By Your Side

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: None of them are mine, except maybe the unfamiliar names... those are mine.

A/N: Sequel to Disappearing Acts.

Speed walked into his daughter's room to wake her up. They had been in New York for almost two weeks and he still hadn't found the time to unpack all of her things. He wove through the maze of boxes to reach Sascha as she continued to sleep soundly. Gazing upon her serene face , he was instantly reminded of Calliegh. He sat down on the bed softly and gently moved a dark curl from out of her face. She was strong, but in the two weeks that they had been there, Sascha had started to show signs of sadness. Even though she had tried to hide her feelings, Speed could sense that there was something going on with her. One night, he saw as she pulled a picture of Calliegh from under her mattress , and he listened to her as she cried softly, asking why did she leave her. It broke his heart to hear his daughter's distress and he wanted to let her know that none of this was her fault. He wanted to take her in his arms and assure her that everything would be okay, but the truth of the matter was , he didn't believe it himself. Deep down he still loved Calliegh, but she had betrayed him and their love. There was no going back for him. Now as he looked at his daughter on this beautiful morning, he felt confident that he had made the right decision.

" Sash, it's time to get up. You have school today," Speed said as he gently rocked her shoulder.

" Nooo, I don't want to," Sascha replied sleepily. She turned her head the other way and continued to sleep.

" C'mon , baby. You gotta get up, or we will both be late."

"Daddddy ," Sascha pleaded with her back to him still.

" Sascha Marie Speedle, it's time to get up now. No more warnings," Speed said a little surprised at the authority in his voice.

Sascha immediately popped her head up and rubbed her eyes. If she knew anything , it was that when her daddy said her whole name, she better get moving. She gave him a small smile and moved to hug him, "Mornin' daddy."

" Good morning , sweetheart. Did you sleep ok?" Speed asked returning the hug.

" No."

"No? Why?"

" I had a bad dream about mommy. I miss her," Sascha said as she began to poke her lip out. Tears started to form at the corner of her eyes.

" We can talk about it on the way to school. Would that be okay?" Speed returned as he helped her out of bed.

" I hate that school! Nobody's my friend. I don't want to go there," Sascha said crossing her arms tightly against her chest.

" Honey, you are new. Just give it a chance, I think you will like it."

" No I won't! I want to go back to Miami. I want to be in Samantha's class," Sascha said raising her voice. At six years old she had mastered the famous Speedle attitude.

" Now wait a minute there, Sascha. What have I told you about raising your voice to grown ups?" Speed asked with his eyebrows raised. He chuckled inside slightly knowing that she couldn't help it. It was in her blood. Just the same , she had to learn to respect authority.

" I'm sorry daddy. I hate this place. I wanna go back to Miami."

" We live here now, Sascha. Daddy works here too," Speed said as he glanced at his watch. They were very late now. " But honey, if you don't get dressed, daddy won't have a job for long. C'mon we have to get going."

Sascha reluctantly walked to the chair where her clothes were neatly set out for her and began to dress herself. Seeing that she had everything under control, Speed went downstairs and finished his coffee. Minutes passed and he hadn't heard a peep out of her.

" Sascha? Are you ready?" Speed called up the stairs. He looked at the clock on the wall. Great, now we are really late, he thought to himself.

As he ascended the stairs he heard his cell phone ringing in the kitchen. At the same time Sascha had screamed, " Daadddy! It hurts."

Caught halfway up the stairs, Speed started to go down for the cell phone, but then continued to hear Sascha whining. He bounded down the stairs , retrieved the phone , and raced back up the stairs. Walking quickly to the bathroom, he answered his cell. " Speedle."

" Tim, it's almost 8:30. Where are you?" a voice said perturbed. " We got a scene. You might want to get out here quick."

" Danny, I'm on my way. I gotta drop off Sascha at the... Sascha! How did you get that brush tangled in your hair...?" Speed said as he came into the bathroom. Sascha 's big tears flowed down her face.

" I wanted to be a big girl and do my own hair, daddy. I'm sorry."

"It's ok, honey. Hold on, okay," Speed said with his hand over the cell phone.

"Speed! You want me to take this one?" Danny asked sympathetically. He knew that Speed had a young daughter he was trying to raise .

" If you could man, I'd appreciate it." Speed replied sighing, holding the cell phone to his ear with his shoulder as he tried to untangle his daughter's hair from the brush. " I'll owe ya."

" I'll remember that when I come back to the lab with mountains of trace for you to analyze," Danny replied with laughter in his voice. " I'll cover for you, but get here as fast as you can. Taylor isn't here yet, he's in Brooklyn on another scene. I figure you got maybe thirty minutes before he arrives. At least be in the lab."

" Thanks Danny. I'll be there," Speed said with a defeated tone. He was losing the battle with the brush. He flipped his phone down and glared at his daughter through the mirror. " Sash, I told you that I would brush your hair. How am I supposed to get this out?"

Sascha shrugged her shoulders as Speed continued to glare at her. He tried for several minutes longer, finally getting her thick raven mane untangled from the brush. He threw the brush down and grabbed her hand, leading her down the stairs. As he locked the door and pulled it to, he saw as his holster was empty. Swearing under his breath, he unlocked the door and retrieved his gun and lead Sascha out the house again. Speed then strapped Sascha in her booster seat , then got in the driver's seat, cranking the big SUV up and revving the motor. Racing down the street , he looked at his watch, 9:15. He was definitely late. It couldn't get any worse.

TBC...