Title: Apalachicola
Author: Miranda
Rating: PG-13
Pairing: E/C
Spoilers: None
Author's notes: Sorry about the delay, we had a family emergency, so I was out of town for a while. But I'm back now, so hopefully you guys won't have to wait long for the next one. I know this chapter is too long, but I just couldn't find a good place to stop without messing up the flow. Thanks for all the nice reviews; they've really helped these past couple of weeks. You guys are the best.

A p a l a c h i c o l a
by Miranda
Chapter Three

Calleigh was high again.

Usually, two things got Calleigh high – shooting things and a new case. And this case had her going through the roof.

She sat on a booth in front of Eric, going over all the notes she had manically written and theorizing ideas faster than he could process them. Every once in a while, she'd pop a fry into her mouth, but even that wouldn't stop her from talking.

Eric just nodded along. Really, at this point anything could go; they hadn't even gathered all the evidence. But that didn't faze Calleigh. In her mind, this case was the most fascinating she had ever worked on, worthy of all her energy and attention.

"Maybe, Brooks was having an affair," she said excitedly, pointing a pen at Eric. "If he was having an affair, then that would give us motive, especially considering the guy was married." Apparently, that sounded brilliant to her, as she quickly wrote her theory down and smiled to herself.

"How do we know they were having an affair?" Eric asked, sounding skeptic.

"Well, Eric," she scoffed. "Two bodies, one male, one female? This case solves itself."

"How do we know the two victims are connected?"

She looked at him as if he had grown a second head. "Two different murders, in Apalachicola, Florida? No, no, no. I bet you all my savings this is just one crime scene."

Eric nodded again. It was hard to disagree with Calleigh when she was so enthusiastic. Dangerous, too.

He stared at her as she kept writing. They had just spent five hours gathering evidence, trying to get the body down without doing any damage, waiting for a coroner, combing the body for any evidence they could find and tagging it up. Currently, one of the county's cops was on his way to Miami with the body and their evidence. Hopefully, Alexx would be able to do an autopsy and get back to them soon. And with the evidence in Horatio's hands now, they couldn't do much, but wait.

Which would have been fine, except waiting hadn't been very generous to him lately.

"Are you gonna eat that?"

Eric looked down at his half eaten food and pushed the plate towards her. "Be my guest."

Hard to believe that just a few hours before, he could've eaten a whole bear. And now, well, appetite escaped him. Didn't escape Calleigh, apparently. Her own plate was completely empty and now she took a bite out of his burger, which she had been eyeing the whole time, put it down, and continued to write so fast Eric thought he could see smoke rising from the pages.

"Calleigh, would you stop that? You're gonna sprain your wrist," he said.

She looked at him sharply, as if the words he had just spoken were foreign, and continued to write.

Hard to believe that just five hours ago, he'd pretty much told her he loved her. Or at least he thought he did. In his mind, he at least implied he had feelings for her. And now she was acting like nothing happened. But really, that was Calleigh. Work was a whole different world to her. A crime happened, and she would immediately retrieve to it while her personal world spun on its own. Work World and Personal World never collided. They were in completely different dimensions, each one existing without acknowledging the other. It was really quite fascinating at times. At times. Not today.

His cell phone rang and once again, he was glad for a distraction. "Delko."

Calleigh looked up immediately, waiting for a revelation from Horatio, even though she knew the body and the evidence were still on the road. She bathed one of Eric's fries in ketchup and took a bite off it as she watched his facial expression. He didn't say much, just nodded a couple of times and hung up the phone.

"That was Stephanie, no luck with the room."

Calleigh sighed. "So it's back to the Fulke's."

"Looks that way," Eric said.

She clicked her tongue in annoyance and looked down at her pad. Apparently, her writing was all done, so she looked up at him again. "So what do you think?"

"About what?"

"The case," Calleigh said.

Eric sighed and looked at his nearly gone burger. "I think it's too early to jump to conclusions."

"Eric, how can you not be excited about this case? Aren't you the least bit intrigued?" Calleigh exclaimed.

"I am," Eric said.

"Well, you sure aren't showing it."

She was right about that. Usually, a new case left him excited, elated, the thousands of possibilities would become an addiction. Each case was like a puzzle, waiting, begging to be finished. And he loved it. He loved all of it.

The problem now was... he didn't have a Work World and a Personal World like Calleigh did. Work was personal and personal was work. And everyone back in Miami agreed that was a big problem, because he usually had a hard time separating the emotional from the professional and that got him into trouble, when he'd lay in bed at night, staring at the ceiling, thinking about the victims, what their lives were like, about the ones he couldn't save, about the lives that were lost. Crime scene investigation is no place for emotions, he knew that very well.

Normally he would be a hundred percent into this case, but he was having a hard time concentrating. He was having a hard time just trying to figure out how Calleigh could. Because even though she was ignoring him, what he had said, there was still that energy between them. It was like a ping pong game, the tiny little ball going back and forth between them at great speeds, generating all this heat. And the truth was Wayland Brooks was possibly the last thing on his mind. He tried to pay attention, to make it is priority because this was his job, but how could he? The more he tried to think about the case, the more his mind would submerge into his little saga with Calleigh, trying to figure out what she had wanted to say back at the crime scene. He wished he could just come right out and ask her, but he knew that was a dead end road. You just don't force Calleigh to go back to her Personal World like that. That was something she would have to do on her own, and he could do nothing but wait. Again.

