DISCLAIMER: I don't own CSI
Sorry I haven't updated in a while. This chapter is set in the past, and it's more of a filler than anything. A bit of a random exchange between Sara, Nick and Greg, as well as a bit of Greg/Catherine. I'm just trying to explain how things were before all the stuff happened. And this is taking place at the same time as the last chapter, while Grant is kidnapping Lindsey. Enjoy and review!
And I wonder if I ever cross your mind?
For me it happens all the time.
Her heels clicked on the floor. She would never get tired of that sound. Catherine clicked her way down the corridor, to the third layout room where she knew Greg would be with Sara and Nick. There were pictures of animals spread out on the table.
"I thought you solved your case?" Catherine asked, confused by the case file they were still reading.
"We did, but it's a slow night." Nick sighed.
"Sow what, you're just re-reading it for fun?" Catherine asked. She smiled. They had to very bored.
"The girl, Louise, she had thirty four cats." Greg explained.
"And she neglected and possibly abused them." Sara told her, showing a picture of one of the fluffy creatures, this one had only one eye.
"So now Sara here's got us doing a case of animal rights." Nick groaned.
"We're like activists." Greg said.
"We are activists." Sara corrected.
"That's what I said." Greg moaned.
"You said we're LIKE activists." Sara explained.
"Whatever, we're activists." Greg sighed.
"Not just like them." Sara added.
"Not just like them." Greg repeated in a high pitched voice.
"Bleh bleh bleh." Sara mocked.
"La la la la la la la..." Greg sung, his fingers over his ears.
"You guys are so immature." Nick said saly.
"Oh yeah Stokes, because you're so mature." Greg scoffed.
"I am." Nick replied, taking a sip out of his mug.
"Just sitting there casually drinking coffee and watching us." Sara laughed.
"Wait a minute. Show me that coffee." Greg said suddenly.
"What coffee?" Nick asked, before realising that he was in fact, holding the coffee mug.
"The stuff you're drinking. Is that mine?" Greg asked him.
Oh shit. Nick thought. Quickly, he tipped the mug upside down and swallowed the last of his coffee. He showed Greg the empty mug.
"Ha." he smiled smugly.
"You found his coffee and you never told me?" Sara asked increduously.
"You are so dead Nick." Greg growled.
"Hell yeah." Sara agreed.
"You'd need to catch me to kill me." With that, Nick took off down the corridor, leaving the empty cup on the table.
"Come on Sara, after him!" Greg yelled.
They chased him down the corridor, bumping into Grissom on the way and attracting several odd looks and a "what the heck is going..." from Grissom, although they never got to hear the end because they were running too fast. Eventually they back him into a corner in the garage.
"We gon' beat you up!" Greg yelled in a fake accent.
"Yeah!" Sara echoed, copying Greg's jamacan accent..
"Beating people up in the lab is illegal." Nick told them, laughing.
"You thin' we care 'bout the law sugar?" Greg whispered, his accent stronger than ever.
"Why are you talkin like that, it's weird..." Nick said uneasily.
"That is his voice! Donut mock my friend!" Sara replied, her accent now veering into a mixture of Scandinavian and Italian.
"Sara. The purse." Greg asked.
"Purse? You guys are gonna hit me with a purse?" Nick laughed.
"Nope. The purse I keep for going out to dinner." Sara explained,handing it to Greg.
"Tie his arms down." Greg told her.
"Guys, it was only a joke don't..." Nick began, but he was laughing too hard to continue.
"Your pleas come too late my friend. Tie him to the chair and tie his hand together." Greg said evily.
"Sure boss. I get to do the rest too!" Sara asked, joining Greg in his evil laughter. She tied his arms as he requested, and Nick came to the conclusion that his friends had gone mad. He knew they weren't really going to hit him, because you can't hit your friends. Besides, if they actually hurt him, they would get suspended or even fired. So what were they going to do to him?
"We can both do it. Close your eyes Nick.." Greg whispered.
"I am not closing my eyes... would you guys let me go?" Nick asked.
"Nope. And close your eyes or else Sinister Sidle over here will kill you." Greg told him, pointing to Sara who growled like a rabid dog.
"Fine. They're closed." Nick sighed.
"Nice look Nick." Warrick grinned.
"Looking hot Nicky." Catherine laughed.
"Hey there Nicolette." Hodges called.
"Nick. That colour suits you." Mandy giggled.
"Hey, I never knew Nick had a sister!" Archie smiled.
"Haha very funny guys." Nick said sarcastically. He rubbed at his face again. It was no use. The stupid make-up just wouldn't come off.
"Nick, where do you think you're going looking like that?" Grissom asked him, looking at him like he was a very interesting insect.
"I can't get it off."Nick explained, rubbing at his face again.
"Why did you put it on in the first place?" Grissom asked him.
"It wasn't me, it was them." Nick said, pointing to Greg and Sara, who had been laughing for the last ten minutes.
"I don't really want to know any more, do I?" Grissom asked, turning to Catherine, who was having trouble keeping a straight face.
"You definately don't."she told him.
"I'm going to go ask one of the female lab techs how to get this stuff off." Nick sighed, walking out of the break room. Greg and Sara's laughter gradually ceased.
"Okay. Warrick, you and Nick have a 419 at the Tangiers. Sara, you're coming with me to a multiple homicide on Fremont." Grissom changed the subject and began handing out assignments.
"Cool." Warrick nodded.
"Let's go." Sara said, hi-fiving Greg one last time.
"Catherine, you might as well stay, you get off in an hour. And Greg, just take the next call out." Grissom suggested, before following Sara to the cars.
