A/N: Huge thanks to MariaLisa for the beta 'ing and the reality check. Hugs!!

DISCLAIMERS: I do not own any of these characters from CSI NY; however everything else is mine.

Promises

The wind whispered your promise to me

And I captured it, never to be released

Because a promise from the heart is worth keeping forever

- Sally Jetson

Danny approached the dry cleaners, as always he was startled by how small the place looked in comparison to his childhood memories. It had been built when he was a kid in anticipation of the population increase due to the opening of "The Verrazano". His dad certainly hadn't missed on that; now there were several dry cleaners across the island to accommodate the cleaning needs of the working population filing into Manhattan on a daily basis. Staring at the sunny yellow lettering painted on the front window he felt anything but sunny. The swarm of the FBI agents carting boxes of paperwork out of the building caused the knotted muscles between his shoulder blades to tighten.

A familiar Staten Island accent summoned his attention.

"Eh Danny, Whaddya doin' here?"

"Eh Tony, trying to find some answers, ya got anything for me?" Danny inquired as he shook the older man's hand heartily.

"Dunno Danny," Tony shrugged, "we opened the place as usual this morning and the next thing I know I hear Geno has been murdered, your old man is the suspect and now we're being overrun by these guys." He jerked his thumb toward the FBI agents.

"Hey you," a man in a dark FBI jacket tersely addressed Danny.

"Me?" asked Danny, raising his eyebrows and putting his hands to his chest in mock surprise.

"Yeah, you with the NYPD badge. You need to move it along; this is out of your jurisdiction."

As the FBI agent moved away Danny handed Tony his card, "Seein' as I've been warned off, I'll be on my way but if ya think of anything call me; here's my number,"

The FBI agent suddenly turned and approached Danny again. "If you don't remove yourself immediately from these premises I'll be forced to report you to your superior."

Danny smirked at the agent, who snatched the card from Tony and pointed it at Danny's face.

"And don't think I won't do it. I've got your information right here on this card."

"Ass," Danny coughed as he turned and left.

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He watched the scene play out across the street, his lips stretching across his teeth in evil pleasure. Whacking the snitch had been a given but this… this was the answer to his prayers. With the old man pinned for the murder, the clientele was his for the harvesting. He grimaced as he picked out a familiar figure. That fucking bastard was worse than his old man by a mile. He scoffed; everyone knew you didn't get ahead in this world by becoming a cop, particularly a hide-behind-the-microscope type of cop. As he fingered the jagged scar along his cheek he cursed himself for not offing the bastard years ago when he had the opportunity, but his chance was coming...

Just as soon as he retrieved what was his.

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"Mr. Messer, I urge you to reconsider. We can get you to a safe house and protect you. Out there our protection is not guaranteed."

Joe looked challengingly at the FBI agent, "I cannot sit in a safe house while my wife goes unprotected and my business languishes.

"We can post surveillance on your wife 24x7."

"What about the surveillance on Geno? What happened with that? Geno was murdered because your surveillance failed."

The agent swallowed hard.

Joe continued when he saw that he had made his point, "Now about my business, when will my books be returned to me and my shop released to do business again?"

"I am not at liberty to discuss that with you."

"But you know I have nothing to do with this… this fiasco," Joe disdained.

"Mr. Messer we would be remiss if we didn't rule out all possibilities."

"This is harassment. My lawyer will be in touch," Joe replied dismissively, as he rose to leave the room.

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Lindsay had not attended a funeral since Laurel's death over two years ago and the memories ripping through her heart now threatened her thread-like composure. The sea of black swam before her eyes and she suddenly wondered why she had thought she could handle this. Her eyes focused on Danny. The distance separating them seemed much wider than the clusters of mourners and the gravesite that actually stood between them. Since Danny had left for Staten Island two days ago, their phone conversations had been brief. He had been distracted and worried, and she had not wanted to add to his anxiety with her questions. Her heart constricted now at how distinguished he looked in the somber, dark gray suit with the rough stubble neatly trimmed for the solemn occasion; but the dark glasses, hiding his eyes, only increased his remoteness.

