Cyan
----------------------------
8:pm, Monday
You can tell a lot about someone by their car; Jim Brass was a firm believer in this, and by the looks of the car that occupied his parking spot, this person was all over the place; literally. Picture this: a blue 1991 Toyota Camry with, from top to tails; on the rear view mirror, Tibetan prayer beads, a set of police issue hand cuffs and a miniature disco ball. In the rear window, there was a Chicago Cubs batting helmet and a copy of the Complete and Annotated Works of William Shakespeare. On the rear window, bumper stickers that read; clockwise: "Dirt Worshipping Tree Hugger", US Army Reserves, Honour Diversity with a rainbow back and right dead centre above the break light, a nice sized sticker that read: "Give Blood, Play Ice Hockey". When Jim first saw the car, he was fuming, but after reading the stickers that ended with the blood donation, he thought that this person couldn't be all bad; just new.
He huffed as he entered the lab and as he made his way to Grissom's office, he noticed the light was on. Knocking on the glass of his door, Brass smiled when Gil told him to enter. Stepping inside, Brass heard that Gil was not alone. He could hear someone, but he couldn't see them, so as he sat down in the chair opposite Grissom's desk, he craned his neck to try and catch a look at Gil's visitor.
"I think you'll have better luck with your stuff if you alphabetize; everything. From Mrs. Piggy to Eleanor over there. You can do it by the entire shelving unit or shelf by shelf. Which would you like?"
Looking up and scratching his head, Gil responded.
"Whichever you think best fits."
His eyes wide and disbelieving what he had just heard, Jim gawked at Gil. After a few moments, he regained his brain and piped in.
"You're letting someone rearrange your stuff? This must be love"
"Not love; a personal assistant. Apparently, management thinks I'm disorganized." Gil said, chuckling
"Oh, am I disturbing anything?"
The voice was kind of low pitched, but unmistakably female. As Jim turned around, that's when he saw her. She was tall, lean and by the looks of things, very fit. Her attire left something to be desired, but by the sound of things, she was all business. Tucked under a Chicago Cubs baseball cap were some of the curliest brown locks that either of them had ever seen. Her skin was a lovely shade of bronze, her eyes were like emeralds and her lopsided smile was like eye candy. Looking her over from head to toe, Jim took in her tan fatigue shorts and her "Superman" t-shirt. Her right ear was double pierced on the upper cartilage but her left ear was bare. All in all, she was attractive, but it puzzled Jim how this woman, that was at least 30 or so could come off as someone much younger; in appearance, at least.
Standing in between Jim and Gil, ADD looked to Grissom and reissued her previous question.
"I could leave and take care of some of these things you want done." she said, looking down at a slip of paper
"No, that's fine. Let me introduce you to Captain Brass. Jim, this is ADD" Gil said softly
Standing and offering his hand to her, ADD took it.
"Wow, that's some handshake you've got there, ADD." Jim said, retracting his hand and flexing his fingers
"Its A.D.D." she corrected
"What's that stand for?" he asked
"Attention Deficit Disorder. When I was younger, I was told that I was a bit hyper, so the name stuck." she explained
"That's cute." Jim said, smiling
"So, what brings you to my office this early?" Gil asked Jim
"Oh, some ass just parked in my spot. I swear, sometimes I wonder what these people are thinking or if they are at all"
Jim huffed
Turning to Jim, ADD turned a bit red and swallowed hard.
"What kind of car is it?" she asked
"Camry, 91, medium blue." he replied
"Oh, damn, that's me." she said, snatching her keys from Gil's desk
Holding her hand out to Jim, ADD looked at him. Turning to Gil, Jim raised an eyebrow. Seeing that Jim had no idea what was going on, ADD spoke up.
"Give me your keys and I'll park your car for you"
"That's cool, I'll do it later." Jim said "Its no trouble, after all, its my fault you had to park on the other end of the lot." she said, wiggling her fingers
Jim looked to Gil as if to ask for his approval, but all Gil did was look at an open copy of "Bugs Of North America"
"Come on. What, you think I'm gonna run off with your wheels?" she asked playfully
Reaching in his pocket, Jim pulled out his keys and handed them to ADD. Looking at the keys, she amazed him.
