For the ten times in 5 minuts she glanced at the speedomether on the dashboard sighting when she realised he had yet again slow down the pace.
NAT: Ryan i would like to get thee before Joey goes to college .
Rollign his eyes Ryan said nothing speeding up a little to make her happy .
NAT: Thank you ? she smiled looking at her watch .
RYAN: why are you such in a rush not like the scene will dissapeared any time soon .
NAT: i know but i want to try and leave early today .
RYAN: why ?
NAT: i promised Joey i would take him to see santa at the mall .
RYAN : tonight ? but christmas is only in a month , you have plenty of time .
NAT: I know , but try telling that to an anxious 3 years old , apparantly a months isnt even enough time for santa to get all the gift ready .
Chuckling Ryan shook his head picturing his favorite little guy all excited , but shy about meeting santa claus .
RYAN: so what does he want for christmas.
NAT: oohhh thats another thing , it's between him and santa .
Laughing even harder ryan hit the steering wheel .
RYAN: so basicaly you have no idea what he wants .
NAT: nope ! she sighted in frustation at her little boy .
RYAN: just get him some toys he'll be happy , hes three must not be hard .
NAT: yeah like he doesnt have enough toys he doesnt play with .
RYAN: right ! he said chuckling again , Joey did have too many toys but only play with few of his favorites one .
Finnaly the crime scene came into view , Ryan had barely put the hummer in park that Natalia had unbuckle her seat belt and opened the door . Soon he followed her to the back of the hummer where they gather their kit .
NAT: So your coming to Frank retirement party .
RYAN: im...im not sure .
NAT: Why not it's going to be fun , friends , music ..lots and lots of booze...she laughed has Ryan lifted the yellow tape for her .
RYAN: let me guess your parents are babysitting Joey for the weekend .
NAT: ohh yeah so party time for me ! she laughed again which was music to Ryan ear .
NAT: so you have to come ...come on ryan i need a buddy to keep the wandering hands of the drunk lab tech .
RYAN: Im sure Horatio will keep an eye out for you.
NAT: we both know Horatio will be sulking at the bar over a club soda with Frank by his side nursing a scotch .
Nat; so you see i need a wing man .
Laughing Ryan stop at the door of the suburban house that was their crime scene .
RYAN: Do you even know the right term for wing man
NAT: it's someone that got your back ?
RYAN nope it's someone that helps you get lay ! he laughed opening the door of the house.
Natalia stood at the door smilling brightly at ryan who once heart melted at the sight .
NAT: well let's just say that for that night you'll just stop me from getting gropped by drunken nerd .
RYAN: Fine ..fine i'll be your wing man , but your buying me first round .
NAT: deal ! she smiled quickly kissing his cheek she stepped into the house unaware or Ryan longing look ,Appart from the fact that he could never refused her anything ryan was afraid of the wrath he would feel at home , knowing that Jasmine weekend plan with him had been change without her consent .
Stepping further into the house they were met with a gruesome sight a man with his head bashed in lay in the middle of his living room , brain mather everywhere up to the walls .Dr lohman already investigating the victims , from the corner of his eyes ryan saw Calleigh deep into her work , hunched down on her knees looking under the couch for any evidence .
RYAN: what COD? he asked the older ME
TOM: Extensive trauma to the head .
NAT: any idea whats the murder weapon?
TOM: Blunt object im guessing i'll know more once i take him back to the morgue .
NAT: alrigth thanks Tom ...calleigh you found anything ?
CAL: i found what looks like a piece of splinter ...wood maybe im not sure ,i'll take it back to the lab .
RYAN: Have you check the back yard ?
CAL: not yet ..havent had time .
Following Ryan outside Natalia put on a pair of latex gloves . The luxious garden outside surrounded by roses and a water fountain would proove a challenged for the 2 experience csi the density of the flowers garden made the guest for evidence meticulous .
Making their way further into the garden Natalia standing begind Ryan they began searching through the roses bushes .
NAT: ouch !
Yanking her hand away Natalia took her latex gloves off a drip of blood falling from the tip of her finger .
RYAN: what happened ?
NAT: roses torn ...thats why i hate roses im more a lilies kind a of girl .
Kneeling in front of her ,Ryan reached for her hand carefully looking at the tiny injury , he reached in his kit taking a small pair of plier , gently he removed the torn that had stuck into her flesh .
RYAN: there ! he said showing her tiny offender .
NAT: Thanks !
Holding her hnad in his Ryan held it a bit longer that was consider appropriate the pad of his thumb stroking the top of her gently he caught himself unable to take his eyes away from her .
NAT: hey ..your ok ! she smiled although ryan gazed on her made her feel a bit uneasy .
Thinking back about the conversation he had with Calleigh the week before ryan thougth it was now or never , although if he could have choosen a place the crime scene would be the last place he would but he suddenly had a pan of courage in him .
RYAN: Natalia ...i ..i have something to tell you ...
Giving him her full attention she watch has ryan swallowed a lump in his throat his hand became moist suddenly she was bit a worry .
NAT: hey Ryan ...your not sick are you ?
RYAN : what ...no ..i..huh...
Taking another breath Ryan focus his eyes on hers the words unable to leave his mouth he looked down for a second but when he looked up his sight was set on what was currently coming toward them at a quick space .
