Simone stared at the badge Grissom had just given her. 'CSI Level 1' Greg was grinning. He always knew she'd become a CSI before he would.
"Really?" She asked, her brown eyes wide. "REALLY?"
Warrick began laughing too, clapping along with everybody else. Nick kissed her cheek.
"Maybe you should accept it rather than sit there and be amazed." He whispered before pulling away. Simone launched at grissom hugging him tightly. He laughed a little, and hugged back, though it was out of character for him.
"And seeing as I knew this before you did, and I love you so much, I took the liberty of putting this together for you." Greg handed her a silver case, her initils in the bottom right corner of the lid. Opening it up, she saw everything she'd need. Print powder, brushes, the works. Literally everything. Simone gasped and hugged her brother as tightly as she could.
"THANKS TEDDY!"
"YOU'RE WELCOME BEAR!"
"Alright, your first case, Simone, is to work with Nick and Warrick on a car crash." He handed Warrick the slip of paper and watched them leave, Simone and Warrick goofing off as they did. They got to the scene when the first responders were trying to get the victim out of the car. The saw was loud, so Warrick had to shout.
"Everyone still breathing in that car?"
An officer turned to face them.
"So far!"
Simone had to cover her ears, so she couldn't even hear what Nick said next. Something about a line and seeing who made it.
"No," The officer responded. "We were first on the scene, fire department came two minuets behind."
The cop walked off, and Simone headed over to check on the man in the back. Nick pulled her away, mumbling, "Process, Darlin', process."
"Where's the driver? He get thrown?" Warrick noticed the empty front seat.
"Didn't find anyone," The cop replied.
Nick looked up at the cliff, neither him nor Warrick noticing Simone walking around the crime scene.
"I thinking DUI." Nick said.
"You calling it?" Warrick asked him.
"I'm calling the beer bottle." Simone smirked up at the men from her crouched position. She lifted it with her pen, since she didn't have her gloves on.
"How do you know it's from the car?" Warrick challenged.
Beer dripped over her fingers.
"Still cold." She called back. She examined the bottle. "Foam in the bottle. You boys wanna take it up top?"
Warrick and Nick cast each other smirks.
"After you princess." Warrick shined his light up the cliff.
They processed up there until morning. Nick had to go pretty far off to measure the skid marks. When he finally got back, Simone was taking pictures of where the car went over and Warrick was supervising.
"These skids started way up the road," Nick stated. "Guy was going at least seventy."
"More like eighty," Warrick corrected. Simone rolled her eyes. She knew now why Grissom put her on this case with the two of them. So that some work would get done, rather than just competition between Nick and Warrick.
"These grooves are from the cars frame." She told them. "It balanced before it fell." She snapped a picture of footbrints leading away from the scene. "And this is where he bailed. There's wide spacing, slipping of the heel. He ran."
Both men looked at the prints and asked her a simple question.
"Who?"
"The Phantom Driver," Simone smirked.
"So a drunk driver just...got out and ran away?" Warrick mocked. Simone nodded. "Where to?"
"I don't know. You're the level three, figure it out, yourself."
Nick laughed. Then he became very serious.
"He left his buddy out to dry, I can tell you that."
"Which, by the way, Warrick, if very against the Texan Code of Honor and Nobility."
Warrick chuckled.
"How do you explain car number 2?" He pointed to the second set of skid marks.
"Second car drove by, witnesses the crash, see's our man running and picks him up. Probably took him to the hospital." Simone shrugged. "These though, I can't explain them." She gestured to the footprints leading to the edge of the cliff. "Evenly spaced, even weight. Calm footsteps leading to the edge." She snapped a picture.
"Easy. This is a crime. Not an accident."
Simone looked at Warrick, skeptical. Nick immediately jumped to defend her.
"You, uh, you care to back that statement up?"
Warrick smirked.
"Guys don't bet. Please!" Simone pushed the heels of her palms into her eyes.
"Phantom driver against your criminal?"
"How much?"
"It's pointless. I shouldn't even try." Simone walked away, throwing her hands in the air.
"Fifty,"
"I don't get out of bed for less then a bill."
"Honestly, I mean, it's work. You get paid enough without having to BET ON THE JOB!" She turned and shouted at the men who were still ignoring her. Nick gave Warrick the stare, before laughing and shaking his hand.
Simone got into the Back seat of Nick's Tahoe, having tagged along with the two of them instead of wasting gas and taking seperate cars. They drove to the hospital to talk to a doctor about the man in the back of the car, aptly nicknamed 'Mr. Backseat.'
"So, is Mr. Backseat gonna make it?" Nick asked, slipping an arm around Simone's shoulders. This was the end of the hospital where the crack heads and gangbangers hung out. Nick wasn't necessarily worried about the crack heads, but Simone would be too pretty for the gangbangers to pass up. Ya know, if he and Warrick weren't there, the fact that they were cops being nearly palpable.
"His name's Walter Bangler. He'll live."
"Is he well enough to talk?" They passed a gang member in the hall who eyed Simone in a way that Nick seriously didn't like. He slipped his hand into her back pocket while glaring at the man. Simone squeaked but did nothing about it. Nick moved his hand again once out of the sight of the man.
"Subdural Hemotoma, compound rib fractures-"
"Okay, okay, we get it. When can we see him?" Nick asked.
"He never said we couldn't see him," Simone smirked at Nick and smiled at the doctor. He smiled back at her.
"You're right, I never did." He laughed. He opened a door, and pulled back Me. Bangler's privacy screen. "He's sedated. If you want to talk to him you'll have to wait until he comes off his meds."
