Detective Olivia Benson was sitting at her desk doing paper work, when she happened to look up and spot a young girl standing in the entranceway. She was extremely surprised to see the appearance of the girl, as it was highly unexpected.

“Lenore! What happened?” Olivia exclaimed, quickly rushing over to her side.

Lenore winced as Olivia placed her hand on her back, and squirmed away slightly. “Where’s Elliot?”

“He’s busy at the moment,” Olivia replied.

“I want Elliot,” Lenore stated.

“Lenore, he’s with the Captain,” Olivia said.

“I want Elliot!” Lenore insisted firmly, as she took a seat in the chair at his desk. She wanted him, and she wanted him now!

Just then Detective Elliot Stabler came out of the Captain’s office, and froze a moment in shock at the sight of the one sitting in his chair. Her clothes were torn to shreds and her face was bruised and slightly bloody.

“Lenore! What happened?” Elliot demanded, quickly making his way over to his desk, where she sat.

“Elliot!” Lenore wailed, not caring if she sounded her age or not. She’d just turned thirteen a few weeks beforehand, and was extremely upset at the moment.

Elliot immediately embraced her gently, feeling her tense up when he hugged her. “What happened, Honey?”

Lenore pulled back slightly to look at him through her tears. She’d been so scared earlier, and was now so relieved to see Elliot. She sniffled some, before daring to speak, feeling all eyes on her.

“I-I walked in on something I-I shouldn’t have,” she whimpered.

“What did you walk in on?” Elliot wanted to know, staring into her terrified hazel eyes.

“A-A drug deal, gone wrong,” Lenore hiccupped, her brown shoulder length hair falling into her face. “I-I had to-to play dead – to get away. They-they were gonna k-kill me!”

Elliot embraced her once more. “Let’s get you cleaned up and checked out, okay? Then you can give us more details.”

“Okay,” Lenore choked out, allowing him to lead her to where they kept the first aid kit.

“Elliot,” Captain Craigen began, causing Elliot to look over at him. “Take her to the ER and get her checked out to be on the safe side. Then come back here and we can get her statement.”

“Thanks Captain,” Elliot replied, turning to usher Lenore out to his car, only she’d suddenly froze.

“I-I can’t go back out there!” She whined desperation in her voice. “They’ll-they’ll find me!”

“Lenore, nothing’s going to happen to you as long as I’ve got you, okay?” Elliot assured her.

Lenore swallowed nervously, but nodded slightly in spite of her current state. She clung tightly to his side – so tight, that he ended up just picking her up and carrying her out.

“Alright, back to work people,” Captain Craigen ordered, returning to his office.

Awhile later, Elliot returned with Lenore practically glued to his side. He led her over to his desk and had her sit in his chair, while he grabbed another one for himself.

“So, what’s the verdict?” Olivia asked, looking up from her desk. She was still working on paper work.

“A couple bruised ribs, black eye, fat lip, a bruise on her back the size of Texas,” Elliot rattled off. “A few bruises here and there, and a sprained wrist.”

“You’re lucky, you know,” Olivia said, looking at Lenore. “Usually they just shoot whoever catches them in the middle of a deal.”

Lenore shuddered slightly, gulping. “I know,” she choked out quietly. “They-they almost did. I-I just – know how to-to play dead – good.”

Elliot turned his chair so that he could face her, taking her hands in his. “Now, tell us what happened, Sweetheart.”

Lenore swallowed the lump in her throat, then began to tell them everything that had happened from the moment she’d left school.

“I-I was walking home – like always – and I-I heard shouting,” Lenore began. “So I-I went to check it out. I-I thought somebody from school was-was getting beat up or-or something. I-I wanted to help.”

Elliot nodded, as Olivia wrote it all down. He knew he had to stay calm and be strong for the girl sitting across from him. He was all that she had left.

“So I-I turned the corner and went into-into an alley,” Lenore continued. “And there was four-four guys beating another guy - another guy up. And then-then they-they shot him.”

“What happened then, Honey?” Elliot asked, rubbing the backs of her hands with his thumbs in a circular motion to try and keep her calm.

“I-I think I-I screamed,” Lenore admitted sheepishly. “I’m - I’m not sure. It - it all happened so - so fast. The next thing I knew I-I was being attacked. They – they kept kicking me and – and hitting me. I-I couldn’t do anything to-to stop them!”

Elliot felt her squeeze his hands and squeezed hers back gently, not wanting to hurt her any.

Lenore’s voice was starting to rise, as she began to panic, though she was perfectly safe at the moment. “They wouldn’t stop! I-I had to do something to - to make them stop! I-I had to play dead!”

“Shh. It's okay. You’re okay,” Elliot told her, trying to calm her down. “Just relax.”

“I had to play dead!” Lenore shrieked, her breathing becoming heavy and hitched. “I had to lie there and play dead, while they kicked the crap outta me! I hurt like hell and I couldn’t do anything to make them stop! Why wouldn’t they stop!?!?!”

“Lenore look at me!” Elliot ordered as he moved to crouch in front of her. He could tell she was about to hyperventilate. “Look at me!”

Lenore finally made eye contact with him, as tears streamed down her face, the frantic look slowly leaving her eyes.

“You’re safe now,” Elliot told her. “You’re going to be okay. We’re going to catch these guys. I promise.”

Lenore allowed herself to fall into his protective arms – the arms she’d known and loved her whole life. The only arms she’d known as comfort for the past six years, seeing as her family had been killed in a tragic car accident.

Elliot held her tight, as he lifted her up and set her in his lap, once he was sitting back in his chair. “Shh,” he soothed. “You’re safe now. I’ve got you.”

“They’re gonna kill me!” Lenore wailed, clinging to him as tight as she possibly could. “They’re gonna find me and kill me!”

“Shh. They’re not going to kill you,” Elliot stated firmly. “I’m not going to let them anywhere near you. I promised to keep you safe, and I’m going to.”

Lenore hiccupped some, as she sat there snuggled into him seeking the comfort and safety she so desperately needed. She didn’t care right then that her ribs hurt, nor the fact that she was sobbing like a baby. All she cared about was that she’d gotten back to Elliot – the one she trusted more than anything and anyone. The one she knew could and would keep her safe.

The Captain came out of his office a short while later, having had heard Lenore’s wails from inside his office.

“Elliot,” he began.

Elliot looked up, still holding the now sleeping girl in his arms. “Yeah, Captain?”

“Take her home and take tomorrow off if you need too,” Captain Craigen told him.

“But Captain – we gotta catch these perps.”

“The rest of us can do that,” Captain Craigen stated. “She needs you Elliot. Take care of her.”

Elliot nodded, as he glanced back down at the thirteen year-old he held, like he had back when she was younger. “I will Captain. Believe me, I will.”

Captain Craigen nodded, then turned to the others. “I assume we got her statement and know where to start looking?”

“Somewhere between the school and Elliot’s place,” Olivia answered.

“Then get out there and start canvassing. Somebody had to have heard something,” Captain Craigen said. “It was broad daylight. These things can’t just go unseen by everyone. I also presume we’re looking for a body, since she said she walked in on them killing somebody. Be on the look-out for that as well.”

“Munch, Fin, let’s go,” Olivia said, getting up and grabbing her jacket. “Give us a call if she remembers anything, Elliot.”

“Don’t worry, Liv,” Elliot replied. “I’m just as eager to catch these guys as you are.”

Olivia nodded, then followed Munch and Fin out to go start the search for the creeps who’d almost killed Lenore.

Once they’d all left, Elliot stood with Lenore in his arms, not wanting to let her go. “Captain.”

“Yeah?” Captain Craigen replied, turning to look at Elliot.

“Keep me posted, whether I come in tomorrow or not,” Elliot insisted. “I want to know everything that’s happens. Expect me in here periodically, especially if you catch the perps. I want to be the one who grills them.”

“We’ll see Elliot,” Captain Craigen answered.

“Captain…”

“Elliot, you’re personally involved. I said we’ll see, so leave it at that for now and get her home,” Captain Craigen told him. “And Elliot…”

“Yeah?” Elliot turned to look at him once more.

“Keep an eye on her.”

“I will Captain. Trust me on that one,” Elliot assured him.

Captain Craigen nodded, then returned to his office to make some phone calls.

Elliot managed to get Lenore out to the car, and lay her upon the backseats. He made sure she was buckled in, then got in the driver’s seat and drove off, headed for home.

Lenore slept soundly the whole way home, snoring softly. Her fear had left her completely exhausted, and the pain medication she was on didn’t help her stay awake any either.

Elliot finally reached his house and got out, going around to lift Lenore out so he could carry her inside. Once safely inside he laid her upon the couch and covered her up, before heading to the kitchen to get dinner started.

Not long after they’d gotten home, Lenore began to stir – and not knowing where she was, caused her to let out a startled scream.

“Elliot!” She shrieked, bolting upright on the couch.

Elliot came out of the kitchen and spoke to let her know he was there. “I’m right here,” he told her, coming around the side of the couch. “I was in the kitchen making dinner.”

Lenore gave a sigh of relief, then blushed. “Sorry,” she mumbled.

“Hey, you’ve nothing to be sorry for,” Elliot assured her, sitting next to her on the couch. “You’re scared and didn’t know where you were. It’s perfectly normal to be scared when you wake up and don’t know what’s going on.”

Lenore leaned into him, seeking comfort. “I don’t like being scared, Elliot. I mean, sure, I’m afraid of the dark – but the dark is much better to be scared of, than this.”

“I know, Honey, I know,” Elliot replied, hugging her close and kissing the top of her head. “But you’ll be fine. I promise. Nothing’s going to happen to you so long as I’m around.”

“Except burnt food,” Lenore joked, wrinkling her nose. “I think dinner’s burning.”

Elliot shook his head and held his hand out for her. “C’mon. Let’s go see what damage I’ve done.”

Lenore smiled and took hold of his hand, letting him lead the way to the kitchen.

Once in the kitchen, Elliot quickly headed for the stove, while Lenore went about setting the table. It was their usual routine, though he didn’t always burn the food.

“Saved it!” Elliot exclaimed suddenly, taking the chicken out of the oven. “The stuff on the bottom of the stove was burning.”

“Thank God,” Lenore said, handing him a plate to put the chicken on. “Do we need ketchup?”

“Don’t we usually put ketchup on our chicken fingers?” Elliot replied.

“Right,” Lenore smiled, going to the fridge to get the ketchup and the chocolate milk. “What do you want to drink?”

“Water’s good,” Elliot answered, setting the chicken aside so he could get the French fries out and into a bowl. “There should still be bottles of it in there.”

Lenore nodded and grabbed a bottle of water, before closing the fridge door and going back over to the table. She placed the stuff she’d grabbed upon the table, then took her seat, so that she could dig in and eat.

“So how was school?” Elliot questioned, as he too sat down to eat dinner. “Anything interesting happen?”

Lenore shrugged, as she sat hunched over her plate protectively. “Not really,” she answered softly. “It’s just school.”

“Not crushing on any guys this week?”

Lenore cast him a glare. “I don’t switch crushes every week, Elliot!”

Elliot narrowed his eyes slightly. “No need for the tone.”

Lenore rolled her eyes and resumed eating, but quietly this time.

Elliot shook his head, knowing she had to be acting like this because she was trying to not be scared of the situation she was now in.

Lenore finally finished eating and cleared her stuff away. “I’ve got homework to do,” she stated, about to leave the room.

“You need help?” Elliot wanted to know.

Lenore went to speak harshly, but paused. “Yeah,” she admitted finally. “Math’s a pain in the butt.”

Elliot nodded. “I know that, but you’ll need it all throughout life.”

“Wish we didn’t,” Lenore muttered, going to get her schoolbooks while Elliot finished cleaning up. Once she had her books, she spread them out on the kitchen table so she could figure out where to start.

“Why don’t you start with the math, then do the easy ones later?” Elliot suggested.

“Whatever,” Lenore shrugged, easing herself back into her chair.

Elliot pulled a chair up next to hers and sat down so that he could help her out. He knew how much she hated math, and figured if she got it down first she wouldn’t be griping about it later.

An hour and a half later, Lenore had finished her homework and was curled up next to Elliot on the couch watching T.V. They were watching her favourite show – Baywatch.

On a commercial break, Elliot decided to discuss something with her. “Do you feel up to school tomorrow?”

“No!” Lenore answered quickly, moving to look at him, causing her to wince.

“Hey, hey, take it easy,” Elliot told her not wanting her to hurt herself any. “I was thinking maybe you should stay home for a couple of days, to give your ribs time to heal some.”

“Only a couple?” Lenore repeated, looking a bit nervous about that.

“We’ll see how it goes, alright?” Elliot replied. “I mean, who knows, in a couple days, we could have these guys locked up.”

Lenore rolled her eyes. “Doubtful.”

“What’s so doubtful about it?” Elliot demanded.

“It always takes you guys at least a week to get the bad guy in jail,” Lenore rejoined. “I mean, the last one took you two weeks!”

“Lenore, we’ll catch these guys,” Elliot stated firmly. “Trust me. We’ll have them in jail as soon as possible.”

“Just don’t take a month,” Lenore pleaded. “I don’t think I can go that long without leaving the house.”

Elliot shook his head. “We’ll figure the rest of it out in the morning.”

“Okay,” Lenore shrugged, snuggling back into him as Baywatch came back on. “Shh…”

Elliot rolled his eyes, but kept quiet as she’d requested. He had the remote, so he could change the channel eventually – but he didn’t care to listen to her complain if he changed the channel during her show. Besides, it wasn’t the most violent thing out there, and the less violent shows she liked, the better.

Lenore stifled a yawn, as she watched David Hasselhoff rescue Hobie from the side of the cliff he was trapped on. Hobie was stuck there, because he’d thrown a party and someone had stolen his father’s hang-glider – which was why both boys were now on the side of the cliff. The one who’d stolen it had tried to fly it and Hobie had tried to stop him.

“Would you be mad if I did something like that?” Lenore asked out of the blue.

“Madder than you’d care to know,” Elliot replied. “It was a stupid thing to do. The party and the hang-gliding thing.”

Lenore turned slightly and carefully to smile up at him. “Good thing you don’t have a hang-glider, so I’ll never be temped to do that.”

“Yeah, good thing,” Elliot agreed, smiling back, knowing she was just teasing.

Lenore leaned up carefully to kiss his cheek, then snuggled back into him as he made a great pillow. She yawned once more, and closed her eyes as her show ended, knowing he’d let her stay where she was – for now.

Eventually, Elliot carried Lenore on upstairs to her room and tucked her into bed. He’d left her in her clothes, only taking her socks off her feet. He knew how she felt about socked feet in her bed touching her sheets. He kissed her forehead, then returned back downstairs and picked up the phone, calling the station. He wanted to know how the investigation was going.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Captain,” he said. “It’s Elliot.”