Really, he was starting to get just a tiny bit pissed.

And the most frustrating part was: Eric knew she was doing it on purpose. All the talking, the eating, her crazy theories... they were just her way of avoiding another confrontation, ignoring what he had said. She knew if she kept talking, then there was no way he would be able to talk. And if he couldn't talk, he couldn't ask her what Calleigh knew he would ask her sooner or later. It was a very smart tactic, but Eric wished she would just wake up and realize she was dealing with Eric Delko here, not one of her clueless Neanderthal boyfriends. He knew her pretty well, enough to recognize her intentions. Calleigh usually liked to work quietly. She hated being wrong, so sharing all these potentially erroneous ideas with him was really uncharacteristic of her. Didn't she know that the more she tried to hide it, the more she exposed herself?

If she did, she sure wasn't showing it.

Suddenly, she was gathering all her papers, reached into her briefcase and carefully placed them inside. "You want some coffee?"

"I think the last thing you need right now is coffee," Eric teased. He saw their waitress and gave her some kind of signal she took as an indication they wanted their check.

Calleigh looked at him before she chuckled and looked down at her lap. "Sorry."

"No need to apologize," Eric smiled.

"Here 'ya go, honey," the waitress said and put the check on the table in front of Eric. As he reached into his back pocket for his wallet, though, Calleigh quickly grabbed the tab, inspected it, and gave it back to the waitress along with a couple of bills.

It all happened so fast, Eric's hand was still digging into his pocket.

"Oh, good for you," the waitress told Calleigh, her heavy Southern accent flaring, and walked away.

Calleigh smiled at Eric, pleased with her display of adamant feminism. "So, back to the scene?"

Eric frowned for no reason. "I, uh, was gonna look for a shopping mall, actually."

"What for?" Calleigh asked.

"I only brought clothes for today. I didn't know we were gonna be here longer than that."

Calleigh shook her head. "Men."

"What, and carry a six hundred pound crocodile full of little mystery bottles and beauty creams you don't actually need? At least my suitcase fit into the trunk," he teased.

"Maybe so, but I have clothes for the whole week and you don't, so who's the fool now?"

Eric laughed. "I guess that would be me."

The waitress came back with her change and Eric was quicker this time, leaving a few bucks under the pepper shaker as the tip, but Calleigh didn't really react to this and he was thankful for that. You don't usually insult Calleigh's self sufficiency and live to tell about it.

They asked the hostess where the nearest shopping mall was, and as they walked out of the restaurant, Calleigh looked back and saw a couple of waitresses drooling over Eric, giggling to themselves and blushing. She rolled her eyes. It never ended. Wherever they went, whatever they did, there was always a pack of women slobbering at the sight of him, giggling, whistling, seconds away from throwing their underwear at him. Could they at least be a bit less obvious? Whatever happened to being discreet?

She shook her head and looked at Eric to catch his response, but apparently he never noticed his fans standing there and Calleigh didn't know how his reaction, or lack thereof, made her feel. No doubt he'd love it, he always did. He'd laugh and blush like a little boy in a toy store and suddenly Calleigh realized she'd give anything for him to blush like that again. Maybe to even walk over and ask one of them out. Because if he did, maybe they could go back to being friends, just friends, no tension, no awkwardness. But then as much as she wanted it, she found herself getting angry at the mere thought of it. Angry at him. Of course he'd blush. Of course he'd go over and ask them out. That's what he did, what he was famous for.

As he drove to the store she closed her eyes, scrunched her nose, and put it out of her mind. Eric's life wasn't under the lens here, Wayland Brooks's was. And she definitely didn't want to be one of those people, getting angry and upset over hypotheticals. Crazy people did that, and though she questioned the state of her sanity at times, she definitely wasn't crazy. Not in Miami, at least. In this town, though, you never know. Up seemed to be down, left was right... she couldn't even count on her own state of mind while they were here.

So she decided to wait outside the store while Eric bought what he needed, and sitting on a bench, with the file on her lap, Calleigh tried to figure this case out. Wayland Brooks was an attractive guy, no doubt about that. He was also rich, which, when combined with good looks and an eligible age for a midlife crisis, definitely spelled affair to Calleigh. She had been living in Miami long enough to know what the women down there were like. Sharks. Vicious, starving, wild sharks on the prowl. And no doubt to them, this guy was prime chum, wedding ring or no wedding ring. There is no such word as "marriage" on the Miami dating scene's dictionary.

Her cell phone suddenly began to ring and she reached into her purse to retrieve it. "Duquesne."

"Wayland Brooks was having an affair," the voice of Horatio boomed over the phone.

"Yes!" Calleigh grinned, but the silence on the other end made her retrieve quickly. "Sorry."

Horatio ignored that. "We talked to his wife, apparently she knew all about it. The woman's name is Sue Hayes."

"Is that the second victim?"

"The body is not here yet, but her parents live in Apalachicola. Why don't you pay them a visit, okay?"

"Will do," Calleigh said.

"Where's Eric?"

"He's, uh, buying some things," she said, hesitant about using the word "shopping" when they were here to work. Just didn't seem right. But Horatio didn't really seem to mind.