"12 to 24 hours." Simone informed.
"Exactly." The doctor agreed. "How did you know, Dr. Sanders? Your the local Anthropologist."
"I dabble." Simone shrugged.
"But yes. 12 to 24 hours." The doctor smiled sheepishly as Nick drew in a deep breath and rubbed at his eyes.
Warick smiled as Simone grabbed Nick's wrists and pulled his hands away from his face. She smoothed under his eyes and he closed them.
"It's okay." She mumbled. He leaned into the palm of her right hand. "We'll solve it."
Nick sighed and nodded, before pulling away.
Warrick smiled again as he let them have their moment. Then he saw something on Mr. Bangler's wrist.
"Tan lines. No watch or ring."
"Uh, Check his personal effects." Nick told him. Warrick picked up an envalope on a table and looked inside. He looked back up at them and raised his eyebrows. He dumped the contents and a wallet fell out.
"That's it?" Simone asked, crossing her arms and popping her hip.
"Must have been one hell of a fall off that cliff to knock his watch and his ring off." Warrick opened the wallet. "And take his money." He glanced at Simone as Nick smiled at the odds now. "So want to up the stakes to two hundred?"
"Oh, God. Really? Over the man's hospital bed?" Simone tried to walk away but Nick grabbed her back, not wanting her walking the hallways without him.
"Two on a deuce?" Nick asked quietly.
"Same my foul play against your Phantom Driver?"
"Let the records show I'm being held against my will by a pair of super-Texan arms. Them's some strong arms, ladies and gentleman."
Nick playfully squeezed her, but kept his eyes on Warrick.
"You bet." They shook hands, and the doctor smiled, confused, at the two of them.
They drove back to the lab and Nick said something about War and Super gluing the car. Simone figured she'd just go get her Ipod and sit down there with him. And that's just what she did. She was sitting in an abandoned non-probative, gutted front seat of a car and watching him boredly as she listened to her music.
Warrick came down after a few hours and ruffled her hair as he passed. He saw a big plastic tarp over the car and figured Nick was trying to get a print from somewhere.
"Supergluing the entire car? A little much isn't it?"
"Hey!" Nick came from near the tarp. "Man this is war!"
Warrick chuckled.
"Hey, I checked with six different medical centers, and...no phantom driver. In any of them."
"Ehh," Nick waved his hand. "Minor setback. How bout the 911 call?"
"Cell phone. PD's putting a name to it now." He looked around at everything Nick had out. "What's all this?"
"The car was rented from the Airport three days ago." Nick replied.
"To?"
"Your mom. Who do you think? Walter freaking Bangler." Simon scoffed jokingly. "Idiot."
"I'm thinking Vegas vactation, side trip to Hoover Dam?" Nick gave Simone's face sparkle fingers.
"Get your hands outta my face ya freakin dumbass." She impatiently but lovingly swatted him away.
"It makes sense...You find his watch and ring?" Warrick asked him coyly.
"Well...No." Simone giggled at his face, completely sheepish.
Warrick chuckled loudly.
"Oh-ho-ho my pockets are getting fat!"
"NO! He just travels light! there's only one change of clothes in the damn suitcase!" Nick argued. Simone reached up from her spot and grabbed his arm, calming him down instantly.
"Jeez, you see all that money in there?"
"Warrick." Simone gave him a look. Warrick sighed and nodded at her.
"Okay, the fumes have settled, give me a hand." He pulled Simone up and she, Nick and Warrick pulled the tarp off the car. Nick spotted the fingerprints on the dash and the steering wheel.
"You can run," He chuckled. "But you can't hide."
Nick pulled the prints, and Simone ran up to run them through AFIS. She chatted with Greg for a while, as she was waiting. Greg had been recruited for Sara, Grissom and Catherine's case. She paged her boys when the prints were done.
"What do we got, babe?" Nick asked.
"The prints have all finished processing. And our vic, Walter Bangler's top of the list."
"That's a big list." Warrick stated.
"Well, War, we did print the entire car. What do you expect?" Simone rolled her eyes. "But anyways, I also have some mysterious news." She tapped the tip of the microscope.
"What?"
"There are specs of blue dust in the ridges of Bangler's print. Here, look." She moved to the side, and Warrick took a look. After a few seconds, Nick asked to see it too.
"What do you think?" Warrick asked his partners.
"I have no idea." Nick stated and Simone shrugged. She and Nick looked at each other then, and each held up a list of people.
They sat there for hours, uncomfortable until they both sat on the floor, Simone's head on Nick's stomach, reading the lists. This is the scene Warrick walked in on.
"Who's your Phantom Driver?" Warrick asked them. Simone yawned and sat up. Nick followed suit.
"Possibly a Cop from Philly." Nick replied. "Or a nurse from Omaha. Don't forget the mail carrier from Nashville"
"Babe, Tex it's pointless. It's a rental. These prints are probly older then Brass is." Simone tossed the list away from her and groaned.
"You're right." Nick tossed his down too. "This is going nowhere."
"Giving up?" Warrick asked him.
Nick chuckled.
"No, no, no. We're still on. I may be stalled, but I'm not out."
"You want to take it to three?" Warrick crossed his arms.
"Oh for the love of God!" Simone groaned again, louder this time.
"Do you want to take it to three?" Nick coutered. The men fist bumped and Nick got the most adorable look on his face Simone got the urge to snap a picture and keep it forever, but she knew she'd see it again.
"Men," She groaned.
