
"Well, it's the truth." He gave Cassie a wink.
She smiled and turned her attention to Nick. "Sara found my mom on the computer."
"All right. Let's go find her."
"Nick, can I talk to you for a moment?" Sara asked.
"Sure. Greg you don't mind watching Cassie for a moment do you?"
"Not at all." Greg reached down for her hand. "Come on Cassie, I'll show you around the lab." They left leaving Nick and Sara alone.
Nick turned his attention to Sara. "What's going on?"
"When I was searching for Cassie's mother, I noticed that Cassie was reported missing from Washington D.C."
"Oh man. Who filed the report?"
"Her mother. According to the missing person's file, she was reported missing about a month ago. Apparently her father picked her up from school and brought her home but later she disappeared."
"Have you called them?"
Sara shook her head no. "I was going to but I didn't want to call in front of Cassie."
"Wait a minute, didn't Cassie say that her mother left her at the house?"
"Yeah, she did. If Cassie's mother was with her, why would Cassie still be in the missing person's report?"
"I don't know but I think we need to make a phone call." Nick pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number that Sara had copied off the net. "Hi, I'm Nick Stokes from the Las Vegas crime lab." He began to explain about how he and Sara found Cassie.
Sara listened to the one sided conversation and waited until Nick hung off the phone. "What did they say?"
"Turns out that Cassie's mother is the one that kidnapped her and her father has been looking everywhere. The mother on the report was her step-mother."
"Oh. Are they going to call her dad?"
"Yeah, and I expect he'll be here on the first flight he can get."
"Good, now we need to find the mother."
"What about Cassie? I think one of us should stay with her."
Sara nodded. "I will." She and Nick decided to go find Cassie and Greg and make sure the lab was still standing. They walked into the DNA lab and found that Cassie and Greg had a map hanging up with pink pushpins stuck in it.
"What's going on?" Nick asked.
"We're marking places that we want to go visit." Cassie explained.
"Nice." Sara replied. "Hey Cassie, Nick is going to go find your mom. I was thinking that you and I could go to my place and watch a movie or something until he finds her okay."
"Okay." Cassie walked over and took Sara's hand. She glanced at Greg. "Bye Greg. I'll talk to you later."
"Bye Cass."
Sara and Cassie left the room and headed toward the parking garage.
Greg turned to Nick. "I think she's gonna make a great mom one day." He replied nodding toward the girls as they walked away.
Nick smiled. "Yeah, I think she will too." He turned his attention back to Greg. "Thanks for watching Cassie for us."
"No problem."
Nick left the room and began his search for Cassie's mom. After calling Brass and informing him on what was going on, both Brass and Nick got to work hunting down Cassie's mom.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Sara pulled up to her house and turned the car off. She glanced over at her passenger and noticed that Cassie was fast asleep. She smiled and got out of the car quietly and walked over to the passenger side. Sara opened the door and carefully as she could, carried the little girl inside. She went into her bedroom and placed Cassie down on the bed and covered her up. Sara left the room and sat down in her living room. She turned the television on and pulled her legs up on the couch. Her mind was racing. She couldn't understand why Cassie's mother would kidnap Cassie and then leave her alone in an abandoned house.
"Sara."
She turned around and saw Cassie standing beside the couch. "What's wrong sweetie?"
"I can't sleep."
"Come here." Sara patted the couch and Cassie sat down beside her. Sara wrapped her arm around Cassie and Cassie leaned her head against Sara's side.
"Can we watch cartoons?"
"Sure." Sara flipped the channel to a cartoon station. After a few minutes, Cassie was sound asleep. Sara found herself becoming sleepy as well. She closed her eyes and soon sleep took over.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Nick and Brass finally found Cassie's mother in a bar. They brought her back to the station and began questioning her.
"You're a long way from home Ms. Watson. Care to explain why?" Brass asked.
Ms. Watson glanced over at Brass. Her eyes were cold and clouded over. "Why do you care?"
"We don't really. All we want to know is why you took Cassie away from her father. He has legal custody over her."
"He lied in court to keep her away from me. He told the judge that I was a bad mother. So what if I have a drink every now and then? I love my daughter."
