Chapter 9:
Three months had passed since that accident and Calleigh and Eric never talked about her sleeping in his arms that night. She had blushed the next morning and thanked him and that had been that. Things were slightly different now, and while they still considered each other friends, automatically they had drifted somewhat apart. Calleigh was in a relationship with Jake while Eric had to move on with his life as painful as it was. He didn't date anyone though. He was not interested in other woman, not to mention that in his mind, Jake was bound to hurt her, and when he does, he was determined to be there to help her pick up the pieces again. They talked to each other like nothing ever happened between them, at least that was what it seemed like to someone from the outside, but when they looked at each other, they could see all the blissful moments happening and sometimes they would linger into each other's eyes and other times Eric used to ignore it or otherwise it would be too much. There were days when it was easier than others to push aside what had happened between them, or how much he still wanted her. The only comfort was that it was clear that she still wanted him and cared about him a lot. It was obvious she still had feelings for him, at least that was one thing that didn't change.
She was committed to her relationship with Jake though and Eric was not going to do anything to come between them and that was why he had decided to give them space. He stopped texting her when it wasn't work related or catch up with her or checking on her when she had a tough day. She knew that he needed to do this, that he was doing it for both his sake as well as her relationship, but deep down it still hurts because as much as he had told her many time, that they will always be best friends, that nothing will change, that he would always be there for her, she could feel that things changed between them. He never checked up on her again, he never stopped too close to her, always made sure to keep a certain distance. She knew it was needed but it didn't hurt any less.
Her relationship with Jake had become quite stable. They met when they were off, they went a small vacation to Antigua, which Eric didn't take very well from the looks and the sour ways his mood had been in all day when they got back. They were sleeping over at each other's houses...and sex...well that was good...that was one thing that was always on the good side with Jake. It was nothing compared to the way Eric had made love to her before though. She couldn't help but compare them sometimes. With Eric she had made love in her bed on that wonderful day and then again in the morning but then she had had sex with him against the wall and that had been amazing as well in more than one way. The way he had pushed her against the wall and fucked her was just something she had never experienced with anyone...not even with Jake. Well it actually happened with Jake but somehow it had been different at the same time, so Calleigh couldn't help but compare the two men when it comes to sex. There had been something raw and sexy but at the same time she knew it wasn't just sex. It was full of emotion and Calleigh had found herself many times thinking about that moment and ache for it. She had contemplated asking Jake to make love to her against the wall, but she never did, because she knew that it wasn't just where she was having sex but also who she was having sex with.
This morning she had woken up in Jake's arms and after having a quick one in the shower, which somehow wasn't the same as having sex against the wall, even though they were both being done standing, they had gotten ready for work and while they were having a coffee in the kitchen, Calleigh had tried to explain to him which coffee machine she wanted to buy but Jake kept telling her that it wasn't needed and when she felt like having a macchiato, they could always go grab one from one of the many coffee shops there were in Miami. That discussion had stopped there, as the phone call had interrupted the rest and they were both called down to the next crime scene. Jake had arrived before her since they had been at his place and she still needed to go home and change, but when she arrived, she saw Eric already going through the evidence.
'Hey you wanna catch me up?' Calleigh asked him as she approached him, the wind blowing her hair in her face.
'Yeah, we've got one dead, one critical' Eric told her.
'Will you take a couple of pictures of the crowd? I want the faces on record, just in case' Calleigh told the new guy that was with the camera strapped around him.
'You got it CSI Duquesne' he replied and Calleigh had to resist from rolling her eyes at him. She couldn't blame him. He was new and being polite and there was nothing wrong with it, but he called her that in front of Eric, and the old Eric would definitely tease her about it. This Eric she wasn't exactly sure what to expect.
Eric turned his head slightly back before Calleigh caught his attention 'We should get the car back to base' she told him.