"I need him to take a couple of pictures of the outside of the Hayes's house. We found a few snap shots of the couple outside an old house by a riverbank. His wife had them, might be important."

"Do you think she killed them?"

"Let's not jump to conclusions yet," Horatio said and ended the conversation abruptly.

Calleigh hung up the phone and scribbled a couple of notes down. At least they had a few other pieces of the puzzle, now it was time to try and put it together. They would have to call the sheriff to ask for the Hayes's address. If the pictures had been taken outside of their home, then either the parents knew all about it, which meant this was more than just a fling, or they would have to find another route.

A couple of minutes later, Eric appeared in front of her, carrying a couple of bags. Calleigh stood up and smiled mischievously. "So you don't think Wayland Brooks was having an affair?"

Eric frowned as they began to walk away. "I didn't say that."

"But you're leaning towards no."

"I might be," he replied.

"Are you willing to bet on it?" Calleigh asked.

Eric shook his head. "Last time we did this you ended up ten dollars richer, so no."

"Smart boy," Calleigh teased. "Horatio called, he was having an affair."

Eric's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"Yes, and his wife knew all about it, so this might end up being a crime of passion," Calleigh said.

"Cause we don't get enough of those in Miami," Eric said sarcastically.

They reached the car and decided to stop by the bed and breakfast briefly, just to make sure the Fulkes knew they would have to stay another night. Luckily, they hadn't given their room away yet and Linda Fulke was beyond ecstatic that they would have to stay another night.

Calleigh didn't share her enthusiasm.

Considering what had happened that morning, she wasn't sure she'd be able to share a room with Eric, again, and keep things casual. Not that she couldn't keep her hands to herself or anything, nothing like that. But after his declaration that morning, well, she was sure he'd bring it up again. And no amount of mental preparation seemed to make the prospect of that confrontation bearable. What was she supposed to say to him? What was she supposed to do about this?

Possibly for the first time in her life, her mind was drawing a blank, caught in a whirlwind of emotions that made thinking practically impossible. She usually relied on her ability to remain objective but now that ability seemed to have disappeared and all she had left was this unpredictability of emotions, of thoughts, of actions...

And she hated irregularity.

Luckily, she wasn't the only one ignoring the big elephant in the room. Eric seemed to be trying hard to give her some space and Calleigh was glad for that, but she knew it wouldn't last. She knew that if the pressure didn't get to them, sooner or later one of them would crack. They were both acting like completely different people, pretending to ignore each other, and she hated it, and she knew he hated it, too. One of the things she had always loved about her friendship with Eric was the fact that she could be herself, just completely herself, and it was good. She could show up to work in a good mood, a bad mood, an indifferent mood, and he would be okay with that, would accommodate his own mood to hers in a way that always left her wondering just how well he really knew her. With him, she could be herself without the fear of being ridiculed or scrutinized. No pretenses.

And now Calleigh felt like there was something dangerous about the mere idea of being herself in front of him. Worse, like she couldn't even trust herself. What she did in the bathroom that morning, that wasn't her and how could she guarantee herself that she wouldn't do something like that again? And if she couldn't trust herself, how could Eric trust her?

Thoughts like those were precisely the reason why she felt the need to immerse herself into this case. And it wasn't even an exciting case per se, not compared to the ones they usually worked in Miami, but it was work and it was a distraction and it kept her busy. And even if she could solve it in her sleep, at least it kept her mind from sailing into uncharted territory.

And really, beggars can't be choosers.

So after a quick call to the sheriff, they found themselves on the road again, this time to visit Sue Hayes's parents.

Tom and Dorothy Hayes had last seen their daughter three weeks ago. According to them, she usually called every day, or at least tried to call every day... they hadn't heard from her in a week. They owned a little house near the river, where it was quiet and peaceful and hundreds of fireflies illuminated the nights. After a quick introduction, Eric decided to take the pictures Horatio needed while Calleigh went inside for what she knew would be an uncomfortable interrogation. Not that it was ever easy, but she found it particularly hard to talk to people like Tom and Dorothy, whose lives were so simple and humble. Just another example of how unfair life could be.

"We never wanted her to move to that damn city," Tom said, holding his wife's hand tenderly. "It's so dangerous. But Sue, she was never a small town girl."

"It was either Miami or New York, so of course we let her go to Miami. She went to school there," Dorothy said.

Calleigh smiled. "Mrs. Hayes, do you know if Sue is seeing anyone?"

"Yes, she is," Dorothy said, looked at Tom and continued. "We never met him, but she showed me a picture once."

Calleigh nodded. "Can you describe him for me?"

"Uh, tall, sandy brown hair, green eyes. He looked much older than her, but I don't think they were serious about each other."

"Do you know his name?"

"No, I don't," Dorothy said solemnly. "I know I sound like a terrible mother--"

"No," Calleigh assured her. "You're doing great."

"Sue just doesn't like talking about her personal life."

"Why is this important?" Tom asked. "Has he done something to Sue?"

"I'm afraid we don't have a lot of information at the moment," Calleigh said. "Do you have a recent picture of Sue we could borrow?"

"Yes," Dorothy said, stood up, and disappeared into the bedroom.

Tom watched his wife leave and turned to Calleigh. "Miss Duquesne, my wife gets emotional very easy, but you can tell me the truth. Something happened to Sue, didn't it?"

