Disclaimer - I don't own the Miami characters - sadly, they belong to Jerry Bruckheimer and CBS. I do own Tim's wife and son, though and any other characters I might introduce as this little story progresses.

Rating - PG

Summary - Horatio finds one day that nothing is as he thought it was.

Horatio woke the next morning, still unsure whether his conversation with Tim had been real or imagined. He shook the sleep from his head and tugged a t-shirt over his bare torso before making his way downstairs.

Nicholas was at the breakfast table, one hand on his cereal spoon and the other on a black toy motorcycle. He was running it across the table, making revving noises between bites of Cheerios.

Leanna was leaned against the kitchen counter, her expression tense, her eyes teary, one finger tracing the words written on the small sheet of paper in her hands.

"Good morning," Horatio said softly, startling Leanna.

She stared at him – fear clouding her emerald eyes. "He was here," she said quietly, her voice trembling as her eyes returned to the paper in her hands.

"Yes," Horatio answered with a nod.

"You saw him?" she asked, her voice tinged with hurt.

"Yes," he replied.

"But…" Leanna wasn't sure what to say. Her ego was bruised and she was very confused. Why had Tim been in their home? Why had her husband taken the time to wake Horatio, but not her?

Horatio sensed her questions. "He needs my help."

Leanna crumpled onto the floor and leaned against the cabinets. "I don't understand," she said weakly.

Horatio crossed over to her and eased down beside her. "Neither do I," he said, gently taking the sheet of paper from her hands. His curiosity had gotten the better of him and he needed to know what Tim had written. In his scrawled penmanship, on a soft purple sheet of paper, his friend had written: "No matter what happens, Lea, always know that you are the love of my life. From here through the rest of eternity."

He closed his eyes and sighed. He knew Tim. He knew those words meant Tim Speedle didn't think he was coming home.

"It's like he's saying goodbye," Leanna whispered, her eyes drifting over to Nicholas.

"I think," Horatio lied, his gaze focused on her, "I think he's just reassuring you."

"He left that motorcycle for Nicholas," she said absent-mindedly, tilting her head in the direction of her son.

Horatio nod in understanding. "Leanna," he said, "I have some questions, and I need you to answer them."

"Okay," she said flatly. She didn't attempt to move from her position on the floor, so Horatio stayed beside her, mentally formulating his queries.

"What's changed over the past few weeks?" he asked first.

Leanna shrugged. "He's been more tense than usual."

"Is that all?" he questioned.

"He's been spending more time at work."

Horatio sighed. "I don't suppose there's any hope of me getting into Tim's office."

Leanna smiled softly. "I seriously doubt it."

He toyed with a loose thread on his pajama pants. "Do you know what he was working on?"

"No," she answered quickly, resting her head against the cabinet.

"How long have you been in New Orleans?" he asked.

"A year and a half," she answered quietly.

"Before that?"

"Phoenix, and before that, San Francisco," Leanna responded.

"Tell me about Tim's friends here," Horatio gently commanded.

Leanna nearly laughed. "H, you know Tim. He's not exactly a social butterfly."

"There has to be someone," he prodded.

"There was," Leanna answered with a nod. "He was friends with Shelby's husband Jack."

"Was?"

"They had some sort of a falling out about two months ago, right before Jack left," Leanna explained.

"Tim didn't tell you what it was about?" Horatio asked.

Leanna smiled wistfully. "He stomped around the house for a couple of days, throwing that New York attitudearound left and right, but then he seemed to get over it."

"Tell me about Jack and Shelby," he requested.

"Jack had a woman on the side. When it came out, I just assumed that Tim had found out about the affair and called Jack out on it. Shelby was devastated, and Tim has such a big heart, he completely shut Jack out after he left."

"You said Jack works for the federal government."

"Yeah," Leanna answered, finally rising from the floor. Horatio followed suit, leaning against the kitchen island while Leanna hopped onto the counter. "Jack is an FBI agent."

"He's your handler here," Horatio concluded aloud.

"Yeah," Leanna nodded. "Shelby has no idea."

"Okay, so Jack knows everything?"

"He knows what he needs to know," Leanna answered. "He knows we're in Witness Protection, he knows Tim was a criminalist somewhere, or else he wouldn't have been qualified to run the lab, but he doesn't know any real specifics."

"Nothing about Bruckson?" Horatio continued.

"Not to my knowledge," Leanna said weakly.

"Okay," Horatio sighed, pushing away from the island and planting his hands on his hips. "I think it's time to pay a visit to Mr. Collins."

TBC….