"Buick, and by the way you're dressed, its most likely the luxury edition which is the Park Avenue. Its either black or dark grey, no?" she asked
"How'd she do that? How'd you do that?" Jim asked, befuddled, looking from ADD to Grissom and back
"Ah, well, a gentleman never asks and a lady never tells. Ta ta." she quipped
As ADD went to the lot, Brass questioned Gil.
"Where did you find her? She's precious"
"She comes highly recommended. A bit eccentric, but very work minded." Gil replied
"Eccentric, her? No." Jim said, joking
"Well, she's the perfect assistant. She's got this place looking like an office and not like the paper recycling heap at the landfill." Gil answered back
"She's great; kind of like Sara, in that she's an insomniac and has a very good work ethic." Gil explained
"Are you sure you need two sleepless beauties on your staff? Besides, what sort of name is ADD"
"Why, you know something I don't?" Grissom continued
"She's fine, and really sort of fun. She's got a very diversified palette and knows a lot about just about everything; she's a great conversational companion."
Moments later, ADD returned to Gil's office, keys in hand. Tossing Jim his keys, he almost dropped them, as they slipped through his fingers, bounced off his broad chest and slid into the breast pocket of his suit. Returning to her duties, ADD called out to Jim.
"Oh, and I set the clock in your car; it was off by a lot. And I also took care of the door ajar light"
"How'd you do that? I mean, fix the light." he asked
"Nothing, really, the sensor stump was just a bit stuck, so I took some graphite dust that I had from fixing my bike this morning, and dusted the sensor stem. I just had to press it in a few times and viola, its fixed." she explained
"Thanks." he replied
"No problem. Again, I apologize for parking in your spot." she offered
Minutes later, Jim left and went to his office to check his mail before the start of shift. Seated behind his desk and scrolling through his messages, he was deep in thought as the rest of the team filed in for the evening's cases.
In the break room, Nick, Warrick and Sara were seated around the conference table sipping their coffee when Grissom and ADD walked in. Greg and Catherine, who had been sitting on the couch, stood and walked over to the table to sit with their colleagues. Gesturing to ADD, Grissom introduced her.
"Guys, this is ADD; she's my new personal assistant."
A bit confused, everyone turned their heads to look at the young woman that stood beside Gil, and as they took in her form,
Greg stood and offered his hand in greeting.
"I'm Greg Sanders"
"Pleasure to meet you, Greg." she replied
The slips were handed out and as everyone left the room to head out Gil went to the coffee machine. Mug in hand, filled with coffee, he looked around and growled. From her place by the door, talking to Greg, ADD called to him.
"There isn't any left, but there's some powder in the cabinet"
Opening the cabinet doors, Grissom saw the powdered creamer staring him in the face.
"Thanks ADD"
Back in Grissom's office, he was tearing the place apart looking for his keys and as ADD entered, his eyes widened. Seeing that Grissom was in a right state, ADD inquired as to his malady.
"I can't find my keys." he growled
"Where was the last place you saw them"
"Right over here by the phone." he replied
Just then, Jim came in and stood by the door, arms folded across his chest.
"What's up? What's this?" he asked
"ADD's gonna find my keys." Gil said, smiling
Placing her hand on Grissom's desk, she closed her eyes and listened hard. Seeing this, Brass scoffed and at this, ADD opened her eyes and glared at Jim. Checking himself, he apologized and covered his mouth with his hand in an effort to stifle his laughter. Jim thought this was a crock of bull, so he watched her suspiciously. Moments later, she opened her eyes and walked around Grissom's desk to his chair. Hanging from the back of the chair was Gil's coat and as she slipped her hand into the right pocket, she pulled out his keys, dangling them in front of Brass, smiling.
"That was very cool." Gil said, taking his keys
"Yeah, well, its a gift." ADD replied
As the night wore on, ADD ran errands for Gil and when shift was over, she grabbed up her keys and made her way to the parking lot. On her way out, she ran into Brass, who was busy inspecting his driver's side door. Seeing this, she reached into her pocket and pulled out the tube of graphite dust.