RYAN ; RUN !
NAT: WHAT?
Grabing her hand ryan made his way to the back of the yard pulling a confused Natalia , hearing a loud growl behind her she looked over her shoulder to see a a very large german shepperd coming toward them growling his teeth at them , quickening the pace they found themself pinned agaisnt the back fences , Ryan putting himself between Natalia and the dog .
RYAN ; NO NO NO ... He yelled has the dog approach them only to stop has the chain around his neck came to an end , his growling teeth inches from Ryan crotch .
With Natalia arms around his waist holding him away from the dog , ryan sighted his family jewels being safe for now.
NAT; DO SOMETHING ?
RYAN ; WHAT ...I WANT KIDS YOU KNOW ?
NAT; SHOOT HIM .
RYAN ; IM NOT GOING TO SHOOT A DOG HES JUST DOING HIS JOBS , PROTECTING HIS OWNER .
NAT; HIS OWNER DEAD AND WERE THE POLICE ?
RYAN ; YEAH LIKE HE KNOWS THAT .
The dog growling louder ryan had to spread his leg , if not the Wolfe family name would end right there .
RYAN; OHH GOD...CALLEIGH ...CALLEIGH ...he called out closing his eyes hoping that when he reopened them he still would have all his body part .
His eyes reopened when he heard a loud whistle the dog running away from them .
CAL: SIT ! she yelled at the dog with her palm up .
The dog did as he was told wagging his tail being rewarded by a gentle tap to the head by Calleigh.
Letting out a breath of relief Ryan remained frozed on the spot Natalia still behind him arms around his waist unable to move herself .
CAL: Cute ! she smirked lightly at them .
Suddenly aware of the awkward position they were in Ryan distangle himself form Natalia.
RYAN: sorry ! he apologised akwardly.
NAT: hey dont apologised if the only thing that stood between me and that dog was you i would have stay like that all day ! she laughed nudging ryan shoulder playfully .
RYAN : Gees thanks !, he smiled nervously thinking to himself that there way many way he would like to spend the day with her .
CAL: You 2 alrigth !she call out from the other end of the garden the dog now laying peacefully next to her
NAT: Yeah thanks to you and not to mister '' i wont shoot a dog '' here .
RYAN: Hey im the one who was almost neuter here! SON OF A GUN HE ACTUALLY RIPPED MY PANTS ?
CAL: it's a she ?
RYAN: what ?
CAL: The dog a female.
NAT: how ironic ? she bursted out laughing at ryan who looked at the hole down his crotch .
CAL: Are you 2 alright here i'll go call animal control.
NAT: yeah yeah we'll finish up here then we'll find mister a new pair of pants .
CAL: Ok i'll head out and try to figure out where that piece of wood i recovered coming from .
RYAN : huh Cal ..you ..wou wont leave us alone with the dog are you ?
Rolling her eyes Calleigh took the dog collar and pulled him inside .
CAL: I'll put him in the bathroom while animal control gets here .
RYAN: thanks ...how did you to do that anyway , get her to listen to you .
CAL: Just got to show them who's the boss ryan! she said has she dissapeared inside the house along with the dog .
not wasting any more time they went back to work being more carefull of their surrounding .
NAT: Ohh i almost forgot !she said turning toward Ryan.
NAT: what did you want to tell me earlier .
Ryan frozed on the spot his back to her , he was sure he looked like a deer caugth in headlight.
RYAN: ohh nothing important ! he said trying to sound casual .
NAT: you sure cause to me it sounded important .
RYAN : Positive ! so you think Calleigh will come at Frank retirement party .
Hoping she wouldnt pushed the subject Ryan opted for a change of the conversation , tension leaving his body when she didnt push any further.
NAT: Ohh yeah she will even if me and Valera have to drag her there .
RYAN : She did seem to be a bit better today .
NAT: yeah maybe Jake beeing back will do her so good .
RYAN : what Jake back ?
NAT: you didnt know? He's Frank replacement,
RYAN : Great we just went from cranky and annoying to cocky and annoying .
NAT: He's not that bad , although we might have to keep an eye out on Maxine or we'll have to arrest her for murder .
RYAN: Ohh i remenber how much crap she gave him when arrested the both of you ! he laughed remenbering the earfull Maxine had given him 4 years ago in front of the whole lab , ryan could have swear Jake would have prefered being undercover among drug lord then being given an earfull by the tiny , but scary , woman that was Maxine .
NAT: yeah she said and i quote '' the slimy bastard better not get in my way or he'll find arsenic in his food ''.
RYAN : you did tell her it was considered a threat right .
NAT: yep probably like 50 times , she winced each time we drove pass a motorcycle .
Snickering ryan kept searching through the bushes .
RYAN: you know i dont think were goingto find anythign here , if the killer had to pass through he would have obviously had a run in with the dog just like we did .
NAT: i think your right i aint finding anything either .
Gathering their kit they resolved to go back to the lab and found out more over the victim autopsy and hopefully Calleigh would have something over that spilnter of wood she found under the couch .
Making their way back to the front door , one of theoofier gaurding the front of the house stepped inside ,informing them that animal control had arrived .
RYAN: let him in .
The officer dissapeared for a second , coming back with the animal control agent .Natalia jaw nearly drop , tall , dark and hadnsome just like she liked and a shirt that was a size too small showing the animal control agent all the muscle he had , if that hadnt been enough the bright pearly smile he gave Natalia sealed the deal .
