As I write this chapter, it is September 11, 2007. I feel compelled to take a moment to stop and remember all the lives that were cut fat too short by the events on this day six years ago. And I also feel compelled to send up a special prayer for all those public servants that were lost on that day or have suffered terrible after effects because of their service that day. Our heros of CSI are only made up ones; those people from that day are the real heros and their sacrifices deserve our gratitude and rememberence.
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Brass found the truck. He left a squad car to watch it until the CSIs arrived to process it. He and another car sped on down the road, continuing to backtrack. A few minutes later, the CSIs arrived at the truck. Nick and Warrick left Greg with the truck as they headed down the road also.
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The chopper arrived at the hospital and Gil was off loaded into the ER. The paramedic was detailing the vitals and explaining the injury. "Snakebite to the right calf. Mild hypotension and tachycardia with tachypnea. In out of conciousness during transport. A wrap was applied above the bite but below the knee. Don't know how long since the bite."
The ER physician took in all the information. He ordered a dose of antivenin with more to follow. The IV from the paramedics was giving Gil the fluids that he needed. Bood was taken and rushed to the lab. His blood pressure was checked, systolic was at 82. Heart rate was at 138. The doctor observed mild fasciculations.
As he examined the wound the doctor noted severe swelling, effecting most of his lower leg. Slight swelling was noted in and above the knee. The antivenin was administered and Gil was monitored for it's effects. The blood test results came back indicating mild coalugopathy but he found no clinical signs. Ecchymosis was expanding.
Catherine arrived as Gil recieved his second dose of antivenin. She too was hooked to an IV, receiving much needed fluids. Sara went to check on Grissom. The doctor gave her a quick run down; lowered blood pressure and heart rate, mild muscle twitching, rapid breathing, severe swelling in the lower leg. Antivenin would be administered as indicated. His condition was considered severe but not life threatening. Sara thanked the doctor and went back to inform Catherine.
The nurse told her that the patient was ready for the rape kit. Sara thanked the nurse and went into Catherine. After filling her in on Gil's condition, she ran the rape kit. Catherine had told her not to expect semen but they checked anyway. Her inuries indicated forced entry. Sara winced as she realized the brutality of the attack. "Catherine, I'm so sorry this happened to you."
"Yeah, thanks...but I'm in a lot better shape than Gil. I want to see him, Sara."
"I'll see if that can be arranged." Sara headed back into the hallway to talk to the nurse
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Brass, Nick and Warrick found the cabin. With the two uniforms, Brass entered. Snarly was on the floor. Jim checked his pulse; he was dead. Quickly looking at the guy, Jim guessed that one of Gil's blows to his head was the cause. He called for a coroner. Nick and Warrick entered and began processing the room. It would take David a long time to get here. The body would have to wait. None of the men was sorry that Snarly was dead. They just wished that he'd long enough for them to get a piece of him.
One of the uniforms called out that a car was approaching. Brass told the CSIs to stay inside. He and the uniforms spread out and waited. The car got closer but slowed down. The car stopped. Suddenly it reversed and turned and accelerated as it headed away. The cops jumped in their cars and headed after them. None of the vehicles were equipped for this kind of desert run. Brass was hoping that the good guys would have an advantage with newer, better maintained cars.
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Sara came back to Catherine. "Nurse says not yet. They want you to get your fluids up a little more before letting you move around any and besides, things are still pretty intense with Grissom and we'd be in the way. She says that she'll come get us as soon as the doctor says it's okay."
Catherine was not happy with the news. She really needed to see him. Now that they had finally begun to explore their deeper feelings for one another, she was determined to not loose the connection.
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Brass had called for backup, trying to describe the area where they were and where they were headed. It would probably be a useless effort, he knew, but just maybe...
The perps' car stalled and it sputtered to a halt. Brass and the squad car stopped on either side. The men fell out of the car, trying to run. They were trapped, however and soon in cuffs. Another squad car arrived and the uniforms took them back to Vegas while Brass returned to the cabin. David arrived just behind him.
"Got anything?" Brass asked the CSIs.
"Apparently they were bound and held in this room," said Warrick from the other room. "There's blood and broken zip-ties, along with pieces of tape and blindfolds."
