Laws of Motion – Book 4
Written by: Ms. Maggs/Edited by: KJT
Prologue
Friday – November 25, 2005
Boulder City Hospital
3:11 am
"Dr. Ortiz!" Nick flagged down the doctor he'd met when Grissom and Catherine were brought to the ER after the Harper House cave-in. "Hey."
"Nick Stokes, right?"
"Yeah."
The doctor shook hands with the CSI. "Hey, how's Sara's pregnancy going?" he asked, recalling how he had processed her pregnancy test on the sly.
"Great, she's almost halfway I think."
"Fantastic. What brings you here?"
"One of my team members is here with a head trauma." Stuffing his hands on his hips, Nick shared, "I know head traumas can be serious if there's swelling issues and bleeding. She's really startin' to worry and I can't get anyone to tell me what's goin' on because this place is swamped and understaffed because of the holiday."
Leaning in, the doctor quietly asked, "Is she a little more than a co-worker?"
"At one time she was, yeah." Chuckling with the fellow ladies man, Nick said, "She's in Number Seventeen. Could you check her chart and let her know?"
"She's a looker, right?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"Hair color?"
"Blonde."
"Walk with me…but not with me." Manny strolled into the nurses' station and grabbed a chart. "What's going on with the blonde in seventeen?"
"I knew you'd be curious about her," Susan, the head nurse who loved the charismatic doctor like the son she never had, laughed. "She presented with nausea, blurred vision and dizziness. CT results are fine. She lost about thirty minutes of memory. Dr. Parsons just diagnosed a Grade II concussion." Susan smiled at her favorite doctor. "She's pretty, Manny. Want me to find out if she's single?"
"Of course," the doctor laughed as he returned the chart. "Thanks, Susan," When he left the station, he gave a thumbs up. "Did you hear?"
"Yeah."
"Don't worry about the memory loss, it's just the mind's way of sparing us the drama." Holding up his pager, Manny waved. "You'll have to tell her yourself. Duty calls. Give Gil and Sara my best."
"Hey, Stokes!" Cavaliere approached the CSI with Fromansky and Juarez at his side.
"Yeah?" When Nick turned, he saw the detective and his irritation reactivated.
"How's Curtis doing?" Cavaliere asked, while filling a Styrofoam cup at the water dispenser.
"Fine, no thanks to you."
"Excuse me?" The detective bristled. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Stepping closer, Nick gruffly shared exactly what was on his mind. "It means that I don't enjoy hearing 'Grab him, Stokes' comin' out of your mouth when I show up to process a suspect's house. I grab the evidence, you grab the bad guy, remember? How the hell does a nineteen year who has been drinkin' all day get by a seasoned detective, anyway? Huh?"
"Them's fightin' words," Officer Juarez muttered into her coffee. It wasn't the first time she'd seen the two butt heads.
"You got a problem with my job performance again, Stokes?" Cavaliere tossed his empty cup in the trash and crossed his arms.
"Let's just say that I'm sick and tired of my team members gettin' injured because you and some of your buddies are sleepwalkin' to their twenty. Greg almost dyin' in that basement…that was your scene, man and…"
"What about Sara in the desert, huh? That was your pal Vartann's scene," Cavaliere snipped.
"There's a world of difference between securin' the whole damn desert and not being able to keep track of one drunk nineteen year old in a confined space!"
"I just think there's something about me that a good 'ol boy like you doesn't like."
Nick burst into a crazy laugh. "You think I don't like you because you're Hispanic? Is that what you're not so subtly suggestin'?" After a few more seconds of riotous laughter, he calmed and his expression morphed into an icy glare. "No, that's not why I don't like you. I don't like you because you're an asshole who is too lazy to do his job right. Be it securin' a scene, keepin' a suspect at bay, or checkin' out a lead to build a stronger case for the DA…all you want to do is clock in, spend as much time as possible leanin' against your car lookin' important, and then go home."
"I don't go home." Cavaliere whispered just for Nick to hear, "While you're running around the city playing holier than thou CSI, I'm bangin' your fiancée at the Deuce Motel."
Fromansky had his camera phone ready for when Stokes hauled off.
"We both know that's not true," Nick replied, his body tense enough to snap in two. "And we both know I'm absolutely right about you."
When Nick turned to walk away, Fromansky yelled, "Hey, Stokes! Have you thanked Mike for saving your life yet?! No, you haven't. I guess you only want to piss and moan when things go wrong, but not acknowledge a cop who goes the extra mile to save your ass. Kinda hypocritical, doncha think? You must have picked that up from Grissom."
Not taking the bait, Nick kept walking and when he reached Sofia's cubicle, he ducked behind the curtain and released the breath he had been holding.
"How bad is it?" Sofia panicked when she saw Nick's angst. "Is it a brain bleed? Do I need surgery?"
"Huh?"
"You look…"
"Oh! No, sorry." Nick broke into a smile. "You're gonna be fine, don't worry. I'm just pissed as hell at Cavaliere for not subduing the suspect in the first place." Moving to the bed's edge, he whispered, "Off the record, I found out that your CT didn't show anything bad. You have a Grade II concussion, that's what's causin' the little bit of memory loss." A loss he was thankful for considering it included a declaration of love. "Sorry for scarin' ya."
"Ms. Curtis…" Dr. Parsons, Boulder City's newest and youngest ER physician, rushed in with her head in a chart. "Sorry for the delay in getting back to you." She brushed her unkempt red hair off her face. "This place is a madhouse. Lots of Turkey Day food poisoning and domestic dispute injuries. Uh…your CT scan didn't show anything remarkable about your brain."
"Hey now." Nick chuckled at the attractive doctor's wording. "As someone who works with her at the Crime Lab, I'd disagree. Her brain is actually quite remarkable."
Sofia couldn't believe Nick was flirting with the physician. It's such a trained reaction, he doesn't even realize he is.
"Sorry," the doctor returned the sexy man's laugh. "It's been a long day. I should have phrased that better."
Ugh, she did a hair flip! Sofia rolled her eyes. "Excuse me…over here. We were discussing my medical status, remember?"
