This is a rewrite of csi-dragon101's Saints in Las Vegas story. Done with permission from the author, csi-dragon101.
It was amazing how things could change in a month. One month ago, the Las Vegas crime lab learned about the arrival of one of America's most violent gangs, the 3rd Street Saints. Wherever the Saints went, the bodies of rival gang members were carted away in body bags by the truck full. They were shutting down all the gangs' ways of making profits and putting their own product out on the street. Everyone else in the lab thought they were simply another street gang, out only to kill and make money.
But that's not how Sara Sidle saw them.
It was true that the Saints were on a side of the law opposite to her own, but she the more she looked at the big picture, the more she realized the Saints were saving Vegas. Uniting it under one flag: the purple Fleur-de-lis.
Getting up from her kitchen table, she got a bottle of water from the fridge and leaned against the counter, thinking about the controversial gang. Many gangs tried to get to the top by killing the competition outright or forcing them out of the action, when The Saints arrived they sent word to all the gangs to drop their flags. Many had either done so or left the city. Of those, only 3 were left to cause any real problems: D Street Killers, Vegas Strip Soldiers, and The Blood Motors.
The Vegas Soldiers were on their last legs, no longer able to get money using their extortion rackets after many businesses and families accepted the protection of the Saints. With their cash flow cut off, and the citizens not afraid to stand up to them with the Saints backing them up, the gang was having a hard time keeping its members from dropping their orange flags.
The D Street killer's drug business was in similar trouble. The Saints had begun to push a drug called Hope onto the streets upon arrival, which had a significantly less chance of death. No one knew who had designed the drug, but it was incredibly detailed compared to D Street Meth. D Street's product was your basic easy to reproduce meth, but had a reputation for causing overdose deaths, the Saints Hope was much more difficult to copy and had a much better reputation.
The Blood Motors' haven't been hit as hard as the other gangs, but the red colored gang was only getting glances so far, and they knew it. The biker gang was scaling back their street races as well as their chop shop business. Sara knew that the Motors' were the most dangerous of the three gangs, and it seemed the Saints knew that as well. When the time came that the Saints full attention was focused, the Blood Motors were going to have a fight on their hands they weren't likely to be ready for.
Slowly but surely, the gang map of Las Vegas was changing from a mishmash of colors to purple.
She also noticed other minor things about the gang that everyone else overlooked. Whenever the Saints draw their weapons, it's a bloodbath: However, every corpse wheeled out is a violent gang member. The Saints have yet to cause a single civilian fatality; sure some get winged but never badly.
The Saints weren't angels by any stretch of the imagination, but as far as the safety of Las Vegas and its people, they were the better evil. The Saints had been started to try and protect people from gang violence, and it seemed there was still a trace of that old school attitude in their actions at times. Both of the cities the Saints had strong presences in, Stilwater and Steelport had much less violent crime than many other major cities.
As she set her water on the table, she stared at her wedding ring, and then looked over to a picture of her husband, Gil Grissom. She knew that if he found out what she was planning he would never understand, and that her choice was effectively staying with her husband and their strange relationship, or do everything she can to help Save Las Vegas. Taking a breath, she reached for her phone.
"We're making good progress dealing with D Street's idiots, but to finish them we need to hit their meth labs. So, and I don't see why I have to say this, find them. We've shut most of them down but they obviously still have some stashed in some dark corner somewhere, so let's find them and squash them, first one to find me something good wins a shiny prize." The Boss said, leaning against the railing of the catwalk of the warehouse they were using as a temporary base of operations until they finished their takeover of Las Vegas. Watching his gang head out into the Sin City, he turned and walked into his private room and collapsed on the couch, closing his eyes as he began to relax having worked pretty hard to get the Saints up and running since arriving in Vegas. After only a few minutes passed his cell phone rang, without checking the caller ID.
"What's up?"
"Is this the leader of the 3rd Street Saints?" a female voice he had never heard before spoke from the phone. The Boss sat up and opened his eyes: this was his private cell phone, only his lieutenants were supposed to have this number, the fact someone else did was annoying and slightly unnerving.
"Last time I checked. Who is this, how did you get this number?"
"My name is Sara, and I'd like to talk about joining the Saints." Scratching his chin, he nodded a bit and replied.
"Well Sara, what makes you think you're good enough to join the Saints?"
"I can get you information from inside the police department and crime labs, and I'm one hell of a shot." She sounded confident, he had to admit. Weighing his options, he decided to give her a chance.
"Ok then, you've peeked my interest. Meet me tonight behind the Eclipse night club at 2 A.M. sharp. Don't be late, because I won't wait around."
"All right, you won't be sorry." And with that, she hung up. Closing his phone, the boss got up and checked the map of Las Vegas, finding the Eclipse club on the map, before grabbing his phone.
"Kinzi, I've got a job for you. I need you to find out any information you can about someone named Sara, no last name. I think she's connected to the Las Vegas police." He paused, listening to her complaints. "No I don't know which part of the police. Check whatever kinds of labs they have….because she mentioned them and I don't think the average cop would bring that sort of thing up….yeah yeah I know, just do what you can and call be by 1 Vegas time." Ending the call, he speed dialed a new number.
