Chapter Forty-eight: Unmistakable

He was brooding. There was no doubt about it. For the last few weeks he'd done nothing but brood over one thing or another. And once again, as leaned back in the chair with his arms crossed over his chest, he found himself thinking about going back to New York. Moving back home would not be the end all. Horatio had nothing but nice things to say about the crew working the New York crime lab. In fact, he spoke most highly of Detective Mac Taylor. Maybe he could move home and start fresh, get a job in a new lab where he didn't know the people so well. A place where he wasn't so attached to his co-workers. And getting out of Miami had its benefits. It got him as far away from the shooting as possible. Maybe all he really needed was distance between him and the city that caused him so much heartache.

But there was one big drawback to leaving.

His friends.

How would he get on with having Calleigh there to try and brighten his day? And what about Delko? There were still a lot of things there that needed sorting out. His leaving would hurt them all, though he figured it would have the biggest impact on Horatio. The two of them had gotten close over the years, even more so after the shooting. He'd feel like he was walking out on his family if he left but there was a lot of pain, a lot of confusion in his life at the moment and leaving…meant he was running away. He let out a heavy sigh, regretting it instantly as the dull ache in his chest started acting up. He wondered how long before the ache went away for good. Maybe then he could start feeling normal again.

"Tim, are you feeling up to do some work?" Horatio asked as he walked into the room, his blue eyes having lost some of their vibrant coloring. Speed immediately felt a stab of pain. Here he was mourning his life, thinking of packing his things and running with his tail tucked between his legs when it was Horatio's world that currently lay in ruin.

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Ryan needs help in the Trace Lab. He can only do so much with his arm in a sling," remarked Horatio, a faint smile appearing on his face. "I tried to send him home but he's much like you in the way that he likes to see cases through."

"Don't give a second thought," Speed said.

"Thanks Speed. I'm hoping to get something off of Jesup's clothing that could lead us to Hagen."

Speed stood, ignoring the ache in his muscles. "How's Calleigh fairing?"

"She's hanging on."

They started down the hallway, Speed shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He chewed nervously on his bottom lip.

"Something on your mind?"

"Just been thinking."

"About?"

Speed didn't get the chance to answer as Horatio's phone began to ring and then the beeper on Speed's hip went off. The page came through from Delko. As he listened to Horatio talk he knew that Tripp was on the other end of the line. A cloud of worry passed over Horatio's features leaving Speed to feel slightly sickened. The last thing they needed was to have another one of their team members end up hurt. After a few minutes Horatio hung up. He started off down the hallway at a good clip, Speed barely able to keep up. When his boss told him that they'd possibly found Hagen he felt his heart skip a beat. Without wasting another minute the two of them rounded up Ryan and headed out of the lab. None of them spoke as they cut through the late morning traffic on their way to the crime scene. Horatio had not said one way or the other on whether Hagen was alive or not. That put an air of unease in the care.

When they pulled up on the scene there were patrol cars all over the place and two Hummers from crime lab, not including their own. Speed spotted at least two K-9 units and a few officers in what looked like riot gear. It made him feel uneasy. Being called out to a crime scene used to be routine. Now that the cops were under fire they were going out in droves. He hated to think that doing his job meant having officers with specially trained dogs and men in body armor watching over him. What was the world coming to that he couldn't do his job safely? For a fleeting moment he thought that perhaps this wasn't the job he wanted anymore. But as quickly as that thought came, it went. Despite the increase of danger he loved his job. He loved being able to bring closure to those lives affected by violent crime. It was something he picked up from Horatio.

As a group the three of them headed toward the center of the commotion. When he looked around a second time he noticed that lacking from the array of emergency vehicles was the standard ambulance. That did not bode well. He spotted Delko talking with one of the officers but could not locate Calleigh. He knew that she should be here somewhere. Even if they tried to hide the discovery of Hagen she would find out. She always managed to find out.

"Frank, fill me in," Horatio said as they came upon their friend.

He looked weary, tired around the eyes. "Call came into dispatch about twenty minutes ago. A jogger found him down there," Tripp pointed toward some bushes near a pond.

"And?"

"He's been rushed to the hospital," answered Tripp. "The jogger preformed CPR when he realized that Hagen wasn't breathing, got his heart started again, by god. The paramedics say that could very well have saved his life, though he's not out of the woods yet. Not by far."

"Have you seen Calleigh?" Ryan asked as the thought once again crossed Speed's mind.

Tripp nodded. "She went in the ambulance with him. I saw no reason to make her stay." He started walking toward a corner of the parking lot that had been cordoned off with not one but two rows of police tape. Speed had never seen anything like it before. "You may want to see this, Horatio."

They followed him, standing outside the yellow barricade. Someone had taken the time to scrawl a message on the pavement in what looked like red paint. A gruesome thought popped into his head before he could stop it; why use paint when they had the body of an officer? Why not just use his blood instead of mimicking the affect? The message simply read, the apocalypse is now.

"What do you make of that?" Trip asked.

"It's unmistakable, Frank," Horatio said. "They've made a direct threat. Our assault must have really ticked them off. They are planning something big. Make sure that everyone is on alert, Frank. Things are going to get a whole hell of a lot worse."