"Right! The bottom line is…you don't have any brain damage, Ms. Curtis. We can release you, but you'll need someone to drive you and you can't be alone for the next twenty-four hours, because there is a chance that you may experience a sudden change in consciousness. Any drastic change in headache pain, vision or disorientation is cause for concern and we'll want you to return, okay? Do you have someone to drive you and supervise you?"
"Nick can drive me, but is the supervising part really necessary, because my boyfriend isn't home."
"Definitely," the doctor confirmed. "If you don't have anywhere to go, I can hold you for observation, but I'll have to admit you because the ER is jammed."
Sofia protested, "No way, I hate hospitals."
"Sorry." Nick shook his head. "As your supervisor, I need to remind you that this is a work-related injury and you need to follow doctor's orders. You're either stayin' here, finding someone to watch you, or I'll bring you home with me."
The idea of spending time with the Happiest Couple on Earth making her headache significantly worse, Sofia droned, "This is my punishment for not going with Irving to Florida to meet his mother."
Dr. Parsons' eyes sparkled as she smiled at the hunky CSI. "I don't know why she's complaining, I'd be happy to leave here with you on my arm. My shift ends at six by the way."
Nick flustered from the unexpected flirtation. "Uh…"
Oh my God, look at him…he's wondering where she got the idea he was interested! Hello?! You flirted first! Men! Ugh! He's so freaking irritating…in a really irresistible way. "He's engaged," Sofia reminded herself while informing the brazen woman.
"Excellent." Dr. Parsons extended her business card. "Then I still have a chance."
"No you don't," Sofia intercepted the card and returned it to the brazen woman. "His fiancée's not going anywhere."
"Best of luck, Ms. Curtis." The doctor walked away chuckling. "I hope your recovery goes well too."
Ignoring the awkward moment, Nick retrieved his cell phone. "I'm uh…gonna step outside and let Carrie know we'll be home soon."
Chapter 1
Tuesday, December 6, 2005 The New Vartann House...which, even though it was the smallest (5,000 sf) and least expensive ($1,240,000) home Becca had ever owned, she loved more than anything (especially more than the five million dollar hell hole she had been subjected to live in with her evil mother as a child), because this modest suburban hamlet was filled with love (and really nice furnishings) and it had the perfect backyard for Baby Bella to have totally cool birthday parties with ponies, and a petting zoo and roaming balloon twisters (not that she was planning that far ahead because Tony said it could jinx the pregnancy).
6:03 am
Dropping their gym bags, Mr. and Mrs. Vartann raced up the stairs to the master bedroom, shedding their workout clothes along the way.
"The only bad thing about the new house is that it's ten minutes further from the station!" Tony declared as he dove for the bed they had rolled out of at four forty-five that morning. "That's ten less minutes to fool around in the morning."
"It's quality, not quantity that matters." Becca snickered into her husband's chest when he kicked off the loving. "Then again…there's something to be said for quantity. Is it my imagination, or is it larger after working out?"
He laughed his answer into ear, "Do you think I'd actually say 'no' to that question?"
"I think it's very generous of you to keep making love to me even after I'm pregnant and your work is done. It must be quite tedious."
"Yeah." Tony rolled their bodies until Becca was perched on top. "I can't help it though, I'm nice to a fault." He started laughing, "And you look so sad when you're begging me and undressing me with your eyes."
"Is this what you want?" Becca raised her hands to her hair.
"You know I do." When she released the complicated updo with soft-core flair, he declared, "At three months, we're technically still newlyweds, but I know in my heart of hearts that I will never get tired of you doing that for me. As a matter of fact, this is exactly how I want to die when I'm a hundred and five…right here, from a coronary, underneath my naked ninety-five year old sexy wife who just let her hair down for me."
"Aww, that's really beyond sweet, Honey…except for the very clear visual of your naked one hundred and five year old body in my mind's eye."
"Just out of curiosity, was I at half-mast or…"
"Ha!" She smothered his mouth with a kiss, then answered, "You were still gettin' it on, don't worry."
One lusty kiss later, Tony lovingly whispered, "If it's okay with you, I'd like to move into the no talking phase now, because all of a sudden, I'm finding it a little hard to focus on the conversation."
"Okay." In her sultriest voice, Becca brushed her next words over her husband's mouth, "But I bet I can make you say my name."
His lips perked into a naughty smirk. "It won't work." Settling in for her to ravage him, Tony moaned, "But it will be fun to watch you try."
"Wanna place a bet?"
"Mmmhmm."
As she gyrated her hips, she suggested, "If you say my name, you have to wear a pink tie with your suit in the BPAC charity fashion show."
"Oh, you're on." He buttoned his lips, knowing there was a sexual move she could pull that would get him to speak now.
"Okay, Baby." She worked his body by working hers, dropping just the right sounds and words to heat him thoroughly. "Are you close?"
He clamped his lips tighter.
"Mmm…oh…I can't…oh! OH! Here I go!" Becca taunted before disengaging their bodies and jumping off the bed. "See ya!"
"Becks!" Tony bolted up. "What the hell are you…."
"You said my name!" She skipped off to the shower.
He had been so caught up in the moment he had forgotten why that was important. "OH! Dammit!"
"HA!" Becca started the shower.
Crashing onto the mattress, he cursed into a pillow.
"Are you going to finish yourself off out of pride, walk funny all day, or are you going to join me in the shower to be a defeated, but sexually satisfied man?" While she knew he was thinking about the lesser of three evils, she made a Betty Boop squeal. "If only I had a big strong man to soap my slick, hot body for me. Oops! I dropped the soap."
A minute later…
"Hey, Becca…I just remembered that Sister Mary Margaret, my first grade teacher at St. Anne's, said that pride was a vice and handling our parts was a sin!" Opening the shower door, he announced, "I don't want to have to go to confession, so I'm gonna take care of things in a sanctified manner by having my way with my wife in the shower."
"Aww." Becca turned off the water. "Too late." She stepped past him giggling. "And don't even think of touching me when I'm clean and you're not."
"Uh…I…I'll wear a pink shirt too," he whimpered.
"Okay, it's no longer fun picking on you now that you've entered the realm of pathetic." She returned to the shower and flipped on the hot water. "Come and get it!"