"Catch."
Whipping his head around, Jim saw ADD and extended his hand, catching the tube of dry lubricant. Looking it over, he stood up and face her. Smiling, he thanked her. Watching as she walked across the lot to her car, Jim thought that this woman could, quite possibly, turn the lab upside down.
8:pm, Tuesday
Driving down the street on his way to the lab, Jim could not help but notice someone on Rollerblades, holding a hockey stick,
training a roller hockey ball, doing some tricks by grinding railings and concrete ledges, as well as hopping low lying shrubberies and garbage cans. Sitting at a red light a few blocks from the lab, he trained his focus on this wheeled gymnast. In particular, he noticed their shirt, that read "Sometimes You Feel Like A Nut". He grinned and laughed, wondering where he could get a shirt like that for himself. He watched as they skated towards the lab and as a car approached the entrance, the skater ducked down, pocketed their ball and grabbed hold of the bumper, hitching a ride into the lot. The light turned green and Jim passed through the intersection and into the lab lot. As soon as the car in front of him turned left, the skater let go and skated up the concrete walkway. Just as Jim pulled into his spot, this mysterious skater hopped the railing, shouted "Woo Hoo" and landed back on the ground. Slowing down for the automatic doors, they skated into the lab and Jim thought to himself that this person was an accident waiting to happen, in that Rollerblading was not exactly the best mode of transportation indoors.
Parking his car and jumping out, Jim rushed inside, looking for the nutty athlete. Walking past Grissom's office, Jim noticed the hockey stick leaning by the door. Poking his head in, he looked around. Hearing the bearings of the skates, Jim walked around to the shelving units to see ADD busy organizing Gil's file cabinets. Clearing his throat, Jim made his presence known.
Turning her head to see Jim, ADD smiled.
"Your spot was free this evening, I trust"
"Yeah, it was. Thanks." he replied "Good."
Going back to her business, she growled her frustration.
"What's the matter?" Jim asked
"Oh, its just this twisted way of filing; it really needs revamping." she replied
"Yeah, well, he's a stacker. Just drops things on his desk and they turn into piles"
"Yeah, I know what a stacker is." she replied, grinning
Emptying the top most drawer, ADD set the files on Grissom's desk and began organizing them in chronological order, followed by alphabetizing them. Jim watched as this young woman made quick work of Gil's haphazardly stowed files. Sitting in Gil's chair and not bothering to take her skates off, ADD looked up as Jim yawned.
"You tired" she asked "No, not really"
"Your skating ability not withstanding, I think the skates are a bad idea inside the lab." he asserted
"For you, my dear Captain, anything." she said, sitting down on the couch
Taking off her skates and standing in her stocking feet, ADD looked at Jim, and tucked them under the couch. Following her closely with his eyes, Jim marveled at her beautiful muscular legs; surely this woman worked out on a regular basis. Slipping into a pair of sandals, ADD stood and resumed her duties.
Half an hour later, Grissom strolled into the office and seeing the file folders on his desk, he called out to ADD. Coming from behind the front most shelving unit, she grinned.
"I've organized them by month and year, and then again by name. The guide is there, under your blotter. Its a very simple system, but you've got to keep up with it. Remember to always put the file back where you got it from, or the system will be negated." she explained
"How long have you been in?" he asked
"Oh, only an hour or so. Why"
"Well, you've got to be the most efficient assistant I've ever had." he said, smiling
"Thanks, but it comes naturally to me, you should see my house; a place for everything and everything in its place" she quipped
"Very true." he replied, looking down at the slips for the evening
There had to be at least four of them, and by the look on his face, Grissom was none too pleased. Looking over at ADD, he huffed. Hearing Gil stress, ADD asked him if she could help.
"What's wrong, Boss"
"Oh, just that its going to be a mess tonight, that's all." he replied
"Well, I'm almost done with these files, so if there's anything I can do to help, just let me know." she offered
"Well, I really can't think of anything right now, but that's not to say that I won't come up with something later" he said softly
While Grissom and company were in the break room going over the slips, ADD stayed in the office, continuing to organize Grissom's disorganized life in the form of papers, files and lastly, the mounting piles of old evidence and case files that had taken up residence in a 55 gallon Rubbermaid tub next to his desk. Tipping the bin over and spilling its contents onto the floor, she sat down, Indian style, and sifted through the business. In the middle of an old file regarding a mass suicide, a knock came to the door. Looking up, ADD smiled wide.
