Title: Masking the Truth
Spoilers: Through S4, just to be safe, though nothing specific
Disclaimer: As much as I wish, I don't own anything to do with CSI and I have nothing worth suing me for
Summary: A case involving a sleeping disorder sends Sara and Grissom into unfamiliar territory.
A/N: This is my first ever CSI fic and I decided to go down the double-barrelled route of casefile and the road to romance – I hope I pulled it off :-)
Feedback: Always appreciated
1/4
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"What have we got?" asked Grissom as he and Sara arrived at the crime scene to be met by Brass.
"DB in the bedroom, not sure if it's suspicious or not," replied Brass.
"You're not sure?" queried Grissom.
"See for yourself," shrugged Brass, leading the way towards the victim.
Sara and Grissom both stopped as they reached the entrance to the bedroom, taking in the scene around them. The drapes were closed, nothing appeared to be disturbed and the room looked like a normal bedroom, apart from the presence of a machine on the floor beside the bed.
"What is that?" asked Sara, pointing towards the machine.
"It's a CPAP," replied Grissom immediately. Both Brass and Sara gave him curious looks and he continued, "Continuous Positive Airways Pressure machine, used in the treatment of sleep apnoea."
"Oh," said Sara, obviously wondering how Grissom knew that.
"I've read about the disorder and seen photos of the machines used in some journals," he explained.
"Of course it's a CPAP, that's just what I told everyone," drawled Brass, eliciting a grin from Sara and a smirk from Grissom. "Well, I did know it was for some sort of sleep disorder," he defended, "it has a label from Desert Palms Hospital on it."
"You said you weren't sure if the death is suspicious or not?" prompted Grissom.
"Yeah, I don't know enough about this to make a guess," said Brass. "Not that I'd be guessing anyway," he hastily added at Grissom's look. "I just figured that maybe the machine might be faulty or something."
"We'll take a look," nodded Grissom.
"I'll go talk to the neighbours, see what they can tell me about our vic. Oh, her name is Jennifer Hawkins, from her driving license, she's single, 32 years old," said Brass, waiting for Grissom's nod of confirmation before leaving the room.
"So, sleep apnoea?" said Sara as Brass left. Grissom started looking around the room in more detail, while Sara snapped some photos. "I've heard of it, but I don't really know much about it," she admitted, hoping Grissom would fill her in.
"I don't know much myself, just what I've read. It's caused by having a throat that is narrower than normal. When you sleep, your throat automatically gets narrower as you breathe, so if it's narrower to start with, it can restrict airflow in your lungs, causing you to stop breathing until your fight for breath wakes you up, opening up your throat again. It tends to occur in overweight people, particularly in middle age, though it can be hereditary."
"Well, our victim certainly isn't overweight," commented Sara, looking at the figure on the bed, who if anything, was below average weight.
"No, so it may be hereditary. The machine is from Desert Palms, they should have her notes."
"What does the machine do?"
"It blows a gentle stream of air through the nose, keeping the pressure in the throat higher than the atmospheric pressure, so that the throat does not get pressed closed. The person can either have a nasal canula or a full face mask, this person obviously preferred the mask."
"So, if the machine were faulty, the sufferer could stop breathing?"
"Yes," agreed Grissom, "but usually the person would wake up, as it's an automatic reaction. The machine is really there to try and ensure a good night's sleep, so that the sufferer can lead a normal life, without being tired during the day and prone to falling asleep. Often, the person doesn't even realize that their sleep has been interrupted numerous times, as they just fall asleep again as soon as their throat has re-opened, before they've become fully conscious."
"The machine is switched off," said Sara as she approached it to take some photos.
"Find out from Brass if any officers touched it when they arrived. Also, check who found the body," instructed Grissom.
Sara nodded and left the room to talk to Brass, leaving Grissom to check over the body. When she returned a few minutes later, Grissom was leaning over the victim studying her face closely.
"Did you find out if anyone switched off the machine?" he asked as he heard her approach.