“I know who it is, Elliot,” Captain Craigen told him. “And nothing’s developed yet. Apparently, nobody heard or saw a thing.”

“What?!?” Elliot exclaimed. “It was broad daylight out!”

“You know how people are when it comes to these things – they don’t want to get involved,” Captain Craigen reminded him.

“I’d get involved – whether I was a cop or not,” Elliot stated, feeling his anger start to emerge. “Maybe I should bring Lenore in with me tomorrow and leave her there, and help out with the investigation. I mean, who knows, maybe we’ll have more luck with four of us working the case.”

“Elliot, see how she is in the morning, before deciding anything,” Captain Craigen told him. “You haven’t even gotten through tonight yet. She’s probably going to want to keep you to herself tomorrow.”

“Well, if she doesn’t mind hanging out at the station all day, then I’ll be in,” Elliot told him. “I can’t just ignore this case. Not when it involves her.”

“I understand that, but you have to do what’s best for her – not just join the case because you want to kill who hurt her,” Captain Craigen said. “And Elliot – no killing them when we find them – not unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

“Don’t worry Captain. I have restraint,” Elliot replied.

“Elliot, I know you, and I know how you get when somebody you love gets hurt,” Captain Craigen replicated. “Don’t go treading in deep water because I’m not always going to be able to cover your ass or Olivia’s.”

“I know that, Captain,” Elliot answered. “I’m not asking you too. All I want it to help find these bastards and have them rotting behind bars for the rest of their lives.”

Captain Craigen sighed. “Call me in the morning and let me know what’s up.”

“Alright,” Elliot replied. “And Captain – call me if anything comes up, no matter what time it is.”

“You have my word,” Captain Craigen responded. “The moment something arises, I’ll give you a call. Get some rest Elliot; you’ll need it.”

“Yes, Sir,” Elliot nodded, though he couldn’t be seen. “Talk to you in the morning.”

“In the morning,” Captain Craigen agreed, as they both hung up.

After hanging up the phone, Elliot cleaned the house up a bit, then headed on upstairs to bed himself – not knowing he’d be woken up in a few short hours.

“They’re going to get you, you know,” a boy with dark brown hair told her. “They know where you live. They’ve seen you before.”

“Hobie?” Lenore said looking and sounding confused. “What are you doing here? I thought you were grounded?”

“I am,” Hobie replied. “But I had to warn you. They’re going to come looking. They know they didn’t kill you. They need you to do something for them, remember?”

Lenore frowned a moment, not understanding. “What are you talking about?”

“They beat you up because you refused to do them a favour,” Hobie continued. “Not because you saw them kill that guy. They need you to help them deliver, but you refused.”

“What was I supposed to do? Agree?”

“They wouldn’t have beaten you up then,” Hobie pointed out. “They’d have just let you walk away from them and that alley.”

“Yeah, and then Elliot would smack my butt so good when he found out, I’d never be able to sit again!”

“No he wouldn’t. He hasn’t spanked you, since you were ten years-old,” Hobie reminded her. “He would’ve let you explain, and then you could’ve told him everything.”

“Why can’t I tell him everything now?”

“He’ll be mad you didn’t tell him in the first place, stupid,” Hobie stated. “And then he’ll know you didn’t go to see who needed help – you went because you like the one guy and wanted to see what he was up too.”

“I did not! You’re making this up!”

“Fine. Then continue to be stupid. They’re going to kill you no matter what you do, and you know it. Especially since word will get out that the cops are looking for them. You should’ve just kept your mouth shut or lied and said you got beat up at school.”

“But he can tell when I’m lying!”

“Then become a better actor! But whatever you do, you can not tell him why you really got beat up!”

“But I hadn’t planned on them initiating me! It just happened!”

“You weren’t supposed to have talked to them at all – no matter what! You were forbidden to talk to them or go anywhere near them!”

She looked at him worriedly. “Elliot’s gonna be mad at me! No matter what I do!”

“Then you should’ve never said hello then!”

“I was just trying to be nice!”

“To drug dealers?”

“How was I supposed to know?”

“Elliot warned you to steer clear! He told you to come home a different way! You just couldn’t steer clear!”

“I’m an idiot, I know! Alright?”

Hobie shook his head. “No. It’s not all right. Because you were stupid, they’re going to kill you – and maybe Elliot too.”

“Nobody can kill Elliot! He’s invincible!”

“Nobody’s invincible – not even Elliot.”

“Shut-up!”

The scenery changed then, and suddenly Hobie smirked evilly. “You were warned not to tell.”

Lenore’s eyes went wide as she saw the gun in his hands, and Elliot standing there with the gun pointed at him.

“NO!” She screamed. “Don’t kill him! Please!”

“All you had to do was keep your mouth shut!” Hobie growled, as he pulled the trigger.

“NOOO!” Lenore shrieked, bolting forward, as Elliot fell to the ground in a heap.

Elliot came running when he heard the shrill scream coming from Lenore’s room. He quickly entered with his gun drawn, thinking there was somebody in there with her. He was surprised to see her sitting upright and attacking the pillow at her feet.

“Leave him alone! Leave him alone!” Lenore screamed in her sleep, thrashing about.

Elliot quickly put the safety on his gun and set it upon her night table. He then gently grabbed hold of her and pulled her close to him. “Shh…”

“Leggo! Leggo! Leggo!” Lenore screamed, now hitting him.

“Lenore! It’s me, Elliot!”

“Elliot?” Lenore repeated, suddenly waking up some. She shook her head to clear the fog that seemed to have invaded her brain. “What – What happened?”

“You had a nightmare, Kiddo,” Elliot replied, hugging her tight.

“Oh…” Lenore said softly, highly relieved it had only been a dream. “Sorry.”

“Nothing to be sorry for,” Elliot told her. “Care to tell me what it was about?”

“Just – what happened,” Lenore answered quietly, still not sure if what was said in her dream was actually true or not.

“What about it?” Elliot asked. “Did you remember anything?”

“I’m – not sure,” Lenore said honestly. “Just – they’re going to kill me.”

“Lenore, they’re not going to kill you,” Elliot stated firmly. “I’m not going to let them anywhere near you.”

“You can’t always stop them from doing what they wanna do,” Lenore whispered. “And they hafta know by now I’m alive and that you guys are looking for them. I mean, what if they kill you?”

Elliot looked down at her, as she looked up at him – fear evident in her hazel eyes. “Honey, they’re not going to kill me – especially not if Liv is around. You have to trust me on this.”

“But what if one day you do die on the job after promising me you won’t get killed?” Lenore questioned. “Then what?”

“Then – we cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“How do we cross it if you’re dead?” Lenore snapped, starting to become angry again. “Hmm, Elliot? Then what am I supposed to do?”

“Lenore…” Elliot trailed off warily.

“Well? What do I do then? If you get killed, I have no where to go! You’re the only one I’ve got left! I can’t lose you too! I just can’t!”

Elliot pulled her into his lap so that she was straddling him, as she sat upon his legs. He lifted her chin up with his hand and looked directly into her eyes. “Nothing is going to happen to me during this case,” he stated firmly. “You don’t need to be worrying about things like that. It’s my job to worry about you – not the other way around. Your job is to relax, be a kid, have fun, and go to school, not worry about me. My job is to worry about you and catch the perps who insist on hurting innocent people.”

“But I’m scared,” Lenore admitted, sniffling some. “You’re all I’ve got left. If I lose you, I’ll have nobody.”

“You won’t have nobody,” Elliot assured her. “You’ve got Liv, Munch, Fin, and the Captain. I know they may not seem like much – but you still have them. And besides, I know Cathy adores you and the kids enjoy your company.”

“But what if they hate me, ‘cause I’m hogging you?”

Elliot shook his head, smiling slightly. “You really worry too much, Kiddo.”

Lenore sighed as she snuggled into him. “I can’t help it. Especially since those – those goons are after me.”

Elliot hugged her as close to him as possible. “Those goons are going to rot in jail soon as we get our hands on ‘em. I promise.”

“I love you,” Lenore whispered quietly, closing her eyes as she tried to stop her tears.

Elliot rubbed her back affectionately. “I love you too, Honey.”

The next morning Elliot awoke, smiling slightly when he realized Lenore was still in his lap, snuggled into him as much as possible. It’d been a long night, but once he’d gotten her calmed down, they both fell asleep rather quickly. He sighed softly, as he carefully and gently eased her out of his lap and back onto the bed. He covered her up, kissed her head, then left the room to go and get breakfast started. He’d decided they’d discuss going to the station while they ate, as discussing things on an empty stomach was never good – it just made people crankier than usual.

“Hmm…chocolate chip pancakes should do,” he decided, grabbing the pancake mix from the pantry and the chocolate chips from the fridge. “Hopefully, they’ll make her feel better.”

It was while he was making the second last batch that Lenore came stumbling down the stairs in her Mickey Mouse pyjamas. After her nightmare and their talk last night, she’d changed into her pyjamas, so she’d be more comfortable.

“Hey…” she said softly, trailing off slightly.

Elliot turned to smile at her. “Hey, Kiddo. Sleep well?”

Lenore shrugged. “S’alright. I got scared when I realized you’d left, but I couldn’t get outta bed yet.”

Elliot shook his head. “Least I didn’t go far.”

It was then Lenore realized just what it was he was making – her favourite breakfast food ever!

“Oooh! Chocolate chip pancakes!” She squealed delightedly, running over to stand next to him in front of the stove. She liked to peer over and watch as they were made – in hopes of getting one early. She did this anytime he cooked something she loved to eat. “Do we still got corn syrup?”

Elliot nodded. “Yeah, we do. It’s in the cupboard next to the fridge – middle shelf.”

“Sweet!” Lenore exclaimed, scurrying over to get her syrup, also making sure to grab the maple syrup out of the fridge as well. “I love corn syrup on chocolate chip pancakes! It’s the best!”

Elliot smiled. “I know you do – that’s why I made them.”

Lenore smiled back as she set the syrup upon the table, then ran to grab plates. “You make ‘em the best too! Nobody can make ‘em like you can.”

“Thanks,” Elliot replied, finishing off the last batch. He always made lots, knowing she liked to heat up the leftovers at lunchtime.

Lenore was on his heels as he carried the plate of chocolate chip pancakes over to the table, sitting down quickly once he’d set the plate down. She grabbed up her fork and eagerly dug in, though she received a scolding look.

“Your fork?”

“I didn’t stick it in my mouth yet!” Lenore exclaimed. “It’s clean! I wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t!”

“You better not,” Elliot told her sternly, before letting the smile he was trying to hide break out upon his face. “And if you’d noticed, I did the same thing.”

“Elliot!” Lenore groaned. “I thought I was in trouble!”

“I know,” Elliot chuckled. He ate a few bites of a pancake, before asking her about what was on his mind. “Do you feel up to hanging out at the station today? You could work on homework and stuff, and I could work on the case.”

Lenore looked a little sad. “So I don’t get you to myself today?”

“Well, it might help us catch these perps faster, if I was there to help out,” Elliot stated. “You never know.”

“Fine,” Lenore sighed. “I can hang out there and bug the Captain.”

Elliot raised his eyebrows. “You’d better not bug the Captain. He’s a very busy man, Lenore.”

“I’m not stupid, Elliot!” Lenore snapped. “I know when to bug people and when not too!”

“And you know how to come close to being grounded,” Elliot replied. “Eat up and get ready to go. We leave soon as you’re ready.”

Lenore shook her head and resumed eating her pancakes. She was still angry she wasn’t even going to get him to herself for a day – all he ever did was work, work, work! Was it too much to ask to have him all to herself for just one day? Would it really kill him that much to take a day off and just spend time with her? Sure, she loved him and knew he loved her; and they did do things together when they were both home – but usually, he got called in and she wound up being left alone.

Soon enough, they were both dressed and ready to go to the station for the day. Elliot grabbed up his wallet as they headed out the door, while Lenore grabbed up a book to read and a notebook to write in. She knew it was going to be a long day wand wanted to make the best of it – bruised ribs, a sprained wrist, and all.

Elliot led the way to the car, and they both got in quietly. He was busy thinking about the case and Lenore was busy being mad at him for the moment. They drove to the station in silence, the only noise being the radio that blasted throughout the car – Lenore only grinning when the Backstreet Boys came on.

When they reached the station, they both piled out and headed on inside. Needless to say, everyone inside was surprised to see them – especially after what had happened the day before.

“Elliot, what are you doing here?” Olivia asked.

“Joining the case,” Elliot replied, tossing his coat over the back of his chair.

Olivia looked from him, to Lenore, and then back to him again. She’d really thought he’d at least take a day off to ease Lenore’s fears some more. “Does the Captain know?”

Captain Craigen came out of his office then, frowning when he spotted Elliot and Lenore. “Elliot, my office,” he ordered. “Now.”

Elliot followed the Captain into his office, shutting the door behind him as requested.

“I thought you were going to call me this morning?” Captain Craigen stated, eyeing one of his best detective warily. “Did you talk it out with her?”

“We decided during breakfast we’d spend our day here – her doing whatever, and me working the case,” Elliot replied. “And since when do I need her permission to come to work?”

“Since she could’ve been killed yesterday, Elliot!” Captain Craigen exclaimed. “You brought a child here, knowing perfectly well that she probably wants to cling to whoever or whatever makes her feel safest – You!”

“Look, she agreed to it, and will be fine,” Elliot told him flatly. “Now, let me do my job and catch these perps before they terrorize someone else.”

With that said, Elliot stalked out of the Captain’s office, heading straight for Olivia. He needed to know what they’d found out already, though he’d been told the night before it wasn’t much.

“Liv, where are you on the case?” He demanded, grabbing a file off her desk. “Fill me in, then you and I can go check things out. And did you guys ever find that body?”

“No, not yet,” Fin piped up. “We’ve searched everywhere between your place and the school. We checked every alley and even had the dogs out looking for him. But so far, nothing’s come up. I’m starting to wonder if there even was a body.”

“Look, if Lenore said there was a body, then there was a body, Fin!” Elliot snapped angrily. “You just have to look harder!”

Lenore shrunk down in her seat, when they mentioned they hadn’t found the body. But then again, she’d never mentioned she’d really been nowhere near her normal route home.

Olivia happened to look up and over at Lenore then, as she sat there listening to the boys argue while she read something over.

“You didn’t tell us everything, did you?” She accused suddenly, causing Lenore to squirm. “What didn’t you tell us, Lenore?”

“Liv, she said yesterday she told us everything, so drop it,” Elliot cut in. “She wouldn’t lie about something like this. Trust me, I know her.”