'Already called it in...CSI Duquesne' Eric teased giving her that look that she loved so much and they both laughed at that. That was until he saw Speedle in the distance and the look of shock covered his face as he slowly got up from the ground. Calleigh saw his reaction and turned to look in the direction he was looking at trying to see what caught his attention, but there was nothing.
'Are you okay?' she asked him concerned, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
'Yeah, no...I'm fine' he told her still looking confused.
'You don't look fine' she replied worriedly, as he kept looking past her in the same direction.
'I just stood up too fast, that's all' he told her.
'Alright' she replied with a smile, but Eric knew she wasn't buying it, and Calleigh knew he was lying but she let it go for now so she turned and walked away to start working the case.
OooOOOooo
'We get a print?' Calleigh asked Eric as she walked into the lab where he was testing some evidence. He had just found a print on a piece of evidence from the case that had caught fire.
Eric cleared his throat, realizing that it was just the two of them in the room, and knowing Calleigh, this was the perfect opportunity to bring up what happened earlier at the crime scene 'Yep...now...just need to connect it with a face' Eric replied as he started inputting the data.
The guy from earlier walked in getting Calleigh's attention 'CSI Duquesne?' he asked, not wanting to call her by her name.
'You can call me Calleigh' she told him with a smile.
'Oh right, got it' he replied 'I have those pictures you asked for' he told her before handing her the folder.
'Thank you Mike' Calleigh replied with a smile, letting him know she knew his name and that it was okay to talk to each other using it.
'What did he get?' Eric asked her but as soon as she opened the folder, the first picture she saw was of Eric when he looked like he had seen a ghost.
'You' she replied 'I thought you looked like you had seen a ghost out there' she told him, clearly wanting to talk about it, but Eric dismissed it with a shake of his head.
'Don't worry about me' he told her.
'How can I not worry about you? You don't have to be embarrassed Eric. The doctor said you might be up and down, possibly for years' she told him.
'I guess I'm right on target' Eric told her not wanting to talk about it. This was always a soar subject and Calleigh knew that he didn't like to talk about it. In fact, they never did talk about it, but it was like there was never the right time to do it. At work, it wasn't exactly the best place to talk and well...they weren't exactly hanging out outside of work nowadays.
'Come on Eric, it's me' she told him, practically begging him to open up to her 'What did you see out there?' she asked him. He sighed and closed his eyes contemplating whether he should tell her or not, still avoiding eye contact with her, and Calleigh embraced herself for what he was going to tell her.
He looked at her then, and lied straight to her face 'I saw evidence of arson' he told her, holding her gaze and Calleigh looked away and nodded realizing he didn't want to talk to her about it. Of course he didn't want to talk to her about it, why would he? She broke his heart. She chose to try a relationship with Jake instead of with him or maybe he simply didn't trust her anymore. Maybe he was the one who built up a wall around his heart this time, and she was going to have to face it sooner or later. Things were no longer the same between them, and that was a fact unfortunately.
'Andrew Hillman' he told her.
'Great' she replied with a smile, but clearly disappointed. They locked eyes for a moment and then walked out of the lab leaving him alone with his thoughts. It killed him to do this to her, to not talk to her like he used to, but things were different now, not to mention that the last thing that he wanted was for her to think he is going crazy seeing ghosts or to see that pity look in her eyes. He didn't want her to think less of him.
He had eventually gone back to the crime scene, and again he had seen Speedle...talked to him. But how was this even possible? He just couldn't understand why this was happening now. The accident happened months ago and it has been three years since Speedle passed away, and something like this never happened before, so why was it happening now?
OooOOOooo
'Our dead girl was living large' Jake told Calleigh as he went through things in Jessica's bedroom while Calleigh was out in another room 'It's a nice laptop. Expensive item for a college student' she replied.
'And judging by her wardrobe, she's never met a designer she didn't like' Jake continued as he picked up one of her clothing.
'This is a complete sidebar, but this is the coffee machine that I want' she started telling him as she walked back towards him. It makes espressos, macchiatos, cappuccinos, everything' she told him.
'When would I ever make a macchiato?' he asked her.