"Pierce, get a couple of guys together and meet me at the Eclipse, I'm meeting someone who's connected to the police and I want to be sure she's not under surveillance. Right, see you then."
With the meeting set up, Sara let go of the breath she had been holding. She hadn't expected him to agree to this so quickly, without many questions. But she had a feeling that the questions were being saved for the meeting. Looking at the clock, she saw it was already 10:00, if she wanted to keep the meeting at 2 she needed to call off of work. Grabbing her phone, she dialed the number of one of her co-workers.
"Willows."
"Catherine, it's Sara, I'm not feeling very well. I don't think I can come in tonight, can you tell Russell for me?"
"Sure, I'll let him know. Hope you feel better."
"Thank Catherine, I owe you." Hanging up, she began to clean up the files and folders she had scattered all over the place. After she was done she took a shower, got dressed, and had a beer. By that time it was nearly ready to go meet the Boss. Pausing as she reached for her keys, she took a breath and removed her wedding ring, putting it on the counter and heading out.
The Boss waited behind the Eclipse, having arrived early in order to look through the information Kinzi had gotten together. Sitting on a brand new motorcycle, one he would use when the Saints turned their attention to Blood Motors, he scrolled down his cell phone. It seemed most likely that the Sara he would be meeting would be Sara Sidle, a crime scene investigator with the Las Vegas crime lab, married her old boss who was in Peru. He was drawn out of his reading when he received a text from Pierce, who was serving as a lookout. It seemed Mrs. CSI was early, just like him. Putting his phone in his pocket, he crossed his arms and waited.
Sara walked down the alley to the back of the club. She wouldn't have to wait long it seemed, as a tall man in black pants, purple shirt, and a leather jacket sat atop a purple motorcycle. Taking a breath, she knew that at this point she had no chance of backing out.
"Are you the guy I talked on the phone with? The leader of the Saints?"
"That I am. So, you want to join the Third Street Saints huh? Well, I have no problem bringing in people, but I need to know they can pull their weight, so can you?" Sara nods and holds out the folder she brought with her.
"Yeah, I thought that bringing in a sample of what I can do would be good. This is everywhere the LVPD has either found, thinks there might be, or heard there could be a meth lab for the D Street Killers. Since you seem to be going after them right now I thought you might like it." That got the attention of the Boss, who got off his motorcycle and took the folder, looking through it, which allowed her the chance to study him up close. He was tall with purple eyes, which were no doubt contacts. His hair was longer then the arrest photo taken by Stilwater Police, having grown down just past his ears, black with white tips, like he hadn't bothered to bleach his hair in a while. As he looked through the folder he reached into his pocket and took out a cell phone, looking at its message before turning his attention back to the folder.
"Well, you've got guts, your info's not too shabby, and you weren't followed and aren't bugged, so I think I'm willing to go out on a limb and say you aren't undercover. But you still have connections to the Police, Mrs. Sara Sidle, or is it Grissom, so how can I be 100% sure you're sincere about joining?" He could see she was surprised he knew her name, as well as her relationship to Grissom, but she kept her composure and replied.
"I honestly think that the Saints aren't just another street gang. I think that having the Saints in charge of Vegas' crime would be better for the city then having a dozen gangs tear it apart. And just for the record, I'm not a police officer; I'm a crime scene investigator, which I'm sure you know. That means that I can help compromise evidence for you and get you info that normal police can't."
The Saints leader looked at her for a few minutes silent, obviously thinking before nodding.
"Ok, then I'll let you join for now. I'll contact you in a few days with some info on what we're planning. Normally I'd give you my number, but you already have it. So far now just act like nothing's going on, go about your business as you usually do." Turning, he puts the folder in a side bag on his motorcycle before getting on. "Oh, and by the way, welcome to the Saints."
The next day, Sara went into work like nothing was different, when in reality a lot was different. She knew she should have felt at least a little guilty about having "gone dirty" and joined a gang, offering her position inside the Vegas Crime Lab as a sweetener. However, to her surprise, she didn't feel that bad about it. In fact, if anything she felt relieved: relieved that he hadn't been put off by the possibility she was undercover. She had read that the gang had been infiltrated by an undercover cop before, but for whatever reason, the Boss had accepted her into the gang. As she walked over to the coffee pot, Nick spotted her and walked over, smiling.
"Hey Sara, you feeling better?" Sara quickly realized what he was talking about, her excuse for not coming into work the night before, smiling as she poured herself a cup of coffee.
"Yeah, a good night's sleep was just what I needed. How's it looking tonight?"
"A small B&E at an apartment, nothing big. You can stay here and wait in case of another call if you want to." Sara sipped her coffee, not wanting to look at Nick right now.
"No I'm fine enough to work, thanks for worrying though." Nick nodded and turned to grab his bag, then paused and looked over to her frowning.
"Hey Sara, what happened to your wedding ring?" Cursing under her breath, she quickly tried to think of an excuse. It wasn't like she could tell him that she took it off because she didn't want to wear it while dealing with her new gang, that she felt that joining the gang meant her and Grissom were all but over.
