When Grissom returned home, he set to work power drilling the new locks into place. He had purchased a floor bolt for the front and back doors, window locks, and sliding floor bolts. After Sara had settled in the bedroom with a pint of ice cream and a box of crackers, Grissom began his work in the nursery. Securing the window locks wasn't as tricky, but when it came to installing the floor bolts, he had to read the instruction manual a few dozen times.
When he was finished, the inside of his home looked like a jewelry store in a high crime area. Outside he installed a motion light in front of the garage. He did his best to aim the bulb away from the bedroom. He didn't want the light going off at all hours of the night and preventing Sara from getting her rest.
After everything was finished, Grissom sat back on the couch and thought. Leaving Sara alone at night was his biggest concern. He was sure that Brass would come through on his promise to stake a patrolman outside, but he did not want to leave his wife and child in someone else's hands.
"Gil?" Sara said as she carefully descended the stairs.
Grissom looked in her direction. "I thought you were resting," he said to her softly.
She sat down on the couch beside him. "I heard you working," she said, leaning into him. "Are you finished?"
"Yeah," he sighed. "Nothing is getting in here."
Sara laid her head against his chest. "Are you alright?" she asked.
He wanted to tell her that he wasn't alright and that it was a dumb idea to stay in Vegas, but he didn't want her to feel guilty. He needed her to feel safe and comfortable. Sara and the baby were his only concerns and he would do anything to protect them.
"Yeah," he lied. "I'm just tired."
"Come upstairs and lay down with me," Sara said, standing up and tugging on his arm. "Please."
Grissom stood with her and walked, Sara leading the way, up the stairs. While they rested he held her close. Her belly was pressed into his stomach and, though the baby was still, he felt as if at that moment they were all three connected.
~0~
The patrolman that Brass assigned to the Grissom home was named Louis Anderson. He mostly sat in his patrol car parked at the curb, but Sara made it a point to send Grissom out with mugs of hot coffee.
"He's probably cold, that's why," Sara had snapped when Grissom had asked about all the coffee she was making. "And I don't want him falling asleep out there."
"Sara," Grissom sighed. "Don't snap at me; calm down a little. He's are not going to fall asleep."
"I'm not snapping at anyone," she insisted. "I am simply making sure things go the way they need to go."
"You're being controlling," Grissom teased.
Sara stared at him." Do you want me to do it?" she asked in an annoyed voice.
"I'll pass," Grissom said, walking the mug of coffee outside.
Though it had been a week since Brass had warned them about the kidnappings, Sara was still on her toes. She had now officially entered her sixth month. So far the only mother that had been found was Kelsey Compton. The other women were still missing.
Even though this was a very dangerous and sensitive situation, a news report was issued. Sara was actually surprised that the mayor had allowed such a thing. Perhaps he was swayed by the voters seeing him as a man out to protect the lives of babies.
Whatever the case, Sara could not watch the reports. She would always waddle out of the room or have Grissom switch the channel to another show. She wanted to avoid the reports so much, she would settle for watching golf or the Home Shopping Network.
"I feel like an inmate," Sara muttered to herself.
~0~
Grissom had gotten a full panel job interview at the university. He asked if they could meet with him at a later date, but they had no other openings; it was now or never. Sara insisted that she was going to be fine. The university wasn't terribly far and he wouldn't be gone too long.
"Can we please get out of this house today?" Sara asked as Grissom was packing his briefcase. "I am about to flip my shit."
Grissom looked at her sympathetically. "I'm sorry," he said, kissing her on the forehead. "When I get back we'll do whatever you want to."
Sara smiled. "Thank God," she said. "I was beginning to think I'd never see the outside world again."
Grissom laughed, glanced at his watch, and picked up his briefcase. "This shouldn't take long," he said. "I'll call you."
He gave Sara a quick kiss on the lips and then he was gone. In the quiet house, Sara stood and looked around for something to do. She waddled into the nursery and there she saw a bag of baby clothes that needed folding.
The clothes had been gifts from some of their co-workers. Catherine had sent a gift card, which Sara was the most appreciative of. The onesies and hats all had sweet little designs of animals on them. She hadn't requested gender neutral clothes, but everyone knew her so well that they bought all gender neutral clothing regardless.
