-1Title. Better Angels.
Author: Samantha.
With great thanks to: Sammie (not me you twat the other one) Ruth, Cath and the other Ruth (oh my god two Samanthas and two Ruths...jesus)
Part: Seven of about fifteen.
Pairing: H/C baby!
Spoilers: 3.01 - Lost Son
Disclaimer: Unfortunately I do not own CSI:Miami the people who own them do. Trust me when I say this (along with ruth aka quarryquest) we would treat them so much more better than you arsewipes. (DONT SUE!)
Summary: Sometimes we all need to open up...but will Horatio learn his lesson before he loses his daughter and wife

Chapter Seven:

It was a long wait in to the night until Millie's tox results came back, a very nervous Horatio and Calleigh turned to face the doctor.

"We found high levels of alcohol and cannabis in her system as well as crystal meth." Horatio was floored.

"Have you double checked that?" he asked shocked,

"Yes. She admitted to us she was drinking and smoking at the gig but denies taking the meth." Horatio turned to look at his daughter again. As Calleigh held Millie's hand tightly. He look in Calleigh's eyes was of disbelief.

"She would have never of taken meth Horatio." she told him shaking her head.

"I know. She didn't."

"You saying she was drugged." All he could do was nod to her an answer, unable to say the words himself.

"I…I…I..eh…need coffee. I'll be back in a moment." Calleigh said swiftly exiting the room. Horatio left her knowing she wanted to be alone. He took her set beside his daughter holding her hand.

"I'm sorry honey. This is my fault." He told his sleeping daughter. "I've been a bad father. Why didn't you tell me how your felt? I wouldn't have gone back to work if it upset you that much. I'm sorry I pushed you too hard at school. Right now I will make you a promise. Well go out one week end a month. Just us, and I'll be a better Dad."

"You are a good Dad…stop angsting." The sleepy voice said. "Dad…I know you'll beat yourself up over this. I swear to god if you do I'm buying a drum kit!" she said a smirk on her face.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. What's the point of dwelling over it you know shit happens. I'm not going to beat myself up over it. What's the point. Its not worth getting all depressed and angsting over it. Plus I knew I wasn't going to die there." Horatio simply smiled. "Is there any chance of sneaking me in a MacDonald's….bet the food is crap in here." He chuckled.

"I'll se what I can do." He told her ruffling her hair.

"Yo dude! Hair that's a no no! Rule one don't ever ever mess my hair up….no matter how messy it is in the first place."

"So what other rules do I need to know about then?" Horatio asked her with a smile.

"um…no matter how often you try to get me to eat it I will never ever like courgettes so you might as well give up while you're ahead."

"Okay anything else?"

"Yeah do not wake me up before lunchtime on a weekend. God gave us them for a reason and that reason is lying in bed all day." Horatio laughed again.

"You know wait till your older and you have a job."

"I am no way getting a job man, can't I sponge off you for the rest of my life?" Horatio simply blinked, as a wide grin appeared on Millie's face. "Rule three you need to learn to take a joke." Horatio nodded taking note as he joked with his daughter. Who by now had forgotten about the IV in her arm and was quite happy flicking though the TV. Calleigh and Horatio decided Millie was old enough to know what was going on and she should know the truth. It took three goes for Millie to understand what the doctor was saying as she grew ever more frustrated with the scientific jargon.

"So what's going to happen?" Millie asked cautiously. "And I want an answer where there are no words longer then three syllables." The doctor smiled.

"You seem well enough but you'll feel the downer kick in for a few hours and you'll feel pretty rough for a while but we want to keep you in overnight just to be safe." Millie nodded and the family said there goodbyes as Calleigh and Horatio were flung out the ward. However sleep evaded Millie for most of the night as reality of the events kicked in and memories played in her mind. She began to wonder…will she really be able to forget all this?

Both Calleigh and Horatio welcomed sleep even if it was disturbed with worry. The next morning Calleigh went to the hospital as Horatio paid a visit to the lab. He sat in the lab, choosing to process the evidence himself as he began with a video tape from the house. He braced himself before watching it.

He watched Smith confront his daughter,

"Now Millie. I'm sure your Daddy's missing you so the soon we get this over the soon you'll see him. Do as I say and this will all get wrapped up so much nicer." He heard Smith growl at Millie. He was taken aback to hear a snort from Millie

"Not a snowballs chance in hell." He watched him grab her by the hair and pull her head back. Still somehow Millie managed her keep herself calm and collective, showing no emotion in her expression, managing to keep herself in check as the gun touched her skin.

"Now your going to look at that camera and say what I tell you okay." His daughter looked right at him down the camera then back again.

"Like I said. Not a snowballs chance in hell." Millie stated calmly. Horatio watched the man with the gun to his child's head, as Millie saw him drop his guard for one moment and took her moment. With in seconds Millie was pinned on the floor and drugged. Horatio could only just make out the barely audible whisper of "Dad…" Horatio made a vow to himself and his daughter. He was not getting away with this!

"You going down Smith." He growled at the screen.

Millie sat up, rubbing her cheek against the collar of her hooded jumper, feeling the soft newly washed fabric. She wrapped her arms around her self and felt the warmth of her hooded top embracing her as she had wished so often that her father would have done. A tear slid from her eye as she tapped her converse against the floor. She clung on to the warm feeling she had managed to create for herself to distract herself from the fact she was alone.

"You ready to go?" Calleigh asked looking at her daughter. Millie nodded and flowed her mother silently. Her hood up covering her black hair as Calleigh reached for her hand, Millie took it, not understanding why. That was until they got outside. The flash of a camera caught Millie off guard as her mother pulled her hood further down her face. Keeping her eyes low she avoided the camera flashes and surprised the urge to turn and slap the people who were asking her questions. Calleigh lead her through the crowd and into their car. "You okay." Millie nodded sliding down the seat. She felt the gentle motion of the car and her mothers driving sooth her. Closing her eyes she felt her breath catch in her chest as the car came to an abrupt halt. She snapped her eyes open and calmed her breathing back down. She stared out the window, praying for the journey to end.

Millie swiftly exited the car and threw herself up the stairs in to the comfort zone that was her bedroom. She slid the laptop under her bed, shivering when she saw it. She curled herself up in to a ball and sighed. This was her room, she was safe here and she pulled her covers over her, blocking the light and trapping the heat.

"Caine."

"Horatio. There are god damn reporters everywhere! Millie nearly got torn apart Horatio! Now this." Calleigh cried distraught.

"I'm on my way home okay. What did the doctors say?"

"Gave her the all clear physically. Mentally on the other hand god only knows how she's going to cope with this." she told her husband quietly as she walked though to the kitchen pulling ingredients out the fridge for lunch.

"Right I'm on my way home okay."

"Right okay love you." With lunch well underway by the time Horatio arrived home.

"How is Millie?"

"She's locked herself in her room. She won't come out." Calleigh told him "I think the reporters freaked her out a bit. She seems a bit shaken up."

"That's to be expected."

"God." Calleigh sighed sitting down and holding her face in her hands. "I don't know what to do Horatio." she began as yet more tears fell down her face which seemed to be a constant waterfall at this moment. "He held a gun to my baby's head! He tried to kill my baby!" Horatio sat down beside his wife automatically. "I couldn't live with myself if they've done anything to her Horatio." He held his wife close.

"She's a strong kid just like her mother."

"Please go talk to Millie." she asked him.