“Lenore, answer my question,” Olivia pressed, ignoring Elliot, who was becoming rather angry with his co-workers. “What didn’t you tell us? You know something, that could be very important to this case.”

Lenore hung her head, looking down at her lap sheepishly while nervously playing with her mood ring. “I-I took a different way home,” she admitted just above a whisper.

“Lenore, you have to speak up so we can hear you,” Olivia encouraged.

“I took a different way home,” Lenore repeated, wincing slightly when she felt Elliot’s gaze land upon her.

“You what!?!?!” Elliot exclaimed angrily. “You’ve been told to come the same way home, every day! That was one rule we agreed upon in the very beginning!”

Lenore slid down further in Elliot’s desk chair. “The old way was boring,” she said softly. “I needed a change of scenery.”

“Why didn’t you tell us this yesterday?!?” Elliot yelled. “You could have saved everyone a lot of time and running around! You had everybody on a wild goose chase!”

“Because I knew you’d get mad at me!” Lenore cried, finally daring to glance up at him.

“Well, it’s a little late for that, don’t you think?” Elliot snapped. “Now, what really went on yesterday, Lenore Jolene Parker!”

Lenore winced visibly upon hearing her full name. She hadn’t heard him use it since she was ten and had snuck out, only to end up spanked and grounded for a rather long period of time. And that had only been after the rough year they’d had, since she’d moved in with him not long after her ninth birthday. But she’d been hurting and testing the limits – a little too well at times. But what did he expect? She had just lost her family due to a horrible car accident.

“Like I said it happened,” Lenore answered finally. “Just – I didn’t say exactly where on the way home.”

“Well, you should have!” Elliot stated.

“Well, it’s not like you asked where it happened!” Lenore snapped. “You just assumed it had happened on my usual route! And you know what assuming does!”

“Don’t you get sassy with me, Young Lady!” Elliot growled. “You do and you’ll regret it for some time to come!”

“Hey, hey,” Munch quickly cut in. “Why don’t we all take a moment to calm down, then go over the facts once more? So this time, we’ll be looking in the right place”

Lenore gave him an extremely sheepish look when he raised his eyebrows at her, when saying the last sentence. “I’m sorry,” she squeaked.

Elliot walked off to try and calm his nerves. He hadn’t felt this angry with her in a long time, and he didn’t like it. She was making it look like he didn’t know a thing about her…But the question was – did he really?

Once everyone had calmed down some, they all resumed sitting or standing around Olivia and Elliot’s desks.

“Now, what really happened yesterday?” Elliot demanded. “And tell us everything this time, Lenore!”

Lenore tried not to cry, as they all stared at her – the only one extremely angry, being Elliot. Though, Captain Craigen had given her a brief lecture a few minutes ago.

“I-I was walking home….the other way…..and kinda….went into the alley when I heard shouting…” Lenore began. “Then…they killed him, and I made noise and got beat up. Pretty much like I said yesterday…”

“And that’s it?” Elliot questioned. “That’s the honest truth? Nothing else happened?”

“I-I’m not sure,” Lenore admitted.

“How can you not be sure!” Elliot snapped. “What are you not sure about!”

“I-I don’t wanna tell you…’till I know for sure.”

“Not like you can’t get yourself into anymore trouble than you’re already in,” Elliot stated, getting up angrily. “Liv, let’s go. We’ve a body to find.”

“I’ll go start canvassing the neighbourhood,” Munch said. “You coming Fin?”

“Yeah, in a minute,” Fin replied, eyeing Lenore. Once everyone had left the room, he decided to ask his question. “You’re sure that’s all there is to it? We’re not going to find something else out that may jeopardize this case?”

“I’m not sure about everything else,” Lenore told him. “I-I dreamt some stuff…but I dunno how much of it was real…”

“Fine. But if you become sure of anything, call me,” Fin ordered.

“O-Okay,” Lenore stuttered somewhat.

“And don’t worry. The Captain and everyone else, is here to protect you.”

Lenore nodded quietly, trying not to show just how upset she was that Elliot hadn’t stayed behind – even if he was extremely angry with her at the moment.

Fin nodded once, then quickly left to go help Munch canvass the area she said she’d been in the day before.

Lenore sat there quietly after everyone had left. She was starting to wish she’d told them which way she’d come home yesterday. Then maybe Elliot wouldn’t be so mad at her, and maybe he would’ve stayed to keep her company. Though, she knew the second wouldn’t happen, as he was persistent.

Captain Craigen stood silently in the doorway of his office as he watched Lenore groan and place her head down upon the desk. He knew she had to be feeling pretty bad – more so now than before. He’d seen the look in her eyes when her and Elliot had first come in that morning, and knew almost instantly she hadn’t wanted to be there – but had had really no choice in the matter.

Lenore just about jumped out of her skin when somebody placed their hand upon her shoulder.

“Relax, it’s just me,” Captain Craigen told her. “How’re you holding up?”

“Okay, I guess,” Lenore answered softly, not really wanting to admit anything.

“You really don’t want to be here, do you?” Captain Craigen stated knowingly. “I’ve a feeling you would’ve much preferred to stayed home with Elliot.”

Lenore looked up sheepishly, a faint blush coming to her cheeks. “Is it that obvious?”

Captain Craigen nodded. “Everyone knows you would’ve preferred to stay home – but everyone also knows how hard-headed Elliot can be.”

Lenore looked back down at her feet silently, then finally spoke after a moment’s silence. “Just once – I’d like to stay home and have him all to myself. No work, no school, no phone calls, nothing. Just us. I don’t even care if we just sit and watch movies all day on the couch. Just so long as I get my day, without any interruptions.”

“It sounds like you both need a vacation,” Captain Craigen commented.

“Care to suggest Disney World for me?” Lenore asked hopefully. “I’ve always wanted to go there. Though, I doubt Elliot will take me there now….”

“I’m sure once things cool down and these perps are caught, things will go back to normal,” Captain Craigen stated. “I’ll even insist he takes a vacation, so you can have him to yourself for a while.”

“Really? You’ll spare your best detective just for me?” Lenore said, her eyes shining some.

“He’s not my only detective, Lenore,” Captain Craigen reminded her. “I do have three others equally as good.”

Lenore shook her head. “I’m biased. Nobody’s as good as Elliot – even if he does work too much.”

Captain Craigen smiled some. “We’ll work on him…unless I really do need him, okay?”

“Thanks,” Lenore smiled softly. “I haven’t really had anybody to talk to in a while. That’s part of why I’m always glued to the computer.”

“Well, get out and enjoy the sunshine some more – once things settle down,” Captain Craigen insisted, heading back towards his office. “If you need me, you know where to find me.”

“Yeah, I know,” Lenore nodded. She bent down to search in her knapsack for her book then, and upon finding it, got comfortable in Elliot’s chair and began to read.

“You know Liv, after all these years, I can’t believe she’d lie to me and have us all on a wild goose chase,” Elliot piped up, as him and Olivia searched the alleys between the school and his home. “I mean, have I no taught her better than that?”

“She was scared Elliot,” Olivia reminded him. “Everybody acts different when scared.”

“Yeah, but still,” Elliot replied. “We could’ve found the body by now and actually have suspects or the actual bastards that did this.”

Olivia shrugged slightly. “She’s just a kid.”

“It doesn’t….” Elliot trailed, as Olivia cut him off.

“If it was any other kid, you’d use that excuse – that they’re ‘just a kid’. But because it’s Lenore, you’re angrier and more protective than usual. I really don’t know what the Captain’s thinking, letting you work this case when you’re so emotionally involved.”

“Liv, if he didn’t let me work it, I’d be going at it alone,” Elliot told her. “You ought to know me well enough by now to know that.”

“I do know you that well, Elliot,” Olivia replied. “But I still think you should’ve spent at least today with Lenore, at home. I mean, if you were her, would you really want to be stuck at the station alone?”

“If it means catching the perps, then yes,” Elliot answered.

“Elliot, she’s a young girl who looks up to you more than you know,” Olivia pointed out. “Girls can be overly clingy when they’re scared or upset. And right now, she’s both. Though, she may not seem clingy, she could just very well be hiding it.”

“I wonder what else she might be hiding,” Elliot muttered.

Olivia sighed and shook her head, seeing she wasn’t going to be able to get through to him right then. “Hey, there’s blood here. I think this might be the alley Lenore was in.”

Elliot quickly rushed over to see, and following the trail of blood, soon found the body of the male that had been shot. “Looks like they shot him a few times, not just once.”

Olivia shook her head, continuing to look around for evidence, while Elliot radioed in to the station, to say they’d found the body.

Soon enough, the coroner and the crime scene unit showed up to go over the scene with Elliot and Olivia. Both had guarded the area, not wanting anyone to suddenly just walk in on the crime scene.

“He’s about sixteen, seventeen,” Dr. Melinda Warner told the detectives. “He’s been dead approximately nineteen hours. I won’t know more until I get him on the table.”

Elliot shook his head. “We would’ve found him sooner than eleven o’clock today, if somebody had told us what way she’d come home,” he muttered, still angry with Lenore for not telling them in the first place.

“Elliot,” Olivia started, placing a hand on his arm. “She was scared and not thinking straight. Give her a bit of a break.”

Elliot shrugged Olivia off, and went on investigating the crime scene surroundings. He wanted to be sure they found everything they could possibly need to catch the people who’d beaten his little girl up.

“You know, we probably could’ve had this case half solved if she’d just told us all the details like she’d been asked,” Elliot commented after a short while of silence.

“Elliot, don’t start this again,” Olivia told him. “You ought to know people don’t always make the best choices when scared.”

“I still wish she’d have made a better decision,” Elliot stated. “If she’d just come home her usual way, none of this would’ve happened!”

“Elliot, it would’ve happened,” Olivia pointed out. “Only, Lenore wouldn’t have been involved.”

“A father’s allowed to go over the ‘what ifs’ when their child is involved,” Elliot snapped. “Now, let’s just get this over with.”

Little did they know, that someone in the crowd that had gathered nearby was listening very carefully to their conversation. Upon hearing a name he thought he’d never hear again, he quickly, but casually vacated the scene. He had to inform his leader – and quick!

Meanwhile, back at the station, Lenore was still sitting in Elliot’s chair reading her book, completely oblivious to the rest of the world. She was still a little jumpy, but not so bad about it now, since everybody was pretty much coming up in front of her and not from behind.

“I wonder what’s taking them so long,” she wondered silently, taking a small break from her book.

Lenore glanced around cautiously, before deciding to go see what the Captain was up to at the moment. She got up, leaving her book lying upon Elliot’s desk, and quickly hurried off into Captain Craigen’s office.

Captain Craigen looked up in surprise when he heard someone come in, smiling a little when he saw whom it was. “Hey. How’s it going out there?”

Lenore shrugged slightly. “Okay,” she answered quietly. “Um…C’n I stay here with you for a lil’ bit?”

Captain Craigen nodded. “It’s okay to be scared, Lenore. Just don’t distract me from my work anymore than you have too, alright?”

Lenore looked down sheepishly. “I’m sorry. I know you’re busy and all. I’ma just go back out and sit in Elliot’s chair again.”

Captain Craigen watched her a moment. “How about we go get some lunch first.”

“Okay,” Lenore agreed readily. She knew no matter where they went, so long as she was with him, she was safe. “I’m kinda hungry, anyway.”

“So am I,” Captain Craigen told her. “How about we go to the Deli down the street?”

“Sure!” Lenore exclaimed. “Elliot and I eat there when I come to visit him at work. They have a mean turkey and cheese sub!”

Captain Craigen smiled. “Well, maybe I’ll just have to try this mean turkey and cheese sub then, won’t I?”

Lenore smiled back up at him, as she grabbed her jacket from where she’d left it. “Once you try it, you’ll never forget it.”

“For right now, I’ll take your word on it,” Captain Craigen replied.

Lenore giggled as they headed on out of the station, to make their way to the Deli down the street. She felt a little less scared, since they were doing something somewhat normal. True, she could’ve gone to school, but hadn’t wanted to do so – even if her ribs weren’t as sore as they’d been the day before, thanks to amazing painkillers.

“Are you buying?” Lenore asked suddenly, feeling a bit shy and ashamed. “I – Elliot never gave me any money this morning. I – I think he was too mad to – to think of it.”

Captain Craigen nodded. “I’m buying. Was going to anyway, so don’t worry about it.”

“Thanks,” Lenore said softly, truly meaning it. “And I’m sorry I sent you guys on a wild goose chase yesterday….”

“Just don’t leave important things like that out again,” Captain Craigen told her. “Because we can’t catch these guys if we don’t know everything – and I mean, everything.”

Lenore nodded quietly, starting to feel bad for not mentioning her dream earlier. Though, she did truly want to figure it out first, because she didn’t want to give them any more false information.

They finally reached the Deli and headed on inside, grateful there really wasn’t that much of a line-up. Especially since Captain Craigen didn’t want to be away from the station any longer than he really had to be.

Little did they know that at the moment, their every move was being watched very carefully. The one watching was waiting for the perfect moment to make their move.

After returning from the Deli, Captain Craigen holed himself back up in his office, while Lenore sat back down to read her book and eat her sub. She’d enjoyed the walk, and was glad she’d gotten a break from the station. Sure, she loved the people who worked there, but she was still just a kid and certain things going on at the station made her uncomfortable – even if she was too curious for her own good.

Lenore read for a while, glancing up every so often to take in all that was going on – she was also keeping an eye out for Elliot. She really needed a hug, and though she knew he was probably still mad, the hug really needed to be from him.

“I should’ve told him yesterday I walked home the other way,” she thought to herself. “Then maybe he wouldn’t be so mad now, and maybe he would’ve stayed home with me today.”

She sighed and glanced down at the book that now lay in her lap, thinking a moment. She couldn’t help but feel foolish for all the trouble she’d caused them in less than forty-eight hours.

. “I wish I wasn’t such an idiot,” she mumbled aloud, her eyes downcast. “Then maybe Elliot would want to spend some more time with me.”

She set her book aside, atop his desk, and reached for what was left of her sub. She was still hungry, though she’d actually eaten half of it while reading. She munched in silence, casually glancing at all the things on Elliot’s desk. Sure, in a way she was snooping, but in a way she wasn’t either, so it was all good. Besides, if he didn’t want her to read any of it, he shouldn’t have left it on his desk in the first place. He knew how her eyes liked to wander and read everything in sight.

“Hmm…girl kidnapped, raped, then found having been left for dead…” Lenore mumbled around the piece of sub in her mouth, as she read the newspaper article. “I wonder if they caught the bad guy….”

She continued to read the rest of the article in silence, scowling when it was said the bad guy had yet to be caught.

