Brass incinctively drew his gun when he heard the gunshot. He looked from Ray to Jake, then back to Ray.
Grissom's jaw dropped and he could hear his own heart pounding. His lungs started burning from the lack of oxygen.
Catherine buried her face against Warrick's shoulder, not daring to look. She let out a quiet sob and let the sound of her blood rushing in her ears drown out everything else.
What happened before the next event varies upon who you ask and how much they think they remember. Sam and Nick stood still for a second, neither one appearing to breathe. Then without warning, Sam slowly started to fall to his right, landing with a thud on the ground. Nick didn't move. Another gunshot followed, and Jake crumpled to the ground a few feet behind Nick. Nick turned around and saw Jake lying on the ground, then turned back and looked down at Sam. His heart started beating slower, and his legs gave out. He fell to his knees and let his eyes close as he slowly fell forward, his hand still clutching his bleeding wound.
Brass' eyes darted around the perimeter of the warehouse. Then he saw them. From the trees, he saw the special team he had put in place and completely forgot about emerge from the woods, surrounding them. Brass lowered his gun and help up his hand.
"It's okay guys. There's no more, everyone's out. Good work."
Grissom let out the breath he had been holding and rubbed his forehead as he quickly dialed 911, giving the operator their location and begging them to hurry.
Catherine lifted her head and saw Jake and Sam lying on the ground, as well as Nick. But there was only two gunshots... She let her grip loosen on Warrick as he ran over to Nick.
Warrick knelt down on the gravel next to his brother. He checked his pulse before carefully rolling him over onto his back so Nick's head was resting in his lap. He replaced Nick's hand over his wound with his own, Nick's warm blood covering his fingers and pressed down firmly. He brushed the dirt and sweat away from NIck's face with his free hand before grabbing Nick's uninjured one, squeezing gently.
"You're safe now Nicky. No one's gonna hurt you anymore...everything's gonna be okay...wake up bro..."
Nick had never been so exhausted in his entire life. He wanted nothing more than to just sleep, but something made him open his eyes. He opened them and saw Warrick's piercing green eyes staring into his own dark brown ones. Warrick smiled as a few tears rolled down his cheeks. Every part of Nick's body hurt, and he felt like he was slipping away.
"I..." Nick tried to talk, but Warrick cut him off.
"Shhhh. Don't say anything, save your strength buddy. Just stay with me man." Nick nodded feebly and layed there for a few more minutes until the ambulance arrived. He was quickly loaded onto the stretcher and lifted into the ambulance, followed closely by Warrick.
"We'll meet you at the hospital." Grissom called to Warrick before the door slammed shut and the sirens blared to life.
I am so high
I can hear heaven
Grissom, Brass and Catherine watched as the ambulance pulled away, and stared after it until they couldn't hear the sirens anymore.
"Come on." Grissom said softly, gently pulling Catherine towards the car. "We need to call Greg and Sara and have them meet us at the hospital."
Brass turned to the man in charge of the speical forces unit. "Call Conrad Ecklie and tell him to get a CSI team out here to precess the scene."
"Yes sir." The man said, pulling out his cell phone. His conversation faded as Brass followed Grissom and Catherine to the car. Grissom drove as Catherine filled Greg in on what had happened. She hung up after a brief conversation and let her eyes close and her head fall back against the headrest.
But heaven
No heaven don't hear me
Greg ran down the hall and into the break room, making Sara jump of out of skin.
"Greg...what the-"
"Nick's at the hospital with Warrick, we have to meet Grissom and Catherine there now. Let's go!"
Sara left her salad on the table and ran after Greg into the parking lot, both young CSIs praying their friend's were okay. Greg sped through traffic towards Desert Palms, definitly not going the legal speed limit.
"Greg...be careful..." Sara said, gripping the door handle.
Greg was gripping the steering wheel so tight his knuckles were white. He slowed down a little. "Sorry...I just get so nervous..."
Sara reached over and put her hand on his knee soothingly. "They're gonna be okay."
And they say that a hero can save us
I'm not gonna stand here and wait
Warrick stared down at Nick as the paramedics frantically tried to keep him alive. He was still firmly holding Nick's right hand, even though he was on his left. Always on your left, Nicky...
