Chapter 1: The Shooting

The car came to a sudden stop. Nick looked out his window to see what the matter was. He couldn't see anything, but in the distance he heard an ear-piercing scream. He quickly went back into his Tahoe and drove into the direction of the scream. After awhile, he came to a clearing. At the clearing he heard a gun shot. Quickly, he reached for his gun and looked around for the shooter. The shooter started to shoot at him. Nick ducked under his car door for protection. He quickly reached for his cell phone and dialed Grissom's number to tell him what was going on.

Grissom was sitting at his desk looking at his precious pet, his new maggot. He was remembering the day when he found that maggot laying on a cadaver at his last crime scene. Suddenly, the ringing of his phone brought him out of his thoughts. Quickly reaching for his cell phone, he answered it.

"Grissom"

"I need back up."

"Who is this?" Grissom questioned.

"Nick. I'm being shot at." Nick replied.

"Oh god, where are you?"

"I don't know. Somewhere in the desert."

"Stay on the line as long as you can. I'll have Archie track the call." Grissom ordered.

"OK" replied Nick.

Grissom quickly went over to Archie's lab and knocked on his door.

"Come in"

"Archie, I need you to track Nick's cell phone ASAP." Grissom ordered.

"Ok, what's up?" Archie questioned.

"He is being shot at and doesn't know where he is."

"Oh"

Nick was frantically trying to find where the shooter was. It was not proving to be an easy task, especially since he was told not to move his cell phone. Suddenly, he hears another gun shot. This time it hits the top of the car door he was hiding behind. He starts to feel a sharp pain in his shoulder and realizes that the bullet hit him. Taking a deep breath, Nick slowly takes off his outer layer and makes a makeshift bandage out of it. He hoped that the blood will slow down enough for Grissom to find him. He looked at his shoulder and realized that it was his gun arm. Great now how am I supposed to defend myself. When is Grissom going to come? OW my shoulder really hurts, not that I will ever admit that to anyone. I need to make sure that I don't move this arm too much. Maybe if I make a makeshift sling. I can't do that until I know the shooter is dead or captured.

Nick looks around trying to find his shooter while ignoring the sharp pains coming from his entry wound. He starts listening to the foot steps while trying to figure out where they are coming from. Finally after what seems like a life time, he figures out where his shooter is. Slowly he raises his bad arm, almost screaming at the pain the movement caused, and aimed at the shooter. He fired his gun and hoped it hit his target. He heard a gasp of pain and thanked the heavens that he injured the bad guy. I just hope he is injured enough not to shoot at me again. He puts his gun down and hopes that Grissom will find him.

"Hey Archie, do you have any idea where Nick is yet?" Grissom hurriedly asked.

"Yea, he is in Red Rock Canyon." Archie replied.

"Ok I'll get Brass on that"

"Grissom, I already called him."

"Oh, how long ago did you call him?"

"Ten minutes ago."

Grissom hopes that Nick wasn't hurt and sits down to wait for more news. So far, the only people to know about Nick's trouble were him, Brass, and Archie. He didn't want to tell anyone else in the lab until either Nick told them at his own accord, or Nick got hurt and he had to tell them. He hoped beyond belief that it was the former of the two possibilities. So Grissom just sat their praying for Nick.

Nick was laying stock still on the ground still listening to see if the shooter was walking around. He didn't hear any footsteps but he heard breathing, labored breathing at that, but still breathing. I must have injured him badly, but not fatally. God being shot really hurts. I hope Brass or Grissom come soon. I should probably warn them that I was shot so they bring EMT personnel. Slowly Nick reached for his phone and started to urgently speak into it.

"Grissom…Grissom…you…there?" Nick weakly asked.

Grissom faintly heard a noise from his cell phone so he quickly reached for it.

"Grissom…Grissom…you…there?"

"Yea, Nick I'm here." Grissom answered. Panic was slowly clawing at his heart. Why is Nick calling? Is he ok? Was he hurt? "What do you want?"

"I…have…been shot." Nick answered. Grissom paled at the last word.

"Where?" Grissom was so shaken up that he could only get out one word.

"Shoulder…hurts…gun hand…had to use it…to shoot bad guy…can't move it…anymore" Nick tried to reply.

"Hold in there Nick. I will tell call the local EMT personnel and tell them where you are. Brass should be there in a few minutes. We know where you are now. Try not to move too much. You could hurt yourself more." Grissom ordered. Now what am I supposed to do? Brass is at least 20 minutes away from where Nick is and I don't know where the closest hospital is. Nicky please be ok. We need you here.

Grissom dialed Brass's number.

"Brass"

"Hey Jim, I have bad news."