'Well you'd make one every morning after we buy the machine' she replied with a smile.
Jake smiled and leaned down after something caught his eye, and found an empty packet of a condom almost under the bed 'Now, there's the dorm room that I remember' he told her showing her the packet as he continued to look around 'And there's the rest of it' he told her.
'Well don't pick it up, there could be a name attached' she told him both of them with their torches on the full bin.
'If you pick that up, you'll need a second pair of gloves' Jake told her.
'Well you know what? How about this? Cooper wants to be a CSI. I'll have him pick it up' Calleigh told him and Jake nodded with a smile 'Jessica's got a phone message' Calleigh said as she pressed the button to hear the message.
'That's pretty harsh' Jake said after they listened to the messages.
'Yeah' Calleigh replied 'She bought all this stuff on credit' she said.
'Well it sounds like she was in over her head' Jake said.
'I bet she was terrified. Could cause a girl to take her own life. You know, I'm gonna call Tripp and have him go over to the office at Liberty Coast' she told Jake.
OooOOOooo
Calleigh and Eric went to talk to Brandon who was in hospital being treated for the burns he suffered. He told them, that him and Jess were going to have sex in the SUV when the bottle of alcohol exploded and the car caught fire. At the mention of the word sex, Calleigh couldn't help feel her body react, quickly getting mental image of her and the man standing behind her, which she quickly pushed away, but wondered whether he had the same reaction she did, although if he did, she would never know now.
After they finished interrogating him, Calleigh and Eric got into the hummer 'Buckle up' Eric told her, sounding cheerful. For a moment they had fallen back to their usual flirtatious banter as they were walking back to the hummer, and God knows how good that felt. It felt like old times...before they had given into their feelings and everything had changed.
'I'm trying' she replied with a chuckle. For some odd reason she just couldn't put it in.
'What are you digging for, change?' he teased her when she couldn't seem to do such a simple task, a smile on full display.
'Ooh...I found something even better' she said as she pulled out and held a credit card in her hand with a smile, getting comfortable in her seat, rearranging her hair in the process, until her eyes caught sight of the name on the card and the smile disappeared. She flipped the card back to front to make sure she was seeing right 'Oh my God' she said shocked.
'What is it a platinum card?' Eric asked her half joking.
'This is Speedle's credit card' she told him still staring at the card in her hand as she turned to look at him, her expression one of obvious shock and disbelief.
'I knew it' he said his face in shock. There had to be a reason why he had been seeing Speed all of a sudden.
'What's going on?' Calleigh asked him, having heard what he said.
'Nothing' he replied immediately.
'Look Eric, if we're going to be working together you have to talk to me' she told him, getting tired of being shut down. It was obvious that he was hiding something from her, and Speedle was her friend as much as he was his, so if this regarded him, she deserves to know.
'I said it's nothing' Eric replied firmly.
'Does this have something to do with me and Jake?' she asked him because what else was she supposed to think 'Is there a problem?' she asked him trying to understand.
'No, Calleigh. Don't be ridiculous' he told her as he looked away from her. It didn't really have to do with the two of them at least not directly, but at the same time it did, because it was due to their relationship that the two of them had grown apart in the last few months.
'Well you've been acting strange with me all day, so what else am I supposed to think?' she asked him. He kept staring ahead for a moment and then turned to look at her.
'Let's just forget about it' he told her 'Can I have Speedle's card please?' he asked her as he reached out for it and she gave it back and watched him staring at the name on the card before he turned on the engine and drove away. The drive back to MDPD had been a quiet one both of them thinking about what had just happened. All Eric could think about was that Tim must have been reaching out to him, to get to the bottom of this. Someone was messing with them, someone obviously close to them since the card was found in the hummer. Someone who was work related. It obviously wasn't Calleigh, not that she would ever be a suspect in his book, but who could it be?
