Teeth and Claws:
Dani was so focused on the green eyed child covered in blood that she ceased to hear anyone or anything else. She couldn't explain why the child's stare so transfixed her, but the red rimmed eyes seemed to beg her for help, it was a silent plea but one she found she could not ignore. Crews was usually better with kids she thought, what had he told her…kids thought she was uptight?
Crews called off the canine unit, got down on his chest and scooted closer to the bed. Impossibly, he seemed almost able to reach far enough under the bed to grab the child, when a flash of tiny white teeth produced a yelp from him and he scrambled back holding his hand. "She bit me" he said surprised.
Dani disconnected long enough to see him inspecting the first knuckle on his right forefinger where a tiny row of blood droplets were rising from skin punctured by the child's small, but very sharp, baby teeth. She smirked in spite of herself, it seemed someone else did not like to be touched. She returned her gaze to the child, still smiling and found the little boy or girl, she really couldn't tell which, had never stopped staring at her.
Dani reached under the bed, not heeding Charlie's warning, and about half a foot from the child - stilled her hand and rotated it up so her palm was up, exposed. It held nothing, no candy, no toy, just an entreaty, let me help it said. The child's eyes flickered between her hand and her eyes and relaxed a tiny bit at the upturned palm. Seconds ticked by and then minutes, but slowly a tiny hand reached out and gingerly took Dani's fingertips and held them tightly.
Crews watched as his partner very slowly drew the child closer, her eyes never leaving the child's and suddenly felt like an intruder in a moment he was not in. They were there together, but no one else was in that moment with them. If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, Charlie was not sure he would have believed Dani could be that still, that calm, that focused. It was something new for him and it delighted him to see Dani in the moment. He wasn't even the least bit jealous, well, maybe a little he thought. When they were face to face, Dani backed up, sat back on her heels and the child simply propelled herself from under the bed and into Dani's arms.
It's little girl, Crews thought, like Rachel Seybolt, a terrified, almost catatonic little girl.
Rachel Seybolt who never spoke and drew dark pictures full of anger and blood. Rachel Seybolt who had been witness to the slaughter of her mother, father and brother in that house fourteen years ago. She too, this nameless little girl was covered in blood was scared witless. God, we've been here before Crews thought beginning to spin a bit, thinking of the parallels, the connections.
Finally, Dani returned to him and with her return – Crews returned him to himself. He never realized how much she grounded him in reality. Speaking ever so softly Dani instructed him "Crews, run a bath". Crews realized right now Dani was not a cop, she was a woman, a woman worried about a child. She was not worried about forensics, only the need to return the little girl to some semblance of a child, instead of the nightmare she now resembled. Right now she looked like road kill – or that's what Bobby would have said if he were here, Crews thought darkly.
He entered the bathroom and checked it first for signs the killer used it to clean up, but found none. He plugged the drain and ran a warm bath filling the tub as Dani carried the girl in and set her down on the toilet seat. She stripped the child's bloody clothes from her, but the little girl would not let go of Dani. Without a moment's hesitation, Dani took off her pistol and pulled her cell from her pocket, placing it on the counter and climbed fully dressed with the girl into the bathtub.
Charlie was now speechless. He watched as Dani spoke softly in hushed tones that only the little girl could hear. With tears in her own eyes, Dani gently ran her fingers through the girl's hair, which as it turned out was reddish blonde, removing the congealing blood. Dani simply held her, rocking in the warm water, placing soft kisses on the girl's forehead, and smoothing her hair with handfuls of water. The bath water turned pink and the child began to cry out loud.
Until that moment, Charlie realized, she had not made a sound other than the scuff that alerted them to her presence. Her ability to remain still and silent may have saved her life, he thought. Even standing there watching someone bludgeoned to death, the killer may have been so enraged that if she didn't move or speak, he simply didn't see her.
Still, he thought to stand there and watch someone, her father perhaps being beaten to death, what must that do to a child? What had it done to Rachel?