'' hi you called animal control ''
NAT: huh...i yes ..there ..there huh ...
Ryan rolled his eyes at ther woman next to him.
RYAN:There a dog in the bathroom be carefull hes vicious ! he said pointing the hole in his pants .
"" woah that was closed ''
RYAN: your telling me .
'' want to show me where it is ''
RYAN: yeah sure it's right...
NAT: i'll show you ! she giggled leading the way for the animal control agent , leaving poor Ryan behind.
RYAN: yeah sure Nat i'll wait by the hummer ...he said sarcasticly more to himself then anyone else.
Grabbing her kit and his he walked back tot he hummer dropping their kit in the back he leaned agaisnt the car arms crossed waiting for Natalia and the animal control agent to come back .
Moments later they emerged the dog on a leash and Natalia giggling to something that the agent had say , feeling a pang of jealousy hit him ryan wondered what he had say to make her laugh like this , usually he was the only one who get a burst such has this from her , the laugh she usually reserved just for his joke .
NAT: look Ryan Matt got the dog ! she smiled brightly squirting her eyes at the sun .
Ryan gave him an half ass polite smile , all ready to leave the scene the door of the hummer already opened.
MATT: He wasnt so much trouble , just got to show them who's the boss .
Rolling his eyes Ryan already hated that xpression and swore he would never watch a rerun of the show '' who's the boss '' ever again without thinking of this day .
RYAN: It's a she ! he told the ignorant , at least to him, agent .
Matt only smiled politly too busy to make google eyes at Natalia .
RYAN: Nat sorry but we have to go .
NAT: yeah ..so huh ..i'll see you some other time Matt .
MATT: sure sure Naty!
Making gagging noised at his nickname for her ryan almost puke right there on the dashboard.
Giggling Natlia made her way to the passenger door ,moving a lenght of her hair behind her ear .She'd barely got in that ryan was pulling away leaving the '' lovely '' animal control agent behind them .
NAT: whats the rush ?
RYAN: I have to stop home and change pants remenber .
NAT: Right ..anyway that agent was nice wasnt he !
RYAN: mmm ..he simply said hoping she would get the hint .
NAT: He was so gentle with the dog , you should have seen him .
RYAN: Im sure he was ! he said bitterly .
NAT: That poor doggy was so scared .
RYAN: Poor doggy ! do i need to remind you , that you wanted me to shoot him and nearly neuter me .
NAT: ahh dont be so dramatic .
RYAN: Whatever! he said bitterly focusing his eyes on the road , leaving Natalia to wonder why he was so grumpy .
Parking the hummer in his driveway rigth next to Jasmine car , ryan let Natalia know he would be right back , as he got out of the car she looked back at his condo he shared with Jasmine and realised that ever since Ryan had moved there she 'd only been there once and that was for the house warming party .Back then Natalia had only met Jasmine an handfull of time not enough to give her a good idea of who she was , but the night everyone had spend at ryan house would be one they would never forget .After the formal greeting Jasmine had spend the rest of the night avoiding them only entertaining her friend while ryan entertain his , he did try to get them to mingle but it was obvious to them that Jasmine friend undermined them , giving them up and down glance that reminded Natalia of her awfull high school years .What ryan was doing with her girl like that , Natalia would never know .
RYAN: HEY BABE YOU THERE ? he called out through the house closing the door behind him.
He heard giggling coming from the living room , stepping further he was met with the sight of Jasmine drinking a glass of white wine with her best friend Michele .
JAS: what you doing here ? was the only the only greeting she gave him.
RYAN: Hi to you too ! he said his grumpyness already rising ...Michele! he said with a nod.
MICH: Ryan ! she responded with a nod has well, sipping her glass of wine.
Ryan eyed the 2 woman for a second , to him it was a bit early to be drinking and the already half empty bottle of wine on the coffee table told him it wasnt a simple glass of wine.
Restraining himself to make any comment knowing it would only end in another argument Ryan simply said .
RYAN: I had abit of an accident with my pants at work i came to change .
JAS: Again? she said laughing out loud along with Michele .
MICH: Did poor little ryan wet his pants again ? she teased in a baby voices .
Growling quielty to himself ryan tighten his jaw cleching his teeth together, god did he hate Jasmine friend.
RYAN: For your information the last time it was a sprinkler , today we almost got mauled by a vicious dog .
Not giving them time to come up with snarly reply ryan made his way to their bedroom with a heavy foot step stomping the ground .
JAS: WE ? what do you mean by WE?
Ryan wasnt surprised that the only thing she had pin point through all was the '' we '' has she nicely put it and not the fact that a dog had almost cut his little soldier in 2 .
Reaching for a new pair of pant in his closet Ryan ignored her has she stood at the door arms crossed , glaring at him .
When he didnt respond to her she made her way to the window , with 2 finger she push aside the blind and looked outside at the hummer park in her driveway .
He didnt need to look at her to see the glared she was giving him , ignoring her further ryan took off his rip pants .Inserting his finger through the hole ,man that was close, he thought to himself .
JAS: So...she said stopping on her track her feet tapping the carpet in their bedroom she waited for Ryna explanation .