As the priest closed the service, Lindsay debated her next course of action. She had a taxi scheduled to return any minute to take her back to the ferry. Maybe it would be best if she left now before Danny noticed her; he would most likely be unhappy about her being here on Staten Island. But she had come because she had wanted to see him, even if only from a distance. She watched him longingly as a middle aged man with closely cropped salt and pepper hair approached Danny and hugged him. Their ensuing conversation was emotional; evident by the way the Danny vigorously nodded his head and wiped his eyes. As they embraced again she heard a familiar voice calling her name and she reluctantly tore her gaze away from Danny.

"Lindsay I thought it was you," Caitlin issued softly.

She embraced Lindsay snugly but then arched back to look at her as she said, "Thank you for coming. It means so much to us, particularly Danny."

Lindsay's eyes pricked with tears and she struggled with her response as the sincere warmth emanating from Caitlin caressed her heart. "I'm… I'm…. truly sorry for your loss."

"Thank you, Geno was like a son to Joe and I. Joe is at a loss… he depended on him so much and of course Geno's family is devastated." Caitlin's sad eyes shifted away momentarily but then refocused on Lindsay. "But what about you? You must miss Danny terribly."

"Umm… I…" Tears finally filled her eyes.

"This must be trying for you too," Caitlin added knowingly. She dropped her arms and clasped Lindsay's hands in her hers. "Come back to the house with us now and have lunch."

From the corner of her eyes, Lindsay caught sight of Danny and the salt and pepper haired man approaching them, so she tactfully disengaged her hands from Caitlin's to wipe away her tears.

"I… I appreciate the offer but I can't. I have to be at work in a couple of hours."

"What? On Christmas Eve?"

She felt Danny's arm slide around her waist as he murmured into her ear. "Lindsay, I thought I told you to stay off the island."

Her knees weakened and a slight flush warmed her cheeks at the soft but steely tone in his voice but she also felt a sense of relief and comfort as his arm secured her against to him.

Before she had a chance to respond, the man accompanying Danny exclaimed, "Caitlin."

"Salvatore," Caitlin returned affectionately as she clasped his hands and they exchanged a cheek to cheek greeting. "Thank you for coming. I know this is hard for you because of Teresa and Michael."

"Of course, but I am always here for you and Danny…. And Joe too."

The first thing that struck Lindsay about Salvatore was the inflection of his thick Italian accent, the second was the haunting sadness in his eyes.

"Now Danny, who is this donna bella?" Uncle Sal inquired, as he turned to Danny and Lindsay.

Danny gestured the introductions. "Uncle Sal, this Lindsay Monroe, Lindsay this is my Uncle Sal."

An oddly familiar smiled brightened Uncle Sal's face for a moment, as he squeezed Lindsay's outstretched hand.

"Lindsay I'm delighted to meet you, I just wished it was under happier circumstances."

"Me too," Lindsay murmured.

"Salvatore," Joe greeted as he approached the group and gripped Uncle Sal's hand. "It's good to have you here."

"It was the least I could do."

Joe extended his hand to Lindsay. "Lindsay, thank you for coming. It was not necessary."

"It is not easy to lose someone close to you," Lindsay empathized as his strong hand clasped hers. A twinge of guilt twisted in her stomach as she wondered if Joe knew that she was the one who had gathered the evidence against him in Geno's murder. Her musings were extinguished by the ringing of her cell phone. After she glanced at the caller id, she announced, "That's my taxi. I have to get back to Manhattan; my shift starts in a couple of hours."

"You will come tomorrow for Christmas dinner; won't you Lindsay?" inquired Caitlin, as she embraced Lindsay.

"Yes, I'd love to come."

"Wonderful; and Salvatore, will you come too?" Caitlin turned to Uncle Sal. "It has been too long. We can visit and you can get to know Lindsay better."

