Notes: Thanks to Mariel for your help, and thank you for the reviews. They do motivate me to continue this.


Danny had been putting this off for at least a month. It's not like he didn't have other things going on, but he knew he'd let too much time pass since he'd last seen Rafael. Visiting him at the Rockville County Correctional facility was much different from visiting him at Riker's. There was no imposing boat ride that made Danny's heart beat faster or a through-the-bars meeting full of tension and anger. This time, they met outside on a picnic bench on an unseasonably warm October afternoon. If Rafael hadn't been wearing an orange jumpsuit and high barbed-wire hadn't been surrounding surround them, they could have imagined that they were in more normal surroundings.

"You look better, Danny. When I saw you over the summer, you were looking pretty awful," Rafi said as he sat across from Danny.

"Thanks, I guess. I was just going through a tough time. Nothing to worry about. Things are better now." The words just came out before Danny really thought about what he was saying. He winced when he heard himself. Things wouldn't be getting better for Rafi anytime soon. "Sorry," he apologized. "That was a stupid thing to say. I just meant—"

"I know what you meant. I'm sure it hasn't been easy for you – dealing with my situation and my family on top of everything that happened at work."

Shaking his head, Danny responded, "I'm happy to help you. And I've enjoyed getting to know Sylvia and Nicky and your precious new daughter."

"She is precious, isn't she?" Rafi replied proudly. "That lawyer you set me up with arranged for me to see her. Sylvia's brought her and Nicky the last couple of visits. They never let me see Nicky at Riker's."

Danny smiled. "I'm glad things are a little better for you here. Mr. Cummings says you could be up for parole in six months."

"Yeah. I can't believe it, and I can't imagine how much all of this is costing you. From what I understand, Cummings is from one of the best firms in Manhattan. How can you afford that? Sylvia says you haven't taken any of the money she's offered."

"I have a very liberal payment plan. My girlfriend's father is very well connected. He got me in touch with the firm."

"I'll pay you back when I get out. I promise," Rafi said sincerely.

Nodding, Danny smiled. "We can worry about that later."

"So what's the deal with the girlfriend? Sylvia says she's nice."

"She's very nice. I've actually known her since high school so things have progressed kind of quickly now that she's back in my life."

"Sylvia also told me about the bar exam. That's really great, Danny."

Sighing heavily and feeling very uncomfortable, Danny shook his head. "Katie mentioned it the last time we visited Sylvia. It's really not a big deal."

"Sure it's a big deal. You've always been successful, Danny, even as a little kid. If it wasn't for my bad influence, you probably wouldn't have gotten into any trouble back then."

"Rafi, don't," Danny responded, solemnly. "We didn't exactly have the best example to follow. You did the best you could at the time."

"Well you made it, despite the bad example we had and my bad influence. So I'm damn proud of you," Rafi said as he voice broke a little.

"You have a lot to be proud of, too. Your family is beautiful, Rafi. Nicky's a great kid. Sylvia's-"

"Sylvia's patience is wearing kind of thin," Rafi interrupted. "She comes around every week, but I can tell that she is pulling away."

"I doubt that. She loves you, man. She's very committed to seeing this through until you can get out."

"I don't know. I don't think so. She sees you and how successful you are, and she doesn't understand how I could have screwed up again. I had it all, Danny, but it wasn't good enough. And now, I don't think she'll want me back when I get out this time," he responded in a desperate tone before adding, "You know I asked her to marry me. The chaplain here said he'd do it for us on one of her visits, but she said she wants to wait. I'm losing her."

"You're wrong," Danny said. He used as convincing a tone as he could muster, but he knew that Rafi was right: Sylvia was losing her patience. He had seen it in her eyes the last time he'd seen her. Still, he continued to try to convince Rafi otherwise. "She's been through a lot lately – with Nicky, the baby, work, but she'll come around. Just stay focused on your recovery, and everything else will take care of itself."

XXX

Danny's visit with Rafi was interrupted by a call from Vivian. They had a new case, and he was needed at the office as soon as possible. It took him over an hour to make it back to the office. As he walked in, Martin nodded a hello from his chair at the conference table while Vivian approached him, clearly in a hurry.

"Good, you're here," she said in an exasperated.

"Sorry. I was in Rockville and traffic back into the city was awful. What do we have?"

"Karen Reynolds. Twenty-eight, and a mother of two. She was last seen dropping her son off at soccer practice. Her husband reported her missing when she didn't arrive to pick him up afterwards. Sam and Jack are with the husband. I'm on my way to interview her co-workers. Martin is doing her background and financials. If he comes across anything, you'll need to be here to run those out."

Nodding, Danny responded, "Got it. I'll help him with it."

"Great. Keep me posted," she said to both of them as she walked out of the office.

Draping his jacket across the back of the chair, he sat down next to Martin. At first, Martin seemed lost in the data he was reading. Finally, Danny said, "Anything interesting in there?"

