A/N: I'm still getting the hang of this software. Imagine my suprise when I found the font in the last chapter hadn't varied from the first at all. Well, perhaps it's only me...

Chapter 3:

David Sinclair grabbed the phone on the first ring. "Sinclair." He waited and then replied, "I'm on my way." Hanging up the receiver, he stood and shrugged into his jacket.

Megan looked up from the report she was filing. "Already?" she asked. At the other man's nod, she pushed the drawer shut and moved to follow.

Colby appeared from around the corner of his cubicle. "I'm coming too," he said. "No way I'm gonna miss this."

Megan frowned at him as they stepped into the elevator. Silence reigned as they rode down to the lobby, the tension increasing subtly. Finally, David spoke. "Megan," he sighed. "Would you relax? You're a psychiatrist, for God's sake - you should be able to handle one little kid!"

"For your information," she replied coldy. "I'm a profiler, not a psychiatrist. And if you want her questioned, then I'm your gal, but..."

"It's a piece of cake, Megan," Colby interrupted. "Relax."

Megan looked him up and down, her gaze telling. "Uh huh," she replied. "Like you'd know, Granger."

"Kids are easy to deal with," he grinned as the doors finally slid open. "It's grownups that cause all the trouble."

They stepped out into the spacious lobby of the FBI building, scanning for sign of a small child and her caretaker. It was David who spotted them first. "This way," he said, leading them toward a row of chairs set along one wall. There was a prim-looking older woman sitting stiffly in one of the chairs, partly obscuring the small child seated to her right. The woman stood at their approach, followed by the little girl who had been twisting a lock of her long, strawberry-blonde hair around one finger. The woman leaned down and whispered something, and Emma's hand dropped behind her back.

Colby whispered, "What a cutie!"

"She's a little old for you, Granger," Megan whispered back.

David snorted. "Knock it off, you two." He approached the woman and offered his hand. "How do you do?" he asked. "I'm David Sinclair, and these are my associates, Megan Reeves," he gestured, and Megan shook her hand. "...And Colby Granger." Colby smiled and offered his as well.

"I am Miss Portman, Mr. Wainwright's assistant," the woman inroduced herself. Shifting slightly, she indicated the little girl. "And this is Emma Langhorne. Say hello, Emma."

She stepped forward obediently and offered her hand to David. "How do you do?" Emma asked politely. Her voice held no expression, and Megan frowned. David took her hand and shook it gently. "Hello, Emma," he said. "My name's David." He let go and gestured to Colby. "These are my friends Colby and Megan." Megan crouched down to her level and took her hand. "Hi Emma!" she said brightly.

"Hello."

Megan stood uncertainly and stepped back to offer Colby room. He, too, crouched down. "Hey there," he said warmly. "How are you?"

"Fine, thank you," she responded woodenly. She looked up at Miss Portman. "May I sit down now?" she asked.

"Yes, you may." The four of them watched as she perched on her chair again. As soon as Miss Portman turned back to the three agents, Emma slouched down in her seat. Immediately the older woman turned around and hissed, "Emma!" The little girl sat up abruptly.

Megan's heart went out to her. "We'll take it from here, Miss Portman," she said without warmth. "Thank you so much for bringing her."

"She's a handful," the other woman stated sourly. "You have to watch her or she'll start acting out."

David took her arm and gently but firmly guided her to the entrance. "We'll do that, not to worry, Ma'am," he replied. "We're trained FBI agents. She won't be able to pull anything with us."

Miss Portman glanced at the other two agents, and then sniffed. "Very well. She's your responsibility now." She passed through the revolving door and was gone. David turned back to Megan and Colby, his eyebrows raised and eyes wide. "Did you get a load of that?" he asked.

"Old biddy," Colby spat. He crouched back down next to Emma's chair. "Hey," he said. When she looked up, he asked, "You want some ice cream?"

She looked at him warily. "Yes, please," she replied.

"Okay," he said, standing. He stuck out his hand. Slipping her fingers into his much larger ones, she hopped off the chair. She didn't start walking however, but merely stood gazing up at him. "What's the matter?" he asked.

Megan stepped closer and got down next to her. "What's the matter, sweetie?" she asked, brushing a strand of hair from her eyes. Emma let go of Colby's hand and leaned close, whispering in Megan's ear. A grin slowly spread across her face, which she quickly masked. Standing, she said to Colby and David, "We'll be right back." Taking Emma's hand, Megan walked off around the corner.

David broke into a grin. "Well," he said, looking at Granger. "Now you know."

"Now I know what?" Colby asked.

"All those muscles of yours have the potential to scare the p-"

"Oh yeah, right," Colby interrupted. "Like your face doesn't have that effect?"

David ran a hand over his cheek. "This fine example of perfection?"

"Sure," Colby said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "You just keep telling yourself that."

-x-x-x-x-x-

The three agents took the little girl to a nearby park, where they bought an ice cream each and then sat on a pair of benches overlooking a duck pond. Megan sat with Colby, while David shared a seat with Emma.

"Pretty good, huh?" David asked her around a mouthful of cone. Emma regarded him with a withering look. "What?" he asked.

Megan laughed. "I don't think she likes it when you talk with your mouth full."

