Sara Returnschapter 1

by Grissimsgirl

Grissim and his team are hunting a serial killer at the same time he is trying to work things out in his relationship with Sara. Things take a personal twist with the case.

1. Chapter 1

Episode 1

Episode 1

Gill Grissim sighed in boredom as he sat at his desk once again completing the paperwork for annual appraisals. Because he was deep in concentration, attempting to finish the task at hand, it took several minutes for him to notice the ringing phone on his desk. "Grissim", he said professionally into the receiver, slightly annoyed at the interruption.

"Hey, its me", the slightly throaty voice of Sara Sidle said softly. "Did I catch you at a bad time", she asked, catching the irritation in his voice. Grissim, who was of the opinion that any call from Sara was a welcome interruption immediately, replied "No, not at all. I was working on appraisals. You know how I love paperwork". Sara gave a throaty laugh on the other end of the line. "Oh, your favorite job", she teased. Grissim smiled at hearing her voice again. Sara, the love of his life, had fled his life, her job, and their relationship to go chase away the demons of her childhood. Although he understood her need to do so, he would have rather have been at her side, helping her through the process. She however, felt it was something she needed to do alone. Initially, he had thought the relationship over, falling into a depression, and totally throwing himself into his work. Fortunately, however, their hearts did not seem happy apart. Sarah had called him the first time about two weeks later and had called at frequent intervals since. Although still away, searching for answers to the hardships of her childhood, Sara seemed to be healing. Still unready to face her job as a criminal investigator, Sara had returned to school, desiring to teach the profession rather than practice. Grissim was accepting of that, only he wished she were here in Vegas. It was lonely coming home from work to an empty townhouse. Sarah, still working out other issues of her childhood was not ready to totally resume their relationship either. Therefore, they remained in limbo, neither able to end the relationship, finding the need to maintain contact, but living apart. It hurt so badly he ached inside, but Grissim knew if the relationship would stand any chance of working later, he needed to give her the time she needed know. The hardest part was not knowing if they would ever manage to be together again. Sara seemed better, but everything seemed so uncertain. As long as he had hope that they would be together again someday, he would keep plodding along.

"How are you Sarah", he asked. "Good…better", she replied. He could hear the guilt in her voice. She had left not because she did not love him, but rather because she could not bear for him to see her fall apart. She had never wanted to admit weakness. "School is going great. I will have my Masters soon", she said happily.

Grissim smiled, hoping that meant soon she might return to Vegas. "How soon", he asked, knowing in the accelerated Masters Program she was attending it only took about a year to complete, less if one took a heavier class load. Sara had engrossed herself in academia, feeling the urgent need to get through the program. "A couple of months", she replied. There was a pregnant pause as she hesitated. She knew she had hurt him deeply and would understand if he had moved on to someone else. "I actually have a break from school coming up in a couple of weeks. I was wondering how you would feel about a guest. He heard her swallow nervously, waiting for his answer.

A smile spread across his face. "That would be great Sara", he replied quickly. "Let me know the exact dates", he said, "I have time off coming, I will let Eckley know in the morning", he added. "Gil, if it has been too long, if you", Sara paused, tearful and having difficulty continuing. "Sarah", Grissim began. "No I mean it, I understand if you could not wait, just let me know now. Nine months is a long time. I understand if you decided to call us quits. I even gave you that impression at first, Hell I thought it was what I wanted", she interrupted. "I am just letting you off the hook if you want. You know it might not work", she rambled.

Grissim interrupted her. "Sara, I want you to come. I have missed you so much. I want it to work, and I know you do too", he said softly. He knew well that it might not work. Sara had worked out some of her demons of childhood, but he knew some would possibly always persist. He could only hope. They would never know if they did not try. Sara paused. Grissim found himself wishing she would say anything, the silence filling him with such a sense of dread. He prayed she was not changing her mind already, withdrawing from him again. "Sara", he said softly. He heard a sob on the other end of the line. "I just miss you so", she said tearfully. "And I you", he said smiling. "When can you get here", he asked, solidifying his eagerness to see her once again. "I have a final Friday afternoon a couple of weeks from now. I could catch a flight right after the test is over. . I could be there by evening", she added. "Great! I will see you then. We can go to Demetris", he added eagerly, knowing it was Sara's favorite restaurant. Sara loved the vegetarian lasagna there. I will see you then", she said, her voice stronger. He knew it had taken considerable courage for her to suggest coming back. "Bye", he heard her say softly. He knew she needed her space now and replied "Bye Sara, call me again soon. I can't wait to see you". He added. "OK", she said quietly, and then there was silence. "Sara", he added. "Yea", she replied softly. "I love you", he finished. Her voice cracked, "I love you too". He slowly placed the receiver back on the cradle, his heart aching, longing to hold her in his arms.

Before he could resume working, Katherine stepped inside the office glancing at his latest experiment. Grissim looked up acknowledging her presence. "Hey", Katherine smiled raising her eyebrows at the unrecognizable mess. "That's", Grissim began. Katherine held up a hand, "No don't bother. I don't think I have the stomach for it tonight", she said. Usually his staff found his experiments educational and interesting. Grissim took a better look at the tall leggy blond. She looked pale and tired. "You OK?" he asked concerned. "Yea, just a little under the weather. I had some sort of flu bug yesterday", she replied in explanation. "I am still a little woozy at times", she admitted, diverting her eyes from the offensive mess on his desk. "So what are our assignments", she said. "I see you are working on our appraisals. Does that mean we get our raises on time this year", she teased. Grissim smiled, well aware that his staff had been forced to wait on their raises several times because of his disorganization with his paperwork.

His phone suddenly rang, making them both jump. "Grissim", he said again into the phone, secretly praying it was not Sara changing her mind, running again. Instead, he was greeted with the voice of Detective Brass. Grissim inwardly signed. Brass calling meant a new case. They were already working short staffed and bogged down with paperwork. They had recently lost Warrick, one of their long time staff, that case remaining unsolved. His loss had been a big hit to the team, not only concerning manpower but also moral. Knowing that there was foul play involving the loss of one of their own, but unable to find evidence guiding them to those responsible was a huge blow to the team. "We have an issue", Brass said urgently. "Turn on the news and call me back", he added. "What station", Grissim asked. "Take your pick", Brass replied sarcastically.

Katherine raised her eyebrows as Gill grabbed the remove and turned the volume up on the television. "Gill the nights a-wasting", Katherine said, slightly irritated. Grissim raised one finger, indicating he wanted her to wait and listen. He did not have to search the news stations at all. Rather, the current station on the television, was broadcasting what Brass had called about.

A young blond newswoman spoke nervously into the camera. At this off-hour, she was not used to much of an audience. Someone's big break, Grissim thought quietly to himself as he listened intently to the statement. "Our station has had a tape released by an individual claiming to have kidnapped a woman tonight. We have not yet been unable to confirm if this woman is missing. The station would like to make you aware this broadcast is graphic. You may not want children to listen", she began. The camera cut the broadcaster off, instead focusing on a printed letter, on one side, quickly switching to a printed form of what the broadcaster was now beginning to read. "I have abducted a woman. Her name is Doctor Theresa Taborsky. Silence filled the office, neither Grissim nor Katherine able to speak. They listened as the announcer continued to ready the letter. "She is the first. She needs to pay for what she has done. The others will pay too, but she is the first. It will be a slow death, as that is what she deserves. You will find her body in a week", Grissim flipped to a different channel. The other channels were also at various stages of airing the letter. " Apparently someone wanted to make sure his message was heard", Grissim commented removing his glasses, chewing slightly on the earpiece. "Katherine, grab Nick and Greg. I am going to call Brass back, see if he knows if there is any truth to this story", he directed. "You think it might be a hoax", Katherine replied, heading to the door already. "We do not know anything yet", Grissim replied in a philosophical tone.

Picking up the phone, he quickly dialed Brass's phone. "Jim, tell me what you know", he demanded. "Is this woman missing", he questioned. "Her husband already called the station once he saw the report", Brass replied. "And", Grissim replied impatiently. "And she never came home from work. The day care called saying she did not pick up the children. Her car was at the daycare parking lot", Brass answered. "So she is missing", Grissim replied. "What daycare", he questioned. "Loving Care, 95th and Monroe", Brass answered. Grissim looked up to see his team assembled. He looked at the other case files. Nick, where are you at with the case you are on", he asked. He needed to decide who was at a point he could pull them from their current case. "Still processing tons of evidence. No leads", Nick replied. "But I can pass it off to days", he added hastily. A potential kidnapping was right up his alley. Grissim thought a moment. Eckley would never let him live it down if he allowed Nick to pass off the case to days. However, it was a run of the mill robbery. No one's life was at stake and it appeared Nick had little to go on so far. So far, he had primarily collected data, not having had much of an opportunity to evaluate it yet. However, the older that case got the colder it got. Day shift was hours away yet, and who knew what would happen to prevent them from processing the evidence. Until he found this case was a big one, he would be making a mistake pulling Nick. "Sorry Nicki", he said shaking his head. "You get cracking on that for now. If this ends up being the real deal, I might need you. For now, your current case is your priority", he finished. "But" Nick began to protest thrusting his chest out. You could almost see him begin to pout. "Nick, get to work. Solve the one you are working on so you can be of help on this-if this turns out to be anything", Grissim added. Shrugging his shoulders, knowing it would do little but waste time to argue Nick walked away. "OK, have fun", he said glancing at Greg and Katherine.

"Greg", Grissim asked waiting for an update on Greg's case. "I just have a few more pieces of evidence to sort out and follow up on, then I have this case wrapped", Greg said enthusiastically. "So I", he began. Grissim interrupted him. "No Greg, finish it up. Someone taking over your case, or putting off finishing it could only lead to errors in processing. It sounds like you are almost done. Finish, doing a good job", he emphasized, "and you can join us if this is the real McCoy". Nodding Gregg slid off the edge of the desk where he had perched and sauntered away. "So that leaves you and me", Katherine asked. "Where are you with your case", Grissim asked. "Just finished it up last night", Katherine replied with an eager smile. Either this case was a total scam, the woman having run off somewhere with someone or it was going to be big. She wanted to be involved in the event it was the later. "Ok, then it looks like you and I Kath", Grissim affirmed.

"Katherine", Grissim questioned her quietness. "You ready to go", she asked. "Yea", she replied, returning to the rest of the world, grabbing her kit. "Lets go", she said standing and leading the way out the door, eager to get started.

Gill wished he could share her enthusiasm. Most days he could have, but tonight his only thought was that if this case turned out to be huge, that it might interfere with his plans with Sara. Katherine noticed his quiet mood, glancing sideways; sneaking a peak, trying to determine what was going on in his mind. "Something wrong", she asked.

When the miniature killer had abducted her, his relationship with Sara had become public with his staff. Rather than judge as one might have feared, they were totally supportive, especially when things went south with the relationship and Sara jumped ship. Offers to talk, encouragement to go to her and advice had been abundant. He knew he could trust Katherine. "Sara his coming in a couple of weeks", he said in a worried tone. "Really. That's great Gill", Katherine exclaimed. "What's the problem", she asked. "This case", Grissim replied. Eckley may not allow me the time off", he said. "I don't want to have her come and then not be able to spend time with her. I want this to work Katherine. I want her back", he emphasized. "Eckley owes you time Grissim", Katherine insisted. "The rest of us will work doubles if we have to. You need this time with her Gill", she insisted. "Eckley still holds a grudge over the whole thing. He says our hiding our relationship made him look bad when it came out. I suppose he has a point. We probably should have handled things differently", he shrugged. "If you had handled them differently, you probably would not have been together at all. Sometimes rules are meant to be broken", Katherine insisted. "You two belong together", she continued. "Our team is working short too", Grissim added. "Your team has been trained by a great boss to be self sufficient and efficient. We can manage without you one week, no matter how big the case", Katherine insisted. Grissim smiled. "Besides", she added, "we just may have it solved so quickly it won't be an issue."

They arrived at the day care parking lot a short while later. Brass and his team had already sectioned off a large area of the parking lot surrounding the missing woman's car, a silver Pontiac G6. Grissim raised his eyebrows. Brass's eyes darted to a man on the sidewalk by the day care entrance, "The husband brought the key for us". Grissim nodded. He and Katherine started by an external survey of the area of parking lot surrounding the car. Katherine spotted a video surveillance camera. "Bingo, she said, "That should help us". " Would have if it were working", Brass countered in disgust. "Apparently someone damaged the cameras a few nights ago. Whoever did so, shot out the cameras at a distance with a BB gun. The cameras had not been replaced yet", he added. "Well perhaps we should still pull tapes from the past few weeks and have them reviewed. We might spot something suspicious and might lead us to a clue as to who the abductor is", Grissim suggested. "Already on that". Brass commented. "The film is on its way to the lab now", he added. Grissim nodded. There were cars parked on either side of the G6. Initially the area looked clean, no signs of a struggle, until Grissim squatted on the right of the drivers side, where he noted telltale signs of blood. "Katherine", he said softly, not wanting to alarm the Vic's husband just yet. Katherine worked he way around the car to where Grissim knelt, joining him. "Looks like blood", she said pulling out a Q-tip rubbing it gently on the sidewalk, obtaining a sample. Placing a few drops from her kit on it she nodded. "Blood, human", she said softly. "Not much. She could still be alive", Grissim added. Katherine nodded, glancing at the husband. "Let's check out the rest of the car", she added, taking another sample specifically for DNA testing. They would have to be certain the blood was the reported victim's. Opening the vehicle, they found little else. The car looked clean. No traces of blood and no signs of struggle were present. Katherine methodically dusted for prints and sprayed luminol checking for traces of blood. She lifted dozens of prints, most of which she guessed were probably the victims or the victim's husbands. She spotted several hairs and picked them up with tweezers, bagging them in an empty evidence bag, carefully labeling the bag with the details. They probably belonged to the victim or one of her family, but Katherine, always thorough placed them in evidence bags anyway. She also routinely obtained some sunflower seed shells she found on under the passengers seat, again suspecting that they were nothing that would be helpful in solving the case. After having the day care staff move, their vehicles away from the crime scene the two quickly evaluated the rest of the area surrounding the G6. Grissim noted a pocket calendar that had somehow slid behind the wheel of the car on the left. Handling the calendar carefully with gloved hands Grissim checked the entries for the day. There as a hair appointment penned in for that evening. Mentally noting the name of the salon, he bagged the calendar.

Brass made his way over, noting that they were completing the collection of any evidence. "Anything worthwhile", he asked. "Blood, possible the Vic's, but we will not know for sure until we do DNA testing", Katherine explained.

" Shows possible sign of struggle and that someone was possibly injured", Brass commented. "And we found a calendar. The husband can probably identify it for us", she added. "What do you think? Brass asked. "Could this be staged by the wife"? he continued. " There was only a small amount of blood", Katherine commented. "But if I was staging a kidnapping, I would have made the appearance of a struggle greater", she added. "Lets talk to the husband", she added. "Maybe he can tell us if that calendar was hers", she added as the three made their way over to the Vic's husband.

Mat Taborsky, the victim's husband stood, eyes swollen and red. Two little girls sat at his feet, fiddling unenthusiastically with several toys the day care had apparently brought out for the children. Having noticed their father's anxiety level, the children looked up at Katherine and Grissim wide eyed. Sensing their distress, Grissim glanced at Katherine. "Hey girls", he said softly as he knelt down gently beside them, " my name is Gill and this is Katherine. How about you two go with Katherine and see about getting a snack inside while I talk for a minute to your Dad" The girls looked up at their father questioningly. He nodded to them. It is OK, Jen, and Kelsey; you go with this woman and find a snack. I need to speak to the police for a few minutes OK"; he said softly touching the tops of their heads in reassurance. Picking up quickly on Gill's plan, Katherine smiled down at the girls, guessing their ages to be about three and six. Searching her memory for favorite snacks she smiled. " Hi, My name is Katherine. Are you two getting hungry? I bet they have some graham crackers or animal crackers inside the day care", she said reaching out her hands, taking the girls hands. Jen, the youngest said softly, "they give us animal cookies sometimes. I like to eat the lions. I used to be afraid of them", she whispered. "But Mommy said they were just cookies, that they could not hurt me". She added. Katherine smiled. "Let's go see what we can find", she said leading the two girls into the day care.

Grissim waited until the girls were out of earshot. "Mr. Taborsky, I am Gill Grissim with the crime lab. I want to let you know we are going to do everything to help locate your wife. I am going to need to ask you a few questions." Taborsky nodded, "Anything you need to know. Just find Theresa. I saw that news broad cast. Whoever has her said he was going to kill her. You have to find her." Grissim nodded. "We have to start at the beginning however", he explained. "We have to have information to guide us, OK", he explained. Taborsky nodded again, tears welling up in his eyes.

Grissim lifted the calendar showing it to Taborsky. "Do you recognize this", he asked. "Yea, that looks like her cat calendar. Theresa loves cats, but the girls are both allergic. So she collects these ceramic cats, buys cat calendars and stuffed animals", he explained. "It looks like she had an appointment at Turning Heads this evening. I believe that is a salon", Grissim added. "Yea, once every two weeks, she takes both girls, they all get their hair cut. Theresa has hers styled too. It is sort of a girl's evening out", he added, "The girls love it." Grissim nodded. Brass interrupted, "has your wife mentioned anything strange or out of the ordinary", he asked. Taborsky shook his head. "No, not that I can think of. I keep running the last few days through my head, but can not think of a thing", he said. "Everything has been pretty routine", he added.