"Oh yeah, you love her so much that you left her alone in an abandoned house." Nick replied. "That doesn't sound like love to me."
"I needed a drink and I couldn't take her to the bar. So, I told her to stay there and I would be back."
"What I don't understand is why you called the police?" Brass said.
"I think I can answer that." Nick answered. He turned his attention to Ms. Watson. "You were mad at you ex-husband for taking your daughter away. So you decided to repay him. After he dropped Cassie off, you picked her up. You decided that if you couldn't have custody over her, neither could he. So, you drove as far away as you could. As you were driving, you realized that you couldn't live the way you wanted to with Cassie around. You couldn't drink and take care of her at the same time. So you decided to call the police reporting a fake crime scene knowing that someone would show up and find Cassie and you wouldn't have to be responsible for her anymore."
Ms. Watson stared at him. "That brat kept screaming about being hungry and wanting her dad and her mommy. I'm her mommy, not that stupid tramp!"
Nick glanced over at Brass. They had all they needed to make an arrest and call the Washington D.C. police. Nick thanked Brass and headed toward Sara's. Once he arrived, he went inside to find both Sara and Cassie asleep on the couch. He walked over and gently tugged on Sara's shoulder. Her eyes fluttered open and she gave him a small smile.
"Hey." She whispered.
"Hey."
"How did it go? Did you find Cassie's mom?"
He nodded. "Yeah, she's being arrested."
"Good." Sara glanced down at Cassie. She was snuggled against Sara and her tiny arm wrapped around Sara's stomach.
"Do you want me to put her in your bedroom?" Nick asked.
"No, she's fine."
"Okay." Nick leaned down and kissed Sara's forehead. "I'm going to head home. I just wanted to let you know what was going on."
"Thanks Nick."
"Goodnight Sara."
"Goodnight." She watched him leave and then drifted back off into a deep slumber.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Nick, Sara, and Cassie were standing in the airport waiting for Cassie's father to arrive. Cassie was holding their hands and staring straight ahead. As soon as she saw her dad, she released their hands and rushed to him. "Daddy!"
Her father reached down and picked her up. He smothered her with hugs and kisses. A woman stood beside him and soon Cassie was in her arms. After a few moments, they approached Nick and Sara.
"You must be Nick Stokes and Sara Sidle. I'm John Watson and this is my wife Elizabeth."
Nick nodded. "It's nice to meet you."
"Thank you so much for finding our daughter." John said.
"You're welcome."
"Daddy, Nick and Sara took me to their work and I got to play in the lab and then Sara and I watched cartoons and this morning Sara made me some chocolate chip pancakes." Cassie said excitedly.
John glanced at Sara. "Thanks. That's her favorite breakfast."
"I thought so. She ate about four." Sara replied with a laugh.
"Well kiddo, it's time to go home. Why don't you give Nick and Sara a hug?"
Cassie walked over to Nick and Nick bent down and hugged her. "I'm going to miss you Nick."
"I'm going to miss you too." He pulled away and reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. He handed it to her. "This is mine and Sara's phone numbers, e-mails, and addresses. You can write us anytime you want to."
"Thanks." Cassie turned to Sara and gave her a hug. "Bye Sara."
"Bye sweetie. You be good okay." Sara kissed her forehead and pulled away.
"Come on Cass. It's time to go." John said.
Cassie ran back to him and he picked her up. They waved a final goodbye and then left. Nick turned to Sara and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. They walked back to his Denali in silence. Halfway home, Nick turned around and noticed tears rolling down Sara's cheeks. He reached over and held her hand.
"What's wrong honey?"
"I'm going to miss her." She said.
"Me too. You were really good with her."
"I always thought I would be a horrible mother, but now I'm not so sure that's true."
"You'll be a great mother and I'm not the only one to say so." She glanced at him surprised. "Greg mentioned it as well."
"Really?"
