Title: The Actor's Nightmare–New York
Rating: M
Disclaimer: The characters of Greg Erikson, Anthony Carmino, Rachel Simons, and Gretchen Linden are mine. The rest are the property of the writers of CBS and CSI: New York.
The door to room 319 was opened and Gretchen Linden stumbled out into the hallway, falling to the floor. The door slammed shut behind her. Gretchen gathered up her shoes and handbag and the remnants of her torn evening gown and stood up shakily. She tried to make her way down the hall, but her legs were wobbly. She leaned against the wall for support. As she slowly progressed, she saw the elevator open and a young man in a tuxedo step out. He began making his way towards her. Through bleary eyes she recognized him–it was Greg Erickson, whom she had met earlier that evening.
"Hey, are you alright?" Greg asked her, reaching out to support her shaky body. "What happened to you?"
She couldn't answer, she tearfully collapsed into his arms, crying against his chest.
"What did he do to you?" Greg asked softly, rocking the poor girl in his arms. She still wouldn't answer. "Don't worry, I'll get you some help. Put your arms around my neck," he said, scooping her up in his arms. "My room's down this way. You'll be safe there, and I'll call for help, okay?" She nodded as he carried her to his room.
Moments later the paramedics and the team from the crime lab came. Stella Bonasera questioned Gretchen as to what happened to her.
"So you were originally Anthony Carmino's date for the awards show tonight?" Stella asked.
"Yes," Gretchen replied. "I entered a contest to win a date with Anthony Carmino. The grand prize was an all-expense paid trip to New York, a $5000 shopping spree, hotel accomodations, a limo ride with Anthony to the awards show, and the chance to be his date for the evening. I've been such a big fan of his. And of Greg Erickson too. They're both on the show 'Crimes of Passion' together."
"'Crimes of Passion'–that's the new crime drama on tv?" Stella asked. Gretchen nodded. "So how did you come to meet Greg Erickson?"
"We all sat at the same table during dinner and the awards ceremony. He didn't bring a date. He was really friendly and flirted with all the ladies, including me. I don't think Anthony liked that too much. Perhaps that's why he did what he did to me," Gretchen said softly.
"Jealousy doesn't justify rape. Besides, the two of you barely knew each other. That's not exactly an appropriate response," Stella said.
"I guess not. I just don't understand why he would do this to me. I didn't think he was that kind of person," Gretchen said.
"Did his behavior change at all during the course of the evening?" Stella asked.
"Well, both Anthony and Greg were nominated for the same category, and Greg won. I smiled at him and congratulated him when he went up to accept his award. Anthony said to me–'you're supposed to be my date, not his'. I told him I was sorry. After that, through the rest of the ceremony, he drank a lot. After the ceremony was over, he invited me up to his room. I know I should have known better, but I thought maybe if I went with him, it might make up for how he felt during the ceremony. We got to his room, and he pushed me against the wall and began kissing me. He turned me around and ripped my dress, and then he raped me," she said bursting into tears.
Stella handed her a box of tissues. "Take your time, you're doing great," she said.
"After he was done with me, he threw me out into the hallway and said 'You're on your own, kid'. I was trying to head back to my room when Greg found me. He brought me back here to his room and called the police," Gretchen said.
"Where is Mr. Erikson now?" Stella asked.
"I don't know. After he called the police, he just told me he'd be right back. Then he left. That was an hour ago," Gretchen said.
"Alright. Do you remember which room was Mr. Carmino's?" Stella asked.
"Room 319. It's just down the hall," Gretchen said.
"Great. You've been a tremendous help. The paramedics are going to take you to the hospital. I'll be there shortly to get the results of your rape kit, okay. Right now I need to ask Mr. Carmino a few questions," Stella said.
Detective Don Flack appeared in the doorway. "I'm afraid you won't be able to do that," he said.
"Why's that?" Stella asked.
"Because he's dead," Flack said.
Stella left Gretchen in Greg Erikson's room and made her way down the hall to room 319, which was Anthony Carmion's room. Mac, Hawkes and Danny were already there, processing the scene. Anthony Carmino lay in the center of the room, blood pouring from a head wound. A broken lamp lay on the floor by his head. The remains of a broken glass lay on the floor near the body, its contents seeping into the carpet.
"Victim is one Anthony Carmino, tv star. Apparent cause of death blunt force trauma to the head. The lamp is likely your murder weapon," Mac said.
"Crime of passion?" Stella asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Love the irony," Mac replied.
"Make sure you check for biologicals, most likely along the perimeter of the room. This also may be where Gretchen Linden was raped," Stella noted.
"By our murder vic?" Mac asked. Stella nodded.
"Oh yeah, I've got little soldiers over here," Danny said, shining his ALS along the wall, revealing a stain.. "There's some fibers here too. Green, maybe silk or satin." He picked up the fibers and placed them in an evidence envelope, handing them to Stella.
"Gretchen was wearing a green gown this evening. I'm sure she looked beautiful," Stella said.
"It's a shame. This should've been the night of her life, dream date with a tv star, and he turns out to be a creep," Danny mused.