"Your wife is a physician", Brass asked. "Yea, specialist in Oncology", Taborsky replied. "Any problem patients. Anyone who filed a malpractice suit or maybe whose case didn't turn out as well as could be expected", Brass asked, already searching for possible leads. "She is an oncologist", Taborsky answered. "It is unfortunately a business where you often loose more patients than you save. Theresa says the hardest part of the job is realizing that you cannot possible save everyone. Sometimes the best you can offer them is a death with minimal pain and maximum dignity", he added shaking his head. "But do you know of any patient or perhaps someone in their family who was less than accepting of that", Brass persisted. "No one that stands out", Taborsky answered. "But you might ask her partners. Theresa tries not to bring work home. To ensure their privacy she does not talk about them and if she does feel the need to discuss them, she never really gives their name, at least not their full name. She might talk about a Jane or Ben for example, but never a last name. Generally like I said she leaves work at work and focuses on the family when she is at home", he answered." Oh, come on", Brass exclaimed, immediately suspicious. "Don't tell me a physician doesn't come home and talk shop", he accused. "Why do I have the feeling that you are not telling something you know"? Taborsky's posture changed as he became defensive. "I am not hiding anything", he added. "Theresa has a great deal of integrity. She considers the privacy of her patients to be of utmost importance," he argued. Brass started to argue again, when Grissim interrupted. "Can we have a minute", he asked Taborsky. "It is your show", Taborsky answered. Grissim pulled Brass aside. "He could be telling the truth. The government has passed many new privacy acts recently. The acts insure patient's medical information be kept private. I understand it is a violation of these acts to discuss the patient with anyone without a need to know. Some physicians hold this very sacred. Others maybe not. Dr. Taborsky could be one of those with integrity. In any event, let's not alienate him", he indicated tilting his head toward Taborsky. Brass nodded. "I still wonder if he is holding out on us. But OK. We will play it your way", he added. Deciding they would get little from Taborsky at this point, Brass and Grissim returned to where Taborsky was standing. "OK, so Dr. Grissim here tells me that physicians have to keep pretty closed lipped. I apologize", he said. Taborsky nodded the red slowly leaving his cheeks. "Will you just get busy finding my wife", he pleaded. Brass nodded handing the man his card. "If you think of anything else that might be helpful, let us know", Taborsky nodded. " Why would anyone want to hurt Theresa", he asked the two men, breaking down. "That is something we hope to find out", Grissim said softly. "What can I do to help get her back? What do I do", he demanded. "I just can not sit here and wait", he exclaimed, his fists clenched. "As hard as it is, you sit and wait. The only thing you can do is wait. As hard as it is, that is the only thing you can do. Please do think and if you think of anything that might be relevant let us know. Other than that, you just need to hang tight and be there for your girls", Grissim suggested. Taborsky nodded quietly with a sigh. "That is just hard, you know. Then you two stand here and ask me about Theresa's patients and when I can't help you I start getting treated like I did something", he replied shaking his head. "We are just doing our job Mr. Taborsky", Grissim replied. "We have to consider all aspects and possibilities, as hard as that may seem to you", he added. Taborsky nodded. I need to get my girls now", he said heading in toward the day care.
"Wait a minute Mr. Taborsky", Grissim called before the man could step away. Taborsky turned back to face Grissim. "I need however, a DNA sample and your finger prints, if you are willing", Grissim said softly. "Mine. Sure but why?" Taborsky asked. "I need to have your prints and DNA, as well as those of your girls and anyone else who rides in your wife's car so that we can determine if their are any foreign prints in the car", Grissim said. It also served to rule out Taborsky as a suspect but he did not feel the need to include that in his explanation. Taborsky held out his hands, as Grissim obtained prints. After a quick mouth swab for DNA Grissim asked gently, "Please make sure you leave a number where we can reach you if we need more information". Taborsky nodded. Brass pulled out his card. "Please give me a call if you think of anything", he added.

Inside the daycare, Katherine found a staff member. I know you are closed, but could we find something for the girls to eat and a quiet place I can speak to them. I'm with the crime lab", she asked. The woman, a Hispanic in her 40's nodded. "Poor dears, how are you little Jenny? Jenny is in my pod. She is such a sweet girl. Lets get you some soup warmed up and how about a sandwich", she added. Jen nodded. Kelsey looked up at the familiar face and said "Thank you Esmeralda". "Such good manners these two", Esmeralda glowed. "Their mother teaches them so well. Not like some of the other kids here", she claimed. As she busied herself making heating up the soup, Katherine asked. Do you know the girl's mother?" Why of course", Esmeralda said softly. "She is so nice. I am not sure why someone would want to hurt her", she whispered. "I offered to stay here until you were all done outside so if these little darlings needed me I would be here". Katherine nodded. "You speak to their mother often then', she asked. " Yes, every day when she picks up Miss Jenny. She always asks about their day, what they did and what they ate. She is a good Mom. Despite her busy schedule as a doctor she always focused on her family as well", Esmeralda added. "Had she by chance said anything to you about anything or anyone unusual lately. Anyone who might be making her uneasy", Katherine asked. Esmeralda shook her head. "No she did not say anything, but Jenny said something about some man who she thought was staring at her they other day. It gave me the creeps, but she apparently had not said anything to her mother. I do not think Theresa knew anything about it. Katherine nodded. "If you think of anything else can you let us know", Katherine asked, handing Esmeralda her card. "Of course", Esmeralda replied, placing the card behind her identification badge, which hung from a lanyard. The efficient daycare aid sat a cup of soup and a sandwich in front of both girls. Then from an apron she wore around her waist, placed a chocolate chip cookie on a napkin beside each child. "Now those are not to be eaten until the soup and sandwich are", she instructed. Both girls nodded solemnly. "I will leave now and go clean more. When you are done I have been instructed to lock up so please let me know", she asked. "Of course", Katherine replied.

Katherine sat at the child-sized tables beside the two girls. The girls picked at the sandwiches, hungry but the stress taking its toll on their appetites. Katherine hesitated, not knowing where to begin in questioning the girls. She had no idea how much their father had explained to them. Kelsey was actually the one who made Katherine an opening, "Daddy says a mean person took Mommy, but that the policemen will find her. Are you one of them ", she finally said". "Yes I am. However, I need your help. Do you think you girls could help me out", she replied. Jen nodded her head, taking a small bite of sandwich. "How can we help", she asked in a tiny voice.

" You can answer some questions for me. Sometimes when you answer questions for me it helps me find people", Katherine replied. The girls nodded. "Who usually takes you to daycare", Katherine asked. "Daddy usually takes us", Jen answered immediately. "He does not have to go to work as early in the morning", she explained. "What do you do after your Mommy picks you up? Katherine asked, leading into the kids routine. "Sometimes we go to the grocery store, sometimes we go home right away. Today we were going to get our hair cut", Jen added. "How will we get our hair cut today", Kelsey asked concerned. "If Mommy is not here who will take us", she asked Katherine wide eyed. The girls were obviously deeply affected by their mother's unexpected absence. Katherine hesitated, hating to give the girl's false hope, but also hating to risk adding to their anxiety. Jen spared her by turning to her younger sister, obviously the older and wise sister, saying "Silly, Mommy will take us when she gets back." Kelsey nodded in understanding. "Do you go to the same store when you go shopping", Katherine asked, wondering if the store might be where the abductor met Theresa Taborsky. Jen nodded, "Yep Piggy Wiggly down the street", she pointed out the window. Katherine could spot the store from the window. Probably the closest store on the way home she thought to herself. "Does she talk to anyone at the store", Katherine asked. The girls thought a moment. "Just Mrs. Pickens, the lady at the counter where Mommy gets the meat. She is nice. Sometimes she lets us taste samples of the lunch meat", Jean answered. "And the lady at the cookie counter", Kelsey added. "She gives us cookie samples, but I can not think of her name", she said smiling. "Did your Mommy talk to anyone you did not know this past week or maybe even the week before", she asked both girls. The girls thought a minute, and then said "no", in unison. "Anyone you have noticed around your house or the daycare that is different", Katherine asked. "No", Kelsey answered taking a bite of sandwich. "Jen", Katherine questioned. "There was the man at the park yesterday", she answered. "What did the man look like", Katherine asked. "He was really tall and thin", Jen asked. "He kept watching up play", she continued. "It made me feel funny", she added. "If I had someone come work with you could you help him draw a picture of that man", Katherine asked. "Would it help find my Mommy", Jen asked. "It might", Katherine answered. "OK then", Jen answered. Katherine flipped her cell phone open requesting a composite artist.

Little Jenny did a great job working with the composite artist. Katherine, Gill, and the child's father watched while she did. "Do you think the man she is describing had anything to do with my wife's disappearance", Taborsky asked. "We hope", Grissim answered softly. The artist nodded that he was finished. Katherine looks at the picture. Unfortunately, the child apparently had only seen the man from a distance. One got the impression that he was tall. He wore grey slacks, a white shirt with a tie of blue and red stripes. His facial features were difficult to discern from the drawing. ""That is the best I could get from the child", he artist explained". It seems she really did not get a close look at his face", he added. Katherine sighed. "Not much to go on", she commented. "His features are not even clear", she added. "The kid kept saying his face ran together", he answered. I could not even get from him what his nose looked like, you know big, small, sharp, or curved. She just kept saying he did not have a nose. She probably just did not get a good look at it", he continued. "Ok", Katherine replied. She turned to Taborsky. "Does this person look familiar to you", she asked. Taborsky looked at the figure. "No not really. I mean this could be anybody. You cannot see his face. Is this who Jen saw watching them? This could be anyone. How is this going to help us find Theresa", he asked frustration evident in his voice. "We never know what information might be helpful", Grissim explained softly defusing Taborsky's frustration. Figuring she was not going to get anything more out of the girls Katherine wanted to get back to the lab to work on processing the evidence. Greg was done with his case and ready to pitch in. "Tell you what, I need one more thing to help me find your Mommy. I need a little piece of each of your hair and a little swab of your spit. Can we do that", she asked the girls. She looked to their father for permission. He nodded. "Sure", Kelsey said. "OK", Jen answered. Katherine carefully swabbed and marked the swab from children's mouth and obtained a piece of their hair. Lastly, she obtained their fingerprints. "Mommy got our finger prints and put them in these kits so if a stranger gets us or if we get lost they can find us", Jen said. "Did Mommy have a kit like that to help find her", she asked Katherine. "That is sort of what we are working on", Katherine explained. "Will you find Mommy before I have to go to bed", Jen asked softly. "She always reads us to sleep", she continued, her head hanging. "I bet your Daddy will read to you tonight", Katherine said softly. "But might Mommy be home in time", Jen asked. "Well", Katherine began. Grissim entering with the girl's father saved her.

They watched the father and his daughters clean up the food mess and then go to his car in the parking lot. Theresa G6 was in the process of being towed to the lab for even closer evaluation. Esmeralda entered, as Katherine and Gill were getting ready to exit the room. "Have they gone", she asked. Katherine nodded. "Do you folks need to be in here longer", she asked. "No, I does not appear Mrs. Taborsky made into the building this afternoon", Grissim replied. "We are though here", he confirmed. Esmeralda nodded, "well if you excuse me I will lock up", she added. Grissim stopped. "Do you know anything about the video cameras outside getting broken", Grissim asked. "No, we assumed it was kids. They were shot out at a distance, and the staff found some Bbs on the ground. They are scheduled to be fixed tomorrow", she added. "Thanks", Grissim replied. "If you think of anything will you let us know", he asked. "I already told your partner here I would. Anything to help out those little girls", she added. "They will be lost without their Momma. She means the world to them", she added shaking her head.

"I think we should check her out", Katherine said as they walked out of the daycare. "Why", Grissim asked, wondering what vibes Katherine had gotten. "She volunteered to stay tonight, supposedly to be of help to the girls if needed. She acted really close and smitten with the girls. I do not know. Maybe it is nothing", she explained. "Yea, possible. Have Nick check her out at the lab computer", Grissim replied. "For now lets go and collect with letter's that were sent to the various television stations.

Hours later, they had met with and fingerprinted any of the station staff reported to have had contact with the letter. They needed to eliminate any fingerprints that were on the letters that belonged to the staff that had opened the letters. The letters were then taken to the lab for analysis. Then came the difficult task of waiting while the letters were evaluated. Any prints found were collected, labeled, and run through AFIS. Then the paper and ink were analyzed. The only prints on the letter were those of the station staff who had handled the letter when it was received at the station. The ink was a type common to many ink jet printers. The paper was of the type that could be purchased at any store in Vegas. In other words, they gained little useful information from the letters.

As both CSIs suspected, the hair and fibers lifted from Theresa's G6 all were those of her family. Having obtained hair samples for DNA testing from Theresa's hairbrush, it was determined that the blood found outside the G6 was indeed Theresa's blood. The shift was essentially over and they had nothing solid to go on. Grissim ran his hand over his face in frustration. It was not often that they were given so little to go on. Brass was at the hospital speaking with Theresa's medical partners. They could list several cases in which the patient was not doing well or had recently expired because their treatment was not being successful. They could not however, because of potential HIPPA, or privacy action violations give Brass the individual's names or history. Brass was working on a court order. The day shift crew was on their way in, but Grissim and their team continued to work.

The crew took a quick break for lunch. "Mr. Grissim", he heard the secretary call out from the doorway, "you have a call in your office." Grissim left his lunch, tossing it in the trash on his way out. With someone's life in danger and the clock ticking, Grissim had little appetite anyway. The call was from Sara. "Hey", she said softly. "Sarah", he replied surprised to hear from hear so soon again. "Yea it is me", she replied. "I see you have quite the case unfolding there", she replied. "I saw you on the news", she continued. "You really do not have any leads do you", she asked knowingly. "No we do not", Grissim admitted. "How did you know", he asked. "From your expression", she answered. "Just want you to know I am available if you need to talk", she continued. She knew Grissim benefited from talking things out with her. "I may be calling", he admitted. "Sarah, we have nothing concrete here", he admitted, trusting that Sarah would let the information go no further. "This guy is good. He has done a good job covering his tracks so far. About all we know is what post office the letters went through", he said. He heard Nick, who had also finished his case calling from the other room, "Hey Grissim, you need to see this". "Sarah, sorry I better go" Grissim said. "Sure Gill, Good luck", Sarah replied hanging up softly. After he heard the click Grissim ran back to the other room where the CSI team stood watching the TV screen.

"The station has just received this video tape from someone who is claiming to have kidnapped Dr. Theresa Taborsky, a prominent LasVegas oncologist. Again, we do not recommend this video be viewed by children", the announcer cautioned. The camera cut away from the announce to a color video, which caused even Grissim and his team to grimace. A blond woman in her forties was tied to a bed, gagged so she could not speak. What appeared to be a board was tied between her ankles. A hooded figure entered the video screen, carrying what appeared to be a hatchet. "So my captive can not escape, a voice obviously altered by computer said, breathing heavily with excitement. He stood swinging the metal hatchet back and forth several times then suddenly brought the blunt end toward the victim's right ankle. The team grimaced as the woman screamed in agony, despite the gag in her mouth. After a few seconds to allow her screams to die down the hooded figure came to the other side of the bed again swinging the metal hatchet to and fro allowing it to gain momentum. Then with the last swing they once again brought the hatchet down with a second loud crack as the other ankle exploded. Once again, the woman screamed in agony. After a few seconds pause the camera lens focused in on the woman's face, which by that point was pale and rapidly loosing color with the shock of the pain. Tears screamed down the woman's eyes, which peered into the camera as if pleading for help. The camera lens then moved to her ankles, capturing the image of a hand roughly untying the wooden block from between the victim's ankles. The victim moaned again, her sobs audible behind the gag. "Hurts don't it", the voice cackled. "Now you know what he felt", he said deliberately moving the broken limbs. Feel the pain? This is only the beginning bitch", he laughed. The picture suddenly dissolved into grey static.

"Jesus", Nick exclaimed, slightly nauseated, his ham sandwich threatening to come back up. Greg, the least experienced of the group exclaimed "he broke her ankles so she couldn't escape?" Grissim paused then answered, "yes, some slave owners in diamond mines used to do the same to slaves who tried to escape. They were still able to work but unable to bear weight, so were thus unable to escape. It was very effective." "And very painful", Katherine added, recalling when she had broken her tibia as a child. Nick nodded, "they say that bone pain is one of the worst pain you can have. You often go into shock, feeling lightheaded, nauseated and even possibly passing out." Grissim ran his hand over his face, recalling Sarah's painful broken wrist. Although initially too lethargic from dehydration to voice any complaints, once her overall status improved the arm fracture was the most painful part of her recovery. Thinking of her injuries brought back the painful emotions of not knowing where the Miniature Killer had her hidden and the agony of not knowing if they would find her in time or loose her forever. He felt for Mr. Taborsky and the children. "Let's get back to work", was all he managed to say.

Grissim's cell phone rang. "Grissim", he answered, suspecting it was Brass. He was correct. "Did you see channel 3", Brass asked. "Yea", Grissim replied. "We need that tape", he added. "It is on its way over", Brass responded. "The tape was delivered to the front of the station in a box marked for the attention of the station manager. Of course, there are no security cameras in front of the building where it was left. We are asking around, trying to see if anyone noticed it being left. Of course, no one saw anyone. It was discovered at shift change. An individual who arrived to for an interview scheduled a couple of hours earlier did not see it there at the time he arrived. We got his prints just in case, but I do not think he is a suspect." Grissim nodded, "Thanks Jim, keep us posted".

The tape arrived by courier shortly. The team would have loved to get the video tape to audio visual immediately, but unfortunately these things had to be conducted one step at a time. So no evidence would be missed it had to go to trace first to see if any prints were present. There were several, which were immediately run through AFIS. Three sets that were present lacked a match. Two of these three sets however, did match individuals who were studio employees who claimed to have handled the tape before they were aware it was evidence in the kidnapping. The third did not match anyone in the studio who admitted to handling the tape. The fourth set of prints however did reveal a match in AFIS. "Gregory Simons", Nick said reading the suspects record. "Convicted of armed robbery 5 years ago and currently out on parole", he continued. "Lets get Jim to see if he can located Mr. Simons", Grissim replied.

The box itself however contained only the unmatched set of prints and those of the studio employees who had found and opened the box originally. "Why would the prints be on the tape but not on the box", Greg asked. Grissim thought quietly. "Maybe he slipped up", he answered. The box itself went off to be analyzed further, examining the ink used to address the box as well as searching for where the box may have come from. Meanwhile, Nick too the tape over to Archie to be reviewed to see if anything might be gleamed from the tape to assist with detecting the victims whereabouts.

Initially Nick, Archie, and Grissim watched with video in its entirety. "Looks like a basement", Nick suggested as he spotted cement wall behind the bed the victim was tied too.