Calleigh on the other hand was quiet, looking out of the window, million questions speeding through her mind. What was going on? Why was Tim's card in the hummer? Was someone messing with them? What was going on with Eric as she thought about how he had been acting all day and then it dawned on her. In the photo he had looked like he had seen a ghost. She was there, standing in front of him and saw the look first hand...he must have seen Speedle. She almost gasped out loud but somehow, she held back but her head turned his way, her eyes on him. If that was true, no wonder he had been acting weird all day. She needed to get to the bottom of this.
OooOOOooo
Calleigh and Eric went to find Keith Reynolds at the Miami Dade University, when Keith himself approached them 'How are you doing? Hey, beautiful' he said to Calleigh. Eric was smiling next to her only because he knew who Keith was and why they were there. It was a fact though, that if he didn't know who Keith was, he wouldn't be smiling at him, calling Calleigh beautiful in front of him.
'Hi' Calleigh said smiling back.
'My name is Keith. How would you like to buy a new wardrobe today?' he asked her 'You're pre-approved for $2000. Minimum payment of $17 a month' he told her.
'I don't know, does your card offer a sexual favour payment plan?' she asked him 'Or is that just a side business?' she asked him, easing smoothly to what she wanted to ask him and damn she was good. Eric was proud of her.
'We're with the Miami Dade PD' Eric told him 'Now, what where you doing in Jessica's room last night?' he asked him.
'I wasn't in her room last night' Keith replied.
'Your DNA says otherwise' Calleigh told him.
'We have evidence that you had sex with her' Eric told him.
'Well if that's the case, I'm not talking to you' Keith started telling them 'How about I have my lawyer call you?' he asked them.
'Do that. You couldn't look more guilty than you do right now' Eric told him.
Keith started walking away from them, as they headed in the opposite direction.
'Looks like we found a prime suspect' Calleigh told Eric.
'Yeah looks that way' Eric replied.
That was when shots started getting fired, hitting a light post, 'Get down, get down' Eric yelled as he helped the people around to safety while Calleigh tried to locate the shooter 'Calleigh you alright?' he asked her, needing to be sure she was okay. They had ended up on opposite sides while directing people to safety.
'Yeah I'm fine' she replied.
It was then that the shots stopped and as they got out from their hiding spot, they started looking around for anyone injured when they found Keith lying dead on the ground with a bullet in his head...the prime suspect just became the victim.
OooOOOooo
It was at the end of the day, and after Calleigh had spoken with Horatio and informed him about Speedle's credit card that she found in Eric's hummer, about how Eric had been all day, Horatio had gotten in on the case. Controlling information from the bank, he called Calleigh to inform her that the card was being used as they spoke, so Eric and Calleigh headed to the bar. They weren't sure what to find or who exactly.
'I'm gonna go check with the bartender and see if I can get some receipts' she told him.
'Alright' Eric told her. He thought he saw Speedle, so he went to approach him but quickly realized it was someone else, so he simply apologized.
Calleigh came back, her hand on his arm, the expression on her face worrying, she pointed in the direction ahead of them where Cooper was dinking against the bar.
'Hi Coop' Calleigh told him.
'Hey what are you guys doing here?' he asked them, surprised to see them.
'We'd like to asked you that question' she told him.
'Let me see your wallet' Eric told him immediately. He knew that if Cooper was here, and the card had just been used, it was definitely him who used Speedle's card, because he had been in the hummer and he had access to Tim's locker at MDPD.
Cooper hesitated 'Show him your wallet Dan' Calleigh told him. She needed to know for a fact.
'I don't know what's going on' he started telling them as he pulled out the wallet and Eric took the walled and pulled out the card.
He stared at the card, feeling his blood boiling as his eyes stared at the name on the card 'Your name is not Tim Speedle' Eric told him furious.
'Eric listen to me ok?' Cooper started telling him 'It's not what you think' he said.
'Your name is not Tim Speedle' Eric repeated and then threw the wallet back at him and walked away.
Calleigh was almost in tears with anger 'You know what...I would ask you for an explanation but I just don't think I'd get one' she told him.
