Summary: Highway signs can mark more than just distance.
His fingers drumming against the steering wheel in time with the song blasting from the CD player of his new SUV, Nick almost missed the sign at the edge of the highway: "Welcome to New Mexico." Taking a deep breath of the air coming in through the open window, he imagined that it smelled fresher, cleaner, and of freedom. He smiled at his own whimsy. As a scientist, he knew that air didn't change just by crossing a state border, and that such unscientific thoughts wouldn't do well where he was heading, but he couldn't help feeling a weight lifting from him nonetheless.
"Stokes." Nick looked up at the flat, almost annoyed voice of Assistant District Attorney John Michaels. "Who's lead on this case?"
"It's a simple B&E. I'm solo."
"No. No way." Looking across the hallway, Michaels beckoned for Nick's shift supervisor to come out from his office. "Arnedo, he doesn't lead cases. He definitely does not solo them."
Arnedo's eyebrows rose slightly, but otherwise his face remained expressionless as he waited for the ADA to continue . In the eight months since he had transferred to the crime lab, Nick had seen his supervisor use that look with great effect many times. The expectant silence seemed to particularly unnerve suspects in the interrogation room.
"If he had to testify, and his father was presiding. Or his mother was prosecuting." Michaels didn't finish his sentence, but he didn't need to.
Arnedo nodded. "Nick, you'll be reporting to me on this one." The supervisor stepped into the room, putting his back to Michaels and effectively dismissing the man. "Now, what've you got so far?"
Nick's jaw clenched, although he knew his supervisor had no choice in the matter. Michaels watched a moment longer, as Nick began to set out his photos, then left.
Although he had his back to the door, Arnedo seemed to know the moment the man had gone. He put a fatherly hand on Nick's shoulder, and gave the novice CSI a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry Nick, but you know how it is. You can't work a case alone where you might be called to testify. Not while your parents both work in the courtroom. You know the defense would have a field day in appeals if you appeared before either of them."
Nick did understand, but that didn't mean he had to like it. He nodded, and continued presenting his findings to Arnedo, but his mind wandered to the job posting he'd seen recently. He wondered what Las Vegas was like.
The sun had set well before Nick pulled into the motel parking lot on the outskirts of Albuquerque. He had pushed on into the night, wanting to put the city behind him to avoid traffic in the morning. Now though, his grumbling stomach was reminding him that he hadn't had more than a granola bar and a bottle of water since his late breakfast in Dallas with his parents.
When she began clearing up the breakfast dishes, Nick knew that his mother wasn't going to come outside to see him off. He'd seen the moisture in her eyes as the meal drew to an end, and he knew her well enough to know that she hated being overly emotional. His own eyes prickling, he picked up the last of the dishes from the table and followed her into the kitchen, while his father took the last of his bags outside.
"Oh," Jillian Stokes gave a small start as she turned around to find her son standing behind her. "Drive safely, Nicky."
Nick gave a small smile. "I'll be fine Mom."
She nodded, the cool demeanour that had won so many courtroom cases fighting with that of a mother sending her youngest child out into the world. "I know you will."
Nick set the dishes he was carrying down on the counter and pulled his mother into a hug. She clutched him tightly for a moment, then stepped away, giving him a little push towards the door. "Go on, your father is waiting."
Heading out through the kitchen door, Nick rounded the corner of the porch and stopped abruptly as he saw the shiny new black SUV sitting in the driveway. His father had just finished moving Nick's belongings from his old car to the SUV, and he closed the back door with a wide smile as he took note of his son's shock.
"I know you love your old car, but your mother and I thought you could use something a bit newer for this trip."
Starting to recover from his surprise, Nick caught the keys that his father tossed to him. He tried to speak a couple of times, as he descended the porch steps and approached the vehicle. Finally, he managed one word. "Thanks."
His father nodded, still smiling, as Nick gathered his thoughts. He'd bought his first car, with his parents' help, when he was sixteen, and had expected to own it for many years to come. A stray thought entered his mind. "Jeremy's almost sixteen, isn't he?"
Nick's father nodded. "Next month." He eyed his son, suspecting, but not really sure yet why Nick had mentioned his oldest nephew now.
Nick dug his own car keys from his jeans pocket. "A birthday present then." He held out the keys to his father.
His suspicions confirmed, the older man took the keys, smiling proudly at his son.
"Take care of yourself Pancho."
"I will... Dad." Nick saw the flicker of surprise in his father's eyes, and he tightened his jaw against his own emotions. He needed to do this, to be his own man, not just his father's sidekick.
Judge Stokes nodded, knowing what his son was doing. "I know you will... son."
The sign that he had passed earlier had proclaimed "the Grand Canyon State welcomes you." Looking around the roadside diner, and in particular at the salad that he had ordered for lunch, Nick decided that they were doing a poor job of living up to that promise. As he mechanically chewed on another mouthful of limp lettuce and soggy croutons, trying to ignore the overwhelming taste of lemon juice, he found his mind wandering once again to his brief visit to Las Vegas three weeks ago.
"It's a busy lab." Brass's look was challenging, but Nick had a feeling that it was Grissom who he really had to impress here. The man had been almost silent for the past half hour while Brass conducted the job interview, but Nick knew that CSIs were trained to be observant and collect all of the evidence before making a judgement - something he had to admit that he still found challenging at times.
Nick nodded. "I know. That's one of the reasons I applied here." He noticed Grissom's eyebrow raise slightly, and tried to keep his voice confident and enthusiastic, without sounding too eager or arrogant. "I'm looking forward to the chance to develop professionally. I like challenges."
Grissom's lips twitched in what could be a smile. "You'll certainly find that here."
Brass glanced over at the other man, and something unspoken passed between them. Brass nodded once, decisively. "When can you start?"
Another highway sign passed by. Nick noticed this one; he'd been watching for it, itching impatiently at the traffic across the Hoover Dam. "Welcome to Nevada." A smile spread across his face.