{"id":7678,"date":"2017-05-20T22:54:32","date_gmt":"2017-05-21T05:54:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sylumclan.com\/sylumblog\/?page_id=7678"},"modified":"2017-06-18T20:48:16","modified_gmt":"2017-06-19T03:48:16","slug":"guardian-angel","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.sylumclan.com\/sylumblog\/the-generals-office\/bj-jones\/csi-miami\/guardian-angel\/","title":{"rendered":"Guardian Angel"},"content":{"rendered":"

Title<\/strong>: Guardian Angel
\nAuthor<\/strong>: Bj Jones
\nRating<\/strong>: FRT
\nSummary<\/strong>: Someone had to guard them<\/p>\n

***<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s been twenty years since that day, the day I died. What am I doing here you ask? That\u2019s a good question, actually. I didn\u2019t cross over instead I\u2019m still in Miami doing my job or at least as much as one can do when they are dead.<\/p>\n

Oh, by the way, if you haven\u2019t figured it out yet, my name is Timothy Speedle, but my friend’s call me Speed. I was killed in the line of duty, saving Horatio Caine or at least that\u2019s how the reporters told the tale. In reality I was careless and forgot to clean my gun. Stupid mistake I know and you would have thought I learned my lesson from Dispo Day. And no, I didn\u2019t have a death wish as some have said. I just got so wrapped up in solving the crimes, and figuring out the mystery that the act to clean my gun wasn\u2019t the first thing on my mind. Let me tell you it was the last thing I thought of when I died.<\/p>\n

Maybe I should back up and explain. When I died, my friend Paul was there to meet me. I was happy to see him standing and smiling; I never really got over the guilt of not being able to save him. Or the fact I ran after his funeral. He smiled at me, and for a moment I thought I was going home, but that wasn\u2019t to be the case. He stayed with me as I watched the next week unfold.<\/p>\n

I watched as Alexx cried through my autopsy. I watched as Horatio cleaned out my locker, his face stoic but his eyes filled with pain. I watched as Calleigh took out her pain at the shooting range, tears streamed down her face as she emptied clip after clip into the target. I watched as Eric took my bike out and drove to the Everglades and screamed out his anger to the heavens.<\/p>\n

That was when Paul informed me, I wasn\u2019t to cross over. I had a task to do, guard my fellow teammates. And just between you and me, Delko needed all the guarding he could get. I\u2019ve pulled that boy out of so much trouble it\u2019s not funny.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Unfortunately I can\u2019t save him this time. I have just been informed that Eric will be crossing over, and I will be there to meet him. I stand in the corner of the convenience store watching. He looks good for Forty-nine; he took over Horatio\u2019s job a few years back when H retired. Doesn\u2019t quiet pull off the suit look as well as H, but he\u2019s a good supervisor. He has a good team under him; he trained them well. He walks into the store talking to his wife on the cell phone. Who knew my death would inspire him to settle down, his oldest just turned sixteen. He laughed and told her he loved her. He hung up, and clipped the phone back to his belt, exposing his gun and badge to the gunmen.<\/p>\n

I stepped out of the corner, I watched as Eric turned his head, his eyes focused on me. His head cocked to the side, a confused smile on his face. His eyes brightened for a second, then darkened in understanding. He didn\u2019t see it coming, the gunmen shot him in the back; he died instantaneously.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt least I got to tell Laura I loved her.\u201d He looked at me with sad eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah,\u201d was my only response.<\/p>\n

We watched as Calleigh took over the scene, still beautiful even at fifty. Horatio pulled up in his Hummer, the red hair may have turned white but those blue eyes were still fierce. He looked down at the body, and I swear he looked over at me then turned to Alexx. What no one knew was Eric would be one of her last autopsies. The cancer was already taking affect. Sometimes I really hate knowing these things. She would be the next of our family to leave.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow what?\u201d Eric asked me as we walked away from the store.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what they have planned for you, but I\u2019m still on guard duty.\u201d I explain.<\/p>\n

