IMPORTANT NOTES: Seeing as AJ Buckley's incredible portrayal of lab tech Adam Ross has made him my favorite non-regular cast member ( and seeing as I know other people are Adam fans, too ), I took some liberties with his character. His brother, William Ross, is my own creation -- I truly don't know if he'll ever have much of an official backstory on the show, but this is my version. Besides, I find Adam as an excellent catalyst to explore the relationships between other characters on the show. The backstory for Adam that you're about to get is a little dark, but I think that in certain respects, it actually makes a lot of sense. Please, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this: it's pretty experimental and I want to know if the fans think it fits.

SPOILERS: Presently, through episode 3:13 Obsession. If this changes as the season progresses, I'll let everyone know.

PAIRINGS: Mac/Stella with some Peyton thrown into the mix, Flack/Stella, Hawkes/Angell, Danny/Lindsay, and possibly Adam/OC -- the last one's up in the air.

LYRICAL CREDIT: "All the Memories" by The Classic Crime and "Another Rainy Night" by Queensryche

CAST:
AJ Buckley / Adam Ross
Anna Belknap / Lindsay Monroe
Carmine Giovinazzo / Danny Messer
Claire Forlani / Dr. Peyton Driscoll
Eddie Cahill / Don Flack Jr.
Emmanuelle Vaugier / Jennifer Angell
Gary Sinise / Mac Taylor
Hill Harper / Dr. Sheldon Hawkes
Jonah Lotan / Dr. Marty Pino
Melina Kanakaredes / Stella Bonasera
Robert Joy / Dr. Sid Hammerback

OTHERS:
William Ross
Elizabeth Murray
Casimir Derek

ALL THE MEMORIES
framed in our minds

Chapter One: Another Rainy Night

"Adam, it's really important I get the results from that trace back. I think I've got a pretty solid lead, but I need something substantial and you know I'm very thorough."

Adam Ross rolled his eyes at his cell phone, mouthing the last three words along with his CSI counterpart, Lindsay Monroe. He liked the woman well enough: she was smart and sweet, and he had to admit she was very thorough. In fact, the only flaw that Adam could disconcert so far was her habit to call him on average of every five minutes while she was waiting on results. He knew that she didn't like leaving things up to other people. Stella, their boss, had privately told him that she had trust issues when he'd expressed his frustration at the constant interruptions. He supposed he understood that. But having his own trust issues and being on the receiving end of Lindsay's were two very different things.

"You'll have your results as soon as they're in, I promise. But, Lindsay." He tried to make a joke of it, chuckling a little. "A guy's gotta eat sometime. And it's going to be at least another hour."

There was a pause on the other end of the line, and then a sigh. "Alright. But don't forget to call me."

Adam crossed his heart, although she couldn't see. "I promise I won't forget, Lindsay. And tell Danny he owes me five bucks the next time you see him?"

"Five bucks? For what?" Lindsay's confusion was evident over the phone, but Adam wasn't about to enlighten her -- especially since the bet was that she couldn't leave him alone over his lunch break.

"Nevermind. See ya at the labs," he told her amiably, and hung up with a long sigh. He considered turning the ringer on the phone off, but if he missed a call from Mac, heads would roll -- and his would be the first. Instead, he shoved it back into his pocket and went back to his pizza. He had a good gig over at the New York Crime Labs. It allowed him to put his degree -- a Master's in Biochemisty with a minor in Biophysics -- to good use. He felt like he was doing something useful; that in a small way, he was getting murderers and drug dealers off the street. As a kid growing up in Queens, he'd seen first hand that the odds weren't always in the good guys' favor, but he liked to think that he evened the ranks a little bit.

"Lady problems?" The bartender at the little place he usually got lunch knew him by name. Adam glanced up and made a little face.

"If only. No, it was a coworker."

Jason grinned and shook his head. "So how come I only ever see you here during the day? You're not going to have lady problems unless you get out a bit more. At night. When the rest of the world comes to the bar."

"Hey, I come for the pizza, not the scenery." Adam laughed a little, taking another huge bite out of his slice. It had been his coworker, Danny Messer, who'd introduced him to this place. It was a cop bar, for the most part, and even now he saw a couple of faces he recognized from the lab. Detectives, mostly, but there was another tech in the corner, and a couple uniforms who, like him, were grabbing lunch. "S'not much to look at."