RYAN : So what? he answer slipping a new pair of pants .
JAS: You and your ''little friend '' had an incident ?
RYAN: her name Natalia and you know it and dont give me that tone of voices !
JAS: Dont act all innocent Ryan wolfe ?
RYAN: innocent about what huh? just say it stop running around the bushes ?
JAS: FIne ..you want me to say it ...i dont want you to work with her anymore .
RYAN: I cant shes my partner ! he snarled back buckling his belt
RYAN: And frankly jasmine im tired of your accusation !
Grabing his wallet badge and gun Ryan made his way toward the front door he caught sight of Michele ducking away obviously eavesdropping on their conversation .
RYAN : Enjoying the show are we ! he growled at the blonde headed woman .
Clipping his badge and gun Ryan kept his back to Jasmine boiling inside .
JAS: Dont you dare walk away from me Ryan wolfe !
RYAN: YOU KNOW WHAT JASMINE ...IM DONE ...IM DONE WITH YOUR ACCUSATION ,,,YOUR BITCHINESS ...IM DONE ...I HAVE NEVER BEEN UNFAITHFULL IN MY LIFE ...SO IM DONE WITH YOU ...YOU HEAR ME ...
Yanking the door open ryan slam it behind him , natalia didnt miss the tension in his body , he' d already been in a bad mood , for god knows why , but now she could see he was downright ready to take on the world .
He heard the door click behind him but ignored it has he made his way back to the hummer .
JAS: HEY ..HEY RYAN WAIT ...WAIT...PLEASE .
RYAN: WHAT?
Tilting her head to the side she slid her palm to his chest smilling at him .
JAS: you didnt really mean that did you ?
RYAN: i dont know , you tell me ?
JAS: Come on Ryan , you and me thats what we do , we fight we make up , then we have hot make up sex ...she giggle has ryan defense slowly faded .
JAS: why dont i make you your favorite dessert tonight, huh what do you say ?
RYAN : The ..the chocolate chip cookies ?
Laughing she slid her hand around his neck teasing the short amount of hair .
JAS: huh huh with extra chocolate of course
RYAN: You havent made me those in a long time .
JAS: i know i've been so busy , but im here now isnt that what count .
RYAN: Yeah i guess ? he said still not convince but has usual jasmine knew how to seal the deal .
JAS: I could also make that pasta you like , a good bottle of wine , throw in Barry manilow candle light , then we could curl on the couch ...if we make it that far she giggle pressing herself against Ryan .
JAS: We could watch that movie you love ...
RYAN : The godfather you hate that movie .
JAS: yeah but i love you ! she said sweetly .
RYAN: were gonna have to talk about a few thing first .
JAS: Of course ...so is that a yes .
RYAN: ok ! he said shaking his head with a smile .
JAS: great ! so even though your on the clock can i kiss you .
Natalia didnt want to pry into Ryan private life but when the scene was happening right next to the hummer she was sitting on she couldnt help it and when Jasmine pressed herself into Ryan kissing him in a not very appropriate way in public her hand riding low on Ryan body she didnt miss the way she opened her eyes during the kiss glaring at Natalia has if she was defying her , telling Natalia that he belong to her .
Has he walk back inside Jasmine turned around waving sweelty at ryan but when turned his back to get in the car jasmine once again glared down at Natalia .
JAS: If that bitch think shes getting my man she got something coming ! she smiled innocently at Ryan waving
When Ryan got in the car she remain quiet the whole ride back to the lab , bitting her tongue has to not say anything that wasnt any of her business.
It was rare that they came back empty ended and it wasnt a good feeling and to add to Ryan bad day Frank was waiting for them at the front desk with a smirk on his face .
FRANK: Had a little accident with your litlte wolfe there wolfie . he laughed leaning agaisnt the front desk .
RYAN: Not now frank !
FRANK: You know if you keep messing your pants up like the last time you wet yourself you might want to think about keeping a spare pair here .
RYAN: IT WAS A GOD DAMM SPRINKLER .
He yelled waving his arms around walking away from the older detective who kept laughing .
FRANK: god im so going to miss having him twist in his panties .
NAT: You shouldnt have done that Frank hes having a bad day .
FRANK: which makes it even more fun .
NAT:Anything new on the case cause we hit a dead end .
FRANK: All we know is the victim name is Freddy Delgado teacher , 34 years old , no criminal pass not even a parking ticket .
NAT: So we have no motive ,
FRANK: no , there were no sign of force entry , nothing seemed to be missing so basicly we got no lead .
NAT: what about Dr lohman did he get anything out from the autopsy .
FRANK: He said the vic was killed with a blunt object , hit over the head many times , tox screen came back empty too.
NAT: ok so basicly we still have nothing .
FRANK: Nope , were stillw aiting for Calleigh to analyzed that piece of splinter she found .
NAT: We'll i guess if she find something she'll come find us , i still got work fromt he double form yesterday and knowing Maxine she must be grumpy that i let her do all the work so let me know if you found something .
FRANK: Will do ! he said has he headed to his desk .
Back in the DNA lab Natalia found maxine deep in her work has usual .
NAT: Maxine got anything for me .
MAX: About 200 different sample of bodily fluids one can find in a shady hotel room sheet .
NAT: I luuuuve bodily fluid so early in the morning.
MAX: We'll dig in then.