"Mr. Hayes, I can assure you that as soon as we find her, you'll be the first one to know," Calleigh smiled.

"The last time we talked to her she said she was coming to visit, but she never showed up, she never called. My daughter is not like that. She always calls. It's not like her to disappear like this."

Calleigh nodded again. It was never easy, having to tell a parent that their child might be dead. And knowing what she already knew, she was scared her body language might give her away. Just knowing they might have to come back here to deliver bad news made her feel queasy. Horatio was much better at this; Calleigh had never really grown used to it. These situations were the heart of human emotions and what others found so easy, impulsive, even, she spent most of her time struggling with. She found life was much easier to deal with when she kept her emotions locked away. But situations like these always threatened to open those gates against her will. Struggling to control those emotions again was always messy and unpleasant and the last thing she needed right now was to lose control of herself.

Dorothy came back from the bedroom shortly, hugging a frame against her chest. "Here she is. Taken just last summer."

Calleigh grabbed the frame and stared at the picture. The body they had found was beginning to decompose, but not beyond recognition, and without having to wait for Alexx to perform an autopsy, she was 95 percent sure the woman in the picture was Sue Hayes. But she would keep that to herself, for now.

"Please find our daughter, okay?" Dorothy cried.

Calleigh smiled. "I'll call you as soon as we know something, I promise." She placed a comforting hand over Dorothy's arm and walked away.

She found Eric outside, still taking pictures of the house and the river. When he saw her approaching, he stopped. "How did it go in there?"

Calleigh didn't say anything, but showed him the picture of Sue.

"Looks like our second victim," Eric said.

"I didn't wanna tell her parents, not until we know for sure," Calleigh said.

Eric watched her for a second, noticing her earlier excitement seemed to have disappeared. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Calleigh said convincingly. "It's just... you know, you expect these things to happen in Miami, not in a place like this. Her parents didn't even know she was seeing a married man. I'm not sure they'll be able to handle it when they find out."

"Well," Eric breathed and began walking towards the car. "The truth hurts, but it heals better. There are a lot of people out there waiting to know what happened to their loves ones and most of them will never know for sure; at least this family gets some closure."

"Yeah," Calleigh said. He was right, she knew that, but she also knew it wouldn't be easy to tell them. But maybe that five percent would get them. Miracles happen every day. She climbed on the passenger seat and stared at the camera as Eric put it on the back. "How are we gonna send those pictures to Horatio?"

"If I know teenage boys, and I know teenage boys, I bet we'll be saving the sheriff a few trips from Apalachicola to Miami in the next couple of days," Eric said.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows curiously but was already too tired to even ask. After stopping by a one hour photo lab they went back to the bed and breakfast, where they found themselves in Brian's dark and moody room.

Brian was beside himself, suddenly full of energy as he showed off his computer, scanner, printer, video games. Eric was impressed. Calleigh? Not so much. Electronics had never really been her thing. She sat on Brian's bed as Eric got some of the pictures ready to be scanned, including Sue's. The walls were full of posters of singers and bands Calleigh couldn't even recognize. Hard to believe sometimes, how time just seemed to fly by. She could remember when her own walls were full of posters of bands and singers her parents couldn't recognize. The circle of life, she thought.

As some of the pictures appeared on the computer screen, Eric dialed Horatio's number, hoping this would at least accelerate the investigation so they could go home soon. Horatio sounded busy and broody, but that didn't really distract Eric. When it came to Horatio, he had already come to identify that as "normal".

"H, we're sending the pictures through e-mail," he said, nodded a couple of times as Horatio talked, and then looked at Calleigh. "They got the evidence."

"Great!" Calleigh said, throwing her head back and feeling like a thousand pounds had been lifted off her shoulders. Suddenly Eric's phone was in front of her and she grabbed it. Horatio wanted to know how it went at the Hayes's house, and as she walked out of the room, she began to tell him her story.

"Who's H?" Brian asked over Eric's shoulder.

"My boss."

"His name is H?"

"No, his name is Horatio. I call him H," Eric answered.

"Cool," Brian nodded. He picked up some of the pictures Eric had already scanned and began to leaf through them. "Hey, that's the Hayes's house."

Eric looked back and took the pictures away, "Brian, you're not even supposed to be in this room."

"But it's my room."

Eric sighed. "You're not supposed to be in your room while the Miami-Dade police is processing evidence."

"I won't tell anyone, I promise," Brian said, but couldn't remain silent for long. "My friend Jake says you found another body. A woman."

Eric frowned. "How does he know that?"

"Well, he's Jake Frankel."

"The sheriff's son?" Eric asked.

"Nephew. Corbin's his big brother."

Eric rolled his eyes at the mere mention of the name. "Of course."

"But he's smart. He wants to be a cop, too, just not here," Brian explained. "He says it's a waste of time."

"Well, if he ever wants a tour of the MDPD, he's more than welcomed to visit. Can't say the same for his brother, though," Eric said.

Brian chuckled. "Yeah, Corbin's an ass."

Eric smiled to himself. He decided, right here, that he liked Brian. A lot.

"Hey, if they found the bodies here, how come you're investigating?" Brian asked.

"The victim was reported missing to us," Calleigh answered behind him and handed Eric his cell phone. "So it's our case."