The Grissoms
6:12 am
"Here you go, Flash." Sara crouched down to place the dog's food dish on the floor. "My stomach is starting to get in the way."
"The day is finally here!" Gil announced as he breezed into the room dressed and ready to go. "The suspense is killing me."
"Imagine if you had to wait the full nine months."
"Thank God for science." Their 3-D ultrasound was that afternoon. "I can't wait to see my daughter."
"I can't wait to see my son." Sara took a seat at the counter to eat her breakfast.
Opening the fridge, Gil excitedly told Flash, "I'm looking forward to showing off Erin's first portrait."
"Owen's picture is going to look great on my desk," Sara informed the dog. "I can't wait to get started on his bug-themed nursery once we get confirmation."
"That butterfly nursery is going to look fantastic when we finish it."
Once his dish was empty, Flash moseyed to the doggie door, making it clear that he wouldn't be choosing sides.
Taking a seat next to his wife, Gil conceded, "As long as our baby is healthy, I don't care if it's a boy or a girl."
"I want a healthy boy," Sara replied with a smile after her last bite of muffin. "Because if we have a girl, knowing my luck, she won't be a Tom Boy, she'll be a girly girl and want to play dress up and do her nails and hair. That's the girl baby Carrie needs. It would be cruel for Carrie to have a Tom Boy girl who hated stupid shoes." When she saw her husband's smug expression, she said, "Oh cut the crap! You're crossing your fingers the kid loves bugs, admit it!"
"Look at the time," he chuckled before pecking his wife's cheek. "See ya at the lab."
"Becca has her daughter's first seven birthday parties planned and they haven't even seen the heartbeat yet!" Sara shouted as her husband strolled away feeling superior. "On the pathetic scale, I'm halfway at most!"
Once Gil was in the garage, Sara glanced down at her protruding belly. "I'll love you no matter what, but please…don't be a girly girl."
Nick and Carrie's
6:19 am
Snapping her pink lace bra, Carrie called to her fiancée, "Nicky! The bathroom sink is clogged again, can you fix it for me before you leave?! I just had my nails filled yesterday and don't want to take a chance."
"Are you cleanin' the hair out everyday like I told you?"
"Yes," she emphatically answered while innocently posing before him in her matching lace undergarments.
"Carr, come on." He dangled the sink stopper in front of her face and pointed to all the tangled hair. "You're lyin'!"
"Okay, okay, I forgot to do it yesterday." Then she saw him snake out a rat's nest of hair. "And the day before that."
"You're a smart woman." He washed his hands once he got the sink to drain. "Why can't you understand that when you blow dry your hair that it all flies through the air, lands in the sink and if you turn on the water, it all goes down the drain." Suddenly he recalled hearing his father saying the same words to his sister Barbara when they were teens and cringed. I will not become him! "Sorry, Sweetheart, it's just…"
"No, I'm sorry." Stepping close enough for their bodies to touch, she brought her lips to her man's ear. "I'll remember," she made sure her hot breath landed on his neck.
"I'll believe it when I see it," he gulped.
"Okay." Grabbing a tissue, she demonstrated how she would clean the hair…while taunting him with her semi-naked body. "See, I know how." Giggling, she bent over to toss the tissue, making sure her lace-covered behind nudged him in the right place. "I was just being lazy. I'm feeling pretty energetic now though."
"This is cute, really it is." He cleared his throat. "But I'm serious; you could cause a huge plumbing problem."
"All work and no play has made Nicky a very grumpy boy." Leaving his side, she walked into her closet to find the right shoes. "All joking aside, I promise to remember."
"Good, because…" When he saw her in her red serpent shoes, he froze. "You're not wearing those to the office today, are you?"
"Why?" Stepping into her red suit skirt she gave him a puzzled look.
"Because those are my favorite bedroom shoes. I bought those for you. I don't want old Stevie boy seeing you in my favorite bedroom shoes."
"Nicky…"
"They're special…and sexy. Are you trying to compete with Tina Marchello now? It's…" He stopped himself from sharing that Cavaliere and a couple of cops were constantly making salacious remarks about her. "I thought they were just for us to enjoy together."
"I'm having my picture taken for Vegas Magazine. They're profiling the DA's office, remember? They've asked the women to wear red and the men have to wear dark suits with red ties, because they're calling it 'An Office with Heart'." Placing her hands on his shoulders, Carrie explained, "I'm wearing the shoes because they are special, and they make me feel good when I wear them. Consequently, I thought I'd take a really confident picture, but now that I think about it..." She slipped out of them. "They're too special to wear outside and get dirty."
"I'm sorry I'm so crabby." Nick slipped his arms around her waist. "I love you, Carr, and I miss you." Resting his forehead on hers, he whispered, "With our schedules, we've been like ships passin' in the night since Thanksgiving. It doesn't seem that way when it's happening, but then one day, like this mornin', I wake up and realize we haven't made love in a week and I've talked to Greg more than you. I hate that. We need to do better at balancin' our work and personal lives, because how are we gonna fit in a baby if we're not takin' time for each other? Seriously, how are we going to make that work?"
"You're right, you're absolutely right." She hugged him tight. "We have Friday through Sunday blocked for my birthday. We'll come up with a strategy then."
"We're schedulin' time to make a schedule, that's so…"
"Us."
"You look beautiful, Sweetheart." He initiated a lingering kiss. "I'm sure your picture will be too."
"One more."
"If I kiss you again I won't be able to leave."
Nodding, she reluctantly released her grip. "Call me later."
"You know it." He slapped his thigh. "Binda! Walk Daddy to the door!"
The dog jumped off the bed and raced to the door.
"Nicky…" Carrie called when he was about to disappear.
"Yeah?"
With glassy eyes she softly said, "I love you, too."
"Hold that thought." Nick flipped open his cell and punched in Sara's code. "Hey there, Big Mama. My car battery's dead and I'm gonna be late. Can you tell the troops the rally's off and carry on without me? I'll be there as soon as I can, thanks." He promptly closed the phone and locked Binda out of the room. "You were saying?"
"I love you!"
"I want you to know that I've never done that for any woman."
"You just violated your strict work ethics for me, Stokes." Giggling, she stepped into the serpent shoes. "I can't believe I'm such a temptress!"
