Troubled Waters
See Part 1 for Disclaimers, etc.
Speed was starting to get a little agitated and a bit worried at the same time. Calleigh wasn't answering her cell phone or her phone at home and he knew she was mad at him because he'd practically ignored her in the hall. When he had seen the hurt look on her face all he had wanted to do was go after her and pull her into his arms--he wished now that he would have.
He was just having a hard time pretending they weren't a couple and he knew it had to end soon. Since he couldn't say what he wanted to say to her there were times he barely said anything to her at all when they were around other people at work. He knew that he'd hurt her feelings and wanted to make it up to her. How was he supposed to do that when she wouldn't answer her phone and he couldn't find her anywhere?
Calleigh could be stubborn sometimes and he knew he would just have to go to her apartment and hope that she was there waiting for him. He had her car so he knew she must have caught a ride home with someone in order to avoid him for awhile. He headed over to Calleigh's right away, not wanting to be away from her a moment longer.
He let himself in with the key and was greeted with silence. He knew she had been home because her purse was on the counter and the clothes that she'd worn to work were in the hamper in the bedroom. Calleigh herself was nowhere to be seen and she hadn't even left a note. Figuring she must have gone for a walk, Tim decided to start making dinner so that it would be ready for her when she got home as a sort of peace offering.
He had decided that he would tell her tonight he was ready to go public with their relationship and he couldn't wait to see her reaction. He just wanted to make her happy and couldn't stand the thought that he was the reason she wasn't right now. Things would change, he would see to that. Tim got busy making dinner, expecting Calleigh would be home any minute.
An hour later, the food was getting cold and Tim was starting to worry. This just wasn't like Calleigh to disappear without a word of warning. That was more his style. Calleigh was more likely to confront him with her feelings than give him the cold shoulder. Plus, where would she go without her car and her wallet? Grabbing his phone, Tim headed out the door as he started dialing all of the people he could think of that Calleigh might have gone to.
Tim jogged toward the park near Calleigh's place knowing it was one of her favorite spots. Maybe she'd taken a book there and lost track of time. He knew it was worth a shot. The park wasn't very busy and Tim didn't see Calleigh anywhere. Scouring the area for any sign of her he noticed a cell phone on the ground beside one of the benches. As he got closer he realized it looked just like Calleigh's. Fear gripped his heart as he realized something must have happened to her.
Dialing Horatio's number, Tim silently prayed that he was wrong and this would turn out to be a mistake. He would get a call on his cell from Calleigh who would be waiting at her apartment for him, wondering where the hell he was.
Tim's hopes were dashed later that evening when the phone was confirmed to be Calleigh's. Tim was in shock as he stood in the park, watching his co-workers look for clues that just weren't there. He didn't understand how a woman could just disappear into thin air in the middle of the day? How could there be not one single witness? Hagen and Horatio came over to him, both looking very grim. Hagen was carrying an envelope.
"Speed, we think we know who may have taken Calleigh."
"Who?" Speed demanded, looking from one man to the other.
"Calleigh and I have been working on a case that involves Evan Schneider. I don't know if you remember him, but--"
"No, I remember him. If that bastard has Calleigh we have to find her right away. Why would he do this, I don't get it." Hagen handed him the envelope.
"These might be the reason." Opening the envelope Tim pulled out a few 8x10 pictures. All were of him and Calleigh during stolen moments when they didn't think anyone was watching. Kissing each other in the parking lot in the morning before work. Holding hands as they walked through this very park. Speed had a look of shock on his face. He didn't know what to say.
"These appeared on Claudia's desk earlier this afternoon. She doesn't know how they got there but they were in the envelope along with a note. Our surveillance camera shows a courier dropping off the envelope and we contacted the courier. That was a dead end." Horatio handed the note to Speed who felt sick to his stomach as he read it. The note was addressed to him, telling him that if CSI didn't lay off his case he would never see Calleigh alive again. Tim had put him away once, separating him from the woman he loves. Now Speed would get to know how that felt. Speed looked up at Horatio in alarm.
"That's it? That's all there is?' Horatio nodded. "There isn't a ransom or anything." Tim said in disbelief.
"He's very desperate now and I'm sure he's going to make a mistake very soon. We'll get her back" Hagen reassured him.
"What are we supposed to do? Wait until Calleigh turns up dead? I refuse to listen to this asshole." Speed had fury and grief in his eyes and Horatio knew he couldn't let him anywhere near this case. It would only hurt their chances of finding Calleigh. "We're going to do everything we can to find her, Speed. You need to stay strong for her. She's going to need you to be there when she gets back." Horatio said firmly.
