Chapter 12
"I want to thank you."
Sage looked at Mrs. Suleiman as she escorted her down the halls and to the front doors of the station. It was the normal procedure of getting statements and evidence and all that and now the woman was finally free to go. Sage had watched the interview of what happened through the glass and was glad that Vega went easy on her. "I don't think a thanks is warranted," she said.
Mrs. Suleiman paused to look at Sage and replied, "I disagree, CSI Parker. You know our ways better than most outsiders. You know that we couldn't do anything about it."
"There were ways," Sage pointed out. "Clarence tried." At the look the woman was giving her, Sage explained, "I checked and found that Clarence had reported activity between the group hiding within the community and the cartel. He was trying to stop it."
"And he is now dead."
"He did it because of duty to his faith," Sage countered. "That is important is it not?" She studied the woman before her as she put her hands on her hips.
"Again you understand much more than average outsiders. The loa have been kind to you in regards to this." Mrs. Suleiman returned the gaze with a more soulful one. "It is true that my son did what he had to do. He is still gone though."
"But you are able to practice without the dishonor that came from what led you to leave in the first place."
Mrs. Suleiman nodded in agreement. "It is true. It is a shame. Peter was such a good boy and now he has brought this upon us. I will ask the loa to forgive him."
"Mercy is often a sign of honor," Sage replied, "To give it when they don't seem to deserve it… it says much."
Mrs. Suleiman gave a slight smile at that. She was able to look at Sage in the eye and reply, "A lesson that seems hard for you regarding your own family but you have given so much and to have it thrown back in your face… That would be difficult." She paused to study Sage's reaction and then added, "At least you have your gris-gris."
Sage stared at the woman. She knew she was an outsider since she had no idea how Mrs. Suleiman would know that. Sage operated under the rule in that what goes on in the family, stays in the family. How would she know about her problems with Cassie? She replied, "I tend to keep the personal separate."
"And what of your gris-gris?"
That again? Sage tried not to be mean but this was ridiculous. "Mrs. Suleiman, we are partners. It's what we are supposed to do. Nothing more."
"So you say," Mrs. Suleiman replied with a smirk.
Sage made a slight face at that while trying to think of something to say. Her friend who gave her the information was the same way at times and was one of the few that she sometimes couldn't return the comment. Besides she liked the woman and she didn't want to ruin a particularly good relationship if one was possible. Finally she decided to change trains of thought. She pulled a bundle out of her jacket pocket and said, "Um… I checked and made sure that we didn't need it for the case."
With careful reverence, Sage pulled out the gris-gris that had been on Clarence and handed it over to Mrs. Suleiman after taking her hand and placing it in her palm. She said, "This was Clarence's. I thought that you might like it back."
Mrs. Suleiman looked at the gris-gris that she had made for her son when he was a little boy. He had worn it every day of his life until the day he died. They were made as signs of protection for the wearer and she knew that it had protected him until he died. She sighed softly as she looked at it and fingered each of the markings lovingly.
Sage observed the woman and her movements. "You made it for him. You are a bokor."
"Yes, I did. When he was a little boy."
"It had served its purpose," Sage replied. She then spoke in Creole French, "It protected him until he completed his purpose."
Mrs. Suleiman looked up and into Sage's eyes. It had been a surprise that she would even know that dialect of French but it served its purpose. She nodded and replied in like, "He has completed his purpose and you helped. Now it is your turn."
"I just hope to do my job and speak for the victims and make sure justice is served," Sage replied in English this time.
"We all have a place and purpose CSI Parker," Mrs. Suleiman replied. A slow smile began to emerge on her face. "It…"
"Hey Parker," Nick's voice down the hall sounded. "Still got that paperwork and I ain't doing it by myself."
Sage looked apologetically at Mrs. Suleiman and then at Nick, "I'll be there. It's not going to run away."
"I'll hold you to that," Nick replied before taking off.
Mrs. Suleiman had been watching the exchange. She had been right about a few things when she first set eyes on Sage Parker. Then when she met Nick Stokes… it was somewhat clear. It would be interesting to see where things were headed. She said, "The one that watches. He is nice."
"I'm sorry about that," Sage replied. "I do have to get back to work. It seems that crime knows no schedule."
"It is all right," Mrs. Suleiman replied as she clasped her son's gris-gris to her chest. "You have what you need to do set before you but there are other things as well. It is a matter of finding that which encompasses all."
"I just want to do my job."
"And you will. Just don't let it control your life." Mrs. Suleiman then switched into Creole, "Ultimately we are designers of our destinies. The paths are laid before us and we must choose the one that we want the most."
Sage nodded at that. She recalled something similar being said when she had been conducting her research. "It sort of contradicts what I had been taught. That God has a plan and all that."
"Only the loa and God know the complete truth," Mrs. Suleiman pointed out. "You should know that better than anyone." She smiled as she watched the look appear on Sage's face that was of confusion and bewilderment. She then said, "I must go. There is much work to be done. We will move our gatherings. It is not good to meet in a place so defiled."