"Great." Greg smiled, lying out on the sofa.
"And try not to break anything." Grissom yelled back.
"I never break things..." Greg muttered.
"So, do you wanna get some coffee or something?" Catherine asked him, concious of the fact they had an hour to themselves.
"Are you asking me out, Ms Willows?" Greg asked her..
"Oh yeah. Totally. Are you interested?" Catherine played along, twirling her hair around her finger.
"Very." Greg replied.
"So am I." She smiled back.
And then he was kissing her, and she was kissing him back. When he started to go further though, gently kissing down her neck, she broke away from him.
"Greg, in the break room, seriously?" Catherine asked, looking around her and doing up the two buttons she hadn't even realised Greg had undone on her blouse.
"You're right. Let's go to your office." Greg suggested, smiling suggestively.
"Greg! Isn't that against the lab rules?" Catherine asked him, following him to the office anyway.
"It's good to break the rules." Greg replied, pushing her into the office and kicking the door shut behind them.
"We could get fired." Catherine reminded him.
"I'm all fired up already." Greg whispered.
"If anyone sees us..." she began, looking around.
"They won't. I'll be quiet." Greg whispered, as if to show her how quite he could be.
"It's not you I'm worried about." Catherine admitted. She was prone to being quite loud at times like these, when she was with Greg.
"I could put duct tape on your mouth?" Greg suggested, picking up the roll of tape from her desk.
"I'll pass. But nice idea." Seh laughed, finally excepting what was going to happen. And shocking herself just a little that she actually wanted it to happen.
"I've got an even better one." Greg smiled, sweeping all the case files off her desk and throwing her onto it. Then he kissed her again.
Catherine fixed her hair for what had to be the tenth time. She smoothed down her clothes again and looked around her. She felt like everybody was staring at her in disgust, like everybody could tell whate she'd just done. Catherine was sure it was visible in her eyes, obvious by her expression, clear in her blushed cheeks. For all she felt, Catherine Willows may as well have been wearing a neon flashing sign that read "I just had sex with Greg Sanders in my office." But nobody noticed. Nobody knew. Greg didn't give anything away. He was more used to it than Catherine. After all, he'd once made her laugh with the story of how we had sex with a girl from college ina confession box while mass was on, for a dare. And nobody had heard them. Or noticed at all. That was actually one of his proudest achievments, even if he didn't even remember the name of the girl. A one week college romance. She had been a french foreign exchange student. And Matt, Joey, and Karl had been so jealous when he'd been the one to go out with him. But in the end, they were the ones who settled down with long term girlfriends. Greg went to all of their weddings later on. They all had children, or at least step children. But Greg had Catherine. And she was all he'd ever wanted. Even if she didn't want to do it in a confession box.
Catherines phone beeped as she was heading out the door, waving a quick goodbye to Greg, who was helping a make-up less Nick and Warrick on their case until a new one came in. She said she'd check it when she was in the car, but completely forgot. It wasn't until she was at home, and it beeped again that she looked at the message. It was a link. And no wrods. From a number she didn't recognise. Catherine flipped open her laptop and plugged in the phone, getting up the link on her screen. She quickly downloaded the video, hoping she wasn't going to get a virus on her computer. Then she pressed play.
It was Lindsey. Catherine checked her watch, she wasn't supposed to pick her up for another half an hour, when her after school club finished. Then the video zoomed out, making Catherine gasp in horror. Lindsey was tied up and in a cellar somewhere. Grant was standing behind her, a knife in his had. The sound of her daughters screams echoed in the empty apartment as he slowly grazzed the back of her neck with the blade. Catherine felt a part of her dying. What sprt of eprson could do that to his own daughter? And then suddenly, Grant's face filled the screen again. "37, Applwood Driver, Henderson. Tell nobody, bring nobody and don't even think about calling the cops. Or Greg." Then the screen blurred to black.
Catherine didn't know that this was a trap. She didn't realise that Grant wasn't going to do anything to Lindsey, simply because she bored him. Grant Eastwood only wanted Catherine. And dsepite her hatred of him, he knew her well. Catherine had worked for him for more than ten years and he knew her inside and out. Knew the things that made her smile, the things that made her laugh. Grant knew the things that made her shiver and the things that made her tick. He mainly knew that she was stubborn. And she loved those who were close to her. That was why Catherine would abandon all common sense, all training and all knowledge of what is best. Because Catherine would stop at nothing for her daughter. She wouldn't call the police. She wouldn't text Greg. She wouldn't tell anybody where she was going. Catherine didn't have a back up plan, a secret escape route. She didn't even have a gun. It was strange that she believed she could help her daughter without any of these things. But all she cared ab=out was getting to her. Grant knew this. He was actually considering kidnapping that Greg person instead. It would be a double whammy, paayback for not taking that stupid bullet and always appearing at the wrong time in the wrong place. But then he'd be stuck with Greg. And Lindsey would be much easier to maipulate. Be much easier to handle. Also, he'd never be able to get rid of Greg once he had hin. He would never leave Catherine's side. No, kidnapping Greg would have been a bad idea. The kid though, she was different. He would'nt even need to waste the stuff on her, because she would follow her would be following him.
Grant watched the monitor, he saw the live feed he was stealing from the traffic camera. She was driving. Grant switched to the view from the miniature camera he'd set up in her car. She looked scared. Good. She eas hot when she was scared. All too soon, the show ended. She got out of the car Grant looked out his own window There she was. And she was coming in. He heard a knock on the door.