Here's a short addition, for everyone who objected to the cliffhanger.
More angst, but it at least answers your question. Sorry for the brevity,
but I barely had an hour to write tonight. More soon, probably Monday.
I'm working all weekend, of course. Thanks for your feedback and
encouragement on this story. I really wasn't sure whether this one would
appeal to anybody but me.
***
Comfort those who sit in darkness, Mourning 'neath their sorrow's load.
Johannes Olearius, "Comfort, Comfort Ye My People"
***
Alexx knelt in the aisle next to Sam. "One shot, right frontal lobe. Instantly fatal, but she was looking at whoever did it. You saw it coming, didn't you, poor baby?" Alexx stroked Sam's hair back from the wound sympathetically, then looked up at Horatio when she didn't get a response to her analysis. He was standing on the other side of the body, looking down at that strong, still face, and the blazing fury in his eyes actually made Alexx pull back slightly. "Horatio. Horatio." She had to say his name twice before he looked at her. "You okay?"
"I'm not the one lying there," he said tightly. He looked up, not raising his voice past that deadly quiet but extending the range of influence to include Speed and Delko. "I want every fiber, every piece of evidence, absolutely everything processed from this barn. This time, we aren't going to miss anything. And we will get these people."
Alexx stood and put a hand firmly on his arm. "It's not your fault," she said softly, understanding that most of the fury was directed at himself, not the killers. His eyes met her steadily.
"We cleared this scene, Alexx. I didn't think they'd come back after the first murder, but they must have left something here. We must have missed it." He knew absolutely one thing he had missed. Calleigh had told him that the lock code had been used for the night before the murder, too, but he had only asked her to check the week -before- the murder. He would verify it himself with the company, but he was certain now that the incorrect code, the code before it had been changed, the code he himself had insisted that they change that day, had been tried again the night -after- the murder. Why had he limited that question? Asking for any time it had been used lately would have told them that the killers needed something still here. And if they couldn't get in at night, they would watch for an uncrowded time to come in the day. The team missing something at the scene angered him, but it was his own oversight about the lock code that infuriated him. That was inexcusable. And now that beautiful, remarkable woman was dead because of it.
"Horatio," Alexx started patiently, and she saw his expression change so quickly that it bewildered her. The flame in the eyes banked, the taut muscles forcibly relaxed a fraction. Smoldering embers were still there, but they were suddenly a lot better hidden. She turned to follow his gaze over her shoulder and saw Calleigh coming down the aisle with a field kit in hand. Instantly, Alexx understood. She knew that something was bothering Calleigh lately, flattening her usual cheerfulness, causing her to sleep poorly, although she wasn't sure what. Horatio undoubtedly knew, and he wasn't going to add concern for him to her burden. Alexx was once again lost in utter, stunned admiration of the soul of her boss. What a man. What unselfish, beautiful, loyal, pitiful bravery. She turned back to Horatio and gave his arm a squeeze again, letting him know that he wasn't fooling her. "If you need to talk, you know where to find me," she said too softly for Calleigh to hear, and Horatio's veiled eyes met hers with both appreciation for the concern and refusal of it. He would carry it alone.
"Thank you, Alexx," he said, and it was an affectionate but firm dismissal. She sighed and knelt by Sam again.
Calleigh joined her, snapping open the kit. "One shot, small caliber pistol. Horatio?" She looked up, puzzled, as he started up the aisle, leaving even before she had finished her analysis.
"I'm going to talk to Lisa again. Fill me in later." He didn't trust himself close to her until he had had a bit more time to clamp down on his anger. She was entirely too perceptive when it came to him.
"Okay." Calleigh's voice was puzzled. She looked over at Alexx, raising one eyebrow.
"He thinks the team missed something." Actually, he thought that he personally had missed something. Alexx understood that, although she couldn't see what he thought he had missed. But if he wanted to play it this way, it wasn't her place to interfere. Let Calleigh try to talk some sense into him later. Once they got alone and really looked at each other, he wouldn't be able to hide from her. Then they could comfort each other past their personal demons and remind themselves that neither one of them was alone anymore. Alexx hoped it wouldn't take too long. If Calleigh had been going through some personal purgatory the last few weeks, Horatio was now going through hell. She looked at Calleigh's face, the dark circles under her eyes that she attempted to hide with makeup, then turned again to Sam with a soothing croon under her breath, channeling her concern for all of them to the one person at the moment who would not refuse it.