"Yeah." He squeezed her hand and they drove the rest of the way in silence. Each lost in their own thoughts.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
4 months later
Sara was sitting in her kitchen glancing over her mail. She found a postcard from Washington D.C. She smiled and turned it over. It was from Cassie. Sara read the brief greeting. "Sara, Daddy told me that you and Nick were going to have a baby. I can't wait to see pictures of him or her. I hope you have a girl. Daddy said that we could come and visit as soon as you have the baby. If that's okay. Well, I have to run. I have homework to do. Love Cassie." Sara smiled and reached down and touched her stomach. She was two months pregnant. After Nick and Sara arrived home from the airport, they had a long discussion about children. Nick proposed to her that day and they were married a month later. Then Sara found out she was pregnant. She wasn't sure who was more excited, her or Nick.
"Honey, I'm home." Nick called out.
"I'm in the kitchen."
Nick walked in and wrapped his wife in a hug. When they pulled apart, Sara handed him the postcard. "We got this from Cassie."
Nick read it and smiled. "She's sweet. You know if we do end up having a girl, I was thinking we could name her after Cassie."
Sara nodded. "Cassie Stokes. Sounds good, but what if we have a boy?"
"I don't think he'll appreciate the name Cassie."
Sara laughed. "Me neither, but we've got plenty of time to decide on a name."
Nick leaned over and kissed her. "Have I told you how much I love you?"
"I think I have an idea." She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. "I love you Nick."
"I love you too." They spent the rest of the morning showing just how much they love each other.
"I think this was all a hoax." Sara replied joining Nick in the living room.
"Yeah, me too." Nick turned to face her and smiled. "At least it got us out of the lab for a while."
"That's true. I think if I had to hear Greg do his imitation of the Swedish Chef from the Muppet Show one more time, we would have another crime scene to investigate."
"Greg needs a girlfriend."
Sara nodded. "I guess we can leave. There's nothing here." She and Nick began walking out of the house when they heard a noise coming from upstairs. Nick shot Sara a look.
"I thought you checked up there?"
"I did. There was nothing up there." She said with a bit of nervousness in her voice.
"Okay, I'm going to upstairs and check it out. You stay here."
"Oh no, I'm going with you." She started walking before Nick could argue. Carefully they made their way up the stairs. They checked each room and came up empty.
"I don't get it. You did hear that noise right?" Nick asked making sure he wasn't losing what was left of his sanity.
"Of course I heard it." She shivered slightly and wrapped her arms around herself. "Can we leave now?"
Nick smiled at her. "Scared?"
She punched his arm. "No, just cautious."
He was about to say yes but they both heard a bang coming from the room on the other side of the hall. "I heard that." Nick said and pulled out his gun. Sara did the same and they walked silently down the hall to the room. Nick reached the door and glanced at Sara. She nodded and he slowly opened the door. They entered the room with their weapons ready. The room had a bed, a dresser, and a broken full-length mirror. There was a closet door beside the bed.
Nick pointed to it and mouthed. "I'm going to open the door."
Sara bit her bottom lip and nodded. She watched as Nick approached the door and carefully opened it. He glanced inside the closet; his gun was aimed and ready for anything. He reached for the clothes that were hanging and pulled them back. A scream caused him to jump. Rushing out of the closet was a kid not more than five or six years old. She ran right into Sara.
Sara put her gun away and grabbed the little girl's shoulder. "It's okay, we're not going to hurt you." She told the girl.
The little girl glanced up at her. "I want my mommy."
Sara bent down to her level. "My name is Sara and that's Nick." She pointed to Nick who was now beside her. "What's your name?"
"Cassie."
"That's a pretty name Cassie. How did you get here?"
"My mommy brought me here and then she went away." Cassie's green eyes began to water.
"We'll help you find her." Nick told her.
Cassie smiled at him. "You talk funny. Are you a cowboy?"
Sara laughed at the honesty of the little girl.
Nick bent down beside Cassie. "I'm from Texas, but I'm not a cowboy. I bet you're hungry? How about we all get something to eat and then we'll look for your mom?"
Cassie nodded her blonde curls bounced against her face. "Okay."
Nick and Sara both stood up and Nick reached for Cassie's hand. She gladly took it along with Sara's hand as well. Together the three made their way out of the house.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Nick, Sara, and Cassie walked along the halls of CSI. Cassie was holding the hippo beanie baby she got out of her happy meal. They made their way into the break room and sat down on the couch. "Do you want anything else to eat Cassie?" Nick asked.
