although I wish that I did!
Building Friendships
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Nick Stokes rolled over in his bed barely lifting one of his eyelids open to peer at the time. It was 10:17 a.m. It seemed like every morning at this time his newly moved in newlywed neighbors would start fighting.
It was amazing to him how concrete and drywall could seem like only thin sheets of paper between them. Nick grabbed his pillow and tried covering his ears as the yelling continued.
In the midst of him being pissed off though, he sort of felt sorry for the wife. He had suspected for quite sometime now that maybe she had been being abused, but he never knew what to say or what to ask her.
Nick finally sat up in his bed and walked over to his night stand. He began tossing things side to side and spilling them over the edge in a desperate search for something. His hands came across the tiny orange miracles and he smiled to himself as he pulled the earplugs out of the drawer.
He put one in and almost had his hand up to the second ear when the gunshots went off "BANG!BANG!". Nick grabbed his basketball shorts off the floor and threw them on while half running towards his front door. He could hear some people screaming out in the hallway. With no shoes and no shirt he grabbed his gun off the stand in the foyer and checked his clip to make sure it was full. Snapping it back into place and loading one round in, he flung open his front door.
He was pretty sure that the shots came from inside the apartment next door, but there was no reasy not to be careful. He looked both ways in the hall to make sure everything was clear and then approached two other neighbors who were huddled on the floor.
"I'm Nick Stokes with the Las Vegas Crime Lab... are you guys hurt?"
"No... no..." an elderly lady replied shaking
"well then why don't you and this nice young lady here get to your apartment as quick as you can and call the police for me ... can you do that?" Nick asked looking kindly down at the two women.
"yess...yessir .. we can do that."
"Good... now hurry up... tell them that there were two gunshots fired and that there is an officer on the scene..got it?"
"Got it!"
With that the two ladies jumped up to their feet and ran four doors down to their apartment. Nick made his way back across the hallway and crouched down by his neighbors door. He closed his eyes and took a deep breathe, hoping he wasn't getting himself into anything that he couldn't handle. But he knew that his neighbor might need help and being a law enforcement officer, he couldn't just sit there and do nothing.
He tried banging on the door first to see if he would get any kind of response, like maybe a gunshot through the front of it.
Standing off to the side he slammed his fist repeatdly.
"Mrs. Campbell!... Mr. Campbell! ... if you can hear me in there... this is the Las Vegas Police... open up the door!"
After standing there for a minute... Nick knew he probably wasn't going to get any kind of response. "Well.. here goes nothing..." he thought out loud to himself, and in one swift motion he placed himself in the middle of the hall and landed a blunt and forceful kick right below the door handle.
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BACK AT THE STATION...
"Jim.. I just don't know, I can't give you a yes or no answer right now, I'm loaded down with my cases, sarah is out on leave, and I just can't commit to what you're asking me" Gil looked up at the detective from his pile of papers.
"Gil, believe me... I work with you guys, I understand you're busy... but this kid is a family friend and it would really be in his good interest if you could testify for him... please Gil, i'm asking for one afternoon. Can't you get Eckly to take over or something?" Brass looked thoughtfully down at the senior CSI.
"Okay... only because i'm covering Eckly's day shift today... so he owes me one..."
"Thanks Gil... I owe ya o..." Brass was cut off by his phone as Gil looked down at his pager at the same time.
"ugh huh... thanks" Brass flipped his cell phone shut. "looks like we've got a shooting, probably a dead body on our hands,
you rolling?" He looked at Grissom who had just finished reading his pager.
"Looks that way partner... see you there."
Brass left the office. Grissom grabbed his glasses off of his desk and headed out of the door as well. In the hallway he ran into Warrick.
"Hey Warrick, what are you doing here?" Grissom questioned knowing that his shift was still several hours away.
"Ugh.. I had to testify at the Manning trial today, brutal stuff... let me tell ya. anyway I had nothing to do today,
couldn't get ahold of Nicky or Greg, so I came in here to work on a pile of paperwork that I need done before the next shift starts."