“Dang. Cops are slacking these days,” she muttered. “Hope this guy doesn’t strike again anytime soon. That’d be bad.”

“Are you done talking to yourself?” Elliot asked, as him and Olivia entered the station and neared their desks. “Or is that a new hobby of yours?”

Lenore looked up startled. “Oh…hi…”

“Hi yourself,” Elliot replied, snatching the newspaper article away from her view. “Don’t read this trash. It’s nothing you need to worry about.”

Lenore shook her head. “I’m not a lil’ kid Elliot. You don’t have to censor my reading material.”

Elliot gave her a stern fatherly Look that made her squirm and look away briefly.

“Have you been able to remember anything else?” Olivia asked suddenly. “Because if you did, it just may help us solve this case.”

Lenore shook her head, not really having had thought about the dream she’d had. “Not really,” she answered, looking away slightly as she did so.

“Lenore, what aren’t you telling us once more?” Elliot demanded.

“If I thought it was important, I’d let you know,” Lenore snapped.

“For all we know, it is important and you’re keeping it from us.”

“It was just a dream, alright?” Lenore retorted angrily. “I don’t even know how much of it was real.”

“You keep this attitude up and you’ll find yourself grounded, Young Lady,” Elliot told her.

“Then quit treating me like I’m the bad guy!” Lenore exclaimed. “And you wonder why I don’t tell you things!”

“What aren’t you telling me, Lenore?”

“Like I’m going to tell you.”

“Lenore Jolene Parker!”

Lenore rolled her eyes slightly, quickly shoving the chair back away from Elliot when he made a move towards her. She’d never been so thankful for chairs with wheels in her life!

“Elliot, drop it,” Captain Craigen said, coming out of his office to see what all the commotion was about. “Did you find out anything?”

“No. Not yet,” Olivia replied. “Though, we did find the body.”

“Where are Munch and Fin?”

“Still canvassing,” Elliot stated.

“Good. Now you two, gets down to the coroner’s office and find out what happened to the other victim,” Captain Craigen ordered. “Lenore, my office. Now!”

Lenore’s eyes went wide and she quickly darted into his office, nervously taking a seat in front of his desk.

Once Elliot and Olivia had left again, Captain Craigen stalked back into his office, closing the door. He was determined to give Lenore a piece of his mind.

Lenore chewed on her bottom lip nervously, upon the Captain’s entrance to his office. She’d a feeling she’d ticked him off, and that was never a good thing.

Captain Craigen sat down behind his desk and eyed Lenore warily. “Look, I understand how you feel and I know Elliot is being a bit of an ass,” he began. “But that gives you no excuse to be rude in return. We’re all trying to help you, yet you’re not doing a thing to help us with this investigation! Would you prefer we never found the perps who killed that boy and beat the shit out of you?”

Lenore squirmed in her seat, sinking down in it the more the Captain spoke. She was never good with being scolded, especially when there was good reason for it.

“We’re doing all that we can to find these guys,” Captain Craigen went on. “But you have to understand that there’s only so much we can do. We need your help to do the rest, as well as the help of the public. Well, the public that decides to face their fears and speak up that is.”

Lenore looked down at her lap, where her hands were nervously picking at her fingernails. “Now, are you willing to help us out and tell us every and anything you remember? Because without it, we might not stand much of a chance of catching these guys.”

“I just – I don’t see how something I dreamt can help,” Lenore said softly. “I mean, I’m not even sure if any of it really happened or not.”

“Well, why don’t you talk with Dr. Huang, and maybe he can help you figure out what is real and what isn’t,” Captain Craigen suggested. “You never know what you might remember just by talking about it.”

“Can I finish my sub first?” Lenore asked quietly. “I’m still hungry.”

“So long as you don’t dawdle about eating it, because the faster we solve this case, the faster we can take on others and help other people out,” Captain Craigen stated.

“Kay,” Lenore squeaked. “I’ll eat fast as I can. Promise.”

“Good. Go finish your sub, then let me know when you’re done, so I can get Dr. Huang up here and you two settled somewhere private to talk.”

Lenore nodded, then got up and quickly left his office, wanting to escape as quickly as possible. She resumed her spot at Elliot’s desk, and once more dug into turkey and cheese sub.

“About time you guys showed up,” Dr. Warner stated, as Elliot and Olivia entered the room. “Was beginning to think I’d have to have you both paged.”

“So what’s the verdict?” Elliot asked moving to stand next to Dr. Warner.

Olivia also moved closer, so she’d be able to see and hear everything. It was crucial both of them heard it all, so that if one forgot something later, the other could remind them.

“There was a lot of bruising on the upper body post mortem, suggesting he was beaten first, and shot later,” Dr. Warner began.

Elliot shook his head “Don’t these kids ever learn?”

“How old was he?” Olivia asked.

“I’d say probably about fifteen, sixteen,” Dr. Warner answered. “Somewhere around there, if not a little older.”

“Cause of death?” Elliot demanded.

“Gun shot wound to the chest,” Dr. Warner replied. “It pierced straight through his heart and out the other side.”

“It came out the other side?” Olivia repeated with raised eyebrows. “We didn’t see any bullets.”

“That’s because we weren’t looking for them, Liv,” Elliot reminded her. “We figured they’d all be in the body.”

“He was shot point blank, what do you expect?” Dr. Warner stated. “And you’re looking for more than one bullet. The one shot between his legs, right where it counts, didn’t stay lodged.”

“Did he die instantly?” Olivia wanted to know.

Dr. Warner shook her head. “The other three bullets hit him first, then the one that killed him.”

“Where else was he shot?” Elliot queried.

“His right shoulder and his lower stomach – both which stay lodged in him, as they twisted and wedged themselves in muscle tissue,” Dr. Warner told them.

Elliot and Olivia nodded in unison, both knowing they’d best get back to the crime scene. Neither could believe they’d missed out on bullets though – as had the crime scene unit.

“Well, we’d better get back to the scene, Liv,” Elliot said. “We have to find those bullets, before somebody else does.”

Olivia nodded her agreement. “Yeah, let’s go.”

“I’ll page you if I find anything else,” Dr. Warner told them.

“Thanks,” Elliot replied, as him and Olivia left the coroner’s office to go back to the alley to find the missing bullets.

Meanwhile Munch and Fin were canvassing the area near the crime scene. They were trying to find someone who would tell them what had gone on the day before in the alleyway. But so far, no such luck – everybody they’d talked to being closed mouthed about everything.

“You think we’ll ever get anyone to talk?” Munch asked his partner. “So far they either no nothing, or they seem to scared to talk.”

“I think there has to be one person around here who’ll be willing to talk,” Fin replied. “No matter how scared they are.”

“I sure hope so,” Munch sighed. “Because so far, Lenore seems like our only hope of ever solving this case.”

“And it’s not like she’s exactly being very helpful either,” Fin stated. “Did you notice how she became closed mouthed when asked certain questions?”

“She seemed more like she was trying to word things properly,” Munch answered. “She did answer the questions – we just might not be asking the right ones. You know, we don’t ask, so she doesn’t tell?”

Fin shook his head. “Well, whatever her reasoning, she better open up soon, before somebody else gets hurts. If that happens, it could look like she was trying to protect them long enough for that to happen.”

Munch shook his head. “You know, I wonder about her sometimes. She always seems like she’s hiding something – what, I don’t know – but still, something.”

“I know what you mean,” Fin agreed. “I know something is bothering her – and it’s not just what happened to cause us to investigate this case.”

“Well, here’s the next house,” Munch said. “Shall we try again?”

“Do we really have a choice?” Fin replied.

The two of them walked up the front steps to the front door of the house they now stood before. They hoped they’d actually get somewhere this time, instead of being lied to and given the run around.

“Hello?” A small voice answered, as the front door opened a crack.

“Hi, we’re Detectives Munch and Fin,” Munch told the young boy. “Are you parents around?”

“They’re busy right now,” the boy answered softly. “I-I hafta go.”

“Are you alone?” Fin asked.

The boy looked around nervously, looking rather worried.

“Why don’t you let us in and we can wait with you until your folks come home?” Munch suggested.

“Can I see your badges?” The boy asked.

Both detectives showed him their badges, and watched as he opened the door for them to come in, quickly locking it behind them.

“Do your folks always leave you home alone?” Munch asked.

The boy shook his head no, as he headed back to where he’d left his gameboy. “No. But they had to work an’ nobody could baby-sit, an’ our relatives live in another state.”

“They do realize it’s not safe to leave you home alone, right?” Fin piped up.

The boy nodded. “They’ve never done it before. But they had no choice.”

“What about friends?” Munch questioned.

The boy shrugged. “I dunno.”

“Do you have a name?” Fin queried.

“Nathaniel,” the boy answered, as he began to play his gameboy once more.

“Well, Nathaniel, what were you doing yesterday afternoon after school?” Munch wanted to know. “Were you outside playing or inside playing your gameboy?”

“I was outside playin’ my gameboy,” Nathaniel replied.

“Did you happen to see or hear anything, Nathaniel?” Fin asked.

Nathaniel paused a moment, then shook his head no. “I’m not ‘llowed to tell you.”

“Why not?” Munch queried. “We can protect your family, you know.”

“No you can’t,” Nathaniel answered. “Dad says you guys are only good at protecting rich folk, who got fancy cars. You don’t care about us who’re stuck livin’ here. An’ the only reason you’re here now is ‘cause that cop’s kid is involved.”

Both Detectives frowned upon hearing that. The case wasn’t in the papers, nor had any details been released – especially the one about Lenore living with Elliot.

“How do you know it’s a cop’s kid?” Munch interrogated.

“‘Cause every time she comes ‘round here, she likes to tell people who she lives with,” Nathaniel replied. “‘Less the gang’s nearby, then she’s acts all bad an’ stuff an’ hangs with ‘em.”

Munch and Fin both tried to hide their surprise. No wonder Lenore wasn’t telling them anything – she’d been in this area before and was actually trying to hang out with the gang. Just wait until Elliot found out – he was going to hit the roof!

Lenore sat in the one interrogation room nervously awaiting Dr. Huang’s arrival. She’d a feeling she was going to be found out now – she’d lied when she’d said she didn’t know what parts of her dream were real. Oh, she knew darn well what parts of it were real and which weren’t – for the most part. She knew she’d been breaking the rules and doing stupid things, but to her, her reasoning had been good – though, Elliot was going to kill her when he found out!

“I should’ve lied and said some bully beat me up,” Lenore grouched to herself softly. “Then I wouldn’t be in this mess.”

Dr. Huang entered the room then, smiling as he did so. “Hello Lenore. How are you today?”

“Okay, I guess,” Lenore replied honestly – probably the only honest thing that would be coming out of her mouth during this whole interview.

“So, I heard you had a dream you need help figuring out,” Dr. Huang stated, as he sat down. “But, if you’d like to discuss something else first, I’m fine with that too. I have as long as it takes to get you to figure out your dream.”

Lenore shrugged somewhat. “I dunno. Never talked to a shrink before.”

Dr. Huang nodded. “Well, there is nothing to be nervous about. We go at your pace and can start off with simple questions, if you’d like.”

“Okay,” Lenore replied softly.

“Who is your favourite Backstreet Boy?”

Lenore raised her eyebrows at him. “Oh, c’mon! Everybody knows its Brian Littrell!”

Dr. Huang sighed. “Lenore, we have to start off with what you’re comfortable with. I have to ask these questions, to ensure you’re being honest.”

Lenore rolled her eyes. “Fine... Brian is my favourite Backstreet Boy, okay?”

Dr. Huang nodded. “Yes. Now, what is your name and age?”

Lenore shook her head, rolling her eyes once more. “Lenore Parker, age thirteen. Birthday April 17th, 1994.”

“Alright, now I’m going to ask you about your dream,” Dr. Huang stated. “Can you tell me what happened in it?”

“Hobie Buchannon from Baywatch was in it,” Lenore began. “He kept telling me the gang was gonna kill me and Elliot and that I should have never said hello and stuff. That I should’ve lied about how and why I got beat up.”

“Why do you think Hobie was in it?”

“Because we were watching Baywatch last night,” Lenore answered flatly.

“Okay. Now, why did he keep telling you that the gang is going to kill you? Are you afraid that might happen?”

“Duh,” Lenore replied. “I mean, hello! I saw them kill a guy, remember?”

Dr. Huang scribbled some notes down upon his notepad. “And Hobie told you that you shouldn’t have said hello to them, am I correct?”

“Yeah,” Lenore said with a slight shrug.

“Did you ever say hello to them at all?”

“Pfft. Do I look stupid to you?” Lenore remarked.

“Yes or no will suffice, Lenore.”

“No,” Lenore snapped somewhat. “Elliot would kick my butt – literally.”

Dr. Huang nodded, once more writing on his pad of paper. “Was there anything else in the dream that was said?”

“Nope,” Lenore shook her head.

“Was there anything else that happened in the dream that I should know about?”

“Nope,” Lenore repeated. “Not a thing.”

“Alright, you’re free to go,” Dr. Huang told her. “If you think of anything else dream related, let me know.”

Lenore got up and walked back out to Elliot’s desk, to retrieve the book she’d been reading. She plopped back down in his chair and got comfortable once more.

Dr. Huang meanwhile, made his way into Captain Craigen’s office, to fill him in on how they’re session had gone.

“Well, how’d it go?” Captain Craigen asked. “Did she remember anything important?”

“It went okay,” Dr. Huang replied. “As for anything important – I believe she’s still keeping that hidden.”

“What do you mean?” Captain Craigen demanded.

“I feel the only truthful things she stated were her name, birthday, and that her favourite Backstreet Boy is Brian Littrell,” Dr. Huang told him. “As for the events of the dream – she seemed truthful about what happened in the dream – but when I asked if there was anything to it, or if she’d said hello to these people, she became irritated and sarcastic. This is normal for people who are truly annoyed or trying to cover something up. I mean, she’s scared – that much is obvious – but she was trying to play it off as if it’s nothing.”

“Yet meanwhile, we have our best detectives out there trying to solve this crime to protect her and she’s acting like she doesn’t give a rat’s ass,” Captain Craigen snapped.

“Oh, she wants them caught alright,” Dr. Huang assured the Captain. “But she seems afraid of what will happen to her after they’re caught. Like she’s done something wrong and knows it, and is afraid Elliot will find out, and is trying everything she can to keep it from him.”

“Well, if she’s done something she doesn’t want him to know that involves this case, she’d better damned well tell us!” Captain Craigen stated. “I’m getting sick and tired of sending my detectives out on a wild goose chase because she won’t tell us everything that happened!”

“Well, I don’t think yelling at her is going to help. Maybe if the detectives find out the right information, they can use it to get her to talk.”