They met in the center of the bed.
"What about your hair?" Nick asked when their first kiss broke. "The picture."
"I can wear it up," she breathlessly replied as the last button of his jeans gave way. "Condom."
"I'm on it."
"I have to leave in thirty minutes, so…" She tossed her bra. "Padding in time to freshen up…I have twenty minutes." When she saw him ready and raring to go, she warned, "I want all twenty, Stokes, so pace yourself."
"Yes, ma'am." He knew he was in trouble when the mere touch of her hand had him gasping for air.
"Nicky," she urged when he hesitated.
After a steadying breath he answered the plea she was making with her eyes. "Carr…hell, I swear it's the damn shoes," he laughed into her hair. "I need a minute of distraction."
"Give me a birthday hint."
"No."
"Is it bigger than a bread box?"
"I'm not tellin'."
"Does it have wheels?"
Their noses bumping in an Eskimo kiss, he sweetly chuckled, "I didn't buy another motorhome if that's what you're worried about."
"I'm not worried." She stroked his cheek, enjoying the smoothness of his morning shave. "Whatever it is, I know you put a ton of thought into it and for that reason alone I already love it."
"Thank you, Sweetheart." Locked away in their bedroom with his body linked to the woman he'd love forever, Nick serenely whispered, "Isn't life perfect when it stands still?"
The Blakes
6:28 am
"Can someone answer the darn phone already?!" Wendy shrieked as she balanced Ashley on her hip and made an organic peanut butter and banana sandwich for McKenna's lunch. She was exhausted from making Christmas Pageant costumes for the church until three and then only catching an hour of sleep before Ashley had a nightmare and woke at four. She couldn't wait until everyone left so she could put Ashley down for an early nap and take one herself. "Seriously! Am I the only person who hears the phone?!"
"I hear it, Mommy," McKenna said as she skipped into the kitchen. "But you don't let me answer the phone 'cause it may be a bad guy who wants to steal me or worse." Her mother never answered when she'd ask what 'or worse' meant, but she figured it meant dead.
"Sorry, Honey!" Paul rushed in with the cordless phone in hand. "I was in the john and by the time I picked it up they were gone." Walking to the counter, he checked the caller ID box. "It was my dad. I'll call him on the way to the office."
"No, he's returning my call," Wendy droned. "I left a message last night asking if he could take Ashley for a few hours this afternoon."
Paul hit the speed dial button for his father and walked out of the room. "Hey, Dad."
"Mom!" Ryan raced into the kitchen. "I need a lunch money check, because I'm down to a dollar in my account."
"I put thirty dollars in your brother's when I registered him. Have Sean buy you lunch today, because your father doesn't get paid until Friday and I emptied the checking account paying bills yesterday."
"Yo, ho, Captain Sean!" Ryan greeted his eye patched brother as a pirate, "Arrragh! Will you be up for sharin' your lunch bounty with me today, because Sir Paul and Lady Wendy are out of doubloons until Friday?"
"I'm so sick of the pirate jokes." Sean dropped into a kitchen chair. "It's hard enough starting at a new school, but to start with a patched eye."
Wendy sympathized, but stayed the course. "Honey, we waited an extra week, but you've finished all your homeschool lessons and you need to go or I'll be hauled off to jail."
"Let's think about this, Bro." Ryan tapped his fingers on the table. "If she's in jail, I can bring home meat."
Paul hurried into the kitchen, "Dad will be here at noon for Ashley." He kissed Wendy's cheek. "He and Jori Demcak are going to take her to the park. I still can't believe my father may actually have a girlfriend…or that his maybe girlfriend is the future grandmother of Nick and Carrie's surrogate baby. Our life gets a little more soap opera every day, doesn't it? Except I actually have to work, we don't have unlimited cash, and there isn't a love scene every hour"
"And I don't have a mansion, a maid, or a studly personal trainer named Rock at my beck and call." Wendy rolled her eyes. "I think our life is like Little House on the Prairie…a lot of family love and home baked goods, as well as freak accidents, bad luck, and no money to spend at the store."
"Yeah," Paul winked, "but we have penicillin and Tylenol, so at least we don't have to sweat out our illnesses quarantined in the church/school."
Loving her husband for remembering the show they used to watch with geriatric patients at the hospital when they were dating, she pointed to the door. "Time to go to work, Pa! We don't want the kids to only get tin cups and pennies again this Christmas."
"At least we know their rich Aunt Carrie from the big city will get them something nice. Now that I think about it, my sister is a lot like Eliza Jane, the prissy school teacher with the fancy shoes and hats. I guess that makes me her brother Manly." Laughing hard, Paul made a dash for the door. "I'll see everyone at supper. If you're good today, kids, I'll play my fiddle for you tonight! Bye!"
Ryan gaped at his hysterical mother. "Just when I thought you two couldn't get any stranger."
The Sanders Home
6:37 am
"Greg..." Tawny averted her eyes as her husband moved into the Downward-Facing Dog position in front of her. "I don't think naked yoga is a good idea. It's like bad naked."
"My parents used to do it all the time."
"Yeah, and your mom is in a group home for the mentally unbalanced. What does that tell you?"
Glancing up, he saw the clock. "Shoot! Look at the time." He rushed for his clothes. "If I'm late, Nick will become mentally unbalanced."
"Why are you limping?" Grabbing her robe, Tawny laughed, "Did Tony put you through the ringer at the gym again?"
"No," Greg droned while tugging on his sweater. "I finally got asked to participate in their reindeer games and I'm paying for it."
"Reindeer games?"
"Like in the Rudolph movie…you know how the cool reindeer never let Rudolph play any reindeer games because he was a nasally-challenged geek. Those guys never include me, but today they did."
"Oh!" She laughed. "Duh. I thought it was some kind of Christmas sports competition, like the Reindeer Run race."
Greg zipped his pants and hurried to find socks. "They let me play basketball with them this morning."
"I didn't know you played basketball."
"I don't!" He sat on the edge of the bed next to her to pull his socks on. "I totally suck. I got knocked over three times. Even Vartann caved in and started laughing his ass off at me, but he had the decency to turn his back."