"What is it?" Brass questioned.

"Nick, he's been shot." Grissom answered.

"Ok um…the I'll call the closest EMT service and tell them where he is. I think that there is a hospital about 10 minutes away from the Red Rock Canyon. Where in Red Rock Canyon did you say he was?"

"Right where it starts, at the first clearing you should find him." Grissom supplied.

"Ok. I'll call you when I get him. Tell your team to stay strong, if not for each other than for Nick. He needs us to be strong for him."

Nick tried to ignore the searing pain from his wound, by remembering that help was on its way. Come on Brass, can't you get here any sooner? This really hurts. I really need to make sure I don't move it. If only it wasn't so dark out here, I could have made a sling for it. Come on Brass where are you?

After several minutes, which to Nick felt like hours, the sound of sirens filled the air. He heard cars coming to a halt right near him. Good they must see my Tahoe.

"Nick! Nick! Where are you?" Brass's voice shouted.

"Brass…I am by…my…Tahoe." Nick replied.

The sound of footsteps rushing over flooded his ears. He saw flashlights pointing in his direction. Finally the flashlight was pointed at his face.

"Nick, where are you hurt?" One of the EMTs asked.

"My…right…shoulder…I…got…shot…there…can't move it…without…searing pain…please help." Nick responded as best as he could.

"Ok Nick. I am now going to put you on to the stretcher. Do you think you can get up with out help?" The other EMT asked.

"No…I…can't…sorry." Nick replied.

"That's ok. No need to apologize. I'll help you. Grab on to my arm with your good hand. That's it. Now I want you to sit down on the stretcher. Yes just like that. Now lay down on it. Good. Now don't move that shoulder of yours unless you want it more injured than it already is. I am going to take you to the hospital in Las Vegas so that you can have that checked out."

"Nick, is there anything about this that we need to know right away?" Brass questioned hoping to understand what went on here.

"Yea…I…shot…shooter…near…front end …of Tahoe…don't know…how injured…shooter is...might be…another victim…heard scream and gunshot…before coming…here." Nick answered. The pain was starting to get unbearable and his eyes were starting to water. He clamped his eyes shut but tears still leaked through.

"It's ok Nicky. You're ok. I'll tell Grissom where you will be. Thanks for the information." Brass informed.

Nick was put into the ambulance. The sirens were blaring and all he could do was lie on the stretcher and look up at the metal ceiling. Every twist and turn jerked his body around making him moan in pain. He tried to grasp his shoulder to stop the pain but the EMT watching him stopped him from doing it. After a long ride, the ambulance finally stopped and the door opened. He was rushed into the hospital's Emergency Room. Now that it was light, he was able to see the damage done to his shoulder. The makeshift bandage he made was still there, but it was stained with his own blood. He couldn't tell how bad the wound was but with the amount of blood he realized it was very bad. He turned his head away and realized that they placed him on a bed. He was in a white room with white sheets and white walls. There were windows along the far wall so that friends and family could see what was going on. He could see the rest of his team out there. He hoped they weren't too worried for him. He looked around the room and noticed that he was surrounded by a doctor and a few nurses.

"Now Nick my name is Dr. Carson. I am going to take the bandage you made off of your injury and see what I can do with it. Its going to hurt so be warned." The Dr. warned.

Nick shut his eyes as tightly as they could go and bit his lip. He felt the Dr reach for his bandage and slowly take it off. Then the last piece of cloth was removed and his shoulder burst with the worst pain he ever thought possible. His eyes started to tear even though they were closed. After that he knew no more.

The doctor continued to look at the wound, even after Nick passed out. He reached over and got the portable x-ray machine and put it over Nick's shoulder. After the machine was turned on he quickly left the room so that he wouldn't interfere with the radiation rays. Once it was done, he went back into the room and removed the x-ray machine. He went over to the machine and pressed print. Then he went and collected the x-ray. Looking at the x-ray, he realized that Nick was going to need surgery because the bullet pierced the muscle tissue and he had torn the muscle by using it so much. It wasn't the worst case he had ever seen, but it wasn't the best case either. Walking back to where Nick was, he started to take out the bullet and repair the muscle. After a few hours, Dr Carson was finally done with Nick's surgery. He wheeled Nick's bed into the recovery room and went to talk to the other CSIs in the waiting room.

"Hi, is there a Grissom, Sara, Catherine, Greg, and Warrick here?" Dr. Carson asked. When each one of them nodded their heads he added, "Please follow me I have some information on your colleague Nick Stokes."

Eager to hear news the team leaped up from their seats and followed the Dr. He led them into an empty room and told them to sit down.