"Yea possibly", Grissim replied. "That would offer less chance of detection", he added. Nick only nodded. "Close in on the wall behind the victim", Grissim requested politely. Archie tweaked knobs and buttons slowly bringing the wall up closer. "Looks like older cement", he said, "Look at how the wall is flaking", he pointed at the screen. "If he has her in Vegas that helps us eliminate the newer areas of town", Nick said hopefully. He remembered being held captive and his team searching franticly for him once. It was a simple clue that lead to his discovery as well as that of Sara when she had been missing. He hoped a simple clue would be found to lead them to this individual as well. "Yea, if she is in Vegas", Grissim answered. "Makes sense", Nick argued. "I mean there has not been that much time since she was abducted. Unless it was a town close-by", he continued. "Lets keep looking", Grissim replied thoughtfully. Piece by piece they reviewed the video, Grissim even having Archie focus in on a reflection in the victim's eye and once on that of the suspect in hopes that something might be picked up in that reflection that would help identify the exact location. It was a long shot but the team did not have much else to go on yet. Other than a few old wooden beams, which further gave the impression of a basement in an older home they found little of use on the tape itself initially. On the fifth time through the horrific video however, Grissim called to Archie to freeze the tape again. Zoom in on his left hand, Grissim directed. "You see something", Archie asked as he began to zoom in. "Maybe", Grissim replied again chewing on the end of his glasses. "Oh yea baby", Archie said excitedly as he detected what Grissim had seen. Zooming in again several times he had what had originally looked like a possible fleck on otherwise perfectly clear videotape and was actually a tattoo on the suspect's left hand. "It is a symbol of some sort", Grissim said leaning into the screen. "Archie, print this and lets see if we can search what it might mean and what tattoo parlor might have done it. Looks like we have a concrete lead." Nick smiled grabbing the picture off the printer. "On it boss", he said excitedly. As he left the room Grissim quietly asked Archie to print an additional copy. "You doing some searching on your own Grissim", Archie asked. "Maybe", Grissim smiled. He and Nick would use very different searching techniques. Between the two of them, one of them might find an answer. Next Archie evaluated the audio. "I think it is a mans voice", he said, digitally altered", he added. Grissim and Nick only nodded. The figure had appeared masculine in form as well on the tape. "There is little else I can tell you however, unless I had a suspect to match it to", he added. Grissim flipped his phone open, selecting Bass from his speed dial. "Jim", he replied as Brass answered. "Ask Mr. Taborsky if he knows anyone with an older basement, especially with older beams. Also ask him if he knows anyone with a tattoo on his left hand", he requested. Brass agreed to call him and check. At present, he was following up with Theresa Taborsky's partners, who desired to be of help, but because of HIPPA guidelines were restricted in what they could share without a warrant. Brass was currently meeting with a judge to get one issued. Grissim also requested Brass get a search warrant for Gregory Simon's residence.

Brass quickly not only got the warrant, but also had a chance to check with Mr. Taborsky regarding anyone he knew with an older basement or a tattoo. Although a long shot, every lead needed to be followed. Taborsky indicated that Dr. Popendick, one of Theresa's partners had an older home, although he had never been in the basement. Brass sent two officers with Katherine to check out the doctor's home. They did not have a warrant and probably could not get one if the doctor did not want to cooperate, but were praying for his quick cooperation. Grissim and Nick headed over to the Taborsky's office to meet Brass with the subpoena for medical records and information on Taborsky's patients. If charts needed reviewed for possible suspects it was going to take some time and manpower. Grissim sighed, wishing their team was not so short. Warrick was sorely missed. The new staff member, hired to replace Sara was still green, but they would bring her in as well to help. Still, being short both Warrick and Sarah made them constantly understaffed.

Katherine and the two officers arrived at home of Dr. Robert Popendick, one of Theresa's partners. It was his scheduled day off, so he was at home with his wife. "Doctor Popendick?", Katherine questioned pulling out her badge. "I am Katherine Willows with the crime lab", she continued. "Oh come right in", Popendick replied stepping aside to allow Katherine and the officer's entrance to his home. "It is my day off today and although I probably should have gone in to help out with Theresa's load I let them cancel those patient's appointments. I find it very upsetting and frankly am afraid I would not have been able to concentrate on her patient's needs anyway. So here I am", he replied with guilt. Although guilty of allowing the office to reschedule appointments, he hardly acted guilty of anything else, Katherine thought to herself. However, she needed to check out this lead. "Dr. Popendick, may we see your basement", Katherine requested. "Why of course", he replied. "Why", he questioned leading them to the basement doors. "We just need to see it", Katherine replied not wanting to loose his cooperation. Popendick stopped for a moment. "I saw the video in television. It looked like an old an unfinished basement", he said quietly. "My basement if unfinished. Did one of my partners mention that", he asked stopping in front of the basement door. Realizing that lying was of little use, Katherine nodded. "We have to check out all leads sir", she replied, reassured that the two officers were there with her. "Good", Popendick replied opening the door, motioning her to enter. "That means you are doing your job and leaving not stone unturned trying to find my partner", he said following her and the officers down the narrow steps.

The basement was old. It did have several beams that appeared older as well. However, the arrangement of the beams did not match that in the video. The ones in the video were painted black. These were bare wood. Katherine took pictures with the Doctors permission anyway, just for the record. "Your partners are being questioned at present", she began. "Do you have any idea of a patient that might not have had the outcome they hoped for prior to treatment", he asked. "Well, no name off hand, but if I looked at her files I know we would find lots of patients that would fit that description. We are Oncologists not Obstetricians. Our patients come to us with cancer hoping for a cure. Often we can do little for our patients other than relieve their pain and give them a death with a little dignity. Some expect more than that, even if given an honest prognosis at the onset. Other patients, we initially hope for a better prognosis, but the drugs and radiation do not work the way we hoped and we loose them. The long and the short of it is that not everyone we care for gets the outcome we or they want", he replied. "We have a search warrant to do just that", Katherine indicated. Popendick nodded. "I hope you find her in time. We are a close-knit practice. Theresa is not only a valued coworker, I consider her a friend", he added. Thanking Popendick Katherine left, pictures of the basement on her camera for comparison to the basement on the videotape.

Archie had barely had a break when Katherine entered his work area. "Hey what you have", he asked. Some digital videos of a Dr. Popendick's residence, his basement in particular", Katherine replied. "He is the only of Taborsky's partners who has an older home", she explained. "So he is a suspect", Archie nodded. Katherine nodded back and shrugged. "I do not really think he is a suspect", she said. "From what I saw of the basement it isn't the same, but I just want you to confirm that", she added. Archie downloaded the pictures comparing the two areas. "Sorry Katherine, I know you would like me to tell you that you were wrong and this man had your victim in this basement but it is not the same basement", he said confirming what Katherine already knew. She nodded. "Where is everybody else", she asked pulling out her cell phone in case he did not know. "Grissim and Nick were searching a lead on a tattoo they found on the suspects hand", he answered quickly pulling up the video for Katherine so she could see. "Interesting", she replied, leaning in to take a closer look, "And Greg, where is he". "I think he went to the victim's office with Brass. He got a search warrant to be able to look at her patient's files", he responded. Katherine nodded. "Thanks Archie", she said.

On the way out, she ran into Grissim. "Hey I am going on over to the office with Greg. Brass got the warrant. We can start looking over patient files", she explained. "Yea I know. I am on my way over there too", Grissim exclaimed. "Thought you were searching information on that tattoo", Katherine asked. "I did find out something", Grissim replied. I found it is a Chinese symbol for Cancer", he exclaimed. "Nick and Misty are going to do some footwork and see if any parlors recognize the tattoo", he added. Misty was the new member of their team. Eager to learn and a hard worker she had become a great asset. She still was not Warrick or Sarah however, but she held promise. "You must think we have a better chance researching her files", Katherine asked as they rapidly made their way down the hall. "Yea I do", Grissim answered. "Chinese symbols are frequent sources of tattoo's", he explained. "I think that there are going to be lots of parlors who have that particular tattoo graphic on file, although a file search of body site might narrow it down a bit", he added. "But that is going to take a lot of searching", Katherine replied. "Exactly", Grissim frowned. "It is divide and conquer. A week seems like a long time, but it will be over before we know it. And who knows if he will even give us a week." Katherine nodded. "He Grissim? Isn't that sexist", she asked. "Maybe, maybe not. Per audio analysis, Archie thinks it is a male. Based on the audio Archie thinks the suspect is male", he answered. "Well so we know we have a male with a tattoo on his left hand", Katherine replied. "Don't medical files include an assessment that documents variations in skin", she asked. "Yea", Grissim replied, having had experience looking at medical histories before. The two walked in silence to Grissim's truck, driving the Theresa Taborsky's office.

Grissim's cell phone rang just as they had managed to get through several patient files. Unfortunately, they had not gotten anywhere. "Grissim", he answered. "Got the warrant for Simon's", Brass informed him. "Good, Katherine and I will be over. What is the address", Grissim replied. "We need to go speak with Mr. Simon, the man whose prints showed up on the video tape", he directed, Katherine jump up, grateful for a break looking at patient files.

The two made their way to Simon's residence. Brass met them. "He isn't home but neighbors say he usually gets home in the next ten minutes. I want to see his reaction before we start searching", he directed. Katherine and Grissim, although anxious to begin, understood Brass's philosophy. Finally, a half hour later, a car pulled into the drive. Simmons got out and entered unlocking the door. Katherine and Gill walked up to the door with Brass. Brass knocked on the door. After just a minute, Simon answered the door. "Can I help you", he asked. "Yea, I'm Detective Jim Brass, this is Gill Grissim and Katherine Willows from the crime lab. We need to talk Mr. Simons", Brass said with his usual authority. "Hey officers, I've been clean, been an honest citizen the past couple of years. I did my time so why are the cops harassing me now", he asked gruffly. "Well we found your print on a tape of a kidnapping victim. Perhaps we can come in and you can explain to us how your print got there", Brass answered. "Am I under arrest, cause if not no way", Simmons replied attempting to shut the door. "Have it your way Mr. Simons. We can do this down town. You are under arrest", Brass said pissed off and suspicious at the man's cooperation. Simon's house was in an older area of Vegas and well could be where Theresa Taborsky was being held. He had no idea of a motive yet, but he had a feeling they had their man. The motive would come later. Simons sighed turning around cooperatively so Brass could cuff him. "Take him to the station, put him in a holding cell and keep him there until I get back and can interrogate him", Brass directed two officers. "Yes sir", the replied in unison, leading the suspect to the squad car. Brass entered the house cautiously, his gun up and sweeping. You never knew if Simons had an accomplice or not. Rapidly he cleared the rooms, calling to Gill and Katherine. They entered, slowly examining the scene. It appeared to be a normal home, well kept, clean, and maintained. The slowly swept each room, Grissim finding stairs, which appeared to lead to a basement. Brass took the lead, heading down the stairs. Gill and Katherine remained behind, each with their hand on their weapon. "All clear", Brass said. "Any sign of our victim", Katherine asked. "No, this isn't the basement", Brass replied. He still felt certain that Simons was tied into this somehow.

Finding nothing at the house, Brass, Gill, and Katherine met back at the station. Brasses lead the interrogation and Grissim sat silently. Katherine watched from outside. "So what do you know about Theresa Taborsky", Brass asked, getting right to the point. "Is that what I am here for", Simons asked. "Well lets just say we found a definite tie to her disappearance", Brass accused. "Well maybe you tell me what that tie is and I can explain", Simons replied pausing. He was not going to give them anything easily. "Where is she", Brass asked. "I have no idea. I have nothing against that woman. I robbed a bank man. I did my time and learned my lesson. I was young and dumb. I am a different man now, but anytime something goes on like this, I get harassed. Like I said tell me what tie to her you are talking about, other than her being my oncologist, and maybe I can explain", Simons grumbled. Grissim perked up immediately. "Theresa Taborsky is your doctor", he asked. "Yea. I have cancer. If you did your homework, you would see I am on a leave of absence from work undergoing chemotherapy for colon cancer. It is in remission. I have nothing against Theresa Taborsky. I owe her my life", he emphasized. "So how did your prints get on the video tape recently turned into the television station", Brass asked, still not convinced. Katherine, upon hearing Simons stating he had cancer, left the interrogation area and went into the office. Picking up the phone, she called Taborsky's office requesting to speak with one of his partners. Her partner pulled Simon's file, quickly confirming not only his cancer diagnosis, but also the fact that he was in remission and very hopeful for a recover. Katherine made her way back to the interrogation room. Katherine returned as Simon was explaining how his prints possibly got on the videotape. "I work at Dickerson electronics. We sell those kinds of tapes all the time. I stock them man. It would be easy for my prints to get on them", he explained. "Usually things in stores have packaging around them, you will have to do better than that", Brass accused. "You know if you are going to have this kind of attitude I think I will wait to say anything more to my attorney", Simmons replied, preparing to stand up. "You are not going anywhere, sit down", Brass replied slamming his fist into the table. Grissim, not wanting the man to lawyer up, said softly, "You have to give us an explanation that makes sense, Mr. Simons". Work with us here", he asked, wanting only to find the victim before she suffered more. Simons paused, looking into Grissim's eyes. He saw kindness there. He saw someone wanting to listen to him. He sighed. "Its simple really. You all just piss me off sometimes. No one thinks a convict can turn his life around. We buy larger packages of tapes like that one. We break them open and stock so you can individually buy each tape. We make more of a profit on each tape that way. Actually, it is illegal, I think at least. The packages say that the tapes are not for individual sale, but we do it anyway. It increases our profits, but also allows the customer to only purchase one videotape, not have to buy ten or twenty. They save a few dollars in the long run too. You can talk to my boss about it. He will confirm it for you", he said. Brass still suspicious and being the tough guy replied, "Yea we will do just that Simons and if you are lying we will know that too", he said getting up ready to end the interrogation. Grissim said softly, "Do you track the customers that purchase tapes like this", Grissim asked. "No. Like I said we probably are not supposed to sell them that way", Simmons replied. "Do you remember anyone with a tattoo on is left hand that looks like this buying a video tape like this"? Grissim asked. Simmons looked at the tattoo of the man on the video. He shook his head. "No, not me, but there are many people working there, you might ask around at the store", he added. He looked at Grissim, "I hope you find her. I owe her my life", he admitted, his hardened attitude completely gone. Katherine entered pulling Grissim and Brass aside. "His story checks out, he has cancer and it is in remission. What would his motive be", she asked. Brass shrugged, "Who knows", he asked, still liking Simons for the crime. "I'll go talk to his boss at the store". Brass responded. "Mr. Simmons you will stay here with us until we check this out", he directed. Simons shrugged. He was used to being accused.

Grissim and Katherine had brought boxes of files of Taborsky's patients with them. Her partners had offered to be available at any hour to answer questions about anything in the files. Hours later, Grissim, Greg, and Katherine continue to pour over patient records, with one partner or another filling them in on the various patient cases, helping narrow down those with unexpected outcomes, or those who were not accepting of their initial prognosis. The problem was the list seemed endless. Both suffered gritty burning eyes and their vision was starting to blur. Grissim looked up as Eckley entered. "Gill", he said, causing the three to look up. "You two look like crap", he said, his tone carrying it's typical condescending tone. "We still have work to do", Grissim answered, returning to the file he was working on. "Look Gill, Katherine", Eckley answered his tone loosing it's condescending tone. "You two have been at work for over thirty-six hours. Time to let the next team take over and get some sleep. You know that. You cannot do quality work when you are this exhausted. Besides, if something goes down it puts you at risk. For all the crap I give you I would hate to loose your talent and skill", he explained honestly. "I already sent Nick and Misty home", he said. "Time for you three to go get some rest", he stressed. "We still have a woman missing", Grissim responded, recalling all to vividly the grueling hours when Sarah was missing. He did not give up then, could not have. This woman, although not someone he knew intimately, still deserved the same dedication and devotion, as long as she was still possibly alive. Sarah had not been missing this long however and they had been moving. His vision blurred again. He sighed and looked at the rest of his team. They were red eyed, pale, and their hair standing on end. He signed again in resignation. Eckley for once was right. It was time for another group of CSIs to take over for a while and let them get some rest. They would accomplish little this way. "OK", he said recognizing Eckley's logic. They would accomplish more fresh, and a fresh group of investigators would perhaps see something they might miss. "Grissim", both Katherine and Greg started in protest. "Look, Eckley is right. We are going nowhere here, possibly because we are exhausted and missing something", he said. "But", Katherine started to protest. "Katherine, what if we miss something because we are exhausted? Can you live with that? We are human. We need to acknowledge that. If we go home and get some rest maybe we can think clearly and do this woman more good than if we continue to push ourselves this way", he said softly. Rubbing their blurry eyes the other two saw reason. "Yea, lets get a couple of hours at least", Greg said yawning. "At least six to eight", Eckley directed. The three got up just as the next shift of CSIs came in, ready to search files in their absence. "This is a grid we have been working on", Grissim directed. "There are diagnoses, initial prognosis, outcome and in this column here family members, next of kin", he directed. "Any why are we doing this", a young CSI on the alternate shift asked. Grissim had encountered this CSI's attitude before and was thankful he did not have to deal with him on his team. He glanced at Eckley. "Just complete the grid", Eckley directed sternly.

Katherine awoke six hours later, rolling over and stretching. Still exhausted she dozed hitting the snooze a couple of times. Then as she became more awake, she recalled that they were on a case, a case with a live victim. She needed to get up and moving. Before trudging into the shower, she walked into Lindsey's room. The teenager slept soundly. Over the years, Lindsey had become accustomed to her Mother's crazy hours, but Katherine still felt guilt not being there at all the past two days to discuss her school day and issues with her. It was early, but she entered the room arousing the teen slightly. "Linds", she asked touching the child's hair, smoothing it off her forehead tenderly. "Mom", she replied sleepily. "Yea. Sorry I was not around yesterday. Anything new", Katherine asked. "Didn't Grandma tell you", Lindsay asked sleepily. Katherine's mother filled in a surrogate mother when Katherine's job required her absence, but had been asleep as well by the time Katherine got home. "No she was sleeping", she responded. "Derek asked me to prom"; Lindsay answered a smile spreading across her face. She had had a crush on Derek for months now. "Really", Katherine replied excitedly happy for the girl. "That is great honey. We will have to go shopping for a special dress", she continued. "OK", Lindsay replied. "Night Mom", she added rolling back over to sleep, most likely dreaming of prom. Katherine sighed and headed to the shower. She was happy for Lindsay but in some ways dreaded shopping for a dress. It would be a huge fight over how much cleavage Lindsay would be allowed to show. She remembered her exploits as a teen and smiled. She did not want Lindsay making the mistakes she had, especially the experimentation with drugs. Maybe she needed a different job, she thought. Trouble was, she just could not think of anything she would enjoy doing.

Nick Stokes awoke in a similar manner to Katherine. He stretched wincing when he tried to open his eyes, which were still gritty with sleep. God he was still tired.