The phone ringing in the living room brought her to her attention and she set the clothes aside. The phone screen showed a number that she did not recognize.
"Hello," she answered.
"Is this Mrs. Gissom. Sara Grissom?" a voice asked.
"Yeah," Sara replied. "Who is this?"
"This is FedEx," the voice replied. "We have a package waiting on you that can't be delivered. We need someone to come by and pick it up before our location closes."
Sara was confused. "I…I didn't order anything," she said. "I think you're mistaken."
"The item is for a crib," the voice that sounded neither manly nor womanly replied. "Ladybugs."
Sara thought hard for a moment, but couldn't remember ordering things for the crib. She just assumed she would by them in a department store, but then again she had been buying things. Just the other day a lamp arrived that she forgot that she had ordered.
"Why can't it be delivered?" she asked.
"Well, the package had been missing. We just found it and if you don't come and get it then we'll have to ship it back to the company. I do not think they'll do a refund on it," the voice said.
Sara thought for a moment. "When my husband gets home we'll come get it," she said. "What time do you close?"
"Well, since it is Wednesday we close early. We'll be open for another hour," the voice answered.
Sara looked at her watch. Grissom was not going to be home by that time. She did not want to go out with a serial kidnapper running around, but she also did not want this phantom man to throw a wrench into her life. She wanted to be able to go out and pick up deliveries without having to look over her shoulder.
"Look," the voice started. "Maybe I can get my boss to let me drive it out there. He may not like it, but since it is something for a baby I am guessing you are pretty tired."
Having a strange person come over to her house was the last thing she needed at the moment. She was still hesitant, but then she made the decision to go out. It wouldn't take her too long and she would be back before Grissom knew she was gone.
"No," Sara said. "I'll come get it."
~0~
When she left the house, her assigned patrolman was nowhere to be seen. For protection, Sara had gotten Grissom's gun out of the safe. If she was going to go out of the house alone, then she wasn't going to go empty handed.
Finding the FedEx wasn't too difficult, but when Sara had entered they claimed to have no package for her. They checked their computer, but once again there was no evidence of a package for a Sara Grissom or Sara Sidle. With a sigh she walked back out to her car and slid behind the wheel. If Grissom had come home while she was gone then he would be upset, but he would have called if he had noticed she was missing.
As she sat in her car, she wondered if this had all been a trap to get her out of the house. She wanted to think that she was being paranoid, but she knew that she wasn't. After all, she had been called about the package only an hour ago. Now, there was no trace that one even existed.
The baby inside of her kicked forcefully and Sara squirmed. "Not the ribs," she said to her belly as she winced.
As if Emily heard her mother's request, she rotated and proceeded to kick again. Sara patted her belly and turned the engine over. It had already been a long day and she was debating on whether or not she actually did want to go out after Grissom came home.
Her energy level was close to nonexistent and not to mention Grissom would probably be tired from his interview. No, it was best if they stayed in and rented movies-on-demand. She was tired of being cooped up, but she was too tired not to be.
As she was driving down a stretch of highway, she felt the car shift. She straightened the wheel, but then again she felt the car jolt, and she sensed that she was riding lower. She didn't want to pull over until she reached her neighborhood, so instead she clicked her hazard lights on and continued to drive.
A flash of red caught her eye and she looked down at her dashboard. The low fuel light was lit, but she knew that Grissom kept both cars filled. Something was not right, and she knew what it was. She had been a fool to come out without Grissom.
The car shifted again and she felt the tell-tale jolts of flat tires. Not just one flat tire, but two or three. When she had pulled out of the driveway the tires had been fine and the fuel light had been off. Someone must have tampered with her car in the only place she could think of : the FedEx parking lot.
As the car jolted and rocked, Sara began to breath faster. Not only did she have herself to worry about, but she had to protect the life of the innocent baby inside of her. It had been selfish of her to be stubborn enough to risk her safety. It also hadn't been fair to Grissom, who was on constant pins and needles.
Sara drove along at a snail's pace, hoping that another car would stop. And if another car did stop how could she trust that person? How would she know that the person who stopped to help her was not the kidnapper?