"Yeah, and there are signs of a struggle around this table," continued Nick. "Scratch marks on the floor and some fresh marks on the table." Nick stepped back. "Grissommust have surprised him from here, knocking him off Catherine and then he fell over to there " he said as he pointed to Snarly.
"Yeah, sounds right," agreed Warrick.
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Growing impatient with waiting, Catherine stood and held the pole for her IV. Sara tried to get her to get back on the guerney, but she refused to listen. Slowly she made her way into the hall. Walking down the hall, she peered into each room, looking for Gil. Sara follwed, trying to get her to turn around. "No," Catherine declared. "I need to see him." Just then she arrived at his door. The doctor glanced up and saw her. "Ms. Willows, I was just going to ask the nurse to get you. Let's get you a chair. You can come in for a few minutes. We're waiting for another lab to determine if we've finally gotten the venom under control. He's in and out but doesn't stay awake long...and he is in a lot of pain."
A nirse wheeled in a chair and Catherine sat. Sara stood just behind her. Catherine wheeled close to him, finding his hand and holding it. His eyes fluttered open. "Over here, Gil" she said. He turned toward her and smiled. "You okay?" he asked faintly.
"Better than you," she teased. "But you're going to be fine. It's just going to take a while for you to feel better."
"Hmmmm," he moaned. "If you're okay, I'm okay." He slid back into the dark.
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Brass and the CSIs showed up a bout an hour later. The truck had been towed into the garage and dayshift had taken over the investigation. They were off the clock; ordered by Ecklie to go by and visit Grissom and Catherine and then to go home and get some sleep. When they arrived, Sara said she needed to run the kit over to the lab but she'd be back.
They all spent some time with Catherine and then one by one went in to check on Grissom. Brass stood by his friend's bed. "We got them Gil," he said in a low hard voice. "And that guy won't be raping anyone anymore. He paid for what he did to her. You got him, Buddy. I know you won't like it that he died, but he was a sorry son of a bitch deserved what you gave him. And Catherine's safe now. You did good. Now you just need to get better."
Catherine was released from the hospital the following morning. GIl was in his own room now, still in great pain and suffering. The antivenin had finally had the desired effects and his vitals were returning to normal. The tissue around the bite had been severly damaged, however. The doctors were consulting over the possibilty of a surgery to remove the dead tissue and help the healing process to begin. Everyone but Catherine stopped by during the day. Catherine refusesd to leave and so sat with him throught the day and night.
Somewhere in the night he finally woke up and was lucid. He didn't remember much after being bitten. He did remember telling her how he really felt about her. But he wasn't sure how she felt. Her presence comforted him, but he was also a little afraid. What if she didn't return his feelings?
She continued to hold his hand, squeezing it between hers. "You gave us all a pretty good scare, Gil."
"Sorry," he smiled.
"Me especially...I haven't been able to get what you said out of my mind." He stared at her blanky, trying to mask his fear. She continued, "Don't know if this is the time or the place but I have something I need to say to you." She paused to gather her courage. "That first night at the club...you touched me...emotionally, like no one ever had before. When you watched me dance, it was like you wnated ot know me, Catherine, and you treated me with such respect. Gil, over the years, you've been angry with me, disappointed, wary of my choices and disgusted with some of them. But never once were you disrespectful or uncaring. You said that I stole your heart away. Well, you didn't steal my heart, I gave it to you. And it's yours for as long as you want it. I love you Gil."
His eyes closed at her revelation. When they opened he looked at her with such love and tenderness. Her heart swelled at his expression. She thought that she was going to like where their relationship was going. "Now you just need ot get well, so we can find out what comes next." She smiled.
"Next?" he asked hopefully.
"You don't think that I'm going to let you of the hook, do you? You told me how you feel and now you are mine, Gil Grissom. No more hide and seek, for either of us. It's out there now and we're going to explore it."
