TITLE: Between Scylla and Charybdis
AUTHOR: Melissa Rivers & Karen
EMAIL: missy@lexicon.net
WEBSITE:
http://www.geocities.com/missyliannem/csi/html
CATEGORY: General fic; angst; violence
SPOILERS: Spoilers Season 1, 2 & 3
RATING: PG13
SUMMARY:
Sometimes the only choice can be to deal with the devil.
STATUS: WIP
ARCHIVING:
CSI Fanfic Archive; CSI Grissom/Sara Archive.
Otherwise, not without permission.
DISCLAIMER:
CSI:Crime Scene Investigation and its characters are
the property of Anthony Zuiker, Alliance Atlantis &
CBS Production Company. I have written this story for
entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever
has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is
intended.
AUTHOR NOTES:
Girssom's Girl (Karen) offered me the idea for this
story and then through emails, it has expanded to what
is being posting here. Hope you enjoy. Thanks again to
Alison for her marvellous and tireless editing.
FEEDBACK: On or off-list is fine, but please let me
know what you think. If there are any glaring errors,
please let me know as I'd like to correct any before it is
put on my website.
Part 1:
"Hey, gorgeous!"
The confident, sleazy voice broke through the silence of
the break room. The sole occupant of the room let the
magazine in her hand drop down onto the table with a
resounding bang. Pursing her lips and narrowing her
eyes, Catherine Willows slowly turned to face her ex-
husband, Eddie.
"What're you doing here?" She didn't even deign to say
his name. It surprised her that he had gained access to
the CSI labs. Gil Grissom had banned him over a year
ago from entering the premises and Eddie had up until
now taken the threat seriously.
"Eddie must be feeling suicidal," she thought. Right
now, he was on the top of her list of people she was
most likely to shoot, given the chance to escape a
prison sentence. Her blue eyes glinted fiercely as she
took in his unshaven face as he leaned casually against
the door jam.
"Is that any way to treat the father of your child?" Eddie
slithered his way across the floor to sit on the seat
opposite Catherine.
"Pity you didn't remember that yesterday when it was
her birthday!"
Eddie had the decency to look chagrined for all of a
moment. "I didn't forget - I was coming by to see her
today. How could I forget my little girl's birthday?" He
gave her his most tantalising of all his smiles. Sadly for
him, it didn't soften her mood at all.
"Easily, Eddie. Like you've forgotten a lot of things,"
Catherine reminded him, sarcastically. "Did you even
buy her a present?"
"Well, that's what I need to speak to you about. I need
to borrow some money."
"You want to use my money to buy our daughter a
present?" Contempt dripped from the words, each one
singularly enunciated, damning Eddie's financial
planning for the future. Catherine picked up her mug
from the table and went to the sink, rinsing it under hot
water. "How much? And don't think I'm doing this for
you; it's for Lindsay."
"Okay, I can see you're in a pissy mood. Obviously, I've
hit the wrong time of the month, so I'll come straight to
the point. I don't have much time to argue with you
anyway. I need twenty thou."
The mug slipped from numb fingers, hitting the bottom
of the sink with a clatter. Catherine's eyes widened as
she whipped around to face Eddie, her face livid as the
words tumbled from her mouth, her voice breaking as
the shock of his request sank in. "Twenty thousand
dollars! Are you out of your mind? What the hell are
you intending on buying Lindsay... Oh, but this isn't
really about Lindsay, is it, Eddie? What is it this time?
Gambling debt? Drug money?"
Eddie graced her with an embarrassed look. He gave a
quick glance around to make sure no one was within
hearing distance.
"Let's just say I owe some guys some dough. And I
owe it pretty quick. It's not that much - just twenty thou.
I've gotta sweet little gig coming up, and I can repay you
real soon. I'd really appreciate it, babe."
"Twenty thousand dollars? Where do you think I can
get that kind of money?" Catherine leaned back against
the sink. "Eddie, I'm a single mom, raising a child with
no child support, just in case you'd forgotten. You don't
even remember your daughter's birthday and you
expect me to save your skin when you get in deep
water? Where do you get the gall to come in here and
ask me, of all people, to save your sorry butt? You got
your share of the profits from the sale of our house.
Use that."
"I've spent it."
"What? On your latest music scam or last night's
action?"