\u201cGuard duty?\u201d Eric turned and looked at me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never left; I\u2019ve been here guarding your Cuban ass.\u201d I smirked at him. \u201cYou really think you got out of those sticky situations all by yourself?\u201d<\/p>\n

Eric looked back at the store, \u201cI swore I felt your presence around the lab.\u201d<\/p>\n

I just smiled, \u201cby the way have you noticed you de-aged a good twenty years?\u201d<\/p>\n

Eric looked down; he wasn\u2019t in a suit, but khakis and a shirt. \u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNot sure, it\u2019s either how I see you or you see yourself.\u201d I shrug, it doesn\u2019t do any good to question these things.<\/p>\n

Come to find out I was stuck with him, ironic if you ask me. He asked me once if it got easier to see loved ones go on, I didn\u2019t respond. How could I tell him that every year on the anniversary of my death Horatio visits my grave and talks to me, not knowing I talk back? Or how I felt when Calleigh named her son Timothy. I can\u2019t explain that every time I walk by the oak tree in the cemetery that Alexx dedicated in my name, I see her crying over my body. All I know is its painful watching from outside the window. Eric will understand when he watches from the sidelines as his son graduates from high school, or when another man walks his daughter down the aisle.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

I walk through the silent house, looking at the pictures and memories scattered throughout. Eric stands near by his heart breaking as he watches Alexx\u2019s son and daughter talk to the doctor. He knows why we are here; it isn\u2019t to comfort Calleigh or Horatio who stand in the kitchen watching Alexx\u2019s grandchildren. We are here to bring her home.<\/p>\n

I sat quietly next to her bed; it was painful to see such a vibrant woman eaten away to nothingness by this disease. You would think that in the past twenty years someone would have found a cure by now.<\/p>\n

I took her hand, smiled at her when she looked up at me. \u201cSpeed,\u201d Her voice was soft and tired.<\/p>\n

Her husband looked over at her, eyes wide, \u201cAlexx.\u201d He caressed her gray hair.<\/p>\n

I looked over at him I could feel his pain, hear it in his voice. I looked back down at Alexx, \u201cHi.\u201d<\/p>\n

She smiled at me, \u201cIs it time to go?\u201d<\/p>\n

I nodded and smiled at her, \u201cYeah.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIs Eric here?\u201d She asked her eyes bright.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s waiting for us in the other room,\u201d I squeezed her hand. \u201cIt\u2019s time to say goodbye.\u201d<\/p>\n

I couldn\u2019t stop the tears as I watched her say goodbye to her husband, \u201cI\u2019m going to be fine, Speed\u2019s here. He\u2019ll take care of me.\u201d I held her hand as she labored for breath, \u201cI\u2019ll always be here for you, the kids, and my beautiful grandbabies. But it\u2019s time for me to go, I love you.\u201d<\/p>\n

I held her as she cried in my arms, as her family and friends cried over her. The three of us stood there watching as they mourned. As we turned to leave I felt an intense stare, I turned to see Horatio looking right at me. I have no idea if he saw me or just felt our presence. He had always been keen on where his team was, even now in his late sixties he had a keen sense of what was around him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t believe Calleigh named her grandson, Eric.\u201d Eric gave us a sad smile.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou shouldn\u2019t be surprised since he\u2019s Tim\u2019s son.\u201d I responded looking out over the ocean, \u201cAlexx?\u201d<\/p>\n

Alexx looked over at us, \u201cI miss my grandbabies.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI know,\u201d I put my arm around her. It was good to see her vibrant and full of life, so to speak. Her hair was back to its beautiful chocolate brown, her eyes bright, and her body not wasting away.<\/p>\n

\u201cI heard young Mike is planning on following grandma\u2019s footsteps,\u201d I smiled at her.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m proud of them,\u201d She hugged me back. \u201cSo now what?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know I asked the same thing, and he never answered.\u201d Eric commented from his perch.<\/p>\n