"Yeah, the first officer on the scene did it. He figured since she was dead, she wouldn't need it and he said the noise was annoying him," she told him with a sigh of disgust.
"I hope he was wearing gloves," muttered Grissom as he looked at the power switch on the machine. "Who found the body?"
"A neighbour reported the dog was barking all last night and was still barking when she got home from work today. She called the cops, but it was low priority, so they didn't find the victim until tonight. Animal control were with them and they took the dog away before we got here, as it was highly distressed."
"I don't see too much evidence of a dog around, must be one that doesn't shed too much."
"The officer said the dog was shut in the kitchen, it might be it's not allowed in here."
"Maybe. Can you take a photo of this please?" asked Grissom, looking at the camera in Sara's hands and pointing to the victim's face.
"What is it?" she queried as she stepped towards the bed.
"Just the position of the mask on her face. There's no problem, I just want it photographed. We'll get one when she's turned over too."
Sara took the requisite photos and then checked the victim's fingernails to see if there was any evidence of a struggle. Finding nothing there, she told Grissom that she thought the body could be released. He agreed and they allowed David to take the victim to the morgue.
"Are you finished processing?" asked Sara of Grissom when she had finished collecting all the evidence she could find.
"Yes, we'll get back to the lab and see what we can find on this machine," he replied, disconnecting the machine and wrapping it in protective plastic sheeting. "Can you grab my kit while I take all this?"
"Sure," she nodded, lifting his field kit and evidence bags along with her own and following him outside.----
"Brass just called in," reported Sara as she found Grissom in the layout room. "According to the neighbours, the vic lived alone, but had a regular boyfriend. He's trying to track him down now and find out where he was last night."
"Did any of the neighbours see anything?"
"No, they only heard the dog barking. Is the machine telling you anything?" she queried, nodding towards the CPAP machine lying on the table.
"I got prints off it, but they all belong to the victim." Just as he finished speaking, his pager started beeping. Glancing at it, he said, "Autopsy is nearly finished, Doc is ready to verbally report."
"I'll go if you want to work on the machine," she offered.
"We'll both go," he said, holding the door open for her and following her out of the room.
----
"What have you found?" asked Grissom as soon as they arrived.
"Well, it's good to see you too, Grissom," chuckled Doc Robbins.
"Sorry. What have you found?"
"Cause of death was oxygen starvation. You said she suffered from sleep apnoea?"
"Yes," replied Sara.
"Well, the effects of that would be consistent."
"She had a CPAP machine though and, as far as I can tell, it seems to be functioning normally," pointed out Grissom.
"Well, I guess you have a mystery to solve then," smiled Robbins.
"Okay, thanks, Doc. I think we'll investigate sleep apnoea until Brass brings in the boyfriend. Sara, let's go."
----
"What's the next move then?" asked Sara as they walked towards Grissom's office.
"I placed a call earlier, while you were checking with Brass. We can head over to the Desert Palms Sleep Clinic around 8am, if you're up for a double?"
"Of course I'm up for a double," she smiled. "Sleep clinic though, is that what I think it is?"
"They study people who suffer from sleep disorders. It's part treatment and part research. Our victim was a patient there, so we need to find out how bad her condition was and how they were treating her. There are different settings on the machine, I need to check what she should have been using."
"Okay. We have a while until then, I'm gonna start checking the bed sheets."
"I'll come and find you when I'm ready to leave," said Grissom.
"Sure, I'll probably be in the layout room."
----
"Dr. Grissom? I'm Dr. Mathieson," a woman's voice announced. Grissom and Sara stood up and found a woman aged about forty approaching them, her hand outstretched.
"Thank you for meeting with us, doctor. This is Sara Sidle," said Grissom, shaking the woman's hand as he made the introduction.
"Please, come through to the lab and we can talk there," smiled the doctor, leading them down a corridor and into the hospital's sleep lab. "Now, do you have specific questions about Ms Hawkins, or do you just want me to try to enlighten you about sleep apnoea in general."