***
Lisa finished removing the tack from Chrissy and brushing her, then leaned against the horse's neck for a moment, hiding her eyes from the world. The mare turned her head as far as the crossties would permit and bumped Lisa in the back, expressing silent sympathy. Lisa straightened up and touched her horse softly, as if Chrissy was the one who needed comforting. "It's okay, Chris," she said, trying to convince herself. There were tears in her voice, but she refused to let them go further.
"Lisa." She hadn't heard Horatio approaching, and his voice startled her. She jumped a mile, then automatically caught the halter as Chrissy spooked herself in response. "I'm sorry," said Horatio, finding something else to kick himself for. "I didn't mean to take you by surprise. Can I ask you a few questions?"
"Yes." Her voice was oddly flat, not from lack of emotion but from excess. "I need to take the horse outside and put her in the pasture. Her stall . . ." She looked down the aisle to the activity directly in front of Chrissy's stall, then looked away suddenly. "I can't just leave her tied here."
"Of course." Horatio went along with her as she led Chrissy to the main door and outside. "You were in the ring riding, you said."
"Right. Sam had just left, but I wanted to work a little longer." She met his eyes briefly. "If I had gone with her . . ."
"There would be two people dead instead of one," said Horatio firmly. "We're dealing with professionals here. There was nothing you could have done to change things." Lisa wasn't totally convinced, he could tell, but hopefully she would think about it and realize the truth in what he was saying.
"I think Chrissy heard the shot. She spooked at something, while we were working, and she was looking at the wall between the indoor and the main aisle."
"Did you hear anything yourself?"
"No, but the door is pretty heavy. It blocks a lot of sound."
"They might have used a silencer, too. I'd like to test that at some point, see if a person in the ring would hear a shot, with and without a silencer. We'll test it with a horse, too." He was keeping this businesslike, but his voice was full of sympathy, and that message got through. He could see the acknowledgement in her eyes.
They arrived at the gate to a small pasture, and Lisa put Chrissy through, then removed the halter. The mare careened off, blasting around at a flat gallop for one lap, then lifting into a soaring, floating trot, a true athlete enjoying her own physical potential.
"She is beautiful," said Horatio with a quiet reverence, and Lisa gave him a half smile. They stayed at the gate, watching the horse.
"I cancelled the lessons this afternoon, but the security company is still coming to put in video cameras," said Lisa. "Do you think they'll come back?"
"I don't know." Horatio wanted to reassure her, but he was afraid of being wrong twice on that question. "It probably depends on whether they found whatever they left the night of the murder. I think the video cameras are an excellent idea."
"Did you find the ring?" Lisa said suddenly.
"What ring?"
"Sam had a ring in her pocket. Ruth brought it to us this morning. We thought maybe one of the boarders, or someone with them, had dropped it, but neither one of us had seen it before."
Horatio turned from the horse to the woman, a faint point of excitement in his eyes. "She didn't have anything in her pocket. What sort of ring?"
"It was thick gold, with snakes engraved into it all around. And inside the band, it had initials. A.B.E."
An inscribed ring. The points of excitement fanned into flame. "That could be it. If the killers dropped it in the stall, the cat could have taken it before we got there."
"She likes to steal shiny things," said Lisa.
"Lisa, I'd like you to try to draw that design for us. Okay?"
She looked dubious but willing. "I'll try."
"One more thing," said Horatio. "We'd like a description of Sam's watch. She wasn't wearing it, and we think the killers took that, too."
Lisa's eyes filled with tears, but she still fought them. "I've got her watch," she said, holding her wrist out. "Mine stopped this morning, and Sam gave me hers until we could get mine fixed." Her eyes took inventory: The watch, the horse, the barn. "She gave me so much," she said softly, and now the tears spilled over. Her shoulders began to shake. Horatio had deliberately been keeping a distance of a few feet, but he couldn't do it any longer. With infinite gentleness, careful not to trap her, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him, letting her bury her face in his chest, holding her while she cried.