"Sure, at three in the afternoon." Jason shook his head with an indulgent smile. "'Bout ten, though, and it's a different story. Listen, buddy, there's a couple regulars, real cute…maybe if you come by tonight I can intro--"

"Thanks, Jason, but I'll probably still be at work." Adam took a pull from the Mountain Dew he'd ordered -- he was still on the clock -- and shoved the last of his slice in his mouth. "Besides, believe it or not, I can meet women on my own."

Jason rolled his eyes. "When was the last time you--?"

"See ya!" Adam waved as he slipped off of his stool and headed for the door, grinning at his flawless escape. He'd perfected the tactic with Danny, effortlessly dodging out of a room until he was safely on the other side of the lab.

It was a nice day out. Too nice for mid-winter, if he was honest. There was a storm coming in, or at least that had been on the news this morning before he'd left his apartment and caught the subway to work. But there weren't many signs of the storm now, and the worst it was supposed to bring was some rain. He was grateful -- the walk to the subway station was long enough without having to push his way through snow, and he was usually up and out before anyone had cleared the sidewalks or streets. It was, he thought, the downside to dayshift -- he had to be at the labs at four in the morning.

He strolled back toward the labs, humming a little and taking in the unseasonable sunshine. His coat, which he'd brought just in case, was making him sweat a little. But there were showers in the locker rooms at the lab if he felt inclined to freshen up, and he had another fifteen or so minutes of his break to take care of that. Content, especially now that he was full and Lindsay seemed to have gotten the point, he took his time with the stroll, dodging the crowds rushing around him. And then his phone rang.

Maybe Lindsay didn't get the point after all. He pulled out the cell and checked the caller ID, wondering if two calls meant he could get ten bucks out of Danny. But it wasn't Lindsay's cell phone or the labs. It was a payphone. Strange.

He flicked it open, wondering who would be calling him from a payphone, and managed a confident-sounding, "Hello?"

"Adam."

It was like getting punched in the gut, and Adam's breath left him in an audible whoosh. It was his brother. His brother who, for the past two decades, had been incarcerated in Sing Sing, the maximum security prison not far from the City. So why the hell does did my caller ID say payphone?

"It's William. Look…I can't talk long, but…I just wanted to say…"

"Billy--?"

"I just wanted to say sorry, Adam."

There was a click, and William was gone. Adam clutched his cell phone in numb fingers, shock rocketing through him. What was William sorry for? And he couldn't have called Adam from a payphone. He was in prison. If he needed to call Adam, someone from the prison contacted him, and never on his cell phone. So how…?

Someone called his name. He looked up, still reeling from the phone call. Detective Don Flack was pushing his way through the crowd, trying to get his attention. Adam didn't like the look on his face -- not at all. He stood still, feeling the awful certainty sink in. He didn't need the detective to tell him. He knew, in his gut, why his brother had called him from a payphone. He just didn't know why.

"Adam." Flack stopped in front of the tech, gathering himself and trying to find the words. The last hour had been long and brutal for the detective, and it showed on his face. Even his ice-blue eyes were weary. Reaching out, he laid a hand on Adam's shoulder. The normally jovial tech had long since abandoned any smiles he might have flashed under regular circumstances.

"You gotta get to the labs, Mac's waiting." Flack paused, held Adam's blue gaze with his own. "Your brother escaped from Sing Sing a few hours ago. He's free, probably somewhere in the City."

A wave of dizziness struck. Adam had to take a minute to find his feet, glad of Flack's steadying hand on his shoulder, anchoring him to reality. He took one deep breath, then another.

"He…" I can't. I can't tell them he just called my phone. "I…"

"C'mon. Mac'll know what to do," Flack told him, not unkindly, and led the way back to the labs. Adam followed, ignoring the jostling crowds and the street noise. His own questions roared in his ears.

How did he get out? And why did he call me to apologize? Hell, why did he break out? He wasn't going to be there for much longer, just a couple more years…so why now?

Billy, what the hell are you thinking? And where the hell are you?