"sounds fun... well i'm rolling by myself to a 419 .. you wanna join me?"
"Yea sure...let me grab my vest and I'll meet you out front.. you driving?"
"yep, I'll pick you up."
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The front hall was empty as the broken door swung violently in. Nick had his gun held up and ready to fire. He plastered his body up against the wall and slowly started making his way into the apartment.
"Mrs. Campbell?... Mr. Campbell? ... this is the Las Vegas Police... why don't you come out and give it up?" Nick really didn't know what he was expecting to happen saying that, or even if he would be prepared if anything did happen. Stopping suddenly just three feet away from his turn into the apartment, Mrs. Campbell came crawling out on her knee's and stopped in the end corner of the hallway.
She only had a tank top and some booty shorts on and Nick couldn't see any weapons, so he lowered his weapon slightly,
knowing she might be afraid of him.
"Mrs. Campbell?" Nick looked down at her with understanding eyes.
"He... he... he's d-d-dead..." She lifted a shaking hand to her face to cover her mouth as her sobbing burst out into a howling cry.
Nick wanted nothing more than to drop to his knee's and rap his arms around her, but he knew that was the last thing to do right now.
"Mrs. Campbell... listen to me.. I need you to answer me.. who's dead...and who killed him?"
"M-m-my husband.. he he...'s dead..."Her shaking became more severe.
"Mrs. Campbell... did you kill him? I need to know who has the gun?"
"my br--brother... he.. he's in the bedroom."
Nick pulled his gun back into firing aim and stepped in front of Mrs. Campbell, placing himself inside of the apartment.
The door to the bedroom was shut and he saw no one else around. He began to relax his gun a little, when suddenly the handle on the bedroom door turned and was swung open.
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"So where is this 419 anyway Griss?" Warrick asked noting that he knew the neighborhood fairly well that they were driving in.
"umm..." Grissom looked down at his sheet "It's in 'Eden Garden's' subdivision .. umm.. apartment 110."
Grissom waited a second and didn't get a response from Warrick.
"Warrick? are you alright... do you know who lives there?..." Grissom was trying to read the expression on his teamates face
"ugh.. yea... I mean .. no... no I don't know who lives in 110... but ughh ..."
"But what?" Grissom was becoming impatient as Warrick quietly replied
"Nicky's in 109..." He rubbed his forehead and looked down
"What!" Grissom drew in a deep breathe and clenched his jaw "Try calling him and see if you can get him.."
"Yea... right.." Warrick quickly drew out his cell phone and his 5 on his speed dial.
"So?" Grissom asked impatiently
"It's still ringing..." Warrick looked out at the passing building as he heard the last ring and Nick's voicemail come on.
He quickly shut the phone. "Dammit.."
"I'm guessing he didn't pick up."
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Nick was trying to mentally prepare himself for whatever was going to come out of that door. And he was also trying to let himself know the reality that he might have to shoot whoever it was.
His heart almost broke into shattered pieces when he saw a young boy, no older than 17 or 18 emerge with a red and tear stained face holding two 9mm's loosley down at his sides.
"I'...m s-s-sssorry..." The young boy was crying loudly "He shouldn'ta done it... he shouldnt've put his stinkin hands on my sister!" The boy's sadness was mixed with fear and anger. Nick figured he would be able to talk the kid into putting the gun down.
"Yea... I know... he was a bad man for doing those things..." Nick slowly started to lower his gun and saw the boy's tension ease a little bit
"He had no right!" the boy screamed
"No... nobody has the right to do that, he should be punished for what he did.."
"He is! I KILLED HIM!! ... I-I... killed.. him" Nick could see the reality of it beginning to sink into the young man as he couldn't fight back his second round of tears.
"It's okay, we all do things sometimes that we go too far on, accidents happen... its okay though... why don't you set down the guns and you and me just sit down and talk about this?"
Nick was slowly placing his gun on a table that was between the two of them.
"O-Okay... sh-sh sure..."