Eddie stood up and walked across to Catherine, pulling
himself to his full height to tower over her smaller
stature. His face darkened as he tried to master the
anger he felt. He had paid to get her this job and to
stop her junkie habit. Yet, he had lost his wife to not
only the job but to her boss.
"That's a laugh. What about the action you've been
getting on the side, Cat?" Eddie deliberately used his
pet name for her, knowing how it would irritate. "I
always knew there was a thing between you and Gil.
I'm sure that you have plenty of men waiting in the
wings, keeping you in those good clothes. You have
the money from the sale stashed away safely. I know
you, Catherine."
Catherine was watching his face as he said this. There
were more thoughts running through his mind, but she
wasn't privy to them. She could see the emotions
flickering across his face, and was growing a little afraid
of what she saw there, remembering that look from
years past. She pulled back, away from him, intending
to head out of the room. But Eddie was too quick for
her, one hand shooting out and firmly gripping her upper
arm and shoving her back against the bank of
cupboards.
"Bitch! I know you have the money, and I need it. You
owe me! If you don't give it to me, they're going to kill
me. Do you understand that? These men are serious.
How are you going to explain to our daughter that you
let her daddy be killed just because you wouldn't give
him the money he needed? Explain that. You can't,
can you? I'm desperate here. Just give me the money,
and I'll be out of your life. I just need to disappear, but
I've got to get this taken care of first." He grabbed both
her upper arms and gave her a couple of firm shakes.
The look on Eddie's face was a mixture of fear and
anger - a look that Catherine had seen before, and
dreaded.
"Eddie! Listen to me. I don't have that kind of money.
You know I used the money to buy my condo. There's
nothing there to give you." Catherine tried to reason
with him, but past experience told her that there was no
breaking through the mania that had taken over the man
holding her.
"Listen, I need money and you're going to give it to me."
Eddie voice had reached fever pitch. The slap echoed
in the empty room, sounding like a gun shot. His hand
had connected before Catherine could react, and the
force of the blow sent her reeling backwards with a
small cry. The cabinets stopped her from falling too
far, as did the grip Eddie still had on her right arm.
Catherine was in shock. She hadn't expected the
violence from Eddie to emanate at work, especially
after the last time. It wasn't the first time he had struck
her, but that had been many years before. She had
been young and immature, too accepting of the rough
side of Eddie, sacrificing her safety for the romance
she had dreamed of. The dream had come crashing to
an end between his increasing need for control, the
safety of their daughter and his extramarital affairs. All
in all, it had been a wise decision. Speaking with him
today had not.
Raising her left hand to her face, Catherine could feel
the pulsating heat pervading the side of her face. She
slowly shook her head, trying to ease the ringing sound
in her ear. Eddie took this simple shake as a negative
and raised his fist to strike her again, his anger totally
out of control.
Before his hand could strike, Eddie found himself
catapulted sideways by a fast moving force. He broke
his grip on Catherine and stumbled, trying to regain his
footing under the onslaught.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The words
were out of Sara's mouth before she had time to even
register who the man was. When her brain finally
caught up to speed, she recognized Eddie, the failed
musician, husband and father. "Why the hell are you
here? Grissom told you *never* to return."
"Catherine, are you okay?" Sara turned to Catherine,
her eyes quickly running over her colleague, checking
for injury. Apart from the vivid red mark showing
distinct fingerprints staining the side of Catherine's
face, she appeared all right. She turned her back on
Eddie, ignoring him in her concern for Catherine. She
moved towards the smaller woman hesitantly.
"Who the hell do I think I am? What about you? I was
talking with my wife and you assaulted me for no
reason."
"Hate to bring you up to date, but she's your ex-wife.
You want to talk about assault? Get your facts straight,
buddy. I'm going to get the guards to escort you off the
premises." Sara was so mad, she spat the words out
with venom. Raising herself to her full height, she
approached Eddie menacingly, her eyes flashing
dangerously. "You ever touch her again, you'll be in jail
before you can blink. Get outta here, now!"
Too late, Sara saw the look on Eddie's face. He was
beyond control, beyond caring about the
consequences. Aggression filled his being and Eddie
aimed a curved first directly at the centre of Sara's
face.