Nick paid no attention to anyone else but Warrick. He focused all his attention and energy on his best friend, fighting with all his strength to keep his eyes from closing. He didn't know how much time had passed, but he started getting weaker faster.
Warrick felt Nick's grip on his hand getting weaker. "Stay with me Nick...don't give up."
"I'm...so tired...I wanna...sleep..." Nick's eyes began to close, but Warrick held on to Nick tighter.
"Don't you dare give up on me Nicky. You can't give up now man, come on. Please...you can do this..."
They finally made it to the hospital, and Nick was rushed to the emergency room, their hands being torn apart. Warrick watched Nick's eyes close as the doors swung shut. He stared at the closed doors, unable to move until a young doctor came up to him and gently tapped him on his shoulder.
"Sir...are you alright?"
Warrick turned to face the younger guy, who kinda resembled Nick. Warrick looked down at his blood soaked shirt and hands. Nick's blood...
"Sir?"
Warrick shook his head. "Yeah...yeah, I'm fine...this isn't my blood...I'm okay..."
The doctor nodded slowly. "I'm Dr. Ralik. Why don't you come with me, and I'll give you some scrubs you can change into after you wash up?" Warrick nodded and followed Ralik down the hall and into the staff's locker room, where he was directed to a shower. Warrick let the younger man take his clothes, and he stepped into the hot water, letting it wash over him. He stared down at his bloody hands for a minute, then frantically rubbed them together until the blood was off, even though he could still feel it there. He changed into the hospital scrubs Ralik had left for him before he walked back into the hallway. He wandered around until he found himself in the waiting room, and sank into a chair. He rested his head against the wall behind him and closed his eyes. He couldn't shake the image of Nick hanging there in front of him or with the gun to his head from his mind. He kept hearing Nick telling Sam to pull the trigger...to kill him... He opened his eyes when he heard people walking up to him, and smiled slightly when he saw Catherine, Brass and Grissom. Catherine ran over to him and he stood up, letting her throw her arms around his neck. He wrapped his arms around her and buried his face in her hair. They pulled apart after a minute, and he helped her into a chair next to him, taking her hand firmly in his. Grissom and Brass sat across from them, neither saying a word, but both praying Nick would be all right.
Sara and Greg weren't far behind. They both came running around the corner and into the waiting room, dodging a group of nurses as they ran towards their friends.
"Thank God you guys are okay...how's Nick? Is there any news?" They both said at the same time without taking a breath.
Grissom stood up and put a hand on each of their shoulders, gently pushing them into chairs. "We don't know, nobody's told us anything yet. He was pretty beat up and got here about a half hour ago...it could be a while."
Greg and Sara nodded, and fell silent. Catherine rested her head on Warrick's shoulder, who was deep in thought. He hated this feeling more than anything in the world. Not knowing how Nick was doing...what was gonna happen...if he would ever see him again... He knew how much Nick hated hospitals. He hated the smell, the feel, the white walls that were supposed to be calming. He replayed the moment he let go of Nick's hand over and over again, wishing he could have held on. Wishing that for once he could have saved his best friend. If he doesn't make it out of this...I'm never gonna forgive myself for letting him go...
He drifted off into an uneasy sleep. Catherine rubbed her thumb gently on the side of his hand as he slept. She kept thinking of how Nick had stopped Ray from hurting her...how he had taken the beating for her and prayed she would be able to thank him for it. Her heart broke when she remembered how broken he looked and how much he had done to save them. She knew how strong he was and knew that if anyone could make it, it was Nick. She just hoped this wasn't more than he could take.
Grissom stared at the floor and massaged his temples. This had been one hell of a night. He couldn't help but think of all the things he'd wished he had said to Nick...all the times he should have told him how proud he was of him. He swore to himself that if...no, when, Nick made it out he'd make sure he told not only him, but his whole team what great CSIs they were and how much he cared about them.
Brass' fever was starting to catch up to him. His adrenaline was gone and his eyelids were starting to feel heavy. He couldn't help but blame himself for what had happened to Nick, Catherine and Warrick. He should have called for more officers. He shouldn't have left them. Stupid stupid stupid. He smiled when he thought about how Nick would be yelling at him right now if he knew what he was thinking. Always thinking about everyone else kid...
