"You," he said, reaching out to stroke her cheek. "Are the love of my life, Max."

She stepped back from him. "You have a weird way of showing it."

"You really believe everything you just said?"

Max gulped, wanting to throw her arms around him, despite her hurt. "Yeah, I do."

He reached out again, pulling her to him and into a strong hug. Hold her, tell her it's all going to be all right. I'm losing her. Be honest with her. "I'm not ready to let go."

Max looked up at him, hearing the strain in his voice. "Letting go doesn't mean forgetting."

He squeezed her tighter, fighting the urge to bury his face in her hair and cry. She'd let me, he thought, we've been through so much…I need her. She doesn't need me, no matter what she says. She's strong, capable, and always too good for me. "I can't Max, he was our son and … I can't."

"You have two daughters, who love their Daddy, and a niece and nephew who lost both of their parents, and need you too. You have me. I'd even have another baby, if we decide we want to. There is so much good in our lives."

"The kids I ignore?"

"You know they're pretty great?"

"You're their Mom and Aunt, of course they are."

"Come here," Max said, pulling on his hands and leading him to the stairs. Feeling his reluctance, she held on tighter. "Humor me."

"Max?" he pressed, feeling his walls crumbling around her. "What are you doing?"

"Look at your daughter," she said softly, as they stood in the doorway of Emily's room. "She was a surprise."

Kenny wrapped his arms around her waist. "Almost as much as Lindsay."

Max smiled at that. "Our wild child."

"I see so much of you in them. Em looks just like you."

It's okay, Max thought, we're okay. "She's independent. I nearly had a heart attack when she jumped in the deep end, but she just swam to the wall and laughed. No fear…You should see her tumble at gymnastics, she's already talking about spinning around on the bars and rings."

He gave her a squeeze. "Really?"

"She's a person, and Lindsay follows her around like a puppy. They're getting so grown up, they're not babies anymore."

"And they notice I'm an absentee Dad?"

"I get you have a demanding job, but it's more then that."

Kenny looked back in at his sleeping daughter. "They're lucky to have you…Max, I can't…It."

"You're a wonderful father and uncle. I wish you still knew that."

"I couldn't keep you or him safe."

"We were partners for a long time, you kept me safe on the streets, and I know I didn't make it easy for you. I believe you called me impulsive and reckless."

"You're my wife, it's different now. Not because I think you're helpless, I know you're not. Max, I love you, so much that it scares me. I couldn't deal with it if something happened to you. The kids, you're right okay? When I told you that you were the only person I trusted with them, I meant me too. You're the perfect mother."

"I'm far from perfect," Max said quietly. "Don't put me on a pedestal. It's hard, okay, being a mom. Thanks."

"For what? Being an ass for the last year? Max, I'm still going to be an ass, I can't just let it all go."

"I know…Kenny, I'm here, okay?"

He hugged her tightly to him. "I know."

3333333333333333

"I swear this kid looks familiar," Kenny said, as he and Jimmy stood in the morgue.

Jimmy and Carter exchanged a look, that he didn't miss. "You don't have to stay for this."

"It's not because," Kenny stated. "I'm fine."

"He's about Lindsay's age," Jimmy asked. "Maybe they do some things together? Playgroups or something?"

Kenny thought back, thinking about the gaggle of women Max had over every Tuesday. When she stresses out and bakes…tries to bake. "I run when Max has all those people over. You have no idea."

333333333333333

"Come on guys," Max said, ushering her brood into the house. Stifling a yawn, she suppressed a grin. They are great, I was right about that.

"Aunt Maxie?" Samantha said. "Can I talk to you about something?"

"What?" she said, tossing her stuff on the counter. "Yeah, of course you can."

"Mommy?" Emily said. "I'm hungry."

"Tell you what, Sweetie," Max said, handing her an apple. When did she get so grown up? "Go munch on that for awhile, and no jumping off the furniture."

"Mommy," she whined. "It's fun."

She smoothed back her daughter's dark hair. "You're a flying monkey, I know. Give me a few minutes, then we'll go outside until Daddy gets home."

Her eyes lit up. "Daddy is going to play with me?"

I will drag him outside by his gun belt if I have to. "When he gets home."

"You believe that?" Samantha asked, taking an apple of her own.

I have to believe it, Max thought, at least he's talking to me again. I can work with that. "Yup. What's up?"

"Can we keep this between us?"

Max smiled, as she watched her niece for a moment. Almost 16, she thought, oh Caro would be so proud of her. "You didn't commit a felony?"

"Not this week. I'm serious, Aunt Maxie," she sighed. "Please?"

"Spill it."

"Zach and I are going to have sex," she blurted out. "I'm ready, and …we have condoms and stuff. I just…can you take me to get the pill? I don't want to get pregnant."

Max sat back, dumbstruck. I'm not ready to have this conversation she thought. Samantha and Zach Brock…My niece and a kid I've known since he was four? Seriously? Say something, stay calm, at least she's talking about it first. "Of course I'll take you. Hey, you're sure your ready for this? He isn't pressuring you?"

"I love him."