Last minute reflexes took hold and she bore the brunt of
the force to her cheek, her head whipping back under
the pressure. Sara immediately drew her own hand
back in defence, and made contact with Eddie's nose
with her fist. She had the satisfaction of hearing
cartilage break. Eddie fell down to the floor, holding his
nose in both hands and blood immediately began to
flow from his nose, threading between his cupped
hands and stained his shirt a bright, crimson red.
As Eddie hit the floor, Nick and Warrick came flying
through the door, drawn to the break room by the
vicious argument. They both stopped short at the sight
before them, surprised at finding Eddie on the floor,
looking totally crushed. The two women stood, their
faces flushed. No, correction. Catherine had a hand-
print colouring the left side of her face. Sara, on the
other hand, was red from exertion, her heavy breathing
giving away the rush of adrenaline slowly ebbing away,
and a small trail of blood from a cut on her cheek.
"She broke my nose. That bitch broke my nose. I
want her arrested for assault!" Eddie screamed, his
words muffled beneath his hands and the injury to his
nose. He pointed clearly at Sara, his eyes clearly
damning her as the guilty party for inflicting the damage.
Unfortunately for Eddie, the sounds had also attracted
the head of the team. Grey-haired Gil Grissom entered
the room right behind the two younger men. He
scanned the entire room taking in all the evidence
before him, his sharp, eagle eyes quickly sorting out the
pertinent details. Tilting his head to the side, and
running his tongue over his dry lips, he had already
developed a plausible theory of the causal events
resulting in Eddie sitting on his backside on the floor of
the break room.
"Eddie. I thought I told you not to return here. I want
you to leave right now." Grissom instructed him,
ignoring the obvious injury to Eddie Willows' face. The
fact that Sara was holding her hand rather gingerly
clued him in as to who had brought about the change to
Eddie's appearance. He shook his head, shaking away
the fear that this night was sure to bring on a migraine.
"I want that bitch arrested. She broke my nose. That's
assault and battery." Eddie spat the words, the threat
of legal recompense against Sara already filtering
through his slow witted mind.
"Eddie, you hit me first and then Sara. You're going to
be fighting two assault charges before we even get to
the matter of your injuries, which were inflicted in self-
defence. Think about who would make the more
credible witness, Eddie. Get outta here. " Catherine
was trying desperately to keep her voice under control,
to not break down and cry. "What had she ever seen in
the man?" she thought.
Turning her back on the man she had once called her
husband, Catherine grabbed some paper towels from
the counter. Running it under some water, she
approached Sara and gently guided her to the table.
She dabbed at the blood trail from the small cut on
Sara's cheek. Sara was still shaking with anger and
something else, while keeping her eyes firmly fixed on
the man struggling to his feet. Her face was pale and
her breathing was still ragged.
Catherine narrowed her eyes as she examined her
colleague's face. There was something behind those
dark eyes, something besides the understandable rage.
As she watched Sara, the close scrutiny didn't go
unnoticed. Too quickly, the small glimpse into an
unknown facet of her friend something that Catherine
had a hard time defining, disappeared. Catherine made
a mental note to ask Sara about it later, when
everything was a bit calmer.
"Nick, Warrick - please, escort Mr. Willows to the door."
Grissom instructed them. Turning his back on Eddie,
he tossed a recommendation across his shoulder,
"And Eddie, I would think twice about filing charges.
Striking a police officer is a crime we don't take lightly.
I'm letting you go this time, but if I ever see you around
here again, the end won't be a simple broken nose.
Believe me." His face conveyed the message more
clearly than mere words could.
Nick and Warrick grinned as they assisted Eddie to his
feet. A few snickers escaped their lips as they recalled
the look on Eddie's face as he hit the floor. Clearly,
being knocked over by a mere girl was a new
experience to this obnoxious man. They could hardly
wait to get Catherine's side of the story. Once this was
safely in the past, they knew she would enjoy telling
about Sara Sidle, Iron Fist.
Eddie's face darkened; he was sure everyone in the
room was laughing at him. He shook off the arms that
held him. Nick and Warrick backed off, hands raised in
the air, clearly showing that they weren't touching the
guy.
Looking at the blood covering his shirt, Eddie gave a
vicious shake of his hand towards the group of
investigators. "You'll pay for this.... you'll all pay for
this!" He stormed out of the room and out of the
building.
End Part 1/?