“At this rate, I’m not sure anyone will ever find something that will get her to talk!”

“Well, we just might have done that, Captain,” Fin stated, as him and Munch entered the office.

Lenore had seen Detectives Tutuola and Munch enter the squadron, and had gotten a bad feeling when she saw them glance her way and scowl. They knew something – she just knew it! But what they knew, she didn’t know and had to find out immediately before they’d a chance to inform Elliot.

She glanced around to make sure no one was watching her, then hurried on over to the Captain’s office door and managed to stop it from closing all the way without being noticed. She leaned in carefully, so as not to cause the door to open or her to fall in, but enough so that she’d be able to hear what was being said.

Her heart just about stopped when she heard Detective Munch mention a little boy named Nathaniel and how he’d stated she’d been there quite a bit over the past little while. Hearing that, she knew she had to leave – and fast! There was no telling what Elliot might do to her when he found out – and the last thing she wanted was for him to lose his temper and actually spank her in front of everyone at the station – though, he had vowed never to spank her again after that last time. But still, one couldn’t be too sure nor safe enough – she decided not to stick around and find out.

She hurried on back over to Elliot’s desk and found a scrap of paper, on which she left a quick scribbled note - Gone to Ashley’s.

Soon as her note was written, she tossed her book back into her knapsack, grabbed her jacket and high-tailed it out of the station as fast and un-conspicuously as she could.

Elliot and Olivia returned to the station not too long after Munch and Fin had. They were surprised to find Lenore not at their desks, and even more confused when they were ordered into Captain Craigen’s office on the double.

“What’s going on, Captain?” Elliot demanded, as him and Olivia closed the office door behind them.

“It seems we may have a lead,” Captain Craigen answered. “You may want to sit down for this Elliot.”

“I’m fine standing, thanks,” Elliot replied, though he was wondering just what the heck it was they’d found out.

“It seems Lenore hasn’t been very truthful with us from the start,” Captain Craigen began. “We’ve been informed that she’s been in that area quite a bit recently and hanging out with the gang, when not bragging about being a cop’s kid.”

“She what!?!?” Elliot exclaimed, looking none too happy.

“Captain, are you sure?” Olivia asked. “I mean, is this source reliable?”

“This source is the only one talking,” Captain Craigen replied. “I’m sorry, Elliot. But it seems she’s gotten in with the wrong crowd.”

“She wouldn’t dare!” Elliot stated, not wanting to believe what had been said for a minute. Lenore wouldn’t – she knew better – didn’t she?

“Elliot, she would and did,” Fin piped up. “Why else would she be trying to hide everything and not tell you exactly what happened? She knows how things work around here, and definitely knows how you feel about lying.”

“I’ll kill her!” Elliot growled, turning to go out the door.

“Elliot,” Olivia said, grabbing hold of his arm. “That’s not going to help any.”

“Liv, she knows how I feel about that part of town!” Elliot riposted. “And if scaring her and making her cry is the only way to get her to talk, then dammit, I’ll do it!”

“Elliot, she’s just a kid!” Olivia argued.

“A very dead kid,” Munch muttered aloud.

Elliot turned to glare at the man who had spoken. “Well what the hell do you want me to do? No matter how I ask her about this, it’s guaranteed she’s going to cry, and I’m going to lose my temper – so we might as well just get it over with!”

“He has a point,” Captain Craigen stated. “No matter who questions her, she’s going to cry, because she’ll realize Elliot’s going to know and that she’s in more trouble than ever before. She’s in way over her head and we need to get her out of there, before they take her out – permanently.”

With that said, they all left the office – Elliot and Olivia headed to talk to Lenore, and Munch and find headed to their desk to plan their next point of strategy. Captain Craigen stood in his door way, to make sure things didn’t get too out of hand. Yes, Lenore was technically Elliot’s kid, but because she was his kid, that just may cause him to lose his temper way quicker and way more than ever before.

“Now, where is she?” Elliot wondered aloud, as they neared the desk, only to find that Lenore still wasn’t there.

“Elliot, her knapsack’s gone,” Olivia pointed out. “She wouldn’t have taken it to the bathroom with her if she was headed there.”

Elliot glanced down at his desk and spotted the note - Gone to Ashley’s,

“She’s going to run!” Elliot exclaimed. “Dammit! I’ve got to get home!”

Olivia quickly hurried after Elliot, as he ran out the door fast as he could. The two of them jumped into the car they used while at work, and sped off towards the Stabler household.

Meanwhile, Lenore was at home, throwing things into a suitcase, despite the pain in her ribs and wrist. She was in a hurry, though she was on the phone.

“Ashley, I’ve got to get away from here. Are you sure it’s okay that I come there?”

“Yeah, it’s okay,” Ashley assured her friend. “My Mom said you’re welcome here anytime.”

“And she doesn’t mind paying for the plane ticket?” Lenore checked.

“No, she doesn’t mind,” Ashley replied. “She’s glad you’re coming, so she can finally meet you and maybe I’ll be too busy hanging out with you to talk about you to everyone.”

Lenore laughed. “Well, I talk about you too. I just don’t think Elliot ever pays full attention though.”

“Are you sure he won’t mind you coming out here for a bit?”

“Ashee, don’t worry about me,” Lenore told her friend. “I know how to take care of myself.”

“Okay,” Ashley answered. “But hurry! We can’t have you missing your plane, ‘cause then you wouldn’t be able to come here!”

“You’re lucky I like you,” Lenore teased. “I wouldn’t get on a plane for just anyone.”

“I know,” Ashley smiled, though her friend couldn’t see. “I feel like a Backstreet Boy, ‘cause I know you’d fly anywhere for them.”

Lenore giggled. “But of course! I mean, who wouldn’t fly anywhere for them?”

“True…” Ashley trailed off, agreeing whole-heartedly though. “Does anyone know you’re coming here?”

“Felicia does,” Lenore responded. “And I left Elliot a note, so he knows I’m with you.”

“He doesn’t know where I live though, does he?” Ashley accused.

“No….” Lenore admitted. “But if he did, I wouldn’t be able to visit for very long.”

She glanced at the clock and gave a little shriek. “I’ve got to go Ashee! I’ma miss my flight otherwise! Eep!”

“Gah!” Ashley exclaimed. “We can’t have you miss it! Hurry Lenni! Hurry!”

“I’m hurrying, I’m hurrying,” Lenore muttered, finally throwing her favourite stuffed animal into her carry-on bag. “Okay, see yah soon!”

“Yup. See you soon1” Ashley chirped excitedly. “Love yah!”

“Loves yah! Bye!” Lenore replied, quickly hanging up and grabbing her bags. Once she had her bags, she quickly ran outside and booked it on down to the bus stop, where the bus headed for the airport had just arrived.

“Wait for me! Wait for me!” Lenore screamed, running fast as she could with a knapsack and suitcase. Needless to say, she just barely made it. She’d just taken her seat, when she saw Elliot and Olivia drive by.

“Oh, crap,” she muttered, slouching down in her seat, so as not to be seen. “They’re catching up!”

Elliot and Olivia sped past the bus and quickly pulled into the driveway of Elliot’s house. The two of them jumped out of the car and ran on inside, after having had unlocked the door.

“Lenore! Lenore, are you here?” Elliot called out frantically, as he ran about the house searching for her. “Lenore! Lenore Jolene Parker! You get out here right now, Young Lady!”

“Elliot, she’s not here,” Olivia informed him, coming out Lenore’s bedroom. “Her suitcase is gone and so are a whole bunch of clothes. Did she say how long she planned on staying at her friend’s?”

“No,” Elliot muttered. “All she said was she was going to Ashley’s.”

“Don’t you know where Ashley lives?” Olivia questioned.

“If I did, don’t you think I’d be half way there by now, Liv?” Elliot snapped. “Dammit!

“Well, you don’t have to snap at me!” Olivia snapped back. “I know you’re angry, but you have to not let it control you, Elliot. Especially not right now. Lenore’s life is in danger, and she’s foolishly taken off, just to avoid the consequences of her actions.”

“Which could turn deadly if we don’t find her!” Elliot said angrily. “I know Liv! I know!”

Olivia sighed. “Well, did she ever talk to you about Ashley? Have you even met this girl? Heck, is it even a girl to begin with?”

Elliot groaned. “I don’t know. She rambles all the time, and usually I end up just smiling and nodding because my mind’s on other things.”

“You mean, you never listen to anything she says?” Olivia queried.

“I listen, Liv. Just not one hundred percent all the time,” Elliot replied. “Though, I’m sure she mentioned something about Ashley and some other girl….oh, what was her name. Frannie? Alicia? Lisa? Felicia!”

“Felicia and Ashley?” Olivia repeated. “And let me guess, you’ve never met either of them.”

“No,” Elliot admitted. “I’m usually at work, or we’re arguing about something.”

Olivia shook her head. “And yet, you get mad at all the parents we meet who don’t listen to their kids.”

“Enough, Liv!” Elliot yelled, slamming his fist down upon the kitchen counter. “Now, just let me think a minute.”

Both were silent, as they tried to figure out what Lenore had done before running off to see her friend.

“Now, she would’ve come in, in a panic,” Elliot began. “So she would’ve been just throwing things into her knapsack and suitcase – because that’s how she packs unless I make her re-pack. Not that we’ve gone away anywhere recently, I just know that from past experiences.”

Olivia nodded. “Okay…So she’s panicking, but maybe she called her friend? Maybe her friend didn’t even know she was comin until last minute.”

Elliot quickly moved to check the phone’s caller ID, frowning when he saw that no-incoming calls were displayed, but one. “Liv, isn’t this, the area code for where that kid Lenore saw killed, was found?”

Olivia looked and nodded. “Yeah, I think it is.”

“Shit!” Elliot said. “This is not good! If they know where I live, they could very well be trailing Lenore, without her knowing it!”

“Elliot, we need to find out where Ashley lives first, before we go out after the perps who are more than likely trailing Lenore,” Olivia reminded him. “We find Ashley, we find Lenore.”

Elliot handed the phone to Olivia. “Call the station, and see if there’s anyway we can find out about all the calls made to and from my house in the past two days. She had to have planned this for more than a day.”

Olivia nodded, and called the station to see what she could find out. Elliot, meanwhile, went to search Lenore’s room for more clues the panicked girl had probably left.

“Now, I know I’ve heard her talk about Ashley and Felicia before,” Elliot mused, as he began to sift through papers on Lenore’s computer desk. He glanced at each one casually, stopping when he finally found one with two names and two phone numbers on it. “Liv! I think I’ve got something!”

Olivia came in, the cordless phone to her ear. “I think I’ve got something too.”

“I got phone numbers,” Elliot stated, holding up the scrap piece of paper. “For Ashley and Felicia both.”

Olivia paused, listening to whoever was on the other end of the phone for a minute, then spoke. “And I’ve got locations.”

“Elliot’s gonna kill me,” she muttered to herself, as she checked to make sure her knapsack was still at her feet. She’d taken it off to give her back a rest, but made sure to keep a close eye on it, as her favourite shirts and stuffed animal were in it; as well as a couple books to read along the way.

She stood as her flight was called, slinging her knapsack onto her shoulder and making sure she’d her plane ticket in hand. She made her way over to the terminal and showed the lady there her ticket, and was allowed to make her way through the terminal and out to the plane. She adjusted her knapsack nervously as she walked, only stopping with security asked her to wait a moment before heading out. Once a few more people had caught up to her, they were all led out to the plane they were to board.

She showed the flight attendant her ticket, and the lady pointed to where her seat was. She quickly made her way to her seat and sat down, after putting her knapsack in the overhead compartment. She was scared stiff, as she’d never been on a plane before and she’d never traveled alone. She and Elliot always drove everywhere, when they did actually go on vacation – which was next to never. He was always too busy with work, especially as of late.

She took her seat and buckled up, deciding she’d not take the seatbelt off until they reached their destination. She looked around nervously, hoping to God Elliot didn’t catch her before she’d a chance to escape. Though, she was sure that he’d figured out where she was headed by now.

“Please God, don’t let us crash,” she prayed quietly to herself. She was terrified of flying, and flying alone just intensified that fear. “Please let me get there safe and sound. Please!”

It wasn’t until the plane had finally taken off, that she allowed herself to relax some. Yes, she was still scared stiff, but she could relax because Elliot had yet to catch up to her – which meant, she was well on her way to Arizona to visit her friend.

“She better not have gotten on that plane!” Elliot growled somewhat, as he sped along, following the signs that would lead them to the airport. “I’ll skin her alive!”

“El, you will not and you know it,” Olivia told him. “The most you’ll do is ground her for all eternity.”

“Damn straight I will!” Elliot declared. “If I don’t throttle her first!”

Olivia laughed. “It’s a good thing I know you well enough to know you’d never actually throttle her.”

“Lucky for her,” Elliot muttered, slamming on the brakes as the cars in front of them came to a stop. “Dammit! Of all times for there to be a traffic jam!”

“Maybe we’ll get lucky, and the flight will be post-phoned,” Olivia said, trying to calm her partner down some.

“Maybe she’ll be lucky that it hasn’t been,” Elliot replied. “She knows I’m going to be furious when I finally catch up to her.”

“And we all know how frightening that can be for some people,” Olivia reminded him. “She adores you Elliot, and is more than likely running to avoid seeing you disappointed and upset with her – though, she should know you’ll be anyway.”

“I’ll just be happy if she makes it out of this whole situation alive,” Elliot stated. “Because if they catch up to her out there, there’s no way I can protect her. And Liv – that’s what scares me the most.”

Olivia nodded her understanding. “Maybe we should talk to the Captain about one or two of us heading out there, just in case.”

“Well, that’ll hafta wait until we get back to the station,” Elliot said. “Because if I talk to him now, I’m bound to start yelling and that won’t turn out good at all.”

Olivia groaned. “Maybe Munch and Fin are having better luck getting there, than we are.”

“I sure hope so,” Elliot grumbled, as he waited impatiently for the traffic to get moving again.

The lady behind the counter looked up, and eyed them warily. “I’m afraid you’ll have to get in line, Sir.”

“We’re here on Official business,” Fin told her, holding up his badge, as Munch showed her is. “Now, did the flight to Arizona leave yet?”

The lady checked her computer, clicking away quickly. “Yes, it has. It left about ten minutes ago.”

“Do you know when it will land?” Munch wanted to know.

The lady clicked away on the keyboard some more. “Seven forty-five tonight. The flight just left at two o’clock on the dot - it was actually right on schedule.”

“Did this girl happen to get on the plane?” Fin demanded, holding up a photo he had of Lenore. “She’d be traveling alone and probably a little nervous looking.”

The woman eyed the photo for a minute. “I’m sorry, but I don’t recall seeing her. If you already have your plane ticket, you just go sit over in the waiting area.”