Greg bounced axiously in his seat. He couldn't sit still. He bounced his knees up and down and tapped his fingers against his thighs. Waiting was the worst. Nick could be dead right now and we wouldn't know. Nice. Real nice Greg, great way to be thinking. No...Nick's gonna be okay. He's always okay. He'll be back to joking around and stealing my coffee soon. He's gonna be okay...he has to be okay.
Sara rested her head in her hands. She was not a very patient person, and this was no exception. Why is it taking so long? That means he's still alive...there's still someone to be working on...Nick'll be okay. Just have faith, he needs us to have faith. She looked around at her friends and sighed. They were all so close, it would kill them all if anything happened to one of them. The thought of it stung so much she couldn't bear to think of it.
Catherine was the only one who noticed the doctor walk in. She squeezed Warrick's hand, and he opened his eyes and looked at her. She pointed to the doctor and Warrick turned, then stood took a deep breath.
Grissom looked up, as did the rest of the team, and they all stood together, waiting.
"Are you all here for Mr. Stokes?" He asked, looking at each of them.
"Yeah." Warrick answered. "Is he okay?"
Dr. Kahys, his nametag read, sighed. "Well...we managed to stop all the internal bleeding, and the damage wasn't too bad. He has 13 severely broken ribs including one from the stab wound, his wrist is broken in 2 places, the cuts on his wrists, chest and the stab wound caused him to loose a lot of blood, he has a mild concussion and is completely exhausted."
Warrick listened to the long list of injuries, not surprised by a single one.
"Also..." Kahys continued, "his windpipe has been squeezed so hard, it's decreased a little in size and will make it harder for him to breathe. He lost so much blood and is in such a state of exhaustion, his muscles have almost completely shut down."
Grissom nodded. "Is he going to be okay?"
"It's too soon to tell." Dr. Kahys said. "He's in critical conditon in the ICU right now."
"Can we see him?" Warrick asked, his voice quiet.
Dr. Kahys shook his head. "He needs rest...I don't think it's a good idea, but-"
Warrick shook his head. "With all do respect doc, I know that guy better than I know myself. And I know that when he wakes up, he's gonna be scared to death. He hates hospitals almost as much as the dark and ants. Please don't make him wake up alone."
Dr. Kahys thought about it for a minute, then nodded slowly. "Alright...but only one visitor, and they have to promise to be quiet and let him rest."
Warrick turned to fight with everyone else, but they were all smiling at him.
"Go." Grissom said, pushing Warrick towards Kahys, who started leading him towards Nick's room. They rode silently in the elevator up a few floors, until they got to Nick's. They stepped off the elevator and took a right, walking by a few rooms before stopping.
"This is it. Let me or a nurse know if he wakes up, and let him rest."
"Thanks doc." Warrick said before Kahys turned and left.
Warrick took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Deja vu all over again... he thought to himself as he slowly opened the door and slipped inside, shutting it silently behind him. He leaned back against the door for support when he saw Nick. His left wrist was in a plaster cast, cuts and bruises covering his forearms. There was a small cotton bandage on his neck where the knife had inflicted a small cut. He had a black eye and other numerous bruises on his face. Warrick was glad he couldn't see the damage done to his ribs and chest. He slowly walked over to the left side of Nick's bed and pulled up a chair as close as he could get it and reached across Nick's fragile body, taking his right hand in his.
"Hey buddy." He said softly, careful not to wake him up. "I'm so sorry you had to go through all this Nicky...I should have stopped you. You didn't have to do this...I hated seeing you suffer like that...but I was selfish. I'm so sorry Nick...you don't deserve this...stay strong bro." He gently squeezed Nick's hand. "Give me one more chance. I'm not gonna let go this time, I promise." Warrick rested his head on the edge of the bed and slowly drifted off to sleep, still holding Nick's hand.
I'll hold on to the wings of the eagles
Watch as we all fly away
Sorry for the suspense, I thought this chapter would take me all week, but I got so caught up I couldn't stop writing. The next one will take some time though, I'm gonna be busy this week, but it should be up by Saturday night. Thanks for the reviews and your thoughts. Hope you enjoy.