"We really need to know what settings Ms Hawkins CPAP machine should have been on, so we can verify it was set properly when she died," explained Grissom.
"I can pull that information for you," she nodded, walking to her computer as they reached her office and tapping the keyboard. "I'll have it printed out when you leave."
"Thanks. We also need to learn about sleep apnoea. As I explained on the phone, I've heard of it, but never had a chance to study it in detail," said Grissom.
"What would you like to know?"
"Would it be possible, if Ms Hawkins was using the machine properly, that her condition could worsen suddenly, enough that the machine wouldn't be enough and she would stop breathing permanently?"
"It's hard to say for sure, Dr Grissom, but it's unlikely. A dramatic deterioration is uncommon, it's more likely that it would happen slowly, and she would notice by becoming more tired during the day."
"But, if her machine was working, she shouldn't deteriorate at all?" he pressed.
"Not necessarily. As I said, she would be likely to notice any deterioration, but it could happen."
Dr Mathieson seemed to hesitate and Sara took the opportunity to ask the question.
"Doctor, is there anything else you can tell us?"
Grissom glanced at Sara, annoyed that she was interrupting his questioning, but she nodded her head in the direction of the doctor and waited for her to answer.
"Look, I'm only telling you this because I feel it could be important, but I'm not really sure how it could be," she started, before pausing again.
"Why don't you tell us and let us decide what's important?" suggested Sara softly.
"Well, I checked her notes after you called me this morning, Dr Grissom, and I noticed that she told me at her last annual check-up, which was a year ago this week, that she didn't use the machine at the weekends. Like I said, it's probably not important because she died on a Tuesday and you said she was using the machine, but I thought I should mention it."
"Why didn't she use the machine at the weekends? Shouldn't she have used it every night?" asked Grissom, catching Sara's eye and silently thanking her for pursuing the line of questioning.
"Because of her boyfriend." Noticing the confused looks of the CSIs, she explained, "The machines aren't exactly conducive to love-making, and Jennifer told me that her boyfriend didn't like the noise so she didn't use it even after they'd had sex and were going to sleep."
"Her boyfriend only stayed over on weekends?" asked Sara immediately.
"Yes. Of course, that could have changed in the last year, she might not even have the same boyfriend."
"According to her neighbours, she's been seeing the same guy for about 18 months," said Sara to Grissom's unasked question. He nodded and Sara asked, "Was it dangerous for her to not use the machine?"
"Yes and no. The machine is really there to relieve some of the effects of sleep apnoea, the tiredness and headaches during the day. She said that she could handle them at the weekends, so she made the decision not to use it then. We can only provide the equipment, we can't force patients to use it."
"So, if she wasn't using the machine and her condition had worsened, would her boyfriend notice?" quizzed Sara, a theory forming in her mind.
"I can't say for sure, but I would think so. Usually a bed partner wakens when someone stops breathing next to them, it seems to be instinctive."
"And he would wake her up?"
"Not necessarily. Waking a sleep apnoea sufferer isn't always the best method, as their body should do it themselves, when they're ready. If they stop breathing for more than a couple of minutes though, they should be woken."
Grissom realized they weren't going to get much more down that route and decided to change track.
"If someone is using a CPAP machine, what difference is there in sleeping pattern between them and someone who doesn't suffer from sleep apnoea?"
"Look, I could try explaining it to you, but I'm not sure it would make sense," said Dr Mathieson. "It can be quite difficult to understand. I have a patient coming in for their annual sleep monitoring session tonight. I'll need to check with her, but I don't think she'd mind if you both wanted to come in and watch," she suggested.
"Watch her sleep?" said Sara.
