NOTE: I apologize for this somewhat abrupt end to the story, but sadly I lost interest with this fiction. I did not want the quality to go drastically downhill so I figured ending it would be the best idea. I do apologize to the readers who most likely expected way more than I gave. However, there is a sequel bouncing around in my head so not all is lost! And there are other CSI Miami fanfictions to come.

Chapter Seventy-six: Heat it Up

Things took an unprecedented turn, everything happening quicker then Horatio could believe. He knew as he flew down the street with sirens blaring that he promised to call Speed but he'd left his colleague at Delko's apartment less then half an hour ago. He was not about to place a call to rouse either one of them. It made him feel bad, going back on a promise he made to Speed knowing how fragile Speed was at the moment, but he needed to think of the best options. He didn't want Speed at the crime scene incase things went south. What if his dog wasn't there? He knew how much Speed loved Mite. The poor guy didn't need another blow, not so soon.

The officers keeping tabs on the man Speed had identified called him to alert him to suspicious movement. They'd trailed the guy to a warehouse where they heard a lot of barking. They wanted to make a move, anxiety starting to set in as a small moving truck arrived at the scene. It looked like the criminals knew someone was watching them or at least knowledgeable about their actions. Calls were being placed; moves were going to be made. Horatio wanted to be there when the shit hit the fan. He had to see this through. He was never happy about having murderers in his city, especially when they made it personal like kidnapping Mite and injuring Speed.

He drove like a bat out of hell to get to the warehouse. When he got there he found it swarming with all kinds of emergency vehicles and even a few trucks belonging to animal control. He parked in the first free spot he could find. Then he was bustling his way through the throngs of people with one goal in mind, getting a good look at the dogs. He could deal with the criminals later. He felt that if he failed to get Mite back that it would push Speed over the edge that he'd been teetering precariously on since he arrived back in the state. He couldn't allow that to happen when it looked like things might finally start to workout for Speed and Delko.

When he got into the warehouse the gravity of the situation finally hit him. There cages upon cages of dogs. But that wasn't the only thing that he saw. In smaller cages he saw cats. There were reptiles and birds, larger animals like horses and even a few wild cats that might have been endangered Florida panthers. He could not believe his eyes. How had the criminals been sly enough to capture all of these animals while going mostly unnoticed? It looked as though they were running some sort of smuggling ring. Florida was a gateway to a lot of other countries, an easy way in and out of the country. A lot of money stood to be made in the transportation and selling of endangered animals. And this had all been going under his nose.

He sighed, it was going to be a long few hours as he poured through the cages to find Mite.

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Delko sat on the edge of the bed in the darkened bedroom. He finally managed to get Speed to fall asleep, though it didn't seem like such a good idea anymore. He'd been lying in bed beside the man he loved in hopes of giving the tortured investigator some comfort but Speed did nothing but toss and turn making it hard for Delko to sleep. He knew that it was hard for Speed, everything had been hard for the man he fell madly in love with. The one thing he couldn't understand was the fact that he got shot in the head and was able to move on with his life while Speed continued to struggle with his past injuries. Perhaps it had something to do with his temporary lose of memory, what the hell did he know? Maybe, just maybe it was the simple fact that he could not remember being shot. He'd seen the look in Speed's eyes, saw the way he froze when having a gun pointed at him; he remembered every moment of that bullet tearing through his chest. That had to be hard to get over.

Someone knocked on the door to his apartment. With a fleeting glance at Speed he grabbed his semiautomatic off the dresser and went to the door. He'd grown leery of late night calls over the years. Especially after that fiasco with the militia targeting the lab. He kept the revolver close to his leg as he looked through the peephole. Surprise shook him as he spotted his boss standing in the hallway. Was Horatio here to give them some bad news? He instantly thought of the dog that he thanked every day for saving Speed's life. Placing the semiautomatic on the nearby table he undid the locks and opened the door.

He didn't even have to ask what brought his boss calling at the late hour. As soon as the door swung open Mite raced into the apartment with his tail wagging making a beeline for the bedroom.

"Talk about luck," Delko said as he watched the dog disappear into the dark room. "This resolved a lot faster than I expected, not that that is a bad thing."

"Speed stumbled across the right guy," Horatio replied. "He may have gone about things the wrong way but he knew what he was doing." Horatio explained the situation to Delko, told him all about the warehouse full of animals, even the few that had passed away in the horrible conditions. There had been a shipping label slapped on Mite's cage that said the dog was going to be sent to Poland. If the dog left the states there would have been no chance of getting him back.

"Finally some good luck."

"How's he doing?"

Delko looked toward the bedroom door again. "Some days I think he's finding his footing while other days…I don't know, it seems like the darkness is trying to swallow him whole. It's going to be a tough battle but if he allows I am going to stand by his side the entire way. I fell in love with him at his best and have continued loving him through his worst moments. He's going to have a hard time getting rid of me."

Horatio smiled. "I know that you will make him happy. The two of you can take the day off tomorrow, just don't get used to it."

"Thank you, H."

"Have a good night, Delko," Horatio said before stepping back and heading down the hallway.

Delko watched him go, then closed the door quietly, slipping the locks back into place. He trudged back toward the bedroom to find Mite curled up on the foot of the bed. Quietly he slid into bed trying his best not to wake-up his sleeping lover. Dreams of the future played out in his mind as he lay there in the dark listening to Mite and Speed breathe. He never wanted this moment to end. Suddenly Speed moved, curling up beside Delko, laying his head on Delko's shoulder. It seemed perfect to him, right in every way. He hoped that it was the beginning of something that would last a long time…

Fin