"Not yet," Martin replied in a distracted tone. "Her cell phone calls are mostly to her husband and mother."

"You want me to take half of those?" Danny asked when Martin didn't volunteer any more.

"Sure," he replied, giving a stack to Danny.

"You okay?" Danny asked, taking the stack.

"I'm fine," Martin replied in a short tone.

Nodding at Martin's abrupt response, Danny tried to continue the conversation. "The rookie starts in a couple of days so maybe we'll get to hand off some of this stuff to her, and you can finally get back in the field. I know this isn't your favorite part of the job," he said lightly as he started to scan the records.

Martin kept his eyes focused on the data. "We'll see," was all he said

"Yeah, I guess so," Danny replied in a low tone.

They worked in silence for several minutes. Danny had an urge to say more. He and Martin hadn't had a real conversation since he'd gotten back, but he really didn't know what to say to him. All he could ever think to ask was how Martin was feeling and he knew Martin was sick of getting that question all the time. And then suddenly, as if Martin was hearing his thoughts, he spoke.

"How's your brother? He's at Rockville, right?"

At first, Danny didn't even know how to respond. It was the first personal thing Martin had asked him since he'd returned to work. Finally, he replied, "He's as well as can be expected. Rockville is little more bearable than Riker's."

"I bet, but it's still prison," he said, his eyes still focused on the reports.

"Yeah, it is."

With that one little exchange, Danny felt a little better. He felt as though maybe things could eventually get back to the way they had been between him and Martin. When he'd had to find his brother, Martin had been there for him. Danny remembered feeling almost surprised that Martin had been so concerned at the time. Silently, he tried to remember if he had ever really thanked Martin for all he had done that day. Looking up at Martin, he was about to tell him just that, but Martin spoke first.

"I got something. She made four hotel room charges six months ago."

"So?"

"So the rooms were booked one week apart, and the hotel is a mile from her house."

Leaning back in his chair, Danny smiled a knowing smile. "Possibly a brief affair? And now the guy wants her back?"

"Maybe. You want to check it out?" Martin asked, handing Danny a slip of paper with an address.

"Yeah," Danny replied, putting his jacket on.

XXX

Using her cell phone records, Martin tracked down the man Karen Reynolds had been having an affair with. Jack and Sam found them at the airport, and discovered that Karen had been intent on deserting her family. Shaking his head at the sad thought, Danny trudged up the stairs to his apartment. The only consolation was that he was getting home at a decent hour. He and Katie could at least eat dinner together before she had to go to class. Walking through his front door, he was surprised to hear voices coming from the kitchen.

"This is a surprise," he said as he entered the kitchen to find Sylvia and Katie talking with baby Andrea sleeping in Katie's arms.

Looking down at the baby, Katie exclaimed, "Here he is!" She turned her gaze back towards Danny. "We were hoping you'd be home soon," she said, accepting Danny's peck on the lips before he leaned down to kiss Andrea's forehead.

"Case wrapped up earlier than I thought." Turning to Sylvia, he gave her a warm hug. "It's good to see you. Is Nicky here, too?"

"No. He's finishing a school project at a friend's house. I thought I'd stop by here before I go pick him up," Sylvia replied.

"Hope you weren't thinking about a quick visit. I don't think Katie is planning on letting her go," he said as he looked at Andrea.

"If I didn't have a class to prepare for, you'd better believe I'd stay right here, but I really have to go," Katie replied in a disappointed tone.

"So soon? I thought your class didn't start for a couple of hours?"

"I need to do some research before it starts so I should really get going," she replied turning to Danny. "You want to hold her?"

"Absolutely," he said taking the child in his arms.

After gathering her things. Katie kissed Danny and the baby and then addressed Sylvia as she opened the front door. "I'll call you tomorrow about those books, and I'd be happy to stop by and help Nicky this weekend."

"Thanks. It was nice visiting with you," Sylvia replied as Katie walked out the door.

"Let's sit down," Danny said as he motioned toward the couch. "What's she helping Nicky with?"

"Reading comprehension. He has a standardized test coming up and his teacher says that he needs help in that area. I was supposed to get him a tutor. I asked Katie if she knew someone, but she offered her services instead. It's a blessing, really, because I can't afford a tutor right now. I hate to bother her though. I know you guys are busy with your own lives."

"Katie lives for that kind of stuff. She actually tutored me in high school."

"Really?" Sylvia asked, laughing.

"Yeah. She saved my ass. I had to keep up a 3.5 GPA to stay at that fancy school. If it weren't for her, they would have finally found a reason to kick me out."

"I guess the benefits of that tutoring are still paying off," she responded in a playful tone. "She's a really sweet girl."

"I agree," he replied quietly as he repositioned Andrea into a more comfortable position in his arms. Glancing at Sylvia, he said, "I saw Rafi today."

"Yeah?" Sylvia replied hesitantly. "How was he?"

