Author: Nicksfriend

Rating:k

Spoilers:

Disclaimer: They do not belong to me...that is for sure.

Warrick pulled the SUV up as close to the lab as possible, emergency vehicles were everywhere, Catherine's car was pulling up behind him, they both exited their vehicles and Warrick glanced over to see that Catherine was on her cellphone."Get a hold of Grissom yet?" he asked, also having his cell out ready to make the call.

"No, He's not answering his phone. I don't know why he carries a phone, he never has it turned on or the battery is dead, one or the other." she flipped the phone closed as they both started walking towards the crime tape, noting the hasmat suits right away. Showers had been set up and a lot of people were wearing scrubs and a few individuals were being loaded into ambulances.

Warrick saw Archie standing in green scrubs off to the side, an onlooker to the ongoing chaos which was their lab,"What's going on Archie?" Warrick yelled getting the young man's attention.

Archie turned to see his boss Catherine and Warrick walking up to the line,"I'm really not for sure, the fire alarm went off, we were told to evacuate and then we all had to shower. I'm thinking we had a chemical spill in the lab but really man, I just don't know."He shrugged his shoulders and gave Warrick an 'I'm just as lost as you are for answers' look.

Catherine and Warrick nodded in understanding simultaneously and walked under the tape,recognized by their fellow colleagues as they approached a shorter man with his back turned in scrubs, it was Grissom and he was talking to Ecklie, who had a look of deep concern on his face.

"Gil, what the hell happened?" Catherine asked as she entered into view of the man whos eemed at a loss for words at the moment.

Grissom turned and nodded for Warrick and Catherine to follow him, leaving Ecklie to deal with the media storm that was about to erupt.

They walked away from the crowds and into the the police station which had been deemed safe by the hasmat crew ,even though the lab was still cordoned off for the time being.

"What happened?" Warrick asked the question, again hoping that Grissom would give them an answer this time.

"Chlorine and Ammonia in a bouquet of roses." Grissom answered, his voice low and troubled, as he continued to walk towards the interrogation room.

Catherine was confused and so was Warrick, they gave each other a look of 'What the hell is he talking about?'.

"Quit being a mystery Gil, what happened?" Catherine didn't like her boss's riddles. They walked into the small room and turned towards Gil with arms crossed and a look of don't even play the mind games today, I've got enough on my plate this morning.

Grissom leaned against the table, it had been a long night and the day was just getting started,"A bouquet of roses came to the crime lab addressed to Nick Stokes, it sat out in the waiting area for about thirty minutes according to the receptionist. When I arrived back at the lab I brought the flowers to my office, knowing that Nick was at the hospital, it just made sense that someone was sending him flowers but rather odd given the time of day that they had arrived. I had to leave the office for a few minutes but when I returned I noted that some of my insects were dead and so were the flowers." He looked up to see the pale- ashen faces of his co-workers, the realization that it could have been one of their own team members that possibly could have been poisoned by the gaseous fumes hitting both of them.

"Somebody is trying to hurt Nick?" Warrick asked in disbelief.

"No. Somebody is trying to kill Nick." Grissom returned, seeing that they were missing a key piece of evidence.

"The hasmat crew found a note attached to the bouquet of flowers, it's being worked up as we speak. It was a poem for Nick." he looked up and started to recite the words he had jotted down on a piece of paper.

Roses are Red

Intrusions are bad

You found a little boy

That makes me mad.

So now You will have to pay the reaper

You are no longer the little boy's keeper

He is mine and You will see

To Your's and His life... I now hold the key.

"Another lunatic." Warrick's only response to the words of the poem, not fully realizing what they implied.

"He must of seen the news video of Nick finding the little boy." Catherine raised her hand and covered her mouth, the lives of two people had been jeopardized by the news coverage of the event."The news crew must of broadcasted Nick carrying the little boy out of the house."

"I'm afraid that Nick and the little boy are now this monster's target." Grissom handed the piece of paper to Warrick who stood speechless, just taking in all the facts as they were given to him by Grissom and Catherine. He had talked to Catherine some regarding the case but he didn't have all the details,Nick and Catherine were the lead investigators on this case.