"Yes, it might help you to put things in perspective, although, you'd need to have something to compare it to. Have either of you ever watched someone sleep before, a partner maybe?" she asked both Sara and Grissom, turning to each of them. They both shook their heads and Dr Mathieson sighed, thinking things through. "I usually have research going on, where we study people who don't suffer from sleep apnoea so we can find out what the triggers are, but I don't have any programmes going on right now, so there's no-one I can call on to come in tonight. It would be much easier if you could watch a sufferer and non-sufferer at the same time, but I guess I can dig out a tape of a non-sufferer and get their permission."
"There's no need," interrupted Grissom, "we can provide someone." Sara smiled, thinking Grissom was going to involve Greg in one of his experiments again, but the smile fell when she heard his next words. "Just tell Sara what she needs to bring."
"What?!" exclaimed Sara. "No way, Grissom, I'm not sleeping here."
"Someone needs to Sara, we don't have time to waste on this."
"Well, you do it and I'll watch," she suggested.
"No."
"Why not?"
"Supervisor perks," he smirked.
Sara let out an exasperated sigh and turned to Dr Mathieson to ask what she needed to bring.
"Just what you need for an overnight stay," the doctor replied. "Pajamas, toiletries, etc."
"Uh, no way."
"What's wrong, Sara?" asked Grissom.
"I am not wearing pajamas here, in public, while being watched. Experiment or not, you can forget it, Grissom."
"Just wear something comfortable, Sara, something you can sleep in," he said, his irritation beginning to show.
"Why do I have to do this, why not Nick or Warrick?"
"Because you're working this case."
"Fine," she sighed, obviously annoyed.
"Oh, by the way, Dr Mathieson," said Grissom as they were leaving, "when was Ms Hawkins next due for a visit to the sleep clinic?"
"Tonight, actually. Ms Sidle will be taking her place."
Grissom and Sara shared a 'raised eyebrows' look as they thanked the doctor and left.
----
Grissom finished handing out the assignments and inwardly groaned as he noticed the smirks Nick and Warrick were sending Sara's way.
"Any questions?" he asked, staring at each person in turn. Everyone shook their head and Grissom continued, "Good. If anyone needs me, page me, as I don't know if I'll be allowed to keep my cellphone on."
"You got your teddy bear with you, Sara?" laughed Nick, earning himself a glare.
"Grissom, why can't Nick be the patient tonight, huh?" pleaded Sara.
"It's your case, Sara," replied Grissom.
"Yeah, but shouldn't I be watching the experiment as well?"
"Sara."
"Look, Grissom, I don't sleep at home when I'm alone, so what makes you think I'll sleep in a lab where I know I'm being watched?" she said with exasperation, her tone showing she wasn't happy with the situation.
"The subject isn't up for discussion," he replied firmly, noticing the looks on his co-workers faces and not wanting to be drawn into a public argument with Sara. "Get your things together and be in my office in ten minutes," he instructed, stalking from the room before she could offer another excuse.
"Good luck, Sara," said Warrick genuinely as he left the room to start work on his case.
"Yeah, enjoy your sleep," teased Nick, ducking as a cushion from the couch made its way towards his back.
"Just try to relax, Sara, you'll be fine," said Catherine with a comforting smile.
"Easy for you to say," replied Sara, watching her co-workers leave to start their shifts. She let out a long-suffering sigh and headed to the locker room to collect her overnight bag, still trying to think of ways to get her out of participating in the sleep study. It wasn't that she didn't want to help, but the thought of anyone, especially Grissom, watching her sleep was extremely disconcerting. She hadn't lied earlier when she said she didn't sleep at home and she knew it would be nearly impossible for her to even doze in the sleep lab, never mind fall into the deep sleep that she knew was necessary for true comparison. She had stayed at work for most of the day, only going home to shower, change and pack a bag, in the hope that she would be tired enough to sleep more easily, but she could tell it would be futile.
Grabbing her bag from her locker, she opened it and double-checked she had everything she needed. She realized she'd forgotten her shower gel and shampoo and grabbed the bottles she kept in her locker. Stuffing them into the bag, she re-zipped it and started a slow walk to Grissom's office, trying to stall the inevitable for as long as possible.
----
TBC…