'You know I want to be a CSI...and you guys...you speak so highly of the guy that I just thought I'd check out his locker, see what he was all about and saw the credit card and it's just, it's not like he'd miss it' Cooper tried to explain.
'Why did you use it?' she asked him.
'There was $200 credit in there' he told her.
'Dan' she said not believing what she was hearing.
'It's free money' he told her with a shrug.
'You've charged over $2300' she told him.
'I know it got out of hand' he replied.
'It's fraud' she told him, and that was when Cooper realized that he was in trouble and Calleigh was not one to bend the rules. The law is the law.
'It was a mistake. Calleigh it was a mistake, it won't happen again' he tried to assure her.
'I know. It's over' she told him, her voice full of hurt.
'Wait what are you saying? The lab gave Ryan another chance' he told her.
'Ryan broke protocol. You have broken the law' she explained the difference.
'Calleigh...Speedle's dead...I mean...no one got hurt' he tried to reason with her but instead that made her see red. No one got hurt? All she could see was Eric's face and how hurt he was.
'You don't think Eric got hurt? You don't think I'm hurt? What about the people Speedle gave his life for? You got until tomorrow morning to turn yourself in after that I am putting a warrant for your arrest' she told him and with that she left.
She walked outside and found Eric sitting in the driver's seat, his hand on the steering wheel, his forehead resting against his hands. She sighed heavily, opened the door and climbed in, closing the door behind her.
'Eric' she whispered as she attempted to put her hand on his shoulder, but at her touch he flinched and Calleigh jumped in her seat.
'I don't want to talk about it' he told her and with that he started the engine and drove off.
OooOOOooo
Jake had just sent her a message letting her know that he won't be going over as he was held up at work, and for Calleigh, that worked perfectly fine. Today was one of those days where she needed space and she really didn't want to tell him to stay away because in reality if this relationship had any chance of working out, she needed to start opening up to him or at least tolerate having him around on days like these instead of putting her walls further up, but tonight, she was worried about Eric. Ever since they had found Cooper in that bar, figuring out that it had been him who had been using Tim's credit card, Eric hadn't said a word and when she tried to reach out, he had flinched at her slightest touch. She knew he was hurting...angry and Calleigh knew that when Eric got like this, he needed her. She was the only one who could truly reach out. Sure there was also Horatio who probably had already talked to Eric at this point, but Calleigh needed to try. She needed to go to him and reach out again. She wasn't sure if he would let her in, but she needed to try. He mattered to her and it broke her seeing him like this. This matter had hurt him deeply and that was why she lost it as soon as Cooper told her that no one was hurt by his actions. She was hurt because Speedle was her friend but most of all, Eric was not just hurt...he was distraught by Dan's actions, and Calleigh would not stand by and let it slide. He had hurt Eric deeply and he was going to pay for that.
Twenty minutes later, she was knocking on his door but he didn't answer and she knew for a fact he was there. She could hear him moving around, so she tried again.
'Eric please...open up' she pleaded and the door suddenly flung open.
'What are you doing here?' he asked her.
'May I come in?' she asked him softly.
'I don't need a babysitter' he replied a little too harshly and Calleigh pressed her lips together and gave him a nod.
'Clearly I'm not welcome here anymore. I'm sorry I bothered you' she told him and with that she turned to leave but her words seemed to have snapped him out of a trance he was in.
'Hey Calleigh wait' he told her as he grabbed her arm from her elbow and Calleigh stopped but didn't turn to look at him 'I'm sorry okay...I was out of line...Forgive me' he told her and Calleigh closed her eyes and turned around to look at him 'Come in...please' he said and Calleigh walked inside without saying anything.
She could see the empty bottles of beer but didn't say anything. She was expecting this really, plus he did look like he had been drinking. He was in his usual white vest and jogging pants, hanging low on his hips. She heard the door close and turned to look at him. Their eyes met but neither of them said anything at first. It had been a while since she had been here. Last time it was because she had needed him and this time, it was the other way around, and then without saying a word, she closed the distance between them and wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him into a hug. He looked so broken, it tore her heart apart. She felt him sigh and then felt his arms wrap around her and his head lean against hers, and Calleigh hugged him tighter.