AUTHOR: Melissa Rivers & Karen
EMAIL: missy@lexicon.net
WEBSITE:
http://www.geocities.com/missyliannem/csi/html
CATEGORY: General fic; angst; violence
SPOILERS: Spoilers Season 1, 2 & 3
RATING: PG13
SUMMARY:
Sometimes the only choice can be to deal with the devil.
STATUS: WIP
ARCHIVING:
CSI Fanfic Archive; CSI Grissom/Sara Archive.
Otherwise, not without permission.
DISCLAIMER:
CSI:Crime Scene Investigation and its characters are
the property of Anthony Zuiker, Alliance Atlantis &
CBS Production Company. I have written this story for
entertainment purposes only and no money whatsoever
has exchanged hands. No copyright infringement is
intended.
AUTHOR NOTES:
Girssom's Girl (Karen) offered me the idea for this
story and then through emails, it has expanded to what
is being posting here. Hope you enjoy. Thanks again to
Alison for her marvellous and tireless editing.
FEEDBACK: On or off-list is fine, but please let me
know what you think. If there are any glaring errors,
please let me know as I'd like to correct any before it is
put on my website.
Part 1:
"Hey, gorgeous!"
The confident, sleazy voice broke through the silence of
the break room. The sole occupant of the room let the
magazine in her hand drop down onto the table with a
resounding bang. Pursing her lips and narrowing her
eyes, Catherine Willows slowly turned to face her ex-
husband, Eddie.
"What're you doing here?" She didn't even deign to say
his name. It surprised her that he had gained access to
the CSI labs. Gil Grissom had banned him over a year
ago from entering the premises and Eddie had up until
now taken the threat seriously.
"Eddie must be feeling suicidal," she thought. Right
now, he was on the top of her list of people she was
most likely to shoot, given the chance to escape a
prison sentence. Her blue eyes glinted fiercely as she
took in his unshaven face as he leaned casually against
the door jam.
"Is that any way to treat the father of your child?" Eddie
slithered his way across the floor to sit on the seat
opposite Catherine.
"Pity you didn't remember that yesterday when it was
her birthday!"
Eddie had the decency to look chagrined for all of a
moment. "I didn't forget - I was coming by to see her
today. How could I forget my little girl's birthday?" He
gave her his most tantalising of all his smiles. Sadly for
him, it didn't soften her mood at all.
"Easily, Eddie. Like you've forgotten a lot of things,"
Catherine reminded him, sarcastically. "Did you even
buy her a present?"
"Well, that's what I need to speak to you about. I need
to borrow some money."
"You want to use my money to buy our daughter a
present?" Contempt dripped from the words, each one
singularly enunciated, damning Eddie's financial
planning for the future. Catherine picked up her mug
from the table and went to the sink, rinsing it under hot
water. "How much? And don't think I'm doing this for
you; it's for Lindsay."
"Okay, I can see you're in a pissy mood. Obviously, I've
hit the wrong time of the month, so I'll come straight to
the point. I don't have much time to argue with you
anyway. I need twenty thou."
The mug slipped from numb fingers, hitting the bottom
of the sink with a clatter. Catherine's eyes widened as
she whipped around to face Eddie, her face livid as the
words tumbled from her mouth, her voice breaking as
the shock of his request sank in. "Twenty thousand
dollars! Are you out of your mind? What the hell are
you intending on buying Lindsay... Oh, but this isn't
really about Lindsay, is it, Eddie? What is it this time?
Gambling debt? Drug money?"
Eddie graced her with an embarrassed look. He gave a
quick glance around to make sure no one was within
hearing distance.
"Let's just say I owe some guys some dough. And I
owe it pretty quick. It's not that much - just twenty thou.
I've gotta sweet little gig coming up, and I can repay you
real soon. I'd really appreciate it, babe."
"Twenty thousand dollars? Where do you think I can
get that kind of money?" Catherine leaned back against
the sink. "Eddie, I'm a single mom, raising a child with
no child support, just in case you'd forgotten. You don't
even remember your daughter's birthday and you
expect me to save your skin when you get in deep
water? Where do you get the gall to come in here and
ask me, of all people, to save your sorry butt? You got
your share of the profits from the sale of our house.
Use that."
"I've spent it."
"What? On your latest music scam or last night's
action?"