"Did anyone even know he had a brother?" Danny Messer glanced around the break room at his companions. Dr. Sheldon Hawkes and Lindsay Monroe had joined him there, both as surprised as he had been to find out that Adam had a brother -- one in Sing Sing for murder. The tech hadn't ever really talked much about his family, but he'd always seemed happy and well-adjusted.

"He's never said anything." Hawkes frowned, his eyes troubled. "Though, I suppose I wouldn't be to eager to share that bit of information either, if my brother was in prison."

"Think Mac knew?" Lindsay asked, plucking at a few papers she'd spread over the table. For a moment, Danny watched her, watched the way her hair tumbled down over her shoulder as she worried the corner of one of the papers in her distraction. Then he shook himself out of it.

"He had to have. That kinda stuff goes in a file. Probably in the kid's background check." Then again, his own brother's mafia affiliations hadn't been fully brought to light until Danny himself had testified to them. Still, Mac had always had a vague idea of the Messer family's mafia connection -- or maybe not so vauge, come to think of it. He glanced at Hawkes, who contemplated their friend's situation quietly.

"They'll put him on probation until they catch his brother. He's got a conflict of interest. And he'll probably be under surveillance." All three shifted slightly at Hawkes' observations, uncomfortable with the idea that a friend and coworker would fall under suspicion.

"I find it hard to believe that anyone related to Adam could whack somebody." It was a poor attempt to lighten the mood, but it was all Danny had. Lindsay glanced up at him, almost smiling. None of them knew whether to laugh or not. None of them dared venture into the area of the labs that housed Mac's office, either. He was with Adam, and to interrupt now would invite unpleasant penitence. Danny had been on Mac's bad side often enough to know better. So he waited with Hawkes and Lindsay, trying to figure out why Adam had kept so silent.

It wasn't a long wait. Mac appeared with Adam in tow, looking grim. Adam himself looked exhausted and confused. He looked, Danny thought, torn. He blew out a long breath in sympathy -- he knew what it was to be pulled in two directions by a brother.

I know what you're thinking. You've got two duties -- one to yourself, this lab, and your work, and one to the blood you share with your brother.

In all honesty, Danny wasn't sure which he would choose were he in Adam's shoes. For most of his life, Danny had done everything in his power not to be like Louie. But Adam simply hadn't known his brother. The kid had only been eight when William Ross had gone away, at least according to the newspapers. He probably didn't know much about his brother.

"I'm sure you've all heard," Mac said, not wasting time on formalities. Adam shifted uncomfortably and didn't meet anyone's gaze. Instead, he turned his focus to his beat-up tennis shoes, silently morose. "Adam's going to be put on probation until this matter is cleared up. in the meantime, we will continue focusing on our cases. I don't want anyone --" his eyes flicked to Danny and held his gaze firmly -- "trying to find William Ross. There are other units assigned to the manhunt. Clear?"

"Crystal," Lindsay interjected, noticing the beginnings of protest on Danny's face. "C'mon, Danny, we still have to analyze the fibers we found in that comb." She stood and tugged on his sleeve. Danny held firm for one long moment, then acquiesced and allowed Lindsay to pull him away. He paused at the door and turned back to the silent tech.

"Adam." The kid looked up, wide-eyed, and with his mop of curly, burnished red hair and his pale features, he looked very young and vulnerable. "You need anything, you let me know. Alright? Anything."

For a moment, Adam looked surprised. After all, this was Danny. Then, slowly, his lips curved and he nodded. "Thanks, Danny."

With one last nod, Danny walked out of the room with Lindsay, feeling rigid and quietly frustrated. Hawkes waited until the pair had disappeared in the direction of trace before he turned his attention to Mac. His brown eyes, always expressive, reflected troubled concern.

"Since we're not on the case, it would be all right for us to visit Adam, wouldn't it?" the doctor asked quietly, watching Adam squirm in private misery. Mac hesitated, but only for a moment.

"Sure, as long as you're not on the clock."

Adam's eyes met Hawkes'. Since when has anyone on this team…cared this much? Well, perhaps that wasn't a fair question. He knew that these people were his friends, and sometimes he even went with the team to Sullivan's to grab a couple drinks after a particularly hard case. But he also knew that he was the 'kid' that everyone indulged, quirky and energetic and sometimes very boyish.