'I'm sorry Eric...I'm so sorry you have to go through this again' she told him.
'It's like losing him all over again' Eric whispered.
He felt her arms tighten around him and in return he tightened his hold on her 'You saw him this morning, didn't you? You saw Speedle' she told him.
At that, Eric slowly pulled out of the embrace and looked at her, one hand on his hip, the other one running over his head 'Yeah...I saw him' Eric confirmed.
'Why didn't you tell me?' she asked him.
Eric shrugged at that 'Come on Cal, what am I supposed to tell you? That I'm seeing a ghost of our friend? You would think I'm losing my mind' he told her.
'I wouldn't' she replied immediately 'You know I wouldn't' she told him.
He walked away from her then and went to sit on the couch, his elbows on his knees, his thumbs massaging his temples. Calleigh watched him and went to sit next to him.
'Headache?' she asked him and he nodded slowly.
'Did you...' she started but he cut her off.
'I already went to the doctor. He said I'm having transitory hallucinations...my brain is building new pathways around the fragment that's still there. He gave me some medication for it' he told her.
'And you're drinking?' she asked him preoccupied.
'I didn't take the pills if that's what's worrying you' he told her and Calleigh nodded 'I think he was reaching out about what Cooper was doing' he admitted to her.
'Yeah I think so' she agreed and Eric turned to look at her.
'You do?' he asked her surprised.
'I do' she confirmed.
'What did you tell him?' he asked her. He still had no idea what happened after he stormed out of the bar.
'I told him to turn himself in or otherwise I will be getting a warrant for his arrest. He has until tomorrow to do it' Calleigh told him.
'You told him that?' Eric asked almost surprised 'Really? You would arrest him?' he asked her.
'I would...you don't think I should?' she asked him almost surprised.
'Well...he did break the law' Eric admitted after a moment of thinking.
'He did...but it was more the fact that he didn't think he did anything wrong...because Speedle is dead so according to him no one got hurt' she told him. She saw the look in his eyes and Calleigh placed her hand on his thigh but this time, he didn't flinch away 'But you did. He hurt you with his actions and in my book he needs to pay' she told him.
He looked at her hand on his thigh and Eric put his hand on hers, taking her hand in his as he let his thumb trace her fingers, and a tear escaped down her cheek as she watched him 'Even you got hurt' he told her.
'I did. It's hard thinking about him sometimes and this...it was unexpected but...' she started and then she stopped.
'But what?' he asked her as they held each other's gaze.
'I'm more hurt because you're hurting...because you're going through this again' she told him 'And you didn't need this. You were hurting enough by my actions. This was the last thing you needed' she told him.
'That's not the issue at the moment' he told her. He wanted to dismiss it but at the same time he couldn't. She needed to know that yes he was hurt by her actions but these moments matter to him. In reality he had hoped she would show up because he needed her...and she did. That is what mattered right now. He needed her and she was here, like he had been there for her when she needed to him to be...
'Please Eric, don't pretend like I didn't hurt you' she told him.
'You did' he admitted and another tear rolled down her cheek and this time he reached out and wiped it away. He watched her close her eyes at the touch of his hand on her cheek 'But what matters right now is that we keep being there for each other when it matters. I hoped you would come over today because I needed you...and you did...and that's what matters' he told her.
She wrapped her arms around his neck again then and pulled him into a hug 'I'll always be here for you Eric' she told him 'I'm sorry for all of this hurt' she told him.
'I'm sorry for how I greeted you earlier...for not confiding in you' he apologized.
'You had your reasons, don't worry about it. The important thing is I can be there for you now' she told him 'Promise me you'll let me know if something like this happens again' she told him.
'I promise' Eric replied 'I promise' he repeated.