"What about the second body?' Brian asked.

Calleigh opened her eyes wide, surprise and curiosity lighting her features, and then looked at Eric sharply.

Eric shook his head. "Don't look at me, I didn't tell him."

Calleigh sighed. She knew news traveled fast in small towns, but this was ridiculous. "Well, if the cases are connected—"

"Then it's still your case," Brian said.

"Right."

"This is so awesome. Nothing cool ever happens around here," Brian grinned.

"Not sure double murder is something you should advertise in your brochures, Brian," Eric joked.

"I think I'll go to Miami, too. With Jake. And we can work for you, right? After we graduate," Brian continued.

Calleigh chuckled. Hard to believe this was the same jaded boy that had greeted them just the night before. "We'll see."

"Brian, what are you doing?" Linda suddenly appeared by the door. "Leave them alone, they're working! Go set the picnic table."

Brian just rolled his eyes and walked out of the room reluctantly. When he was gone, Linda looked at Eric and Calleigh and smiled brightly. "Dinner will be ready in ten minutes. Barbecue outside! You get to meet the other couples!"

Calleigh smiled for a second, but when Linda was gone, her smile turned into a frown. "Oh, great."

Eric ducked his head. "We can just go to a restaurant."

"No, no," Calleigh said. "Let's just get it over with."

Eric turned the computer off and began to gather all the photos. "I really am sorry about this."

Calleigh shook her head as she helped him tidy up. "It's not your fault it's oyster season."

"No, not that," Eric hesitated, "What happened this morning."

Calleigh recognized the tone quickly, and her mind, even her body, immediately rejected the implications of it. "Eric—"

"Wait, let me finish," Eric interrupted. "I just wanted to apologize. It was way out of line. You're right, you were right. It's my fault, I'm sorry. I'm not gonna bring it up again."

Calleigh frowned slightly. She tried to look into his eyes, just to see if he was being honest, but he was looking down at the pictures as if he was seeing them for the first time, and she knew he was doing that deliberately. And she really wished he'd look at her because that was certainly not what she had been expecting to hear from him. But just when she was about to say something, object or agree, she wasn't really sure, he interrupted her again.

"So," Eric took a deep breath. "We have a job to do here, let's do that."

"Yeah," Calleigh said, a bit absentmindedly. "Okay."

He smiled nervously at her and she smiled back before he rushed out of the room. Calleigh followed him, and it was weird to her, the way he suddenly seemed so unemotional about this. And even though the alternative was more troubling, she couldn't help but feel... something, some kind of resistance, because she was pretty sure Eric had just lied to her. Or at least walked circles around the truth, because she was still trying to figure out what he had wanted to say to her in there. And now there were even more questions in her mind than before.

A voice inside of her told her to just shut up and go with it. Hadn't she wanted this all along? He wasn't gonna bring it up again. Probably never again. She wanted him to move on and he had just told her he would do that. Or they would do that. Whatever he had said in there, though it hadn't been clear, she definitely came out winning. It seemed. He admitted he was wrong and she was right. Right about what? God only knew. But if she was right and he was wrong then she definitely got what she wanted.

She guessed.

Didn't come as a surprise at all that she had a headache by the time they walked into the barbecue. And it didn't help that everyone suddenly turned around to greet them as if they had known Eric and Calleigh for years, cheerful and screaming and doing nothing to alleviate the pain.

And through the course of the night, Calleigh had to try her hardest not to excuse herself because as it turns out, married couples hold hands and touch each other, and husbands put their arms around their wives' waists and wives look adoringly at their husbands. And she had no idea why it was so important to keep up this charade except for the fact that Eric didn't want to get Brian into trouble, which was ridiculous, because she doubted Linda would fire her own son, let alone throw them out for not being married, but Calleigh was sure it made sense in Eric's head. She hoped so, anyway. So she had no other choice but to sit there and take it, and the only thing that made her feel better, in a weird way, was the fact that Eric looked as uncomfortable as she felt every time they had to touch or talk about the details of their so-called marriage.

And then after dinner she found herself surrounded by a sea of middle aged women, every one of them asking her all kinds of intimate questions about Eric, sharing all these little secrets about their sex lives with Calleigh and she had no idea why she suspected Eric was having the same conversation with the men. A year ago it would have been really funny; today, it was downright uncomfortable.

Why these people were so nosy, she couldn't tell, but they seemed to be starving for their marital information and if Calleigh had to answer the same questions on more time she was going to scream.

"No, we don't have any children. No, we're not planning. Yes, we know we're not wearing wedding rings. His? In the shop, mine's getting engraved. Hers? In the shop, mine's getting engraved. Or something to that effect."

Who knew being married could be so exhausting?

And despite it all, despite the headache and the discomfort and the fact that they were pretty much lying for room and board, Calleigh found herself laughing all the way to the room.

Eric looked at her and frowned, wondering if she had finally snapped. "What's so funny?"

Calleigh shook her head. "The things I just heard down there? I might never have sex again. I think I've been scarred for life."

"At least women are subtle," Eric said. "You wouldn't believe what those guys were saying about you."

Calleigh stopped. "What were they saying about me?"

Eric looked at her briefly before he opened the door. "I know you hate it when I get chivalrous, but this is really something I'd rather not repeat in front of a woman."