"I am Dr. Carson. I am in charge of Nick. Well I don't know how much you know about what happened, but your colleague was shot in the shoulder tonight. The bullet pierced his muscle and when he used his arm to fire his gun at the shooter, he tore his muscle farther. I repaired the damage through surgery and here is the bullet." He handed the bullet to Grissom. "He is going to be in extreme pain, even if he doesn't admit it, for the next few weeks. After a two week sick leave, one week here and one at home, you can let him work again, but promise me NO CRIME SCENES until he has full use of his arm again. At least until it is out of the bandage and sling. He is also going to need someone to change his bandages and stay with him for the first few nights after we release him from the hospital." Dr Carson looked at all of the people in the room waiting for them to nod their heads in approval. He noticed that all of their faces were deathly pale so he quickly added, "Don't worry about your friend, after a long recovery period he will be back to normal, as long as he doesn't do anything to strenuous for at least a month. He can work in the lab if he wants after one week of rest AT HOME after we release him. Got that?" Everyone nodded their heads.

"Dr. Carson, can we see him now?" Sara quietly asked.

"Well I have to move him to his private room anyway. Right now he is in the recovery room. Just remember that he is heavily drugged so he will probably be a sleep for the majority of today and tomorrow. I will move him to room 419, you can meet me their" Dr. Carson finished. He looked at the group confused because when he told them the room number all of them chuckled as if it were some kind of inside joke. "What's so funny about the number 419?"

"A 419 is what we call a breaking and entering. It's just funny that a criminalist would be put in a 419 room." Grissom informed.

Two days later Sara and Warrick were sitting in Nick's room watching him when they heard him groan.

"Finally, I think he is waking up." Sara gasped excitedly.

Warrick turned his head towards Nick to watch him. He hasn't woken up yet and it was already two days since the incident. The Dr. did warn them about this possibility but it still worried him.

"Come on Nicky you can do it. Just open your eyes. I know you can. Please Nicky we need you to wake up." Warrick pleaded.

Slowly Nick's eyes opened and then quickly shut. Warrick realized the problem, Nick's eyes were sensitive to light and it was very bright in here. Warrick dimmed the lights and urged Nick to try again. Nick once again slowly opened his eyes, this time keeping them opened. He glanced around the room and realized he had moved to a different one than he remembered. Then again he didn't remember anything after the Dr taking off his makeshift bandage. God that was extremely painful. He turned his head to look at his shoulder, it was tightly bandaged. He also noticed that his arm was in a blue sling. At least now I can't move it. Then he realized that he was not alone in his room.

"Hey. Sara. Warrick."

"Hey Nick" Sara and Warrick both stated together.

"How long have I been here?" Nick weakly asked.

"Nicky, you have already been here for 2 days. They want you to stay for the week and then have a week of rest at home. Then you can be working at the lab until you no longer have the sling." Sara gently replied.

"Why?" Nick questioned, confused.

"The bullet pierced your muscle and you farther tore it when you shot the shooter. The doctors want to make sure it starts healing properly. Also you have stitches in the wound closing it up, and Dr Carson thought that it would be easier for everyone if you stayed here until they could take the stitches out, so you wouldn't have to come back in later. The doctor told us that your shoulder would be very painful for at least the next few weeks maybe more." Warrick informed.

Nick grimaced at that information and sighed. "I guess I understand."

The rest of the week came and went in a blur. Nick mostly slept or talked to his colleagues. There always seemed to be at least one of his fellow CSIs with him at all times. Sara came by the most she was there almost every single day. On the last day of his hospital stay, Friday the 13th, Dr. Carson came into his room.

"Hey Nick, I hope you aren't superstitious. I am going to have to take a look at your shoulder now. After that it is time to remove the stitches and you can go home." Dr. Carson informed.

"Ok" Nick replied.

Dr. Carson slowly removed Nick's arm from the sling and removed the bandage. Nick winced when the last of the bandage was removed and glanced at the wound. There was a big incision line covering his whole shoulder length with stitches across it. The stitches were thick and black. They reminded Nick of spiders. After Dr. Carson had a good look at the wound, he pulled out his supplies to take out the stitches with. First he put rubbing alcohol on the wound. Then he took his scissors and cut the ends of the stitches. Lastly, he slowly pulled the ends of the stitches until they were out of Nick's skin. After it was all done, he re-bandaged Nick's shoulder and put it back in its sling.

"Well Nick, you are free to go. Just follow my directions and rest for the next full WEEK. After that you can go to the LAB to do work. NO CRIME SCENES until you no longer need the sling. Always keep your arm in the sling even during bed time. Come and see me in two weeks and I will see how you are doing. Take care Nick." Dr. Carson ordered sternly.