Uncle Sal glanced quickly at Joe who gave an imperceptible nod.

"Caitlin that would be a treat," Uncle Sal conceded.

"It's all settled then," Caitlin declared.

"Danny, we will catch up tomorrow, no?" Uncle Sal inquired as he gave Danny an affectionate hug.

"Sure, sure, I'd like that."

"Lindsay, I look forward to seeing you tomorrow."

"Yes, I look forward to it too," she smiled.

Danny leaned forward to brush a kiss against Caitlin's cheek. "Ma, I'll be back later, I'm gonna ride with Lindsay to the ferry."

"Good move, Danny," Joe conceded.

"That's not necessary Danny; it's broad daylight," Lindsay protested when she realized it was a tactic to insure her safety.

"C'mon Montana, I'm not taking any chances with you," he countered, as he intertwined their hands and headed toward the taxi.

After they settled into the taxi, Danny wrapped his arms around her, inhaling her sweet scent which he hoped would remain with him throughout the day. "Lindsay, I..."

Lindsay lifted her head to stare at her distorted reflection in his tinted glasses.

"Take off your glasses," she demanded softly.

"What?"

"Take off your glasses; I can't see your eyes."

"That better?" he inquired, as he removed the glasses, folded them, and put them inside his jacket pocket.

"Much better," she whispered, as she brushed her lips across his.

"Ya know I can't see to kiss you. I'll probably miss by a mile," he smirked.

"I think you know your way around me a little better than that," she insinuated, as she slid her hands up his jacket lapels and settled them at their customary position at the back of his neck.

He chuckled as he dropped his hand to her hip and began to mesmerizingly trace a circle with his thumb on her hipbone.

He closed in on her lips with a vengeance.

"It's been too long, Baby," he said huskily when they finally emerged for air.

"I know. When are you coming home?" she whispered, their foreheads cushioned against each other.

"God, I don't know," he groaned. "The FBI released Dad yesterday but he was in no mood to talk. I'm gonna see if I can get him to talk to me today. I really need to get a handle on what's going on here… because it affects all of us."

"I understand…" she pulled back to look into his deep blue eyes, "but we were going to spend Christmas together." She immediately regretted the words once they were out of her mouth. She was trying hard not to put pressure on him; she knew he was struggling to keep it all together.

"Danny, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to…"

"No." He put a finger to her lips. "No, don't apologize for saying how ya feel. I know this is tough for you too."

A tear slid down her cheek. She couldn't help it. The funeral had stirred up such haunting memories, and now he was being so… so Danny… so thoughtful and sweet. The tears threatened to spill over in earnest as she buried her face into the crook of his neck. As his arms tightened around her, the dam broke and he held her in the shelter of his arms until her emotion was spent.

"Ya alright now?" He flanked her face with his hands and caressed away the last vestiges of her tears with his thumbs.

She nodded mutely and he dropped his hands back to her waist.

"Lindsay I gotta be honest with you. You showed a lot of strength and determination coming here today and I admire that. But…"

She looked at him questioningly. "But what?"

"You gotta be careful, Lindsay."

"I am careful plus I have protection in here," she assured him as she patted her purse.

"Damn!"

"What?"

"I hate the thought that you are carrying a piece because of me."

"Danny, I'm licensed to carry it, I know how to use it, so why should it matter why I carry it?"

She held his worried, blue eyes with her own earnest, doeful ones as she glided her hand down along his deliciously rough stubble, to trace the outline of his lips with her fingertips. "Besides if it allows me to be with you, I will carry it. And I really want to be with you. I miss you, Danny."

"Me too," he growled softly, as he kissed her hand then pulled it away to assault her lips once more. This time when they parted he choked out, "I promise, I will try my damnedest to be there tonight when you get off work, okay?"

"I know you will."

"Now get on that ferry before I make you call in sick!"

"Promises, promises, Messer," she teased as she exited the taxi.