Threats
Grissom's day started as a good day. He had shared a great dinner with Sara, they had talked endlessly about insects, one of his favourite subjects. It was Sara's first workday after the abduction, he would assign himself to work with her. Coming into work he found no additional paperwork on his desk, and the rest of the paperwork was dealt with within half an hour. Now he was due in autopsy, that was when his good day became a strange day, not necessarily bad, just strange.
The whole lab knew about their relationship, but oddly no one had talked about it with him. Grissom wasn't complaining, he didn't feel like sharing or defending his relationship with Sara, but Grissom had worked in his lab long enough to know that sooner or later someone would talk to him about it. The first person who did, was the last person Grissom would have thought to bring up the subject. Doc. Robbins was waiting for Grissom in the morgue. The autopsy was quickly done, but when Grissom started to leave Doc. Robbins stopped him: "Gil, I want to tell you something."
"Okay." Grissom never saw it coming.
"I autopsied Debbie Marlin." Grissom flinched when he heard that name. "I didn't enjoy that one bit. Then I have to mentally prepare myself for a possible autopsy of Sara herself, after she was abducted. That wasn't your fault. I like Sara, she is a great woman and if I ever hear that you knowingly hurt her. I will make sure you will hurt ten times more, don't get me wrong, I'm a doctor and I know where I have to hit people to make them wish they were dead. Get it Gilbert? I like you, but don't hurt Sara Sidle, you'll live to regret it."
"I get it Albert." Grissom was shocked, he had never seen doc. Robbins as a violent man, but he had to admit that doc. Robbins threat was not unsubstantiated. If anyone would know where to hit someone to make him wish he was dead, it would be doc. Robbins.
"And I'll help him." Grissom heard behind him, he turned to see David standing behind him. The look in his eyes, told Grissom that this was deadly serious. He didn't expect different from David, it was a well known fact that David had had a crush on Sara, before he got married. And evidently doc. Robbins liked Sara a lot too.
Still baffled by the confrontation in the morgue, Grissom returned to the labs. He decided to return to his office to process this conversation, when he barrelled into Catherine, who didn't give an indication to move out of his way. "It's good to see you. I have something to say." Grissom knew the tone, it was her I am-going-to-talk-to-you-about-something-I-know-much-better-then-you-and-you-better-listen-to-me-and-take-my-advice tone. It was always better to have it over with, like ripping a band-aid off in one go. "All right, what is it you have to say. Does it have anything to do with politics?" That was usually a good guess, but not this time. Grissom never saw it coming: "No it has to do with relationships." Grissom was horrified.
"I like Sara, I know we don't always see eye-to-eye on some things, but I like her. I took her out for drinks after she dumped that scumbag Hank." Grissom felt a lot of anger at the sound of that name. "She was hurt, for good reason. If I ever have to take her for drinks, because you hurt her, I'll let you babysit Lindsey for a month after I grounded her for a month. After that you'll most likely castrate or kill yourself, saves me from doing the dirty work. Don't get me wrong Grissom, I like you, you're my friend, but hurt Sara and I'll make you regret you're a man." Catherine gave Grissom a look, that made him take her speech seriously. "Okay I get it Catherine." Giving Grissom one more pointed look, Catherine turned and walked away.
What had gotten into these people? Grissom wondered, while resuming his walk to his office. First doc. Robbins and David and now Catherine? He didn't have time to consider this question, because his phone rang. "Hey, Grissom, we've got a murder, can you get some guys here?" Brass asked. "Sure, we'll be there as soon as possible." Quickly paging Nick, Greg and Sara, Grissom walked to get his kit. He found Greg on his way to the cars. "Hey Greg, do you need a ride?"
"ehm… yeah sure." Greg put his kit in the back of the Denali. "Do you mind if I drive, Grissom?"
"No." Grissom climbed in the passenger seat. Greg started the car and drove off.
"So, you and Sara, huh?" Greg started. Grissom wearily answered: "Yes, Greg me and Sara."
"I have always known I wasn't the man for her, but it was fun, thinking I could be her man."
"Right Greg." Grissom was not in the mood for this, he had two strange conversation to consider, he hoped he could do that while enjoying a quiet drive to a crime scene, but with Greg in the car he should have known better. Why did this day start off good again? Once again Grissom never saw it coming.
"Don't think that now you've got her, I will be off your back. I will continue to look after Sara. I'll protect her as much as I can and I will revenge her if you do something to hurt her. You are my boss, but she is a friend, a dear friend. If I have an inkling that you hurt her, I will hunt you down and feed you to your tarantula friends. I am not kidding Grissom, treat her with respect or be fed to your spiders." After that Greg turned his attention to the road fully.
