Thanks to TCIF and ciaddict for their help. Once again, the usual disclaimers apply.

Chapter 16 What Should I Do, Eames?

Wednesday, July 24, Major Case Squad Room

The rumor mill ran rampant the next day. Stories that a police detective was assaulted became mixed in with Bobby Goren's love child being charged with murder and Jimmy Murphy going free after being accused of burying dead bodies underneath the swimming pools he and his father installed in the Hamptons. By the end of the day, Captain Ross had had enough. Excusing Goren and Eames to leave early after a brief discussion in his office, Ross called an unusual and unexpected departmental meeting.

"If you'll all settle down and get quiet, we can finish this quickly and you can all go home early." He cleared his throat and swept his gaze over the men and women who made up his unit. "Some of you have been passing around a great deal of misinformation today, so I thought I'd clear things up."

"Number one: Jimmy Murphy did NOT go free yesterday. This morning, he was formally charged with the brutal murder of Laura Wainwright; the DA is seriously considering seeking the death penalty on this one, so be prepared. Also, there is NO evidence that he ever killed anybody else, or that there are any dead bodies under any pools in The Hamptons that he and his father installed.

"Number two: Trey Wainwright was NOT charged with murder, or with conspiracy to commit murder, or with hiring a hit man. Trey Wainwright was not charged with anything." At the mention of Trey's name, several detectives shuffled around and began to whisper to each other. Ross looked pointedly at them and spoke. "Do you have a problem with that, Detective?"

"Well, uh, sir…" one of the men looked at the floor and continued. "We, uh, we heard that Trey Wainwright is Goren's kid. Is that true?" The man looked up at Captain Ross as he asked the question.

Ross let out a sigh. "I have his permission to let you all know the truth. Yes, Trey Wainwright IS Detective Goren's son. His mother, Amy Wainwright is the one who assaulted Goren in the squad room." He paused here, wondering if he should continue or wait and let Bobby tell them on his own. For the sake of his sanity and that of his best detective team's, he decided to tell his unit the truth. "Detective Goren had no prior knowledge of Trey Wainwright's existence before yesterday morning. Goren is going through a difficult adjustment period right now and needs us all to be supportive and give him some space.

"I'm sure you will be hearing lots of rumor and innuendo for a while, that's why I called this meeting and explained the situation to you. I need every one of you to squash the rumors and the gossip by correcting the misinformation and setting the record straight. That will be all, thank you. You are dismissed." Captain Ross retreated to the safety of his office, where he could watch the men and women of his unit as they congregated together in small groups, discussing the meeting and talking things out between themselves.

He acknowledged the quiet knock on the door a few minutes later with a soft, "come in." He was not surprised to see Detective Mike Logan enter his office and shut the door behind him.

"Captain, may I have a word?" Logan watched Ross and continued when his captain nodded. "What you did for Bobby, thank you." Ross looked at him and raised an eyebrow in question. "I mean it, Captain. That was very nice of you. I'm sure Bobby will appreciate knowing that you have his back in this."

"I'm a father, too, Logan," Ross reminded him. "I don't enjoy being divorced and not getting to see my boys every day. I can't imagine what Goren is going through right now, knowing that he missed twenty-five years that he could have been a father and had a family."

"It would have meant everything to him," Logan said.

No one could imagine what Bobby was going through; even Bobby couldn't have imagined what he was going through. Never in a million years would he have ever expected someone to come up to him and say, "Hi, remember me? I got pregnant by you and never told you. Here's your grown child and your grandchild." It was beyond his comprehension that such a thing could happen to him.

He was so lost in his thoughts and disbelief that he failed to notice the slight woman that slid onto the bar stool next to him and ordered a drink. After being excused early by Captain Ross, Bobby had headed for a nearby bar, a favorite place of his that was within walking distance, but not one frequented by many of the other cops. The last thing he needed right now was to be hounded by other cops.

A soft touch on his arm jolted him out of his reverie and he looked over to see who it was. "Eames," he said, stunned that she would even be here.

"Hi, Bobby. Are you okay?"

Bobby returned to staring into his glass and sunk even lower into himself as he contemplated his answer. "I don't know," he said, downing the rest of his drink in one swallow and signaling the bartender for another. "Ask me tomorrow."

"Tomorrow may not come for you if you keep this up," she said, taking in the 5 other tumblers sitting in front of him on the bar. She was tempted to ask him if he was sure he should be doing this, but knew he could explode in her direction, so she sat quietly, just keeping him company and slowly sipping her own drink.