***
Comfort those who sit in darkness, Mourning 'neath their sorrow's load.
Johannes Olearius, "Comfort, Comfort Ye My People"
***
Alexx knelt in the aisle next to Sam. "One shot, right frontal lobe. Instantly fatal, but she was looking at whoever did it. You saw it coming, didn't you, poor baby?" Alexx stroked Sam's hair back from the wound sympathetically, then looked up at Horatio when she didn't get a response to her analysis. He was standing on the other side of the body, looking down at that strong, still face, and the blazing fury in his eyes actually made Alexx pull back slightly. "Horatio. Horatio." She had to say his name twice before he looked at her. "You okay?"
"I'm not the one lying there," he said tightly. He looked up, not raising his voice past that deadly quiet but extending the range of influence to include Speed and Delko. "I want every fiber, every piece of evidence, absolutely everything processed from this barn. This time, we aren't going to miss anything. And we will get these people."
Alexx stood and put a hand firmly on his arm. "It's not your fault," she said softly, understanding that most of the fury was directed at himself, not the killers. His eyes met her steadily.
"We cleared this scene, Alexx. I didn't think they'd come back after the first murder, but they must have left something here. We must have missed it." He knew absolutely one thing he had missed. Calleigh had told him that the lock code had been used for the night before the murder, too, but he had only asked her to check the week -before- the murder. He would verify it himself with the company, but he was certain now that the incorrect code, the code before it had been changed, the code he himself had insisted that they change that day, had been tried again the night -after- the murder. Why had he limited that question? Asking for any time it had been used lately would have told them that the killers needed something still here. And if they couldn't get in at night, they would watch for an uncrowded time to come in the day. The team missing something at the scene angered him, but it was his own oversight about the lock code that infuriated him. That was inexcusable. And now that beautiful, remarkable woman was dead because of it.
"Horatio," Alexx started patiently, and she saw his expression change so quickly that it bewildered her. The flame in the eyes banked, the taut muscles forcibly relaxed a fraction. Smoldering embers were still there, but they were suddenly a lot better hidden. She turned to follow his gaze over her shoulder and saw Calleigh coming down the aisle with a field kit in hand. Instantly, Alexx understood. She knew that something was bothering Calleigh lately, flattening her usual cheerfulness, causing her to sleep poorly, although she wasn't sure what. Horatio undoubtedly knew, and he wasn't going to add concern for him to her burden. Alexx was once again lost in utter, stunned admiration of the soul of her boss. What a man. What unselfish, beautiful, loyal, pitiful bravery. She turned back to Horatio and gave his arm a squeeze again, letting him know that he wasn't fooling her. "If you need to talk, you know where to find me," she said too softly for Calleigh to hear, and Horatio's veiled eyes met hers with both appreciation for the concern and refusal of it. He would carry it alone.
"Thank you, Alexx," he said, and it was an affectionate but firm dismissal. She sighed and knelt by Sam again.
Calleigh joined her, snapping open the kit. "One shot, small caliber pistol. Horatio?" She looked up, puzzled, as he started up the aisle, leaving even before she had finished her analysis.
"I'm going to talk to Lisa again. Fill me in later." He didn't trust himself close to her until he had had a bit more time to clamp down on his anger. She was entirely too perceptive when it came to him.
"Okay." Calleigh's voice was puzzled. She looked over at Alexx, raising one eyebrow.
"He thinks the team missed something." Actually, he thought that he personally had missed something. Alexx understood that, although she couldn't see what he thought he had missed. But if he wanted to play it this way, it wasn't her place to interfere. Let Calleigh try to talk some sense into him later. Once they got alone and really looked at each other, he wouldn't be able to hide from her. Then they could comfort each other past their personal demons and remind themselves that neither one of them was alone anymore. Alexx hoped it wouldn't take too long. If Calleigh had been going through some personal purgatory the last few weeks, Horatio was now going through hell. She looked at Calleigh's face, the dark circles under her eyes that she attempted to hide with makeup, then turned again to Sam with a soothing croon under her breath, channeling her concern for all of them to the one person at the moment who would not refuse it.