"Okay I got it Greg. Treat her good and my spiders don't feast on me." Grissom had another conversation to consider, Greg had talked so fast, not allowing Grissom to interrupt him. The rest of the drive was silent. Apart from Marilyn Manson blaring through the speakers.
On the crime scene they were greeted by Brass. Grissom went to talk to Brass, while Greg was on the look out for Sara and Nick. After hearing the details of the case, Brass added a small comment, Grissom didn't see it coming: "Sara is like a daughter to me. Hurt her and I'll poison your Scotch. Don't get me wrong I'll do it and watch you drink it." With that Brass turned and left. "Right, Brass: poisoned scotch." Grissom muttered to himself. This day was getting stranger and more disturbing by the minute.
Grissom told his team members what they had to do and set to work. At least here he was alone, for now. But this time he did see it coming, when Nick asked him if he could talk to him for a moment. "Right Nick, what are you going to do when I hurt Sara?" Grissom asked straight away. "Well I certainly hope you aren't thinking about hurting Sara. She is a wonderful woman and she could have a lot of men with the snip of the fingers." Grissom shot Nick an angry look, he didn't to be reminded by that. "But the day you hurt Sara, will be your day to die. It will be your day and I'll make sure of that. Don't hurt her."
"I won't." Grissom said, mentally adding certainly not after today.
Back in the lab, Grissom went to find Hodges, to give him trace evidence to process. He found Hodges, Bobby and Archie in the trace lab, quietly speaking with each other. "Hello, why aren't you in your own labs?" Grissom asked.
"We wanted to speak with you." Hodges replied. Grissom once again didn't see it coming, when Bobby started to talk. "We like Sara."
"Maybe not as much as we like you." Hodges interrupted
"We like Sara, she is always friendly, doesn't breath down our necks, unless it is really imported." Bobby started again: "And if we ever hear that you have hurt her, we will make sure everyone in the lab knows it. We will make sure you can't work here anymore."
"And after we made sure everybody in the labs knows, we will make sure everyone in the police department knows. We will use all our skills to get it done." Archie added. "Don't think we can't do it. The other lab techs are with us also. If you hurt Sara, we will make it impossible for you to work here."
"Okay, I understand, now please get back to work." Grissom dropped the evidence in Hodges' hands and walked to his office.
Beyond everything he had hoped for, Grissom reached his office without interruptions and sat at his desk, for a blissful two hours of uninterrupted work. A knock on the door alerted Grissom to his visitor: Warrick. Just one look on Warrick's face told Grissom enough, with a look of resignation on his face Grissom turned to Warrick: "Warrick, please tell me what you have in store for me, in the unlikely event of me hurting Sara."
"I can only hope you'll be smart enough not to hurt Sara, but just in case I happen to know some bouncers from my gambling days, who don't mind earning some extra cash. Sara has my number and I have theirs. And I am not afraid to use them."
"Point taken, now please leave, close the door and let a condemned man have some peace and quite." Warrick closed the door with a look of confusion on his face, he just wanted a couple of days of in the next month, that was what he wanted to request, but the conversation went a bit different then he had planned. Not that he wasn't serious about everything he had said: Sara was good friend and Grissom had better be smart enough not to hurt her. "Hey, Warrick, what is the matter?"
"Oh, nothing, I just had a bit of a strange conversation with Grissom, Sara. I think he is a bit stressed."
"Well I'll see. Bye."
"Bye." Warrick walked of in search of lunch.
Sara opened Grissom's office door. "Hey Griss. What is going on? I just bumped into a thoroughly confused Warrick. He thought you were a bit stressed."
"I had such a strange day."
"Really please tell." Sara sat down across Grissom.
"Everyone I talked to today has threatened me."
"Really? With what and why?"
"First doc. Robbins and David, they would make me hurt so badly I would wish I was dead. Catherine threatened to castrate and kill me. Greg would feed me to my spiders. Brass said he would poison my scotch and watch me drink it. Nick would kill me. The lab techs threatened to make it impossible for me to work here and Warrick said he would sent bouncers at me. I'm a bit worried."
"Wow, they are creative. Why would they do these things?"
"They threatened to do this, if I ever hurt you."
"Oh. I guess I score higher in the popularity polls then you." Sara remarked while smiling at Grissom, who still looked worried.
"Well I never had a high rating in the popularity polls."
"Neither do I. Why do they think that you are going to hurt me?"
"I have no idea."
"Well all I know is, that if you ever hurt me, they'll never find your body." Sara smiled at Grissom, who smiled back: "They'll never find my body."
"Nope, now let's go home."
"Now that is a great idea." Grissom took Sara's hand and kissed her on the cheek. "You know I'll never hurt you again."
"That's what I'm counting on."