"I just decided to take it off when I come into work so I won't have to worry about losing it." Nick seemed satisfied with her answer, and until her phone began to vibrate. Checking her caller ID, she saw that her new boss was calling already. Wondering why he was calling her sooner then he originally said, she answered, trying to keep calm.
"Hey, it's me. Listen, I've decided to have you meet some of the gang. Come to Golden Spires Hotel complex after your shift is over. I'll be in the penthouse."
"Ok boss. I'll be there." Hanging up, she smiled slightly, typing up her reports faster, until she was finished. After being allowed to head home early, after claiming to be slightly dizzy, she took a taxi which dropped her off a few blocks from the Hotel the Boss had mentioned. She paid a visit to the lobby restroom to make sure she looked presentable before going into the elevator. Arriving at the top floor, she made her way to the penthouse and knocked on the door. Within a few seconds, an African American man opened the door and smiled, stepping aside to let her in. As she walked in, she immediately spotted the Boss sitting on a couch, with a couple men and women surrounding him.
"Ahh, glad you could make it so soon. This is the new lieutenant I was telling you guys about, Sara Sidle." She was shocked to hear herself referred to as a lieutenant, considering she had just joined, but the Boss continued talking. "These are the other lieutenants of the gang. That's Pierce next to you, Kinzi's over in the corner, and Zimos is somewhere around here. There's more around Vegas and in the other cities, but these three are all I have with me. I've decided to keep your joining the Saint's hidden from the general population of the gang: If one of them gets caught I don't want them spilling you to try and get a deal." Sara was surprised he had given her so much thought, but nodded, knowing what he said made sense.
"Ok, so here's what's going on, sit down; I gave that list you gave me to Pierce and Kinzi, who ran it by the places we already hit. Most of them we already got, but a few of them we didn't know about popped up. We're going to hit them in a day or so, but that's not why I called you in. We found a place the Blood Motors use to stash stolen vehicles and cash, and we're going to hit it. The reason I'm telling you this, is that we're going to make it look like the Vegas Strip Soldiers did the job, and if anything comes up that ties us to the job I want you to fix it." Sara nodded, thinking about all the different ways she could need to manipulate evidence.
"I'll do that, but don't use guns you've already used before. Ballistics are pretty tricky to alter. If at all possible try and use weapons stolen from the VSS." The Boss grinned at her reply.
"That's a pretty good idea. Matter of fact, we just took a big shipment of guns meant to help those chumps out. Any other ideas?"
"Try not to get shot. I should be able to swap any DNA evidence they retrieve from you with VSS evidence on file, but I don't want to push my luck too much." Pierce chuckled as he leaned back on the couch he was sitting on.
"Don't worry girl, we'll do a lot to avoid getting shot. In case you were never told it hurts something nasty." The Boss rolled his eyes at his second's humor, while Sara smiled slightly. The boss reached into his pocket and slid her a new phone.
"We've cooked up something for you, and by we I mean Kinzi. If we need to call you, or vice versa, use that phone, to avoid being tapped or having your phone records looked through. I've already had Kinzi hack into the phone company and delete any sign that your phone and mine talked. I'd like to avoid you getting arrested for kicked out of the labs of whatever would happen if they found out you were sitting here." Sara nodded and picked up the phone, putting it in her pocket.
"Thanks. Anything else?" The Boss looked over to Kinzi, who was still typing away at her laptop, then to Pierce who shook his head, before looking around, possibly looking for the guy he mentioned before, Zimos she thought he called him.
"Nope, that looks about it. I'll walk you down to the garage. I've been sitting on this sofa to long." Boss said as he stood up and stretched, walking out with her. The ride down the elevator was silent, and he wordlessly walked her to her car. Confused slightly by his actions, Sara got in the car and started it, but jumped when she realized he was leaning against her door.
"Listen, I'm curious about something. I've been looking into your background, and your husband doesn't seem the sort to sit back if he finds out what you're doing with the gang and all. Now normally I don't like to get involved in the personal lives of my crew, but considering that you're a lieutenant and it could seriously affect the gang, I'm poking in a bit. If it comes down to us or him, who will it be." He asked, his tone indicating he was all business about this. He may have made a few jokes upstairs in the penthouse, but he took the welfare of his gang seriously.
"I honestly don't know. It would be easy to say I'd side with the Saints, but I can't be sure, not until it happens. Then again, given that I've joined the gang, I doubt Grissom would be too happy with me." Sara replied after a few moments of thought. Her answer seemed to satisfy the Boss, who nodded.
"Ok. If you need someone to talk to, I'll listen, with only minimal amounts of mocking." He said as he straightened, before leaning over again. "And I know this is none of my business, but personally, I think he's too old for you." And with that, he turned and headed to the stairs, leaving her slightly confused, before pulling out of her parking space and heading to her empty home.
This chapter was inspired by the first 3 or so chapters of Saints in Las Vegas. I was hoping to deal with more of the reasons as to why Sara felt the Saints were so good for Vegas and a few other details I came up with while working on the story. I'll try to have another chapter done soon, and maybe have Gil make an appearance later.