Chapter Ten

Disclaimer: I do not own CSI

Gil and Sara caught an early morning flight back to Vegas. He immediately went to his office to think about everything that had gone on over the years, how much his team meant to him and how he was going to say good bye to them.

Sara entered the office. "Gil the team is assembled in the Break room. They are waiting for you" she told him.

"What did they say when you told them that I needed everyone in the break room?"

Sara shrugged. "They don't suspect anything Gil, they think it's a regular staff meeting"

"Won't they be in for a surprise" Gil replied in a quiet sad voice.

The team were all assembled in the break room waiting patiently for Gil to arrive, when he did, there were choruses of how are you and how was the vacation to which Grissom answered in two word sentences .

"There's something on your mind isn't there Gil, what is going on!" Catherine said to him directly.

Grissom looked from Catherine to the rest of the team then to Sara. "I have two announcements to make. Do you want the good or the bad news" he asked.

"Give us the bad news first Grissom, you will cheer us up with the good" Greg said.

Grissom gazed at his entire team and sucked in his breath. Warrick had appeared behind Nick. Gil shook himself. He was imagining things.

"What are you looking at Grissom, do I have something on my face?" Hodges asked as Warrick had been standing directly behind Hodges.

"Uh no Hodges – I uh must have been that tranquilizer that I took before I got on the plane – y'know the after effects…" he said lamely.

The team waited patiently for Grissom to continue.

"I have been doing a lot of thinking when I was away. This ordeal with the mini-killer and the fact that Sara was almost killed and then Warrick's murder has hit me harder than any other case I have ever had as a CSI. I am not getting any younger and I am feeling very burnt out. I have no time for a private life other than between cases and I often do two or three shifts. To add I have had very little vacation in the past ten fifteen years so I have a lot owed to me. "he paused. "What I am saying is that I am leaving lab. No… Catherine you cannot stop me. I think it is time I hand in my resignation before I have a breakdown."

Grissom stopped as every one of his team was staring at him open mouthed.

"Guys….Say something" Sara said to them.

"T-this is sudden. You can't go, you're our mentor Grissom" Nick told him. "NO this isn't fair! First Sara leaves then Warrick DIES and now you're leaving. Gil I don't think you're …" Nick sighed.

Grissom waited for him to stop and then continue. "I want each of you to make an appointment with Judy to see me. I will talk to each of you for ten minutes. It will be kinda like the final evaluation from me. Judy is already aware of this."

Judy looked at her boss and gave him a half-smile and nodded. "Just come to me and I'll write in your names that way Grissom knows who's next"

"Catherine I'll talk to you first." Grissom said.

A/N: The next few chapters will be short as it will be the conversations between Grissom and his team and as many of the Graveyard team as I can think of – includes the lab rats too.