He liked that, having her next to him, keeping him company. Not judging him or pestering him with questions, but just sitting there, accepting that he needed to drink and brood and allowing him to do it. He liked knowing that she would take him home if need be, but he did wonder how she would manage to get him out to her car, as he was starting to feel the effects of the six whiskeys he'd had in the last hour. He really needn't have worried about that as he was soon not feeling like worrying about much of anything.

"Eames," he said, turning to look at her and swaying slightly. "I don't feel so good." He slurred his words as he spoke. "I think I need to go home. Will you take me home, Eames, please?"

She patted his arm. "Of course I will. Why do you think I came here?" She held her hand out and he looked at her confused. "Your wallet, Bobby. I need your wallet to pay your bill."

"Oh, yeah," Bobby said. As he reached back for his wallet, he began to slide off the barstool and he leaned forward to stop himself. "I drank too much, didn't I, Alex," he asked, uncharacteristically calling her by her first name. The last time he did that, he was at least this drunk and way too much for someone of her size to handle getting home.

"Yes, you did, Bobby, and you'll be paying for it tomorrow." She didn't doubt for a minute that Bobby Goren would have one hell of a hangover in the morning.

Bobby regained his balance on the stool and reached back for his wallet once more. Again, he began to slide off the barstool and would have hit the floor if not for the man behind him. "Whoa, take it easy there, big guy," came the deep voice of Mike Logan, who easily caught Bobby and kept him upright on the stool.

Eames spun her head around and looked at him, smiling in relief at the man who had just come to her rescue. "Am I glad to see you, Mike. He's had a little too much to drink." Eames took Bobby's wallet from him and paid the bartender.

"Ya think," she heard Mike ask softly as he struggled to keep Bobby from sliding off the stool yet again. "Let's get you home, man, okay?"

Bobby looked up at the man who was supporting him and smiled, big and goofy. "Hey, Mikey," he said rather loudly. "Did you come here to be mad, too? You want a drink? We can toast to lying women." He turned his head unsteadily toward Eames and furrowed his brow. "But not to you, Eames, cuz you don't lie. How about it, Mike? What do you say?"

"I say, we get you home," replied Mike, hauling Bobby to his feet and draping the drunken man's arm over his shoulder. "You can tell me all about it on the way out."

Eames followed after the two men, grateful yet again that Captain Deakins had fought like heck to bring Mike Logan over to Major Case three years ago.

Thursday, July 25, MCS Squad Room

Eames looked over at her partner's empty desk and smirked to herself. Bobby had not been happy when she called to check on him at 7 that morning, complaining of both a headache and a stomach ache. Eames had laughed at him and told him he deserved that for having downed six whiskey doubles on an empty stomach the night before. He protested when she told him Mike would be stopping by to check on him, then promised she would let Captain Ross know that he would be late to work, if he made it in at all.

She looked up from her work about thirty minutes later when a steaming cup of coffee was placed in front of her. "How is he, Mike," she asked the detective as she lifted the lid off the cup and inhaled the aroma deeply.

"Grouchy as all get out. Like a hung over grizzly bear." Logan and Eames shared an understanding smile. "He chewed me out for letting him get that drunk last night. I had to remind him that I wasn't the one who drove him there and bought him all those drinks." Logan chuckled. "He looked like hell, Eames. I told him to take a shower and get something to eat and call you later."

"Thanks, Mike," Alex told him. "And thanks for the coffee, too." She took a sip. "Mmm, it's wonderful. You'll have to tell Bobby where you got it."

Logan smiled and waved her off as he turned toward his desk. His partner was already there, and she looked up at him with a question on her lips and a file folder in her hand. The typical workday had begun.

It was noon when Alex realized she hadn't heard anything from Bobby. She reached for her cell phone to call him when it rang; startled she looked at the number on the screen. It wasn't Bobby's; nor was it a number she recognized. "Eames," she answered.

"Is this Detective Eames," a woman's voice questioned uncertainly.

"Yes, it is," Eames answered curiously.

"Detective Eames, this is Amy Wainwright. I hope you don't mind my calling you," she spoke in a rush. "I've been trying to reach Bobby all day and I just keep getting his voice mail. Is – is he all right? I mean, well, after the other day….I wasn't sure…..Oh, gee….I'm really sorry about what happened," Amy finished earnestly.