Calleigh frowned. Gross. She kicked her shoes off and sat on the bed, watching as Eric reached into his bag for something she couldn't see. "What are you doing?"

"Brian just got this new game, I'm gonna go check it out," he replied.

Calleigh shook her head and rolled her eyes. "He's a teenager, Eric."

"So?"

"So you're 28 years old."

"He's really excited about showing me," Eric said.

"Uh huh," Calleigh teased. "And you're not excited about playing?"

"I might be a bit intrigued," he smiled. "Wanna come?"

Calleigh frowned. "To play video games?"

"Yeah."

"I think I'll pass," she said.

He just stood there for a second, staring at her, feeling a bit inadequate and it wasn't until she gave him an inquisitive look that he reacted. "Are you gonna be okay in here? Should I tell him to leave it for another time?"

"Oh, Eric, just go," Calleigh said as she stood up and headed towards the bathroom.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I have been alone before."

"Okay," he said. "I'll be back soon."

"I'll be sleeping," Calleigh said and shut the door.

Eric nodded a couple of times before walking out of the bedroom. And he tried to enjoy the game, he really did, but he found it a bit hard, just trying to keep up with Brian, and the game, and the music, and five minutes into it he just wanted to collapse in bed and never wake up.

When had he become such an old man?

When he returned to the bedroom, all the lights were still on, but from the door he could tell Calleigh was asleep. He smiled to himself. There were papers all over the bed and a now thick file rested on her stomach. Eric walked over and gathered all the papers, including the file, and when he took it away from her, her eyebrows furrowed; even in her sleep she didn't like his mothering. He drew some blankets over her and sat on the other side of the bed. His shoulders hunched over and his eyes closed. He was exhausted. Not just physically, but emotionally as well. The day seemed to have gone on forever, and though he was glad it was finally over, he didn't know what tomorrow would bring and the uncertainty made him nervous. Eric wasn't sure he would be able to handle another emotional rollercoaster.

He grabbed the file and rested against the backboard, going over all the notes Calleigh had written in his absence. But he hadn't even finished the first sentence when his eyes drifted towards her.

He knew he was breaking some of her rules; Calleigh didn't like it when people stared at her, but Eric couldn't help being hypnotized by the serene way in which she slept. She looked like a completely different person, all relaxed and care free, and it reminded him of those brief moments she hated to live through.

They were the moments when she would let her guards down. They were little moments when she was completely open, raw, and during those moments, she would let him get near her. She'd let him touch her, flirt with her, and if she was in a playful mood, maybe even hug her. It was during those moments when Eric would realize what a great thing they could have together, if she could just keep the walls down a little longer. Of course, he was practically a stranger to commitment, his countless ex girlfriends could definitely vouch for that, but it was different with Calleigh. When he was with her, he could see the whole picture: the big house, the three kids, the dog, the cat. And not only did it look perfect, it felt perfect, too. Without ignoring the obvious, of course, because he knew the issues between them were many. But in a weird way, it was the imperfections that made it perfect.

He was just waiting for her to see it too.

Eric knew why she was so guarded, so protective of her emotions. Hell, didn't take a genius to figure it out. Deep down, though she hated to show it or even admit it, she was downright terrified that he would turn into another Duke Duquesne. Understandable, of course, considering the childhood she had. She never liked to talk about it, and when she did it was always in a casual, nonchalant way. He knew very little of it, but what he knew was enough to realize that in Calleigh world the best way to avoid a heartbreak is to shut down completely.

And it was understandable, he knew that. Psychologically, he understood the concept, but at the same time he couldn't really get it. How is it possible to live like that? How could she get up every morning, and go through the day depriving herself of her emotions? How could anyone?

And that was why he knew he had messed things up that morning. It was too soon, he didn't think, really, it just came out. If you have to be weary of those things under normal circumstances, you have to be extra careful when it comes to Calleigh. Eric knew he had scared her and had possibly done some irreparable damage to their friendship. He just couldn't seem to catch a break. And the most frustrating part was he couldn't do anything to actively fix things but to take one giant step back and let things cool off for a while.

If the uncertainty didn't kill him soon, Eric knew all this waiting definitely would.

--

Calleigh was mildly aware of a distant ringing. It was barely audible but so insistent it tore her away from sleep. She opened her eyes and the brightness of day made her moan. And the ringing would not stop. It was like a horrible hangover. She tried to sit up, but something was holding her down and one quick glance over her shoulder made her sigh.

Eric. Again. It was like he was magnetically stuck to her back.

"Eric," she elbowed him and it didn't take much effort this time. His body jumped, jerked away so quickly, he fell off from the other side of the bed.

Calleigh grimaced and moved over to look down at him. "You okay?"

Eric rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah."

"I think your phone's ringing."

Eric blinked a couple of times and looked around. Yes, a phone was ringing somewhere and after looking through clothes and bags, he found it on the floor under the bed. How it had gotten there, it was too early to even wonder. "Delko"

"Eric, we've got an ID on the body."

He had to take a moment for his mind to register Horatio's voice, and then longer to figure out what he was saying. "Is it Hayes?"

"A friend identified her."

"Damn," Eric sighed. He looked at Calleigh and somehow she knew immediately what Horatio had told him. She didn't seem happy with the news, either. "Alright, we'll tell her parents."