Just as the boy was giving in and reaching out his hands to set the gun down, Brass and his whole ensemble of cops busted into the house.
All the screaming and the guns waving around scared him back into his psychotic frenzy. He quickly pulled both guns up and held one on either side of Nicks head as he had turned around when all of the commotion started.
Brass looked into Nick's eyes which now held indescribable amounts of fear, and could see the CSI's hands shaking as he stood there.
"Look Kid, you're already in enough trouble...you don't want to kill a cop... so why don't you just put the guns down and let him go." Brass said as he had his weapon aimed right between the kids eyes.
"NO!... you'll just drag me off to prison... I didn't do nothing wrong... he deserved to die!" The kids voice was escalating and you could hear the fearless anger in his words.
Nick closed his eyes and swallowed hard as he stood shirtless and shoeless in his shorts quaking at the knee's.
"Nick, just stay with us buddy..." Brass looked him in the eye and Nick shook his head. "Come on kid, we don't got all day,
just give it up before you get yourself killed!"
"SCREW YOU!" With that final scream the kid nailed Nick in the back with a forceful kick, shoving him away, and as Nick flew forward into the cops the last thing he heard were two shots.
Brass and every other officer standing in the room unloaded their clips into the kid and watched as the blood flung out of the young mans body and he hit the floor.
"Nicky!" Brass yelled but Nick had already gotten up and had run out of the apartment. "Was he hit?" Brass asked the other officer.
"The bullets landed in the wall over there sir... there's a little blood on the floor, but I'm not sure he really got him?"
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Nick's head was throbbing a thousand beats per minute. His world was getting a little dizzy. Bystanders stood back and yelled things at him as he made his way to the street. All he could hear was the most painful penetrating high pitch screams in his ears. He couldn't hear anything! what happened!
His heart began to race as he stumbled out into the street. Blood dripping down from his head onto his bare chest and stomach.
Grissom had just turned the corner when he slammed hard on his brakes making Warrick grab the dash to stop himself from hitting it, but not hard enough from keeping him from smacking into a delirious Nick.
"Oh God.." was all that Grissom managed to get out as he shoved the vehicle into park mode.
Nick swayed in front of the car and slowly collapsed to the ground. Warrick threw open the car door and ran out.
"Nicky!" he shouted in an attempt to get his attention.
Nick didn't look up though.
"Is he shot?" They heard Brass yell as he came running from the front lawn of the apartments.
"I don't know yet...Griss hit him with the car though" Warrick screamed back as he kneeled down beside his friend.
"God Nicky.. what'd you do?" he asked himself as he looked down at his friend.
Grissom was already on the phone calling in an ambulance. He quickly was finished and ran to Nick's side.
Nick looked up from where he had fallen. He could still only hear the screaching death in his ears. He watched Warricks mouth moving and Grissoms moving and let tears fall from his eyes... he couldn't hear them.
"NOO!!... NO-ooo.." Nick screamed and began grabbing at Grissom and Warrick and tears fell from his eyes.
"What's wrong with him Griss?" Warrick looked to his boss for guidance as he held onto his friend and pulled him tightly in.
"I don't know.."
Nicks heart began to race faster than ever, his world began to go black. His eyes closed and he gave into the darkness that was calling him in.
Just as he lost conciousness the ambulance arrived. Warrick and Grissom stood up to give the paramedics room to work and went to Brass to find out what happened.
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Gil Grissom walked swiftly into the emergency room doors. It was now 4 o'clock in the afternoon. The last he had heard was that Nick was still in surgery. Catherine was called had gone to the hospital to sit with Warrick and Greg reported in early to Grissom to help him process the scene.
Grissom and Greg had just finished up and were now stopping by to see how everything was going.
Catherine looked up from where she was leaning against the wall. Grissom smiled at her as he approached. Catherine held her finger up to her lips in the 'shh' position. Grissom looked down beside her to see Warrick fast asleep. He walked over and whispered to her.
"How's Nicky?"
