Breaking Point

The sun was rising high above the Rickenbacker Causeway as Horatio's dark Cadillac made its way across the large breezeway. After spending a solid week on leave with Calleigh and her children, a boyish grin held strong on his well rested face. Coming home to the vibrant smiles of Austin and Patty with his beautiful Bullet Girl standing right next to him brought a brightness into his life that he had lost since Marisol's tragic passing.

He came out his thoughts as the traffic ahead began to loosen up. After getting past the morning rush, he turned into the exit lane of the causeway and made his way towards the lab.

He parked in his usual spot and walked inside to clock in. Paula offered him a smile while she changed his status to 'On Duty' atop the employee board. Once she finished, he wandered off to the break room to grab a cup of coffee. He had plenty of time to kill, so he gladly took up a seat on the nearby couch. To his surprise, Calleigh walked in right as he sat down.

The pair exchanged smiles as she joined him on the sofa. Even with the Southern beauty's loving presence, Horatio couldn't shake the unusual feeling of worry from his heart. Something just didn't feel right to him. He pushed aside his own concerns and directed his attention to Calleigh.

"Good morning sweetheart. I trust you slept well?" The Lieutenant shifted his body towards her and plastered a caring grin on his face.

"I slept very well, thank you Handsome! How are you this morning?" She beamed.

"Wonderful, now that you're here."

The way he tilted his head in it's infamous position and the thunderous rumble of his voice when he spoke sent a chill down her spine. The redhead slid his hand over hers and delicately ran a thumb over her bare palm. While it was a small gesture, she appreciated his tender care very much.

They spent what seemed like an eternity with each other while Horatio continued to softly caress the Bullet Girl's hand. Time didn't matter to them, for they had plenty of it to spare before they had to breakaway to start the workday.

With a quick glance at his watch, the Caine man regrettably pulled his hand away.

"Sweetheart, it's about that time." They both stood from their spot on the couch with understandable disappointment. Calleigh lifted her purse onto her shoulder and as she turned to leave, the redhead devilishly whispered, "I love you" into her ear. She peeked over her shoulder quickly with a devious smirk of her own.

"I love you too, Handsome."

Their eyes met one last time and she left for the Ballistics lab. With a sigh, the Lieutenant gravitated to his office to start on work of his own.

Lunch had flew by without Horatio having anything but a tepid cup of coffee to nourish his drained belly. Never the less, he ignored his stomach's protest and focused on the lab reports in front of him. Impatience nagged at him as he awaited uniforms to bring in their prime suspect.

He despondently shook his head at the images replaying in his mind from one of the most brutal crime scenes he'd ever faced. His cobalt eyes screwed themselves shut in reminiscence.

He remembered pulling up to the reasonably sized suburban home just a week after returning to the lab. His heart sank as he got out of the Hummer to see several distraught uniforms just about doubling over in shock. One of them leaned up against his cruiser, a handkerchief covering his mouth. He removed it as the Caine man approached.

"How bad is it, Halstead?" He questioned the patrolman sincerely. The young officer's head bobbed back and forth in sadness.

"Lieutenant, I know how long you've been doing this for, but I am not kidding when I tell you not to go in there. It's horrifying...we've never seen anything this bad."

Horatio stood for a moment before nodding to the man. A second Crime Scene Investigation vehicle pulled up behind them and Eric Delko walked towards the officers, kit in hand.

"We'll take it from here, okay? Hang in there Halstead."

Officer Halstead wandered over the other uniforms and gave them the go-ahead to leave. On his way back to his own squad car, he requested one thing from the two CSI's.

"You guys do what you do best and catch the son-of-a-bitch that did this." While Delko had yet to be fully briefed, he understood the request all too well. The redhead spoke with a vengeance to his promising words.

"You can count on it."

Until that day, Horatio had been certain that he'd bared witness to almost every hellish capability of Miami's most violent criminals. For him and CSI Delko, being seasoned investigators for 10 years and then some did not matter once they crossed the crime scene tape surrounding the desolate home.

Almost immediately, an obscenity hissed from the Cuban detective's mouth. The Lieutenant himself released an inevitable gasp at the carnage before them. Partially coagulated blood streaked across nearly every visible square inch of the living room that they stood in. Two school bags sat on the coffee table, the still arms of a brother and sister sprawled over them in agony. Sheets of math homework were recognizable, but only just. Eric was ready to question where the parents were, but he unpleasantly found his answer behind the couch. The only present guardian appeared to be a father figure. Judging by the small memorial card perched on the entertainment center, this man had lost his wife 3 years ago.

"Jesus, H," was all that Delko could say. Suddenly, Calleigh appeared and just as quickly as she had entered, she had to turn back around and leave. Horatio slid off his latex gloves before running after her.

She held her hand over her mouth and tried her hardest not to let the nauseating scene get the best of her. She heard a familiar voice calling her name and looked up once her superior came around the corner.

"Calleigh are you alright?" He chided while sitting next to her on the curb. It took her a moment to catch a reasonable breath, but eventually, she composed herself.

"I think so. I didn't think anything of it, Horatio. I guess I didn't prepare myself enough. I'm sorry." Her expression feigned regret, yet he was quick to soothe her anxiety.

"You know what, I don't want you to worry about it, Sweetheart. It happens to all of us. When you're ready, it looks as though the victims were shot multiple times. I noticed a few stray bullets here and there, so that will help us."

He gave her hand a comforting squeeze, and then went back inside to assist Eric. In all, the group of three would spend half the day processing the massacre. No matter how tired, or hungry they got, they didn't stop for anything.

The redheaded Lieutenant withdrew from his thoughts when his phone rang. Horatio abruptly left his office and headed straight for Interrogation.

He had a suspect to question.