Teenage puppy love, she thought, sex. She's 15...How can she be ready to have sex? God, I was her age the first time I did too…I'm so not ready to deal with this issue. Stay calm, talk to her. "He's your first love? You've really thought this through? It's a big step, one you can't take back."

"I'm not a kid anymore."

"I suppose not," Max mused. "Okay. Listen to me, really listen to me. We'll go get the pill, and I'll set you up an appointment with a gynecologist. Still use condoms, the pill doesn't protect you from STD's. And if any boy pressures you, even Zach, don't let them. It's your choice."

Samantha threw her arms around her, relieved beyond belief. "You're really cool with this."

"No," Max admitted, thinking how grown up she was and hugging her back. "It really scares me that you're ready to have sex, but I trust you to make your own choice. You can talk to me about it, anytime."

33333333333333

"He was strangled," Carter verified. "Then his neck was snapped. Look at the finger marks on his neck. He went quickly."

Kenny gulped, and forced himself to stay neutral. Not my kid, someone else is going through the same thing we did two years ago. I can do this. "Any prints?"

Carter shook his head. "No, but there is skin under his fingers. I'm sending it with his DNA to be analyzed. No reports of missing kids?"

Jimmy shook his head, as they looked at the bloated, bruised, remains, with the scratched up face. "We can't put out his picture like this either. You think he looks familiar? Even through that?"

I don't see my dead son in every victim, he thought, has he been at our house? Does Max know him? I split every time when they come over. "I don't know. Max has a huge group over every week, maybe?"

"Call her, and ask if anyone has been missing lately."

33333333333333

"Jesus Christ, Em," Max yelped, as she leapt off the top of the slide and onto the soft dirt. Feeling her heart settle back down, as she got up and ran around it again. "Hold on there, Monkey Girl."

"Mommy, up!" Emily cried.

Impulsive and reckless, Max thought, god, she is just like me. Kenny is going to have a heart attack over this one. Watching as Nate continued to kick the soccer ball into the goal, and Lindsay in her swing… "We should send you off to the circus."

"Yea!" Emily cried, running to her. "Elephants!"

If only she knew, Max thought, watching Nate patiently explain kicking the ball into the net to her. Em loves him, she thought, as she kicked the ball hard and fell square on her butt. My daughter, she thought, as she jumped to her feet to try again. Hefting Lindsay out of the swing, she settled down on ground with her. My friends would be mortified, she thought, sitting in the dirt. She's not a baby anymore…do I really want another one? I must be insane.

"Mommy!" Lindsay chirped, pulling at her hair.

"Ouch, Lindz," Max said, pushing it back and out of her toddler's fingers. Oh, God, in a few years will I be having the same talk with them that I just had with Samantha? I cannot tell Kenny, he'll lock her in her room. Zach Brock…how can he be old enough? His parent's can't know…How can I keep this to myself? Pulling her vibrating phone out of her pocket. Lindsay grabbed the bear and began babbling to it. "Here. Hello?"

"Hi, Honey."

Max shifted on the ground. "Hi, what's up?"

I don't want to do this, I don't want to drag her into this. "You busy?"

She glanced around the yard, and at her lap. "I'm good. Are you working late?"

"Probably,"' he admitted, wishing more then anything he was home with her. "Question for you. Anyone missing out of your playgroup lately? Or classes?"

"What?" Max asked, thinking that was as random a question as he could ask of her. "What? Why?"

"Is there?"

Max bit her lip, as she looked down at Lindsay for a long moment. "Just some usual stuff…I know a couple of kids that were out with the chicken pox, vacations, no one that is missing…my friend Ann hired a new nanny, and pulled her kids out of school, sports, and everything, and is home schooling them."

Something pinged in Kenny's head, as he listened to her. "How old are her kids?"

"Two and four. Bella was in Em's class at preschool and Nigel was in Lindsay's swim lesson. You've met them. Kenny, what is going on?"

"When was the last time you saw them?"

"Are you interrogating me?"

"Max, humor me for once."

"Ann was at soccer practice, she came with Natalie. Bella and Nigel weren't there…we talked about going to a spa and the party Natalie is throwing. Bella has been out of school for about a month, same with Nigel in swim lessons…I haven't seen them in at least that long. Kenny? What is going on? You don't think…the boy in the park?"

Mind like a steel trap, he thought, almost hearing her make the deductions in there. "I don't know, we just don't have anything to go on."

"She wouldn't…if he was missing, she wouldn't of been that calm the other day. I'll call her, and… She wanted to home school them from a young age."

"Two and four?"

"It's ridiculous, I know…Wait," Max said, scrolling through her pictures on her phone. "I'm going to send you a picture, it's of Lindsay, Nigel and Madison at swim lessons. It's … I don't want to believe it's him. She wouldn't of acted like that if he…Did you get it?"

Kenny gulped, as he stared at the image that appeared on his phone. Lindsay, he thought, looking at his red headed daughter laughing with the other girl and boy…our victim he thought. "Yeah, got it. Max? Keep this to yourself for now."

Hearing the stress in his voice, she fought to keep her voice level. "It's him?"

"I have to get to the morgue again. I think…I'll talk to you tonight. Max, I got to go. I love you."