"Catherine!"
"Hey, Nicky," the redhead smiled. "How was your date last night?"
"Ha ha," he laughed back at her. "It wasn't a date."
"So what's up?" Catherine asked, the two walking side by side towards the DNA lab.
"Have you seen Sara?"
"No," Catherine replied curiously, checking her watch. "It's not like her to be late… is she sick?"
"I just saw her last night, she can't be."
Nick poked his head into the lab.
"Hey, Greggo," Nick said. "You seen Sara?"
The lab tech shrugged.
"Nope."
"Nick," Catherine said as he practically ran, agitated, towards Grissom's office. "Nick, what's up?"
They reached Grissom's door, followed shortly by Greg, and Nick rapped on the door.
"Come in."
"Griss, you seen Sara today?" Nick asked him, praying for the answer he wanted.
"No… why?"
"Damnit," Nick swore under his breath as he took off again, this time towards the front desk.
"Judy," he said, addressing the lab receptionist. "Has Sara been in at all today?"
"I haven't seen her, Mr. Stokes," Judy replied distractedly.
"Why you looking for Sara, Nicky?" asked a passing Warrick, his arms full of boxes.
"She hasn't been in today," Nick said, breathless. "It's not like Sara to not show up to work…"
He turned to face his co-workers, whose faces were full of concern.
"I'm going to go check on her."
"Nick, I'm sure she's okay," Catherine reasoned. "There's probably perfectly normal explanation."
"Yeah, well, I'm going anyway."
"Hey, wait up, man," Warrick said, passing his boxes off to Catherine. "Could you handle these for me, Cath? I'm going with him."
"All right."
"Nick, calm down," Warrick called after his friend, jogging to catch up to him. "I'm sure she's okay."
Nick slammed his car door in response, and Warrick ran to the other side to get in the passenger's seat. He hardly had time to shut the door before Nick was speeding out of the lab parking lot and into the street.
"She was not okay last night," Nick said, his eyes focused on the road ahead.
In record time, the CSIs pulled into Sara's drive.
"Shit," Nick breathed as they got out of the car.
The front door was ajar, something that not even Warrick could reason was a good sign.
"Nick!" Warrick called, throwing his arm out to prevent Nick from bursting into the apartment. "Careful."
Nick nodded and copied Warrick, drawing his gun carefully from his waistband. They inched towards the door.
"Sara?" Nick called. "Sara!"
"Sara, it's Nick and Warrick," Warrick said. "If you're home… say something."
Nick pushed the door open and stepped cautiously inside.
"Shit," Nick said again as their eyes swept over the apartment.
It was a scene of complete chaos. Papers everywhere, lamps knocked over, and a whole lot of blood smeared over the walls and floors.
"Damnit," Warrick swore, reaching for his phone. "Nick – don't touch a thing."
He speed dialed the lab's number.
"Griss, it's Rick. We're gonna need you and everyone else out here right away. Sara's place. It's… not good. Okay. Okay. Bye."
Inside, Nick was also on the phone, muttering to himself.
"C'mon Sara, pick up," he said, his gaze still scanning the room. "Pick up, Sara. Pick up."
"Grissom's on his way," Warrick announced, coming back inside.
"No answer on Sara's cell," Nick said, snapping his phone shut. "Damnit, Warrick, I knew something was wrong. And I left her. I… left her."
"Nick, this is not your fault," Warrick said, placing a hand on his shoulder.
A knock interrupted them.
"Hey, guys," Catherine said quietly. "Wow."
She turned her head this way and that, examining the room. A voice came from behind her.
"We got here as soon as we could."
It was Brass.
"What happened here?" he asked.
"Dunno," Warrick replied. "We got here and found… this."
"Did you try Sara's cell?" Grissom asked. He was so subdued, nobody had even realized he was there, standing next to Greg.
"Yeah, Nicky did," Warrick answered. "No answer."
"Oh my God," Greg breathed, looking heartbroken as he took in the smears of blood on the wall. "Sara."
"Let's go."
They divided, each taking a section of the apartment to process. Greg had to take several breaks, stepping outside each time to get air and making odd choking noises from his throat.
"Guys," he said after returning from the front porch. "Look at this."
He snapped a picture as the rest of the team gathered around him.
"Is that what I think it is?" Catherine asked, peering at the shredded plastic.
"Gym card," Warrick answered for her.
"Like the ones found at the other crime scenes?"
"Looks like it."
"But… Sara doesn't go to Fitness Galaxy," Greg said, confused.
"No, she doesn't," Grissom replied, picking up the largest piece of the shredded card with gloved fingers. "This card belongs to Luke Shelton."