Both Detectives nodded. “Thank-you, for all your help.”

The woman nodded, as the two Detectives walked away from her counter, to let her continue her work. She was curious, but didn’t dare ask what was going on – she knew if it was her business, they would’ve told her.

Munch and Fin headed on over to the woman standing near the terminal entrance, to take the tickets of flight passengers.

“Excuse us, Ma’am,” Fin started. “But have you seen this girl at all this afternoon?”

Once more he held up Lenore’s photo, which he carried in his wallet. They all had one, as she was part of their family and loved to give them all photos of herself just for fun.

The young woman eyed the photo carefully. “Why, yes, I have. She was sitting in that chair, right over there bouncing her leg. She looked nervous about getting on the plane, and glared at anyone who got too close to her knapsack – though, it cleared security.”

“Did she get on a plane at all?” Munch asked.

The woman nodded. “Yes. I believe it was the one to Arizona. We’ve only had two flights called so far in the past half hour.”

Munch and Fin groaned, as they realized Lenore had indeed foolishly gotten on the plane and left the state. “Thank-you, Ma’am.”

“May I ask why?” The lady questioned curiously.

“She’s a run away we’re trying to find,” Munch replied, which was pretty much the truth.

The young woman nodded. “Well, I wish you all the luck in the world in finding her.”

“Thank-you,” Fin replied, as him and Munch turned and headed towards the airport entrance to leave.

Just as they reached the entrance, Elliot and Olivia came running in, both a bit out of breath, as they’d parked the car and run on inside.

“Well, is she here?” Elliot demanded, hands on his knees as he caught his breath. “Is she?”

“Sorry man, she just left on the flight to Arizona about ten minutes ago,” Fin informed him.

“Dammit!” Elliot exclaimed angrily, doing a half turn. “If it hadn’t been for the traffic, Liv and I would’ve been here sooner!”

“Elliot, relax,” munch told him. “We’ll find her.”

“Our best bet is to go back to the station and talk to the Captain about us going down there to get her,” Olivia stated. “C’mon El. The faster we get back, the faster you can hop a flight to Arizona.”

Elliot groaned and muttered some, as they all headed back out to their cars, so they could drive on back to the station to discuss their next move with the Captain.

“LENNI!”

Lenore turned and looked, her eyes going wide and her face lighting up excitedly. “ASHEE!”

The two girls ran for one another, the one who’d just come from New York, lugging her traveling items along with her. Upon reaching one another, they shared their first of many embraces. Both were thrilled to see one another in person for the very first time.

“You made it!” Ashley exclaimed.

“I thought I’d never get here!” Lenore replied. “The flight was so long, I half expected Elliot to suddenly pop up outta no where and drag me back home!”

Ashley laughed, and hugged her friend again. “Well, c’mon! You can meet my Mom and my sisters!”

Lenore grinned widely, as Ashley helped her lug her suitcase over to where her mother and two sisters stood. “Hi!”

“Hello,” Lisa smiled, happy her daughter’s friend from New York was finally able to come out for a visit. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“You too,” Lenore laughed. “It’s better than yelling ‘Hi Mom’ over yahoo messenger.”

Lisa nodded her agreement. “Much better.” She then introduced the two younger girls there with her. “This is Brandi, and Courtney.”

“Hey!” Lenore said enthusiastically. “I’ve heard a whole lot about you two.”

“Probably all bad, knowing Ashley,” Brandi commented.

“Nope! Just the opposite,” Lenore replied. “Heard mostly good.”

The two girls looked a little shocked, but smiled back at their new house guest, as they all turned and headed for their car, which they’d parked in one of the many parking lots.

Lenore talked excitedly with Ashley and her sisters the whole way to the car. She could tell that this was going to be the best trip she’d ever taken! Especially since she was going to be able to hang out with one of her best friends.

“I take it you didn’t catch up to her,” Captain Craigen commented, as his four best detectives trudged back into his office.

Elliot shook his head. “No,” he replied bitterly. “She managed to get away – we missed her by ten minutes. The ten damned minutes it took us to figure out where Ashley was because I didn’t have a clue! I should have had a clue!”

“Elliot, now is not the time to be blaming yourself,” Captain Craigen replied. “We were all fooled by her, not just you.”

“I’m sorry she’s putting you through all this bullshit, Captain,” Elliot apologized.

“Save the apologies for Lenore to do when she gets back,” Captain Craigen stated. “I get the feeling we’re not the only ones she’ll be apologizing too.”

“So now what?” Fin wanted to know.

“Elliot and Olivia are going to Arizona,” Captain Craigen told them. “I’ve already called ahead and explained the situation. The Gilbert police have agreed to help us out in any way they can.”

“And what about Fin and I?” Munch asked.

“You two will continue to work the case here,” Captain Craigen answered. “Interview Nathaniel if you have to. Keep trying to get those people down there to talk. Lenore had to have some logical reason for her being there – no matter how absurd it may seem to any of us. I want to know what that reason was, so do whatever it is you have to do to find out.”

“We better go pack,” Olivia piped up. “I’m presuming out flight leaves soon.”

“It does,” Captain Craigen nodded. “You have a private jet to fly out in. and when you get there, don’t go storming over to Ashley’s first thing. Wait it out a couple of days; let her feel safe and let her think we haven’t caught up yet. Then, when the time is right, get her out of there and bring her home. And be on the look out for any suspicious looking people that may be trailing her.”

“We will Captain,” Elliot assured him. “No matter how angry I may be, I do know if we suddenly show up and nab her, she’ll just take off again and clam up even more.”

Captain Craigen nodded. “Be off then. Your plane tickets will be waiting for you at the airport under the name Richardson. “

“Are we supposed to be married?” Olivia asked, noting it was only one name and not two.

“Yes,” Captain Craigen replied. “You’re Mr. and Mrs. Richardson. You’ve gone to Arizona to visit long lost relatives.”

Elliot shook his head. “And how does that help our case?”

“It helps you look for Ashley,” Captain Craigen replied. “Her last name is Richardson as well.”

Both Detectives nodded, then headed on out of the office and for the door. They were headed home to quickly pack and catch their flight to Gilbert, Arizona.

“Wow! That’s so cool!” Ashley exclaimed, as she watched Lenore do a wicked skateboard trick. “You should enter the skateboarding competition that’s in town this week. Everyone and anyone is allowed to sign up, so long as they can prove they got some skill.”

Lenore sighed, wincing slightly. “Technically, I’m not supposed to be doing anything but taking it t easy because of my ribs,” she stated, sighing again. “If Elliot knew I was skateboarding, he’d skin me alive for this too.”

“Elliot’s not here, now is he?” Ashley pointed out. “And besides, you’re too good not at least try out for it.”

“True….” Lenore trailed off. “What Elliot don’t know can’t hurt him….well, least this can’t anyway.”

Ashley nodded. “See? There’s your logical explanation. So go for it.”

“Where do I go and sign up?” Lenore asked, giving in to her friend. Not that Ashley had to twist her arm all that hard to begin with – she loved skateboarding!

Ashley smiled. “I knew you’d see it my way. And you sign up at the skateboard park.”

“You have one of those?” Lenore asked incredulously. “Man! I never thought I’d get to see one!”

Ashley laughed at how excited her friend was. “C’mon. We can walk there. It’s not that far. Just let me tell my Mom we’re leaving.”

Lenore waited for her friend to come back, and when she did the two of them headed on down to the skateboard park. They weren’t too surprised to find a huge crowd either – but what surprised them the most was just who was standing amongst the crowd.

“Oh my God!” Ashley gasped. “Isn’t that Aaron Carter?!?!”

Lenore took a good look at the boy her friend and pointed out, and her jaw hit the ground. “Oh mg God! Yes!”

The two of them ran over to where he stood, not wanting to cause a scene – as then Aaron would probably have to run for his life from all the crazed fans that could possibly be standing amongst the large crowd.

Aaron Carter looked up and smiled as the two girls reached him. “Hi! Are you here for the competition too?”

“She is, I’m not,” Ashley replied, pointing to Lenore and then herself. “I’m just here to watch.”

“You any good?” Aaron asked Lenore, eyeing her standing there with her one wrist wrapped up and a skateboard in her good hand.

“Oh, I’m good all right,” Lenore boasted. “I’m the best there is.”

Aaron looked a bit taken back, but said nothing.

Lenore laughed at the look on his face. “I’m kidding! Jeez! I’m good, but I don’t know about me being the best there is.”

Aaron gave a small chuckle. “Oh, well that’s different then.”

“You’ll get used to her, trust me,” Ashley told him. “She likes to joke around and worry people. She seems to be especially good at worrying people right now though.”

“Shh!” Lenore hissed. “You don’t have to tell him my life story!”

Aaron laughed at the two. “You guys wanna join me in waiting to sign up?”

“Sure!” The girls exclaimed happily. “We’d love too!”

“You alright El?” Olivia asked her partner, once they were on their private jet. “You’re awful quiet.”

“I’m just trying to figure everything out, Liv,” Elliot replied. “I keep going over everything again and again in my head, and still none of this makes any sense to me.”

“What do you mean?” Olivia questioned. “I mean, I know it doesn’t make any sense to any of us – but I think you’re hinting at something else as well.”

“Why would she risk hanging around with a gang?” Elliot wondered aloud, answering Olivia’s question. “I mean, did her parents and I not teach her better than that? Does she not pay attention when I mention the odd case to her, and tell her just how dangerous certain things are? What made her go and risk it all – her life, my anger – everything, on this one gang?”

Olivia sighed. “I’m afraid I can’t answer that, El. Only she can really answer all those questions, and is quite obvious she’s doing her best to avoid doing so.”

“I just wish she’d tell me, no matter how angry I may be, so that I can protect her to the best of my ability.”

“I think she knows you just want to protect her. But she also knows just how angry you can get, and I think that may have her just a tad more scared than the fact people are trying to kill her.”

Elliot sighed heavily and looked down at his hands that were in his lap. “Kids aren’t supposed to fear their parents,” he stated. “They’re supposed to love and trust them. Do you have any idea how it makes me feel to know that she’s terrified of my anger enough to foolishly run off?”

“She knows you wouldn’t hurt her Elliot,” Olivia assured him. “I think she’s just scared to see you disappointed is all. And you know how she hates to hear anyone yell, whether they’re yelling at her or not.”

“She hates to cry too,” Elliot commented after a moment’s silence. “She doesn’t ever tell anybody that, but crying makes her feel incredibly stupid. So when she does cry in front of people, it makes her just that much more insecure.”

“So when we eventually get her, take her aside and talk to her yourself,” Olivia told him. “But calmly, El. She’s just going to clam up if you make her cry. She’s done that thus far.”

“I know, Liv,” Elliot nodded. “I know her better than she thinks at times – but right now, she has me truly baffled.”

Olivia placed her hand on his and squeezed it slightly. “We’ll find her,” she said with conviction. “And I know if she finally realizes just how deep she’s in, you’ll be the first one she calls.”

Elliot gave a slight smile at that. “Yeah, I will be, won’t I?”

Olivia nodded. “You always are, El. She loves you very much, anyone can see that.”

“Good, because I love her very much too,” Elliot admitted. “And the rest of the family loves her too – no matter how much of a pain in the ass she can be at times.”

Olivia laughed. “Well, she must take after you then, because you can be quite the pain in the ass yourself.”

Elliot laughed then as well. “Yeah, I can be. And I’m sure the Captain will attest to that too. “

“Hello?”

“Boss?”

“Yes. What do you want?”

“We found her.”

“Where?”

“Arizona, Sir. She ran off to be with a friend, so it seems.”

There was a sigh on the line, then the person spoke again. “Do what you have to do to get her back here by all means necessary.”

“But Sir, won’t it be suspicious if we have her with us on the way back? What if they post an amber alert or something?”

“I her here for me to finish what I started!” The one of the other end snapped. “You’ll bring her here, or you five will take her place! Understood?”

“Yes, Sir! We’ll have her back to you as soon as possible. We just have to wait for the right moment to grab her.”

“So be it then. But do not make me wait very long. I am not a patient man, Charles!”

“Don’t worry Boss. You’ll have her soon enough.”

“Very well then. Now, get back to work!”

Charles shook his head as he hung up the payphone. “Figures the kid would piss him off and end up in over her head. Dammit!”

“Wow! She really is good!” Aaron exclaimed, as him and Ashley watched Lenore do a few tricks on her skateboard to impress the people who decided who got into the competition.

“Yeah, and that’s with bruised ribs and a sprained wrist,” Ashley pointed out. “Just don’t tell the officials about her ribs, or they may not let her take part.”

“Hey, they’re her ribs. If she wants to kill them, then that’s her business,” Aaron replied. “But I still can’t believe she can skateboard like that, while all banged up.”

“I was pretty shocked too,” Ashley told him. “But then again, I was pretty shocked when she called me up outta nowhere and said she needed my Mom to book her a flight a.s.a.p.”

“What’s she running from?” Aaron wanted to know.

“Who said she’s running from anything?”

“Well, the way you guys keep talking, hints that she’s running from something.”

“You’d best ask her about it,” Ashley told him. “I don’t want to make my best friend mad, so soon after her arrival.”

“Understandable.”

The two of them watched and waited for Lenore to finish up what she was doing – they’d plans to go get ice cream once she was done. Soon enough, she came running over to them with a huge grin on her face.

“I’m in!” Lenore cried. “They said I may even be one of the top contenders!”

“Awesome!” Aaron and Ashley exclaimed, excited for their friend.

“Y’all ready to go get some ice cream now?” Lenore queried.

“You better believe it!” Aaron laughed, linking arms with the two girls – his skateboard in his one hand.

Lenore and Ashley laughed too, as they walked down the street arm-in-arm with Aaron, to the ice cream shop.

“Wow! This place is huge!” Lenore exclaimed. “Our ice cream shops are always so small!”

“Where do you live?” Aaron questioned.

“New York,” Lenore replied casually..

“City or the state?”

“Both,” Lenore answered, as she leaned up against the counter to peer in at all the ice cream flavours. “Well, we’re not right in the city – but that’s where the guy I live with works.”

“You live with someone?” Aaron repeated, looking surprised. “Aren’t you a little young for that?”

“He’s my guardian, dickwad,” Lenore stated, as she pointed to the Heavenly Hash ice cream. “Two scoops of that please.”

“Oh,” Aaron said, looking and sounding relieved.

Ashley giggled. “As if you thought she was living with some pedophile. Her guardian puts those losers away.”

“He’s a cop?!?”

“Shh!” Lenore hissed. “Not so loud! The last thing I need is for the world to know!”

“Why can’t they know? What’s so wrong with that?”