"Aww." Tawny stroked his hair. "Just remember, when Rudolph saved the day everyone loved him and felt bad for ever thinking he was a loser."
"Thanks, Clarice," he replied, calling her by the name of Rudolph's girlfriend.
In her best high-pitched reindeer voice, she spontaneously belted out Clarice's love song, "There's always tomorrow, for dreams to come true. Believe in your dreams…"
"I adore you for knowing the words to that song." He beamed with admiration. "God, we're a perfect match."
"Because we're both very strange people with odd senses of humor."
"The correct term is misfits, but I know an island where we'd fit right in. I'd take you there, but you're pregnant, and it's a pretty tough trek…and I don't own an ice axe." He bumped noses with her just like the cartoon deer. "Okay, I have to go or I'll miss Santa's morning rally and he'll assign me to pick up reindeer droppings all day."
When he was at the door, Tawny said, "Hey, Rudolph…" She batted her eyes. "I think you're cute."
"She thinks I'm cute!" Mimicking the scene, he leapt out the door. "She thinks I'm cuuuuuuuuute!"
When she heard a crash, Tawny ran into the hallway. "What happened?" She worried when she saw he was holding his face.
"I tripped over the laundry basket and slammed into the wall."
When Greg moved his hand, Tawny laughed so hard, that she had to hold onto the wall for balance. "The tip of your nose…it's all red. You smeared blood all over it." She gasped for air. "Where's the camera?"
Crime Lab – Grissom's Office
6:49 am
"Check out my new picture, Warrick." Gil handed over the photo he had just framed. "We're having our twenty week ultrasound today. I can't believe it."
Staring at the man who at one time only had a personal relationship with racing cockroaches, Warrick said, "Hey, I still can't believe you're married. No offense."
"None taken." Smiling, Gil took a seat. "I was a textbook social misfit for years. Decades actually. Well, who are we kidding, I still am, but I'm a good husband, and I'm going to be a good father."
"I want whatever you had for breakfast," Warrick laughed. "Have a good day. My wife is waitin' in bed for me, so I'm hittin' the road."
Morning Glory Lane
6:52 am
"Hey neighbor!" Tony pulled over to the side of the road.
"Mornin'! Still lovin' the new house?" Drew asked as he walked to the curb with the newspaper in hand.
"Yeah, we're going to be very happy there."
"I told ya, and it was a steal for the price." He had found it while strolling Claire around the neighborhood.
"Yeah, now I owe you for finding me a great wife and a great house. Actually that's why I pulled over, to extend a thank you invitation. We'd love to have you over. I know this weekend isn't good, but we're open next weekend if you are."
"Yeah, we're free. I'll see if I can get a babysitter."
"No, bring the kids. Becca's in mommy overdrive, so she'll love it. We have a nice playset in the backyard and plenty of grass. Does a Saturday lunch BBQ work better for the kids than dinner? Around noon?"
"Yeah, that would be great. Marta's still a little down from not hearing from her parents like I mentioned to you the other day. How about lettin' her bring dessert? She loves makin' these triple fudge brownies."
"I know Becca will love them, she's craving chocolate daily now." Tony saw a segue and asked a burning question, "Speaking of Becca, I wanted to say thanks for letting her run with this Charity Fashion show idea. It means a lot to her to have you trust her with a big project like that and I'll tell you…she's throwing her heart and soul into it. If you could tread carefully with her on…"
"Hell, I'm not doin' her a favor, it was a great idea and she's doin' a phenomenal job. We're gettin' incredible buzz. I think we'll be makin' some serious cash."
"Really? Wow, that's great." Tony breathed a little easier. "I wasn't sure if you were just humoring her."
"Not at all." Drew shook his head. "She's incredibly smart and very creative."
"I agree," Tony laughed. "She outsmarted me again this morning as a matter of fact."
"I hear that's how she got you to stomp the runway too, right?"
"Yeah, and now she has me wearin' a friggin' pink tie." He tapped his watch. "Alright, I gotta run."
"Have a good one!" Drew nodded, then hurried for the front door. Anxious to tell Marta about the invite, he hustled to get to the kitchen. "Hey, Honey." Drew tossed the newspaper on the counter before circling his arms around Marta's waist. "Tony Vartann was drivin' down the street just now and we got to talkin'. He's invited us and the kids over for a BBQ lunch, a week from Saturday. I told him I thought it would be okay. Is it okay?"
"Uhhhh, sure." She really didn't feel like socializing, but knew she had to stop moping around the house. "Becca is always real nice to me when Claire and I bring you lunch at BPAC."
"She thinks you're great, a big switch from the bitchy snots she's used dealin' with in California."
"Good, because I need all the friends I can get, now that I don't have a family."
"Your family still loves you, Marta." Drew hugged her tight. "They're just don't approve of how you've chosen to live. Your father is doin' the 'love the sinner, not the sin' thing. Kind of like my dad with Katie."
"But your dad still talks to Katie even though he thinks homosexuality is a sin. I'm being shunned for living with you."
Drew smiled, hoping to lighten up the tone. "If your father had my mother on his case, he'd be talkin' to you. But in your parents' marriage, it seems to me that your daddy holds most of the power."
"True," she sighed.
"For your information, I think things should be fifty-fifty." He winked. "I thought I'd let you know that in case you need to factor it into a decision one day in the future."
"Are you still sad today, Nanny Marta?" Cassie asked upon entering the kitchen.
"I'm afraid so, Sweetie." Squeezing Drew's hand, Marta said, "But I'm getting a little less sad every day."
Hugging her father, Cassie said, "Nanny Marta's sad 'cause she can't see her mommy, but I'll be sad if I hafta see my mommy and that scary man."
"Don't worry, Sugar." Drew scooped up his daughter. "I hired the best family law lawyer that money can buy."
Mike and Lissa's
7:08 am
"I need another five grand," Lissa announced as Mike was leaving for work.
"For what?" he snapped at the shopping addict who was apparently trying to beat a spending world record.
"Linens."
"Five grand for sheets?"
"Not just sheets," she grumbled. "Comforters, towels, tablecloths, napkins, the works. I tried to make do with Marlene's stuff, but it's hideous."