I sighed, \u201cIt\u2019s not up to me. But the way things are going, I\u2019ve got a feeling you will be hanging out with us for a while, or at least till the rest of the family comes home.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the mean time?\u201d Alexx asks.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaunt the lab?\u201d Eric snickers.<\/p>\n

I gave him a mock glare, \u201cDon\u2019t knock it till you try it. I got rid of that pesky DNA tech you guys hated.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

I left Alexx and Eric with Calleigh; she had just lost one of her grandchildren, ran over on her bike by a hit and run. What I didn\u2019t tell them was the evening was going to get worse. I stood in his townhouse, listening to him calm a distraught Calleigh on the phone. There were pictures of his family scattered on the mantle place. Ray Jr. and his wife at their wedding, he followed his father and uncle\u2019s footsteps and became a cop. He works as a detective; his wife is a lovely CSI, trained by Calleigh. A picture of Madison at her college graduation sets next to it. She works as a doctor at UCLA medical center, specializing in cancer research. They had lost Susie ten years ago to cancer.<\/p>\n

I watched as he grabbed his coat, and head for the Hummer. Even retired he still drives one. I take the seat next to him, knowing he\u2019ll never make it to Calleigh\u2019s. Sometimes being the one they see when they cross over really sucks. As we drive down the interstate, he looks over at me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not going to live through the night am I?\u201d He asked his blue eyes filled with emotion.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d I looked over at him. \u201cI\u2019m sorry.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m Seventy-three years old; I have lived a good life.\u201d Horatio looked out the front window. \u201cIt\u2019s going to devastate Calleigh.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s strong,\u201d I watched the traffic. \u201cAlexx and Eric are with her now.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI saw you,\u201d Horatio stated. I just looked at him waiting for him to continue. \u201cAt the store, when Eric died. You were watching Alexx with such sadness in your eyes. I knew we were going to loose her soon. When she retired, informing us about the cancer I understood the look in your eyes, you already knew. Like you knew tonight I\u2019m not going to make it, so you sent Eric and Alexx to be with Calleigh.\u201d All I could was nod. \u201cYou never left, did you?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNo,\u201d I answered. \u201cThank you for coming and seeing me. I enjoyed our conversations and looked forward to them each year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Horatio looked over at me a sad smile on his face; he missed the oncoming headlights.<\/p>\n

I walked into the house to see Calleigh\u2019s husband holding her as she sobbed. The phone had been thrown across the room, shattered on impact when it hit the far wall. Alexx and Eric turned towards me as Horatio stepped up behind me. His hair was once again brilliant red, his eyes sharp and focused on Calleigh.<\/p>\n

Calleigh\u2019s voice was tired. \u201cI\u2019m the last one.\u201d<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cExactly how old is Calleigh now?\u201d Eric asked as we watched Horatio try so desperately to point out the evidence to a new CSI.<\/p>\n

\u201cNinety-five,\u201d Alexx stated. \u201cHe should just give up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s entertaining,\u201d I laughed as Horatio accidentally knocked over the trash can, scaring the kid half to death.<\/p>\n

Horatio walked up to the rest of us, \u201cNo matter how sophisticated the equipment gets you still need the damn murder weapon.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe kid\u2019s green, he\u2019ll do fine. I mean Delko here turned out pretty good.\u201d I grinned as Eric took a swing at me. I\u2019ll be the first to admit it was nice being with the team again; just Calleigh had a stubborn streak a mile long and refused to die.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre we heading out to the plantation?\u201d Horatio asked his eyes watching the kid.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs stubborn as she is, she can\u2019t hold me off for long.\u201d I comment. She\u2019s been on her deathbed twice. And I sat with her both times, she yelled at me for not cleaning my gun, and then we talked about her family. She told me under no circumstances was she ready to go, and proved her point by getting off that bed. Did I mention she was stubborn?<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

The room was warm, sunlight poured through the windows giving the room a welcoming feel. Calleigh sat at her vanity, brushing her long white hair. Her hands shook, as she clipped it back. She looked up into the mirror and smiled.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not leaving.\u201d I just smiled at her. \u201cI have to see Horatio graduate.\u201d<\/p>\n