Nick nodded and slowly stood up. He went over to the door and realized that Sara and Grissom were waiting for him. He went over to them and followed them to their car. Once they got back to his house, Sara and Grissom walked inside with him.

"Hey Nick, Sara is going to spend the night tonight so that someone is here if you need her. Please be honest with her when you tell her something. If you say your fine and not in pain, she will know you are lying. Please do what Dr. Carson ordered. I will see you next week in the lab." Grissom informed.

After that Grissom left and it was just Nick and Sara. Nick sat down on his favorite chair, the one facing the television. It was a nice comfortable reclining chair. Sara sat down on the couch next to the chair. She picked up the remote from the table and turned the TV on.

"What do you want to watch Nick?"

"I don't know are there any movies on?"

"Let me check."

After checking several channels, Sara found a good movie, Shawshank Redemption. The movie reminded both of them of their daily lives fighting crime. Nick was intrigued by it for the whole time. When it ended, he started to wish that he had tivo, so that he could watch the whole thing over again. Sara looked over at Nick and realized that his bandage was bloodstained. She also noticed how he kept wincing and closing his eyes. She went over to the kitchen counter where she left his bandages and medicine, and took some fresh bandages, rubbing alcohol, and some pain killers for him. She went to the cabinet and took out a glass. She filled the glass with water for him. Walking back over to where Nick was, she handed him the pills and water. He gratefully took both. Then he noticed that she had fresh bandages and he grimaced but sighed. He slowly took his sling off. Sara reached over and slowly started to peal the blood stained bandage off of him. She tried to be as careful as possible but every once in a while he would wince in pain and she felt terrible. Once she got the entire bandage off, she set it aside. After that she slowly put some rubbing alcohol on his wound. She heard Nick take in a sharp breath once the alcohol touched his wound and realized how much that must have stung. Finally she slowly placed the end of the fresh bandage on the wound and tightly wrapped it around his shoulder so that he couldn't move it. Lastly she slowly put his arm back into the sling.

"All done Nick, now that wasn't so bad, right. It's around 11 pm so we should hit the hay. I'll let you get changed into your pajamas now. So good night, see you in the morning. I will sleep on the couch tonight so just holler at me if you need anything." Sara stated.

"Alright, good night Sara." Nick replied.

Nick slowly got up and walked over to his room. He opened his pajama draw and realized that it was going to be hard to change with only one useable arm. Grabbing a pair of long pants, he sat on the bed. He slowly took off his pants and changed into his pajama bottoms. He couldn't wear a top because of his bandage and sling. I need to buy a tank top or sleeveless shirt so that I can wear it with my sling and bandaged shoulder. I'll ask Sara or Warrick to get one tomorrow for me. Once he was changed he got under the covers and turned out the lights.

The rest of the week went by in the same manner. Sara stayed the whole time and the rest of his team came and went. Warrick dropped by almost every day for at least 2 hours while the rest stopped by once in a while. It was finally the day where he was aloud to go back to work. He slowly put on his tank top and a pair of slacks. Sara was waiting for him in the kitchen and she had his pills, water, and bandages out. He took the pills and water and let her change the bandage. Once that was done, they left.

Back at the Crime lab, Grissom, Catherine, Warrick, and Greg were patiently waiting for Sara and Nick to arrive. They were excited that Nick was finally able go come back to work, even if it was as a lab rat for a few weeks, at least he was coming back. About 20 minutes later, Sara and Nick arrived.

"Hey it's great to be back." Nick greeted enthusiastically.

"It's great to have you back." Grissom responded. Everyone else nodded their heads in agreement.

"So what have I missed?" Nick asked.

"Well the person who shot you is a guy named Frank Dawson. He is currently under police supervision. He was shot in the leg by you so he is receiving medical care from the police doctors. The person whom he shot before you got to the scene is his ex girlfriend. She was shot in the stomach and is currently in a comma. We don't know if she will wake up. That's all we have on your case but there was another case where a wealthy entrepreneur was robbed and killed last week. We still don't know who did it but we have a few suspects. To be honest with you, we have been focusing mostly on your case." Grissom informed.

"So does this Frank Dawson dude have a rap sheet already or was this his first crime?" Nick asked.

"He has a rap sheet. He was arrested in 1998 for violent behavior at a bar, in 1999 for violence with a weapon, and in 2000 for attempted murder. All of the charges were dropped because of insufficient evidence against him. This time however, we have caught him at the scene with his gun pointed in your direction. He is going to be locked up for good now." Grissom informed.

"Ok. Now what do you need me to do in the lab." Nick asked.