A/N: A new, short story! Celebrating the new season! Enjoy! We own nothing, just having fun with our favorite characters from CSI.
All Hallows Eve
Chapter 1
The brightly colored envelopes had been handed to everyone in the lab at the end of the night shift, so Sara knew from all the excitement generated about the party invitations. A party—given by the new boss and his wife to celebrate their move to Vegas and, Sara's eyes rolled, a Halloween costume party.
Skipping the party was her first thought but opting out of the new supervisor's first soirée was not a wise career decision and she actually liked him. While the last thing she wanted to do was dress up in some gaudy costume with others, even if they were friends, she knew D.B. was sincere in his attempts to connect with everyone in the lab. Nick had read the invitation aloud and when he read the last sentences, all of them sat in surprised silence.
He read, "Costumes a must! But please no fluffy kittens or fuzzy puppies!" Nick looked up, "What does that mean?" He continued, "With Ecklie's blessing, day and swing supervisors and CSIs have agreed to cover three hours of night shift so the party can continue until midnight." Nick was smiling as he finished.
Catherine was already laughing. "It means the Russell's are not into plushies and furries!"
Everyone laughed and the excitement started; quickly, two of the lab techs joined them with ideas and suggestions. Sara's second or third eye roll was not missed by Catherine.
"Come on, Sara. It'll be fun. We haven't had a dress-up party in years!"
Catherine's comment caused another eye roll; Sara knew but asked "How long ago was that?" She remembered Catherine had dressed as a dominatrix and bets were made about the authenticity of her costume. She also remembered how impressed Grissom had been with Catherine's costume.
Nick edged between the two women. "This will be fun! Sara, you can come as Red Riding Hood!"
"What? I don't think so! And why Red Riding Hood?"
He chuckled. "Since the invite is for us and a guest, I thought you could bring Miz Betty as the grandmother!" He laughed at his joke and ducked behind Catherine to avoid an elbow poke from Sara.
Sara scowled. She and her mother-in-law had reached a level of reserved ease but attending a costume party together was out of the question. "I don't think so—I'll tell you what—why don't you ask her to come as Bonnie to your Clyde?"
"Stop—stop!" Laughing, he backed away. "You will come, right? I'm coming for you if you are not there!"
She and Catherine walked a few more steps. "Will Grissom be home? It would be great to see him. And he and D.B. would have a lot in common."
Normally, Sara kept quiet about her husband's whereabouts; even when he was home, she did not announce it. The first months after she had returned, the teasing has been enough to last her a life time.
"Maybe he'll be at home."
Catherine caught her arm, gently pulling Sara into an office. "Don't you miss him? After all the years we worked together, I miss him every day—and you—how?"
As Sara folded her arms across her chest, Catherine glimpsed a second of conflict in the eyes of her co-worker; just as quickly it disappeared.
"We're doing fine, Catherine. And yes, I miss him very much when he's gone, but when we talk—I know he's happy—excited—doing things he's dreamed of doing for years. I would not keep him here for—for all the gold chips at the Bellagio!"
Catherine persisted, "But why do you stay?"
Sara laughed softly. "Because I need to—want to. Practical reasons—insurance, Hank, Betty, my mother, the condo—a paycheck." She laughed again. "And I've never loved bugs the way Gil does."
"But he's away so much!"
"We're together at least once a month—sometimes more often if we can. Right now, he's in Peru where they are finding an amazing variety of insects in an area no one has ever studied. Catherine, if you could hear his excitement—when I do, I know why he's there and I'm as happy as he is."
"I couldn't do it," Catherine declared. "I want a man in my bed with me a lot more often than every four weeks!"
Sara laughed. "Any man or is it still one particular man?"
With a laugh, Catherine shrugged. "We're good too." Her phone appeared in her hand. "I need to make sure he has the party night off."
"Yeah, you two can come as Cleopatra and Mark Antony."
Catherine grinned. "You think so?"
Sara saw Hodges heading their direction, waving the orange envelope. "I've got to go—see you tomorrow," she said and headed in the opposite direction.
Once in her car, she drove home, walked to the dog-sitter's and picked up Hank. Together they spent an hour in the park with the dog sniffing every plant and post in the area as Sara let him roam on a long leash. At home she checked messages and found none. She knew there would be one at some point; her husband was somewhere in Peru, near its northern border with Ecuador. His last video message had been several days ago but she knew he was in a remote mountainous jungle area where satellite signals were often disrupted by weather, the jungle, who knows what else. She sent a quick message about work and the impending party, but decided not to mention the costume part of it.
She clicked 'send' and almost immediately a video message appeared in her box. She opened it, watched and listened as her husband described a hike in the rain, with a camera recording his steps. As he walked, he talked about what he was seeing—plants, orchids, frogs, birds—stopping to record a small hummingbird and resuming his walk with "You won't believe your eyes, Sara." The screen filled; against the unbroken green of the forest, richly colored butterflies and jewel bright birds flashed like magic touches of paint. The camera moved upward to a pale cloudless sky, and then downward to show a long winding silver river in the far distance and the dark green of tree tops. His voice continued, "It's absolutely breathtaking. This is the highest point in the area and we are working just below the summit." His voice grew quieter, softened. "I think of you all the time, Sara. I can see your face, hear your voice."
The camera jiggled and Sara heard new voices as others joined Grissom. She heard him say "I'm recording this to send to my wife." The voices joined in a chorus of "hello" messages as the camera continued moving across the lush landscape. Grissom added, "More later" and the video clicked off. Not once had he put his face on camera.
Sara leaned back in her chair and sent another message. Sometimes she would get an immediate response; other times there was a delay. She clicked back to the video message and watched again. Several times she caught a glimpse of Grissom's shoe as he walked on the path. She laughed as she realized she was watching his feet rather than what he was describing.
She got a drink from the kitchen and returned to the desk; no new message had been received. She called for Hank and crawled into bed, leaving the computer on. She might hear the 'ding' of an arriving message, she thought, as she drifted into sleep.
A/N: All we ask is a review-thanks...