Eddie stood up and walked across to Catherine, pulling
himself to his full height to tower over her smaller
stature. His face darkened as he tried to master the
anger he felt. He had paid to get her this job and to
stop her junkie habit. Yet, he had lost his wife to not
only the job but to her boss.
"That's a laugh. What about the action you've been
getting on the side, Cat?" Eddie deliberately used his
pet name for her, knowing how it would irritate. "I
always knew there was a thing between you and Gil.
I'm sure that you have plenty of men waiting in the
wings, keeping you in those good clothes. You have
the money from the sale stashed away safely. I know
you, Catherine."
Catherine was watching his face as he said this. There
were more thoughts running through his mind, but she
wasn't privy to them. She could see the emotions
flickering across his face, and was growing a little afraid
of what she saw there, remembering that look from
years past. She pulled back, away from him, intending
to head out of the room. But Eddie was too quick for
her, one hand shooting out and firmly gripping her upper
arm and shoving her back against the bank of
cupboards.
"Bitch! I know you have the money, and I need it. You
owe me! If you don't give it to me, they're going to kill
me. Do you understand that? These men are serious.
How are you going to explain to our daughter that you
let her daddy be killed just because you wouldn't give
him the money he needed? Explain that. You can't,
can you? I'm desperate here. Just give me the money,
and I'll be out of your life. I just need to disappear, but
I've got to get this taken care of first." He grabbed both
her upper arms and gave her a couple of firm shakes.
The look on Eddie's face was a mixture of fear and
anger - a look that Catherine had seen before, and
dreaded.
"Eddie! Listen to me. I don't have that kind of money.
You know I used the money to buy my condo. There's
nothing there to give you." Catherine tried to reason
with him, but past experience told her that there was no
breaking through the mania that had taken over the man
holding her.
"Listen, I need money and you're going to give it to me."
Eddie voice had reached fever pitch. The slap echoed
in the empty room, sounding like a gun shot. His hand
had connected before Catherine could react, and the
force of the blow sent her reeling backwards with a
small cry. The cabinets stopped her from falling too
far, as did the grip Eddie still had on her right arm.
Catherine was in shock. She hadn't expected the
violence from Eddie to emanate at work, especially
after the last time. It wasn't the first time he had struck
her, but that had been many years before. She had
been young and immature, too accepting of the rough
side of Eddie, sacrificing her safety for the romance
she had dreamed of. The dream had come crashing to
an end between his increasing need for control, the
safety of their daughter and his extramarital affairs. All
in all, it had been a wise decision. Speaking with him
today had not.
Raising her left hand to her face, Catherine could feel
the pulsating heat pervading the side of her face. She
slowly shook her head, trying to ease the ringing sound
in her ear. Eddie took this simple shake as a negative
and raised his fist to strike her again, his anger totally
out of control.
Before his hand could strike, Eddie found himself
catapulted sideways by a fast moving force. He broke
his grip on Catherine and stumbled, trying to regain his
footing under the onslaught.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The words
were out of Sara's mouth before she had time to even
register who the man was. When her brain finally
caught up to speed, she recognized Eddie, the failed
musician, husband and father. "Why the hell are you
here? Grissom told you *never* to return."
"Catherine, are you okay?" Sara turned to Catherine,
her eyes quickly running over her colleague, checking
for injury. Apart from the vivid red mark showing
distinct fingerprints staining the side of Catherine's
face, she appeared all right. She turned her back on
Eddie, ignoring him in her concern for Catherine. She
moved towards the smaller woman hesitantly.
"Who the hell do I think I am? What about you? I was
talking with my wife and you assaulted me for no
reason."
"Hate to bring you up to date, but she's your ex-wife.
You want to talk about assault? Get your facts straight,
buddy. I'm going to get the guards to escort you off the
premises." Sara was so mad, she spat the words out
with venom. Raising herself to her full height, she
approached Eddie menacingly, her eyes flashing
dangerously. "You ever touch her again, you'll be in jail
before you can blink. Get outta here, now!"
Too late, Sara saw the look on Eddie's face. He was
beyond control, beyond caring about the
consequences. Aggression filled his being and Eddie
aimed a curved first directly at the centre of Sara's
face.
