Witnesses

"They want to hurt you too Lina." Kaya refused to let go of her sister.

"You're going to get hurt now....Alexx said you had to stay in bed."

"I'm scared."

Kaya nodded.

Kaya snuggled into her sister, trying to block out the noise.

Horatio burst into his daughter's house, gun raised.

Ryan was fighting the gang members off with all he had, trying to keep them from reaching the girls' hiding place.

"Those of you that wish to live better run now, cause I'm shooting first, asking questions later," growled Horatio.

One of the gang members had been arrested by Horatio before and, although the CSI wouldn't have remembered him, he remembered Horatio and had the good sense to run. The other did not and turned his gun towards Horatio and, indirectly, Natalia.

"I suggest you run before I kill you!" Horatio screamed at him.

There was a scream from the bathroom as a gunshot rang out. Lina buried her head in her sister's, rocking her, whispering to her, trembling, terrified herself but struggling not to show it.

Horatio fired his weapon, hitting the gangster straight away. Then, ignoring protocol, he ran to the bathroom that the shot came from and pounded on the door. "Lina? Kaya? Are you two okay?"

"Daddy!" shouted Kaya.

Lina unlocked the door, tentatively opening it. Horatio entered the bathroom and took Lina in his arms to carry her to the couch so she could lie down while Natalia picked up Kaya and hugged her.

"Ryan, get Alexx down here, and get rid of him," said Horatio softly.

Lina bit her lip from the pain, even at being carried, and couldn't look at the dead body. Kaya couldn't stop looking. Ryan did as he was told, and then moved to Lina's side and took her hand.

"Mummy...." Kaya whispered into Natalia's shoulder.

"C'mon, baby. Let's go check on Lina, okay? Wait for Alexx and Uncle Tripp in the living room."

Kaya nodded. She kept her head buried in her mother's shoulder until they reached the couch.

"Daddy, is Kaya okay?" Lina whispered before Natalia and Kaya got there.

"She's scared honey." Horatio felt like crying. "But she isn't hurt."

"Don't wanna go back to the hospital." Her head was on Ryan's lap as she held on to her father's hand.

"I know, but you need to be okay. We'll see what Alexx says."

Lina smiled for her baby sister and Natalia.

"Lina, I want to come with you if you go," said Kaya.

"Ask Mom."

She'd never called Natalia that before.

"Can I mum?" Kaya hadn't even realised that Lina had said mum instead of Natalia.

"Sure, sweetheart," Natalia said, not sure which one she was answering.

Kaya brightened a little and she tried to climb onto the couch next to her sister.

"Careful, sweetheart. Very careful," Horatio told his daughters.

"Sorry Lina."

"You're okay, baby." Lina tried to be brave for her, but she was hurting bad, tired and weak.

"I don't want to hurt you."

"I know you don't."

"But is don't want to leave you either."

"No one's going to make you," Lina promised.

Kaya nodded and sat on the carpet against the couch. "I won't move."

Lina winced, biting down on her lip again so she could turn on her side, holding her father's hand as well as Kaya's.

Alexx knocked on the door and then let herself in. "What happened here?"

"Alexx, don't wanna go back." Lina said, a hint of a slur.

"I think you need to, at least for tonight."

She knew better than to argue, that Alexx's word was law, at least for the moment, besides, she was too tired.

"I want to go with Lina," said Kaya.

"Ryan, you go with her too," Horatio said.

Ryan nodded.

"Can I see you for a moment?" Alexx asked Horatio. "Just you."

"Okay." Horatio followed her. "What happened?"

"What happened?" She looked away and looked back. She would have yelled at him, but she knew he was worried enough. "She never should have left the hospital, Horatio."

"Then why did you let her?"

"Because I let you convince me. Look, I know you haven't liked the hospital since Marisol..." She knew the hours he'd spent there waiting with her in treatments and the time he'd put in after she'd been shot.

"Lina is my daughter. What would you do in my position?"

"I would have stayed with her. She would have been safe in the hospital with all three of you there. But you had to go in the field so she had to come home and she wasn't safe here either."

"We had to find them, to keep my girls safe."

She knew she wasn't going to win with him. "Never mind. I don't have time for this right now. We need to move her back to the hospital, immediately, to see how extensive the damage is." It was obvious that there was damage.

Horatio nodded. She walked away as Tripp showed up.

"Horatio, what happened here?" asked Frank.

Horatio filled Frank in quickly and showed him the body.

"You shot him?" He wanted to double check.

He knew there was no way of knowing if he or Natalia had fired the fatal shot. "He tried to hurt my girls, Frank. I shot him and I'll face any questions there needs to be."

"No questions. You did the right thing."

He watched Ryan going with Lina, Kaya, and Alexx to the ambulance.

"Go, I'll come there later and talk to you."

"I need to finish up here."

"Let me do that."

"I'm okay, Tripp. Ryan's with her."

"Don't lie. I know you want to go."

"Of course I want to go. But it's handled. I'm needed here."

"Then go Horatio."

He saw himself at Marisol's death bed, at what should have been Eric's, and he knew he couldn't go to his daughter's.

Natalia stepped in. "Let's go. She needs you."

He slipped his hand into hers and nodded, letting her lead him. Natalia gave a key to Frank, telling him to lock up when he was done. Ryan was trying to calm, reassure, Kaya when they arrived, but he was as scared as she was. Natalia immediately took her daughter's hand and cuddled her.

"Mama," Kaya whispered, holding on to her mom, burying her face.

"It'll be okay sweetheart. I promise."

"Alexx is with her," Ryan told them quietly. It had shaken him more than he wanted to admit when Alexx had refused to let him or Kaya go with them.

"Has she told you anything?"

"She hasn't been out again since she took Lina back."

Horatio stood. "I'm going to find her."

"Can I go too?" Ryan asked.

Horatio nodded.

He walked off with his friend as Kaya held her mom tighter.
**********
Horatio found Alexx in a room just down the hall from the waiting room. "Alexx?"

"She's asleep for right now. We were able to stop the bleeding but she needs to rest. Real rest this time, Horatio."

"Do what you need to."

"The four of you can see her, but Kaya needs to go home in a little while and sleep. One person, and only one, can stay with her all the time. The rest of you can come and go as long as she rests."

Horatio nodded. "Thank you. Ryan, you can stay with her."

"Thank you," Ryan spoke, not arguing, too grateful that he didn't have to leave Lina again as well as knowing Horatio wanted to be with the rest of the family as well. Ryan was almost as worried about Kaya as he was Lina, not physically, but knowing the little girl was still shaken.

Horatio kissed his daughter's head and then went to get Natalia and Kaya.

Lina smiled when she heard the door open. "Hey," she whispered, barely audible.

"Hi."

"You okay?"

Ryan smiled. "You should be resting, not asking me that. But I'm fine."