Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Intent. Mmkay?

Warning/Author's Note: Please don't hate me! This is hard to write.

Goren felt a twinge of guilt as he badged the landlord and got a key to Emily's apartment. The last time they'd searched this apartment, they had immediately abandoned it to chase Emily down. He'd never searched it thoroughly… he'd never turned his special eye on it. Walking into the bedroom, Goren kept his eye peeled for anything minute - anything seemingly unimportant. He pulled open dresser drawers, looked under the bed, desk drawers - all with no luck. It was upon opening the closet that he hit the jackpot.

"It's always a shoebox in the closet," he muttered. He carried the box and sat on the edge of the bed. Taking a deep breath, he flipped the lid and started sifting through the contents. Mostly photos of Emily's family, friends, even a few of Emily and Goren. He quickly moved through those, stopping only to stare at a photo booth strip - they'd each kept 2 of the little pictures. Their smiles leapt off the paper. Goren tore his eyes away and moved on through the pictures. He was almost through the stack when he came upon a familiar face.

"Got you."

*

Eames stood outside Emily's building, looking up at the light in Emily's window. She shook her head and laughed to herself. After their long partnership, it was almost scary how well they knew each other. Eames badged the doorman, who looked confused but let her in anyway. She took the elevator, not feeling any desire to rush. If she knew Goren, he was combing every inch of the apartment with his usual style. As she reached Emily's floor, she got a familiar feeling in her stomach. She put her hand on her weapon and cautiously exited the elevator. Approaching Emily's apartment, Eames noticed the door was ajar. She kicked it fully open, drawing her weapon. "Police!" she shouted.

"Eames, in the bedroom!" she heard her partner's voice, weak and panicked.

"Oh, god, Bobby!" Eames cried out as she ran into the bedroom and found Goren slumped on the floor in a small pool of blood.

"It's not too bad," he panted. Eames pushed her hair out of her face and leaned closer to him. He was holding his suit jacket against his stomach, where a red stain was growing steadily larger. Eames flipped her cell open and called 911.

"It's Emily's sister," Goren said as she closed the phone. He gestured to the shoebox that now lay overturned on the floor. "I found a picture of her and Sanders in that box." Eames made to get up and Goren shook his head. "She took it. She must have been in the apartment. I didn't even check, I just assumed it would be empty…" his voice trailed off.

"Bobby, this is not your fault. Look, what's this woman's name? Dimitrio?"

"No, it's Fisher, Elaine Fisher. She lives in Buffalo, she's a wife and mother of two… I can't understand why she'd murder someone."
"And then attempt to murder a police officer. She's in it deep now," Eames said, as Goren smiled faintly and resumed his speech.

"Emily has always been protective of her sister. She was raped in college, and Emily helped her recover from that." His breathing was becoming more labored, and they heard sirens coming up the street.

"Just hang on, Bobby. And don't worry about it. I'm nailing her."

*

After Eames saw Bobby into the ambulance, she called in to Deakins. Twenty minutes later, Carver and Deakins met her at MCS. She gave them the rundown. They both expressed concern over Goren's attack, but were excited that they had a lead. "The nightshift has a lot of hunting to do," Deakins said. Carver nodded and agreed to help wherever it was needed.

"I thought you were focused on Emily," Eames remarked as he settled into a chair.

"If this woman attacked Detective Goren, then I'm focused on her." Eames nodded at Carver and walked out of the room, eager to get started. Deakins was briefing the other detectives as Eames got on the computer. "DMV's got her address in Buffalo, just like Bobby said."

"Let's call up there, see if she's even home before we waste a trip." Eames nodded and got on the phone.

Nearly four hours later, Eames' phone rang. She leapt for it. "Eames." As the voice on the other line came through, Eames gasped and nearly dropped the phone. "What?" she whispered shakily. Several heads snapped in her direction and she turned away from them, intent on hiding her tears. "I'll be right there." She hung up and took a deep breath, standing slowly. "That was the hospital. Bobby's taken a turn for the worse," she announced to a shocked group. Then she turned and practically ran to the elevators.

Deakins turned to the group. "Keep working on this one, guys. Goren'll pull through." But no one missed the tremor in his voice as he made this statement.

*

Eames paced back and forth in the operating room's waiting area, checking her watch every few seconds and keeping her eye trained on the door. She finally spotted Goren's doctor and raced over to meet him, barely daring to breathe.

"Detective Goren is out of surgery and in moderately stable condition. We had to remove his spleen," the doctor said apologetically. "But, I'm sure he'll return to normal functioning within a few weeks." Eames couldn't resist throwing her arms around the doctor in a hug.

"Thank you! Can I see him?"

"He'll be out cold for at least another hour. Before he went under, he wanted me to tell you not to wait… he said ask Emily, she'll know. He wasn't making much sense, I'm afraid."

"Ask Emily… of course! Thanks, doc!" Eames called over her shoulder as she began yet another mad dash to the car. She called Deakins as she ran through the parking lot. "Get Emily Dimitrio. We've got to ask her where her sister is."

"Why would she know? She's been in jail."

"Goren told the doctor to tell me to ask her! Look, we have to do everything we can, Captain."

"Of course. And he's all right?"

"He should be." Deakins sighed with relief. Eames flipped her phone closed and drove towards One Police Plaza, her heart beating so fast it was all she could hear.