Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you recognize from Cold Case. They belong to the creators, the producers, and CBS.

A/N: Well, this is it. The moment of truth. The ending. If I get a lot of bugging, I might be pesruaded to write an afterword, but I probably wont. Please, enjoy.

Chapter Seven

Love, Lies, Valens

Lilly was angry. No, fuming. No, outraged. She could think of nothing to say, but her glare made Scotty wonder if he had done the right thing. He knew she'd be happy to have his insight on the case, even if he had a personal involvement, but he hadn't known what reaction she would have to his little confession.

"You. Lied. To. Me." Lilly said, haltingly.

"Well, no, er, yeah. But, Lil-"

"And you take the advice of a sixteen year old girl who you didn't want to remember over a warning from your partner? She's bad news, Scotty," Lilly said. Scotty opened his mouth to answer, but stopped. Christina had appeared in the doorway, she looked as though she had been crying, but Scotty wouldn't look at her. Lilly, whose back was to the door, had not yet noticed her sister's presence.

"I'm sorry. Look, Lil, I just reached out for someone to Listen. Chris was there. I never meant to hurt you," he was talking to both of them now. He knew Chris had been listening, why else would she have come into the kitchen? He didn't know what to do, but he wished he hadn't listened to Jessie.

"It's a little late for that! Go home, sleep. We'll question the Grandma and Rodrigo tomorrow," Lilly said. Chris had left and Scotty sighed. Back to the case, all to avoid opening up to someone. Telling them what was wrong. Lilly was still glaring at him, but he didn't move. He wasn't going to give up, not yet.

He set his gloves back down on the counter and stood up strait. He took a step foreword and placed one hand on Lilly's shoulder. The glare was replaced by a look of confusion as he brought his other hand up and pushed a stray hair out of her face. She flinched, pushing him away.

"You can't hide forever Lil," Scotty said. He picked up his gloves and left, letting himself out. Lilly sat down at the table and began to cry. A hand on her shoulder announced Chris's presence yet again. Lilly pushed the hand off of her, and Chris sat down across from Lil. Her face was tear streaked.

"I'm sorry. If I'd known...," Chris said. Lilly looked up and took her sister's hand. She wanted to scream, yell, and throw Chris out. But she needed someone, someone to be there. For now, Chris would do.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"Mrs. Amaria, Would you tell us where you were the night of September 7, 1995?" Lilly asked. She sat across from the old woman in the interrogation room, and Scotty was leaning against the wall. Unseen and nearly forgotten.

"I was at home, baking. I always made cookies for the neighborhood kids. Ask Jojo," she gestured at Scotty as she spoke. He stood up strait.

"First of all, my name is Detective Valens. Second, I was there. The house was dark that night," Scotty said, quietly. There was a strange tone in his voice, one that surprised Lilly. He took a step foreword, placing one hand on his partner's shoulder and the other on the table. Mrs. Amaria closed her eyes.

"I..." she didn't continue. She stared at her, waiting. But she didn't speak.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"You wanna change your story?" Vera asked. He stood in one corner of the room and Jeffries stood in the other. Rodrigo Metora sat at the table in the center, rubbing his hands together.

"No," he said, shortly. Jeffries moved around the table and sat down across from the criminal.

"You said you changed your name, but your drivers licensee still says that your Rodrigo Metora," Jeffries said.

"I didn't kill anyone. That was all Jojo. He was always talking about taking the detectives who were investigating us out of the picture. When he got arrested, I was relieved. I thought I'd never have to face that part of my life again. Until that detective showed up. I got scared, and I made up a story," he looked sincere, but Vera wasn't buying it.

"So, you never change your name, but you lie ten years later?" he asked. Rodrigo nodded.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"They had to die. I couldn't take it. They raised her with a gun in the house. In plain view," Scotty looked up and Lilly leaned foreword as Mrs. Amaria began to speak. "I wanted what was best for Jessie. There was a thunder storm, perfect for my plan. I went back, used my key, and took out Marco's gun. I did what was best for Jessie."

"By taking away her family?" Scotty asked.

"I was her family, and I am her family. They shut me out!" Mrs. Amaria slammed her fist down on the table. "First Marco ran off and married that wench, Gwen. Then Jose, my own husband, doesn't like my attitude towards my daughter in law so he leaves. They shut me out."

"You made it worse than it had to be," Scotty said. They led her out of the room, Jessie was standing by Stillman when the appeared. She walked over and gave her Grandmother one last hug. Scotty saw a tear escape from her rapidly blinking eyes, but she brushed it away.

As he watched her walk away, Scotty saw a fleeting glimpse of her and Elisa in the back of his mind. Joking about him, laughing as the three of them tossed a ball around. He would never see her again.

"So, Lil." Scotty said as they watched Mrs. Amaria being led away. "How about a drink, and a talk?" Lilly looked at Scotty for a moment. There had been something in his voice when he had been talking to Mrs. Amaria after the confession. A hurt, as though he had known the whole family.

But he hadn't.

"Yeah," Lilly said.