Disclaimer, etc. are in the first chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed! If posting is sporadic, it's because I'm in twelfth grade and the end of first semester is coming up, so I'm getting stressed with everything I have to do. I'll try to work on this as much as I can, though.

Chapter 1

Don turned off the SUV and leaned his head back against the headrest. After he and Terry had scoured the crime scene for anything useful, they'd attempted to talk to the girl. All they were able to get out was that her name was Jacqueline Winters, that she was thirteen, and that she had no living relatives whatsoever. Walt Merrick, the assistant director of the LA chapter of the FBI, arrived on the scene a few hours after Don and Terry did, and he concluded that Jacqueline was in danger of being attacked herself, and that she was immediately being put in the custody of Don and Terry. Since Don's apartment was too small, and Terry's was going through slight renovations, their only option was to take Jacqueline to Don's childhood home.

A warm hand on Don's arm made him open his eyes to gaze into those of his partner. "Don, you think we should maybe go up to the house?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure," Don nodded. He pulled his keys out of the ignition and climbed out of the driver's seat as Terry did the same on the passenger's side. While Terry went to help Jacqueline out of the car, Don went to the back and took out the four suitcases of her stuff that they'd been able to collect quickly before leaving.

The front door opened just as the three of them reached the front porch, revealing a rather shocked looking Charlie Eppes. "Don, Terry? What are you doing here at six in the morning?" he asked, stifling a yawn as he held the top of his bathrobe closed with one hand.

"Meet us in the kitchen in five, and we'll explain everything," Don said quietly, pushing past Charlie and leading Terry and Jacqueline into the house.

Once they had the girl situated in Don's old room, Don and Terry crept down the stairs quietly, not wanting to disturb Alan, Don and Charlie's father. Charlie was waiting for them at the kitchen table, nursing a cup of freshly brewed coffee in his hands. He motioned for the two agents to get themselves a cup each, and then sit down in front of him at the other side of the table.

"Who wants to tell me what happened?" Charlie asked. "I'd also like to know why there's a girl sleeping upstairs in your room, Don."

Slowly and carefully, Don outlined what had happened, or at least what they knew about it. Noreen Winters had been killed by a blow to the head with a cast iron frying pan. Her daughter, Jacqueline, had found the body. There were no other relatives, and because they wanted to take all precautions, Don and Terry were moving into the house to watch over Jacqueline carefully. That is, if Charlie didn't mind.

"Of course I don't mind," Charlie said. "Want me to babysit while you go and get your stuff?"

Don shook his head. "Terry can go first, and I'll stick around here and make sure everything's okay. One of us should try to be with her at all times."

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Terry said as she palmed Don's keys and hurried towards the front door.

Once the front door was closed, Charlie turned to Don with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "So, with the girl in your room...where are you and Terry going to sleep?" he asked.

"Terry can take the spare room, and I'll sleep on the couch," Don said. "You'll need to clean your junk out of the spare room, though."

"It's not junk, Don, it's some of my old math notes," Charlie protested. "I moved them down from the attic because there might be something in there that Larry and I could use for our new project."

"Fine, can you move your old math notes, then?" Don asked exasperatedly.

"You have to help, but I'll do it," Charlie consented. "Want some breakfast or something? I think Dad bought one of those cinnamon roll things you unwrap, slice, and bake."

"Sure," Don said. "Then you and Terry can eat while I go grab my stuff. Just don't embarrass either of us, okay?"

"I make you no promises, my brother," Charlie kidded, ducking a swinging arm from Don.

By the time Terry got back with her things, the warming scent of freshly made cinnamon rolls had filled the house. She left her things by the door, and walked straight into Alan who also happened to be heading for the kitchen.

"Terry! What a wonderful surprise," Alan said, trying to think of a reason why she would be at the house so early. "You here to pick up Donnie or Charlie?"

Terry shook her head. "I'm just giving Don back his keys. He'll explain the rest to you."

"That he will," Alan muttered, holding the door to the kitchen open so Terry could go in ahead of him.

Don and Charlie were bickering as they iced cinnamon rolls with some half-empty can of vanilla icing they'd found in the back of the fridge. They stopped abruptly when they noticed that they had company. "You done, Terr?" Don asked, setting down the iced roll and knife.

Terry tossed his keys to him. "Your turn. I'll go and wake the girl."

"The girl?" Alan turned on his sons as Terry left the room. "What girl? Don..."

"She's part of a case, Dad!" Don defended. "Terry and I weren't going to let her get stuck in a group home just after she found her mother's dead body, so we offered to protect her here. Charlie already said it's okay."

"That's why the two of you are here before seven in the morning?" Alan sat down at the island and rubbed his temples. "Couldn't the two of you have waited to bake until a more decent hour, like...eight or nine?"

"We thought you might like something to eat while we told you what was happening, Father," Charlie said sweetly, handing Alan a cinnamon roll.

"I was going to make these tomorrow," Alan said, frowning down at the pastry. "You owe me another two cans of these."

"I'll take care of it," Don sighed, sitting across from his father and grabbing a roll for himself. "I have to go and pick up some stuff for Jacqueline, anyways. Make me a list and I'll grab it all."

The three men looked up as Terry re-entered the kitchen with a fully dressed Jacqueline trailing behind her nervously. She ushered the girl into a chair and sat down beside her. "Don, could we get two tall glasses of milk, please?" Terry asked quietly. She reached over and grabbed two rolls, placing one in front of Jacqueline and keeping one for herself.

Don retrieved the milk and set it down in front of the girls. "Uh, Dad? Could you and Charlie..." he said pointedly.

"Charlie, why don't we go and see if we can get started on that spare room?" Alan guided Charlie out of the room quickly.

"All right Jacqueline, we need to explain to you how things are going to have to work for the next little while, okay?" Don said kindly. "You'll be staying here, and Terry and I will be here with you. This is my brother Charlie's house, and my dad lives here as well. For the first couple of days, including today, you won't be able to go anywhere without either Terry or I accompanying you. We'll both take you to your school when it opens to get a week's worth of homework, and then we'll hit the mall to get anything you need and weren't able to grab from the house."

"Before we do any of that, though, we need to take you to the office to give a quick statement, okay?" Terry rubbed Jacqueline's forearm reassuringly. "You can give it to either Don or I, and then we'll do everything else. Do you have any questions?"

Upon seeing the girl shake her head, Don decided to ask a couple more questions. "I know you're thirteen, so which middle school do you attend around here?" he asked.

"I don't go to middle school," Jacqueline said quietly. "I'm in twelfth grade."

Don and Terry quickly turned to look at each other, sharing a knowing glance. They knew just the person who might be able to get through to her.