Summary: A teen girl is found dead at her school, and Sara and Grissom both have a need to find the killer, and are completely surprised by where the evidence takes them.
Spoilers: None, really. Just that it's set in Las Vegas, and centres on two geeky scientists madly in love. And... a murder. If you didn't already know that, what the heck are you doing reading GSR fanfiction? Jeez...
Disclaimer: Sadly, when David Berman signed my 'Ultimate CSI' book, he only told me that I knew more about CSI than he did, and nothing about owning the show. So, I don't think I get anything.
A/N: Alex, Stephanie and Cheryl are real people, but were not hurt in the making of this story. They gave me their names and personalities to play with, and this is what I came up with. It was in the middle of gym, just after track and field practice, and I started writing when I got home. And this is what came out of my sick and twisted mind... :-) Oh and the killer isn't actually a raving lunatic who kills people with track and field utensils.
A/N 2: Mr. Fosten and Ms. Lucille ARE based on people I know... but they didn't give me their permission to play with their personalities. I'm sure they wouldn't mind, but who knows? Some people are picky about their personalities being played with. So... just ignore them, kay? Thanks...
Track and Field is Murder
Grissom and Sara made their way towards the middle school, Brass on their tail. "So," Grissom asked, turning towards the soccer/football field behind it. "What do we have?"
Brass sighed and looked down at his notes. "Fifteen-year-old girl, moved here from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada about two years ago. Student at the school…."
"Vancouver?" Grissom asked, a smile forming. "That's a beautiful city."
Sara turned to him. "You've been?"
"Yep," he said, his smile growing. "It's amazing."
Sara pouted for a moment. "I've never been to Vancouver…"
Grissom just smiled at her before pulling his phone out. Quickly punching in a text message and hitting send, he moved towards the body.
Sara stared after him slightly confused until she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Pulling it out, she saw that whatever Grissom had typed into his phone had been sent to her. As she opened it, she smiled. It said; 'Vancouver? We'll go someday soon honey. I'll take you.'
Brass watched the smile grow on her face before turning to look at both of them. "The victim was a student at the school, and she seems to have been killed in a… odd way."
"Odd way?" Sara asked, looking from Brass to Grissom quickly and then back again.
"Yeah…" Brass said. "It seems like she's been impaled with what looks like a javelin, and then smashed in the head with a shot-put."
"Track and field," Sara said with a smile.
"Excuse me?" Grissom asked, turning to the brunette with a frown.
"Track and field, Griss," she said, placing a hand on his arm. "Look." She pointed to the track around the field, and the hurdles and discus set up on the outskirts. "It's May, which means it's time for track and field. Even in Vegas."
Grissom looked down at her hand on his arm, and she quickly pulled it away, giving him a small smile. 'Sorry,' she mouthed while Brass looked around.
"Haven't you ever heard of track and field, Gil?" Brass asked with a smirk. "It's school torture for the… un-athletic ones."
"Of course I've heard of track and field, Jim," Grissom snapped. "I'm not that old."
Sensing that his friend wasn't in a good mood, Brass stopped his teasing. "Hey Gil," he said, putting the notebook away. "I don't kill the people. I only get the call to call you, and then we go from there."
"I know, I know," Grissom said, looking sheepish. "I'm sorry. I just don't like being called in early on a Saturday, especially when I'm sleeping."
Sara turned her face so that her two counterparts wouldn't see her grin. She knew what time the call had come, and she also knew exactly what Grissom had been doing when the phone rang. And it hadn't been sleeping.
Turning back around, she wiped the smile from her face before Grissom saw it. He always got weird when she smiled at him, kind of like this puppy dog look… it was hilarious to her, but he'd warned her early on to not do that kind of thing at work, because he would probably lose it.
"So," she asked. "What's the victim's name?"
Brass pulled out his notebook again and said, "Sandry Pine."
"Who's that?" Grissom asked, pointing to a blue-haired guy with his arms around a pretty brunette. They were standing off to the side of the victim.
"People who found the body," Brass answered. "Blue-haired guy is Shane Jameson, and his girlfriend, Alexandria Pankratz."
"Do they know the victim?" Sara asked, moving towards them.
"Yeah, she does," Brass said. "I don't know about the guy though…I've already taken their statements, but if you want to go talk to them, be my guest…"
Sara nodded and made her way over to the couple. "Hi," she said gently, sticking out a hand. "My name's Sara Sidle and I'm with the Crime Lab. Can you guys tell me what happened?"
Shane nodded slowly, looking like he was about to be sick.
"So, Shane and Alexandria…" Sara began, but she was cut off.
"It's Alex," she croaked out. "Everyone calls me Alex."
"My apologies, Alex," Sara said with a smile. "So, Shane and Alex, can you tell me what happened?"
Alex attempted to speak, but her tears were causing her to hiccup violently, and Shane wiped away her tears with gentle hands before turning to look at Sara.
"We were just walking across the field, and then we saw what looked like a dead animal or something… we went to go check on it – Alex is a die-hard animal lover – and then that's when we realized that it wasn't an animal… but a… person."
"Okay," Sara said soothingly. "That was a great explanation. Now I need to know… did either one of you touch the body?"
Alex paled, and it looked like she was about to puke. Sara put a reassuring arm around her shoulders, and steered her in the direction of the parking lot, where she could puke in peace and not disturb the crime scene.