"I like that..." he said as his eyes closed and he drifted away again.The next day he was wheeled into surgery to remove dead tissue. The scars would be deep and healing would take a long time. But with the dead tissue gone the risks of infection decreased and new tissue could grow. The doctor had explained to him that there would still be regular treatments to remove tissue from the less severe areas, but that at the sight of the bite, the damage was too severe and surgery was the best option. Gil had nervously agreed. The doctor projected months for a full recovery and he could guarentee just how full the recovery would be. Muscle tissue had been damaged and Gil might never totally recover strength and mobility in that leg. They would know better after healing had begun and he'd done some physical therapy.
The surgery went well and after a few more days, Gil Grissom was released with doctors orders for his treatments and PT. A private nurse had been hired to stay with him and tend to his wound. He essentially had a gaping hole in his calf and much care needed to be taken with it. Infection was a very real threat. Catherine drove him three times a week to therapy and once a week for the wound to be cleaned. That was always painful. Slowly he was healing, the bite site taking the longest, of course. The treatments stopped and his therapy sessions were reduced to two a week.
With all the evidence in and a confession from one of the kidnappers, Brass had gotten the whole story. They had seen Gil and Cahterine in the Denali and thought they were rich tourists. They had kidnapped the two, hoping for a ransom. But once they had gone through their wallets, the perps realized they had bitten off more than they wanted. Once the story had hit the news, they knew they were in big trouble. Snarly, otherwise known as Edward Johnson, had been sent back to the cabin to kill the two prisoners. "Thing is," explained Brass, "he was a serial rapist just a few months out of prison in California. He couldn't pass on an opportunity. If he hadn't done what he did, you'd both be dead now, " he told them. "The others in the gang had rap sheets as long as my arm, but never anything this brutal. I suppose that's why they chose Johnson to do the killing. He had a very violent background. In any case, none of them will be hurting anyones slse anytime soon."
Gil and Catherine were grateful that the kidnappers had been caught. They knew that a trial was a given and they would have to tetify to the events, but for now they didn't have to think about it anymore.
By the time he was released from the doctor's care and declared healed, five months had passed. He still limped when he walked but even that was becoming less noticeable. Ecklie was making noises about not certifying him as fit to return to work, but the sheriff overrode him. "Grissom can work the desk at first but as soon as he says he is ready, he can go back in the field," the sheriff told Ecklie. And so Gil was scheduled for work the following Monday.
Catherine had come by to take him grocery shopping. He still didn't feel comfortable driving. They had grown closer and closer through his snakebite ordeal and her recovery from the attack. The rest of the team had been there for both of them but not in the way they had been there for each other. When they got back from the store and all the groceries had been put away, he cornered her in the kitchen. "You said we would explore our feelings when I was healed. Well, I'm okay. So now what, Cath?"
"What do you want us to be Gil?"
Looking at her thoughtfully, he replied. "I'm not sure, Cath...I mean, I feel like I know you so much already. Know your heart...understand your soul. I feel like we are connected ther in some invisible way. But..."
She looked into his eyes and she understood. His eyes were always his 'tell.' If she could see his eyes, she could read him like a book. She never understood why others couldn't. "I want a physical connection too, Gil. I feel you in my heart and soul. You're there with me all the time. But I need the pyhsical too...I need to feel your warmth close to me, you inside me."
Suddenly the room was several degress warmer for both of them. His eyes sparkled as he drew her nearer to him, bringing her just close enough to kiss. At first they explored timidly but the shyness quickly flamed into passion. They spent the afternoon in his bed, lust and love taking them to a new place in their relationship. Insatiable at first, they finally exhausted themselves as night fell. They remained in bed, however, basking in the warmth of their new relationship and not wanting to seperate.
"Gil?"
"Hmmm..."
"You sure you want to go back to work Monday?"
"Why?"
"Because, when Sam died I got a lot of money, you know. We could retire and you could become my kept man. We could do this all day everyday, you know."
Smiling at the thought he replied. "Well, we have all weekend to investigate that possibility." He kissed her and suddenly the flames of passion reignited. Thoughts were pushed from their minds as their carnal instincts took hold for another session of love making.
Gil kept this townhouse but he spent moe and more his time staying with Catherine. He liked this exploring their feelings thing. He intended to do much more exploring and discovering. And he was going to make sure nothing ever hurt her again. They had spent years hiding their feelings from one another but after one day of wandering, lost in the desert, they knew that neither would ever be alone.
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