"I'll tell you what," Grabbing his wallet, Mike fished out two hundred dollars, "use that to buy some new lingerie and supplies. After you're done spoiling me tonight, Dearest Wife, we'll talk about linens."
Snatching the money, Lissa sighed. "I feel used."
"Join the club, Sweetheart." He threw open the door. "I'm goin' to work."
Crime Lab
7:23 am
"I'm here!" Nick announced when he found every member of his staff in the breakroom.
"We're having the rally in here without you." Sara showed him the Krispy Kreme donut hole in her hand, "I even brought evil carbs in honor of your absence."
"Nice." Much to everyone's surprise, Nick fished two holes from the box and popped them in his mouth.
"He's late and eating evil carbs in the same day?!" Greg exclaimed. "What's he gonna do next? Show us he's wearing women's underwear?"
"I certainly hope not." Brass patted his belly as he strolled to the coffee station. "I had a big breakfast and I'd prefer not to lose it."
"Grey Boxer Briefs, people." Nick lifted his shirt and tugged up the waistband. "Sorry to disappoint you, Greggo. Now tell me what happened to your nose and why you're limpin'?"
"The wife was smackin' him around again," Sofia joked. Then she remembered Sara's history and cleared her throat. "Not funny, sorry."
Sara inched a smile. "It's okay."
"If you must know, I shot some hoops with my studly cop friends this morning."
Brass formed a visual while stirring his coffee. "I would have paid good money to see that."
"Me too," Sara cracked up, recalling Greg's pathetic finish at the LE marathon.
"I got knocked over three times," Greg shared in between sips of Kona Diamond. "But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was when Mrs. Vartann came running onto the court shrieking 'Stop picking on him! He's a lot smaller than you guys!' and handed me her hot pink gym towel and a bottle of Evian."
Nick rushed for the water cooler choking on his fourth donut hole.
"Why do you keep going there?" Jas quizzed, knowing all too well what it was like to be the last one picked in gym class.
"Yeah, Sanders," Sofia raised her coffee mug "no respectable geek would be caught alive in a place like City Gym."
"I liked how you didn't say dead," Brass commented while tapping his mug to Sofia's. "Because that scenario is quite plausible."
"Exactly my reasoning," Sofia laughed into her coffee.
"I have no choice!" Greg informed his pals. "Tony Soprano…err Vartann made me an offer I couldn't refuse and I won't get hurt, because he protects me from the big bad cops."
LVPD Locker Room
7:28 am
"Tony, come on…" Detective Suldano, the department's top Fraud investigator, reasoned with his co-worker. "What exactly are you trying to accomplish with Sanders? The guy looked like a newborn giraffe on the court. You know…four wobbly legs and his head goin' in a different direction than his body. Your country club wife fits in better than him." He chuckled, "All the dykes love her. They trip over each other to help her load plates."
Tony had to laugh. "Did you see Tierney helping her with rows this morning? I totally caught her checking out Becca's body." Shutting his locker, he snickered, "Not that I blame her."
"I'd comment, but you'd kick my ass."
"Damn straight." Checking his pistol, Tony said, "I know Sanders is a geek and totally incompetent on the court, but he's also my wife's closest friend and a stand up guy." He holstered his weapon. "Give him a little more time. I think you'll be surprised at how well he fits in."
"Okay, man." Suldano shut his locker. "Because he's your buddy. Hey, speaking of buddies, what the hell did Stokes do to piss off Cavaliere? I heard him talkin' some serious smack about him yesterday with Rodgers."
After checking the area, Tony quietly said, "Yeah, well, I'm not much of a Cavaliere fan myself." With much glee, he added, "And now I outrank him. Ooh, that's gonna be fun."
Walking out of the locker room with his buddy, Suldano said, "By the way, I convinced the wife that your Saturday night invite to the new house really was for dinner only, so Jan and I will be there."
"She's still traumatized from showing up at the Marchellos' mixer?"
"She almost divorced me, remember?" He shook his head. "It took three weeks to convince her I really didn't know it was that kind of party."
"Sure you didn't," Tony laughed. "Hey, should I tell Becks to answer the door wearing a red silk robe over her dress?"
"Ha! Definitely."
"Your wife is how far along?"
"Twenty-one weeks."
"Becks will have a ton of questions for her." Tony slapped his buddy on the back. "I'll catch you later. Have a good one."
Trinity Christian
7:55 am
"Have a good day, Honey." Wendy waved to her patch wearing son as he moped toward the campus entrance. "Ryan!" When he came to the window, she whispered, "Be a good brother and help Sean make lots of nice friends."
"Then you should have said 'be a good magician and make people be Sean's friends."
"Ryan Patrick Blake, that comment will cost you dessert tonight."
"Shucks," the teen laughed, "I was really looking forward to curdled tofu surprise too." He ran off to catch up to his socially challenged brother. "You want me to show you around?"
"I'm supposed to go to the office first."
"This way." When Ryan saw Lindsay and Colin flirting it up in the courtyard, he distracted Sean. "Did you think of anything cool to get Aunt Carrie for her birthday yet?"
"No, I'm still stumped."
"Me too."
"It has to be something really good, because we're still making up for eavesdropping on her."
"Please don't remind me of that." Ryan shivered, the incident still gave him the creeps. "We know she doesn't need a Sex Ed book, that's for sure. Nick's her personal tutor." He opened the door to the school office. "You want me to stay with you?"
"No, I'll be okay."
"If anyone hassles you, just tell them you're my brother, okay?"
Moved by his brother's concern, Sean smiled. "Thank you."
"I'll see you at 7th grade lunch." Ryan dashed out the door, happy for the reprieve because there was still ten minutes of cheerleading practice to watch.
"You must be Sean," Yvonne, one of the school secretaries, smiled at the boy she had been expecting. "Your mom told us you had an eye injury."
"Oh," he sighed.
"To make things a little easier for you this first week, we've assigned you a buddy." Yvonne flashed a soothing smile. "She'll be here any minute."
Squirming from the thought of having some snooty girl mock his patch and deem him a geek in record time, Sean protested, "I don't need a babysitter. I have an IQ of 147, I'm sure I can figure everything out on my own."