Shane watched her walk away with a mix of love and apprehensiveness on his face.
"She'll be okay," Sara said gently, knowing that look. It was one of a very loving guy being overly concerned about his girlfriend. Grissom gave her the same look all the time, whenever she was sick or exhausted beyond belief. "Now, did you touch the body?"
"No. Absolutely not."
"Alex?"
"Nope. We saw her, and called 911. It wasn't until after we'd called that she realized it was Sandry."
"Now, do you know Sandry?" Sara asked, looking around for Brass.
"Not personally," Shane answered as Alex made her way back over to them. She came to a stop beside him, and he wrapped her in his arms, placing soft kisses in her hair. "It's okay, Alex," he soothed. "They're going to find out what happened to Sandry."
"Alex, do you know Sandry Pine?" Brass asked, coming to a stop beside the small group.
"Yes," she answered shakily, taking deep breaths to calm herself slightly. "She's my friend. We're in the same class."
"You go to the school, Woodrock?"
"Yeah, we do. We're both in the ninth grade, at the school…"
Grissom came to join the group, standing incredibly close to Sara, but not touching her in the slightest. "Sara," he said quietly. "Do we know them?" He pointed to two girls running towards them.
"No…" Sara said slowly, breaking away from the group to approach the girls. Grissom quickly followed, walking beside her.
The pair either didn't see the crime tape, or blatantly ignored it, but they ran right past it, almost knocking assistant coroner David Phillips and the blanket-covered stretcher over.
"What the hell is going on?" one of the girls called. "What the…?" She seemed to notice Alex and Shane standing to the side still talking to Brass, and her face paled.
Grissom stepped up to her, and introduced himself. "Gil Grissom, Las Vegas PD. And you are…?"
"Cheryl Majeau," she answered coolly. "Do you mind telling me what the hell is going on?"
"This is a murder investigation," Sara answered, also with a cool tone, coming to a stop behind her boss. "Do you mind stepping behind the tape?"
"Yeah, I do," Cheryl answered cattily, daring Sara to challenge her.
Sara was ready to pull authority over this girl's head, but Grissom turned to her ever so slightly and mouthed 'no'.
Sara relented and backed off. Turning to the other girl, she asked, "Who are you?"
"Stephanie Hillman," said the girl behind Cheryl. "Who is it?" she asked in a small voice.
Cheryl stood to the left of Sara, staring at the same spot Stephanie was, and then back at the stretcher. Horror found its way to her face, and she let out a small strangled sound. "Oh my God," she breathed. "Sandry!"
She started to run towards the stretcher, but Sara caught her arm. "No, you can't go in that area right now."
Cheryl struggled violently against Sara, pushing her arms and shouting, "Get off me bitch! My friend is dead, and I want to go see her!"
Grissom's eyes flared with anger for a moment; people calling his girlfriend a bitch didn't sit well in his book. But Sara gently guided the now-crying girl to the ground, and shot him a look that said, 'I've got it covered.'
Grissom nodded his consent and herded the other girl towards the parking lot. "We are part of the LVPD, and we will do our best to find out what happened to Sandry. Can you go with this man here," he pointed to Brass who was leading Alex and Shane to a cruiser, "and your friends, and go down to the station? We need to do formal statements."
Stephanie nodded, but said, "What about Cheryl?"
Grissom looked at the crying girl on the ground, and said, "Sara is very compassionate, and she will help your friend to calm down. She'll meet you at the station, okay?"
The girl nodded and headed over to the car, giving Alex a consolatory hug.
OoOoOoO
Sara was crouched down in front of Cheryl, watching as she struggled to contain her emotions. "Cheryl?" Sara asked gently. "Are you alright?"
"No!" she practically screeched into Sara's ear. "One of my best friends has just been brutally murdered, and you're asking if I'm alright!?"
"I'm sorry," Sara said sincerely. "But, we need to get you up off the ground. We need you to come to the station for some more questioning."
"You think I'm a suspect?"
"I never once said that," Sara countered, her face impassive. "We just need to talk to you. Come on."
Sara gently pulled Cheryl from the ground and led her towards her Denali. Grissom came to stand behind her, and whispered, "What are you doing?"
Sara made sure that Cheryl was buckled in the front seat and ready to go before turning around to face her lover. Placing a hand discreetly on his chest, she said, "I'm taking her to the station, Gil. We need to talk with her."
"I know that. Why are you taking her?"
"Because she sure isn't going to walk to the station," Sara deadpanned.
"Sara…"
"I know Gil, I know." She rubbed his chest with her fingertips before turning back to get into her car. "I'll be careful."
Raising her fingers to her lips, she kissed them lightly before letting them gently guide over Grissom's lips. "See you back at the lab?"
"Definitely."
OoOoOoO
Cheryl was silent most of the ride, and only until they were a few blocks away from the lab did she speak. "You're close to him, aren't you?"
"Sorry?" Sara asked, looking at the road and not really paying attention.
"You, and what was his name again…? Grissom?"
"What about Grissom?" Sara asked, hardly able to keep the smile off her face at just the mention of him.
"You are close to him, aren't you?"
Sara shook her head slightly. Can't talk about Gil like this at work, Sidle, she reminded herself. "Grissom and I… we're good friends," she finally answered, leaving the conversation at that.