A/N: thanks again for reading this and I promise, more is coming.

Chapter 7

Both Calleigh and Alexx bolted towards the scream.

They found Savannah staring in horror at her hands and at the blood that was slowly running through the water and down the drain. When she heard Alexx and Calleigh, she looked up at them, breathing hard, clearly frightened and confused.

"Alexx? Alexx, what's going on? Why is there blood on my hands?" Savannah demanded, near hysteria.

"Calleigh, grab me a towel and a face cloth, please," Alexx barked, reaching in to shut the water off from the shower. Calleigh quickly shoved the towel into the Medical Examiner's hand and Alexx wrapped the towel and her arms around Savannah, even as she slowly sank to the floor. Calleigh dampened the face cloth and began to gently clean Savannah's hands.

"Alexx, what happened?" Savannah begged again, still not quite comprehending what was going on.

"There was a drive-by shooting at the Seaside Café, do you remember?" Alexx asked gently.

Memories began to slowly emerge from the jumble in her mind and Savannah nodded jerkily.

"Your friend, Maria, got hit and the blood was from you trying to save her life," Alexx explained.

"There was, there was another man, I think. He took-he was hit in the chest and…." Savannah said haltingly.

"And you tried to save him too?" Calleigh asked gently.

Savannah nodded.

"You did good, baby, you did really good," Alexx soothed.

Savannah nodded again, and then, before she could stop them, the tears came, hard and fast. Alexx and Calleigh both comforted the girl as best as they could, with Alexx gently rocking her the way she would her own child.

And Savannah cried. She cried for the horror she'd just experienced, for all the anger and rage and pain that had built up as she slowly recovered from the years of abuse, for missing her mother and desperately, just desperately needing to be held by a parent, especially a mother. It was an emotional cascade of massive proportions. When the tears finally eased off, she was left feeling physically and emotionally drained. Together, Calleigh and Alexx helped Savannah dry off and get dressed in her clothes again, sans top, which was replaced with a clean scrub top, generously donated by Alexx. Then Alexx took her to a quiet storage room that sometimes got used as a nap room by Alexx or any of the other morgue staff when they had too many bodies and not enough time to go home and grab some sleep. There was a comfortable cot in the room, complete with blanket and pillow, which Alexx coaxed Savannah to lie on. The exhausted girl was out like a light the moment her head hit the pillow.

It was several hours before Horatio finally caught up to Alexx again and inquired about Savannah.

"I was just about to go check on her," Alexx said, heading for the storage room with Horatio. "What happened, by the way? I know there was a drive-by shooting and Savannah tried to help some people who were injured, including her best friend, Maria."

"It is looking more and more like a contract hit on Savannah by Clavo Sandoval, a very paranoid drug dealer she recently i.d.'d at a local park," Horatio said. "The DEA knew of it and was working with her to watch Clavo but the possibility that Clavo spotted Savannah watching him and may have seen her talking to the DEA, that concept is becoming more and more of a likelihood."

"So a drug dealer put a hit out on her just because she tried to do the right thing?" Alexx demanded. Horatio nodded. "And he tried to do it with a drive-by, not caring about who he hit or whether or not he would hit her, never mind somebody else?" Again Horatio nodded. Alexx said something rude, causing Horatio to raise an eyebrow at her language. Alexx was very much a lady, except when she was angry, and now was one of those times, it seems. "What did the DEA have to say?"

"In this case, this was the last thing anyone expected. It seems that Clavo is a lot more paranoid than they originally thought, and the concept of him going after an innocent like Savannah amongst a crowd of other innocents, that was something they did not anticipate nor expect. As it is, as of now, Savannah is under protective custody until Clavo is behind bars," Horatio explained. "They are not to blame for this, Clavo is."

Alexx nodded reluctantly. They had arrived at the storage room where Savannah had been sleeping, and now they entered it, to find Savannah stirring. Both Alexx and Horatio crouched down and Alexx gently rubbed the girl's shoulders. Finally, she opened her eyes. Dark blue eyes slowly adjusted to the light and her surroundings before settling on her companions.

"Hey," Horatio said.

"Hi," Savannah said, sitting up and running her fingers through her sleep-tousled hair that had a dozen cowlicks from having dried while she'd been sleeping.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, sitting next to her on the cot.

Savannah was quiet for a moment, sorting herself out mentally. "I'm going to be okay. I'm a bit hungry but other wise, I'm okay. Do you know if Maria is okay?" she asked.

Horatio nodded. "I've received word from Grace Memorial, where they took her. They had to do emergency surgery on her to get the bullet out, but she'll be okay. Maria was very, very lucky; the bullet grazed her large intestine and lodged in the muscle but it didn't hit anything vital." Savannah sighed with relief.

"And the man that got hit in the chest?" she asked.

"He'll be okay as well," Horatio said. "Your first aid procedures helped save his life."

"I'm glad I could help," Savannah said.

"Antonio also said that they're going to have to shut down the Café for about a week due to the damage and to allow for the investigation into the shooting. He said your boss said that everyone would have that time off with regular pay," Horatio said.

Savannah nodded. "I kinda owe Antonio big time; he pulled me down when the shooting started."

"Do you feel like making a statement to Detective Tripp?" he asked.

Savannah nodded. "Wish I had my drawing pad and supplies; I could probably sketch the car, even if it doesn't turn out to be useful."

"Actually, you can do that. Reception said someone by the name of Antonio Lee dropped off your purse and bag while you were sleeping," Alexx said.

"Tall, dark hair and green eyes?" Savannah asked, grinning. "And probably making eyes at the guys?"

"That sounds like him," Alexx said.

"That's Antonio from Seaside Café. He's a sweetie and he one of those lookers who could have any woman he wanted just by smiling, but he prefers guys, and both Maria and I are very, very fond of him," Savannah explained.

"I met him," Horatio said, nodding.

"Hope he didn't come on to you," Savannah said. Horatio shook his head, smiling. "Good, otherwise I would've had to have a talk with him and let him know that your door don't swing thataway." She sighed heavily. "Okay, first stop, Reception. Second stop, Frank. Third, home and something to eat."

"Sounds like a plan," Alexx said, smiling.

Fortunately Frank was back and he took Savannah's statement while she sketched something. When she was done she handed him the drawing. It was a charcoal sketch of the vehicle as it drove by moments before the shooting started. Frank was impressed, recognizing the make and model of the vehicle.

"What's going to happen now?" Savannah asked.

"Well, we're following up on some leads at the moment but, Savannah, I want you to be aware of the fact that it is looking more and more like Sandoval put out a hit on you," Horatio said. They were at Frank's desk and all three were seated.

"'Cause I saw him, right?" Savannah asked tiredly. Horatio nodded, watching her closely. She rubbed her eyes, a sign she was getting tired again, Horatio knew. "I'm not runnin' but I'm not suicidal either, so I guess I'd better get used to the whole Kevlar vest thing, huh?"

Both men nodded.

"You will be placed under protective custody by the DEA, since they got you into this mess," Frank said.

"No, I got myself into this mess. It just happens to be the DEA's doorstep the shit landed on," Savannah quipped.