Eric arrived on the scene just then, knowing that Calleigh had been kidnapped but not aware of the pictures. He could tell by Speed's face that he was not taking this well. He was in a panic himself. They all loved Calleigh. Horatio turned to him.
"Delko, I need you to take Speed home. You're both too close to this whole thing and I don't want either of you involved. I'll be in touch." Horatio told him, feeling a bit too close to the case himself. Eric knew better than to argue with him so giving Speed a pat on the back he offered to give him a ride. Speed barely looked at him, but wordlessly walked with him to his parked Jeep. Speed got in and put his face in his hands.
"It's going to be okay, man. They're going to find her."
"You don't get it." Tim said, shaking his head. "This is my fault."
"You weren't even working this case, you didn't know this was going to happen. It's not your fault."
"She was pissed off at me and that's why she went for a walk by herself. She didn't want to be around me. It is my fault."
"Why was she pissed at you, what happened? Whatever it was, it couldn't be the reason this happened." Eric wanted to reason with him, make him realize he had nothing to do with it.
"I fucked her over, okay?" Eric looked at him, not understanding what he was getting at. "I fucked her brains out when we were alone but I wouldn't give her the time of day when we were at work together. That's why she went off by herself."
"I had no idea you two were together," Eric replied, genuinely surprised. "But this could have happened at anytime, man. She was working on his case and knowing that, he was probably following her. He would have waited for any opportunity. You couldn't have done a thing. How long have you been...seeing Calleigh, anyhow?"
"A little over a month. We decided to keep it a secret, just for awhile. We didn't want to reveal things right away because we weren't sure where things were going. I love her and I should have told her that more often. Instead, I blew her off and she was upset. I'll never forgive myself."
"You'll tell her again when we find her. It'll be okay." Eric was surprised at the revelation and knowing how broken up he was about Calleigh's disappearance he knew it must be killing Speed.
"I swear, if he lays a hand on her I'm going to rip him to shreds." Tim vowed.
"I'll help you do it." Eric told him, steering the jeep away from the park and toward his apartment. He figured Speed would be better off where there wouldn't be reminders of Calleigh anywhere. Maybe it would make things easier. Eric doubted that was possible, though.
TBC...
See Part 1 for Disclaimers, etc.
Speed was starting to get a little agitated and a bit worried at the same time. Calleigh wasn't answering her cell phone or her phone at home and he knew she was mad at him because he'd practically ignored her in the hall. When he had seen the hurt look on her face all he had wanted to do was go after her and pull her into his arms--he wished now that he would have.
He was just having a hard time pretending they weren't a couple and he knew it had to end soon. Since he couldn't say what he wanted to say to her there were times he barely said anything to her at all when they were around other people at work. He knew that he'd hurt her feelings and wanted to make it up to her. How was he supposed to do that when she wouldn't answer her phone and he couldn't find her anywhere?
Calleigh could be stubborn sometimes and he knew he would just have to go to her apartment and hope that she was there waiting for him. He had her car so he knew she must have caught a ride home with someone in order to avoid him for awhile. He headed over to Calleigh's right away, not wanting to be away from her a moment longer.
He let himself in with the key and was greeted with silence. He knew she had been home because her purse was on the counter and the clothes that she'd worn to work were in the hamper in the bedroom. Calleigh herself was nowhere to be seen and she hadn't even left a note. Figuring she must have gone for a walk, Tim decided to start making dinner so that it would be ready for her when she got home as a sort of peace offering.
He had decided that he would tell her tonight he was ready to go public with their relationship and he couldn't wait to see her reaction. He just wanted to make her happy and couldn't stand the thought that he was the reason she wasn't right now. Things would change, he would see to that. Tim got busy making dinner, expecting Calleigh would be home any minute.
An hour later, the food was getting cold and Tim was starting to worry. This just wasn't like Calleigh to disappear without a word of warning. That was more his style. Calleigh was more likely to confront him with her feelings than give him the cold shoulder. Plus, where would she go without her car and her wallet? Grabbing his phone, Tim headed out the door as he started dialing all of the people he could think of that Calleigh might have gone to.
Tim jogged toward the park near Calleigh's place knowing it was one of her favorite spots. Maybe she'd taken a book there and lost track of time. He knew it was worth a shot. The park wasn't very busy and Tim didn't see Calleigh anywhere. Scouring the area for any sign of her he noticed a cell phone on the ground beside one of the benches. As he got closer he realized it looked just like Calleigh's. Fear gripped his heart as he realized something must have happened to her.
