Title: Pandora's Box

Summary: Brass' youngest daughter falls for one of the crime lab's finest. What happens when a part of her past comes back? Will it ruin everything or will their love hold strong? (AU)

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the CSI characters, no matter how much I'd like to. I do own Jayme Rochelle Brass. It's a semi-weird name, but I kind of like it.

A/N: This story is going to have some differences from the actual show, but that's what I had to do to make my story come out the way I wanted it to. Again, please read and review!

A/N: I am so thankful to all of you that have been reviewing this story. Reviews to an author is like water to a man lost in the desert. Special thanks to FutureMissCSI60 for not only her reviews, but for pointing out that I switched David Hodges and David Philips. Thanks! I also realize that it may not be procedure to take a DNA sample, but it is in the story.

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"Know her? You could say that. I'm her husband."

As soon as Tom says those three little words, it's as if time slows down and the earth comes to a screeching halt. Poor Nick looks confused as all hell, and I just look aggravated.

"Sir, what's your name?"

Nick asks, hoping to move off of the topic.

"Tom. Tom Stevens."

"Well, Tom, we need to ask you a few questions about Madelyn Jackson."

"Sure, come on in."

The two of us walk into the apartment, sitting down on the sofa. My eyes flutter over the different pictures spread across the room: Tom and Madelyn laughing, Madelyn with a few other girls. From the outside, they appear to be the all-American couple, when in reality, what goes on when out of the public view, makes them anything but.

"How long where the two of you together?"

"Maddie and I had been dating for somewhere around four years; she was about 20 when we got together, officially."

"Do you know anyone who might have a grudge against her?"

"Nobody. Madelyn was one of the sweetest girls I've ever met."

Both guys look over at me, trying to gauge my reaction to what Tom says. Nick reaches into his kit, taking out a swab and leaning forward.

"It's standard procedure for us to take a DNA sample of your spit."

"Okay."

Tom opens his mouth, and Nick swabs the inside, then caps it and puts it in the evidence bag.

"One last thing. Where were you two nights ago?"

"I was out at the casino, playing a few hands of poker."

We stand up, Nick thanking Tom for cooperating, and leave. The ride back to the crime lab is torture. Nick is silent: Part confused after finding out that I was married, and part angry for not telling him that I had been married. I'm quiet, my eyes looking out the window, as I try to figure out a way to explain this all to him. Getting back to the lab, I had a feeling that everyone could just feel the tension radiating off of us. I helped Sara go over all of the details with a fine tooth comb, while Nick and Warrick ran Tom's name through the system.

"I don't think Jayme would've lied to you for no good reason, Nicky."

"It's not the fact that she was married, it's the fact that Jayme never told me, Rick. We've been together for almost four years, and she never even bothered to mention that she's married. What am I? Her affair?"

Warrick is in a semi-state of shock, hearing Nick break down like that. The only time he had seen Nick so vulnerable was when he had been buried alive. Warrick reaches over, pulling the piece of paper from the printer. His eyes scan it for a minute, until they find what they were looking for.

"Nick, man, you're going to want to see this. I think it'll enlighten your view on Jayme a little bit."

Nick's eyes scan the paper as he begins to read out loud.

"Was married to a Jayme Rochelle Brass for a six month period, until she filed Abuse charges against him. They were divorced that same year, citing Spousal Abuse as the cause. He was hitting her, Rick."

"Yeah, well, you should've seen what it looked like when I found her the first time."

Warrick and Nick's eyes look up to the doorway, where Dad is standing a file in his hands. Warrick, as if sensing that Dad and Nick needed to talk, stood up and walked out of the room. Dad leans forward handing Nick the case file.

"In reality, I'm not supposed to be showing you this, but I really think that you need it right now. Nick, I'll be the first person to admit that Jayme got the short end of the stick when she was younger. But she left it all behind, and cleaned up her act. Look where she is now. Can you really blame her for not telling you?"

Nick stayed silent as he looked over the pictures that the emergency room took for evidence when I went in for abuse the first time. The bruises across my arms and back make Nick sick to his stomach. Dad takes his cue and leaves Nicky alone to consider his options. When the shift ended a few hours later, the two of us drove home in our separate vehicles. I was relaxing on a chair in the backyard of our house, when I heard the sliding door open, and saw Nick appear next to me.

"So, what. Are we never going to talk to each other again?"

"That'd be difficult considering we live together and work at the same place."

"Yeah."

He says, laughing off the small joke.

"Look, Nick, you gotta realize that I never wanted to hurt you,"

"I know. You're dad told me what happened."

I look down at my hands, not really sure of what else to say. Nick reaches up, brushing a piece of hair out of my face.

"You want to tell me about it?"

He asks his Texan accent evident. The words begin to tumble out of my mouth, as I tell Nick about my partying days, my stripping and prostitute days. I tell him about Tom and all of the things that he did to me.

"Is that how you knew Madelyn?"

I nod my head slowly.

"She's one of the girls that used to hang out with Ellie and I when we were still into the business. I just wish she would've known enough to come to me if she was in trouble."

"We're going to put her guys away."

"Hell yeah, we are."

And with that simple conversation, I have a renewed sense of responsibility to Maddie. I'm going to find the one who killed her and I'm going to put him away for a long, long time.