Maria pushed herself away from the table and went to answer the door. To say the least, she was a little shocked at who stood on the other side. "Kyle."

He gave her a small smile, "Hey, sis."

"What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in D.C.?" Her brow creased as she noticed the distant expression in his pale blue eyes.

Kyle stepped inside, "I took a leave of absence. I sort of need the family ties right now. And it sounds like you do too."

Maria nodded, "Come on in. We were just having a discussion."

"So I heard."

Maria led him into the dining room where Liz and Alex had much the same reaction to Kyle's presence. "Have a seat."

Liz looked at her questioningly, she too had noticed Kyle's appearance. Maria gave her a slight nod of acknowledgment. She turned to Kyle.

"So Michael, Max, and Isabel are gone?" He asked before she could open her mouth.

Alex's jaw tightened, "Yeah. And the more we look for answers, the more confusing it gets."

Kyle had slid into FBI agent mode now. Any worries of his own were pushed aside for the moment. "What do you know?"

An hour and several phone calls later, Kyle walked into the kitchen where Liz was making lunch. Alex was in the basement doing laundry and Maria gone to the store to get food for Sassafrass.

Liz turned when he came in. She was concerned about him even with all that she was dealing with. He could wait to tell them what he had found out when everyone was together. "Why'd you come home Kyle?"

Kyle sighed and leaned back against the counter. His eyes focused on something outside the window.

She waited. She knew that he would say what was on his mind eventually.

His eyes shifted and focused on her. "Did I ever tell you about Cloie?"

Liz shook her head. But if it was girl problems, it could explain a lot.

"I met her almost seven months ago. It was just one of those things, you know?" He smiled a bit, "She was the one. And I knew it as soon as our eyes met." He paused as the front door opened and shut and Maria came into the kitchen. "Cloie was the most beautiful person I had ever met. And I never thought I'd really fall. I mean head over heels fall, like you and Max, Liz. I didn't think that I'd ever have that. But I found it with Cloie."

Liz smiled softly. She had known that he would eventually find the one and was glad that it had finally happened.

"Tell us about her." Maria said, hopping up onto the counter. It had been a while since they had really talked.

"She was beautiful. Her family came from Ireland. That's where she was born. And you could tell even before she spoke. Her hair was this rich auburn color. But her voice was pure Ireland. Cloie Aislyn McLeod. And she agreed to marry me. Everything was perfect. We were happy."

"That's great Kyle." Liz smiled and then something clicked, "Wait, you were happy? Why not now? What happened?"

Kyle shrugged. "I don't really know. A couple of weeks ago, we were sitting in her apartment, talking about our childhoods and our families and about the family that we wanted. The next day, when I woke up I found a note. Something had happened with her family and she had to return to Ireland. She didn't leave a number or address or anything. She turned in her request for leave to the bureau and left. And there were too many McLeods in Ireland for me to find her. I haven't heard from her at all. She's just…gone."

Maria crossed the sun-filled room and wrapped her slender arms around her brother. "I'm sorry Kyle."

"Yeah. I keep thinking that maybe she'll just show up again though. I left a note in both of our apartments if she went back. Just in case."

"Kyle, I'm sure she'll be back. If you were meant to be, then she'll be back." Liz tried to reassure him…and herself.

He let out a breath and nodded. "I hope so. I want her to meet you two. You'd love her."

Maria smiled a bit, "Of course we would. The girl is willing to put up with you for the rest of her life.

"Brat."

Alex came back upstairs and looked at the three of them. "So. What did you find out?"