Lenore groaned and dragged her friends over to a booth, once they’d all gotten their ice cream – Heavenly Hash for her, and Cookies ‘n’ Cream for Aaron and Ashley.

“People can’t know, because I’m in a shitload of trouble right now,” she whispered, after glancing around to ensure no one was listening. “I did some stupid stuff, and almost got killed in the process. Stupid me told my guardian, and now he’s after me to explain everything; and the people who almost killed me are prolly after me, as they’ve prolly figured out by now that I’m still alive.”

“So you ran away?” Aaron exclaimed.

“Carter! If you keep shouting things out like that, I swear I’ma punch you so hard you’re nose’ll break into little pieces!” Lenore growled quietly.

“Sorry!” Aaron said, holding his hands up in defence. “You just don’t seem the type to be a runaway.”

“Oh, so they have a type now?”

“I don’t know. You live with the cop, not me,” Aaron replied.

“Aaron, don’t,” Ashley piped up. “People have been giving her a hard enough time as it is.”

“So what was it you were doing, to get these people after you?” Aaron wanted to know.

“She’s not going to tell you,” Ashley stated. “She doesn’t want anyone else involved anymore than they already are.”

“If I tell you, and someone nabs you, then you’ll be forced to blab everything to save your own hide. I don’t need people snitching. It’s not that I don’t trust you guys – despite the fact we just met you, Aaron – but, I’d much rather keep it to myself, to avoid anyone else overhearing.”

“Okay,” Aaron nodded, as did Ashley, though she’d already heard this speech before.

“Aaron Charles!” An angry voice exclaimed suddenly.

All three thirteen-year-olds turned to look where the voice had come from – the girls’ jaws dropping open in shock upon realization.

“Um….Hi Nick?” Aaron spoke quietly.

“Don’t you ‘hi’ me, Aaron!” Nick snapped. “You were supposed to wait for me at the skateboard park! And where are you right now? In an ice cream parlour!”

“Well, excuse me for being hungry.”

“You couldn’t at least called me to let me know about your change in plans!” Nick shouted somewhat. “I was worried sick when I couldn’t find you! I was just lucky enough that a couple people said they saw you headed in this direction!”

“Sorry,” Aaron muttered, looking away and rolling his eyes.

“Yeah, well, you’re just lucky I found you when I did,” Nick replied, taking a seat next to his brother. “I was about to call Mom and Dad to ask them if they’d heard from you.”

Aaron winced slightly. “That would’ve been bad.”

“Yeah, it would’ve been,” Nick stated. “They would’ve ordered me to ship your scrawny ass back home. And it’d be your fault our vacation got cut short.”

“Um…..Nick, this is Lenore and Ashley,” Aaron introduced finally, in hopes of getting his brother’s attention off him for a few moments.

“By the looks on their faces, I’m guessing they know who I am,” Nick smirked. “Hello ladies.”

Lenore and Ashley both stifled excited squeals, as they finished off their ice cream cones.

“So what brings you ladies here with my brother?” Nick questioned.

“The fact that he’s the one who paid for the ice cream,” Lenore answered, smiling widely at him – Ashley was in too much shock to answer, so she just nodded instead.

Nick chuckled. “Well, my bro knows how to pick the ladies up and win their hearts. I’ve taught him well.”

“Nick!” Aaron groaned, covering his face with his hands.

Ashley leaned over the table then and kissed Aaron’s cheek. “But you’re more charming than your brother right now – you didn’t come over yelling upon first meeting us.”

“Yeah, well, you’d be yelling too if you couldn’t find your baby brother,” Nick told them. “Nothing is worse than being worried sick about someone you love.”

Lenore looked down at her hands that were rested on the tabletop then. If Nick freaked over not knowing where Aaron was, and they were in the same state, then just how bad was Elliot freaking over not being able to find her? She sighed some, starting to feel bad about her decision to run off like she had. She was just trying to protect him – though, it was his job to protect her and not the other way around.

“You okay?” Nick asked, noticing the girl’s sudden look of sadness.

“Wha?” Lenore startled. “Oh…Yeah, I’m fine.”

“You sure? You don’t seem to be?”

“Nick, just leave her be,” Aaron cut in, not wanting his new friends to up and leave because of his brother’s annoying questions – even if his intentions were good.

Nick nodded and decided to let it drop – for now. But eventually, he would get to the bottom of this. He could tell there was more going on, than the young teenagers were letting on.

“You have the address still, right Liv?” Elliot questioned, as their plane neared the airport they’d be landing at, in Arizona.

“Yes, I have it El,” Olivia assured him. “Relax. I’m not going to lose it – though, nor am I going to give it to you. We don’t need you to saunter on over to Ashley’s earlier than necessary.”

“I never thought I’d hafta fly out here just to bring Lenore back home,” Elliot sighed heavily.

“Well, things happen,” Olivia reminded him. “Things that we can’t always control.”

“I just wish she’d have talked to me,” Elliot said, shaking his head.

“El, don’t beat yourself up over this. It’s not going to do anyone any good. It’s just going to drive your crazy in the end.”

“I know that, Olivia!” Elliot snapped somewhat, pounding his one fist down on the armrest of his seat. “But you’ve no idea what it’s like to have something like this happen right under your nose, and not even see it!”

“Yes, I do,” Olivia countered. “I’ve seen an F.B.I. Agent shoot herself right before my eyes, to keep herself from turning into a monster, after murdering a serial killer!”

Elliot glanced up at her then. “I forgot about that. How’re you doing?”

“Fine, all things considered,” Olivia replied. “But let’s just focus on the case and getting Lenore back home safely, okay? No more what ifs, and no more I’ve seen worse than you games.”

“Deal,” Elliot agreed. “No more what ifs, unless it’s something that may help solve this case.”

The plane landed a few minutes later, and the two detectives retrieved their luggage and headed out front to where their rental car would be awaiting them. Once they’d placed their bags in the car and got in, they drove off to the Hotel they’d be staying in while in Arizona – little did they know just who else was staying there.

Nathaniel gulped and looked around nervously. “I’m not ‘llowed to talk to you no more”

“Why not?” Fin demanded.

“Dad got mad,” Nathaniel replied softly. “Said if I blabbed things again, I’d be sorry. I don’t wanna be sorry!”

“Just answer us this one question, and we’ll leave you alone, okay?” Munch began, as the boy nodded. “Do you know why the cop’s kid was hanging around with the gang? Did she ever tell anybody why?”

Nathaniel’s eyes went wide and he immediately shook his head, though it was obvious he knew something.

Munch crouched down before him. “Nathaniel, you know it’s wrong to lie to a police officer, right?”

Nathaniel nodded quietly. “But I can’t tell you. Dad said.”

“Look Kid,” Fin started. “We need to know, so we can find her and put a stop to all this. What do you know? Was it her idea to hang with the gang?”

Nathaniel nodded his head yes, after making sure nobody was around and watching. “She said she was gonna help Elliot, an’ surprise him by catching perps for him. But then everything started to go wrong, an’ she got too close to the one guy. Momma says she’s a crush on him, an’ that’s what made her do such foolish things.”

“Thank-you for your time Nathaniel,” Munch told him. “You’ve been a big help.”

“Can I go play my gameboy now?” Nathaniel asked hopefully.

“Go ahead, Kid,” Fin replied. “We won’t be bothering you anymore.”

“Thank-you!” Nathaniel chirped, quickly closing the door on them and running back to his beloved gameboy.

“I don’t like this Munch,” Fin stated as they turned to head back to their car. “Lenore’s way in over her head, and still doing foolish things, because somehow she thinks she’s helping Elliot. But helping Elliot with what?”

“Didn’t Elliot say a while ago that he’d like to eventually catch the one gang on this side of town?” Munch asked. “Something about how they terrorized the residents into keeping things quiet for protection?”

“But what would that have to do with Lenore?”

“Elliot said himself that he mentions the odd case to her,” Munch answered. “And if he wanted to keep her away from this side of town, he’d have had to tell her why in order to get her to comply. You know how inquisitive she is when she wants to be.”

“And the stupid kid probably thought that by getting in with the gang, she’d be helping Elliot catch them,” Fin finished. “Dammit! Doesn’t she realize just how dangerous that is?”

“Maybe she does, but decided to go for it anyway,” Munch shrugged as they buckled up once in the car, and he began to drive off. “Especially if what Nathaniel’s mother said is true, about her having a crush on one of the members.”

“Kid’s gonna land herself in jail if we can’t get her out of this mess,” Fin muttered. “And then Elliot’s gonna have an even bigger conniption than he’s already going to have when he finds out what we’ve learned.”

“I say we only tell the Captain, and let Lenore explain herself to Elliot and Olivia,” Munch decided. “It might be safer that way. If we tell Elliot now, he may run in and throttle her before we’ve had the chance to collar the perps.”

“He’s not going to throttle her – ground her for life, maybe. Smack her ass a good one, maybe. But he’d never throttle her,” Fin said. “Though, he may come close to it this time.”

“Hey Captain, we think we’ve figured everything out,” Munch stated, soon as they spotted Captain Craigen coming out of his office.

“Well, what did you find out?” Captain Craigen demanded.

“Seems Lenore’s got a crush on the one gang member,” Fin began.

“So she joined the gang because she likes the guy?” Captain Craigen repeated.

“No, she joined the gang because she was trying to help Elliot,” Munch piped up.

“Helping Elliot do what exactly?” Captain Craigen snapped somewhat.

“We’re not one hundred percent sure on this, but we think she was trying to help him catch the perps,” Fin explained. “You see, Elliot probably told her to steer clear of that side of town, since he knew how dangerous it was. Her, being the inquisitive and rebellious type would’ve asked for an explanation. Elliot, wanting to make sure she steered clear of there, probably told her all about the gang and maybe even showed her once of the cases we’ve had about them.”

“And without knowing it, he helped her get it into her head that she could help him by going undercover and joining them, while gathering all the information he’d need to put them away for good,” Munch continued.

“The only thing is, she got too close,” Fin went on. “She got in over her head, and then started liking the one member more than she should have. So instead of getting out once she knew all she’d need, or close to it, she stayed instead because of him.”

“So all this, because she suddenly decided she wanted to play a game of cops and robbers?!” Captain Craigen exclaimed angrily. “She’s my four best detectives on a wild goose chase, all because she decided to be stupid and run off instead of just telling us from the beginning what was going on!”

“Seems that way,” Munch shrugged slightly.

“Does Elliot know?” Captain Craigen wanted to know.

“We figured it may be best not to tell him just yet,” Fin replied. “Let Lenore explain this one to him, because I for one really would rather not be in the line of fire.”

“I’ll call Novak and tell her what we know,” Captain Craigen told them. “And soon as Lenore’s back, she can tell us all the rest of it, so we can fill in all the missing pieces.”

Two days later…..

“Okay, is it just me, or does anyone else feel like we’re being followed?” Ashley asked her friends, as they walked along the one street, headed for the library.

“Ashee, we’re hanging out with Aaron Carter, so obviously there’s gonna be people following us!” Lenore exclaimed, giggling some. “I mean, c’mon! Wouldn’t you follow us too?”

“Shh!” Aaron hissed. “I’d rather not cause a riot!”

“Does it look like there’s anyone around here?” Lenore asked, waving her arms about to show them they were the only ones visible on the street at the moment.

“Doesn’t mean there isn’t somebody lurking somewhere,” Aaron countered. “You can never be too careful.”

“Yes you can,” Lenore replied. “It’s called living with a cop. Now that is careful!”

“It’s also dangerous, Lenni,” Ashley piped up. “I mean, it he makes anyone mad, they could easily break in and abduct you or something horrible like that.”

“But they haven’t and they won’t,” Lenore stated confidently.

“But you don’t know that!” Ashley insisted.

“Sure I do!” Lenore exclaimed. “I live with Elliot! He’s the biggest, baddest, greatest cop there is! Nobody would take him on unless they were absolutely, positively stupid!”

“So, what does that make you?” Aaron argued. “Aren’t you taking him on by be being here and getting yourself into all that trouble?”

“So I’m an idiot,” Lenore answered. “I never said I was very bright. Hell, I’m the dullest crayon in the box there is.”

Ashley rolled her eyes. “We’re not trying to put you down, Lenni. We’re trying to make you see that maybe you should’ve just told Elliot everything to begin with.”

“And then the three of us wouldn’t be walking together at this very moment, now would we?” Lenore snapped. “Obviously, some good has come from my foolish actions.”

“Well, I guess you have a point,” Ashley sighed. “I am rather quite happy you’re here with me.”

“And I’m happy to have met you both too,” Aaron added. “But I’ve been feeling like we’re being followed these past couple of days too. And it’s not the ‘hey I’m being followed by a fan’ being followed feeling either.”

“Well, what do you want me to do about it?” Lenore queried. “Yell at all the shadows, and tell them to go away?”

“Well….that would be rather funny,” Ashley smirked. “I wonder if they’d listen.”

“Prolly not,” Lenore smiled. “I think only Elliot can scare the shadows away.”

Ashley snickered. “You don’t think, you know.”

“Shut-up!” Lenore hissed, narrowing her eyes at her best friend.

“If it helps any, Nick usually has Brian scare his shadows away,” Aaron grinned. “He scares off the gremlins too.”

Both girls laughed, the three of them easily slipping back into fun mode, acting as though they’d never argued at all. Soon enough, they’d reached the library and entered it, giggling and shoving one another around playfully as they went on it.

~~~~~

“See El, you were worried she hated you,” Olivia smiled. “I told you no matter what she’d still think highly of you.”

Elliot shook his head, as him and Olivia came out of hiding. They’d been trailing the young teens ever since they’d arrived in Gilbert, Arizona.

“We’ve been trailing them two days, and every time they try to get anything out of her, she just goes on about how good a cop I am,” he replied. “That isn’t helping us at all here.”

“It may not be helping the case, but I know it’s re-assuring you somewhat,” Olivia stated. “Don’t think I haven’t caught that proud look on your face, every time she starts going on and on about you. Feels nice to know you’re still her hero, doesn’t it?”

“Do you think anyone else is following them?” Elliot wondered aloud, changing the subject, ignoring his partner’s question completely. “I mean, if we can trail them and not be seen, though they feel they’re being followed – then what’s to say they haven’t been followed all this time by someone else too?”

“Well, if someone is trailing them, they’re damn good at it, since we haven’t seen anyone suspicious looking,” Olivia responded. “I mean, other than the odd fan going up to that blond boy they’re with, no one’s even dared to approach them.”

“You really need to catch up on pop culture, Liv,” Elliot smirked. “That blond boy just happens to be Aaron Carter, the younger brother of Nick Carter.”

“That Backstreet Boy she’s always going on about?” Olivia questioned.

“The one and only,” Elliot said. “And Aaron just happens to be quite famous himself. I’m sure if you were over more often, you’d hear his albums blaring from her room too.”

Olivia shook her head. “And you were afraid you didn’t know her anymore.”

“Would you quit turning everything I say about this case, into something personal for me?” Elliot snapped slightly. “You don’t have to keep saying it, Liv. I know what you’re thinking, and would prefer not to hear it aloud!”

Olivia smirked, but said nothing, as the two of them secretly entered the library to keep an eye on the three teens. They’d have stayed outside hidden where they were, but with their luck, the three would find another door to emerge from once done in the library.