Dialing Horatio's number, Tim silently prayed that he was wrong and this would turn out to be a mistake. He would get a call on his cell from Calleigh who would be waiting at her apartment for him, wondering where the hell he was.
Tim's hopes were dashed later that evening when the phone was confirmed to be Calleigh's. Tim was in shock as he stood in the park, watching his co-workers look for clues that just weren't there. He didn't understand how a woman could just disappear into thin air in the middle of the day? How could there be not one single witness? Hagen and Horatio came over to him, both looking very grim. Hagen was carrying an envelope.
"Speed, we think we know who may have taken Calleigh."
"Who?" Speed demanded, looking from one man to the other.
"Calleigh and I have been working on a case that involves Evan Schneider. I don't know if you remember him, but--"
"No, I remember him. If that bastard has Calleigh we have to find her right away. Why would he do this, I don't get it." Hagen handed him the envelope.
"These might be the reason." Opening the envelope Tim pulled out a few 8x10 pictures. All were of him and Calleigh during stolen moments when they didn't think anyone was watching. Kissing each other in the parking lot in the morning before work. Holding hands as they walked through this very park. Speed had a look of shock on his face. He didn't know what to say.
"These appeared on Claudia's desk earlier this afternoon. She doesn't know how they got there but they were in the envelope along with a note. Our surveillance camera shows a courier dropping off the envelope and we contacted the courier. That was a dead end." Horatio handed the note to Speed who felt sick to his stomach as he read it. The note was addressed to him, telling him that if CSI didn't lay off his case he would never see Calleigh alive again. Tim had put him away once, separating him from the woman he loves. Now Speed would get to know how that felt. Speed looked up at Horatio in alarm.
"That's it? That's all there is?' Horatio nodded. "There isn't a ransom or anything." Tim said in disbelief.
"He's very desperate now and I'm sure he's going to make a mistake very soon. We'll get her back" Hagen reassured him.
"What are we supposed to do? Wait until Calleigh turns up dead? I refuse to listen to this asshole." Speed had fury and grief in his eyes and Horatio knew he couldn't let him anywhere near this case. It would only hurt their chances of finding Calleigh. "We're going to do everything we can to find her, Speed. You need to stay strong for her. She's going to need you to be there when she gets back." Horatio said firmly.
Eric arrived on the scene just then, knowing that Calleigh had been kidnapped but not aware of the pictures. He could tell by Speed's face that he was not taking this well. He was in a panic himself. They all loved Calleigh. Horatio turned to him.
"Delko, I need you to take Speed home. You're both too close to this whole thing and I don't want either of you involved. I'll be in touch." Horatio told him, feeling a bit too close to the case himself. Eric knew better than to argue with him so giving Speed a pat on the back he offered to give him a ride. Speed barely looked at him, but wordlessly walked with him to his parked Jeep. Speed got in and put his face in his hands.
"It's going to be okay, man. They're going to find her."
"You don't get it." Tim said, shaking his head. "This is my fault."
"You weren't even working this case, you didn't know this was going to happen. It's not your fault."
"She was pissed off at me and that's why she went for a walk by herself. She didn't want to be around me. It is my fault."
"Why was she pissed at you, what happened? Whatever it was, it couldn't be the reason this happened." Eric wanted to reason with him, make him realize he had nothing to do with it.
"I fucked her over, okay?" Eric looked at him, not understanding what he was getting at. "I fucked her brains out when we were alone but I wouldn't give her the time of day when we were at work together. That's why she went off by herself."
"I had no idea you two were together," Eric replied, genuinely surprised. "But this could have happened at anytime, man. She was working on his case and knowing that, he was probably following her. He would have waited for any opportunity. You couldn't have done a thing. How long have you been...seeing Calleigh, anyhow?"
"A little over a month. We decided to keep it a secret, just for awhile. We didn't want to reveal things right away because we weren't sure where things were going. I love her and I should have told her that more often. Instead, I blew her off and she was upset. I'll never forgive myself."
"You'll tell her again when we find her. It'll be okay." Eric was surprised at the revelation and knowing how broken up he was about Calleigh's disappearance he knew it must be killing Speed.
"I swear, if he lays a hand on her I'm going to rip him to shreds." Tim vowed.
"I'll help you do it." Eric told him, steering the jeep away from the park and toward his apartment. He figured Speed would be better off where there wouldn't be reminders of Calleigh anywhere. Maybe it would make things easier. Eric doubted that was possible, though.
TBC...