David looked down at the little girl. "Is that it?" At her short nod, he said, "Sorry. Won't do it again." She went back to attacking her cone.

Colby and David exchanged grins. Megan watched Emma polish off her cone and begin to look around her, consternation on her face. Reaching over, Megan handed her a napkin, which she took and began studiously wiping her fingers. Megan frowned.

David noticed and looked down at Emma again. She had finished with the napkin, and was now looking for a place to dispose of it. Finally, she put it in her pocket.

Colby polished off his treat and licked his fingers. "Hey, Emma," he began. When she looked up, he hooked a thumb over his shoulder. "Want to come watch the ducks with me?" A brief smile ghosted across her face and was gone. She nodded and hopped down off the bench, taking his hand. The two of them walked down to the water's edge.

Megan leaned toward David. "Did you see that?" she asked.

"Yeah," he agreed. "Kind of freaky, isn't it?"

Megan looked back at the two down by the water. "It's weird," she said. "What kind of four year old worries about wiping their fingers? Or littering?"

"Maybe she's just extremely well brought up?" David ventured.

Megan shook her head. "That's not normal behaviour - even for a well brought up kid. She's so..."

"Quiet?"

Pausing thoughtfully, Megan finally said, "Subdued."

"She's probably depressed," David replied. "After all, she's just lost the only person in the world that she had." Although not fully aware of the story behind Emma's presence, Don did tell David that much.

"Maybe." Megan watched as Colby pointed at a duck out on the water. He was crouched beside the little girl, who kept a respectful distance, her hands behind her back. Megan sighed. "I hope Don hurries up with whatever he's doing," she said wistfully.

"You're not tired of her already are you?"

"No," Megan turned back to him. "But we do have work to do. We're probably the best paid sitters on the planet right now."

"Ah," David flapped a hand at her in dismissal. "Are you kidding? We're in LA - we're probably the worst paid sitters here." Megan grinned.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Colby sensed the wariness emanating from the tiny person on his left, and tried to put her at ease. Pointing at a small duck gliding across the water, he asked, "Know what his name is?" Emma shook her head. "Melvin," Colby answered his own question. Emma's nose wrinkled in confusion. God, she's a cute one! Colby thought. The dusting of freckles across her nose were pale enough to be almost nonexistent. He glanced at her clear green eyes ringed with pale lashes. "Know how I know that?" She shook her head again. "'Cause I come out here everyday to talk to him."

"No," Emma replied. Progress! She's talking back!

"What do you mean, 'no'?" Colby asked. He shifted position, careful not to get too close, and sat cross-legged on the grass. "Don't you believe me?"

She shook her head again.

"How come?"

Emma sat on the ground carefully. Brushing a bit of dirt from her knees, she said, "You're too big."

Colby looked at her. "Too big for what? Talking to ducks?" When she didn't respond, he turned his gaze back to the water. Shrugging, he conceded, "I suppose, to some people, I must be pretty big." He saw her turn her head out of the corner of his eye. Without looking at her, he added, "But ducks - especially Melvin over there - know better."

"They do?"

"Yep. You see," he leaned his elbows on his knees and steepled his fingertips together. "Animals know what we're like inside. They can tell." Turning his head a little, he said, "Melvin knows that I'm really just a softy." Emma's eyes grew round. "Yep. He thinks I'm a big old teddy bear."

The little girl cocked her head on one side. "You are?" she asked.

"Uh huh," Colby nodded. "Nothing to be afraid of here."

"Then why do you have that?" She pointed to his sidearm, barely hidden on the opposite side of his body.

"This?" Colby looked down at the weapon. "Because sometimes, even if I don't want to hurt anybody, a bad guy might want to hurt me or my friends. And if he has a gun, then I'm gonna need one too, don't you think?"

"So, a gun makes people stop hurting you?"

Uh oh. "Only if you're a policeman, or a soldier, or an FBI agent like me." Colby paused. "Or a bad guy." He studied her small face speculatively. "Did someone hurt you?"

Emma shrugged. "Once."

"Did you tell someone?" At her nod, he asked, "Who?"

"Mummy."

Colby shifted. The ground was getting uncomfortable. "What did she say?"

"She said she was going to off the eff-" Emma began, but Colby interrupted her. "Whoa! Whoa! I get the picture!" He chuckled mildly, which brought a small smile to her lips. "Did she take care of it? It didn't happen again, did it?"

Shaking her head quickly, Emma replied, "Nup. Mummy took care of him. He never came back." Her shoulders slumped. "Mummy's gone to heaven now," she said sadly.

"Yeah, pumpkin, I know," Colby said softly. "We'll take care of you now."

This brought her head up. "You will?"

Colby nodded. "You bet, sport. Me and David and Megan and..." He trailed off for a moment, unsure of how much she knew. "...And Don and Charlie and their daddy. What d'you think of that, huh? A whole army of people looking out for you."

"My own army?"

"You betcha," Colby assured her. Getting to his feet, he held his hand out. "What d'you say we go see what kind of trouble David and Megan are getting into?"

Emma scrambled to her feet. Slipping her small hand into his, she said seriously. "I'll bet it's something big. FBI people don't get into little trouble."

"No, sweetie," Colby agreed. "They sure don't."