Suddenly, her car shook and died. She tried to turn the engine over, but nothing worked. She navigated the car as best she could until it coasted to a stop. She was only fifteen minutes away from home, but now it felt like she was an eternity away.
She pounded the wheel with her fist and screamed as loud as she could. In response to the sound her mother was making, Emily wiggled and squirmed. She was innocent in all of this. It wasn't her fault that her mother had already contributed to the most horrible thing that could ever happen to her.
She pulled out her phone and quickly dialed Grissom's number. It rang a few times before going to voice mail and she hung up without leaving a message. Quickly, she dialed Brass and waited for the phone to connect.
"This is Captain Brass," he said as he answered.
"Jim, it's Sara," she said quickly. "I'm on the I-15 heading home. I think someone sabotaged my car. I need you to come get me."
"I told you not to leave without Gil! Where's Anderson?" Brass asked.
"He wasn't out there when I left," she said. "God, Gil's going to kill me."
"I'm coming now," Brass said. "Where is Gil?"
Sara glanced over her shoulder nervously. "He's at a job interview," she said. "Hurry Jim."
"Sit tight," he replied. "Lock the doors and call Gil."
After he disconnected, Sara dialed Grissom's number again. It went to voice mail and this time Sara decided to leave a message. If she was taken tonight by this assailant, then it would be her own fault. She put her baby in danger and she didn't think she could forgive herself for that.
"Gil, I'm so sorry," she said. "I shouldn't have gone out… I should have listened to you. This is all my fault. He's out there and I am so scared. I don't know what's going to happen to me now. I love you so much."
~0~
As Brass drove down the stretch of highway that connected Sara's neighborhood to the city, he spotted the glisten of Sara's car in the distance. After she had called, he had wanted to have a few words with the rookie cop that he had posted outside of her home, but Anderson claimed that he had been called away by the dispatcher who had reported a burglary.
If something had happened to Sara, then he would have to be the one to tell Grissom. He didn't want him to hear that his wife and unborn child had been abducted on a news story. He knew that he shouldn't have posted a rookie outside of their home. He should have just taken the task on himself.
As he neared the automobile, his worst fears were realized. The driver's side door stood ajar, and for a moment he thought that she had tried to walk in her condition. He pulled up alongside the car, got out quickly, and ducked to look in the car. On the driver's seat he found her cell phone and in the road, a foot from the car, he found a gun.
"Sara!" he called.
Quickly he went back to his car and grabbed the radio receiver. "This is Captain Brass," he said into the mouth piece. "I need back up one mile down 1-15 heading out of Vegas."
~0~
Grissom strode through the parking lot back to his car. He was basking in the afterglow of a successful interview and he was excited to tell Sara the good news. After he had slid behind the wheel he patted his pockets for his phone. The readout told him that he had missed a few calls from her and that he had a voice-mail.
"Gil, I'm so sorry," Sara's voice said. "I shouldn't have gone out. I should have listened to you. This is all my fault. He's out there and I am so scared. I don't know what's going to happen to me now. I love you so much."
Confused and worried, Grissom pulled the phone away from his ear and disconnected. He quickly dialed Sara and waited for the phone to connect. As he waited his heart pounded and his breathing quickened. A million thoughts began to race through his mind at one time.
"Gil, I'm so sorry," Sara had said.
"Gil," Brass said answering Sara phone.
"Jim?" Grissom said. "Put Sara on. Why are you answering her phone? Where is she?"
"Gil," Brass said, worry and stress in his voice. There was a long pause as Brass searched for the words to say. "Sara's gone."
"I shouldn't have gone out... I should have listened to you," her smoky, panicked voice said.
Grissom shook his head. "No, I left her at home. She's fine… she has to be fine," he started to feel panic surge inside of him. "She's safe right? Jim?"
"This is all my fault," she had said with tears behind her voice.
"Gil," Brass said with regret. "I've got people on it right now. I'm going to have every man working triple shifts."
"How could she be gone!?" Grissom said, not caring about the successful interview anymore. "I left her at home. She was just fine. Where the fuck was that patrolman at?"
Without waiting for a response, Grissom dropped his phone and peeled out of the university parking lot.