Last minute reflexes took hold and she bore the brunt of
the force to her cheek, her head whipping back under
the pressure. Sara immediately drew her own hand
back in defence, and made contact with Eddie's nose
with her fist. She had the satisfaction of hearing
cartilage break. Eddie fell down to the floor, holding his
nose in both hands and blood immediately began to
flow from his nose, threading between his cupped
hands and stained his shirt a bright, crimson red.
As Eddie hit the floor, Nick and Warrick came flying
through the door, drawn to the break room by the
vicious argument. They both stopped short at the sight
before them, surprised at finding Eddie on the floor,
looking totally crushed. The two women stood, their
faces flushed. No, correction. Catherine had a hand-
print colouring the left side of her face. Sara, on the
other hand, was red from exertion, her heavy breathing
giving away the rush of adrenaline slowly ebbing away,
and a small trail of blood from a cut on her cheek.
"She broke my nose. That bitch broke my nose. I
want her arrested for assault!" Eddie screamed, his
words muffled beneath his hands and the injury to his
nose. He pointed clearly at Sara, his eyes clearly
damning her as the guilty party for inflicting the damage.
Unfortunately for Eddie, the sounds had also attracted
the head of the team. Grey-haired Gil Grissom entered
the room right behind the two younger men. He
scanned the entire room taking in all the evidence
before him, his sharp, eagle eyes quickly sorting out the
pertinent details. Tilting his head to the side, and
running his tongue over his dry lips, he had already
developed a plausible theory of the causal events
resulting in Eddie sitting on his backside on the floor of
the break room.
"Eddie. I thought I told you not to return here. I want
you to leave right now." Grissom instructed him,
ignoring the obvious injury to Eddie Willows' face. The
fact that Sara was holding her hand rather gingerly
clued him in as to who had brought about the change to
Eddie's appearance. He shook his head, shaking away
the fear that this night was sure to bring on a migraine.
"I want that bitch arrested. She broke my nose. That's
assault and battery." Eddie spat the words, the threat
of legal recompense against Sara already filtering
through his slow witted mind.
"Eddie, you hit me first and then Sara. You're going to
be fighting two assault charges before we even get to
the matter of your injuries, which were inflicted in self-
defence. Think about who would make the more
credible witness, Eddie. Get outta here. " Catherine
was trying desperately to keep her voice under control,
to not break down and cry. "What had she ever seen in
the man?" she thought.
Turning her back on the man she had once called her
husband, Catherine grabbed some paper towels from
the counter. Running it under some water, she
approached Sara and gently guided her to the table.
She dabbed at the blood trail from the small cut on
Sara's cheek. Sara was still shaking with anger and
something else, while keeping her eyes firmly fixed on
the man struggling to his feet. Her face was pale and
her breathing was still ragged.
Catherine narrowed her eyes as she examined her
colleague's face. There was something behind those
dark eyes, something besides the understandable rage.
As she watched Sara, the close scrutiny didn't go
unnoticed. Too quickly, the small glimpse into an
unknown facet of her friend something that Catherine
had a hard time defining, disappeared. Catherine made
a mental note to ask Sara about it later, when
everything was a bit calmer.
"Nick, Warrick - please, escort Mr. Willows to the door."
Grissom instructed them. Turning his back on Eddie,
he tossed a recommendation across his shoulder,
"And Eddie, I would think twice about filing charges.
Striking a police officer is a crime we don't take lightly.
I'm letting you go this time, but if I ever see you around
here again, the end won't be a simple broken nose.
Believe me." His face conveyed the message more
clearly than mere words could.
Nick and Warrick grinned as they assisted Eddie to his
feet. A few snickers escaped their lips as they recalled
the look on Eddie's face as he hit the floor. Clearly,
being knocked over by a mere girl was a new
experience to this obnoxious man. They could hardly
wait to get Catherine's side of the story. Once this was
safely in the past, they knew she would enjoy telling
about Sara Sidle, Iron Fist.
Eddie's face darkened; he was sure everyone in the
room was laughing at him. He shook off the arms that
held him. Nick and Warrick backed off, hands raised in
the air, clearly showing that they weren't touching the
guy.
Looking at the blood covering his shirt, Eddie gave a
vicious shake of his hand towards the group of
investigators. "You'll pay for this.... you'll all pay for
this!" He stormed out of the room and out of the
building.
End Part 1/?