"I hope you get your money back on the place," Sage replied in concern. "At least ask for a respectable price."
"You have much concern for others CSI Parker. It will do no harm to occasionally show your gris-gris that," Mrs. Suleiman replied. "In the end you might just become his gris-gris." She then turned to exit the building leaving Sage to wonder what she meant.
Sage watched the bokor leave the premises. There was some truth in what Mrs. Suleiman was saying. She would watch out for Nick's back when they were on a case because that was what partners did. Yet she couldn't shake the feeling that the woman was implying something that felt way out of her league. She gave a slight shake of her head and went to go back to the room that was covered with their murder board.
Catherine looked up from her work and watched as Sage and Nick walked by, engrossed in some sort of conversation. She had to admit that she was surprised at the turnaround in terms of how they treated each other. It seemed that Grissom's little experiment was or had worked. She may have spoken too soon when she saw Sage punch Nick in the upper arm but it was assuaged when Nick feigned mock hurt.
Southern wars.
That was how Sage had described it and Catherine was inclined to believe that. She was just concerned about the newest CSI's ability to fit in. She had heard about the whole thing with the FBI and heard what happened in interrogation. Of course that prompted her to dig deeper into Sage's background and learn about a few more things. She understood better why the sheriff was gung ho for Sage's employment but was willing to sit back and let Sage prove herself. That much was already evident with the way she carried on with Greg and Warrick.
She looked at the pile of torn papers on her desk and toyed with the idea of putting them together and reading the content. She thought better of it and swept the pieces into the wastebasket. It was like Grissom pointed out to her; if Sage had a problem he hoped that she would come to him or her for advice. Catherine knew from experience about giving a new person a chance since she could recall that she and Sara had butted heads when they first met and it wasn't like Sage was a fresh out of the academy rookie.
Catherine thought some more and then went back to work. She would take a leaf out of Grissom's book this time. After all she did read the FBI's report on the Reynosa kidnapping and she liked the fact that Sage did what she had to for the sake of a child. That reminded her of herself when it came to children.
Greg was smiling as he watched Sage finishing paperwork. He heard about what had happened and caught a glimpse of what appeared to be friendly banter. Seemed that things were working out after all and judging by how she was writing and bobbing her head to her own tune, she was happy. He walked into the break room and gave a knock, "Hey heard you had a hell of a first case."
Sage looked up from what she was writing and gave Greg a smile, "Seems like the water cooler discussion has already started."
"Well you are pretty popular around here," Greg replied teasing as he took a seat. "Most folks like the fact that you are friendly."
"Now you're just teasing," Sage replied. She pointed with her pen for emphasis. She was wearing her glasses. Surprisingly they hadn't been broken in the scuffle and even if they were, she had a spare pair. She was glad that she still had two pairs. "But I'll let you get away with it this time because I like you," she added teasing Greg.
Greg was smiling, "Glad to see that I'm held in such high esteem especially from the best organizer of DNA samples I've ever seen."
"Now you're flirting. You're really on a role today."
"Well I like to work fast," Greg countered still smiling. "But seriously, everything work out for you?"
Sage was smiling and she wasn't sure of what to say at first. She took in Greg's demeanor who was smiling at her and genuinely curious as to what she thought. She replied, "I think it did… considering there was some good teamwork going on in here."
"Come on. You CSIs do all the work around here." Greg was smiling, meaning for it to be a joke and even threw in a half wave.
"No we don't. We may get the glory on the public front but the real work is in there, in the lab," Sage corrected the tech pointing with her pen for emphasis. "All the individual parts work together to create the whole in which we use to solve crimes and eventually put away the bad guys. It's kind of like the system matrix model used to analyze parts of a whole." She turned her gaze towards Greg and said, "You and the others… they're important too."
Greg could see the seriousness of Sage's expression. "You're really serious about this huh?"
Sage gave a slight shrug, "I learned a lot about teamwork growing up. Call it the military thing but I found it to be just as important outside that. I know a thing or two about being an underling."
"Most would say that this was a step down," Greg replied, inwardly pleased that she didn't see him as a grunt to be run to the ground. "I mean you were a supervisor and now you're back at the bottom."
"We all gotta start somewhere, Greggo," Sage replied smiling. She leaned back in her chair feeling like she was on top of the world. "Even them casino bosses had to start as low as a car jockey." She smiled and gave a slight chuckle. "Listen to me talking like I know Vegas."
"You're talking like one," Greg replied.
They laughed a little bit at that. Sage tried to finish what she was doing but couldn't. She looked up and said, "Things did work out okay. Let's just say that the perpetrators were caught and a community is free to exercise their first amendment rights."
"The voodoo community," Greg pointed out.
"Yeah." Sage gave a slight smile at Greg before bending over to work on her report. "Now I have to work on the less glorious part of our work… paperwork. Can't get anywhere without paperwork."
"Tell me about it. By the way, thanks for the help on those samples and for doing the paperwork regarding prep."