Greg Saunders awoke to his alarm with a start. As typical for Greg however, he was immediately awake, jumping out of bed into the shower. Only when he was there and hot water spilling over him did it occur to him that he should have turned on the coffee pot first. He debated for a moment, deciding he really needed the caffeine. Without even shutting the water off, he slipped out of the shower, grabbed his towel, and went to the kitchen to turn on the pot. Should get an automatic one, he thought with annoyance, Returning to the shower, he finished soaping and rinsing quickly, wrapping the towel around his waist. Dressing quickly, he grabbed his travel mug and headed out the door.

Grissim had fallen into bed exhausted, but after only a few hours sleep, he awakened and could not return to sleep. His mind, as usual ever moving, had been unable to shut back down. Instead of fight it, he got up, slipped on a robe, and clicked on the computer. After quickly checking his e-mail, which included one from Sarah indicating her flight time, he began an Internet search of the tattoo symbol on the suspects arm. Despite another search, all he could find is that the symbol stood for the Zodiac sign cancer. "Does it have anything to do with Theresa being an Oncologist", he pondered. "Or perhaps the suspects astrological sign", he mutter. They just had so little to go on. He startled as he heard the phone ring. "Grissim", he answered. "Gill, I knew you would be awake", Sara said sleepily. "How did you know", he asked. She laughed. "You never sleep well when you have a big case like this. Especially when you are struggling for leads", she added. "I thought maybe you would like to talk", she said. God, what a woman, he thought. He had wanted to talk, but felt crazy awakening her. He vented his frustrations for over thirty minutes. "Feel better", she asked. "I'd feel better if we had this creep", Grissim admitted. "But yea, it helped. Thanks Sara. You do not know how much I miss you", he added. "I miss you too. Why do you think I called", she asked. Grissim realized Sara had managed to relax him and he felt sleepy. Making love with her would have relaxed him further, but this was better than nothing he guessed. "Gill", she said softly. "Yea", he replied with a yawn. "Get some more sleep", she ordered softly. "I love you", she added. "I love you", had obviously come easier for her than it ever had, which he thought was a good sign. Grinning he replied. "I love you too. See you in a little over a week. I am counting the days", he added. "Me too", it was Sara's turn to yawn. He heard the silence at the end of the receiver, placing the phone back on the hook sadly. Realizing he was still exhausted, he turned back in for a few hours more rest. When he awoke him mind was clearer. Smiling he remembered his late night conversation with Sara. Things were definitely looking up. Despite the stress of the present case, Gill Grissim felt as if he were floating on clouds. Soon Sara would be back in his life.

Misty Thomas awoke, exhausted as well. She had no idea how grueling this job could be. She smiled however. No matter how grueling it was she loved it. It was exciting and she believed she was making a difference. Besides, her direct supervisor Gill Grissom was so handsome. She had come on to him a couple of times but so far, he had not noticed, Misty was blond, leggy with a large buxom and huge blue eyes. She was accustomed to turning people heads, even those like Grissim who were a number of years older than her. She did not know what gave, he just did not seem to notice or respond to her come on. Greg on the other hand was always hitting on her. She guessed he was a possibility, but frankly there was something about Gill Grissim's maturity and brains that got under her skin and she could not get him out of her mind. Maybe he is gay, she thought, pondering why he did not even seem to notice her come ons. Fantasizing about Gill Grissim, Misty hopped into the shower, getting ready to start a new day as a CSI. As she showered, she thought about new, less subtle ways to come on to him. Maybe I will just ask him to dinner, or just show up at his place, she thought giggling.

Sarah Sidle was just beginning her day as well. She had class early and still had one page of a paper to type. She sat at the desk of her small studio apartment, flipping on CNN. She watched as they played another video sent by the person who had abducted Theresa Taborsky. "Jesus", she muttered as she watched the torture of the victim. The woman, whose lips were cracked with dehydration pleaded with her abductor as he taunted her with drops of water. Sarah watched as muscle spasms and cramps worked through the woman's dehydrated body. "Please", she heard Theresa plead. As the spasms worked through her body, the broken bones in her hobbled ankles grated causing the woman to wince with pain. Then the video was cut short.

Grissim and his team met at the CSI offices at the beginning of their shift. Theresa Taborsky had been missing for around 72 hours. Her abductor had said he would keep her alive for a week. Did that mean five days as in a working week or seven, Grissim pondered, feeling the ticking of the clock either way? Brass was there. "Did you see the news", he asked. The decision had been made to continue showing the videos sent by the suspect with the plea for anyone who recognized the basement to call with information. Calls had flooded the phones, but so far, all the leads had been of no use. "We have checked out numerous basements", Brass said. "Nothing", he responded to Gills' questioning eyes. "Still as long as he is getting attention, which is what he desires, he will be more likely to keep her alive", Grissim replied. "And the more videos he leaves at different stations, the more likely he will be to get caught", Brass added. "Unfortunately he is smart", he said. "He leaves them where there are no video cameras. We have staked out different studios now so it is only time. At least if he leaves any more tapes", he added. The previous shift had already viewed the video finding nothing. Trusting no one other than his own team, Grissim, Greg, and Katherine reviewed the tape as well. No visualizing anything they missed he asked, "Any prints this time?" Archie shook his head. "Nope the tape was clean, as was the box it came in." "Well we better get cracking", Grissim responded. "Archie", he began. "I know, I will review the tape again", Archie answered, knowing how Grissim liked to check, and double check.

Nick and Misty returned to their canvas of tattoo parlors. They finally hit pay dirt, discovering two individuals who had the tattoo seen on the suspect's hand in the video placed on their hand as well. One was female, however, they wrote her name and address down as well. Maybe Archie's determination of the suspect as male was wrong, they thought. They continued their search, turning the names to Brass to investigate.

Grissim, Katherine, and Greg continued the search of files. They had a list of several suspects, all of whom had family members who had been documented as unaccepting of their diagnosis. Brass was investigating these individuals as well. The work was slow tedious and so far unrewarding. Theresa Taborsky remained missing and time was passing way too quickly. Once again, they found they had been searching for data, expanding Gills grid for hours. So far, nothing concrete had been gleamed from their efforts. The next shift arrived to the weary threesome. This time the three did not argue. With only six hours sleep in three days they were exhausted and well aware they once again needed to rejuvenate their bodies. Grissim felt a migraine beginning and knew if he did not get sleep soon, it would escalate and he would be of little use. Rather than being able to focus and concentrate, he would suffer from light sensitivity, sensitivity to sound, and suffer blinding pain in his head. He reached in his pocket, removing a pill bottle containing his Imatrex. He opened the bottle pulling out one tablet, swigging a bit of remaining water from the bottle in front of him and swallowed the pill. Katherine watched him frowning. "You want some breakfast", she asked. "No", Grissim replied. He would eat breakfast, but figured he would just grab some fast food on the way home. If he waited in a restaurant, his headache would just worsen and progress to the point of nausea. He needed rest more than a healthy breakfast. "I'm in", Greg replied, knowing he would rest better on a full stomach.

When Grissim arrived home, his answering machine was blinking. Despite his headache, he hit the play button. "Hey Gill, it is me", Sara's voice came across the tape. Despite his headache, he smiled. "If you are up to it give me a call. If not I understand. I am betting you are putting in hellacious hours. I do not miss those", she added. "Love you, bye", the message finished. Grissim picked up the phone hitting the speed dial number. Lying back on the couch he waited while the phone rang. "Hey", Sara said answering, her caller ID notifying her it was Grissim before she even answered. "Hey", he said back. Sara could hear the pain behind his words. She responded with only one word, "Migraine". "Yea", he admitted. Sara was one of the few who could notice his migraines. Usually he did a decent job of hiding them, at least until they got too severe. "You up to talking", she asked. "Always to you", he answered. "How is the case going", she asked, already pretty much knowing the answer. "I feel like we are running in circles", Grissim said recapping what they had on the case. Only one set of prints match anyone in AFIS, the rest belonged to the television studio employees. "What about the one that was a hit in AFIS", Sara asked. "He is a patient of Taborsky's but he doesn't fit. He has cancer, but according to his records it is in remission", Grissim replied. "What about his prints? How did they get on the tape", Sara asked. "He claims he stocks that brand of tape at the electronics store he works at", Grissim answered. "Did his story check out?" Sara asked. "Brass is going to check it out, talk to his boss", Grissim replied. "But I think it will", he answered. "The guy has been clean since he got out on parole. We know he has a tattoo on his left hand, a Chinese symbol meaning cancer. We have found a couple of parlors that have that particular symbol as options. They gave us the names of the individuals on their files with the tattoos. Both were dead ends. We know it is an old basement, which means on older area of the city but that has not been much help so far", he vented his frustrations. "What about physician records. From what I have seen, this person has a grudge against her. I am sure the team is looking into those", she asked. "Yea, the problem is there are a lot of files and other than a vague grudge we really do not know what his issue is", he replied. "Like a needle in a haystack", Sara replied. "Yea, generally that is the picture. So far nothing is really clicking into place, and Theresa Taborsky's clock is running out", Grissim responded. "Sorry Gill", she said softly. "Something will click, the pieces will fit soon", she encouraged. "I just hope it is before the victim runs out of time. I would like to recover a live victim", Grissim said grimly. This head throbbed, a wave of nausea racing over him. He swallowed and closed his eyes against the light, which was gradually causing him increasing pain. "Everything still going good with classes", he asked. What he was really asking was if there was going to be any hitch in her coming to Vegas. "Going great. I have a heavy class load but then I am not working right now so I have nothing but time. I am keeping up. So far all A's", she laughed. "I would be surprised at anything less than perfection from you Sara", he teased. "I will see you soon. Get some rest", she instructed. "OK", Grissim replied. There was silence on the other end of the line. Wincing in pain, Grissim collapsed on the couch, his hand over his forehead, riding out the headache.

The team aroused again for the next shift, this case ever present in their minds. Because the case still involved what was believed to be a live victim, it took precedence over all other cases. The team suspected they would have another video to review. However, the suspect seemed to have gotten more cautious. Although each of them flipped on CNN as they awakened to their morning coffee, they saw nothing but the old videos.

Arriving at the studio, they found nothing more had been turned up. Frustrated Grissim hit his fist on the desk. As usual after a migraine, he was exhausted. Unfortunately, today was not a good day to be at anything less than full throttle. "Her time is running out, I feel it", he said in frustration. "Grissim, we still have awhile. We will find her", Nick replied hopefully. Grissim shook his head. "Not unless we find her soon. He is not patient. I sense that", he replied. "What do you mean", Katherine asked. "Taking a week to torture your victim is pretty patient", she responded". Yea", Grissim answered frowning, "but I have not seen patience from him. His videos were sent close together. He moved quickly to torture his victim. I feel he will loose patience and not make it a week. He will slip and finish her sooner. I could be wrong but I just feel it." The team expressed a collective frown. Grissim usually could finger this sort of person to a tee. If he was right, time was running out and quickly. The office phone rang. "Grissim", Gill answered, the tension in his voice palpable. His headache, although better was still lingering in the background. "Gill", Brass responded on the other end. "Yea Brass", Grissim responded, making eye contact with his team. He did not like to tone in Brass's voice.

"We need you guys over here at Kellogg's warehouse on Madison avenue. Grissim was aware of the location. He had been to investigate a break in a couple of weeks before. The factory, which had once produced cereal, had closed that location and moved it's production of cereals to another factory as part of a downsizing operation Until they sold the building the factory was setting empty. Thus, it had been a frequent site for break-ins and other issues. "You have a body", Grissim asked closing his eyes. "Yea, and it fits Theresa Taborsky's description. We need you hear to process the scene. Then we will remove the body and get it to Doctor Robbins and have the family or one of her partners identify the body", Brass answered. "It looks like her", Grissim asked. "Hard to tell for sure. The features are similar, but Gill whoever killed this woman somehow disfigured the face. Any features are hard to describe. She has a birthmark where on her left thigh, just as her husband described in my interview of him after the abduction. She fits the size and age too. I'm betting it is her", he said.

Grissim faced his team knowing they too would feel the sense of failure as well as the new sense of commitment to locating the individual who had taken her life. "They found Theresa", Misty asked softly, already able to read her boss's face. "Yea, they think so. Lets go process the scene and do it right. He had too have left some clue, some piece of the puzzle when he dumped the body", Grissim replied. The team headed off to the scene.

The team arrived at the Kellogg's factory some thirty minutes later. They found it surrounded by various law enforcement vehicles with their bright flashing lights. Also among them were several reporters, cameras in tow. One reporter who knew Grissim by reputation called out, "Dr. Grissim, do you have a body? Is it Theresa Taborsky? If so why didn't the killer keep her a week like they said"? Grissim ignored the reporter, his silence more effective than any "no comment" would have been. When Grissim remained tight lipped the reporters turned to Nick, Katherine, and Greg. "Do you think the body is Theresa Taborsky's? Does her husband know", the called. The rest of the team followed Grissim's lead and remained silent, making their way behind the yellow crime scene tape. "Nick and Greg, you two take the outside. You know the drill. Watch for tire tracks, footprints, anything that might indicate how anyone dumped a body in here. He glanced at Misty. She was still green and the place was swarming. Although investigating the periphery would have been good experience for her, especially in the dark, he was concerned about her reaction to the crowd gathering and the reporters. Therefore, he decided to take her inside with Katherine and himself.

Brass met them as the entered the factory. "Coroner just got here", he said eyeing Misty. Newbies had to earn Brass's trust. He was uncertain how Misty stacked up yet. Besides, he was fond of Sarah and he could not help but notice how she was always coming onto Grissim. He wanted nothing more than happiness for them both. He feared the girl's moves would eventually catch Grissim's eye. He pulled Grissim aside. "She ready for this". He questioned. Grissim shrugged. "I hope so. Frankly, I would rather have her here with Kat and me than outside with reporters watching and listening. I think with her inexperience it is a better learning experience here with us." Brass nodded, thinking Grissim might be right. "The body is in here", he said leading the trio into a packaging room just off the main entrance. "Who found it", Grissim asked. "An couple of kids breaking and entering. I guess it has become sort of a local hangout here, you know for necking and whatnot. Someone even has brought in a mattress", Brass replied gruffly. "Bet that was a mood breaker", Grissim replied turning on his flashlight as they walked toward the room the body had been found in.

Theresa Taborsky, if that was who it was, was barely recognizable. Grissim's flashlight began at her badly disfigured face. There were many obvious facial fractures but that alone was not the main disfiguring issue. The flesh of the face had been eaten away in multiple areas. Only traces of a nose or ears remained. Eyes glazed back at him from partially exposed sockets. Grissim heard Misty gag. Katherine quickly pulled her away from the scene, talking quietly with her until her breathing slowed and the worst of the nausea passed. While the two women huddled away from the scene, Grissim continued his initial inspection of the corpse. There appeared to be multiple areas of bruising along the woman's neck. Her arms, like her face had multiple areas where the flesh was open and raw appearing. Some areas appeared blistered. Grissim knelt down next to Dave, putting on a glove, gently touching her hand. Several fingers were crooked and appeared to be broken. He watched Dave obtain a liver temperature. "How long has she been gone", he questioned. "Liver temp is 80 degrees. That puts TOD at about 6 hours ago give or take", he replied. "What would you guess for cause of death", Grissim asked reflectively, well aware that until the victim hit the autopsy table all guesses were subject to change. "Could have been any of multiple causes", Dave replied. These raw areas look like burns, probably chemical. The total burned areas themselves would not necessarily cause loss of enough fluids to kill her immediately, but any bit of infection in any of these certainly could have. It could be strangulation, he said referring to her bruised neck. For the looks of it, there were repeated episodes of attempted strangulation, possible with the killer stopping just as the victim lost consciousness. He could have gone too far before he intended to. It is even possible that a fat embolism resulting from all these broken bones could be the COD. Loops of bowel are extruding from the abdomen. This one will need to go on the table to be sure", he paused. Grissim continued to do his own exam of the body, making his way to the woman's ankles. The bones bent and twisted at odd ankles, a result of the Hobbling procedure her abductor had subjected her to. Katherine and Misty made their way back over. "Sorry Sir", Misty said, her face reddened with embarrassment. "You only need to be sorry if you contaminate the crime scene", Grissim replied offering her a smile of understanding. Most new CSI's suffer a few bouts of nausea at the first site of a body, especially one this badly mutilated. Some managed to hit it better than others, but everyone he knew, including himself, had reacted negatively the first few times. He smiled briefly, recalling how tough Sarah always tried to act.

Katherine proceeded to take pictures of the body before it was disturbed for further evaluation. Misty found the click and the whine of the camera somewhat soothing. Once Katherine was done, Grissim and Dave turned the body over. Her blouse slid up, reveling several identical burn marks. "Branded", Katherine said softly. "Yea but what does the symbol mean", Grissim questioned as Katherine snapped additional photographs. Doc Robbins would take more pictures in the morgue, but thoroughness often made the difference between a conviction and not obtaining a conviction. "Isn't there a registry for brands", Misty asked. "Yea, I think that will be your job when we get back to the lab", Grissim answered. Misty nodded, excited at the prospect of being handed such an important task. Katherine knelt on one side of the body, obtaining what looked like residue, possible skin cells, under the victim's fingernails. Misty followed suit, collecting from the opposite hand. A yellow substance was noted on the edge of the victim's blouse. Grissim took a swab of it for further evaluation in the lab. Once any obvious trace was removed from the body, the team assisted Dave in properly bagging the body, so that Doc Robbins could find any further trace evidence during autopsy. "You ready for me to take her", he asked respectfully. "Yea. Someone will need to do a definitative ID", Grissim added. Just then, he heard Brass entering. "Is it her", they heard another voice call. "Sir, I know you are upset. I sympathize with you. As I said this would be better done downtown, but you burst in through here. Now please stay with me. You do not want to jepordize the crime scene. If it is Theresa, you want us to be able to collect all the evidence we need to put him away for a long time", Brass reasoned as he carefully escorted the victim's husband into the room. Grissim, Katherine and Misty stood aside allowing Brass and Mr. Taborsky a view of the body. "Her face is not in the best shape Mr. Taborsky", Brass said in preparation. Taborsky had caught wind of a body being found on the news and rushed to the warehouse demanding to know if it was his wife. He had been raising such a ruckus; drawing additional media attention that Brass had taken him into the building to appease him. He had tried to explain the distraught man that the condition of the body might require dental records to properly identify it. Despite his discouragement, the husband had insisted on viewing the body, to see if he could tell if it was Theresa. He glanced at her face despite Brass's previous comments that it was unrecognizable. "I would not know from her face, maybe it isn't", he stammered. The he looked to the twisted fingers, noting her wedding ring. His wife's wedding set had been custom designed and was one of a kind. He would recognize it anywhere. His face crumpled and he leaped toward the body. Brass caught him at the last minute, preventing him from entering the crime scene. "It's her, it's my wife. Oh God Theresa", he cried. Katherine stood and assisted Brass in leading the man away, offering condolences. Misty said softly, "Hell of a way to see your spouse", "Yea, I'm sure Brass tried to reason with him. He was gaining more media attention, something we need to limit right now. Otherwise, Brass would have insisted he wait. We will still need dental records to confirm it is her", Grissim replied.