"Here's Rachelle now." Yvonne pointed to the petite blonde wearing an eye patch over her left eye. "I'll tell her that you don't want to…"
"No!" Sean smiled at the bookish girl with the perky ponytail. "I probably should have help."
"Hi, Sean." Rachelle smiled wide, showing off her new braces. "They told me the new boy had a patch, but I didn't believe them."
"How did you hurt your eye?"
"I was launching a model rocket and this huge breeze kicked up and knocked blast off particles directly in my eye. I still have about two weeks to go with it on."
"You build model rockets?"
"It's one of my hobbies, yes. I also collect butterflies, run the chess club, fence, knit, and read murder mysteries. I want to be a Forensic Scientist when I grow up. You know, like the CSI people on the TV show."
"Me too!" Sean couldn't believe his luck. "My uncle is a CSI! And I'm good friends with the Master Criminalist at the Las Vegas Crime Lab."
"No way!" she said, spitting as she spoke. "Oh, sorry." Rachelle cringed when she realized what she had done. "The braces overactivate my salivary glands and when I talk fast…I spit."
"Me too!" he accidentally proved his point by sending droplets directly to her glasses. "See!"
"No, because you spit on my glasses."
Sean snorted with laughter. "You're really funny."
"So are you."
When Yvonne heard the two dorks laughing, she knew her work as Cupid was done. "Hurry along, kids. Or you'll be late."
Nick's Denali
8:42 am
"So, why were you really late this morning?" Greg reached for the radio. "Because I'm not buyin' the car battery story."
"Don't change the…" Nick rolled his eyes when rap music pounded out of the speakers, "…station."
"We're goin' to the 'hood, Bro. We can't have George Strait blasting."
"That was Alan Jackson, not George Strait."
"You heard one twang…"
"Stop." Nick shook his head. "Do not mock my music unless you want to get out of this truck and walk to the scene."
Noting the gangland surroundings, Greg opted to end his country music tirade. "Considering I barely survived a friendly game of basketball with a bunch of cops this morning, I definitely don't want to take my chances with the NLV Bloods."
"I'm not thrilled about you ridin' shotgun with me either."
"If Sara wasn't restricted, would you have brought her here instead of me?" When he didn't get an answer, Greg grumbled, "I'll take that as a resounding yes."
"Don't underestimate the ladies, Greggo. Sara has a very authoritative presence in the field. So does Sofia, but she's a little distracted from moving out of Irving's this weekend."
"I had a training session with him yesterday. I told him that the same thing happened with Tawny and me. Living together was really overwhelming, so we had to take a break and regroup, but now we're great."
Nick kept quiet as he turned off the main road.
"Maybe you ruined her," Greg laughed. "Because I swear, I've seen her looking at you with a twinkle in her eye, like she was thinking," he feigned a princess voice, "'if only the cowboy was still mine, life would be perfect. What does he see in Shoe Girl anyway? Besides Manolos, what does she have that I don't?'"
"Greg…"
"Yeah?"
"Shut up or you're walkin'."
"Shutting!"
"Look, Greggo…it's your jock buddy." Nick parked the Denali next to Vartann's car. "Now make me laugh by tryin' to talk sports with him. Ask him if he saw the New York Yankees trounce the New England Patriots this weekend."
"I'm not falling for that." Greg opened his door. "I know baseball season is over."
Nick broke into an easy laugh. "The Patriots are a football team, Jocko."
After stepping out of his car, Vartann waited for the CSIs. "Hey, guys. I just got here myself. I was stuck at a false alarm at The Trop. Convention guy from New Jersey. They found him in a puddle of vomit and blood, reeking of shit. I figure he passed out drunk, hit his face on the floor, puked and then crapped his pants when he was knocked out. I threw a bucket of ice water on him and when he jumped up, some wasted chick yells 'he's aliiiiiiiive! It's a miracle! Then she asks me if I can heal her STD'. I politely declined."
Shaking his head, Nick said, "If you had the power to cure STDs, you'd clean up in this city."
"Ha!" Greg pointed out the humor, "Clean up…STDs."
"Okay, pull it together, Chuckles." Scanning the area, swarming with residents who outnumbered the uniformed officers twenty to one, Vartann said, "Some of these guys will try to rile you talkin' smack about cops, don't bite, okay? Just keep your mouth shut."
"I already ordered him to shut up on the ride over." Nick alarmed the Denali and started walking. "What's the story here?"
As a woman's scream pierced the air, Vartann replied, "All I got was probable gang shooting, multiple shots heard, vic's head was blown off."
"Nice way to start the day." Nick shook his head, tired of the never ending gang disputes north of the city. "And look, my biggest fans, Rodgers and Fromansky are here. This is gonna be extra fun now."
"Fromansky!" Vartann barked over the unseen woman's sobs, "They're crowding the tape! Watch it, or we're gonna lose evidence."
"Not that it matters," Nick muttered as they waited for Vartann to clear a path to the tape. "Whoever did it will probably be killed before we ID him."
Greg whispered back, "Street justice moves way faster than us."
"Vartann?" Nick prodded when he saw him freeze upon ducking under the tape. "What's goin' on?" Then he saw the source of the frantic screams.
"Tanisha…" Tony vacantly said when he saw Jamal's mother being restrained by Rodgers. "Wh…" Slowly he turned his head.
"They killed my baby!" the grieving mother shrieked as tears gushed from her eyes.
Then Tony saw the bicycle the sheriff had presented Jamal, only now it was covered in blood. "No." Every ounce of oxygen left his lungs. "It's…no." He saw the sneakers he had given the boy when he stopped by with a Happy Meal on Sunday. "Oh God." His mind blocked the rest as his breathing quickened and the noise of the crowd faded.
"They blew my baby's head off!" Tanisha raged as she fought to break free. "Let me go to him!"
Stuffing down his emotions as far as they would go, Nick ducked under the tape and set his kit on the ground. "Tanisha…" he stepped forward with an outreached hand.
"They killed my baby!" Her words turned to gasps for air as her knees gave out. "They killed my baby."
"She's gonna bolt right to the body if I let her go, Stokes," Mike warned. "She's out of her head…rightly so."