"Pretty good. He loves your weekend visits when you bring the kids," Danny said looking down again at the baby.

"I know," Sylvia replied. "It's hard going out there every weekend, but the look on his face…"

"It's what he lives for," Danny said, completing her thought.

Looking down, tears filled Sylvia's eyes. "It's so hard, Danny. It's so hard to stay connected to him, when I feel so much anger."

"I know," he replied, because he knew only too well.

"I don't know what I could have done any better. I supported him. I encouraged him. I never pressured him. We didn't need for him to buy his own shop. I told him we'd be fine with the way things were, but he didn't listen. And now…" pausing, Sylvia turned to Danny and looked him in the eyes. "Sometimes I think I should have listened to you when I came to see you before Rafi got paroled. You tried to warn me. You knew he couldn't stay clean," she said shaking her head.

"No. I was wrong. Rafi is different now. He's sick and he needs help. He needs our help."

"How is he that different from you? You grew up in the same house. And maybe he took more crap from your father, but you lived in that house, too. You suffered, but you don't use it as an excuse. Why should Rafi get a free pass? All he had to do was be happy with working at my brother's shop and with Nicky, and me but it wasn't good enough. He flat out lied to me, Danny, and now, I have to wait to start my life with him again. I waited nine years before. I completely understand why you gave up on him all those years ago. You had to do it to survive."

"You can't give up on him, Sylvia. He loves you so much. And I know you love him. You wouldn't have come to see me before his parole hearing if you didn't, and you wouldn't have been so supportive of him after we found him. It's hard now, believe me I know, but it will get better. He'll do better when he gets out again."

"How do you know?" Sylvia asked desperately.

"Because we'll both be here for him next time. I promise. I'll be here," he said sincerely, taking a hold of her hand.

XXX

That night, Danny lay awake thinking about Rafael, Sylvia and even his conversation with Martin. It was strange how so much had changed in such a short amount of time. A few months ago, he rarely thought about Rafael's family, and now his family was a major priority in his life. A few months ago, Martin had helped him through one of the most difficult days in his life when he had been looking for Rafael, and now, because of Emil Dornvald, even a simple conversation with Martin seemed awkward.

Interrupting his thoughts, he heard the front door open. Smiling, he listened as Katie's heels clicked on the floor on the way to the kitchen. For a moment, he thought about getting up, but he knew she'd be so exhausted that it wouldn't take her long to get to the bedroom. Minutes later, she padded quietly into the room, having taken her heels off in an effort not to wake him up.

"I'm awake," he said, turning on the bedside lamp as she entered the room.

"Don't you ever sleep like a normal person? If I were you, I'd be fast asleep."

"My mind is racing tonight. I was waiting for you. My mind seems to go blank when you're in my bed."

Blushing, Katie took off her jacket and unbuttoned her blouse. "What's your mind racing about?"

"Everything," he responded quietly. "Sometimes I think we should get away for a couple of weeks," he said as he watched her take off her blouse and skirt. Wearing only her bra and panties, she had no idea how much she took his breath away when she looked like this.

"I'm all for that. We'll talk about it in a minute," she said as she slipped into the bathroom and closed the door.

Wearing a black tank top, she emerged from the bathroom five minutes later, her face scrubbed clean. "Are you thinking about Cabo at Christmas?" she asked in whisper.

"Mmmmm. That sounds like a good plan," Danny replied as she lay down on her side of the bed. Turning toward her and pulling her into his arms, he kissed her shoulder. "Anything will beat last year's cold, lonely Christmas when we were apart."

"Just say the word, and I'll make the arrangements."

"I need to work out a few things first. Jack usually counts on me to be around for the holidays. I've always kind of been the go-to guy when everyone else goes home for the holidays."

"You'll always have someone to spend Christmas with now," she said smiling as she turned around in his arms and kissed him. "Did Sylvia seem a bit down to you?" she asked, suddenly changing the subject.

Danny nodded. "Yeah. I think she is frustrated with the whole situation. It's a lot to deal with, especially when she waited for him for nine years."

"She's stronger than she probably realizes. We'll help her through it," Katie said sweetly as she laid her head on his chest.

"You're pretty amazing; you know that?" he asked, tickling her back with his fingertips.

"It's easy helping someone like her. God, and any opportunity to see that baby is worth it. I think I'm a little in love," she said with a giggle as every muscle in her body relaxed against his touch. "You know you looked very natural when you held her, Danny. I think you are definitely ready to be a daddy."

"You think?" he replied with a smirk.

"Absolutely. And I can't wait to have your baby. Just so you know," she replied with a yawn and she snuggled into his chest.

"Duly noted. I'll keep that in mind."

"So has your mind gone blank yet? Or has my baby talk sent it racing again?" she asked in a sleepy tone.

"No. It's pretty blank," he responded, sounding just as sleepy. Tightening his arm around her back, he closed his eyes and drifted off.