Dave finished bagging the body as the rest of the forensics team worked the scene. Multiple blood samples were collected, most if not all of which were probably the victims. Katherine found a piece of cloth, a small piece of which had a strange odor to it. It might mean nothing and it could mean everything, she thought as she bagged it. They could identify what the odor on the cloth was caused by and possible where the cloth was from, both of which could lead them to their suspect. The only other item they found was a key. The many teenagers who had frequented the factory of late could have left it there. It could also be an important piece to the puzzle. It too was bagged and tagged.

Outside Nick and Greg worked as reporters and spectators watched. Nick snapped several photos of some tire tracks he found. While Greg mixed a substance to mold samples of the tracks Nick quietly shot multiple photos of the crowd. No one knew that they were being photographed as possible evidence. "Think he might be out there watching", Greg asked under his breath. "You never know. I have know of perps that do", Nick replied. "They get off on watching all this", he said indicating the police surrounding the area and the media. In addition to the tire tracks, they collected several cigarette butts, which could have been the perps, or anyone who had been hanging around the factory for the last few days for that matter. Greg located a few obviously fresh footprints by one of the side doors of the factory. Nick gave the door a push. I think we found how he got in. "And probably how the teens Brass mentioned to us have been getting in" Greg added, bagging and tagging several used condoms he found by the door. "This is evidence of something", he said. Nick nodded, exchanging a small smile. Although at times it seemed inappropriate to smile or crack a joke when you knew a dead body lay inside the building, it was one way the team managed to relieve the stress. They might have cracked a joke or two, but it was foremost in their mind that they had failed. They had not found Theresa Taborsky before she was forever gone from this earth. Worst of all the killer had promised others. They possibly had a serial killer on their hands. The lighter moment swiftly passing, Greg expertly casted the footprints. It could provide a wealth of information about the killer, especially if an expensive designer shoe made it. It was a deep print, probably made by someone carrying additional weight, such as a dead body, thus possible was the killers. At the very least, it would give them his shoe size. In a case like this, with so little to go on any information was helpful.

The team finished up, having collected anything they could find. Some evidence they hoped was helpful, but they knew that much of it would not be helpful at all. Returning to the lab, they only had a few hours of their shift to work with and evaluate what they had collected. Eckley had made it clear that they had been running on empty for several days. They had a body now, not a missing person, so in his eyes the urgency was gone. Grissim understood his stand. Eckely was responsible for how his employees functioned. If they made mistakes because they were tired, it made the department and Eckley look bad. Working excessively, long hours would not bring Theresa Taborsky back. Besides there were other CSIs on the next shift who could help work the case. The problem was Grissim trusted the members of his team the most.

The group made their way out of the factory. Many of the reporters and spectators had left but a good number remained as well. Again, the cameras were flashing in the team's faces. Greg flinched away from the bright flashes several times. You would think he would be accustomed to it, but he still found the cameras unnerving. "Was the body Taborsky? Any ideas who killed her", they asked wanting to trick the team into confirming for the media that the body was Taborsky's. "What kind of sick person did this", one reporter asked. "Why didn't he wait? Why kill her when he said one week", the reporter persisted. "Do we have a serial killer? Do doctors need to be afraid? Is your team smarter than this killer? It seems you have no leads. If your team were competent wouldn't you have found her before she was dead", one taunted.

Taborsky's husband was waiting outside the factory surrounded by reporters, all of whom had their cameras thrust into his face like vultures. They were asking him questions including what the body looked like. "Are you angry they did not find her before she was already dead? one reporter asked him. Taborsky rigidity defended the CSI team. Obvious to Grissim was the fact that the man was in over his head with the reporters. Although initially a welcome venting board, Taborsky was probably fatigued and overwhelmed. Grissim worked his way through to Taborsky. "My Taborsky', he said compassionately. " Let me take you away from all this. The girls need you he urged." Working away from the crowd Taborsky asked, "Why, why didn't he wait? Maybe given a few more days you could have caught him. Why", he demanded. His fists clenched tightly, he looked into Grissim's eyes. Grissim remained silent, having no appropriate answer for the man. Rather than respond he offered his condolences. Brass informed Mr. Taborsky that they would keep him informed and encouraged him to return home to his children.

The detective and Grissim made their way beyond the yellow crime scene tapes and toward their respective vehicles. A small crowd remained gathered. "I'd like to know the why too", Brass, asked. "Why made such a big production of planning to torture someone for a week, then off her sooner. Seems to me it would take some of the fun out of it. I mean this person was really seeming to get his jollies out of torturing her, why end the fun so soon", He questioned. Grissim shook his head. "Patience, or lack of", he answered. "Either he couldn't wait or screwed up, getting too aggressive and extreme in the torture that she died accidentally. Maybe that will be his down fall", Grissim continued. Grissim paused reflecting on a doctor he knew, someone very special in his life, a brief shudder traveling down his spine. He could not imagine someone doing this to Rebecca. It brought back memories of Sarah's abduction. It appeared that there was some tie to cancer; therefore, it was assumed oncologists were targets. Rebecca practiced obstetrics and gynecology. All the same, he had called to caution her immediately. Although she had listened and assured him she would be careful, he worried regardless. In obstetrics, she was frequently being called out in the middle of the night for deliveries. "Gill, anything wrong?" Brass asked noticing his silence. "No, just that we have some psycho out there killing doctors. He promised there would be more Jim. What if he keeps his promise? What could this woman have possibly done to be tortured and then killed like that Jim? She helped people. With a few rare exceptions, physicians are not crazy sociopaths who deliberately harm people. Yet this individual, this nut, decided to torture her, take her away from her two little girls", Grissim replied passionately His fatigue was evident in his unusual display of emotions. In general, Grissim kept emotions in check, not letting emotions affect his judgment and ability to keep himself separate from the case. At times however, Grissim let cases become personal. He expressed more avid insistence at solving the case, bringing the perpetrator to justice. Usually one could pin point the reason behind his reactions, such as the victim being a child for example. Brass, uncertain to the origins of Grissim's reaction in this case, suspected the display of emotion was partially based on fatigue. His team of CSIs had been working long hours to find this perp, only to find a corpse instead. Touching Grissim's shoulder, he only replied, "get some rest Grissim." "All I can say is I will work night and day until we find him and put him away for a long time", Grissim replied in frustration. Without further commend Grissim opened his car door and drove off.

Back in the shadows of the scene, hidden from view the leaves of a large tree, stood a tall man. The shadows hid his face, but if it had not, one would still have been hard pressed to give a description of him. His nose was almost non-existent; a mere stub with a hole from which he breathed remained. One entire side of his face caved in, the bones no longer present. On the opposite side, one ear was missing, scar tissue and a hole being the only remains. Because the crowd had dispersed except for a few die hards, who were gradually growing bored with the entire process, he had heard Brass and Grissim's discussion. "If you only knew why I was angry, why she needed punished", he whispered, his hands clenched in fury. "If only you knew", he said. Grissim's determination frightened him. What if this man, so bent on finding him, figured out who he was? Was it possible his plans could be foiled? Would they discover his identity before he was done punishing them all? His heart beat rapidly at the thought. He clenched and unclenched his fists. At that moment, he decided he needed to keep an eye on this Grissim. Because the excitement was over, the body having been taken away, the crime scene investigators having left, the scene being secured by only a couple non descript law enforcement officers, the group of on lookers were beginning to break up. Because he feared calling attention to himself the man decided to slip quietly away himself. Heading off into the dark street in a park at the edge of the factory, he was essentially undetectable by the officers remaining on the scene. He would do so research on this Grissim who he so feared.

At home, the No Faced man flipped on his laptop. He proceeded to do a google search typing in "Grissim and Las Vegas". He immediately received multiple hits. Opening a few articles, he scanned them quickly. What he read did not reduce his fear of the CSI in the least. Article after article demonstrated how Grissim and his team had uncovered the truth behind various forms of criminal activity. He logged onto the site for law enforcement. Timothy himself had minimal computer skills, but on the other hand, Danny had learned how to hack into the most protected of computer sites, and to do so without leaving any obvious trail or sign that he had been there. In only a few minutes, he had Grissim's work history, credentials, and qualifications. The information did little to relieve his anxiety. Clicking on his personal information he located his address. He jotted down the address on a post-it-note on the desk and carefully backtracked out of the government site to avoid unwanted detection. "Damn", he exclaimed slamming his fist onto the desk. "I will follow you Dr. Grissim. I will find out how you work. You do not know me. You do not know how I work, why I am doing this. You will not be a threat to me because I will find your weak spot. I will use it against you. You better not interfere with my work and if you do, you will pay and pay dearly. Exhausted from the day he closed his eyes. Tomorrow, he thought, tomorrow I will watch him. Pay back was exhausting, but he had made Dr. Taborsky pay. By the end, she had begged for mercy, begged for him to finish her. And he had finished her, slowly and painfully, slowly pulling her intestines until she writhed in pain! It was incredible but so exhausting. Now he would rest. Tonight he would sleep, dealing with Grissim tomorrow. Without bothering to change clothes, he stumbled into bed. Closing his eyes, sleep overtook him.

To Be Continued

Episode 2

No face man awakened early, fresh and invigorated. He quickly showered and changed into clean clothes. He dressed conservatively, desiring to draw no unnecessary attention to himself. He would have to watch Grissim from a distance; unfortunately, his disfigured face drew attention to easily. He was good at observing from a distance however. He had much practice. He drove his Taurus, parking a half block from Grissim's house. There he waited, sipping coffee quietly and patiently. "I will show you patience Mr. Grissim. I will patiently find your weak point, so that you cannot interfere with my plans. I much make them pay. You will pay too, I just have to decide how", he whispered.

Grissim arose, showered, shaved, and poured a cup of coffee. He had about 30 minutes before he had to be at work and decided to unwind by thumbing through the most recent Entomology magazine that he had received in the mail. Glancing at his watch, he realized it was time to leave. Grabbing his keys, he walked to his SUV and started the clock.

Arriving at the office, his team was ready to continue evaluating the evidence collected. Doc Robbin's was first on Grissim's to do list. "I was hoping not to have to do an autopsy on this case", Doc Robbin's said sadly." From her photograph, she was a beautiful woman. It is hard to tell in her present condition. I understand she has two little girls too. Not to mention it hurts to loose a colleague", he said. "Do you have a cause of death", Grissim asked. "That is a tough one. This poor woman's body sustained a wide range of insults, many of which could have been the cause of death. She was tortured in many different ways. This was a brutal death", he replied. Grissim looked at the bruised battered body which featured a face so mutilated and disfigured that it was unrecognizable even by her own husband. "It appears that acid was slowly and repetitively dropped on her face, arms, and torso, resulting in multiple burned areas. The was salt residue as well", he added. "Salt residue", Grissim. "Yea, corny as it sounds, he appeared he ground salt into the fresh burns after he used the acid to create them", Robbins answered. "Nothing like rubbing salt in the wound", Grissim gave a dry reply. "Yea", Robbins replied. "The missing ear appears to be the result of essentially deliberate removal with a sharp object. Same with her nose. Then it appears acid was used to further remove tissue. All this would have caused significant discomfort", he continued. Pointing toward her feet he added. "Of course you witnessed the Hobbling". Grissim only nodded quietly. "So would any of these be the COD?' Grissim asked. "Well the wounds, if they became infected of course could have, but although there was some minor localized inflammation, there did not appear to be any systemic infection. He also deprived her of fluids, dehydration was extensive. At this level, the victim would have had severe muscle cramping, which with the extensive ankle fractures would have been very painful possibly leading to shock. However, this victim was a tough cookie. None of these possibilities are obviously the COD. However look at this", he said sweeping away the sheet with which he had covered the corpse. No wonder he covered her body Grissim thought silently, grimacing. The victim's intestines were exposed. Protruding from a neat surgical incision loops of intestine hung. The bulk of the intestine was wrapped around a large stick. "Doc?" he questioned. "It is just what it looks like. He made a small incision into her abdomen, once he found her intestinal tract he managed to pull out several loops, wrapping them around the wood. He then proceeded to slowly turn the stick, pulling more and more loops of bowel out of the peritoneum", he continued. "Jesus. Was she alive then, during this?' Grissim replied. "Yea, probably for hours. There were multiple different levels of necrosis of the intestine. There was severe pain involved Gill", Robbins answered. "Finally an area of bowel tore, he got too vigorous probably, and she bled out", he continued. Grissim blanched, not wanting to hear or see anymore, "Anything else Doc? Otherwise I am outta here." "Only one more thing, he sexually assaulted her repeatedly and brutally. I sent the semen sample to DNA", Robbins replied.

Grissim returned to the lab area, informing the others of the autopsy results. "My
God", Katherine replied. "This one is a real sick-o", Greg replied. "Yea I would say he holds some definite grudge", Nick replied. Misty remained quiet but pale. What have you all found? "We are waiting for the trace report on the yellow substance on the Vic's blouse", Katherine replied. "This case takes priority", Grissim replied, "I will talk to trace". The shoe print is a size 11 man's. Its tread is that of a Siena Bioni, a man's shoe. Expensive but not expensive enough. Unfortunately there were over ten thousand sold in the United States, well you get the picture", Greg continued. "I am going to get working on that brand he burned into her, see if I can get something on it", Misty replied. "Good, if you need help be sure to ask", Grissim replied. "We are still working on the DNA analysis of the cigarette butts found at the scene", Nick replied. "Well lets get working", Grissim replied.

The team met sometime later toward the end of what was another long shift. "Well what have we got?", Grissim asked. "Well, the yellow substance on the Vic's blouse is Avelo, a common industrial strength cleaner. I did some checking. It is used in over ten different cleaning companies. It is also sold in at least three warehouses in the Vegas area, all of which offer memberships, which means that anyone who is a member can purchase the cleaner. It would be a large container for individual family use, but the managers say they sell it a lot to people who like to buy in bulk", Katherine replied. "So it could have been bought by any number of individuals or something someone used at work if they work for one of the ten cleaning companies", Grissim replied with a sigh. "Yea, I did obtain a list of employees from the ten companies. A couple of the company's track purchased items by computer. They gave us a list of members who purchase Avelo cleaner in bulk", Katherine added, pulling out a 30-page list of names, complete with address and phone numbers. Grissim sighed, puffing his lips. "Somebody give me something", Grissim exclaimed. "Sorry, some DNA on the butts we found", Nick replied. "In fact four different donors, none of whom were a hit on AFIS", he added. "Misty", Grissim questioned directing his gaze toward the newest member of the team. "Well I could not find the brand anywhere in the registry. Therefore, it is not a registered branding iron. However I did do some research on the symbol. It is a combination of several Asian letters, which mean cancer", she said. "It had to have been made somewhere, so I have been looking a different metal shops in the area, so far no luck, but I am far from through", she added. Grissim experienced his first glimmer of hope. "Good job Misty. Nick, tomorrow you help Misty track down some of the rest of the metal shops on the list. If it was made in the Vegas area, it could very well lead us to our suspect. Katherine and Greg, you two cross reference anyone who purchased Avelo cleaner who perhaps lives on a ranch, owns a metal shop, anything that might tie the brand with the cleaner. I know it is weak, but we have little else to go on. I will help wherever needed", he added. "What about now", Misty asked. "Now we go home and rest. We hope that he gives us a little time before he takes someone else", Grissim replied. "But Gris", Greg replied shaking his head. Grissim interrupted him, "Greg we will get no where if we are exhausted. We need a break, even if only a brief one. We will work more efficiently, and therefore accomplish more in the long run", he replied interrupting Greg's protest. Grissim knew he was becoming extremely wrapped up in this case, and knew if he did not give everyone a little space, emotions would become too raw, and less would be accomplished. As hard as it was to walk away this evening without a solution to the puzzle, he knew it was for the best. Everyone nodded, knowing that not only was it of little use to argue with Grissim, but that generally he was right.

The team left in their respective vehicles. Katherine went home, spending some; much needed time with her daughter. Nick who had taken a distinct liking to Misty asked her to join him for a drink. Despite her infatuation with Grissim, she accepted. So far, Grissim had shunned any advances she had made. Shunned was not really the word for his actions. In honesty, she had to admit that he seemed unaware of her advances. Going out with Nick might help her gain some insight into Grissim. Maybe she could decipher what she needed to do to get Grissim to notice her, not as an employee but as a woman. Greg, although driven and wanting to find the key to the puzzle before them, decided to take advantage of Grissim's forced night off. He called a blond he had met last week in a bar. He nervously dialed her cell phone from the card she had given him. Praying it was an actual number he nearly jumped when she answered. "Tiffany?", he asked. "Yes, Greg", she asked recognizing his voice. "Yea sorry it too so long to call", he began nervously. "Work has been crazy and this is the first chance I have had. Want, want to go for a drink", he stammered. "That would be great", she replied to his surprise. Finalizing his plans, he broke out in song, opening the car door.

Gill Grissim made his way home in silence, pondering what they might be missing that would lead them to the killer. A crime scene was like a puzzle. Usually the pieces were there, and finding how one fit usually lead to finding yet another. It was often just a matter of the right piece falling into place.