"Sure. What have you got?"
"Let's see." Nick stood up and walked to the refrigerator. He opened it and found some thin mint Girl Scout cookies, a banana, and some soda. On top of the fridge was a box of saltines and some beef jerky. He repeated the items to Cassie and she decided she wanted some cookies. "Good choice." Nick told her and grabbed them. He walked back over to the couch and sat down beside her.
"Thanks." Cassie said as she began eating the cookies.
Warrick came in the break room and noticed that Nick and Sara were sitting on the couch. He then noticed the little girl between them. At first glance, he thought it was Lindsey, but she was too small. "Hey guys. What's going on?"
"Hey Warrick." Sara greeted. She nodded toward Cassie. "This is Cassie. She's staying with us until we can find her mother."
"Oh." Warrick smiled at Cassie. "Hey Cassie, I'm Warrick. Have these two been good to you?"
"Yeah, they bought me supper."
"I bet I have the perfect desert." He said.
Cassie's face lit up and she was curious at to what he had.
Warrick smiled and left the room. He came back in a few moments later holding a box of Godiva chocolate. "It just so happens that I had some left over." He handed her the chocolate ignoring the looks that both Nick and Sara were giving him.
Catherine and Grissom both came in the room and noticed Cassie immediately. Grissom glanced over at Sara and Nick. "What's going on?"
Nick began to explain about the so-called crime scene and then finding Cassie in the closet. "We couldn't leave her there."
Grissom only nodded. "Have you started the search yet?"
"We were fixing to." Sara said and stood up. "Come on Cassie, let's find your mom." Cassie stood up and grabbed Sara's hand. They left the room together leaving the others to discuss the situation.
"How long do you think she's been in that house?" Catherine asked.
"Not long. I have this feeling that the person that called Brass was her mother." Nick answered.
"Why would someone do that to their own children?" Warrick wondered.
"I know I would die if I didn't have Lindsey around."
Grissom only nodded. "Well, keep me posted." He turned to Warrick and Catherine. "Don't you two have cases to be working on?"
"Yeah. We're on it." Warrick replied and walked out of the room muttering something along the lines of Grissom being a slave driver. Catherine smiled and followed him out.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Greg was passing by the computer lab when he noticed that Sara was in there with a little girl standing beside her. Both were chatting quietly and staring at the computer screen. He decided to go in and see what's going on.
"Hey Sara."
She turned around and smiled. "Hey Greg."
"And who is this pretty girl?" He asked giving Cassie a smile.
"I'm Cassie. Do you work with Sara?"
"Yep, Sara and I are tight." He said giving both girls a huge grin.
"In your dreams Greggo." Sara laughed.
"Always."
"I really didn't need to hear that Greg." Nick stated as he came in the room.
"Well, it's the truth." He gave Cassie a wink.
She smiled and turned her attention to Nick. "Sara found my mom on the computer."
"All right. Let's go find her."
"Nick, can I talk to you for a moment?" Sara asked.
"Sure. Greg you don't mind watching Cassie for a moment do you?"
"Not at all." Greg reached down for her hand. "Come on Cassie, I'll show you around the lab." They left leaving Nick and Sara alone.
Nick turned his attention to Sara. "What's going on?"
"When I was searching for Cassie's mother, I noticed that Cassie was reported missing from Washington D.C."
"Oh man. Who filed the report?"
"Her mother. According to the missing person's file, she was reported missing about a month ago. Apparently her father picked her up from school and brought her home but later she disappeared."
"Have you called them?"
Sara shook her head no. "I was going to but I didn't want to call in front of Cassie."
"Wait a minute, didn't Cassie say that her mother left her at the house?"
"Yeah, she did. If Cassie's mother was with her, why would Cassie still be in the missing person's report?"
"I don't know but I think we need to make a phone call." Nick pulled out his cell phone and dialed the number that Sara had copied off the net. "Hi, I'm Nick Stokes from the Las Vegas crime lab." He began to explain about how he and Sara found Cassie.
