A/N: I'm sorry for taking so long with updating. As to the story itself, rejoice, the last bit of pre-trial is coming… if you're as confused as I am by now, I'm sorry. My lousy updating isn't making this easier to understand :S I hope we'll go on a little smoother from here :)
Chapter 9: Smiles
Greg did not really know why he was acting so secretive. It was his right to visit a friend in jail, even though the crime the friend was sitting in for had actually partly been committed against him, and it certainly not the reason was why Greg was here. However, his name would be written down anyway; people would know he had come here; there was simply no point in his secrecy.
He had certainly wondered if his decision was right ever since he had set out on visiting Charlie in jail. But he needed answers, in more than one way. It took some time until he was finally seated opposite of Charlie who looked pleased to see him. Greg did not even have time to say anything before his former friend already opened the conversation.
"I didn't think you'd come to visit me after all," he said, smiling slightly.
Greg wondered how open he should be. Should he tell Charlie why exactly he had come or should he pretend he was here for a friendly chat? Charlie was unpredictable after all which Greg, and Sara, had found out painfully after all.
"I want to talk to you," he stated simply, watching the other man's reaction.
Charlie smiled. "What do you want to talk about?"
"About the day out there at the cabin." This was certainly the gentlest way to formulate it.
The man opposite of him frowned slightly. "Are you still angry about that?"
Greg raised his eyebrows. "You knocked me out there, didn't you?"
Charlie leaned back. "I don't know what you're talking about."
Greg frowned in puzzlement. "But you just said-"
"My lawyer advised me not to say anything." His expression had turned neutral and Greg stared at him taken aback.
"This is no interrogation, Charlie, you don't need your lawyer's advice here," he said. "I'm your friend." He could say the word, but only with a pang.
Charlie did not reply. Instead he suddenly stood up from his chair. Greg rose from his, standing up halfway himself. "Please, I need to know what you did to Sara, please."
"I didn't do anything to her," the other man replied simply, stood up slowly and walked off, a guard taking care of him while Greg watched him leaving helplessly.
I didn't do anything to her. Greg hoped that a tiny bit of truth had been in this statement. Charlie had certainly not done nothing to Sara, having left her out there in the wood after everything he had already done earlier, but Sara had never mentioned anything else and Greg hoped that was because there was nothing else. But he was here to learn what had happened exactly, what Charlie had done to get him home, to get Sara out there. He needed to know it, Nick needed to know it. Sara could not tell him. She did not know big parts of it and what she knew… she had never mentioned it.
Greg let out a frustrated growl. He was left with so many questions. They had been moving around in his mind before the visit but then he had been thinking, hoping, that they would be answered soon. And now, not even five minutes into the conversation, Charlie was gone, having left Greg with nothing.
Sara had no good day either. Running into Nick wouldn't have constituted a bad day per se, but somehow they had managed to make it turn bad.
It had been friendly at first. Then he had mentioned Greg. Sara had not joined the topic enthusiastically (it was great how she was calling Greg a 'topic' now), but Nick had been stubborn.
"Aren't you two going to talk?" he had asked.
"Oh, we're talking," Sara returned, tilting her head slightly, before fixing Nick with a stare.
"When did you talk to Greg the last time?" her friend went on. Sara's look remained fixed, her frown getting ever so deeper.
"I don't know," she said and while it could have been an admission it did not sound like one.
"See…?" Nick started, trailing off.
"I can't remember every conversation I've had with anybody," Sara added.
"Sara…"
She looked at her shoes.
"Since when's Greg 'anybody'?" Nick asked softly and she looked up swiftly.
"Since when do you care so much about Greg's and mine relationship?" she returned sharply.
"I guess that's because Greg's my friend, too," Nick said, a small tone of anger in voice now. "You don't know how much he's beating himself up about what happened-"
"Oh, I think I know very well," Sara said icily. "And wasn't it you who blamed him? Or is my memory messed up there?"
Nick recoiled. "I know," he said after a moment. "I… I was thinking about you. I was worried about you." He looked at her earnestly. "But I believe him… and you… I mean, I believe he didn't do… I believe that he saved you."
"And what-?"
"And that's why I don't want him going down with this," Nick added.
"Who's talking about going down?" Sara questioned. "You said it: Greg didn't do anything. I've made my statement. I-"
"If you'd listen to me for a moment-"
"I do listen to you." She stood there firmly, arms crossed in front of her chest, and even though Nick hoped that his look would soften her, he was not quite sure it would work.
"It's not like we have a lot of evidence to clear him," he started slowly. "His prints were everywhere. We didn't get a chance to look into the car before weeks had passed. We don't really know what happened out there."
"I told you what happened," Sara interjected.
"We don't know what happened while you were unconscious," Nick stated softly.
"I told you that Greg didn't do anything. He saved me," Sara was getting louder again.
"I know," Nick said quietly. "But they might think you're just protecting him, or that he's threatening you, or that the whole ordeal messed you up and you-"
"Oh, thanks a lot, Nicky," she said sharply.
"Sara, I-"
"Well, then go and do your job and find the evidence. It will tell you that Greg didn't do anything," Sara finished, dashing off past Nick, who turned around and looked after her helpless wondering if she was that angry because she realized that he had probably told her the truth.
His thoughts wandered to Greg and he wondered if he had succeeded in getting information from Charlie. If his lawyer was any good, Charlie would not say anything. Their only hope was that he would talk to Greg as a friend and that was the only reason why Nick had let Greg go at all. He just hoped he was more successful than Nick had been today.
(several weeks later)
When the suit had been adjourned, Sara had moved out of the stand quickly, trying to get out of the court room hastily and without drawing too much attention to herself.
She wondered in how much trouble she had brought Greg. She remembered what Nick had told her. He had warned her against exactly this. And she had known back then that he would probably be right. And Sara had tried to shoot the messenger.
When she arrived at the exit of the room, near where Greg had been sitting, his seat was empty. Of course. He would not have waited around for her or anybody else for that matter.
She could only hope that Nick and the others knew their job. Of course she had always trusted them, but it had been Days' case after all, even though Nick had assisted on it. Sara shook her head slightly, while she descended the stop at the exit of the courthouse. It did not matter. The evidence would be on their side no matter what. She smiled lightly despite the situation. She and Greg were certainly on the same side, even though she had not shown it to him often enough lately.
Well, actually she had not shown him anything lately. Well, she had made him spill his soda on his suit. Actually, she had been standing in his way which had him made spilling his soda, not really the fact that it had been her.
And she wondered where the headache came from.
"Hey, Sara."
She stopped dead, her gaze fixed a little ahead on the parking lot where her car stood. Taking a moment to put on a smile, she turned around to him. He stood there, hands in his pockets, teetering slightly, and if Sara had not known better she could have thought he had no worry in the world, if it had not been for the tiredness that was clearly visible on second glance.
She could not believe he was smiling. Had she not just managed to get him into such a bad situation? And no matter whether it had been her or somebody else, he had to realize the trouble ahead. And still he was smiling at her, or maybe just because. Or-
Maybe she had to admit for once that she did not know.
TBC