Natalia did has she was told buttoning her lab coat she got ready to work when her pager went off .
NAT: ahh sorry Maxine someone here to see me at the front desk .
MAX: I KNEW IT ! she exclaimed...each time there hard work to do you found a reason to let me do it .
LAughing Natalia headed out making her way to the front desk she saw what she was sure would be the object of her fantasy in her dream tonight .
NAT: Hey Matt what you doing here ? she smiled brightly at the animal control agent .
MATT: Hey Naty ...he smiled at the female csi .
Giggling Natalia shyly looked down it had been a while since man show any attention to her but again if Natalia had been looking in the right place she would see that there was man just waiting from a sign from her .
MATT: Im sorry if im disturbing you ...
NAT: no ..no it's find what can i do for you ?
MATT: I think i may have found something that could help you in your case .
NAT: what is it ?
MATT: it's on the dog ! I got her in my truck if you want to take a look .
NAT: Alrigth let me just grab my partner and I'll meet you outside .
MATT: I'll be waiting ! he wink at Natalia who couldnt help but giggle has she went to search for Ryan .
Walking through the hall Natalia looked at her watch she wondered if she would get out on time to get Joey to see santa claus if not her little boy would be highly dissapointed .
10 minutes later Natalia walked in front of ryan with a quick step , Ryan couldnt help himself his eyes look her up and down , mentally berating himself to stop that she didnt love didnt return his feeling that he was in a committed relationship , he might not be cheating physicly but each time his mind wandered each time he made love to Jasmine and bit his lip to not scream Natalia name he was and Ryan would always feel guilty .
NAT: Hey sorry it took so long ! she said to Matt who was leaning agaisnt his truck arms crossed stretching his biceps .
MATT: Nahh no problem !
NAT: so you said you had something for us .
MATT: sure do ! he said with a wink to Natalia that made ryan want to vomit his breakfast .
Opening one of the cage in the back Matt took out the dog that nearly neuter Ryan earlier .Instinctivly Ryan took a step back .
MATT: Hey dont worry dude she wont bite you i gave her sedative !
RYAN : first of all my name csi Wolfe not dude , second of all what do you have that so important .
MATT: Somebody cranky...i guess i would be too if i nearly got my family jewel chew off ! he laughed smilling at Natalia who giggle along unaware of Ryan vein in his neck pumping furiously .
RYAN: Again what do you got ? he asked in a harsh tone .
MATT: when i was puttign her in the cage i notice somethign stuck in her teeth .
Lifting the dog uper lips Matt showed them what his discoveries ,Carefully takign a closer look Natalia kneeled in front of the dog who seemed more relaxed then earlier even licking Natalia hand .
NAT: She might have bite off the attacker ...look like she bite a bit of skin .
Putting his kiy down Ryan tookout a small pair of pliers , moving closer to the dog , moving to lift her upper lips the dog suddenly snap growling and barking at Ryan who fell backward on his back .
MATT: Woah there dude , you got to show her who's the boss.
Pulling at the dog leash Matt made her sit down and calmed her with a soft pat to the head .
NAT: You ok Ryan ?
RYAN : FINE ! he said grumpily wiping his pants his face red with embarrassement .
NAT: i can do it if you want ?
RYAN: I GOT IT! he said again in a harsh tone .
Kneeling once again in front of the dog Ryan eyed the dog presenting the back of his hand he let the dog smell his hand when she lick his hand Ryan slowly once again lifted her upper lips reaching with the small pliers for the piece of skin stuck between her teeth .He put the piece of skin in an evidence container that Natalia handed him and patted the dog head gently.
RYAN : good girl .
NAT: We'll thank you Matt , you might have broken the case ...we..we should get back to the lab .
MATT: And i should take her back to the pound .
NAT: Alright thank you again.
MATT: No problem !
MAking their way back inside Natalia looked back at Matt gently putting back the dog into her cage while Ryan thank god it probably was the last time they would see him .
But nope Ryan had been dead wrong .
MATT: HEY HEY WAIT WAIT!
Runnign toward them Matt stop at the bottom of the stair leading to the front entrance , standing at the top with one hand at the raillling the other covering her eyes from the sun Natalia smiled down at Matt, Ryan couldnt help but notice that even though Natalia would always smile with or for him she never smile that way with him .
NAT: Forgot something ?
MATT: yeah your number ?
Ryan pray , hope to any god that she wouldnt that she wasnt that infatuated by him , but when he handed her a pen and she wrotte her number on his hand Ryan felt his inside twist , bitterly he snatch the evidence container from her hand pushed the glass door opened and left them be ,unable to bare the scene anymore .
He hope that the elevator ride would get him some time to gather his thought to ease the pain in his stomach , leaning agaisnt the far wall of the elevator he closed his eyes rubbing the edge of his nose .
But his quiet moment was gone in an instant the moment he smell her perfume hittign his nostril like a waved.
NAT: You could have waited for me !
RYAN : ohhh im sorry i didnt want to interrupt your moment with your new friend.
NAT: Whats your problem ?
RYAN : My problem is you barely know the guy and you give him your number what if he turns out to be a psycho !
NAT: First of all Ryan who i give my number too is none of your business and its not like i gave him my home adress , i like the guy i would like to get to know him better , thats the point of meeting new people .I wouldnt expect my best friend to judge me like you just did !