"You do that," Horatio said. "We also found wood under her fingernails."

"What kind of wood?"

"Still waiting for trace. I'll let you know as soon as we identify it," he said and hung up the phone.

Eric still held it to his ear until he heard the busy signal. Did the man have a personal vendetta against proper goodbyes? He put the phone away and looked at Calleigh, who was staring at the wall distantly. "I can tell them, if you want."

She snapped out of her reverie and looked at him questioningly. "What?"

"Her parents," Eric said, standing up.

"Oh, it's okay," Calleigh said. "What time is it?"

"Eleven."

"What?" Calleigh exclaimed and jumped out of bed to check her own watch. "Oh my God."

Eric didn't really feel her urgency. Nobody was waiting for them, so why the rush? He simply walked over and sat on the bed, watching as she gathered some of her things and disappeared into the bathroom. He sat there through what he assumed was a shower, and when it was finally quiet he walked over and stood in front of the door.

"I fell asleep last night," Eric called out.

"What?"

"Last night," Eric repeated. "I was going over the file and I fell asleep."

Calleigh suddenly opened the door and was a bit thrown off by him standing there.

"I was really gonna sleep on the floor," Eric said apologetically.

"Okay," she said.

"Just... I wasn't..."

Calleigh smiled and patted his arm. "I know."

Eric smiled, feeling a bit relieved. He had no intention of starting this day on the wrong foot.

After drinking some coffee downstairs, they headed towards the Hayes's house. Somehow, Tom and Dorothy knew why Eric and Calleigh were there when they pulled up. Eric was a bit more at his element here, both comforting and promising Tom Hayes they would do everything to bring their daughter's murderer to justice. Calleigh mostly felt useless, a bit uncomfortable as she sat down with Dorothy, hearing the older woman tell stories about Sue as a child. But she still felt the need to stay a few hours, just to make sure they were okay. She planned a trip to Miami for them both so they could bring their daughter's body back and promised she and Eric would visit before heading back to Miami or would meet them there, just to talk.

And that made her feel a little better, but it still got to her. So much that it wasn't until she got behind the wheel that she realized she had both left her kit back in their room and had no idea how to get back to the crime scene. Eric refused to call the sheriff and ask him to escort them, something about them being able to do it on their own. Typical male, but Calleigh had the feeling it had more to do with Corbin than anything else.

The other alternative was standing behind the desk when they walked into the bed and breakfast.

Brian followed them all the way to their room and back down, like a puppy after his masters. "I can get to the dam with my eyes closed."

"It's not that, Brian," Calleigh explained. "We can't take you to the crime scene, we could lose our jobs."

"But I won't be in the crime scene," Brian insisted. "In fact, I'll even wait in the car."

Eric was a bit more understanding, because given the choice between Brian and Corbin... well, there was just no contest.

"Or better yet," Brian continued. "I'll take my bike. I'll show you there and come right back."

Calleigh sighed. She looked at Eric, who just shrugged his shoulders, a clear indication that it was up to her. Not that she didn't like Brian, but teenagers, they could be a bit clumsy sometimes. And if Brian somehow contaminated the scene she was sure Horatio would fire her in a heartbeat. But the alternative was waiting for the sheriff and they didn't have the luxury of waiting. If it started raining or worse, a lost hiker made their way to the dam, they could lose important evidence. She wasn't about to tell Tom and Dorothy Hayes that their daughter's killer would walk because of their carelessness.

"Alright, get your bike."

And so five minutes later they were on the way to the dam with Brian in the back seat, asking all kinds of questions about dead bodies, and blood, and brains and while Calleigh remained quiet, Eric seemed to enjoy having someone to mentor. Brian probably reminded him of Wolfe, in a way, both young and eager and idolizing Eric. Brian seemed to think of him as some sort of super cop and luckily Eric wasn't the arrogant type, because he would have been unbearable by now.

They arrived at the scene and Eric quickly went around the back to open the trunk. As Calleigh jumped out, though, she noticed Brian seemed a bit restless.

"What's wrong?"

"I have to take a piss," Brian said, sounding guilty.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows. "Well... can you make it back?"

"With wet pants? Sure," he said.

From the back, Eric chuckled quietly. "Come here," he told Brian.

Very carefully, Brian exited the car and met the CSI by the trunk. Calleigh watched as Eric took out a pair of latex gloves and placed them over Brian's hands as if he were helping a child.

"Keep them on and don't touch anything," Eric said, reiterating every word.

"I know, don't touch anything," Brian said.

"We still have to process this whole area, so walk as far away from the yellow tape as you can. If you can make it to the next town, that would be preferable."

"Very funny," Brian said and began to walk away, looking at the ground so he wouldn't get anything contaminated. Calleigh approached Eric with a knowing smile and reached for her own kit.

"What?" he asked.

"You're getting him too excited," she said.

"He likes it," Eric said defensively, closed the trunk and began walking towards the wooded area. "Maybe if someone had done the same for me when I was a kid I wouldn't have gotten into so much trouble."

"I thought you were an angel in high school," Calleigh teased.

