A/N: This is it! The last chapter. I mostly just finished it here because I was sick of not having it finished, and yes, I know, it's a bit rushed. Enjoy, lemme know what you think!

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI New York

7

"I've got it," Stella said as she walked into the lab holding out a piece of paper. Sheldon took it, his fingers brushing against Stella's sent a small shiver down her spine.

"A missing person's report?" he asked.

"For Irene Daisey's boyfriend," Stella said. "They found his body yesterday, and I had Adam run his DNA, it matches the male DNA from that hair."

"So he killed her and then died?" Sheldon asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No," Stella responded. "He died first, and there was hair under his fingernails."

"Hair?"

"Head hair, to be precise."

"Max's?"

"Adam's running it now."

"And Max and Cordelia?"

"Flack's bringing them in."

Sheldon smiled at Stella as they walked down the hallway, and Stella found her curiosity getting the best of her.

"What did Aiden want?" she asked, and instantly regretted it. Sheldon sighed and shook his head.

"She's moving," he said. "To Philly. She's going to work the cold cases there."

"At least she's sort of close," Stella said, praying that they reached Adam's lab quicker than normal.

"Yeah, sure," Sheldon said, and he fell silent. Stella didn't press, and was relieved when Adam rushed out of the lab to hand them his results, he then proceeded to rush down the hall. Sheldon and Stella stared after him, then exchanged shrugs and looked at the results.

"It's Max," Sheldon said. Stella nodded.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"I didn't do it," was all that Carl Hilot would say. Danny sighed.

"We aren't saying you did anything, Carl, we're just trying to find out who did," Lindsay said. "Now, do you remember taking Adrien to Peter's house for Mud Wrestling?" Carl's mother bristled at the mention of Mud Wrestling, but she didn't say anything. Carl sighed and leaned back.

"Yeah, I took him," he said. "And we wrestled, and Pete and Addy were still goin' when I left."

"Does this Peter have a last name?" Danny asked. Carl looked down and his mother smacked him on the arm.

"Answer the man or you'll be in as much trouble as Peter's going to be," she snapped. Carl sighed.

"He's my brother," he said. "Peter Hilot."

Danny and Lindsay exchanged glances and Flack was out the door in an instant.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"Hello, Max," Sheldon said amiably as he sat down across from the magician. Max smiled back.

"Couldn't get enough of me?" he asked.

"Well, not exactly," Sheldon said. He slipped a photograph from the file he was holding and slid it across the table, one of a pale blonde man wrapped neatly in a garbage bag. Max stared down at it for a minute, and then laughed.

"What's this supposed to be? Some sort of joke?" he asked.

"Not a joke at all," Sheldon said. "Do you recognize that man?"

"No."

"You killed him," Sheldon said, "and you don't recognize him?"

"I haven't killed anyone," Max retorted. Sheldon sighed, wondering why interrogation was never as easy as it looked on those TV shows.

"You killed Mark Fynn, Irene's boyfriend, because Irene didn't wan to date you," Sheldon explained. He slid a photograph of Irene's legs to the small man, who lifted them and stared at the bruises. "You caused those bruises, and then you killed her boyfriend and sent your assistant to clean up."

"Oh? And where in your theory does it say my assistant would help me commit murder?"

"The part where it says she's in love with you," Sheldon said, sliding a stack of letters across the table. "We found these at her apartment. Addressed, but never sent."3

"I want my lawyer," Max said.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"Cordelia, how are you?" Stella asked. The woman across from her raised an eyebrow and shook her head.

"I told you, I'm Irene," she said. It was Stella's turn to shake her head.

"Not according to your prescription," she replied, sliding a picture of a pill bottle across the table. Cordelia examined it and then sighed.

"So I'm Cordelia, so what?"

"So, you killed your sister," Stella said.

"What are you talking about? Max did it," Cordelia replied.

"Oh, really?" Stella asked. "That's not what I think." She slid a pile of envelopes containing letters across the table. Cordelia picked the up and skimmed over them as Stella spoke.

"We found those at Max's apartment. He had sent them to Irene, but she sent them back," she explained. "So Max killed Irene's boyfriend, Mark, and sent you to clean up his mess. Irene came home early, and you had to kill her."

"You have no proof," Cordelia said, "That I was involved in anyway."

"We have your fingerprints on the plastic bag used to wrap Mark up," Stella said. "We can pin you as an accessory."

"I want my lawyer."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"So, Peter," Danny said, "you wanna explain what happened?"

"He's a freak," Peter said, which earned him a smack from his mother. "The creep tried to kiss me!"

"So, what? So you killed him?" Danny asked.

"I didn't mean to! I just, I held him under the mud for too long."

"With your arms around his neck?" Lindsay inquired, slipping a photograph of Adrien's neck across the table.

"I'm sorry," was all Peter would say. Flack had the kid stand up and cuffed him and as they left Danny leaned back and looked at Lindsay.

"It sucks when kids kill kids," Lindsay said, Danny nodded.

"Let's grab a bite, Montana," he suggested.

"One condition."

"That is?"

"Don't call me Montana."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"That," Sheldon said as he and Stella watched Cordelia and Max being lead away with their Hand's cuffed, "was annoying."

"Yeah," Stella replied. "Hey, you wanna go out, grab a bite to eat?" Sheldon thought for a moment, then shook his head.

"Nah, I think I'm just gonna go home," he said. "Maybe some other time."

"Yeah," Stella said as he walked away. "Some other time." And she left, replaying her dream on the drive home.