Has the elevator reached their floor Natalia storm off leaving ryan behind feeling like a jerk his bad day was getting worst and worst .
With a long sight he darted after her Ryan caught up to her halfway to the DNA lab gently he took her arm stopping Natalia on her track .
RYAN : hey hey ...your right ok i apologise ...im sorry if i offended you , i just worry about you ok were friend like you said and i know you can kick some serious butt , i just want you to be carefull.
NAT: Your opinion do mather to me Ryan .
RYAN: Well in that case i think Matt a good guy .
No one will never know how much it killed him to say those words but pretense were pretense so Ryan kept his face game on .
NAT: well thank you i appreciate that .
RYAN : So were good ?
NAT: Of course Ryan ,look i know your having a bad day if you want to talk about it i...
RYAN : no no it's fine let's just go back to work ok ..again im sorry .
NAT: I should get these tested if i want to take Joey to see santa claus .
Going their separate ways they went back to work hoping that finnaly they wouldt get a break on the case .
It didnt take long Calleigh finding Ryan in his lab with the result of her finding .
CAL: it's white ash !she said handing him the result of the splinter she found .
RYAN : White ash has in the tree ?
CAL: yes !
RYAN : that doesnt give us any lead...wait ..BASEBALL! he exclaimed pushing his stool away Calleigh surprised by his outburst wide eyed him and took a step back .
CAL: What?
RYAN: I did some digging in our victim past apart form being a teacher he also coach high school baseball , a good one at that his team always make it to the championhip and you know what they use to make baseball bat ... they use white ash , i know about it because when we had the baseball tournament csi agaisnt patrol 4 years ago eric told me all about it he went on and on about it i mean that dude loved baseball .He was so passionnate about it he knew all the statistic the only i remenber Eric ever been so passionnate about something other then his work was scuba diving and you...
Ryan frozed on the spot his words at left his mouth before they reached his brain , if they would have the voice inside him would have yelled to keep his mouth shut , this day was going from bad to worst .
Ryan wanted to die crawl under the floor and simply died the look on her face remained the same ,professionnal , has always but he had known Calleigh long enough to know that to her it always was the eyes , you could read a person throught he eyes and with Calleigh was a perfect examples .He saw the flash of pain has the memories probably flooded in her mind , she didnt say anything , simply stared back at him she took a deep breath and retook her professionnal stand .
RYAN : Calleigh im ...
CAL: So you think the splinter came from a baseball bat ? she interupted Ryan apologies .
He studied her for a minute intend on resuming his apology but when her eyes focus on his silently .
RYAN: yes! he simply answer
CAL: Dr lohman did say that the victim was killed with a blunt object , baseball bat might be it.
RYAN: Natalia and i found a pieces of skin in the dog skin who knows maybe he knew his killer and the dog bite him , wouldnt hurt to check his team .
CAL: Want to take a ride down the baseball field .
RYAN: Why not !
The Miami dade high school hornet baseball team was a legend among high schoolers , 10 championship in the last 15 years 6 to whom under the reign of coach delgado .
Has they approach the field with the high school principal Calleigh tried to remain professionnal but she couldnt but being overflowed with memories of her first professionnal baseball game ever .
ERIC: I cant believe you've never watch baseball .
He had say to her has they sat on their seat , good one too , but that she didnt know since she never been to any baseball game in her life , knowing that eric had insisted to take her , their relationship still freshly new he'd been so excited to teach her about a sports she didnt know that she couldnt say no and after all they wee supposed to spend more time together and that what they did.
CAL: Hey im from Louisianna,were a football state .
ERIC: still it's like america favorite pastime !
CAL: Anyway what do i need to know .
ERIC: well ok you got the catcher , 4 infielders, 3 outfielders and the pitcher ! he said pointing to each of the players warming up on the field .
CAL: got you and how many quarter ?
ERIC: Innings Calleigh ...they called innings !
CAL: ok ok so how many innings ?
ERIC: Nine !
CAL: NINE ! dear god how long does that game last ?
ERIC: depends on the game 3 maybe 4 hours .
She wide eyed him , he honestly expected her to sit here for 4 hours watching men running around in a field and throwing themself in dirt and grass , eric laugh at her reaction kissing her temple reassuring her that she would loved it , but by the 5 th inning Calleigh was bored out of her mind but eric was so into it cursing at the referee or as he honestly corrected her the umpire not a referee .
She watch amused by Eric has he stood when his favorite player game into the base , he quoted some statistic to her that she half listened to then heard a loud bang followed by a cheer , Eric followed the ball and has it got closer and closer he extented his arms with one hand catching the home run from his favorite player .
All smiled he showed Calleigh the ball proud of himself , she simply didnt understand why a man would risk breaking his hand for a ball but it made him happy so she smiled back at him .
Seeing Ryan walked back to her Calleigh snap back out of her reverie for once it made her smile but she wished that she would stop living in the past and be hopefull for the futur but each time she looked ahead all she saw was emptyness and things she would never have .
RYAN: The Assistant coach said that the pitcher Andrew Clarkson came to pratice today with a bandage on his arm , when he ask him what happened he said he fell off his skateboard .
CAL: or was bitten by a dog !
RYAN : yeah so want to bring him in .
