Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of CSI:NY; they belong to Anthony E. Zuiker and CBS.

Author's Note: Thank you for reviewing! And much thanks to lily moonlight for the chocolate carrot idea, my plot bunny thanks you! Thanks also to lily moonlight for helping me work through some plot issues.

CHAPTER FIVE

"I want to see my son."

Like hell, Danny thought to himself. "He's asleep," Danny lied. "Kid had a rough couple of days."

"Speakin' of the last coupla days," Flack jumped in, "where were you, Jack? Why didn't you answer your phone?"

"I was on a lake with my dad upstate," Jack Lewis responded. "I don't get service up there in the mountains." He looked at the two detectives. "Mary knew I was going up there."

"Well, Mary couldn't exactly tell us that, Jack," Flack said, thrusting the picture from Autopsy forward.

Lewis recoiled. "Good God..." he whispered. His fingers traced the outline of Mary Lewis's face. "My Mary..." He looked up at Flack, his face red, and tears collecting at the corners of his eyes. "Wh...what happened?" he choked out.

"Someone beat her to death, Jack," Danny replied. "They hit her so hard right here-" here he turned around and tapped the base of his head where it met the neck- "that they stopped her systems cold." He slammed his hands down on the table, making Lewis jump. "What are the odds I match your fists to those bruises on her, Jack?"

Lewis slammed the table back. "That's ridiculous!" he sputtered. "I would never hit my wife! I wasn't even home!" He looked at Flack pleadingly. "Detectives, I didn't do this! Where...what about Ryan? Where is my son?"

"Child Protective Services," Danny lied again. "We couldn't find anyone for him to stay with."

"That's because I was upstate with his only set of grandparents!" Lewis informed them. "Mom and Dad don't have cell service up there!"

"We tried calling, too, Jack," Flack cut in. "They never answered their land line, either."

"Maybe you haven't been watching the news, guys," Jack tried to tell them, "but there was a big lightning storm, knocked out power. I tried calling home last night and couldn't get anyone! I got scared and cut my trip early!"

"You know what, Jack?" Danny said. "Maybe I believe you. Would ya mind giving me a cast of your fist?"

He looked at Danny, confused. "What?"

Danny produced the shoebox of foam. "Stick your fist in there," he said. "I bet I match your fist and fingers to the bruise on the back of your wife's head."

Then, to both of the detective's surprise, Jack Lewis burst into tears. "Y-you all d-don't understand!" he said. "I-I c-could nev-never! I-I w-wouldn't!" Then he offered Danny his hand, balled into a fist. "G-go a-ahead, take the c-cast." He shook his head. "But there's a l-lot of people who have the same size hands as me, Detective." He looked at Danny as he wiped his eyes. "Can I see my son? When can I take him home?"

"Consider yourself a person of interest, Mr. Lewis," Flack said. "I can hold you for 48 hours. Enjoy your stay." With that, Flack and Danny left the room. They came around to the other side of the two-way glass, where Mac Taylor was standing. He'd watched the proceedings with interest.

"I gotta get this cast upstairs," Danny said. He tapped the box as he turned to leave.

"Danny."

He hated it when Mac got that tone in his voice. He slowly turned around. Mac was looking at him and Flack and his eyes read only one thing- disappointment. "Everything needs to be backed up by science," was all he said.

Danny got the hint.

"Hey, you," Kendall said as she slid up next to Adam in DNA. "Where's your shadow?"

"Uh...asleep in Mac's office again," Adam said. He sighed. "I don't remember having that much energy when I was a kid."

Kendall smiled knowingly. "No wonder he picked you to hold on to," she said. She ran a hand down his back a few times. "You know, you always told me you were gonna tell me about your early days," she began carefully. She felt him stiffen under her fingertips. "I'm thinking now might be a good time to start."

"Kendall...not now," Adam said. "I just...no, not now."

She nodded. "Yeah, that's fine...don't you think Mac would consider you too close to this case?" she said.

He glared at her. "W-What exactly are you implying, Kendall?" he demanded. "You think I can't stay objective here?"

"I never said that," Kendall defended herself. "What I said was, you might be too close. I'm saying it might affect your work."

He stepped away from her. Her hand remained suspended in midair for a second before she dropped it to her side. "I'm not ready to talk to you about it."

She took a breath. "Fine," she said quietly. "I'll be around if you need me, if not, I have some Trace to run for Stella and Lindsay."

He heard her heels click on the tile floor as she walked away. He tried to go back to the hair they'd found on Mary Lewis's body that didn't belong to her. But he couldn't concentrate. His mind drifted.

Phoenix

"The square root of-"

THUNK. Yelling.

Adam stopped running through his math homework and listened. Something hit the wall he shared with his parents' bedroom. It sounded like a tennis shoe. He heard his parents yelling again.

He thought he'd be used to it after ten years. Half the time it was the same argument. He could almost recite it along with them. Another shoe hit the wall. This time it was one of his mom's heels.

Depressing, that he could discern the difference.

He wondered where it had all gone wrong. Dad had used to take him to tee ball, had used to want to go on Boy Scout camping trips. He even bought him that science kit for his eighth birthday. Mom and Dad still fought during that time, but it hadn't seemed bad for those first few years. Just lately, it had escalated to the point where the neighbors called the cops and Adam learned to wear sunglasses some days to class. Then of course, he got in trouble for wearing the shades in school and ended up with detention when he refused to take them off. Which only made Dad less impressed with him.

"...sleepin' around with that damned-"

Adam rolled his eyes. Even if his mother wanted to have an affair, she never had the time. Dad had gotten fired, again, the second time inside of two years, which left Mom to work two jobs and take care of the house. She never had time for herself, no matter how hard Adam tried to help her out.

WHAM. THUNK..

Adam blinked. That was a new sound. Cautiously, he got up from his desk and went over to the door. He peeked his head out. His Dad was yelling again, but he couldn't see his mother. Then, as he stuck his head farther out, he saw his father was yelling at something on the floor. "Mom?" Adam couldn't help but choke out. He stepped into their doorway. His mother was on the floor, crying.

And then his father saw him standing in the doorway.

The hand on his shoulder made him jerk.

He swore, and looked up to see Mac standing there. Whoops. "Boss," Adam managed.

"Sorry," Mac said, studying him. "You all right?"

"I-yeah," Adam said, trying to steady his breathing. "I'm okay."

Just then, his computer beeped with the results of his foreign hair. He glanced over and frowned. "Cat hair?" He looked at Mac. "The Lewis's didn't have a cat, and the building they lived in was no pets."

"So who has the cat?" Mac asked him.

"Maybe one of Ryan's friends?" Adam wondered.

"You can ask him when he wakes up," Mac said. "Danny and Flack have his father downstairs. They're holding him as a person of interest." He looked at Adam. "Have you found anything that suggests he did it?"

Adam slowly shook his head. "Nothing physical, anyway. Danny said something about comparing a fist cast."

"That won't be enough to pin him," Mac said. "If you can't find anything...we'll have to release Ryan to his custody."

Adam's heart dropped to his stomach.