"What can I do for you, Captain"
"Well, for starters, you can call me Jim. Secondly, you can tell me how this came to be in my office." he said, holding up a tattered case file
"Oh, that, well, I went through it and noticed that no one signed off on it." she explained, pointing to the blank signature line
Leaving him an out, which is to say that she suggested the oversight as opposed to flat out telling him that he didn't do his job, ADD handed him a pen and waited patiently while he signed the document. Having signed the form and handed it back to ADD, Jim looked down at his watch.
"Hey, its lunch time. You want to grab something to eat? There's a cute little diner across the way." he said, pointing to nowhere in particular
"Sure, just let me leave Mr. Grissom my pager number and a note." she said, scribbling on a sheet of paper
Just as ADD and Jim were about to exit the building ADD's cell phone went off. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled it out and answered.
"Cyan, here."
Hearing the strange name, Jim raised an eyebrow, which was met with a threatening gesture from ADD and the mouthing of "You tell, you die". Jim could tell what message she was trying to convey and he gestured a zipped mouth and throwing away of a key. ADD smiled and returned to the caller.
"Ok, I understand your frustration at his non-compliance. But tell me, how do you feel; exactly?" she asked in calm tones
Jim could not help but think that she sounded like a shrink, in that her tones were even and her choice of words were carefully arrived at. Raising his arm and tapping his watch, Jim made a quick footed movement to the doors. Realizing that this conversation was going to take a while, out of habit, ADD signed to him.
"This'll be a while. Can I get a rain check?
Recognizing it as ASL, but not having any clue as to what was said, Jim just said he'd give her a rain check. Smirking and signing, she said that she had asked him as much. Still oblivious to what she was saying, he grinned.
"I'll bring you something back."
Going back to her conversation on the phone, ADD retreated to Gil's office and closed the door behind her. Sitting on the couch, she looked up when she heard the door knob rattling. In stepped Grissom, files in hand. Looking over at ADD, he asked why the door was closed.
"I'm counseling.
Surprised that she knew ASL, Grissom smiled and signed back.
G-"Do you need privacy?
C-"No, that's cool. I'm almost done"
G-"Ok. Have you taken your meal break yet?
C-"No, I was about to go with Captain Brass when I got the call"
G-"When you're done, you want to go to the diner"
C-"Sure."
A smile on his face, Gil sat behind his desk and busied himself with signing off on reports, while he waited for ADD to finish.
Minutes later, she hung up and pocketed her phone. Lifting a slip of paper from his desk, he read it.
"Is this your beeper number"
"Yeah, I left it when I was with Captain Brass."
Grissom and ADD walked across the street and when they entered the diner, she saw Jim in the back, seated by himself.
Approaching him, she motioned to the chair next to him.
"Mind if we join you?" she asked
"Not at all." he said, standing and pulling the chair out for her
"Ahh, chivalry is not dead, I see." she said, chuckling
"Not in my house." Jim replied
Looking over at Jim, Gil just made a disgusted face and then moved on to his menu. Perusing it for anything that might quell his hunger, he settled on a cheeseburger and some fries. ADD, on the other hand, just ordered a coffee and left it at that. While they all waited for their meals, Jim and ADD made small talk.
"So, your call went alright, then?" he asked
"Yeah, it did." she replied, reissuing her warning from earlier with, not words, but gestures
Grissom was oblivious to this as he had his nose buried in a case file, leaving Jim and ADD to themselves. Kicking her sandals off under the table, she crossed her ankles under her chair. Turning to Jim, she smiled.
"So, Captain Brass, what brought you out here to Vegas"
"What makes you think I'm from somewhere other than here"
"Well, your accent for one, and your speech patterns for another." she replied
"If you know so much, then where do you think I'm from"
"The northeast, maybe New York or New Jersey." she theorized
"Very good. You're very perceptive"
"No, not really. Its just that I'm from Maryland, and as we both know, Maryland is not far from Jersey."