Sara listened to the one sided conversation and waited until Nick hung off the phone. "What did they say?"
"Turns out that Cassie's mother is the one that kidnapped her and her father has been looking everywhere. The mother on the report was her step-mother."
"Oh. Are they going to call her dad?"
"Yeah, and I expect he'll be here on the first flight he can get."
"Good, now we need to find the mother."
"What about Cassie? I think one of us should stay with her."
Sara nodded. "I will." She and Nick decided to go find Cassie and Greg and make sure the lab was still standing. They walked into the DNA lab and found that Cassie and Greg had a map hanging up with pink pushpins stuck in it.
"What's going on?" Nick asked.
"We're marking places that we want to go visit." Cassie explained.
"Nice." Sara replied. "Hey Cassie, Nick is going to go find your mom. I was thinking that you and I could go to my place and watch a movie or something until he finds her okay."
"Okay." Cassie walked over and took Sara's hand. She glanced at Greg. "Bye Greg. I'll talk to you later."
"Bye Cass."
Sara and Cassie left the room and headed toward the parking garage.
Greg turned to Nick. "I think she's gonna make a great mom one day." He replied nodding toward the girls as they walked away.
Nick smiled. "Yeah, I think she will too." He turned his attention back to Greg. "Thanks for watching Cassie for us."
"No problem."
Nick left the room and began his search for Cassie's mom. After calling Brass and informing him on what was going on, both Brass and Nick got to work hunting down Cassie's mom.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Sara pulled up to her house and turned the car off. She glanced over at her passenger and noticed that Cassie was fast asleep. She smiled and got out of the car quietly and walked over to the passenger side. Sara opened the door and carefully as she could, carried the little girl inside. She went into her bedroom and placed Cassie down on the bed and covered her up. Sara left the room and sat down in her living room. She turned the television on and pulled her legs up on the couch. Her mind was racing. She couldn't understand why Cassie's mother would kidnap Cassie and then leave her alone in an abandoned house.
"Sara."
She turned around and saw Cassie standing beside the couch. "What's wrong sweetie?"
"I can't sleep."
"Come here." Sara patted the couch and Cassie sat down beside her. Sara wrapped her arm around Cassie and Cassie leaned her head against Sara's side.
"Can we watch cartoons?"
"Sure." Sara flipped the channel to a cartoon station. After a few minutes, Cassie was sound asleep. Sara found herself becoming sleepy as well. She closed her eyes and soon sleep took over.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~
Nick and Brass finally found Cassie's mother in a bar. They brought her back to the station and began questioning her.
"You're a long way from home Ms. Watson. Care to explain why?" Brass asked.
Ms. Watson glanced over at Brass. Her eyes were cold and clouded over. "Why do you care?"
"We don't really. All we want to know is why you took Cassie away from her father. He has legal custody over her."
"He lied in court to keep her away from me. He told the judge that I was a bad mother. So what if I have a drink every now and then? I love my daughter."
"Oh yeah, you love her so much that you left her alone in an abandoned house." Nick replied. "That doesn't sound like love to me."
"I needed a drink and I couldn't take her to the bar. So, I told her to stay there and I would be back."
"What I don't understand is why you called the police?" Brass said.
"I think I can answer that." Nick answered. He turned his attention to Ms. Watson. "You were mad at you ex-husband for taking your daughter away. So you decided to repay him. After he dropped Cassie off, you picked her up. You decided that if you couldn't have custody over her, neither could he. So, you drove as far away as you could. As you were driving, you realized that you couldn't live the way you wanted to with Cassie around. You couldn't drink and take care of her at the same time. So you decided to call the police reporting a fake crime scene knowing that someone would show up and find Cassie and you wouldn't have to be responsible for her anymore."
Ms. Watson stared at him. "That brat kept screaming about being hungry and wanting her dad and her mommy. I'm her mommy, not that stupid tramp!"
Nick glanced over at Brass. They had all they needed to make an arrest and call the Washington D.C. police. Nick thanked Brass and headed toward Sara's. Once he arrived, he went inside to find both Sara and Cassie asleep on the couch. He walked over and gently tugged on Sara's shoulder. Her eyes fluttered open and she gave him a small smile.