"Do you need help getting anything out of your office before you head home?" Hawkes' tone was gentle, and he managed a small smile. His bedside manner, Adam had to admit, was flawless. He must have been one uniquely talented surgeon.

"Uh…sure, yeah. That'd be good." Then he looked at Mac. "The cases I was --?"

"We're already reassigning everything, Adam. No need to worry." Mac's hand came down on Adam's arm for a brief, fatherly moment. "Just try to lay low, relax if you can."

Not much chance of that. He nodded. "And Lindsay's trace…"

"She's probably on her way with Danny to get the results right now."

Well, there was no more putting it off, in that case. Nodding to Mac, Adam turned toward Hawkes and gestured toward his small office. Together, in silence, the pair made their way to the cluttered little space, where Adam scooped up a few things that he'd be allowed to leave the lab with. Hawkes' presence was soothing, even though the doctor was silent. And in a way, Adam was grateful for that silence. He was going to have to get used to it -- no telling how long he'd be forced to hang out at home, waiting for some word of his brother.

There were only a couple more years on his sentence…

A knock sounded and both men looked up to see the graceful form of Stella Bonasera standing in the doorframe. She smiled at them both, although even Adam could tell that it was a bit forced. People at this lab, he knew, were never going to think of him the same way again. Stella's patient sympathy made that very, very clear.

"Hey boys. Need any help?"

Adam hadn't really even needed Hawkes' assistance, but he knew it would be rude to turn Stella away.

"Sure," he said softly. "C'mon in. Sorry about the clutter. I've been meaning to straighten it up a bit…" His hand retreated self-consciously to his curls. "I never got around to it, I guess."

Stella's smile was a bit more natural this time. "You're a busy guy, it's not like Mac gives you time to organize much in here."

Flashing her a relieved smile, one of his first real smiles of the day, Adam shrugged a bit. "Well, yeah…"

The three of them boxed a few of Adam's personal items. Stella didn't have the heart to tell the already shaken tech that, at some point in the near future, IAB would want to have an unofficial chat with him. It didn't seem fair to her -- as a lab technician, Adam wasn't part of the NYPD -- but they'd been insistent. His work was too closely tied to the NYPD for them to simply let him walk out of the labs.

As she walked past Mac's office with Hawkes and Adam, the senior detective waved her in. She caught Adam's arm to stop him for a moment, and gave him a quick hug.

"You've got our cell numbers. Use them, okay?"

There was an almost sheepish nod from the tech, and a quick, thankful smile. "You bet."

"Take care of yourself." With one last wave, Stella made her way up the steps to Mac's office. She didn't like the intensely grim look on his face, and she shut the door behind her as she entered. "What's up, Mac?"

He looked up at her as if he hadn't noticed her entrance, then he bade her sit with a wave of his hand. He, however, didn't remain in his seat for long. Instead, he stood and paced a bit.

"It seems as if Adam's brother hasn't wasted any time. I just got a call from Flack."

Stella felt something sink inside of her, and she glanced at the elevators Adam had just disappeared into. "No…"

"Casimir Derek was found dead in his home a half an hour ago. It happened on our shift, Stella --"

"So now it is our case." She sighed. "Who gets to tell Adam?"

Mac's mouth tightened. "I'll tell him. I told him to call me when he got to his apartment, anyway. And Flack's already got surveillance in place around his building. In case William tries to contact him."

"How sure are you that William did this?"

"His father and Casimir Derek were partners in a small pharmaceutical company at the time of the first murder. Looks like Derek stepped into the late Mr. Ross' shoes for a while as man of the house."

Stella closed her eyes for a moment. "I'll get my kit."

"And the rest of the team. I want to make sure this one's done by the book -- and I want to keep Danny where I can see him. I know he and Adam are friends, I don't want any self-sacrificial heroics." Mac sighed. "I'll head out ahead of the rest of you. Flack's waiting."

Stella nodded and headed to the Trace lab, where she'd last seen Danny and Lindsay. This was one mass she didn't want to deal with, suddenly, as much for her sake as for Adam's. Still…if anyone could clear this all away quickly and neatly, it was Mac Taylor. Quickening her pace, she began rounding up the rest of her team.