Just then, the waitress came with Jim and Gil's food and ADD's coffee. As she sipped her coffee, she watched Gil pick at his food and Jim devour his meal like a growing child.
Back at the lab, it was just about time to clock out, so ADD slipped into her skates and rolled over to Grissom, who was at his desk. Plopping the last stack of organized files on his desk for his perusal as well as her time card, she waved good bye and rolled out of his office and the building. Skating past Jim on her way out, she waved and then hopped the front railing, putting on a small display for him.
Inside, Jim sat in Grissom's office when he noticed that ADD's hockey stick had been left. Reaching over and taking it in hand,
he sighed.
"She forgot her stick." he said, rolling it in his hands
"She'll be back." Grissom replied
"You know where she lives? I'll take it to her." Jim offered
Looking at her time card, he grinned.
"She lives over on North Walnut, over by the Air Force Base. Hey, that's a few blocks from you, isn't it?" Grissom asked
"Yeah, I live over on Wendy. That's like, 4 or 5 blocks from me. Thanks, man." Jim said, getting up
Sliding behind the wheel of his car, Jim headed home, well, not his home, but it was in the same direction. Driving down Walnut Rd., Jim noticed Cyan's car in the drive and he pulled in next to it. Getting out and grabbing the stick from the back seat, he suddenly became aware of the loud music coming from the garage. Approaching cautiously, he looked in the window of the garage door and grinned. Inside, Cyan was beating the snot out of a punching bag that was twisting from the impact of her fists and feet. The music was in sharp contrast to the actions inside, near as Jim could tell, it was something by Beethoven. Clearing his throat and knocking on the glass, he raised the stick when Cyan turned to see who it was. Grinning, herself, she jumped up and hit the door switch on the motor near the ceiling. As the door opened upward, Cyan came out and greeted Jim.
"Captain Brass, or is it Detective Brass, or perhaps, Captain Detective Brass?" she asked, chuckling
"Its neither. Its Jim, I already told you that." he replied, handing the stick over
"Oh, thanks. I knew I forgot something." she said, tossing the stick into the corner and returning to her previous workout
Jim walked around the punching bag and held it still while Cyan pounded the life from it. A few backhands and sweep kicks later, she stopped her assault. Letting go the bag, Jim approached her.
"So, what sort of name is Cyan, if I might ask"
"I have no idea. I never gave much thought to it, actually. I just know that I don't like it." she replied
"I kind of like it. It fits you, I think"
"How so?" she asked, guzzling some Gatorade
"Well, you're different, to say the least, and you've got a certain...well, I'm not sure. But, I like it anyway. Besides, you'd rather be known by a disorder than by a beautifully unique name?" he challenged
"Now, I know you didn't come here to discuss my name with me. Was there something besides delivering my stick that you wanted to discuss? Perhaps, a little display of deduction, if not psychic ability?"
"Oh, yeah, how did you do that, I mean, finding Gil's keys"
"I merely did a visual sweep of the immediate area, closed my eyes and focused on the possibilities." she explained
"So, you're not psychic, then"
"No, I'm just perceptive." she said, picking up a skateboard and walking around the back of the house
Jim followed her and when they hit the back, he was stunned. Beautifully built and covered with stickers of every sort, was a large half-pipe. Cyan set her board down and kicked off, rolling from one end to the other, grinding the rail and grabbing some serious air in the process. He was a bit stunned that she was able to carry on a conversation and do all those tricks at the same time, but then, this was the woman that organized Grissom; if she could do that, she could do anything.
"You wanna give it a go, Captain?" she asked, spinning in mid air
"No, I think I'll just live vicariously through you. Besides, I'm more for ice hockey than for mid air physics defying stunts"
he said, watching Cyan do her thing
Standing at the top of the ramp, she looked down at her watch.