Grissim arrived home, fatigued and tired. He had also brought the files home with him. Pouring a glass of wine, he opened the file, slowly pouring over the information in the files, looking for any connection between the people who purchased the cleaner and their occupation. A migraine was brewing. Grissim shut the file, closing his eyes. He finally opened them and stood taking his wine glass with him. Unfortunately, the wine would make his migraine worse if he finished it. Instead, he found his migraine medication opened the vial labeled Imitrex , pouring a glass of water taking two of the tablets. He switched the overhead lights off. The phone rang just as he lay back down on the couch. Grimacing he sat up slowly reaching for the phone. "Grissim", he answered. "Hey Gill", a female voice replied. "You don't sound so good", it continued. "Migraine", he replied. Rebecca was one of the only people he openly admitted this infirmity to. "Sorry", the voice said sympathetically. "I won't keep you so you can rest and get rid of it. Have you taken your medication", she asked. "Yes mother", Grissim answered a faint hint of amusement in his voice. "I just wanted you to know the kids have a recital scheduled next Friday. They want to invite you. It is a seven o'clock. I saw you on television again, so I know you are busy with that case so I explained to them that you might be too busy. But if you can get away I know they would love to see you", she said softly. "OK, I will really try Rebecca", Grissim answered, hoping they had this case under wraps by Wednesday. At first, he had been involved in little Danny and Katrina's life out of a sense of obligation. Now he find he enjoyed and relished his time with them. "Good", she replied. Although he really felt the need to rest, he was thankful that Rebecca had called. "I was wanting to talk to you Rebecca. I want you to be careful. Did you watch the news story tonight", he asked. "Yea, I didn't catch it all, I was getting the kids ready for bed", she admitted. "Well there may be a possibility that the victim was targeted because she was a physician", Grissim replied. "Why target a doctor". Rebecca asked. "That is the million dollar question. All we know is that per his own admission he holds a grudge and there appears to be some possible tie to the fact that she is an oncologist", Grissim replied. "Well I am an Obstetrician, you know, I deliver babies so I think I am in the clear", she teased. "Rebecca", Grissim replied, the strain from his headache evident in his voice. "Sorry Gill, I should not tease. I know she was a Doc from Vegas Medical where I work so you are probably even more worried. I will be careful I promise", she replied. "I had better go and let you rest", she added quickly trying to avoid a lecture. "Did you ever get the security system I suggested", Grissim asked before she could escape. "Yes I did", she replied. "And you use it", Grissim asked. He had lived with Rebecca long enough to know she feared nothing. "Yep", she replied. "OK", Grissim replied with a sigh. He worried about Rebecca and the kids alone in the house. The home was secluded and it was often a cause of concern for him.

"Gill, I love you, get some rest OK. If you need anything let me know I will come over", she said concerned. "Thanks Rebecca", he replied wincing as he hung up the phone. Grissim got nothing else done on the case that night.

Chapter 2

The team arrived the next day, prepared to be hard at work. Grissim directed Misty and Greg to hit the road, visiting various metal workshops to see if they could find one that created or made the branding iron. If they did and kept records, it could be their big break. Katherine and Nick worked on a grid, cross-referencing club members who purchases Avelo brand cleaner with profession. Grissim continued working on Theresa Taborsky's patient files, which were now stacked on his desk. What they needed was more manpower. The pervious shift had worked on the files some, but Grissim reviewed them as well, afraid someone had missed something. Some considered that egotistical, but Grissim trusted no one other than those on his team. After several hours, Grissim stopped pouring over the charts and stretched his shoulders. He glanced at the clock. It was after 1:00. He had not heard anyone break for lunch. Grissim's phone rang. "Grissim", he answered. It was Brass. "Gill, how is it going there? I have not had much luck here with Taborsky's partners. I have a few leads, but they are weak. A few disgruntled families of patients who did not make it, but the partners feel they would have been more likely to settle the issue in court not murder. I am looking into them all regardless. I also found a few actual patients, but frankly again they leads are weak. We are checking them all out", he added. Anything there on your end? he asked. "Well I have been pouring over files all day and have not come across anything that stands out. Same as you at that end to be honest Jim. A few unexpected outcomes I think we should look into further, but that is about it. I am not sure where the others are. I was just going to call them to meet for lunch and regroup", Grissim added. "Great, listen give me the names of the patients you find at all suspicious and I will see they get looked into, I will ask her partners as well", Brass directed. After giving the name and addresses to Brass Grissim hung up the phone. He picked up the phone again, calling Greg. "Sanders", Greg answered. He was presently shoulder-to-shoulder with Misty and frankly loved every minute of it. Misty was just plain hot, he thought to himself. "Greg, you two have anything", Grissim asked. "No not yet", Greg asked. So far, everything is a dead end. We were going to finish up here and grab some lunch and then head over to one more place close by", Greg said. "Good work Greg, keep it up, hopefully we will find something soon", Grissim answered. He stood and got up finding the room Nick and Katherine were using to pour over membership lists. The two had been busy creating a large grid on the wall containing member's names with the listed profession. He heard Nick's stomach grumble. "Nicky you sound hungry", Grissim smiled. "Yea" Nick replied looking at the clock. "Lets grab lunch and discuss our findings", Grissim replied. "Meet in the lounge", he directed. Twenty minutes later, the group had reassembled. Nick munching on a large sub sandwich with chips, Katherine who was again dieting was munching on a salad. Grissim himself had a veggie burger. Sara had turned him onto them. Eating them reminded him of her. "Well what have you found", he asked. Nick shrugged with a sigh, "Nothing concrete. A few ranchers we should look into. I have them listed. Nothing that stands out", he admitted. Grissim informed the others what he had learned from Greg and Misty as well as the information he had gained from Brass. "The DNA on one of the cigarette buts found at the scene matches the DNA from under the victims fingernails as well as the semen. Unfortunately it is not a DNA match to any known individual", Katherine added. Grissim nodded. He then reviewed the information he had gleamed from the patient's charts. By sharing information, he hoped that they would discover some connection or tie. Their discussion was cut short by the ringing of Grissim's cell phone. "Gill he has hit again", Brass said quickly when Grissim answered. "Turn on channel seven", he directed, "then call me back."

The team turned toward Grissim expectantly, hoping it was some sort of lead. Silently Grissim picked up the remote for the television in the break room and turned to channel seven. Katherine blanched, knowing in her heart that this was not good news. "Oh God", Nick said softly under his breath, he too assuming the worse. Their worst fears were confirmed. The serial killer has struck again.

"The wife of a prominent Vegas surgeon, Dr. William Green, brought this letter to the station at the direction of the person who is claiming to have abducted his earlier this evening. Mrs. Green, arriving home from a social gathering, found the letter taped to the front door of their LasVegas home", the announcer said as the camera switched from her to a close up of the letter she had brought in. The team moved in closer, examining the letter as the announcer read it aloud. "Mrs. Green. I have abducted your husband as I abducted Theresa Taborsky earlier. He needs to pay for the suffering and wrongs he has caused others to suffer. He too will suffer greatly first, then his life will be ended. That is unless they catch me first, which is highly unlikely. You must take this letter to channel seven. If you do not take the letter to them, before you even go to the police, I will kill him immediately, eliminating any chance he has. By the way he sends you his love, whatever that is worth". "And the poor guys wife ran right to the station with the letter probably smearing any prints we might have found. Gris this guy is smart", Nick said banging the table in frustration. "Nick, that is just what he wants to do, frustrate us. Do not let him do it, it will cloud our thinking. I think we have a crime scene to investigate. Everyone grab his or her gear. I will call Greg and Misty", he directed. He wanted every inch of Green's home covered.

The team met up at Green's home, met by Brass. "The letter is already been sent to the lab for analysis", Brass said. "Good", Grissim replied walking with his team toward the house. "We will take the outside", Greg said, referring to himself and Misty. Grissim paused. The media was already arriving in groves. He was not sure how Misty would handle the probing shouts of questions from the media. Fortunately, the front lawn was huge and the crime scene tape set well away from where the two would be working. Deciding it would be a good test he nodded. "Remember no talking to the media", he cautioned Misty. She nodded silently in understanding. The two CSI's got to work.

Grissim, Katherine, and Nick entered the house together, putting on paper booties to avoid contamination of any footprints they might find on the floor. Entering the large foyer Grissim said, "Nick how about you start upstairs. Katherine and I will work down." Nick nodded. He would have rather worked downstairs where the action was. The rational behind why Grissim made the decisions he often did as to who worked where often eluded Nick. He was sure Gris had a reason however so he got to work. Besides, he thought you never knew where an important clue might lie. He started in the victim's bedroom. Pulling back the covers, he used the ultraviolet like to look for traces of blood. All he saw was semen stains. Despite the fact, he assumed it was the victim's semen; he took the sheets in for analysis. He carefully scrutinized everything else in the bedroom. Nothing appeared out of place. He dusted for prints, lifting numerous prints, most of which he assumed would be the victims and his wife's. Finishing in the bedroom, he made his way to the Master bath. "Pay dirt", Nick whispered. The room looked as if a struggle had occurred. Mrs. Green had a soap dish with colored soaps matching the green and mauve décor of the bathroom. The soaps were scattered all over the floor and the soap dish lay shattered on the ground. Nick stopped photographing the scene. He glanced up at the mirror, noting blood smears present. Again, he snapped photos of the mirror. Glancing to the ground, he noted bloody footprints. He knelt, opening his kit, removing a swab. Taking a small sample, he labeled it placing it carefully in the kit to be taken to the lab later. He then proceeded to pull a clear sheet from his kit, carefully placing it over the footprints he had found. Obtaining samples of each print, he carefully labeled them, placing them beside the kit. He worked his way to the mirror. Again he took a blood sample, confirming it was human he obtained an additional sample, labeled it and placed it in the kit. As he was making a note of how high the blood smear was, he heard Grissim making his way toward the bathroom. "I think you hit it big Nick", Grissim said. "I talked with the wife. The victim is about six foot tall", he added. "I'm betting that the perp attached the victim from behind, smashing his head into the mirror. It would be about the right height if the Vic's was six foot", Nick said. Grissim nodded. "That is assuming it is the victims. The wife is going to provide us with a hair sample for DNA so we can be certain", Grissim countered. There was a print on the toilet lid as well. Grissim obtained it, labeling it placing it in his kit. They surveyed the rest of the bathroom finding little else of use.

Meeting Greg and Misty outside, they assembled discussing the findings. "It looks like the victim was possibly assaulted in the Master bathroom. That is the only area where there was any sign of a struggle, and the only area where we found any definite trace. Footprints from the kitchen ceramic tile had been obtained, but Grissim assumed they were the victim's and his wife's. Samples of any shoes of either were taken for comparison. Grissim already saw what he thought were matches, but they would take them in and run them for definitive comparison. The shoe print from the bathroom looked suspiciously like the print retrieved from the previous crime scene.

Again, a crowd had gathered. Grissim saw no familiar faces, but snapped several photos of the crowd. A shiver ran down his spine as he thought of looking at other crime scene photos of the miniature killer, who had been watching him and Sara process the scene. She had seen one tender moment and noticed what most of his own co-workers had missed, that he and Sara were in love with each other. It was not unusual for individuals to return to the scene of a crime they committed, to watch the drama unfold.

Brass caught Brass on the way to the car. "Well", Brass asked. "We think the perp abducted the victim in the Master bathroom. There was blood on the mirror, a fingerprint on the toilet, and a footprint", Grissim answered quietly to keep bystanders from hearing anything.

No Face man was dressed in work clothes, quietly pruning the bushes beside the neighbor's house. He had determined that the neighbors were gone, so no one would question the gardener pruning the flowerbed in their absence. It allowed him to keep his face down, so no attention would be drawn to his features. He wore a floppy hat, which did an excellent job of shading and therefore hiding his face. He slowly worked his way over closer to the curb where Grissim and Brass were talking. "So, where are we at Gill", Brass asked. "We have to get a lead somewhere", he said. "We are working on it Jim. We will leave no stone unturned", he added. "You were right Gill", Brass added. "This man has not got much patience. How much time do you think this one has", he asked. Grissim looked up into the Vegas sun then back down at Jim. "I doubt as long as Theresa Taborsky had", he replied. Grissim sighed. "He will mess up Brass. They all do at some point. Hopefully sooner than later", Grissim added. No Face Man watched the team depart. He had heard Grissim's comments. His fists clenched in anger. Yes, Gill Grissim is going to have to be dealt with, he thought.

Once again, the processing of evidence began. The shoe print was determined to perfectly match the one found at the previous crime scene. The DNA of the blood at the scene matched that of the victim. A cigarette that was found in the yard by Misty contained a DNA sample that matched that of one of the cigarettes found at the factory Theresa Taborsky's body had been found at. The shoe prints found on the ceramic tile kitchen floor matched the shoes of both the Vic's and his wife. If the perp had been in the kitchen, he had not left any obvious trace evidence. There was a significant amount of evidence that would help convict the perp once they found him, but unfortunately nothing to give a clue as to who he was. The team was tired and frustrated. They were presently all on overtime, having worked over to finish processing the scene.

Knowing however, that someone's life was on the line, the team returned to the task of tracking what evidence they did have. Brass obtained a search warrant, he and Grissim heading to the offices of Dr. Green. Their immediate goal was to find any patients who had been referred by Dr. Taborsky, or any patients whom Dr. Green had referred to Dr. Taborsky. They assumed that there was some common tie.

Taking the files back to the CSI office, Grissim began to pour over them as well. Greg continued the task of trying to locate the metal workshop that might have created the branding iron pattern found in the burns on Taborsky's body. To Greg's disappointment, Grissim kept Misty with him to help pour over the charts for a possible connection between the two physicians. Brass was interviewing Dr. Green's partners. Katherine and Nick worked on the lists of Cosco members who had purchased Avelo cleanser.

Exhausted, Nick lowered his head to the table some twenty hours after the start of their shift. The next shift had arrived and was helping take over review of some of the records as well as some of the patient charts. The entire office prayed for the discovery of some sort of connection. "It seems we are trying to find a needle in a haystack", Nick moaned. "Plus I have a feeling we don't have long. He didn't give us a week last time and it makes me nervous we have not heard from him yet", Katherine admitted softly. Nick only nodded.

Misty worked diligently along side Grissim, occasionally casting a glance his way. Although several years her senior she found him interesting and attractive. Occasionally, her fatigue was too overwhelming, and she allowed her mind to wander, fantasying about what it would be like to be with him. "God girl, get a hold of yourself", she chastised herself silently. There was someone's life at stake here. Grissim did allow them both a couple short breaks, to get up, stretch, and get a cup of coffee. During that time, she did allow herself the opportunity to flirt a little. After the last break was ending, she crept up behind Grissim, massaging his shoulders gently. "You are so tense", she said softly. He was tense, but although the massage felt wonderful, Grissim also felt somewhat uncomfortable with her actions. He was sure she did not mean anything by it, but uneasily he shrugged her hands away and encouraged her to return to work. I'm fine Misty, thanks", he said. Flustered and frustrated at his reactions she replied, "OK, Sorry".

Grissim finally realized that the team was too tired to get much more done. They had been at work over twenty hours and awake without sleep much longer than that. The next shift was working on the evidence as well. It was time to rest and be able to return with a fresh set of eyes. Grissim encouraged the team to return home and get some rest.

When he arrived home, he checked his messages. The light was blinking twice. The first was Rebecca, "Hey just checking in on you. Hope the headache got better. The kids say Hi and that they love you. Check on you later. Get some rest." The second message warmed his heart even more. "Hey Gill, it's me. Hope you are doing OK. It looks like a big case. Would you rather I wait until the following week to come there. Call me. Talk to you later", Sara's throaty voice said. Grissim looked at his watch. She would be sleeping he thought. Best to wait until morning to call. "Damn it Sara, quit trying to run away", he thought. He knew he was going to tell her that she would come no matter what. He had already conferred with Eckley who was surprisingly supportive although partially selfish in motivation. "You will get the time off to try to work things out Gill. After all, you were right. She is a great CSI and we could use her experience back here", he directed. Grissim had smiled and laughed to himself. All he cared about was having Eckley's support; he really did not care about the motivation behind that support. Exhausted he slipped in between the silk sheets Sara had bought for their bed and fell immediately asleep.

When he arrived at the office the next morning, he saw the voice mail blinking. Wondering if it was Sara trying to reach him again, he hit the button. He was surprised to hear a male voice, obviously disguised, and altered digitally. "Well I have another one Dr. Grissim. Do not worry, I will not hurt you. You are not a medical Doctor you see. You study bugs. That is what these people are to me. Bugs. They caused me pain, now I am going to cause them pain. Payback is a bitch Mr. Grissim. You said I did not have patience. Well I want you to know that I do. I did not even touch him until this morning. I let him sit and brew. Then because it was his fingers that serve him in his evil mission, I cut them off one by one and saved them for you. You will find them at a locker at Happy Sams skating park. Locker number 78. Have fun trying to find me. Personally I suggest you give up", the voice taunted.

The rest of the team had just finished putting away their belongings in their locker and had entered in time to hear the bulk of the message. "I take it that wasn't Sara", Greg asked. Grissim shot him a look at his lame attempt at humor. He quickly pulled the tape from the machine and took it to audiovisual for Archie to review. He then called the operator to check to see where the call had come from. It was made from a payphone on the west side of Las Vegas. "The Cosco store is on the West side", Katherine commented. Misty was sent over with Greg to the site of the payphone. "It probably will be a bust, there are always so many print smudges on a payphone, you seldom get a usable print", Greg said trying to show off his skills to impress Misty. Misty like so many other women essentially ignored Greg's attempts to flirt. Having already pissed Grissim off and having his ego deflated by Misty's obvious indifference to him, he quieted, just working quietly after this. "I will follow up on this new lead", Greg said, leaving to print the phone. "Misty and I will go check out the locker", Grissim replied, knowing Brass would easily be able to obtain any search warrant he needed to access the locker.

Misty was nervous. She did not want to embarrass herself again by almost tossing her cookies at the site of someone's cut off fingers. She wanted to impress herself right into her supervisor's pants and being nauseated at any dead body or cut off body parts was not the way to do it.

The two arrived at the skate park, met by Brass, who had a search warrant in hand. "Gill", he said eyeing Misty cautiously. He just did not trust this girl. Her infatuation with Grissim was so transparent and Gill could be so naïve. He led the CSIs to locker 78. The metallic smell of blood was evident almost immediately upon opening the locker. Misty had photographed the outside of the locker and now photographed the inside as well. Grissim then reached in with a gloved hand and pulled out a plastic wrapped cloth, which was soaked in blood. Grissim glanced around to make certain that no spectators were around, then carefully opened the package. Inside were ten fingers, severed just above the knuckle. Grissim placed the digits in a plastic baggie, labeling and sealing it as per policy. He watched Misty as she first printed the outside of the locker and then the inside. There were multiple prints.