Horatio her great-grandson, he\u2019s Eric\u2019s son, Tim\u2019s grandson does anyone besides me see the humor? And the true humorous part of the situation, he has red hair. I stepped aside as her granddaughter Alexis helped her finish getting ready. As they left her room she looked back at me, I told her I would be waiting.<\/p>\n

The graduation was beautiful; he talked about how his great-grandmother inspired him to be someone she would be proud of, and to honor the man he was named after. Horatio stood in the shadow of a magnolia tree, sunglasses firmly in place to hide the tears.<\/p>\n

The family gathered at the plantation in celebration. Calleigh had lived a long and happy filled life. She had three children, ten grandchildren, and at the moment seven great-grandchildren. She sat in her rocking chair, watching the children run around, a smile on her face.<\/p>\n

I leaned forward my hand on her shoulder, \u201cIt\u2019s time to go.\u201d She looked at me a smile on her face. She stepped out of her rocking chair and faced us. The years melted off, she was the spitfire southern girl I remember back in Miami. She turned and took one long last look at her family. She took my hand, laughing as we walked out.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

\u201cSo now what?\u201d Eric asked.<\/p>\n

I rolled my eyes, \u201cYou keep asking me that, and I still don\u2019t know the answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Horatio looked over at his team, \u201cNo one is concerned that we are ghosts.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m beyond used to it by now,\u201d I laughed, grinning at Calleigh who was climbing the magnolia tree we were sitting under.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere must be some reason, we haven\u2019t crossed over?\u201d Alexx commented.<\/p>\n

I gave up trying to figure out the powers of be a long time ago, \u201cThey will let us know when they feel like it, kind of like HR. In the meantime I suggest we just enjoy our time together.\u201d I look at the family I left behind so long ago. It didn\u2019t matter what happened, if we crossed over, or if we were stuck on earth doing the work of the powers of be. I was\u2026 well I was finally home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Title: Guardian Angel Author: Bj Jones Rating: FRT Summary: Someone had to guard them *** It\u2019s been twenty years since that day, the day I died. What am I doing here you ask? That\u2019s a good question, actually. I didn\u2019t cross over instead I\u2019m still in Miami doing my job …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":7655,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-7678","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/P2Da1M-1ZQ","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8088,"url":"https:\/\/www.sylumclan.com\/sylumblog\/the-generals-office\/bj-jones\/csi-miami\/angel-wings\/","url_meta":{"origin":7678,"position":0},"title":"Angel Wings","author":"Nicolaus Meridius","date":"June 17, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Title: Angel Wings Author: Bj Jones Rating: FRAO Summary: The same wings that had protected him were embracing him ~*~ \"What do you mean the body disappeared?\" Horatio looked around the hallway as he pulled Alexx to the side. \"Where's Speed?\" \"I don't know.\" She whispered harshly. \"I was preparing\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":12224,"url":"https:\/\/www.sylumclan.com\/sylumblog\/the-generals-office\/bj-jones\/crossovers\/guardians\/","url_meta":{"origin":7678,"position":1},"title":"Guardians","author":"Nicolaus Meridius","date":"October 30, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Title: Guardians Author: Bj Jones Rating: FRM Summary: They both had a job to do Series: Angels, Learning to Live, Divine Intervention, Guardians \u00a0Washington DC\u00a0 Kate followed Gibbs down the narrow ship hallways. She had always felt it was claustrophobic when she was alive, it was amazing how more enclosed\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9053,"url":"https:\/\/www.sylumclan.com\/sylumblog\/the-generals-office\/bj-jones\/csi-miami\/regrets\/","url_meta":{"origin":7678,"position":2},"title":"Regrets","author":"Nicolaus Meridius","date":"September 30, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Title: Regrets Author: Bj Jones Rating: PG-13 Summary: Fixing one\u2019s regrets. *** Horatio looked around the deserted beach, confusion etched on his face. He slipped off the sunglasses and looked down at his chest. 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