"Hey." She whispered.
"Hey."
"How did it go? Did you find Cassie's mom?"
He nodded. "Yeah, she's being arrested."
"Good." Sara glanced down at Cassie. She was snuggled against Sara and her tiny arm wrapped around Sara's stomach.
"Do you want me to put her in your bedroom?" Nick asked.
"No, she's fine."
"Okay." Nick leaned down and kissed Sara's forehead. "I'm going to head home. I just wanted to let you know what was going on."
"Thanks Nick."
"Goodnight Sara."
"Goodnight." She watched him leave and then drifted back off into a deep slumber.
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Nick, Sara, and Cassie were standing in the airport waiting for Cassie's father to arrive. Cassie was holding their hands and staring straight ahead. As soon as she saw her dad, she released their hands and rushed to him. "Daddy!"
Her father reached down and picked her up. He smothered her with hugs and kisses. A woman stood beside him and soon Cassie was in her arms. After a few moments, they approached Nick and Sara.
"You must be Nick Stokes and Sara Sidle. I'm John Watson and this is my wife Elizabeth."
Nick nodded. "It's nice to meet you."
"Thank you so much for finding our daughter." John said.
"You're welcome."
"Daddy, Nick and Sara took me to their work and I got to play in the lab and then Sara and I watched cartoons and this morning Sara made me some chocolate chip pancakes." Cassie said excitedly.
John glanced at Sara. "Thanks. That's her favorite breakfast."
"I thought so. She ate about four." Sara replied with a laugh.
"Well kiddo, it's time to go home. Why don't you give Nick and Sara a hug?"
Cassie walked over to Nick and Nick bent down and hugged her. "I'm going to miss you Nick."
"I'm going to miss you too." He pulled away and reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. He handed it to her. "This is mine and Sara's phone numbers, e-mails, and addresses. You can write us anytime you want to."
"Thanks." Cassie turned to Sara and gave her a hug. "Bye Sara."
"Bye sweetie. You be good okay." Sara kissed her forehead and pulled away.
"Come on Cass. It's time to go." John said.
Cassie ran back to him and he picked her up. They waved a final goodbye and then left. Nick turned to Sara and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. They walked back to his Denali in silence. Halfway home, Nick turned around and noticed tears rolling down Sara's cheeks. He reached over and held her hand.
"What's wrong honey?"
"I'm going to miss her." She said.
"Me too. You were really good with her."
"I always thought I would be a horrible mother, but now I'm not so sure that's true."
"You'll be a great mother and I'm not the only one to say so." She glanced at him surprised. "Greg mentioned it as well."
"Really?"
"Yeah." He squeezed her hand and they drove the rest of the way in silence. Each lost in their own thoughts.
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4 months later
Sara was sitting in her kitchen glancing over her mail. She found a postcard from Washington D.C. She smiled and turned it over. It was from Cassie. Sara read the brief greeting. "Sara, Daddy told me that you and Nick were going to have a baby. I can't wait to see pictures of him or her. I hope you have a girl. Daddy said that we could come and visit as soon as you have the baby. If that's okay. Well, I have to run. I have homework to do. Love Cassie." Sara smiled and reached down and touched her stomach. She was two months pregnant. After Nick and Sara arrived home from the airport, they had a long discussion about children. Nick proposed to her that day and they were married a month later. Then Sara found out she was pregnant. She wasn't sure who was more excited, her or Nick.
"Honey, I'm home." Nick called out.
"I'm in the kitchen."
Nick walked in and wrapped his wife in a hug. When they pulled apart, Sara handed him the postcard. "We got this from Cassie."
Nick read it and smiled. "She's sweet. You know if we do end up having a girl, I was thinking we could name her after Cassie."
Sara nodded. "Cassie Stokes. Sounds good, but what if we have a boy?"
"I don't think he'll appreciate the name Cassie."
Sara laughed. "Me neither, but we've got plenty of time to decide on a name."
Nick leaned over and kissed her. "Have I told you how much I love you?"
"I think I have an idea." She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him. "I love you Nick."
"I love you too." They spent the rest of the morning showing just how much they love each other.