(A/N): Glad you guys are enjoying it so far. I have decided to run with this story, and I hope you enjoy my next instalment…which sarts…now!
Recap: So basically, the previous chapter was mostly reflecting on college life and how the three main characters met and developed their friendship. The end of the chapter revealed a gruesome twist in the plot in which Warrick discovered a dead woman in his bed.
Hunched over the sink, the taste of vomit still lingering in the corners of his mouth, Warrick said a little silent prayer to himself. He never really was a religious man. He always liked to think that there was no higher power dictating your life, and that he controlled his own future. But right now, it was the only thing he could think of. He turned on the tap, lowered his mouth to the flow of cold water and rinsed his mouth out, but the taste of vomit refused to go away. Standing up straight, he wiped his face on his t shirt and turned around. The woman stared back at him, lifelessly. Being a CSI, Warrick was trained to think mechanically. In a time of crisis, he was taught to observe, analyze and act. He had never had to apply his training to something so close to home before though. He slowly approached the bed again. He stared at the blonde lady's face. She was quite pretty. Big brown eyes which exuded intelligence. A small sharp nose and a prominent chin. But the feature which attracted Warrick's attention the most was the bullet hole on her forehead. Right in between the eyes. Execution style.
"Is it possible…could I have…" Warrick began to wonder, but quickly dispelled any notion of that particular scenario out of his head. "No way. No way in hell I did that! No matter how drunk I was, I would remember doing something so hideous to another human being. But did I have sex with her? No way! I wouldn't have. I can't believe it. I won't believe it!"
Just then, a thought struck his mechanically tuned mind. "Her head was turned towards the window when I found her! But when I shook her, her head flopped towards me. Rigor mortis would have prevented that if she had died within the last 12 hours! She would have been stiff! That's it then. I'm cleared!" But Warrick knew it wouldn't be that easy. Still, he felt significantly more relaxed. At least now he knew that he had nothing to do with it. Which means he was being framed. But by who?
Warrick couldn't stand to look at her face much longer. The fact that he had been sleeping next to her freaked him out even more. He walked over to the door of his bed room and opened it slowly. He stuck his head out and peered around the living room. It was a mess, but at least no one was in it. He opened the door fully and walked out. The smell of beer and pizza flooded his nostrils, sending a fresh wave of nausea through his body. "Fight it Warrick! You gotta act right now." He said to himself.
Standing in the living room, Warrick began to feel vulnerable. He knew that there shouldn't be anyone coming this early in the morning, but just to be safe, he went over to shut his bed room door.
"Ok…who to call first…Nick? Surely Nick was the first person to call. Or maybe Gil, his boss. Gil had gotten him through some tough situations before, and he knew he could rely on his cool and calm nature to help him out without freaking out. Then he remembered something.
"Tony!" He yelled. "Wake up! Where are you!" As he began looking around the house, he recalled that DiNozzo was staying at his place until the wedding. Tony said he would stay at a hotel, but Warrick offered to put him up at his place.
"Tony!" He yelled again.
"What…" came the muffled reply from down the hall. Warrick walked over to his sofa and found Tony sprawled out on it, in his boxers.
"Tony, get up man. We got a problem."
"Huh…what? What problem? No problem…" Tony said half consciously and almost coherently.
"Yes problem!" Warrick corrected. "Big problem. Common get up."
Tony eventually opened his eyes and grumbled. "Look…I'll help you clean up the house later…woah. Geez, you were right. This is a problem. The place is a mess." He said, sitting up straight.
"Dude…this is the smallest fu--in problem at the moment. The real problem is in my bedroom." Warrick said, ushering Tony to his feet.
"Woah…hey…I can't help you with that dude. Look, if you're having trouble performing…I'm not the person to see…although I do see why you would think that I am…"
Warrick cut him off irritably. "Look. This is no joke ok! Now get up and come with me."
Tony looked up at Warrick, a little shocked by his harsh tone. "Ok, ok. Calm down. Now what's going on?"
"Just come." Warrick replied as he made his way to his bedroom door. Tony followed close behind him, his curiosity piqued by his friend's unusual behavior.
As Warrick opened the door, he turned around to look Tony in the face. Tony was trying to peek around him, having already caught a glimpse of the stripper in his bed.
"Oh…no. You didn't. Tell me you didn't…"
Warrick didn't answer, he simply stepped aside to allow Tony to view the big picture.
"Holy…crap. Warrick…what is going on here?"
"I don't know man. I just woke up and she was there…already like that."
"Oh man… Warrick…this is not good. This is so not good!" Tony said, stepping into the bedroom. He ran his hand through his hair. "Warrick…" Tony started to ask, but Warrick cut him off before he could get any further.
"Hey! No way man! No way!" Warrick told his friend flat out. He couldn't believe his friend would even think that Warrick did anything with her. But then again, even he himself wasn't sure until he noticed the rigor. He wasn't offended either. He knew that it was agent DiNozzo's brain working right now, not his college buddy Tony.
"Yeah. Of course. Sorry I even…oh god…this is not good."
Warrick, who was already over the initial shock of the grizzly revelation was able to think more clearly than Tony right now, who was evidently still reeling from the discovery.
"We need to call Nick." Warrick said.
"Um…yeah. Nick…right. Let's call him." Tony answered, only half listening. He was still examining the body.
Warrick dashed out of the bedroom, to his phone in the living room.
Twenty minutes later, Nick had arrived, and was in the bedroom along with Warrick and Tony. Warrick had decided against informing Gil for the moment, wanting to keep the crisis contained for now.
"Jesus…" Nick thought out loud. "This is serious man."
Warrick proceeded to tell Nick and Tony of his observations with the rigor.
"Ok. So that proves that she wasn't killed last night. But unless we find evidence of another person being involved, you are still going to be the prime suspect in the eyes of the investigators." Nick said.
Warrick was amazed at how coolly Nick was able to operate. He had always been the rock that kept the three of them steady.
"Right. So what do we do?" Tony asked.
"Obviously, we need to call it in. Make this a crime scene. Process it like we would any other, and find the guy who did this." Warrick said.
Nick seemed deep in thought. The two of them looked at him, seeking confirmation for Warrick's suggestion.
"Ok. That's a good idea." Nick finally said. "but I think you should get out of here Warrick."
"What? Why?" Warrick questioned, utterly confused at Nick's suggestion. Did he really think that he had anything to do with it.
"In case we don't find anything right away, I need to be able to contact you. If you stay here, you are probably going to be taken into police custody. You could get killed. Inmates won't know the difference between a cop and a CSI. To them, you'll just be a scumbag police officer. They'll kill you." Nick said.
Warrick saw the reasoning in Nick's suggestion.
"Plus, the person that framed you obviously wants you in jail, for I don't know what reason. If he finds out that you weren't caught, he will flip out. He'll probably come looking for you or something stupid like that. If he slips up, we can track him down and catch him."
It was at times like this that Warrick truly thanked god for having a friend like Nick. Nothing ever fazed him.
"You can come to Washington with me." Tony finally spoke out.
A moment of silence followed while Nick and Warrick pondered the suggestion.
"You can stay in my house." He added.
"Yes…yes! That's perfect. That way I can correspond with Tony, who can communicate with you."
Warrick nodded his head. It was time to act. He went and grabbed a suitcase out of his closet, and started packing his clothes. There was no time to lose. He was going to Washington.