A/N: Thanks for the reviews, MERRY CHRISTMAS

The first couple of days without Eric were hard for everyone, Calleigh especially. Every now and then Horatio would assign Tim and Eric to a job, or Calleigh and Eric, forgetting that he was in California.

It felt different in the lab without him. Tim had no one to compete with, and Calleigh had no one to flirt and joke with.

Eric called Calleigh every two days. It was like a routine. And when he didn't call, or if he was late calling, Calleigh would worry.

It had been a month since Eric left for California, but it felt much longer. Calleigh had been counting down the days on her calendar. She knew he wouldn't come home EXACTLY after 4 months, she hoped it would be sooner, but it could be longer.

As Calleigh walked through her front door on a Tuesday evening, she exhaustedly threw her purse on the table and glanced at the phone. She had one message.

She pushed the play button and went to the fridge to get something to eat.

"Hey Calleigh. How are you? I'm fine. They have me going on a lot of trips out on the boat. I'm going outon the boattonight and won't be back til Monday so you won't hear from me til then. You have no idea how much I miss you, didn't think it would be this hard. Anyway can you please tell everyone at the lab that I miss them. I'm really sorry Cal but I gotta go or the boat will leave without me. We're going across to Mahatta Island. A body washed up on the island and we're gonna go diving for evidence. Ok now I really have to go. I miss you soooooooooo much and I promise I'll call as soon as I get back. Bye Calleigh"

Calleigh was now sitting on the couch bitting into an apple. She missed him so much. She had no idea it would be this hard. Had no idea that just not being around someone could be so painful.

She closed her eyes and lay back. She tried to imagine Eric. Imagine him being there with her.

She let out a frustrated sigh. It felt nothing like being with the real thing. And now she couldn't even talk to him for almost a week. She let the apple fall out of her hands onto the ground. She was really tired.

They spent all day solving a double homicide case. She rubbed her eyes and turned on her side to get more comfortable and closed her tired eyes.

The week went past quickly for everyone. They had a suicide, a murder here and there, robbery, and a break in or two. With all the work, Calleigh had no time to ponder about Eric.

But on the weekend, when she went home, she felt her feelings rush back and the longing for Eric return. Every now and then Calleigh would rush to her phone hoping to find a call from Eric, but had no luck.

Calleigh noticed something strange at work. Horatio was acting differently lately. He was grumpy and distant. She and Tim couldn't put their finger on it but something was definitely up. Like on Friday morning when she and Tim were in the break room.

Flashback

"I knew he was having an affair," Calleigh gloated proudly as she followed Tim in.

"How could you possibly tell? There was no evidence to suggest it," Tim argued.

"Women's intuition," Calleigh said cheekily, "Don't forget about the10 bucks you owe me"

"You know you have a serious problem," Tim said pulling his wallet out and handing her the money.

"Aww you're just a sore loser," She said accepting the money.

"I am not," Tim wined.

"And you better get used to it," Calleigh said proudly, "Cos now that Eric's gone I have to find someone else to make money from"

Tim let out a small laugh and Calleigh smiled sadly. Just then, Horatio trudged in and angrily opened the fridge looking for something to calm him down.

Calleigh and Tim looked at each other confused

"Uh, are you okay Horatio?" Calleigh asked in her caring southern voice.

"The less you know the better," Horatio replied before marching out the room.

"What's the matter with him?" Calleigh asked Tim.

"Got me," He replied simply.

End flashback

On Wednesday morning as Calleigh walked into the lab she saw Horatio mentioning her to come into his office. She put down her bag and coat and walked to his office. Tim and Tripp were standing in front of Horatio's desk waiting.

She walked in and briefly greeted them.

"So what's going on?" Tim asked impatiently.

Horatio let out a deep breath. "There's something I have to tell you all," Horatio said calmly.

Calleigh and Tripp took a seat but Tim stayed standing.

"Is something wrong?" Calleigh asked concerned.

"Eric… Eric was being held hostage on Mahatta Island and now he's…missing," Horatio stated firmly.

"What?" Tripp asked furiously, "When?"

"Since Thursday," Horatio replied.

Calleigh felt guilt and concern rush over her body. She hadn't even noticed that he didn't call. She had been so busy in the last few days that she forgot about it.

"H-how," Calleigh stuttered. She was glad she was sitting down because if she wasn't she would probably faint.

"Well he was investigating a murder on Mahatta Island and the killer, Ashley Fry, took him hostage and then ran off with him. They found Fry's body hanging from his old apartment yesterday, but no sign of Eric," Horatio informed.

Tim, who had been silent the whole time, decided to speak up.

"So what's being done to find him? Should we be there looking for him? Is he dead? Is he in danger?" Tim asked frantically.

"Calm down Tim," Horatio said standing up, "The California PD is doing everything they can to find him. But they honestly don't know whether he's ok or not"

Calleigh couldn't take it anymore. She had to get out of his office before she started crying.

"Excuse me, I have to go to the bathroom," Calleigh said running out the door and heading to the bathroom. When she got there her cheeks were already red and streaked. She put her hands over her face and sobbed quietly on the floor. When she reached up to get a tissue she felt a warm hand on hers.

She looked up in surprise and saw Alexx kneeling down next to her. Calleigh wiped away her tears and looked down at the ground embarrassed.

"Hey honey," Alexx said supportively, "I just heard. Are you ok?"

Calleigh let out a nervous laugh. "Yeah," she replied sniffling, "I don't know why I'm blubbering on like this. I'm just worried for Eric"

"Oh I think we both know why you're crying. Honey it's obvious that you two feel strongly about each other," Alexx replied putting a supportive hand on her shoulder.

"What?" Calleigh asked, looking up in surprise.

"You can't fool me. I see the smiles, the touches," Alexx pointed out.

Calleigh broke into more sobs and Alexx gave her a supportive hug.

"I- I just w-want him to be okay," Calleigh sobbed.

"I know baby, I know. Eric's a strong man, he'll pull through," Alexx said reassuringly rocking her back and forth.

10 minutes later Alexx walked into the layout room to see Tim thinking intently.

"Hey Timmy," Alexx greeted glumly.

"Is Calleigh ok?" Tim asked without moving his eyes from the table.

"I think she just wants some alone time right now," Alexx informed, "Are you ok?"

Tim let out a sigh and looked into Alexx's eyes, there were comforting and full of concern. Tim's on the other hand were full of misery and sadness.

"It's ok to be upset Timmy," Alexx said putting a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm not upset. I'm, I'm angry," Tim fumed shrugging off her hand and walking to the other side of the room.

"Ok I'll leave you alone. But if you want to talk, the morgue's just a yell away," Alexx said walking away. Tim let out a regretful sigh. He didn't mean to lash out at Alexx, he was grateful for her support, he was just furious with Ashley Fry, and worried about Eric.

Horatio slumped into his office chair and rubbed his eyes. He was having a really bad day. All of a sudden his phone started ringing of the hook. He picked it up and cleared his throat before answering, "Caine"

"Horatio?"

"Yeah, who's this?"

"This is Lt. Valens from the California police"

"Oh, what's going on?"

"We found him"

A/N: They found him, but dead of alive? To find out more just click review