"Compared to what kids do today? Absolutely," Eric said, hearing her chuckle. He did the best he could, trying to find this tree they worked on just the day before, but they had been so hungry and absentminded. Finally, he spotted the yellow tape that surrounded it and Calleigh walked ahead, slid under the tape and put her kit on the ground. Eric did the same, finding another pair of gloves, and when they were ready he began to rustle through the leaves, trying to find any kind of evidence hidden under them.

Calleigh looked up at the branch. "She was so close to home," she thought out loud.

Eric didn't say anything, just stared at her until she began to work and he knew for sure that she was fine.

Calleigh took a sample of the tree's wood. If it happened to match the wood Alexx had found under the Sue's fingernails, then that would indicate she was alive here. And if she was alive, surely she would've been able to leave them something behind, some kind of sign of a struggle. She looked up at the tall tree. The branch from where the body had been hanging must have been at least 40 feet high.

"How do you think they got her up there?" she asked.

Eric looked up at Calleigh, looked at the branch and walked over to stand next to her. "I don't know. Ladder? A pulley, maybe."

"Couldn't be a pulley," Calleigh pondered. "Someone had to climb up there to tie the rope." She looked down and checked the ground. "And if they used a ladder, I don't see any imprints on the ground."

Eric looked at the trunk in front of him and up at the branch again. "No way would I be able to climb up there with a screaming woman over my shoulder."

"Maybe they murdered her down here," she said.

"If she was already dead, why hang her?"

Calleigh shrugged her shoulders. "Symbolism?"

Eric looked skeptic. "I don't know. 146 pounds, that's a heavy load to carry up a tree, dear or alive."

"Well, I can't think of anything else," Calleigh said absentmindedly.

Eric remained quiet for a while and then approached the tree. There were a couple of welts that would allow a person to climb it with a tad difficulty, but add a body over their shoulder, and he just couldn't fathom how they would make it all the way up there. He put his foot on the trunk and grabbed one of the branches for leverage, pulling himself up but it would take a lot more imagination to make it all the way to the top.

"What are you doing?" Calleigh asked.

"Even if they made it up there with Sue over their shoulder," Eric said. "It couldn't have been easy. They must have left a lot of evidence behind."

Calleigh watched as he hugged the trunk and pulled himself higher, looking for nooks and crannies on the tree to help him. A few minutes later, he was halfway through. He was right, she thought. Even Eric, who was in great physical shape, was having a hard time climbing this tree. If he had to carry a body up there, he just wouldn't make it.

Suddenly he stopped, one hand hugging the tree, one of his feet on a branch.

"What's wrong?" Calleigh asked.

"I think there's some hair here," Eric said.

"What color?"

"Blonde," Eric said, reaching into his back pocket for a small envelope.

"Sue Hayes was a blonde," Calleigh said.

Eric removed the hairs from the trunk, careful to keep the tags intact, put them in the envelope, which he carefully stored in his pocket again, and looked up. The sun rays kept blinding him, blocking his view but he deduced he had some 15 feet to go.

"I don't think I can make it up there," he called down.

"Alright, come down, we'll borrow a ladder from someone in town," Calleigh said.

Eric wasn't about to argue with that. He looked all around him and down, trying to find a place where he could steady himself. "Be careful," Calleigh called out as she watched him, but her attention was averted when Brian suddenly appeared next to her.

"I think I found something," he said.

Calleigh raised her eyebrows in surprise. "What did you find?"

"Clothes. I didn't touch them!" Brian said.

"Where?"

"The shore. They're all wet, like they were washed in," Brian explained. "I didn't touch them."

"Okay, hold on," Calleigh said and looked up the tree, where Eric was still struggling to come down. "Hey, Eric!"

"Yeah," he grunted.

"Brian found something by the shore, I'm gonna go see. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be right there," Eric said.

Calleigh threw one last glance at him and followed Brian back to the river. Some 50 feet from where they had found Brooks she saw the clothes Brian talked about. They were half in the water, half on the sand and she picked up a pair of wet pants in the air, inspecting them closely. "Looks like women's clothes."

"The woman you found?" Brian asked.

"I don't know," Calleigh pondered. "Maybe."

"Do I get credit for this?" Brian joked.

Calleigh shook her head. "You're not even supposed to be here, Brian. How do you think my boss will react when he opens up the newspaper and sees a picture of you standing next to the major, holding a pair of wet pants in the air like a fisherman showing off his catch?"

"I'd settle for a basket of fruit," Brian mocked. "But I'm humble like that."

"Yeah, don't ever change," Calleigh joked, checking the clothes for some kind of evidence, even though she was sure the water had washed it all away. It was still worth a shot, though.

Her examination, however, was suddenly cut short by a loud boom emanating from the trees. Their bodies jumped immediately as a couple of birds flew out of the woods and into the sky. The sound eerily echoed down the river and disappeared into the mountains.

"What was that?" Brian asked, panic in his voice.

Calleigh reached for her gun immediately, but remained silent, whether due to her own will or her inability to formulate a word, she didn't know. Her heartbeat increased, her hands and feet felt cold, and her mind only created one thought in her head: Eric.

"Was that a gunshot?" Brian asked again, a little more urgently.

Calleigh finally looked at him, gun in hand. "Stay here."

"Where are you going?"

"Stay here," Calleigh said sharply. Taking one last look at Brian's frightened face, she rushed into the woods before ordering him, "Call 911!"

To be continued...

A/N: I know, I suck. I'm sorry.