Brass watched them process evidence. After awhile he left, beginning to conduct the interviews of the staff and management of the skate park. Unfortunately, there was no video camera surveillance of the premises. Security was generally not an issue, the manager had explained. Yea, they had had a few break-ins in the past, but there really was not much to damage. The rental skates were locked behind metal doors and thus difficult to get into. There was not much to do to the ice. The management figured the expense was not worth it. There was a security system if someone broke in. There was no alarm that sounded during the night, so it was likely that whoever left the fingers in the locker did it during operational hours. "Any record of who gets what locker key", Brass asked. "Sorry, no we do not keep records. This place is too busy to track all of that. Everybody gets a key for a locker, and then everyone turns in a key when they leave. Brass nodded, frustrated at the lack of security. "So would anyone remember who gave out this particular key", Brass asked. "Well, we can ask. If there was something remarkable about the person, maybe", the manager replied. "Let me ask the boy that was working behind the counter today", he said. "Brad, come here", he directed. The teen walked over to Brass and his boss. "Yes Mr. Thompson", he asked his boss. "You remember whom you gave key 708 to", he asked. The boy looked at the key. "Sure. I remember the woman", he replied. "Woman", Brass asked in disbelief. Everything they had to go on indicated this was a man. "Yea, she was like a bag lady. That is why I remember her. I thought there was no way she was going to go skating. I was not even sure she had skates. In fact I doubted it, but she was making a scene that she had the right to skate if she had the money yadda yadda. So I gave her a key", he said. "So did she skate", Brass asked. "I didn't see for sure, but I doubt it. She was not here very long", he added. "Brad, I need you to come with me for awhile. I need you to help someone draw a description to an forensic artist, so that we can try to identify this woman", Brass directed. "We will see you either get back to work or back home afterward", Brass reassured the teen. "OK", the teen replied.

With nothing much more to be learned at the crime scene, Grissim and Misty gathered their kits and left to go back to the lab. Once at the lab Grissim deposited the fingers with Doc Robbins. "At least it is not a whole body", Doc Robbins said dryly. "Not yet", Grissim replied, equally Grim. Doc Robbins quickly confirmed that the fingers were in fact real. DNA should be able to confirm they are the victim's he added, providing Grissim with a sample to take to DNA. They also printed the fingers, so they could compare to the victim's prints that had been obtained earlier in his home.

The prints were the victim's as everyone had expected, the DNA confirming his identity as well. Grissim and Misty returned to work at the files. Somehow, there was a connection between Theresa Taborsky and Green. Brass had the teen working with the forensic artist. Toward the end of the shift, Brass entered Grissim's office. He saw Misty working along side Grissim, leaning in toward him more than Brass felt was necessary. The girl had chosen what Brass found to be a very provocative blouse, somewhat low cut, displaying more of her ample bosom than was necessary in Brass's eyes. Her shoulder touched Grissim's, who was too engrossed in his work to notice.

"Gill", he interrupted clearing his throat. "We have the composite photo of the woman done", he added holding up a picture. He showed the picture to Grissim. "This is not our person", Grissim replied, handing Brass the photo back. "Yea, most likely this little woman did not grab our vics. Either it is a disguise, which given the body build our young witness indicated, probably not. My guess is that it is someone our perp hired to deposit the package", he added. Grissim nodded, "But she could lead us to our perp". Brass nodded. I have the boy looking through mug shots in that event. If she has a record, we stand a better chance of locating her quickly. If not, I suspect we will still be able to locate her. We will just need to go looking at the shelters in the area", Brass added.

Unfortunately, the boy could not find the old woman in any of the many mug shots he looked through. Brass in the mean time had put out an APB on the woman, hoping the distribution of her photo would lead to her apprehension. She was the one person who had perhaps had contact and was aware of the suspect's identity.

Since he was no longer of any use, Brass sent the teen home. He had given him his card as had Grissim, in the event the boy remembered anything helpful or potential helpful. The boy nodded. It had been an exciting experience but a frightening one for him as well. It was always possible that he was so stressed that he did miss something important. His shift was work was already over so Brass escorted the kid home. Grissim, needing to have his team multitask to the extreme, sent Misty out alone to continue tracking the branding iron pattern on the metal shop designs. Grissim once again could feel the victim's time running out. As he reviewed the files, he could hear the clock ticking loudly.

On his way back from taking the boy home, Brass's phone rang. "Brass", he flipped open the phone. "All right, bring her in. I will be right back there. I'm going to take you back and have you identify someone", Brass informed the teen turning the vehicle back around. "Apparently the description you have us gave us a potential lead", he explained. The teen nodded, finding this exciting.

Once back at the station Brass escorted the teen back to a waiting area. One of the staff at the homeless shelter had called in a tip. Apparently, a woman fitting the teen's description frequented the shelter. Maybe this is our big break, Brass thought. He had the woman brought to an interrogation room. Grissim, who had already gotten word of her being brought in, met him there. Before entering, Brass asked the teen to see if the woman was the one at the skate park. "Yea", the kid replied. "She had the goofy hat on. I would not forget that", he added. "Ok you wait here", Brass directed.

The old woman sat at the table, her shoulders hunched over. One of the officers had given her a soda to drink and she sipped on it slowly. Grissim and Brass watched from outside as the officer settled the woman and exited the room. "Good luck, this on is a full fledged fruitcake", he said. Grissim and Brass entered. "Hi", she said smiling. "Hi", Grissim and Brass replied exchanging looks. "Do you know why we are here", Brass asked sitting down quietly. "I guess it was something about the skate park", the woman replied obviously confused. "OK", Brass sighed realizing this was not going to be a very productive interrogation. The woman appeared crazy. "Lets start with your name", he asked. "Dolly Parton", the woman replied. "Dolly Parton, as in the singer", Grissim confirmed. "One in the same", she replied grinning broadly. Brass rolled his eyes. "Dolly, where do you live", Grissim asked gently. "Well not I have not sold records in awhile, so you know, I live here and there", Dolly replied. "I see", Brass nodded. "Is one of the heres the shelter", he asked. "Why yes, they are so nice there. I perform for them you know", she replied. "They let me shower too", she added. Based on the smell she had not been at the shelter for a while, Brass thought to himself. "Dolly, Grissim asked", Were you at the skate park today?" "Why yes I was. I had a job to do", she whispered. Mostly I just sing my songs for people, but early this morning this man asked me to take a package to the skate park, and put it in one of the lockers", she said. "I did a really good job", she said proudly. "Yes you did", Brass nodded. "How did you get into the skate park? Who paid your way in", he questioned. "The man gave me money to go in. I thought it was a silly job, and that I should just take the money to buy something to eat later, but he said there would be more than that if I did a good job. So I took my chances and delivered his silly package and he have me fifty dollars", Dolly laughed. "So you told him which locker you put the package in", Brass, asked. "Yes I sure did" she replied proudly. "I remembered it really well. My memory is not so good sometimes", she whispered, then giggled. Brass and Grissim exchanged looks. They had an eyewitness who saw the man who probably killed Theresa Taborsky and currently had Dr. Green in his clutches. Unfortunately, she was several bricks short of a full house! "Dolly, can you tell us what this man looked like", Grissim asked. "Well, he was tall and thin", Dolly answered. Brass signed in frustration. He knew they needed to pull the information from Dolly at her own pace or they might loose the ability to get anything at all from her, but that did not make him any more patient. "How about his face", he asked. "Well, that is harder. You see it was dark. I really didn't get a good look", she said. He talked to me from outside my box at first. He told me not to look, but I peeked out the tiny hole in my box anyway", she said. Dolly had been found sleeping in her "box", under a bridge near the skate park. Brass sighed trying to let the woman talk at her own pace, sensing he would get more from her. "But it was dark. His face seemed lumpy and bumpy and blurry", she said confused. "Could you describe his features", Brass asked. Dolly thought for a minute. "Well, I just don't know", she replied. "I quit looking because he frightened me. Anyway, he gave me the directions and the money to get in, and then he left. I didn't seem him again until after I had delivered his package and come back to my box", she answered. "Was he wearing a mask perhaps", Grissim asked. "A mask", Dolly said. "I suppose that is possible. I just do not know", she answered. "I am hungry. If I could eat I could help more", she answered. "Dolly, what do you mean when you say his face was blurry or bumpy", Grissim asked. "I only glanced because it frightened me", she said. "I just don't know", she said as she began to sing "Working Nine to Five, What A Way to Make a Living". Try as they might that was all either Grissim or Brass could get out of Dolly. She was gone in her own fictional world.

Several hours later, after they had finally given up on the interview, Dolly being retained in a holding cell. "He had to have been wearing a mask", Brass said. "Yea, possibly", Grissim replied. "Anyway, unless she comes back to the same plane of reality we are on she is of little use", Brass stated. "Well you never know what clue might be helpful", Grissim, argued. "Yea", Brass said frustration evident in his voice.

No Face Man parked. He had driven quite a distance from his location, but did not feel he could be too careful. He watched for a moment until he saw no one else walking around. Then he quickly exited his car and made his way to the mailbox. He slipped the package into the box, smiling as he did.

Grissim and is entourage spent the rest of the day looking for any leads and trying to find any similarities in the data collected. Their grid had expanded, necessitating putting the data into the computer. They had gone back through three years of patient files so far and were currently starting on the fourth year. They had a list of possibilities; all weak that Brass was in the process of checking out. So far, no one stood out as a real suspect. However, weak leads were at least leads and in a case such as this, where you had no strong leads it was their best option.

Oddly, they heard nothing more from the kidnapper. No tapes were left at television stations. No packages were left. The team wondered what the kidnapper was up to. As much as they hated getting a tape of the victim being tortured, it at least offered hope of a lead. The shift ended however, and Grissim and he team left for home to rest. Discouragement reigned.

The next day however offered at least another opportunity at gleaming some hard evidence leading them to a suspect. Greg and Misty were following up on a few possibilities related to the tattoo. Nick was working the angle of the branding iron, checking with metal shops in Vegas, expanding into the immediate area as well. Katherine and Grissim sat pouring over charts, focusing on those patients that Taborsky had given surgical referrals to Green. It at least limited the numbers, but had not yet revealed anyone who appeared suspicious. Anyone who had seen both physicians was getting checked out regardless. "Dr. Grissim", the secretary said entering his office. She held a package. "This is labeled as urgent to the crime lab", she said, handling the package by the edges only. "I did handle the package before I realized how it was labeled and what it might be, sorry", she added. Bernice had been well trained not to handle any package that appeared suspicious, but unfortunately, you did not know how a package was labeled or that it did not contain a return address until you had already handled. "I understand Bernice. Thanks for letting me know", Grissim replied showing the woman he was not angry and understood. He felt she did a great job and always had. He watched as she sat the package on the table. Donning latex gloves, he picked the package up carefully. He wanted to open the package immediately, but knew caution would be in his and Katherine's best interests. He carefully carried the package over to a lab worker. "I need this x-rayed for contents", he directed. He waited while the tech did his job. "Nothing but paper as far as one can tell", the tech replied. Grissim nodded. "Thanks", he said. He carefully examined the outside of the box for trace. Finding no readily observable trace evidence, he dusted for prints. There were several. Katherine did the task of lifting and labeling them to run in AFIS later. For now, they were anxious to see what might be inside the box. Grissim headed for the hood. Katherine followed him to under the hood. Caution needed to be taken opening any sealed package. It could contain aerosolized poison or bacteria such as Anthrax. He and Katherine put on masks, gowns, and gloves and placed the box under the hood. Using his pocketknife, Grissim carefully opened the edges of the package. Under the protection of the hood, they carefully examined the contents. "Oh God", Katherine exclaimed, almost forgetting caution and bringing her hand toward her mouth to cover it. Grissim caught the near slip and cautioned, "Careful Kat. I doubt there is anything hazardous to us in this box, but I would hate to find out we were wrong the hard way." She nodded.

The pictures were of Doctor Green. Like Taborsky, he appeared to have suffered chemical burns over his entire body. In one photograph, it appeared that he had multiple hooks protruding from his skin; in another, he had been suspended from those hooks. Grissim and Katherine were both quiet. Grissim quietly went about printing the photos, again finding a few. Katherine lifted them and labeled them carefully. "Lets get these over to Archie", he indicated. Katherine only nodded. Archie enlarged the photos. "It appears he has them in the same basement", he observed, noting the same beams as in the videos previously sent. "So he has not changed locations", Katherine commented. "Which means he is comfortable we will not find him", Grissim commented. Katherine nodded. "The hooks look like the type used in meat packing plants", Archie commented. "Which means they are deeply embedded into the tissue", Grissim commented. "If we do not get to this man soon, he is going to die of infection before the kidnapper finishes the job", Katherine shuddered. In general, the photos lead to no real lead. Grissim decided to wait until the rest of the team made their way back to the lab before telling them of the photos. He did call Brass to inform him of the most recent development. Subdued Brass merely replied, "OK, thanks Gill".

At the end of another exhausting shift, Greg, Misty, and Nick returned. Discouraged at finding no further leads they sat slumped sharing their day. Grissim rubbed his eyes. Frustration was evident. He knew the team was exhausted. It was time to let the next shift take over. They all needed a break and some rest. However, he also felt the ticking of the clock for Green. They briefly reviewed what each had learned. Grissim and Katherine shared the photos with the rest of the team. Exhausted but wired at the latest news, Greg suggested breakfast. Realizing the team needed the camaraderie Grissim smiled. "Yea, lets do that", he said. "Its on me", he added.

A short while later, the entire team sat taking a much-needed social break. By mutual agreement, they had decided that no one would discuss the case. None of them paid any attention to the man who entered the café after them, seating himself in a booth behind them. "How has Lindsey been"? Nick asked Katherine. The entire team had watched Lindsey grow from a little girl to a teen. She had dealt Katherine enough trouble in those years. Katherine laughed, "She is doing great. She is on cloud nine because a young man who she has been lusting after is taking her to prom. In fact, before I come to work tonight, I promised her I would help her find a prom dress." "And who will win the argument over how much cleavage she gets to show", Greg teased. "It might have to be a compromise. I do not want her making some of the mistakes I did. I would have her wear a dress that goes all the way to her chin", Katherine replied laughing. "But you know she has to make her own mistakes, just like all teens", Grissim advised. "Yea, she does. I just don't want her to make the same ones I did", Katherine admitted. "Have you heard from Sara", Greg asked immediately regretting it. Grissim had been bombarded with questions when Sara had first left and finally lost his cool. He was surprised at Grissim's reaction. "Actually she is coming to visit", Grissim admitted. "Really". Nick said. "When were you going to let us all know? We would love to see her." "Well now hopefully Grissim will keep her so busy she won't have time for us", Katherine teased. Grissim reddened, "I am sure she will want to see you all too." Nick, Greg and Katherine all stifled a laugh, imaging that Grissim would keep Sara plenty busy all by himself. "So how did your hot date go the other night Greg", Nick asked. "Awesome. I think I have found Mrs. Greg Saunders", Greg smiled. "Ah, wait till she really knows you Greg", Katherine teased. Misty was quiet. She did not yet fully feel a part of the team. Grissim, sensing her quiet, wanted to facilitate her feeling part of the group. "How about you Misty? We are still getting to know you?" Misty paused, feeling awkward. "Well, what would you like to know", she finally asked. "Your hobbies, interests, any pets, family", Katherine asked genuinely. "Well I have no family here in Vegas. They are all in a small town about two hours from here called Hillsborough. If you blink too long you miss it. I have a dog named Toto. I know that is a silly name. I really like to play tennis and read", Misty said. "Toto, like Dorothy's dog in the Wizard of Oz", Greg asked. "I like it. What kind of dog is he or she", he asked. "He, and he is a poodle", Misty admitted. "Anyone special in your life", Greg asked. Misty paused. She had broken up with her boyfriend of two years just before moving to Vegas. Her interests currently lay on a man who was totally ignoring her in any way but professionally. "No, not right now", she said quietly, letting the subject drop there. The team made other small talk, then food arrived and they all were quiet while they ate. Once done eating, fatigue began to overtake them. Everyone was winding down. Despite their promise not to talk about the case, they began to talk about the case. They glanced around them, discovering the café was essentially empty. No one saw the man in the booth behind them, huddled way to the back of the booth. "We have a lot of work yet to do tomorrow", Katherine began, the first to mention the case. "Yea, we have enough to convict this guy once we have him, we just have to figure out who he is before it is too late", Nick said in frustration. "So Grissim, what makes this guy tick?" Yea,you always have ideas about this sort of thing", Greg added. The entire team sat waiting for Grissim to speak. "All I am certain of is that he is angry. He as a beef against Taborsky and Green, either real or legitimate. We have not found any claims paid out that fit in either doctor, so I am assuming it is not a legitimate case of malpractice. My sister is a physician. I watch her struggle to do the best by her patients in everything she does. She is an OB-GYN. She kicks herself anytime someone looses an infant. In most cases, physicians do everything in their power to have the very best outcome for their patient. Sometimes, things do not go as well as expected. Sometimes, the physicians make mistakes. In those cases, there is the court system to reach a legal means of restitution. This guy is taking things into his own hands. If he had a case legally against either or both doctors, he could have gone to any attorney in the city and they would have taken the case on retainer", Grissim said. "So you think this guy has no real beef", Nick asked. "Maybe, maybe not. In any case, he is taking things into his own hands and that is wrong. We need to get something. We need to find him before he takes justice in his own hands", Grissim continued. It was obvious he was passionate about this case. The team, who were not previously aware that their boss had a sister, now understood his passion for this case. He related to these victims personally. There was a pregnant pause. "Hey Gris, we will find him", Nick said finally, breaking the silence. Grissim nodded grabbing the bill. "Lets all go home, get some rest so we are fresh for our shift", he directed. The group nodded, wearily going home to catch some sleep before they put their noses back to the grindstone.

Grissim pulled out of the parking lot heading home. He did not think twice about the car that pulled out behind him. He rubbed his eyes wearily. He hoped to be close to an end to this case. Sara was going to be here in a few days. He wanted to be able to spend all his time with her, but feared this case would interfere. He pounded his fists in frustration.