Alex heard the earnestness in Amy's voice and surprised herself by accepting Amy's apology. "It's okay, Mrs. Wainwright. We were all caught a little off guard. I haven't heard from Bobby since I checked in on him early this morning. I was just about to call him."

"If you find him, could you let him know I'm trying to reach him, please? We need to talk," Amy said.

"I'll pass on the message, but you need to understand that he may not call you back right away. When he gets like this, he doesn't let anybody in, not even me and I'm his partner. Give him some time, okay," Eames advised Amy. "Trust me, it's the best way."

"Thank you, Detective Eames," Amy replied.

"Please, call me Alex. Now that Bobby knows about you and Trey, I have a feeling we'll be seeing a lot of each other."

"Oh, I hope so. Trey's a wonderful young man and I really want Bobby to get to know him. I have to go now. Thank you again," Amy said.

"You're welcome. Goodbye," Alex ended the call, then immediately hit Bobby's speed dial number.

When the phone went to voice mail for the third time, Eames stood and grabbed her purse, shoving her phone in it and heading for Ross's office. She knocked on the door and entered when he answered.

"Bobby's not answering his cell phone," she began. "I need to go look for him."

Ross looked up from his computer and nodded in agreement. "Keep me posted. Let me know if you need any help."

"Will do. Thanks, Captain."

When Eames arrived at Bobby's apartment, she noticed his Malibu parked in its usual place. As she made her way into the complex, she noticed no lights on in Bobby's window. Eames made her way up the stairs and down the hallway to Bobby's door. She paused and listened at the door as she pulled out her key to Bobby's apartment. Remembering the last time she entered Bobby's apartment without knocking, she gave two sharp raps before she unlocked the door.

She called out his name as she slowly entered the darkened living room. She moved to the window and opened the curtains, startling slightly when she heard her name spoken softly. Turning, she saw Bobby sitting at the kitchen table.

"You look like hell, Bobby." She took in his disheveled appearance; he hadn't shaved and his clothes looked slept in. Thankfully there was a glass of iced tea next to him on the table; at least he wasn't still drinking.

Bobby looked up at Eames. "How did you get in here?"

"I have a key, Bobby," Eames told him, holding up her key ring and dangling the keys. "What are you doing?"

"Looking at pictures." He waved his hand in a graceful arc and Eames noticed the box and all the pictures spread out on the table. She moved over for a closer look.

"Were all these taken in Germany," she asked. Alex hoped she could get Bobby to talk and maybe bring him out of this funk he was in. "Is this Amy," Alex was holding the one of Amy in the PX, and she held it out for Bobby to see.

Bobby sighed as he took the picture from Alex. "Yeah; she was at work at the PX and her friend Susan surprised her by showing up there with a camera. She hates that picture, but I love it. The expression on her face is so…wonderful…so open and honest. Still makes me smile when I look at it." Eames noticed the small smile playing on his lips as he studied the old photo.

"She called me earlier," Alex said softly, watching Bobby carefully.

He looked up at her, but didn't speak.

"You're not answering your cell phone," Alex mentioned. "Did you turn it off?"

"Yeah," Bobby said, rubbing his hand on the back of his neck. "I, uh, I turned it off this morning after Logan came by. I didn't want to be bothered." He looked down at his hands.

"She was worried about you. I was, too," Alex said. Bobby looked up at her suddenly, a confused expression on his face. "Logan told you to call me after you'd taken your shower and eaten breakfast…" she let that last sentence hang in the air.

Bobby hung his head, chagrined. "I'm sorry, Alex. I ate, but never showered; then I saw this box on the coffee table and started looking through the photos again…I must've lost track of the time."

"When did you eat last," Alex asked him as she moved into the kitchen.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe 8:30."

"Are you hungry? It is lunchtime, you know." Alex began to explore the inside of Bobby's refrigerator.

"Yeah, I could eat something."

"Good. Get dressed," Alex ordered, straightening up and shutting the refrigerator door.

"Why?"

"There's nothing in here to eat, and I'm starving," she told him matter-of-factly. "Oh, and you're buying."

"Yes, ma'am," Bobby replied, standing up from the table. He stopped next to her on his way to his room and looked down at her, a grateful expression on his face. "Thank you," he said softly. He left a stunned Eames standing in the doorway to his kitchen as he moved off down the hall.