"Ecklie has placed both under protective custody, but this man is smart, he walked right into our lab, he has no fear, he is clean with his work too, no prints no video and no trace. I sent all the evidence to our satellite lab." Grissom was attempting to place all the puzzle pieces together," They couldn't find anything on the note, the vase or the flowers."

"The little boy's name is Joey Tetherman,he's in a catatonic state right now according to his doctors, I really don't want him traumatized any more with strangers so I'm going back to the hospital and stay with him until we can find his father." Catherine was starting towards the door but turned,"Gil, Nick was diagnosed with encephalitis this morning, he's very sick. This case can't interfere with him getting better." It was not only a statement but a warning to her boss not to get Nick involved further until his health improved, with the case,she then turned and walked out the door.

Grissom nodded in understanding as she left the room, he knew the implications of stress on recovery, especially with Nick being involved and the little boy whom he had found,Nick would feel responsible.

Grissom took a seat after Catherine left with his mouth gaped open, how ironic that his CSI was actually fighting for his life in two respects now. He knew what had to be done."Warrick you need to try and find the father of this boy, in the mean time I will take a look at all the evidence. Wendy told me earlier that the tablecloth held six DNA'S, five matched the victim's in the basement and one was an unidentified donor."

Warrick handed the piece of paper back to Grissom,"That don't make sense, there were eight bodies found in the house and there was only five matches, the victim that Nicky processed had no wounds, he was thinking that she had been poisoned. What about the tarp that the victim was lying on when they found her, the amount of blood on the tarp was copious according to Catherine."

"What tarp?" Grissom asked, curious about the evidence in the case now that it was involving one his team members.

Desert Palm Hospital

Catherine arrived at the hospital after taking a few detours to get there, traffic had been a bear. She walked up to the desk and told them she had been assigned to stay with the boy but the nurse gave her a look of horror,"What do you mean, the little boy was taken home by his father about an hour ago?" the nurse pulled up the chart and handed Catherine the AMA form signed by a Mr Tetherman.

"What the hell?" she asked, he was placed under protective custody. He shouldn't have been allowed to leave." her voice full of panic and venom for the person who had taken the little boy, as she slid by the nurse and went to the room where the little boy had been.

She opened the door to find a cleaned room, the bed made and the room smelled of Lysol and hospital disinfectant."Dammit!" she yelled into the room,unable to control her anger, the little boy was gone and she had no idea where he had been taken or who had taken him.

She pulled out her cell and dialed Grissom's number,hopefully she could get a description of the man from the staff.

Intensive Care Unit

"Mr Stokes, we need to turn you onto your side, okay." the sweet sound of a nurse's voice was penetrating his brain cells. Why did they always have to say 'okay' because no matter what he wanted she was still going to get her way.

A gentle hand reached over and undid the restraints on his wrists and assisted by a tech he was moved, the staff kept the lights off in the room, his eyes sensitive to the bright white glare."I need to give you some medicine in your IV, it'll make your head feel better,okay."

He felt the restraints reapplied and the sting of the medicine as it hit the already inflamed vein where the angiocath was taped, but he didn't want to complain, all he wanted to do was to sleep,he knew what he needed to do ,help find the killer, but he was too tired and all he wanted to do was sleep.

The nurse walked back out at her desk outside her patient's room to chart, the tech had left to help another nurse with a task. Julianna looked over at her sick patient, she had treated his fever and his headache but he still seemed very uncomfortable, a fitful rest is what her mother would have called it, she would give him something to help relax him, to allow him to actually sleep.

Julianna walked off to get the medication, a man now stood beside the table,the ICU hectic with staff members coming and going, he was looking at the sick man in the bed, a smile spread across his face, this was going to easier than he had thought. He took out a small syringe filled with an auburn colored liquid and walked over to Nick's bed, lowering the sheet he jabbed the uncapped needle into Nick's thigh, the man barely reacted, too sick to even respond the way he should have responded, the man then walked off,undetected.