Once he got home, he checked his personal e-mail. The first one was from Sara. "Hey Gill. I have been watching the news. It looks like things are not going so great with the case. If you need me to postpone, let me know. I would understand. I love you, Sara". Grissim began to type in a response, and then stopped. Instead, he picked up the phone, not caring what time it was and if she was sleeping. She answered after several rings, "hello". "Sara, sorry were you sleeping", he asked, now embarrassed that he called her and woke her up. "Yea, but that's OK. I am glad to hear your voice. I have been worried about you. I know how you can be when a case is tough. You do not sleep; you do not get enough rest. I know this case must affect you more than others, with your sister being a physician", she said. "Yea, I suppose it does", Grissim admitted, realizing for the first time that this tie might have made him loose his objectivity. "We still have so little do go on Sara. A lot to convict, but nothing to locate. It is the worse case scenario. I do not think Green has much time", Grissim admitted. Sara said nothing, allowing him to ventilate. After a pause he added, "But about your postponing, no way. They will have to locate this creep without me come Friday", he said firmly. "I am not allowing you to back out Sara. Quit trying to run. You have run all your life and I am not letting you run this time. I want you back Sara", he said passionately. There was a silence. "Sara", he questioned finally unable to take the lack of response any longer. "I am tired of running", she said softly. "I just am not sure where I want to go from here, and what I want to do", she added. "As long as it includes me it does not matter", Grissim replied. "Ok, then I will be there as planned. My flight gets in around 6:00", she added. "Good, I will make reservations for 8:00 for dinner", Grissim replied.

No face man watched the outside of Grissim's townhouse. "You do not understand my reasons, but you will", he whispered to himself. "You think you are so smart and so cool. You judge me. I tried the legal route. No one would take the case. I did not loose enough, they said. Well I will see you loose something precious. You have to have someone in your life that is special. You are close to your co-workers, but I want someone closer than that. Someone's whose loss will affect your life forever. I am just not certain whom yet", he said through gritted teeth. "For now I have someone I need to attend to. I have had to be careful, you have all the studios covered with cameras trying to catch me. But you can not cover every mailbox in the city can you", he continued. Sighing, he turned the key in the ignition and returned home. It was time to really make Green scream, he thought chuckling.

Grissim's phone rang only a few hours sleep. "Grissim", he answered. It was Eckley. "Gill you better come in. It is Green. We have another body", he added. Grissim sighed, hanging up the receiver. The case was escalating and they would require all shifts to work day and night, with a bare minimum of rest with a second dead body. He got up, showered to awaken himself better, dressed, and headed out the door.

He arrived at the hotel parking lot where the body had been found. The body was behind a dumpster. Greg and Nick were already searching through the trash for evidence. "Hey look at this", Greg cried finding a piece of cloth with a yellow stain similar to the one found on Taborsky's blouse. The odor of the stain resembled it as well. "It is probably Aveno cleaner", Nick replied as Greg bagged the evidence. They collected a few other possible pieces of evidence, a few hairs, a few drops of blood, and an allergy bracelet indicating an allergy to Penicillin. They would do DNA analysis on the hairs and blood to see if it was the victims or the kidnappers or neither. They would check the allergy band for prints. If it was the kidnappers, it might be another means to trace him. It was not much, but every little bit of knowledge they gleamed from the evidence, meant that they were closer to finding him. Grissim and David preformed a preliminary exam of the body. Grissim noted skin beneath the victim's fingernail, taking a sample from each. "Well, this body is in as bad of shape as the other victims. His face has been burned, probably with chemicals. He has multiple open gashes and sores, probably from the hooks you saw in the photograph. It is hard to tell what exact COD was", David said.

Grissim nodded as David prepared the body for transport.

Back at the lab, they processed the evidence they had again collected. Praying that something would lead them to the kidnapper before he took someone else, they worked silently and efficiently. By the time they finished, it was almost the middle of the shift. They regrouped to see what they had learned. "Well the blood found at the scene is the victims", Greg reported. "And the cleaner is Avelo", Katherine indicated. "The penicillin bracelet had a print on it. It matches one we found on the videotape", Misty added. "So it either belonged to our victim or our kidnapper, either way he got his print on it", Grissim added, hopeful at some concrete new lead. It would help them narrow their search if the kidnapper was allergic to penicillin. "Actually the victim, Dr. Green had no penicillin allergy. Therefore, it is probably the kidnapper that is allergic", she added. "Good work, that will narrow suspects down a bit", Grissim added, thinking of the number of patients he could remove from this grid.

Grissim and the team poured over files diligently until their vision blurred and the could no longer concentrate. Eckley entered the room. "It is time you all go home", he directed, looking at the weary faces. Grissim glanced at his watch, realizing he had been oblivious of the time. They had worked for 30 hours solid and had not even realized it. The rest of the team started to protest. Grissim interrupted. "Eckley is right. We all need to rest", he said standing. "I will have the next shift work on it, keep searching", Eckley said. Grissim nodded, realizing the team needed a break. After seeing Grissim's response, the team realized that they did need a break. Wearily the got up, heading toward their lockers. Grissim stayed behind and reviewed their progress with the next team of investigators. He glanced at his watch. He needed sleep, but he had something he needed to do more than sleep.

Arriving home, he showered quickly and changed clothes. He had felt the entire team needed a break, but he also had a personal commitment he had to keep. Rarely did he put personal needs before the job, however he found the need to do so now. He had learned with Sarah that family sometimes needed to come first. Climbing back into his Tahoe, he pulled back out of the drive. He knew Rebecca was on a tight time frame, so had agreed to pick her up at Vegas Medical Center where she practiced. Pulling into the parking lot, he paid little attention to the car that pulled in behind him. Entering the main hospital entrance, he walked to the elevators, pressing the button. He waited patiently for the elevator to arrive, pushing the button for the second floor.

The No Faced man kept a reasonable pace behind Grissim. Close enough to see where he was going, but no so close as to draw attention. Grissim was distracted anyway, focusing on the task at hand. He watched Grissim enter the first elevator that arrived. Once Grissim had entered, he walked quickly to the elevator noting where the elevator stopped. Fortunately Grissim had been the only one entering the elevator and it only stopped on one floor, the second. No Face man knew exactly what floor Grissim had got off on. Wondering where he was going, No Face man pushed the button, entering when the elevator door opened and pushed the button for second floor himself.

Grissim was familiar with the labor and delivery area. It was a secured unit, a sign of the times when hospitals feared infant abductions. A waiting area surrounded a central desk. At the desk sat several nurses and a few physicians. Grissim glanced around, wondering if Rebecca would be at the desk, or in one of the patient care areas, which lay beyond the secured doors. He walked toward the desk spotting her immediately. Full of energy as usual, she stood, phone in hand. The secretary, recognizing him, smiled, nodding Rebecca's direction. Rebecca did not hear him approach. "Dictated report on Mackenzie McPhillips, Medical Record number 457890, Mackenzie is a 28 year old Gravida 4, Para 3, spontaneous onset of labor at 0200 this A.M. Patient was 3 cm, 80 effaced and –1 station with intact membranes on admission at 0300. Labor progress nicely until approximately 0900 at which time she failed to progress past 5 cm. Pitocin augmentation was initiated at 1100 when no further progress was made and insertion of IUPC demonstrated an ineffective labor pattern. Patient achieved an adequate labor pattern at 1330 with gradual progression to complete dilatation by 1400. Epidural anesthesia was utilized for pain control with good relief. She pushed for approximately 15 minutes, at which time she delivered a 7 pound 8 ounce baby boy, apgars of 8 and 9 respectively over an intact perineum. Mother and baby both appear in good condition. This is Doctor Rebecca Grissim-Hensley DEA787868. Thank you. End of dictation. He watched as Rebecca rubbed her forehead, glancing at her watch. She looked up, noticing Grissim for the first time. "Gill", she cried, standing on tiptoes wrapping her arms around his neck, brushing a light kiss on his check. "I was afraid with the case you would not make it. The kids are going to be so happy you are at their recital", she said smiling. "Give me just a few minutes and I will run change and be right with you. Are you really off for the night, or do we need to take separate cars", she quizzed. Breathlessly "I am making myself free for the night. I will take you and the kids and then we can come back over here to get your car", he replied pleased at seeing her smile. "Great", she replied.

As she turned to leave, the doors to the locked unit opened, a blond nurse exiting. "Rebecca! Mrs. McPhillips is postpartum hemorrhaging. I tried opening the Pitocin wide open, but it is not helping. We need you back in there now", she cried. Rebecca turned to Gill. "I will be right back. I am off and my partner is to be taking over. I will just be a minute", she said. The nurse paused, "Well, I tried Dr Tate first. He is not answering his page." Grissim saw Rebecca's face fall. Single parenting had been a trial for her, especially with her responsibilities as a doctor. "Listen I will go get the kids from daycare and meet you back here", Grissim said quickly. "If you can not leave I will take them to the recital", he said. "Ok. Thanks, they will be thrilled. I have to go", she said. As she rushed through the unit doors she called, "If I am not out here by the time you get back just take the kids to the recital, and I will get there when I can", she replied. Grissim nodded his acknowledgement as he walked off the unit. He smiled as he watched her spring into action, calling out orders for medications and lab works taking charge of the emergency. He never noticed the No Faced man who had entered the waiting area quickly sitting down in a chair picking up a magazine holding it up before his face. The elevator arrived and Grissim stepped on to take the elevator to the basement level where the hospital day care was located.

The No Faced man did not go unnoticed by everyone. The secretary, along with all the maternity staff, was trained to notice visitors who come and go. The fact the man arrived in the waiting area, without asking to see a particular patient was suspicious. She left her desk making her way over to him. "Sir", she said, touching his shoulder as he laid the magazine down, preparing to follow Grissim off the floor. Her eyes widened in response when she saw his face, or what there was to it. Professionally controlling her response however, she asked, "Can I help you?" The man did not respond. "Who are you here to see"? She asked. Rather than answer, the man stood abruptly and pushed her aside. "Sir", she asked suspicious and in confusion. She watched as he entered the elevator, which had just opened, making his way inside and quickly pushing the button to close the door.

Concerned, she called security. Mike, the senior security guard answered. "Yea, this is Tammy Green, on OB. I just had a strange man enter the waiting area and when I asked him who he was here to see he just jumped up and left." "Well maybe he realized he had the wrong area Tammy. I know if I accidentally walked onto that unit, I would hurry back off too. No little ankle biters for me man", he teased. "Mike, I am serious, the guy was creepy", she replied angrily. She and Mike had dated a few times. He had been fun, but was too immature for Tammy's taste. "Ok Tammy describe creepy", he jested. "OK, like he had no face", she whispered into the phone, not wanting to appear to offend anyone. "No face", Mike questioned. "Yea, like no nose, an ear gone, part of his check was like, missing", she answered. "You my friend, have been reading too much Stephen King", he replied. "Mike", she exclaimed, drawing the attention of her other co-workers. Realizing he was pissing her off and hoping to get another chance to get in her pants he decided to pacify her. "Sorry Tammy. I am being a jerk. I am sure the video camera captured him on tape. I will pull them and review the tape today. If he come back, do not approach him, just let me know. OK", he asked. "OK, but seriously Mike, look at the tapes", she directed. "I will, but you know maybe the guy had a deformity or something", he responded. "Yea you are probably right. It was just creepy", she admitted. "I will scan the tapes in awhile", Mike promised. "How about a drink tonight after work", he asked. Tammy, forgetting what a jerk Mike could be, only remembering what he had been like in bed smiled, "Sure, what time", she answered.

Mike Cunningham did look at the video like Tammy asked. "Weird", he exclaimed as Tammy's encounter with the No Face man played on the television in his office. He could only see the man from a distance, but the fact that this face had many deformities. Mike watched in silence as the man fled the waiting area. Although he did not entirely fit the description of a potential infant abductor, Mike recalled in his training that there was no set profile for an abductor. Suspicious of the mans activity, Mike completed an incident report, pulling the best profile of the man's face that he could and enlarging it. Attaching it to the incident report he notified the other security officers in the main hospital area, e-mailing so they could access it as soon as they could get to a computer. He also called Tammy back. "Hey doll", he said once she answered the phone. "You might have something about that guy. Are you sure, he was a guy? I mean could he be a woman in disguise." " I do not think so Mike. He would have been one tall and big built woman", Tammy said doubtfully. "Why", she asked. "I don't know, but you are right, he did take off when you approached him. You did right in calling it to our attention. I am going to notify administration, see if they want to treat this like an infant abduction attempt", he answered.

Hanging up, he flipped open his Rolodex, finding the correct number for the administrator on call. After discussing with the administrator Tammy's description of the man and her encounter with him, he asked if they wanted the picture of the man obtained from the video to be sent as a warning to other hospitals and through Vegas Medical itself. "I do not want to put the hospital at risk of a liable suit, not with that little evidence of suspicion", the administrator replied. "No, file the report you filled out and if anyone else reports him exhibiting suspicious activity then try to detain him and call us back. Otherwise let it go", he ordered. "But sir, if he was possibly attempting an abduction, the Center For Missing And Exploited Children recommend that other hospitals in the area be notified", Mike protested. "The center for missing and exploited children does not have to face the potential liable suit", the administrator replied. "Now will that be all", he asked curtly. "Yes sir", Mike replied with a sigh. He looked at the video once again, then pulled it from the player, and labeled it. He had a gut feeling about this man and wished he had been able to act upon it. Damn administrators, he thought, they only worry about the hospitals legal obligation and general appearances and reputation, not about doing what is right! He placed it in his desk drawer and slipped the incident report in the proper file cabinet. It was almost time for Tammy to get off work and he intended to keep their date.

Gill Grissim arrived at the basement area of the hospital and made his way down the long corridor to the day care area. Even from this distance, he could hear children at play. Rebecca had a nanny for off daycare hours, but like the idea of the kids getting social skills at daycare. Recently he had become more involved in the kids life, something he found he enjoyed immensely. Having picked the kids up for Rebecca on other occasions, he knew exactly where to go. "Mr. Grissim", he young blond receptionist, Mandy said smiling when he reached the desk. "You must be here to pick up Daniel and Katrina", she asked. Grissim nodded. "Sorry, I know I who you are and all, but I still need to see identification and double check the record to make sure you are still on the pick-up list", Mandy said apologizing. Grissim did not mind the security. It kept the kids safe. "No problem", he replied reaching for his wallet as Mandy pulled the kids records, confirming that he was still allowed to pick the kids up from the day care. "They will be glad to see you. All they have talked about all day is their church recital. It is more of a talent show I think. Katrina is dancing and little Daniel is going to sing a song", she smiled. "And they kept saying that they hoped you would not be busy at work and unable to come", she added. Grissim smiled. Although part of him felt he should be working, churning the evidence repeatedly in his head until he solved the puzzle, he also knew how much tonight meant to the kids. He knew he owed it to these two children to be there for them when he could. "I'm looking forward to it', he said softly. " OK", Mandy said, handing Grissim the slip, indicating he had been checked out and had permission to take the kids from their rooms. "You remember where to go", she asked. "Yes, thank you", Grissim replied.

He walked down the long hall with multiple doors on each side. He glanced in several rooms noting the kids of various ages, playing. Some were playing creative role-play type games, such as house or school. Others were playing games. Some were sitting around a teacher while she read. He walked to the room four doors down the hall. This was three-year-old Daniel's room. Grissim paused at the entrance. The children sat around a square table, all-coloring. Grissim spotted the little boy, who very much resembled Gill himself at that age, brownish hair, and brownish eyes. Daniels was very serious about whatever he was presently coloring. The teacher heard Grissim enter and looked up. Daniel, a very observant child looked up. "Hi Daniel", Grissim said kneeling down to the boy. "You made it!" Daniel said smiling. "Yes I did", Gill said softly. " Your Mother is tied up at work for a bit so I came to get you", Grissim explained. "OK, cool", Daniel, replied smiling from ear to ear. Grissim momentarily forgot his troubles and stresses at work. "Grab your bag and lets go get your sister", he said. Daniel grabbed his backpack, which contained his recital clothes. "His mother said he needed to change into the clothes in the bag", the teacher directed. "Thank you", Grissim replied. "You can help him change in there", she said, indicating the bathroom. Grissim lead the boy into the room, where the boy pushed the door shut. "Can you help me with the shirt. I have trouble with the buttons", Daniel asked. "I would be delighted", Grissim smiled. The boy quickly dressed and the two exited. "Have a good time Daniel", the teacher called smiling. Daniel and Grissim then made their way to Katrina's room. Sometimes the two were in a room together, and at others, they were separated by ages like today. "Hey Katrina", Daniel called out to his four year old sister. Katrina looked up from where the teacher was reading them a story. "You are here", she jumped up and hugged Grissim tightly. "I have to change", she declared. "I am dancing. Where is Mommy", she asked. Grissim smiled. Katrina was so much like Rebecca, she even looked like her. Her personality was a mirror image as well, full of energy. Grissim started to help her as well. "I can do it by myself", she said, ever independent. "All right Katrina", Grissim smiled, waiting as Katrina ran and grabbed her bag and went to change. She exited soon, dressed in a little tutu. "You need to tie me please", she directed. "My pleasure", Grissim replied putting his finger on top of her head and spinning her around so he could get to the ties in back. Katrina giggled. "Where is Mommy? she finally asked. Grissim hated to respond. They would be disappointed if Rebecca could not make it. "Well she got detained at work", Grissim replied. He seldom talked down to the kids, preferring to expand their vocabulary. "So she can't make it", Katrina pouted her lip out. "I am not sure. We need to stop by the hospital and get her", Grissim replied. "I hope she can leave what is going on there, but you both know sometimes there are things that happen at your Mom's work that mean she has to stay and help make someone well", he added. "But you are going to go", Daniel asked. "Yes I promise", Gil answered softly. "Lets go", he added taking a hand in each of his.

The kids both talked about their day. Katrina showed Grissim a pin she had made in crafts for her dress that day. She had chosen to make a bug. Daniel told Grissim all about his ant farm, which had been a gift from Grissim for his third birthday. Distracted by the kids, Grissim did not notice the No Face man lingering at the end of the hallway, nor did he notice the man following him from a distance.

Grissim lead the children to the elevator, returning to the OB unit to see if the crisis Rebecca was attending to had resolved. No Face Man kept his distance. He feared going back up the Obstetrical Unit for fear he would draw attention to himself. Despite his eagerness to learn about Grissim and the woman he was meeting here, he could not risk detection by the hospital staff. That woman at the desk could be a problem. He contemplated killing her, but wondered if it might only draw further attention to him. Perhaps he would follow her too. Anyway, he did not worry about loosing Grissim. He would be returning to the SUV eventually. "Who was the woman, the Doctor Grissim was taking to", he asked himself. He had seen the children, they looked like Grissim. Were they his children? Grissim's personal information on the government web site he had hacked into had indicated he was single, not divorced, so she could not be an ex-wife. No Face Man was confused. Were the children his? He shrugged. "All my answers in good time", he thought as he slipped into his car, watching the SUV Grissim would be getting into. "I think I may have found your weak spot", he thought smiling, thinking of the hug and brief kiss on the cheek the woman had given Grissim. No matter who she was, it was someone Grissim cared for.