Nodding Calleigh made her way to the pitcher mound where Andrew Clarkson was practising.
CAL: ANDREW CLARKSON MIAMI DADE PD WE WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU A FEW QUESTION CONCERNING COACH DELGADO DEATH !
Andrew face them his eyes wide he looked left then right backing away from them .
RYAN: ANDREW ? DONT ...
Throwing his gloves at them it hit Ryan square in the face making a run toward center field with calleigh running after him , recuperating rather quickly and grumpy over his day Ryan growled and ran after Andrew has well .
ANDREW; I DIDNT DO ANYTHING ! he yelled running around the field .
CAL; THEN DONT RUN !
Swirling around the field Andrew kept evading them just has they were close enough the young man athletic ability gave him an advantage over the 2 elder csi .
RYAN: I GOT HIM... I GOT HIM ...
Extending his arm Ryan was nearly inches away from grabbing a hold of Andrew but he swirl to the left and Ryan fell face first into the grass .
Looking behind him andrew laughed at Ryan who was covered in grass but he stopped laughing when he came face to face with the barrel of Calleigh gun .
Slipping himself on the grass Andrew fell on his back with Ryan immediatly turnign him around on his belly holding his arms behind his back.
ANDREW; I DIDNT DO ANYTHING !
RYAN : THEN WHY DID YOU RUN ..HUH ...AND WHATS THIS ...
Taking Andrew wrist Ryan showed the young baseball his bandage covered forearms .
ANDREW: I FELL OFF MY SKATEBOARD OK !
RYAN; OHHH REALLY !
Ryan pulled the bandage from Andrew forearms in one swift moves.
ANDREW; OUCH ..SERIOUSLY DUDE THAT HURT !
RYAN : That to me doesnt look like a scratch does it to you Calleigh .
CAL: I would say it looked like a dog bite Ryan .
ANDREW: I WANT MY LAWYER!
RYAN ; yeah yeah we no the drill .
Putting the handcuff on Ryan then pulled him up taking the young baseball star back to precint in front of all his team mate and friend .
A few hours later they had everything they needed a search warrant to his house had provided the blody baseball bat hidden in the back of his closet his prints and the victim blood on it , the dna retrieved from the dog also prooved to be his.
Now he had lawyer up claming up his mother by his side has ryan and Calleigh showed him the evdidence prooving their case .
CAL: Face it Andrew you did it !
'' my client is not admitting to anything ''
RYAN: His print were on the bat along with the victim blood he doesnt need to confeess we got enough evidence to convict him .
CAL: Hes 16 old ...now maybe if he do confess and tell us why he did it the judge will go easy on him .
The lawyer whispered something into the mother ear who next whispered into her son ear , Andrew burried his head into his hand crumbling under the pressure.
ANDREW: He ...he said he wouldnt do it anymore ! he cried out wiping his tears .
Calleigh and Ryan remained quiet waiting for the young man to admit to what he did .
'' baby what happened'' his mother ask on the verge of a nervous breakdown .
ANDREW: i..i saw him with the new player ...giving him special attention ..that kid 13 years old mom ! he cried out has his mother held him ...i had to protect him ...i couldnt let him do to him what he did to me ...
Slowly putting the puzzle together Ryan and Calleigh looked at each other sighting has they realised what was the true motive .
CAL: Andrew ...did coach Delgado touched you ...
Looking away Andrew couldnt face his mother the repercussion of what he did hitting him like a brick wall .
His mother held his hand tightly herself putting 2 and 2 together , she held on her tears doing her best to be strong for her son . Being a single mother working 2 jobs she hadnt seen the sign simply was glad that coach Delgado was being a good role model for Andrew.
Kissing her son temple she whispered something into his ear urging him to continue .
RYAN : Did coach Delgado sexually abused you ?
Fisting his hand andrew once again looked away ashamed of himself he could simply nod to Ryan question .
CAL: Andrew if he did it is not your fault you hear me , but thats no reason to take the law in your own hand .
ANDREW: I had no choice , we have this new kid at school , kevin hes supposed to be the next great player , hes only 13 years old but hes got such a talent that it can take him to the major league .
RYAN : You think coach Delgado touched him too .
ANDREW: No he didnt ...but i saw the way he looked at him pay special attention to him at practice , everyone thought he simply was being a good coach but i knew ..i knew what he wanted because he did the same to me ...
CAL: SO you confronted him about it .
ANDREW: yes ..i went to his house after practice and i told him i would go to the police and told them what he did .
CAL: Then what happened ?
ANDREW: he ..he said he wa sorry that he didnt touch Kevin that i was his special boy , that he loved me that he would get help ...but i didnt believed him ...i felt disgusted with myself for what he had done to me ...i yelled told him i didnt believed him that i would go to the police.
RYAN : He got mad ?
ANDREW: yes he grabbed my arms told me if i went to the police it would hurt my career and my mom ...i pushed him back , he tried to grab my baseball bat but i grabbed a hold before him and the rest ..i dont know i blacked out i was so mad ...im sorry mom .
Pulling her son agaisnt her Andrew mother whispered words into his ear telling him it wasnt his fault none of this was his fault .
CAL: Andrew i need to know how long the abused lasted .
Wipping his tears he took a tissue from Calleigh and blew his nose , the cold hearted killer they thought they had , turned out to be a victim hismelf that took the law in his own hand .