"A dead creep. We still have a murderer on the loose," Mac noted. "What's our time of death?"
"He's been dead less than an hour," Hawkes said.
"Okay, that rules out Gretchen as a suspect," Stella said.
"How can you be sure? She had motive," Mac said.
"Yeah, but she claims he threw her out of the room when he was done with her. Greg Erikson brought her back to his room and we received the call a little over an hour ago. I didn't notice any blood spatter on her dress. And Greg Erikson is missing at the moment, so I'm thinking he might be your suspect," Stella said.
At that moment a young woman came bursting in. "Excuse me! Excuse me, can someone please tell me what's going on here?" she said.
"Ma'am this is a crime scene. We can't let you in here," Mac said.
"I'm Rachel Simons, I'm Anthony and Greg's manager," the woman said.
Mac stepped out into the hallway. "I still can't let you in there, but I need to ask you a few questions. Are you aware that a young woman was raped tonight allegedly by Mr. Carmino?"
"I just spoke to her on the phone a half-an-hour ago. She said that she was at the hospital and would be needing a ride back to the hotel. She claims that Anthony raped her and that she was going to sue me for damages. I reminded her that she signed a waiver stating that our management firm could not be held accountable for any injuries sustained during her stay here," she said.
"How convenient, not to mention compassionate of you. The young woman was just raped," Mac.said.
"Look, I'm sorry about that. But I have an obligation to protect my clients," Rachel said.
"Well, you're obviously not doing a good job because one of your clients is dead, and the other is looking really good for his murder," Danny said.
"Anthony's dead? How? Wh-What happened?" Rachel asked.
"Ms. Simons, do you have any idea where Mr. Erikson is? We need to ask him a few questions," Mac said, after glaring at Danny.
"I assumed he was in his room," Rachel said.
"He disappeared after he called the police for Gretchen," Mac said.
"He called the police?" Rachel asked.
"He's the one who found her," Mac said.
"Oh, dear," Rachel said.
"Ms. Simons, was there any bad blood between Mr. Carmino and Mr. Erickson?" Mac asked.
"Well, they had kind of a sibling rivalry going on. Both actors were very popular. They got really competitive over screentime when contract-renewal time came around this past season. Things really got heated up when they were both nominated for the same award," Rachel said.
"Professional jealously?" Mac asked.
"Both are great actors. I think Greg had the more compelling storyline this season, which is likely why he was given the award. That likely didn't sit to well with Anthony," Rachel said.
"Well, it appears that Anthony took out his frustrations on his date," Mac said.
"That's unfortunate. That's not like Anthony at all," Rachel said.
"Well, even more unfortunate, Anthony's dead, and we need to find his killer. So if you could tell me where to find Mr. Erikson..." Mac said.
"You don't think Greg had anything to do with this, do you?"
Stella came out into the hallway. "Mac, that was the hospital. Someone there said they saw Gretchen leaving with a man fitting Greg Erikson's description. They've got units in pursuit now," she said.
"Alright. Danny, you stay here and finish processing the scene. Stella, you're with me," Mac said.
Mac and Stella made their way to the waterfront where several police cars had blocked off a dark SUV. Greg Erikson was still in the car, and Gretchen was with him. Mac went to pick up a bullhorn to talk to Greg, but Stella asked if she could do it.
"He might respond to me if he knows I helped Gretchen," Stella said. Mac nodded and handed her the bullhorn.
"Greg, my name is Stella Bonasera. I'm with the crime lab. I'm a friend of Gretchen's. Could you let her roll down her window so I can see if she's okay?"
Gretchen rolled down her window and waved to Stella, letting her know she was okay.
"Good, I'm glad she's okay. Now, Greg, what I want you to do is let her out of the car and walk over to where I'm standing. I promise I won't hurt her. She knows me. I'm the one who helped her when you called the police. Can you do that for me?"
Inside the SUV Greg lowered his head on the steering wheel and sobbed. Gretchen reached over and touched his hair. "I'll be okay now, Greg".
Greg turned his head to look at her. "If you had been my date instead, I never would have hurt you. None of this would have happened.," Greg said tearfully.
"I know," Gretchen said, wiping his tears. "Fate is cruel sometimes. I'm glad you were there to help me. I wish you didn't feel the need to kill him, but I understand why you did."
She kissed him and stepped out of the car, and walked over to Stella. "I'm okay," she told Stella as policemen swooped in to arrest Greg. "He never intended to hurt me. He killed Anthony because of what he did to me, and he was just scared. He didn't know who else to turn to, so he came and got me at the hospital. He's a good guy, really. He killed Anthony because of what he did to me, not because he's a bad person. That's got to count for something," Gretchen said, bursting into tears.
"Unfortunately, that's what we call a crime of passion. It doesn't matter if you're good or if you're bad. Any one of us could do something like this in the heat of passion," Stella explained. "Rachel Simons is here, she'll take you back to the hotel," she said, walking Gretchen back to Rachel's car. She then walked over to where Mac was standing.
"Life imitating art?" Mac asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Ironic, isn't it?" Stella asked, watching as Greg Erikson was being taken to headquarters.