"He's doing well. They just took him out of surgery about 45 minutes ago. We don't know the damage yet, just that he's stable and in recovery, the doctor should be out here soon."
Greg was standing over Grissoms shoulder listening intently when Grissom turned around and squinted his eyebrow's at him.
"What?... I got rights to know this stuff!" Greg said like he was slightly offended
"Is there anyone here for a Nick Stokes?" A young blonde nurse called out from the hall.
"Yes.." Grissom spoke and held up a hand as Warrick came to and they all walked over to her.
"Okay then.. follow me please." she said with a smile.
with that the nurse took off down the hallway looking at her charts and having the CSI team close on her heals.
"We'll just take those elevators off to the left here and go up to the third floor."
They all piled in and rode in silence. The nurse stepped off on the third floor, made a quick right, and then stopped right outside of room 312. There was a tall dark man wearing a white coat and writing orders for a nurse that was standing in front of him.
"Dr. Levi, these are the family and friends of Nick Stokes here to see him." she nodded at the doctor and the CSI's and left
Grissom was the first to step forward and shake the doctors hand.
"Thank you for all you've done for him... can you tell us how he is?"
"He's stable and his condition is recoverable ...for the most part. .. he has several broken ribs and had a ruptured spleen from what looks like a blunt force hit to his left side..." Grissom hit his hand knowing that was from him. The doctor looked at Grissom briefly and continued "He had a slight fracture to his femur that we had to set and cast... and he had a few stitches that were needed in his ears..."
"so why is that only recoverable for 'the most part'" Grissom asked with concern
"Yea.. whats the deal?" Warrick stepped up and looked at the Doctor intently.
"Well we got as much information as we could from a..." Dr. Levi looked down at his charts "a detective Brass... apparently Mr. Stokes was in between the criminal's two guns when the shots were fired... and they were fired right beside his ears.
thats why he had blood on him at the scene and why he had to get a few stitches in his ears... we took x-rays and M.R.I's and there has been some extensive damage done to the eardrum... and it's in our professional opinion at this time that his ears could really go either way.. he may gain hearing back in a few days.. .or it could be a permanent loss."
"What?" Warrick shook his head as he closed his eyes and swallowed hard. Grissom leaned over and put a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry to have to tell you all this news... I really am. It's important you all do understand one thing though, this is going to be a tough recovery for him, and possibly a tough rest of his life. what he's going to need the most now is your support and understanding of his new condition. He'll probably get angry a lot because no one else can understand his situation, just stick with him though and he'll learn to cope with it."
Grissom had a slight smile escape on his face... 'I'll get you through this Nicky' ... he thought to himself
"Can we see him?" Catherine spoke up.
"I'm afraid you all won't be able to see him until tomorrow. We have a hearing specialist coming in who is going to teach him how to use a computer device for communicating. That should be tomorrow morning about about ten o'clock. I would say you all can come back at around noon to see him."
"Thank you Doctor." With that Grissom shook his hand again and rounded his team up to head out. Knowing that none of them really wanted to leave, but that the best thing was that they did.
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OUTSIDE OF THE HOSPITAL..
Warrick sat on the bench outside of the emergency room doors staring off into the night. He placed his head in his hands.
Grissom, catherine, and Greg just looked at him, and finally Grissom walked over.
"Hey, why don't you take the rest of the night off. I don't think we'll be all that busy... and you could use the rest."
"Yea... okay... thanks" Warrick turned to Grissom and shook his hand.
"Allright guys lets get back to the lab, i'm sure we've had some cases come in, in the last few hours. Let's go!"
Warrick called a cab since he had left his car at the lab earlier. The cab pulled up and he hopped in.
"Where to friend?" The cabby asked
"Take me to the 'V' bar down near swank boulevard" Warrick answered as he lounged in the back seat
"The 'V' bar it is friend." The Cabby smiled and drove off into the night...
--To Be Continued
I hope you all have enjoyed this first part... please leave me some reviews so i can know how i'm doing! thanks! and I hope to have some more up soon!