"Shit, I've got to go to the market. Greg's coming over in a couple of hours." she said, hurriedly
"Lab Rat, Greg?" Jim asked, surprised
"Yeah, I told him about my half pipe and we're gonna bbq. Why, you wanna join us?" she asked
"I think I'll pass." he replied
"Your loss." she said, slipping into a t-shirt
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
"Drink it!!!"
Two people stood in a dark, vacant house; one, the owner, and the other, the invader. Having come, bearing their implements of annihilation, one stood solid, while the other hit the floor, convulsing violently. Looking down upon the victim, the lone survivor, we'll call them Freddie, wiped the glass clean and placing it in the large duffle bag that they carried. Making a cursory sweep of the area, they pulled a mini dust-vac from their bag and vacuumed the immediate area clean and free of any and all evidence that may have been inadvertently deposited. Setting the large pack down on the floor, this crafty bugger pulled out a sort of mini ALS and swept the area once more, making sure that nothing stayed behind. Kneeling on the floor, Freddie did a horizontal anomaly check and smiled when nothing came up. Wrapping the cord and placing the ALS back in the pack, Freddie zipped up, drew the blinds and left the house.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
8:pm
ADD finished up her organizational duties and set an instruction sheet on Grissom's desk in plain view. She was just about to leave when she heard a knock at the door. Looking up and over, she smiled when she saw Jim.
"What brings you in so early, Captain Brass"
"I've got some stuff to do before shift. Hey, I though I told you to call me Jim." he replied
"Well, you did, but since this is my last day, I figured it no longer applied"
"You're done? That was fast, I mean, organizing Grissom in two days; you should be a candidate for sainthood." he quipped
"Oh, nothing as grand as that; just a paycheck will do fine." she replied
Passing Brass in the doorway, ADD couldn't help but notice how wonderful he smelled.
"Drakkar"
"Yeah. You like it"
"I love it." she said, leaning in for a nice whiff "
So, where are you off to next?" he asked
"Uh..." she said, looking at a slip of paper in her hand "Sam Braun. It's tax time and he's hired me until he files."
"Wow, that's a task and a half. He owns quite a few casinos. You're going to organize his receipts and expenditures records"
Jim inquired
"Yeah. Apparently, he heard from someone that I'm really good at what I do. He called me this morning, right after you left"
she explained
"Well, good news travels fast." he quipped, heading down the hall
His hands sweating slightly and a lump in his throat, Jim followed her. Out in the lot, Jim came running up behind her.
"Hey, hold up a minute." he called
"What's up, Cappie"
"Ah, Cappie, well, I guess that's one step closer to Jim. I'll take it." he joked
Smiling, she opened her car door.
"Hey, would you be interested in going out some time?" he asked, nervously
"I'm flattered. But, seriously..." she said
"I am serious, I mean, you're smart, witty and have a most pleasing disposition. A gem like you"
"Jim the gem, I like that. Seriously, you wanna have dinner tonight?" he asked
"Not tonight, as I'm sure Mr. Braun will have a lot for me to do. But maybe another time." she replied
Climbing behind the wheel, ADD turned the key and drove off, leaving Jim to watch as she left him wondering what had gotten into him. He had flirted with members of Gil's staff before, but he'd never actually felt that he might have something in common with one of them. Just his luck, he would meet someone he actually liked, and now they were leaving. But he knew where she lived and where she would be working for the next few months, so her departure was only a temporary setback.
Back inside the lab, Jim met up with Grissom, who had just come in. In his office, he sat at his desk and looked over the instruction sheet that had been left for him. Amazed that it only took two and a half days to organize him, Gil grinned.
"I though it would take more than two days."
"She's efficient, that's for sure." Jim commented
"Well, let me sign this time card and we can get to work." he said, scribbling his signature
Looking down at his slips, Grissom groaned. The stress of having someone in his personal space for the last couple of days had worn hard on him, but now that his assistant was gone, he felt himself longing for intelligent and stimulating conversation. Looking up at Jim, he had a fleeting thought about engaging him in a chat, but the look on Jim's face was like that of a concentrating child, tongue peeking out the side of his mouth and a confused look on his face, as he tied his shoe laces.