For a moment Charlie flashed back to that day in the foyer of his home, the night he'd accidentally shot his father and the exchange between Dani and Rachel, almost like they recognized one another. There was a moment…something and then it was gone. He'd wanted to ask them about it, but never did. Maybe Jack Reese had taken Rachel home when he rescued her – maybe Dani knew Rachel as a child, so many angles, so many possibilities and everything was still connected. He wondered how this little girl might be connected to what happened then – maybe he and Dani were the only connection between that event and this one, but it remained…connected. Perhaps their tortured, tangled past was what allowed the girl to see them and trust them. Maybe she could sense it.
His eyes and thoughts returned to the present as Dani spoke to him in a sharp whisper "Crews – you here?" Suddenly he was. He took a large bath towel to the edge of the tub. He didn't think that based on her earlier reaction the little girl would allow him to touch her. But he held the towel out to wrap her in it cautiously. The girl considered him seriously for a moment, biting her lip and her sea green eyes searched his. Charlie did not try any of his other tools with children, no banter, no joking - instead he approached her as he had Dani Reese, by letting go all his barriers and allowing her to see him, to look into his soul. His eyes smiled when she stood up and leaned into the towel letting him lift her from the tub and into his embrace.
Dani arched her eyebrows, surprised and stood dripping wet in her street clothes.
She reached for a nearby towel herself and pulled the plug on the tub, allowing the filth to escape down the drain. The bathroom floor was now covered in water and footing was precarious, as she clung to Crews for stability, she said "let's find her some clothes".
"Um… Reese, I don't think she lives here." He said gently, still holding the girl wrapped in the large towel. "I didn't see any kid's things in the house earlier, no toys, no clothes, no Barbies, no pictures on the wall, no drawings on the fridge, nothing that says a little girl lives here". Dani took the girl from him and stood her on the toilet seat, continuing to dry her hair with the towel. She wanted to tell him that not all little girls liked Barbies, but somehow that seemed silly and she refused to say it out loud.
"Well… find her something to wear." She demanded quietly.
Charlie was out of his element. He was okay with kids, better than Reese….well, usually better than Reese…but that was just talking to them…not dressing them. He fumbled around the closet settling for a t-shirt that looked like it would fit Tidwell. Better than nothing he thought. Then he thought about Reese and her clothes being wet too. He found a pair of sweat pants that would be far too long for her and white "wife beater" men's shirt, which resembled the white tank top he loved so much, but abandoned it in favor of something that would cover more of her - from the eyes outside.
"Here" he said "best I could do" as he handed her a grey Anaheim Ducks t-shirt for the girl. Reese was now combing the girl's hair and again he thought what a good mom she's going to make, but this time kept the comment to himself. The little girl, who as far as he could tell, still hadn't spoken a word, just held her hands up to let him pull the shirt over her head. As her head emerged from the way too large neck hole, Charlie kissed her nose and she wrapped her arms around his neck clinging to him. Surprised he held onto the girl, while Reese took the opportunity to shed her wet clothes.
Children were so incredibly resilient they survived countless horrors and still retained calmness, peace and goodwill that escaped most grown adults. Wonder what that says about people, he thought idly, while rocking the girl gently back and forth, twisting his upper body and watching Reese undress, when she reminded him they were at work. "Uh…maybe you could wait outside" she said shyly. Crews had to be reminded that "they" were supposed to be a secret, but he really enjoyed watching Reese undress. So much so that she had to remind him again "Crews…" she said his name in a long, low, warning with an accompanying scowl. Yep, definitely a mom look he gulped….and a good one.
He stepped out of the bathroom and back into the crime scene. The smell of the fresh blood assaulted his senses. After the clarity of the water and the softness of the bath towels, it made him reel. The girl too noticed it, tensed and began tightening her grip on his neck, burying her head there as if she could crawl far enough under his chin to escape it. "Sshhh" he tried quietly, but for a little kid she was remarkably strong and about to strangle him, when Dani Reese emerged from the bathroom and rescued them both.