ANDREW: 2 years ..until ..until i became too old for him ..dont get me wrong i was glad it was over and i wanted to move on ..but then i saw him with Kevin...his wandering hand nobody saw ...calling him his speacial player just like he did to me .
RYAN : Were sorry this happened to you Andrew but unfortunatly your going to have to face the consequence of what you did in court , but were going to help you ok
CAL: were going to talk to the DA and try to get you some help .
Andrew could simply nod his thank you hiding himself between his hand ashamed of what he did ,Calleigh and ryan walked out their heart breaking that a pedophile had yet again ruined a young man life .
Has they fill their report on the case they felt like they had achieved nothing , a pedophile had in some way pay for his crime but justice handt been achieved his vitim would pay for the rest of his life .
Signing her report calleigh closed the manilla folder waitign for Ryan to do the same so they could both hand it to the district attorney.
CAL: You were right you know !
RYAN:Of course im always right! he teased handing her his report .
Rolling her eyes Calleigh carefully folded the 2 report together.
RYAN : But it wouldnt hurt to know what i was right about ?he asked leaning back agasint his stool .
CAL: How much Eric loved baseball !
Caught of guard Ryan remain quiet looking like a dee cuaght in headlight .
CAL: It's ok Ryan you know , you dont have to walk around eggshell for me if you want to talk about Eric it's fine .
RYAN: I miss him you know !
CAL: I know ! ...me too ! she admitted sadly ... you know he took me to a game once! she said with a faint smile reliving the event once again .
RYAN: yeah how did that go ?
CAL: I was bored out of my head ! she laughed softly ...but Eric he ..he loved it so much that he made it fun for me , i think by the end he was abit aggravated with me for asking too much question but he answer them patiently with a smile .
RYAN: yeah once you got him going about something he was passionnate about he coudlnt stop .
CAL: he caught a run home ...
RYAN: You mean a home run! he corrected gently with an amused smiled at calleigh .
CAL: Yeah that ! he was so proud especially since it was from his favorite player, smilling from ear to ear , but you know what he did ?
RYAN: Let me guess he gave the ball to you to proove his undying love for you! he teased
CAL:No he saw ...he saw the little boy in front of him being dissapointed that he didnt catch it so Eric ...he gave it the ball to him .
It dint surprised Ryan one bit of eric generosity ,catching a ball at a baseball game was a rare event in one life , an event some people would brag about for years but eric handing the ball to the young boy ryan thougth it was just like him to do so .
RYAN: Thats Eric for you ! he said with a nod recalling his good friend often generous behavior .
Their thought were interupted when Natalia who was passing by the lab step inside to see her colleagues .
NAT: Hey i heard about the case ...sad one huh !
RYAN : yeah but Horatio said he would help him so maybe the kid got a chance ...how about you think you'lll get out of here in time for Joey to see santa .
NAT: NO ! she said sadly with a sight ...Frank just brought in evidence from a triple and it's got to be done for tonight .
RYAN : Your mom or sisters cant take him ?
NAT: no they finish working at 6 pm , i was hoping to get him out of kindergarten early and get in line early too but by the time im finish here the line will already be has long has the interstate so it would be too late , ...poor baby he was so looking forward to it .
RYAN : I tell you what , if thats ok with you i can pick him up at the kindegarten , take him out for a bite to eat , get in line then maybe you can meet us there before he get to sit on santa lap .
NAT: Really ? you dont mind that would mean the world to him ...i mean i understand if you got something better to do .
RYAN: no no dont worry it's all good , anything for my little dude .
NAT: Thanks Ryan ! she said kissing his cheek ...i'll go call the kindergarten to tell you 'll be picking him up .
Natalia darted out of the lay out room leaving ryan all smile and Calleigh watching the scene with an amused smile .
Ryan took out his cellphone sighting searching for the next carefull word that would come out of his mouth .
RYAN: hey babe ...yeah huh sorry about that...i'll be late tonight ...last minute case ...yeah sorry sweety ...no..no we still can do i'll just be a little late ...yeah i love you too ...ok bye .
Hanging up Ryan didnt miss the look Calleigh was giving him he felt bad for postponing his evening with Jasmine especially after the fight they had but sometimes the heart wants what the hearts want no mather how you try to fight it .
RYAN : dont give me that look .
CAL: I didnt say anything ...you already know how i feel about it .
RYAN: and i already told you that i cant ok ... i cant she dont feel the same .
CAL: so your just going to continue postponing your life for her .
RYAN: im not postponing my life im being a good friend.
Calleigh gave a small nod hoping down her stool .
CAL: Honestly Ryan whats the worst that could happen ?
RYAN: i dont know rejection ..she could end up feeling uncomfortable around me and we wont be able to work together .
CAL: We both know thats not a valid answer , believe me i've lived with that fear for years i used that excuse for a long time and once i got over it ..well honestly ryan i felt liberated .
RYAN: yeah but you and Delko were different he was way head over heels in love with you ...Natalia ...she ..shes not .
CAL: You have way too little faith in you ryan ...the last thing you want in your life his regret they will eat you from the inside .
She left Ryan to these word , she knew too well how much regret could affect someone she lived with regret everyday of her life eating her from the inside slowly peeling away every reason she had to continue on.