A/N Thank you for your reviews. They do mean a lot to me. I am not sure why I write Kurt this way. I guess I feel that if Penny was with him for a long time he must have some good values. I still own nothing.

Cheryl Cummings checked her watch, 4:25 A.M. She sighed; it was only twenty minutes since the last time she checked. She walked over to the window of her apartment and looked out. She hated it when she couldn't sleep.

It was all Henry's? Harry's? fault. As soon as they had finished, he told her she had to leave, that no one stayed with him afterwards. She knew what he really meant, no one like her.

Resigned to not being able to sleep, she decided she might as well take a shower and get ready for work. Maybe she would treat herself to a good breakfast at a restaurant on her way.

After finishing her shower, she looked at herself in her full-length mirror. She knew she had a nice body, she worked hard to keep the weight off. Then of course there were her breasts. She remembered how that bitch Penny had implied they were fake, but they were all real.

She mused, why would anyone except maybe a porn star want ones like hers. When she was twelve and already developed, her stepfather had shown her how much he loved them. His 'love' had continued until she finally escaped when she was eighteen. Her mother had done nothing to protect her. It was as if she blamed her because of the way she looked.

She smirked, she understood where Jessica Rabbit was coming from when she said, 'I'm not bad, I'm just drawn that way.'

Somewhere along the line she had allowed herself to be defined by them. She decided no one cared about how funny or how smart she was. She knew what everybody thought of her; slut, whore.

She wanted to scream that she was so much more, but she wondered if she even believed that anymore. How had she got here?

Then, once in a while someone would come along that she hoped might be different, that would take the time to see who she really was. Who would love the real Cheryl.

As she finished dressing, she couldn't avoid thinking how she had wondered if Lenny could be that someone. She had been surprised when he had not responded to her obvious invitations. Not only that, he often sat with her and treated her with respect.

Cheryl felt the anger come back; then Penny had showed up. Cheryl had been thrilled when the guy with her had practically screwed her on the dance floor. But instead of getting angry and being humiliated, that blond bitch paid her back by leaving with Lenny, but not until she had humiliated her. She still felt the shame when her breasts had been exposed. Instead of someone trying to help her or show her some compassion, they had all clapped and laughed.

She forced herself to calm down, she did have the satisfaction that she had not let those bastards see her cry.

With everyone staring, Sheldon asked, "Who's Cheryl?"

Kurt looked at Leonard, and when he nodded, said, "She's a woman who hangs out with us sometimes. She has, let's say, less than a stellar reputation. For some reason, she has had a problem with Penny for some time. After Penny and I broke up, they didn't really have any contact."

"Then, a few days before the murder, Penny came to the bar with Steve. Cheryl, Lenny, and I were sitting with another girl named Marty."

"Well, Cheryl immediately went over and invited Steve to dance. He accepted but if Cheryl had wanted to hurt Penny, it didn't work. Penny found out she really didn't care. She then came over and sat at our table."

"When they finished dancing, where they were all over each other, Cheryl came back to the table and told Penny to move. Penny did but then made a remark something like everyone had rubbed up against Cheryl's fake boobs why shouldn't he."

"Well, Cheryl went after Penny but Penny tripped her up and she fell on the floor. Penny then left with Leonard."

"When I tried to help Cheryl up, her top fell open and she was exposed." He looked a little chagrined, "I am ashamed to say everyone kind of laughed and clapped."

"She then went over and evidently talked Steve into leaving with her. That was the last time I saw her."

Wyatt spoke up, "Do you think she could really be involved in this?"

Kurt answered, "I wouldn't have thought so, but it would be quite a coincidence that she was at the restaurant."

Sheldon spoke up, "I agree. I think it is definitely something to check into."

He added, "But we first should be sure it was indeed her." He opened his laptop and asked Kurt, "What is her full name?"

"Cheryl Cummings."

After a few moments, "Yes, she has a Facebook page." He turned to Wyatt, "I see what you were referring to."

Then he turned his laptop toward him, "Is this the woman you saw at the restaurant?"

Everyone expected it, but they were still relieved when he said, "That's her."

Susan couldn't resist, she looked over Wyatt's shoulder, "Those are impressive, I am surprised you even looked at her face."

Wyatt sighed, having a feeling he had not heard the last of this.

Kurt spoke up, "So, what do we do now?"

Leonard answered, "The first thing we need to do is get tickets back to Pasadena."

Sheldon nodded and began to type on his laptop. He soon announced he had tickets leaving the next day.