"Suspicious circs, like yesterday's." Jim said, approaching Grissom
"Really? Doc is still trying to figure COD on that one"
"Well, now he's got another one to add to his slab." Jim quipped
Inside the vacant house, the air was stale and still and the unmistakable smell of bowel movement filled the atmosphere.
Pulling a face mask from his kit, Grissom winced. Kneeling by the body, he took in the scene. The house was empty, like yesterday. The victim was a young adult male, like yesterday, and the physical findings would, no doubt, be the same; tongue bitten through, petechia, hands balled up in white knuckled fists and odd body position, as if he had gone into convulsions. Grissom wrote this down and stood as David walked in. Opening his kit and removing the thermometer, he punctured the liver and read off the temp.
"Ninety Two degrees"
"So, that would make TOD around three or four hours ago." Grissom replied
"Ok, the scene's all yours." David said, standing up
Watching as the body was placed on a gurney and wheeled out of the house, Grissom could not help but wonder about the proficiency of this new murderer. The previous night they had found nothing at the scene, and I mean nothing; no hairs, no fibres, nothing at all. It was as though the perp had cleaned up after himself. The door knob had been wiped clean as had the floor. There weren't even any tread patterns to lift. Apart from the fact that these people had not been shot and there was no tub in the picture, these cases reminded him of Paul Milander.
Sara and Greg stood at the doorway and watched as Grissom scratched his head. Looking over at them, something dawned on him;
they were wearing booties. Maybe the murderer wore booties and that was why he had not found any tread prints. Standing up,
he approached Greg.
"Greg, take your left bootie off and take four steps in here"
"Um, ok." he replied, doing as he was told
Greg stepped in and took four paces. When he came to stand right in front of Grissom, he stopped.
"Now what do you want me to do?" he asked
"Nothing. Sara, go out to the truck and get the ALS. Greg, stay there."
Sara ran back to the truck and when she came back with the ALS, she handed it over to Grissom and watched as he did his thing.
Kneeling on the floor, he swept Greg's path with the ALS and grinned. Standing up, he handed the device back to Sara, who set it by the door.
"Either the murderer had no tread on his shoes or he wore booties, like those." he said, pointing to Greg's feet
"So, that makes him, what? A neat freak?" she replied
"Either that or very conscious of his presence. Last night there was nothing but the body and today, we've got the same thing;
no prints of any kind and a body." he explained
"So, all we've got is someone that leaves no trace whatsoever. Would his name be Merlin?" Greg quipped
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Back at the lab in Doc Robbin's domain, the good doctor was autopsying the body from the previous night when the new addition came in. Taking a blood sample and setting it aside, he looked up from his business and frowned.
"Let me guess, young male, COD undetermined?" he theorized
"Yeah." Sara said
"Well, I sent his prints to the new girl and guess what came up?"
"I give in." she replied
"He's got a record; drugs. He was a dealer."
Turning to the new body, the doctor took some prints and handed the card to Sara, who left the lab and walked down to the print lab.
About two hours later, Grissom had returned from the scene and was greeted with some very good news. As he sat at his desk,
Sara came running in, nearly knocking Warrick over in the hall.
"Hey, Griss, guess what"
"I detest games." he replied
"Both vics had records and both of them were known drug dealers. It seems as though someone's doing us favours." she explained
"So, we've got two dead drug dealers and a mystery Samaritan. Well, even though their intentions might be in the right place,
they're still murdering people." he commented
"Has Doc determined cause of death?"
"Yeah, its...uh..." she said, looking at the sheet of paper in her hand "NaCN"
"How'd he get his hands on that?" he asked
"Well, he could be in film processing, or paper making or ore extraction. Really, if you know the right people, you can get it anywhere." she explained
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Wednesday 7pm
Walking through the Tangiers Casino, Jim sought out Sam Braun, seeing him over by the roulette tables, he bee lined for him.
One of the security men approached Sam and alerted him to Jim's presence. Turning to see the pint sized police Captain, Sam grinned that poop eating grin that he saved for the police and crime lab investigators.