Nick knelt in front of her. "Tanisha…it's Nick Stokes, Carrie's fiancé…from BPAC. You can't touch him, Tanisha, not now, not until we get all the evidence we need to catch who did this. Look at me, Tanisha." He took both of her hands in his. "I promise, as soon as we get him to the morgue, I'll take you to see him and you can spend as much time as you need. You can't touch him, not if you want us to get justice for this."
"Nick?" Tanisha gulped for air in front of the man she suddenly recognized. "They killed my baby."
"I know." Even with his enemy only a yard away, Nick didn't care that his eyes filled when the mother collapsed into his arms. "We'll get who did this," he whispered as she rocked in his arms. "I'm so sorry."
Mike returned to helping Fromansky control the crowd with Officers Juarez and Adams. "Back it up, people, back it up."
Greg swallowed the bile rising in his throat and forced his feet forward. Standing next to Vartann, who he wasn't even sure was breathing, he asked, "You okay?"
Tony stared at the sneakers spattered in blood. "I…I could have bought him expensive sneakers. You know I have the money. I could have bought him Nikes or Air Jordans, but I told him…" His voice cracked, "As I tied them, I said 'Jamal, I've seen kids get killed over expensive sneakers, I bought you these because they're…safe." His hands held his head as flashes of finding his high school sweetheart's blood-soaked body haunted him. "Who does this to a six year old? Who…" A few seconds later, he rushed the tape. "Who fucking does this to a six year old?! Someone here knows who did this and you better start talking! One of you knows something, god dammit!"
"Cut the bullshit," Morris Watson, a neighborhood activist, barked in the detective's face. "LVPD only cares about this because your poster child for cop lovin' is dead. Maybe if you people hadn't paraded that kid around on TV, he wouldn't have been a target. You ever fuckin' think about that?"
Greg locked his arms around Vartann's waist and yanked him back hard just as he reached to grab the guy at the tape by the collar. "Let's talk a walk, Buddy. You have a pregnant wife at home, you don't need any trouble, right?"
His entire body shaking, Tony sucked in a gulp of air. "Right…right."
"Let the big guy go, Pretty Boy!" Morris heckled from the tape. "We all got our videophones set to record the police brutality. You people only come here when someone dies and you hafta come! Maybe if your asses were here a little more often, kids wouldn't end up dead! Where's the Sheriff now, huh? Is he gonna come down here to pat Jamal's blown off head for the six o'clock news?! Nooooo that would be bad press."
"Hey!" Nick blasted the man as he comforted Tanisha. "How about showin' some respect for the boy's mom by not usin' her son as a talkin' point, you insensitive son of a bitch! Get him out of here, Fromansky!"
"I'm not goin' anywhere!" Morris dug in his heels. "I'm waitin' on the TV crew. I called them myself."
"Sir," Mike stepped forward, "As the officer responsible for securing the crime scene, it's within my authority to ask you to leave if you're causing a disturbance that jeopardizes the safety of the officers and citizens."
"I'm not hurtin' nobody." Morris folded his arms tight. "I'm just exercisin' my right to free speech. Maybe you didn't get the memo, but I have the same rights as you now, Cracker."
"Hey!" Mike snapped as he counted the seconds until the next wave of backup arrived, "Take your bullshit one hundred yards away and you'll have first access to the camera crew."
Watching Vartann and the restless crowd, Greg anxiously asked, "You okay?"
"Yeah." Tony breathed deep. "Thanks, man. I needed that." Holding his stomach, he fought the urge to hurl.
"Do you need…" Hearing the distinct sound of a car's wheels squealing at top speed, Greg whirled in the direction of the sound. "Duck and cover!" flew out of his mouth when he saw a guy standing up in the back of a convertible with a gun. "We're under fire!" Knowing Vartann was still dazed, he grabbed his arm when the crowd started to scream from the sound of bullets riveting from an automatic weapon.
With Tanisha still in his embrace in the open, Nick tackled her to the dirt, covering her body with his and praying the gunfire would fly far enough overhead.
The rush of forty frantic people scrambling for cover kicked up the dry dirt floor of the alley into a thick cloud.
"I think I hit one of them!" Juarez yelled into her radio as she took cover.
"Greg!" Nick yelled through the dusty air. When he didn't get an answer above the shrieks and cries, he grabbed his radio. "Sanders! Answer me!" As Tanisha trembled and cried beneath him, Nick nervously waited for an answer. "Sanders!"
"I'm here!" Greg's voice shot through the radio. "I dropped my radio, because my hands are sweaty. We're okay. Vartann and I are okay."
"Thank God," Nick breathed out as the dust settled. "I hear the backup now. Hang low until they get here. I'm gonna…" Then he saw Mike lying on his side in the dirt. "Rodgers?!" he called out. "Mike!" When his nemesis didn't move, Nick crawled away from Tanisha. "Mike?" Nick grabbed his shoulder. "Mike…" When he saw blood on his hand, he recoiled, and instinctually grabbed his radio. Then, as readied to depress the button, the only words came from the devil on his shoulder. Every second counts, remember? Don't make the call." Nick licked his lips as sweat beaded on his forehead. Put the radio down and pretend you passed out. Do it! Remember the shit he pulled in the ambulance. He's evil. You know he's evil. He raped Wendy. He's Cassie's stepfather. Do you really want him alone with your little niece? What do you think he'd do to Carrie if he had the chance to get away with it?
Nick stared at the radio in his bloody hand.
If you make that call, you just may live to regret it.
Author's Notes:
Welcome to Book 4!! Thanks for continuing the journey. I certainly hope you enjoyed the opening chapter :D
I wanted to gently reacquaint everyone with the characters before opening with a crime spanning a few chapters…Book 1 was Nick and Carrie's attacker in the park, Book 2 was Dante, Book 3 was Celine's sister and sadly…Jamal is Book 4's victim. His death will impact many of the characters that had interacted with him and his Mom. The gang however…will work to solve his case in the next chapter, then along with their SOs, work to make sure he's not forgotten. That said, the next chapter does have a very happy moment…since Gris and Sara are at the OB's office with their phones off, they don't know about Jamal. Boy geek or girl geek?? You'll find out for sure in the next chapter!
Next Chapter – Sunday night, 2/18.
Thanks again for showing up for Book 4!!
Maggs