Author's note: I actually sort of have some idea where this is going now. This story only started off as a one shot but I keep getting all these new ideas and plans! Anyway I'm going to stop prattling on and let you read chapter 3


Harry and Nikki were still sitting with Erin when Leo came out of his officer followed by DI Johnson. Erin had said very little and she was still shivering from her time outside

"Erin" Leo said gently "There's a man here who wants to talk to you"

Erin looked up at him with fear in her eyes, she gripped her arms tighter round her knees and her whole body tensed

"Hi Erin" the DI crouched down before the frightened young girl "I'm James and I'm a police officer. Do you think we could have a little chat?"

She shook her head wildly and buried her head in her knees "Not going back there" she murmured

"You're not going back where?" James said gently looking concerned at the revelation

But Erin had clammed up and had nothing more to say on the subject. James tried a different angle

"Erin…you really need to see a doctor. You don't look very well"

"I'm fine" she said and the adults could hear the tears building up in her throat

James looked around at the pathologists for some support.

Harry stepped up to the mark "You've got hypothermia Erin and that's serious. You can't stop yourself shivering, your pulse is weak and when you walk I can see it hurts. Now it can be treated very easily but you need to go to the hospital. If you don't its going to get worse"

"I don't care" she said and as Harry looked down at her hands he could see her fingers were turning a shade of blue

"If you leave it you could die"

"So…" she muttered

"You're just going to throw your life away then?" Leo said

"Why do you care so much?" she said angrily

"We see so far too many young people down here. Don't let yourself be one of them; you have your whole life ahead of you"

Erin was about to reply but before she could, her body shuddered violently. All those medically trained recognised immediately what was going to happen and Nikki rushed her over to the sink just seconds before the young girl threw up

"I'm sorry…" she gasped

Nikki leant forward and held her the girl's damp hair back "You've nothing to be sorry for"

"Nikki can't help having a face that makes people want to throw up" Harry said already anticipating the dirty look Nikki shot at him

Erin let out a small laugh and with Harry and Nikki's help moved back towards the chair.

They were nearly there when Erin's legs buckled and she fell; Harry grabbed her just in time and felt her body go limp in his arms

"Call an ambulance" he said gently lying Erin down on the floor "Can you hear me?"

"Her pulse is really weak?" Nikki as Harry but her in the recovery position

"Yeah ambulance please" they heard Leo say into the phone on Harry's desk "We've got a young female with hypothermia that's just collapsed…"

"I don't want to go to hospital" Erin murmured

"Stay with me Erin" Nikki said squeezing the girls hand as her eyes fluttered closed

"Ambulance is on its way" Leo said and Harry nodded

"She'll be ok" he said to Nikki who looked extremely concerned as she held Erin's hand tightly in her own

"She's so cold" Nikki said fighting back the tears as she squeezed the young girl's hand almost to try and make sure she did not slip away


The ambulance arrived quickly and soon Erin had been rushed into the hospital. The paramedics had been worried about her low body temperature but they were confident she stood a fighting chance. Leo, Nikki and Harry remained at the lab knowing there was nothing else they could do until the doctor's had checked her over

"What was that all about not caring about her life?" James said perching on the edge of a desk

"When I found her before she started talking like that" Leo frowned

"Do you think she's suicidal?"

"I don't know but whatever she's been through has clearly terrified her"

"There was blood on her clothes" Nikki said quietly

"What?" Leo looked over at the young woman

"When I took her to get changed, there was blood on her clothes"

"Do we still have them here?"

Nikki nodded "They're in the locker room"

"I'll go and get them" Harry said standing up and moving across the lab

He was soon back holding the pile of sodden material. Nikki noticed he'd put rubber gloves on to preserve the evidence. He unfolded the pile and saw Nikki was right. On the girl's jeans was a dark stain of blood, almost impossible to see on the wet patches as the material had darkened as it soaked up the water but where some parts had started drying they could all see the strain of dried blood. Leo exhaled deeply and was about to comment when DI Johnson's phone rang

"Johnson speaking…hang on I'll put you on speaker phone" he pressed a button on the phone as he put it down on the table so all could hear the conversation

"I'm Doctor Myles from the Royal London hospital and I'm in charge of treating Erin"

"How is she?" Nikki asked nervously gripping Harry's arm

"Ow!" Harry winced at Nikki's iron grip

"Sorry" she loosened her grip on Harry

"Don't be" he said gently

"She's got quite severe hypothermia but I'm confident we got it in time. She's also got a couple of broken ribs and a few lacerations over her body but she's in good hands" Doctor Myles said "She's got a fighting chance of revering from this, it helped a lot that you got her in the warm before the cold set in further. We've been trying to get in touch with her mother but we're unable to reach her…"

"You found out her last name" DI Johnson said looking surprised

"One of our nurses recognised her, seems that Erin Jones is a bit of a regular here" the Doctor said sadly "This isn't the best subject to talk about over the phone but we need to get in contact with the mother as soon as. Erin's under age and we need parental consent for the treatment"

"Thank you doctor" Leo said gently

"Oh there's one more thing" Myles said quickly "She keeps asking for a Leo, does that make any sense"

DI Johnson looked across at Leo and smiled "Perfect sense, he was the one who found her"

"If you want to see her then she's in the HDU, just ask at reception"

The conversation ended and both parties hung off the line

"Poor kid" Harry sighed

"I'm going to see if I can contact the mother" James nodded

The group dispersed from around the phone until it was just Harry and Nikki left alone

"She'll pull through, she's in safe hands"

"She was in such a state. How could anyone let their child nearly freeze to death"

Harry had no answer to that question, he couldn't begin to imagine what Erin had been through. All he could do was hope that the young girl would recover from this and that they would be able to find out what lead the girl to stray away and fall into the icy grip of danger