"You caught me on an off day; I haven't killed anyone yet." Sam quipped
"Funny; really. No, I'm not here for you, I'm here for ADD." he replied
"Oh, you mean Cyan. She's in her office. I'll call her down for you." Sam said, picking up the house phone
While waiting for ADD to come down, Sam engaged Jim in small talk.
"So, how do you like Cyan? Is she worth what you're paying her"
"Yeah, if she'd take it, I'd hire her full time. But she strikes me as someone that doesn't like roots." Sam said, winking
"Yeah, I can see that." Jim replied
Just then, Jim saw Cyan coming across the floor. She was a vision; faded blue jeans, ox blood motorcycle boots and a black t-shirt that read "Nut Magnet" on the front and she was without ball cap; her curly brown locks tied back into a sloppy ponytail. The sides and back had been clipped at a short length, but the hair on her crown was long, luxurious and wild with curls. It was a bit on the "different" side, but Jim thought that it suited her and her "young at heart" attitude. Approaching her, Jim smiled.
"Hey, you. You wanna grab something for a snack?" he asked
"Mr. Braun, I'm going to take tiffin. I'll be back in about an hour or so. If something comes up, all you have to do is call my cell." she said, taking Jim's hand
"Ok, hun. Take your time." Sam replied
"Thanks, Mr. Braun." she called behind her
Stepping outside onto the mainway, Jim and Cyan looked around.
"So, where to?" she asked
"How 'bout the promenade? There's games and all sorts of fun food like corn dogs, funnel cake and other stuff." he suggested
"If that's what you want to eat"
"What did you have in mind"
"How bout some soup or salad. You know, something with nutritional value."
Heading down the street and settling on a nice little bistro, Jim and Cyan sat at an outside table and watched the masses of people walk by. By the time their meals came, Cyan and Jim were deep in a conversation about the dregs of society and they're preying on the weak and the wounded. Spearing a cherry tomato on his fork, he listened as she prattled on about juvenile delinquency and the poor state of today's youth.
"I swear, all these kids being truant from school to do what, hang out in the park and smoke pot or drink 40's. It just sickens me."
"I understand that. Today's youth has no respect for authority of any kind." he replied
Picking through her salad, she ate nothing, but just rearranged the food on her plate. This was not lost on Jim as he watched her drink her water and have the glass refilled several times, but consumed nothing else. When it came time to pay the bill, Cyan pulled out her wallet and plopped a twenty dollar bill on the table.
Back at the Tangiers casino, Jim watched as Cyan left him and stepped into the lift with Sam. As the lift went up, Jim caught Cyan's goodbye finger twiddle and smiled, twiddling back, himself.
XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Wednesday 9pm
"Well, we've got another one, Gil." Jim said in an inappropriately cheery tone
"What's up with you? You met someone, didn't you?" Grissom asked, jabbing him in the ribs
"Not really, no. I already knew her." he replied
"So, who is it? No, let me guess, she's a showgirl." Gil mused
"No. Actually, she's about as far from that as you can get." he joked
Inside, the crime scene was an all to familiar sight, in that it was like the scenes from the two previous nights, down to the fact that there was nothing to go on. No foot prints, no fingerprints, no smudges, no nothing. As Grissom watched David escort the body out of the house and to the lab, Grissom growled.
"This really chaps my ass. One the one hand, we're short 2, maybe 3 drug dealers in the world, but on the other hand, who says that this guy will stop with drug dealers? What happens when he's bumped off all the major players in the area, is he gonna move on to another state, and if so, how are we going to catch him?" he ranted
Sara stood by in stunned silence as Gil vented his frustration and she couldn't help but remember the last time he'd acted this way, back when they were searching for that dead woman they found in the water heater. That time he had taken his pulse and it was at 95; Sara wondered what it was at right now.
"Grissom, slow down, remember your blood pressure." she said, approaching him carefully
"Yeah, I know. Its just that I can't help but think that this guy is messing with us. The dead drug dealers are nice and all,
but is this really worth it"
"NaCN. Just like yesterday." Doc Robbins stated
"Ok, did you run his prints?" Warrick asked
"Yea and yes." Doc replied
"So, that's three dealers in three days. Give him till the end of the month and Vegas will be hard pressed for it's smack"
Warrick joked