"Let's go" she said, dragging her partner along towards the door, sunlight, fresh air and safety. "Secure the scene" she instructed the uniforms "we'll be back, we're taking this witness to the station".
"Do you want me to call child services" the sergeant standing nearby offered. Dani shot him and withering look that could have burned him down where he stood. "No…um…okay" he said backing away.
Normally, a witness rides in the back and as they examined the car, they both independently arrived at the conclusion, this was far from normal. Dani fished the car keys from the pocket of her wet jeans and tossed them to Crews "Give me the kid. You drive. Pop the trunk for these wet things." Clean, directive and down right weird.
He never drove, she always drove he thought. It was like that time with the fumes from that bottle he broke, Charlie was fairly certain he was hallucinating. "Crews…the trunk?" she said impatiently. He snapped out of it and punched the actuator to open the trunk.
Dani unceremoniously dumped her wet clothes in the back and then fished out her gun and cell phone, which she placed on the front passenger seat, before walking to Crews and demanding "give her to me".
Charlie transferred to girl to Reese's waiting arms, but she clung to his neck and resisted. "Honey, it's okay" Reese spoke to the girl who's face emerged from Crews neck and her eyes locked with Dani's. Instantly, she released him and reached for Dani. Charlie missed the warmth of the little girl's body at once, but opened the back door for Reese who climbed inside.
Caught in the moment of parental responsibility, Charlie leaned into the car and kissed the girl on the head and then Dani on the mouth. When he realized what he was doing and where they were, who they were in front of, he froze. She's going to slap me, he said, drawing back slightly, but to his great surprise, she grabbed his tie and pulled him close to drink in his lips. It was so fleeting, a mere second, but long enough for him to know she did it and he smiled at her as he stood.
He walked around the car, ignoring the stares of the uniformed cops who watched the exchange. Part of him wanted to grin at them and say it out loud "Yes, that's mine." But he knew that would have him sleeping on the couch for a week, inside - his heart swelled. He wondered if Dani struggled like he did. The impulse to touch her, to look at her was so very strong, it was tough to keep his feelings off the job and separate from work. Charlie knew he loved her so much it hurt some times and he was happy to know she too had problems containing her desire and need for him.
He started the car, pulled out and adjusted the mirror so he could look at Dani. "Where to?" he asked, knowing it would not be the station. The station meant Tidwell, which meant Child Services and Dani would not let child services take this child. An image of a mother bear, all teeth and claws, sprang unbidden to his mind. He grinned at the image.
"What?" she wanted to know - her eyebrows were knitted tightly together.
Charlie was at a critical juncture. He swore that he was going to stop lying to her, but he knew this would only anger and embarrass…perhaps even frighten her. Reese continued staring at him in the mirror waiting for his response. She worked her eyebrows at him – a very non-verbal Reese like thing that meant she expected a response and soon.
Here goes…he thought…deciding that it was worth risking her anger rather than losing her trust because she would know instantly if he lied to her. He was an open book to her at this point.
"I was thinking….thinking that you're going to make a great mom." He said sheepishly and to his great surprise, she didn't react negatively…to him or the idea… she simply said "oh" and then averted her eyes. By now, the little girl was asleep in her arms, so worn out from the trauma that she finally succumbed to exhaustion. Reese brushed her now drying silken hair from the little girl's face and smiled.
"So….where to?" He asked again softly, capturing her eyes in the rearview.
"Home" she pronounced. "Take us home".
Charlie didn't need to ask where that meant. Home was his house - their house - as he'd come to think of it, ever since she'd started sleeping there - with him. It was their home now and it pleased him greatly that she thought of it that way too. I am so attached to this woman, he repeated in his mind.
Charlie didn't think about what would happen when they didn't show up at the station, he didn't think about what Tidwell would say when he found out, he didn't even think about who killed that man in the loft, he could only think about this moment and where they were going next – home.