Sheldon closed his laptop, "Leonard and I need to do some thinking. The plane doesn't leave until four tomorrow. Why don't we all get together in the morning."

Leonard spoke up, "You mean you, I and Kurt."

Sheldon looked surprised for a moment but then said, "Of course."

Wyatt spoke up, "Do you think we should say anything to Penny?"

After a few moments Leonard said, "Let's wait on that. We need to at some time, but we don't want Cheryl to have any idea that we suspect her and Penny can be a little impetuous at times."

Wyatt ruefully nodded agreement.

When they were all settled back in the hotel, Leonard started, "Before we do any planning, is there anything we can do before we leave?"

Sheldon spoke up, "We could see if there was any telephone contact between Steve and Cheryl in the days before the murder."

Seeing Kurt's puzzled face, Sheldon went on, "In the course of our work, we have found it helpful to be able to access phone records. We have a working arrangement with a Pasadena detective."

Sheldon dialed a number and when the other party answered, "Detective Wharton, this is Sheldon Cooper, we find the need for your expertise."

"Yes, under the normal arrangements."

"We are looking for any contact between Steven Braxton and a Cheryl Cummings for the week of the fourteenth of April."

"Yes, that Braxton."

"We suspect no one, we are just checking some information we received."

"Very well, call me back at this number."

He turned to the others, "It may take a while."

He continued,"Okay, does anyone have any ideas on how to proceed?"

Leonard started, "I think we need to try to find out if they ever met during those days. We can talk to her neighbors and also those at Penny's apartment to see if anyone saw anything. We should also try to find out where Steve stayed during that time."

Before anyone could answer, Leonard suddenly turned to Kurt, "Could you excuse us for a few minutes? I need to discuss something with Sheldon."

Kurt looked surprised but then shrugged, "Sure, I think I'll go down to the bar and have a drink. Half an hour be okay?"

"That should be more than enough time. Thanks Kurt."

"No problem."

With Sheldon looking inquisitively at him, Leonard went on, "Sheldon, you know that we have both discussed that we could use some help. We have had to turn down some clients because we were both busy. It's also true that there are some jobs we have turned down because frankly neither of us has the physical attributes that could be required." He took a breath, "I think we should ask Kurt if he would be willing to come and work for us. We could even work to get him a license."

Sheldon was surprised but not as much as he would have expected. Leonard was right. And although he had not been thrilled with Leonard's friendship with Kurt, he had to admit he may have been wrong about him.

He smiled, "I cannot believe I am saying this, but I am willing to give him a chance."

Leonard smiled back, "Great." After a pause, "Now what can we afford to pay him…?"

Kurt was shocked when he heard, but it didn't take him long to decide. Although he wasn't thrilled with the money they were offering, he had to admit he was excited by the challenge. It was also true he had already been contemplating getting away from bartending.

He smiled, "All right, count me in."

They spent the rest of the night throwing around more ideas including maybe having Kurt or Leonard try to feel her out. They decided to sleep on that one.

Detective Wharton also called and they were gratified to hear that there had been several calls between the two including one on the morning of the murder.

Then Kurt suggested they go out and celebrate his new job. Both Leonard and Kurt were surprised when Sheldon agreed.

They went to a quiet bar where Sheldon wondered if this had been a good idea as Kurt and Leonard talked almost exclusively about Penny. Sheldon had known Leonard was infatuated but he could now see it was much worse than that. He also had to marvel at how well the two got along. But as he finished off a few drinks, he regaled them with an amazing array of obscure facts.

Leonard was pleased to see Kurt didn't seem to be bothered but was both a little amazed and more than a little bemused.

The next morning Sheldon and Leonard apologized again to Susan and Wyatt about what they had suspected, but were assured they understood they were just doing their jobs and reminded them it had led to Cheryl. Getting their assurance they would keep them informed of their progress, they wished them good luck and to be sure to let them know if they could help in any way.

On the flight back, Leonard suddenly realized he needed to tell Penny about their trip. As much as he was afraid of her reaction, she deserved to know about his suspicions of her father. He just hoped she would understand or at least forgive him.

As Penny slipped into bed, she realized how much she missed Leonard. She had been put off a little when they didn't tell her where they were going, but trusted them completely and had been assured they would bring her up to speed when they returned.

She had to fight sometimes to not dwell on what could happen to her. Her real source of strength was her belief that Leonard would not let her down. She was a little shocked when she realized how deeply she felt about him. Did she love him? She decided this was no time to think about that, with all the jumble of emotions she was experiencing.

She snuggled into her pillow, thinking of Leonard and hoping for pleasant dreams.