What Lies Beneath

Chapter 4

" Do you think they are in heaven?" Sienna asked Simone as they stood in front of the two caskets. The wake had just finished and they asked Horatio if they could have a moment to themselves.

" Why wouldn't they be? They have never done anything bad..."

" We come here today to celebrate a life that was taken too early," the priest began as the organ had stopped playing. " A life that held so much potential."

Sienna sat between Horatio and Alexx , unable to stop staring at the silver casket that was in the front of her. She vaguely heard as he continued to speak about Simone's attributes and her zeal for life. Zeal for life? Sienna thought. She shook her head slightly and dabbed at her eyes. If she had such a zeal for life , wouldn't she still be here? Her mind wandered as she glanced over the pews that she could see, noticing the good amount of people that came.

" We come here today to celebrate the lives of two of Miami's finest, who were tragically taken too soon. Timothy and Calleigh were relentless at making sure the people of Miami were safe from the violence that ultimately took their lives."

" Simone," Sienna whispered.

" What do you want, Sienna?"

" Are you sad?"

" What kinda question is that? Of course I'm sad. Mom and Dad are dead. What's wrong with you?"

" I'm not sad, Simone. They are not hurt. They are in heaven. Remember you told me that last night."

" Sienna, what did you do, hit your head? Your mother and father are dead!" Simone said as she raised her voice a little too high. Horatio looked down the pew at them and motioned for them to get quiet.

" You don't have to be sad..."

Sienna watched as Horatio got up to give her eulogy . She never could understand why Simone had been so angry at her. Sienna couldn't be sad about losing her parents after Simone had told her that they were indeed in heaven. That night after the wake, Sienna researched ' heaven' online and she had been content knowing that her parents were in a better place.

" Simone, why are you crying? It's just a day," Sienna asked as she was getting ready for school a year later.

" You 've forgotten haven't you? Today ,mom and dad died"

" Simone..."

" Forget it. You're too perfect to miss them..."

How she wanted to apologize for not understanding how much of her life had been consumed by her grief. Now she could only watch as the pall bearers stood at both sides of the casket.

" Simone! What have you done to my computer?" Sienna asked as she was preparing to print her senior paper.

" Nothing. Just left you a little message is all," Simone said as she peeked into her room. The message scrolled across the screen.

You are smart

You are silly

You are a freak of nature

You are reliable

You are my sister

You are always in my heart.

I love you.

Sienna felt a tear as it fell against her bare wrist. Simone was very loving when she was able to live apart from her pain for a moment. As she proceeded down the aisle with Horatio beside her, she glanced over at a couple that sat in the far back. There was something oddly familiar about them. She dropped her head and walked out to the limo that was waiting. Nothing seemed as it was anymore.

" Are you sure you want to do this?" Tim asked Calleigh as he watched the people walk back to their cars.

" I have to say good bye to her, Tim," was all Calleigh said. She stared at the casket that was surrounded by tons of flowers. Her baby was in that box, and she was about to rest next to cinder blocks that were deposited in the family plot ,under the guise of it being hers and Tim's final resting place. Tim grabbed her hand as he saw the last person drive off.

" Okay, Cal. We only have maybe five minutes until they come to put her in the ground. C'mon."

They walked briskly hand in hand until they came to the plot. Calleigh put a shaky hand on her daughter's casket letting the tears flow down her face. Tim stood quietly, not able to keep his eyes off of the silver trimming. He remembered how Simone loved silver.

" So you're sure you want the silver necklace instead of the radio?" Tim asked her as they walked into the jewelry store. It was their birthday and Calleigh had taken Sienna to Radio Shack to get her a stereo system.

" Yeah, dad. I've been eyeing this necklace for months. I've got to have it," Simone said as she swung her arm while holding his hand.

" Good, because the necklace is cheaper than the stereo."

" Daddy..."

" What? I'm serious! You are saving me a lot of money here," Tim said smiling at her . He loved to see Simone happy...

" Simone, mama's so sorry that you had to go through so much pain," Calleigh was saying through her tears.

Tim looked around , making sure that there was no one around. He then placed a hand on Calleigh's shoulder in comfort.

" Calleigh, we have to go," Tim said softly. He didn't want to leave her either, but if they got caught here, it wouldn't be pretty.

" I can't leave her, Tim. Not again."

" Calleigh, come on," Tim said as he heard voices approaching. He pulled Calleigh's arm.

Calleigh cried harder as she put her fingers to her lips then to the casket. As she left, she dropped a tissue beside the casket.

Sienna walked up with Horatio to the casket as Tim and Calleigh rounded the corner. Sienna glanced at the casket putting her hand on top of it. It had been a hard day, but she had gotten through it. Now she would go home and prepare for her day at the lab. Before she said her final goodbye, she followed Horatio's gaze to the outside of the cemetery. On the street, she saw a bright yellow Ducati that reminded her of her father.

" Dad, I want to ride too," Sienna whined as she saw Simone get off of the back of the motorcycle.

" Why do you always want to be a copy cat?" Simone asked as she slipped the helmet off.

" I am not a copy cat," Sienna protested.

" Are too."

" Are not."

"Are too."

" Timothy James Speedle, I hope you are not putting my little girls on that stupid bike," Calleigh yelled from the kitchen window, her southern roots were showing.

" Sorry girls, but if I want to live past tomorrow, I can't let you get on." Tim said as he took the helmet from Simone. He bent down to Sienna and whispered, " I'll take you for a ride tomorrow after school, okay?"

Sienna beamed as the notion of riding the Ducati, " Okay , daddy..."

Bringing her attention back to the casket, Sienna noticed a piece of tissue on the ground. That's odd. This wasn't here a moment ago, Sienna said to herself. She took a clean handkerchief out and picked it up. Her curiosity was in full gear as she remembered the couple sitting in the rear of the church. There was something going on , and she would find out what it was.

Horatio continued to stare out in the distance, his shoulders sagging even more. Standing here held such hard memories for him. His brother was buried almost three hundred yards from the place in which he stood, and his mother was buried on the other side of the pond that split the cemetery in half. He too was alone. He turned as he saw Sienna put something in her bag.

" What do you have there?"

" Oh, it's my handkerchief," Sienna said ,not lying. " I needed it."

" Are you going to be okay at the house tonight?" Horatio asked as he glanced at the casket.

" I think I will be okay. I have your cell phone number , if I need you,"she said as she started walking. The cemetery attendants started to file past them as they made their way to Simone's casket. Sienna turned to watch them as they placed the flowers to one side and began to lower it into the ground.

" You want to stay?" Horatio asked .

" No. I know that she is not in pain anymore." Sienna replied as she turned to walk to the Hummer. She would go home and rest, thinking about the prospects that tomorrow held.

TBC...

A/N: I have Katie to thank for the idea of the flashbacks... lol.