~~~~~

Charles stood watching the library, unaware that the couple that had just entered the building were New York Detectives. He’d been ordered to trail Lenore, and trail her he would. Though, he’d the feeling someone was trailing him as well, to ensure he got the job done.

“Okay, so what if I’m a tad close to the kid?” He muttered quietly. “Don’t mean I ain’t gonna get the job done like I’m s’pose too. I’m not stupid enough to cross Louie. Only a complete idiot would do that, and sadly, seems the kid is one of them.”

He sighed heavily in frustration. It wasn’t his fault she’d gotten so damn close to him. It also wasn’t his fault he’d gotten so damned close in return! And there was no way it was his fault she was like the kid sister he never had.

“If they do anything more to her,” he growled softly, trailing off, as he’d no idea what he’d do if they did.

He knew Louie wanted to speak with her though, and he’d probably rough her up some again, as she didn’t follow through with his direct orders – and failing to follow his orders always ended in disaster. He’d seen more people die that way, all because they figured they knew better than Louie. Thinking that had been their first mistake – acting on it had been their second and last mistake.

“And who is this Elliot guy she keeps referring to?” Charles wondered aloud. “Does she seriously live with a cop, and not where she told us? If so, she’d best hope we never catch her – Louie will have her killed for lying to him. Unless…..maybe she didn’t tell us, because she didn’t want us to think she wasn’t on our side?”

He sighed once more, shrugging his shoulders. All he knew was that he had to get to the kid and talk to her, because one of his buddies got to her first and brought her back to Louie. He needed to know the truth before Louie! Otherwise, he’d never get the chance to speak to her alone again.

“She’d better have a damn good explanation,” he thought bitterly. “Because if she don’t, I’m gonna rough her up a tad myself. Stupid lil’ Brat!”

He angrily kicked a can that was lying on the ground of the alley in which he stood. Though he directed his anger towards the young one currently inside the library with what appeared to be friends, he was really angry with himself. Angry with having had let her get in so far over her head, when he had promised her he’d looked after her. Well, some job he’d done of that!

Finally it was the day of the skateboarding competition. There were kids and families everywhere, everyone anxious for the event to start. Lenore, Aaron, and Ashley all stood off to the one side, where the other competitors were hanging out. Lenore and Aaron both had their numbers on, and Ashley was just there to keep them company.

“Man, am I ever pumped!” Lenore enthused, stretching carefully, as her ribs were still a little tender. “Just pray I don’t fall, because if I do, it ain’t going to be pretty.”

“Kind of like when Elliot finally catches up to you,” Ashley smirked slightly, raising her eyebrows.

“Shut it,” Lenore responded, giving her best friend a Look. “The world does not need to know I’m here without a parental.”

“I’m not either,” Aaron chuckled. “I’m here with my brother, and his lovely security guards.”

Lenore rolled her eyes, as she shoved him slightly. “Quiet Air-Boy. I’m all ready going to out-skate your ass – don’t make me hafta kick it first.”

The event announcer came over the speakers then, and began introducing all the sponsors and such, and explaining the rules of the event.

The three young teens watched as the first few skate-boarders showed off their talents, amazed at just how good some of them were.

“Still feeling cocky?” Aaron teased Lenore, as he glanced over at her as she watched their competitors. “I mean they are pretty good.”

“Not as good as my Lenni,” Ashley countered. “Just because you’re scared, doesn’t mean you hafta psyche her out too.”

“Pfft,” Aaron scoffed. “I’m not scared in the least bit.”

The three of them shared a look, all of them knowing that both he and Lenore were a little nervous about the competition – especially now that they’d seen some of their competitors.

Soon, Aaron’s number as called, and he went out to loud cheers and screams. He is Aaron Carter, after all.

“Show off,” Lenore muttered, as she watched him do an extremely difficult air flip.

“I’m sure you’ve got something better up your sleeve,” Ashley smiled at her friend. She loved Aaron and all, but she’d known Lenni much longer. “You’re going to blow them all away, I just know it.”

“Thanks for the boost of confidence,” Lenore spoke quietly. “I might have needed it – just a little.”

 “What’re best friends for?” Ashley giggled.

“For beating,” Aaron replied, as he re-joined them. “You’re up next, superstar.”

Lenore shoved him playfully, as she hurried to the top of the tall ramp. She sent a silent prayer out, praying beyond all hope she wouldn’t end up killing her ribs anymore than she all ready had.

Everyone watched, as the young girl did a handstand on her skateboard, before soaring down the ramp at top speed. They watched in awe, as she flipped into the air with her board, and managed three difficult twists, before landing and continuing on.

Lenore pulled out all the stops, doing every trick in the book that she knew, and even some that she had made up herself. She tried not to wince too bad, as she did a back-flip in mid-air with her board, and landed on the ground a little hard, though still standing. She hated that her ribs were starting to protest. Thank God, her sprained wrist had healed a whole lot faster – otherwise, this would’ve been a whole lot more difficult to pull off.

The crowd roared in approval as she finished and took a bow, before walking off the course.

“That was awesome!” Aaron exclaimed, giving her a high-five, as she came over to where him and Ashley stood waiting. “I’ve never seen someone do all that before!”

 “I told you she was amazing!” Ashley gushed, hugging her friend tightly, though wary of her still sore ribs. “Never underestimate my Lenni. She can do anything she sets her mind to doing!”

Lenore gave a small laugh, as she hugged Ashley in return. “I just can’t always do them this good, or this right.”

The three of them went to join Nick, who was sitting in the stands, to watch the rest if the competition from the bleachers. They weren’t needed anymore right then, and it was for the best since Aaron Carter fans were starting to get a little bold.

A couple hours later, the competition was over and the winners were about to be announced. Everyone sat on the edge of their seats in anticipation, eager to hear the names that would be called.

“Third runner-up is… Ana Martin!”

The crowd cheered for the sixteen-year-old girl, who waved her skateboard in appreciation of their response.

“Second runner-up is…  Christopher Valentineaz!”

Once more the crowd cheered, as the twelve-year-old went up to receive his trophy.

“First runner up is… Aaron Carter!”

The audience screamed especially loud for Aaron, as he grinned while trotting his way up to the pedestal. He took his trophy and waved it to the crowd, as he too cheered.

Lenore sat there on the bleachers between Nick and Ashley, rubbing her hands on her jeans nervously. “C’mon… C’mon… C’mon….”

“And the grand prize winner is…. Lenore Parker!”

Lenore shrieked, as she jumped up out of her seat – though she doubled over a little shortly after.

Nick shook his head, as he steadied her. He knew about her ribs, and thought her to be foolish for entering the competition – but, even with bruised ribs, she had still done well.

“I won! I won! I won!” Lenore screamed, bouncing on her heels. “Ohmygod! I won!”

“Go get your trophy!” Ashley laughed, shoving her friend in the right direction.

Lenore gave a whoop of joy, as she hurried over to the pedestal. She gave Aaron a cocky smirked, as she took her place next to him.

“Told yah I was gonna to beat you,” she teased.

Aaron rolled his eyes, though he hugged her and kissed her cheek. “Congrats girl!”

Lenore blushed somewhat, as she coughed slightly. She had totally not seen that coming.

Everyone began to gather their things to leave then, when suddenly a loud piercing shriek was heard over the noise of the crowd. Though, no one thought anything of it – no one except for two young teens who knew that voice well.

Lenore felt her blood run cold, when she spotted the ones who had grabbed Ashley and were currently dragging her out of the arena.

“Oh, shit!” She screamed, shoving her trophy at Nick, as she hurried past him.

Aaron didn’t even think twice, as he did the same, leaving his brother standing there looking rather bewildered.

Lenore was practically in tears, as she darted out a side door after her best friend and the goons who had nabbed her. “Let her go! Please! Let her go!”

The goons turned deaf ears on her, as they shoved Ashley into the back or a car and took off.

Aaron grabbed Lenore then, and shoved her into his brother’s car. He happened to have swiped his keys earlier that day as a joke, and was glad to still have them on him. “Get in!”

Lenore got into the car, and buckled up, though she cast her companion a frightened look. “Nick’s going to kill you for this; if we live that long.”

“And they’ll kill Ashley if we lose them!” Aaron exclaimed, as he started the car after buckling up. Luckily he was tall and could reach the pedals just fine. He roared out of the packed parking lot, after the car they’d seen Ashley get shoved inside.

“I need your phone,” Lenore said solemnly after a moment. “I need to make a call I should’ve made a long time ago.”

~~~~~

Ashley had been next to Nick, when she’d been grabbed. She hadn’t realized it at first, and thought it was just some crazy Backstreet Boys fan. But when she felt them lifting her, she knew something was wrong and that they were there for her and not anybody else.

“What do you want with me?” Ashley asked softly, as she curled up on the floor of the car. It was where they had thrown her upon getting in. “I don’t even know who you guys are.”

“It’s not you we want, Kid,” the one spoke gruffly. “It’s your friend.”

“Aaron?” Ashley asked dumbly. “You want him for ransom or something?”

“Your other friend,” he spat. “The stupid one, with the banged up ribs.”

“Lenni?” Ashley squeaked. “How does Lenni even know you?”

“Let’s just say, she ain’t everything she’s led you to believe, Kid,” another guy replied. “She’s a rebel, and seems to want to learn things the hard way.”

“But why take me?”

“She’ll follow you anywhere, even we know that.”

“But - ”

“Shut-up” The guy driving snapped. “Enough damned questions! Unless you want the same fate your friend is going to get!”

Ashley gulped, as she curled up into an even tighter ball on the floor between the seats. She didn’t want that fate for either of them, if it was what she thought.

~~~~~

“Fin here, speak to me,” Fin spoke into his phone. He hadn’t recognized the number, but had answered it anyway just in case. “Hello? Is anybody there?”

 “Fin?” A choked up voice came through the phone.

“Lenore?!” Fin exclaimed, as he waved to Munch and the Captain. “Where are you? What’s wrong?”

“They got her Fin! They got her!”

“Got who?” Fin demanded. “Who has her?”

“They got Ashley!” Lenore shrieked into the phone, her voice shaky as panic seared through her. “Them goons I pissed off! They got Ashley! They came and took her, Fin! They took my best friend!”

“Slow down, and tell me just what’s going on,” Fin ordered. “Where are you?”

“Arizona,” Lenore admitted. “I went to visit Ashley, in Gilbert, Arizona. We’ve got to get her back, Fin! We’ve just got too!”

“How did they find you?” Fin asked, as he put her on speaker phone for all to hear.

“They must’ve followed me! They said they would if I told!” Lenore freaked out over the phone. “They’re going to kill her because I told! I should’ve never told!”

“Told what? That they killed that kid?” Fin questioned, as Munch got a tape recorder.

“God, I’m so stupid!” Lenore vented suddenly. “They told me not to tell anybody, and I went and did just that!”

“I thought they didn’t know you were there until you screamed or something?” Fin countered. “Why would they tell you not to tell, if they didn’t know you were there?”

“Don’t be mad at me! Please don’t be mad at me!” Lenore pleaded. “I did something stupid.”

“Which would be what?”

“I joined the gang. I went undercover and joined the gang,” Lenore admitted. “I wanted to help catch the bad guys. I got all the info needed, but couldn’t figure a way out. I was stuck. They decided to initiate me. They told me to shoot him, and I wouldn’t do it! I couldn’t! I’m not a killer! I’m not!”

“So they shot him when you wouldn’t,” Fin concluded. “Why’d they rough you up?”

“To show me what’d happen if I didn’t learn to do as told,” Lenore cried into the phone. “They said if I disobeyed again, I’d end up having the same fate as the guy they shot. They told me to leave town, or else they’d come after me. But I was stupid and went to the station instead. I was scared, and knew the only way to feel safe was to get to Elliot. Only he got it out of me. Not all of it, but he got me to admit the gang had roughed me up. I didn’t want to tell, but I felt bad for that kid.”

“But you didn’t give us the right location,” Fin pointed out. “So you gave them time to escape. You have to see how this looks here, Lenore.”

“They were all ready long gone!” Lenore insisted. “I swear it, Fin! They left me there for dead. Nobody was there, but that body and me. It took me forever just to manage to get up. I swear I didn’t aid them in getting away – not intentionally.”

“Then why didn’t you just tell us what had really happened?” Fin demanded. “We could’ve grabbed them a lot sooner, and Ashley wouldn’t be in danger right now.”

“Because I was scared Elliot was gonna kill me!” Lenore wailed. “I didn’t want him to kill me! I didn’t want him to know I’ve a crush on Charles!”

“Did Charles do anything he shouldn’t’ve?” Fin wanted to know. “Truthfully, or I’ll throw your ass in jail.”

“He didn’t shoot nobody,” Lenore replied. “He looked out for me, and tried to keep me outta trouble. I just tend to have a knack for trouble, is all. He took a few beatings for me too… God, I’m glad Elliot isn’t like that. It’s scary.”

“And yet you’re afraid of him anyway,” Fin pointed out. “Do you really think Elliot’s going to kill you, Kid? He just wants to keep you safe.”

“I know,” Lenore sighed. “I just – I hate disappointing him. I just wanted to help, and went and screwed everything up instead.”

“She’s on the move,” Captain Craigen stated, as he joined them with the trace guys.

“Lenore, what the Hell are you doing right now?” Fin interrogated. “We’ve got a trace on you, and know you’re moving. Where are you?”

“WATCH IT!” Lenore screamed suddenly. “DAMMIT AARON! I DON’T WANT TO BE ROADKILL HERE!”

“Lenore!” Fin snapped sharply. “Are you following them!?”

“Maybe,” Lenore squeaked slightly.

“Are you out of your mind!?” Fin shouted. “They’ve got guns, and could very well blow your brains out!”

“If it gets my best friend back, then so be it,” Lenore retorted. “If it doesn’t, least, I died trying.”

The line went silent a long moment, then her voice could be heard quietly over the phone.

“I don’t want to die, Fin. I don’t want anyone to die. Send Elliot. Please, send Elliot. I need him.”

“Lenore,” Fin began, only for the line to go dead. “Dammit!”