***
Lisa finished removing the tack from Chrissy and brushing her, then leaned against the horse's neck for a moment, hiding her eyes from the world. The mare turned her head as far as the crossties would permit and bumped Lisa in the back, expressing silent sympathy. Lisa straightened up and touched her horse softly, as if Chrissy was the one who needed comforting. "It's okay, Chris," she said, trying to convince herself. There were tears in her voice, but she refused to let them go further.
"Lisa." She hadn't heard Horatio approaching, and his voice startled her. She jumped a mile, then automatically caught the halter as Chrissy spooked herself in response. "I'm sorry," said Horatio, finding something else to kick himself for. "I didn't mean to take you by surprise. Can I ask you a few questions?"
"Yes." Her voice was oddly flat, not from lack of emotion but from excess. "I need to take the horse outside and put her in the pasture. Her stall . . ." She looked down the aisle to the activity directly in front of Chrissy's stall, then looked away suddenly. "I can't just leave her tied here."
"Of course." Horatio went along with her as she led Chrissy to the main door and outside. "You were in the ring riding, you said."
"Right. Sam had just left, but I wanted to work a little longer." She met his eyes briefly. "If I had gone with her . . ."
"There would be two people dead instead of one," said Horatio firmly. "We're dealing with professionals here. There was nothing you could have done to change things." Lisa wasn't totally convinced, he could tell, but hopefully she would think about it and realize the truth in what he was saying.
"I think Chrissy heard the shot. She spooked at something, while we were working, and she was looking at the wall between the indoor and the main aisle."
"Did you hear anything yourself?"
"No, but the door is pretty heavy. It blocks a lot of sound."
"They might have used a silencer, too. I'd like to test that at some point, see if a person in the ring would hear a shot, with and without a silencer. We'll test it with a horse, too." He was keeping this businesslike, but his voice was full of sympathy, and that message got through. He could see the acknowledgement in her eyes.
They arrived at the gate to a small pasture, and Lisa put Chrissy through, then removed the halter. The mare careened off, blasting around at a flat gallop for one lap, then lifting into a soaring, floating trot, a true athlete enjoying her own physical potential.
"She is beautiful," said Horatio with a quiet reverence, and Lisa gave him a half smile. They stayed at the gate, watching the horse.
"I cancelled the lessons this afternoon, but the security company is still coming to put in video cameras," said Lisa. "Do you think they'll come back?"
"I don't know." Horatio wanted to reassure her, but he was afraid of being wrong twice on that question. "It probably depends on whether they found whatever they left the night of the murder. I think the video cameras are an excellent idea."
"Did you find the ring?" Lisa said suddenly.
"What ring?"
"Sam had a ring in her pocket. Ruth brought it to us this morning. We thought maybe one of the boarders, or someone with them, had dropped it, but neither one of us had seen it before."
Horatio turned from the horse to the woman, a faint point of excitement in his eyes. "She didn't have anything in her pocket. What sort of ring?"
"It was thick gold, with snakes engraved into it all around. And inside the band, it had initials. A.B.E."
An inscribed ring. The points of excitement fanned into flame. "That could be it. If the killers dropped it in the stall, the cat could have taken it before we got there."
"She likes to steal shiny things," said Lisa.
"Lisa, I'd like you to try to draw that design for us. Okay?"
She looked dubious but willing. "I'll try."
"One more thing," said Horatio. "We'd like a description of Sam's watch. She wasn't wearing it, and we think the killers took that, too."
Lisa's eyes filled with tears, but she still fought them. "I've got her watch," she said, holding her wrist out. "Mine stopped this morning, and Sam gave me hers until we could get mine fixed." Her eyes took inventory: The watch, the horse, the barn. "She gave me so much," she said softly, and now the tears spilled over. Her shoulders began to shake. Horatio had deliberately been keeping a distance of a few feet, but he couldn't do it any longer. With infinite gentleness, careful not to trap her, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him, letting her bury her face in his chest, holding her while she cried.