"Chain of evidence, but your welcome Greggo," Sage replied looking up. "So aside from the rowing with the other slaves, anything else going on in the lab? And I don't mean the looks that I occasionally catch." She was chuckling as she said that since she still found it amusing that she was garnering this much interest and she was just doing her job.
"Well there is a pool going on how long it would be before you actually say yes to a date to someone from days," Greg rattled off, "But I put a stop to that."
"Meaning that I'm officially yours as a playmate in the lab?"
"Nice," Greg replied grinning. He sobered though and added, "Actually I kind of said something that they would have to pass through a screening test. I mean I know you pick and choose who you want to go out with but… well I just made it clear that you are a nice person and not… you know."
"I know. Thanks Greggo. I think I like being friends with you," Sage replied getting the picture. "I haven't forgotten about movie night. I'm thinking we better have a regular once a week thing and you can show me a bit more of Vegas."
"I'd like that," Greg said as he got up to get a cup of coffee. "Hey you need a refresher?"
"Sure," Sage replied handing over her cup to Greg. She went back to the report she was working on and finished a few notations.
Greg poured a fresh cup occasionally glancing at Sage. He liked her a lot and it was nice to see that she seemed less tense than from before. He poured Sage's cup and placed it within reach but not in danger of being knocked over. "There you go. Black the way you like it."
Sage tasted it and made a slight face. "Ugh. This tastes like motor oil. I'm guessing someone else made the coffee?"
"Same person usually does," Greg replied. "That's why I blend my specialty when I can't tolerate it anymore."
"I wonder how anyone could tolerate it," Sage replied after taking another taste. It was not the best cup of coffee she had ever tasted. It probably put hair on the chests of men. Oh that was a bad mental picture. She got up and dumped her coffee in the sink. She went to check the pot and the actual unit. "Is there a house brand that is made?"
Greg went over to the cupboard where the community coffee was held and showed it to her. "Not exactly like my Hawaiian Blue but…"
"It works. It just falls down to measurement of grounds per cup of water put in and…" Sage peered in the unit. She pulled out the filter and looked at it. The unit was okay. It seemed it was just the proportions. She finished, "And making sure that the heat is just about right," and made a slight adjustment on the wiring.
Greg handed her items as she went about making a fresh batch of coffee. When it was finished, he tried a bit of it and looked at Sage. "This is good."
"Nah. Just following a bit of advice Ripley, my old partner gave me. He was the one that turned me full onto coffee. It was sustenance in college but on the job it was like water," Sage replied brushing of her ability. "Like I said, it was just finding the proportions of grounds and water." She poured herself a cup and drank some.
"Still is good."
"Well don't be spreading the word. Next thing you know, I become the official coffee maker," Sage replied, "And the one everyone troubleshoots to when the thing dies." She grinned as she said it indicating it was a joke.
"Oh no worries. I'm tempted to take you to the drive by chapel and marry you," Greg flirted as he picked up his fresh cup. He headed towards the door and paused. He turned to look at Sage who was chuckling as she sat to finish what she was doing. He said, "I'm looking forward to more time in the lab with you."
"Same here. Might even be a little bit of fun," Sage replied in a teasing manner that was sort of flirting. "I was serious though earlier. You do good work."
Greg smiled and gave a slight wave before leaving to head back to do his job. It left Sage alone to finish the last of one report and left her staring a bit at the case file that belonged to the feds. She knew she had to give it back and Culpepper had sort of demanded it back. It was a bit of a nasty reminder that there was the possibility that the sheriff would have her do more cases with the FBI. She wasn't against helping them out but she didn't relish the attitudes that came with it especially if they wanted to use her talent with criminals like she did on the Reynosa case.
Sighing Sage opened the file to the point that held the notes she had taken when she interviewed Nevarra and began to sort them out. She was going to have to write a cleaner version for their case and Culpepper's so she might as well finish it. She checked her watch and noted that her shift was almost over. She had already booked in overtime since she was called in early by Nick. She wasn't going to push it on this since there were going to be other cases that would require time beyond the shift and she had read the rules clearly.
Sighing, she went to put the file where they went to work on the next shift. Once she was finished she would return it to Culpepper. She made sure the file was secure and checked to make sure the evidence from the case was put back in the vault. She knew Nick did but it was force of habit to double check. It was the danger of this line of work with the whole chain of custody thing.
After making sure for peace of mind, Sage headed towards the locker room to retrieve her stuff. She ran into Sara and Catherine on the way there. "Hey, you checking out?" Sara looked at Sage as she started to walk in.
"Yeah," Sage replied.
"I heard about what happened," Catherine said, "Glad you both are okay."
"Thanks," Sage replied. "Nothing we couldn't handle."
Catherine was pleased with the answer and gave a nod and said goodbye. Sara lingered a bit and said, "Seriously, that was good work. I'd like to see that in action myself. Maybe next case?"
"Luck of the draw right?" Sage replied with a slight smile. "I'd like that."
Sara gave a smile and left. Sage gave a slight smile and went into the locker room. She didn't expect to see Nick in there thinking he would have bugged out after all that. He was busy putting the last of whatever in his locker. She made a slight face since she was sure that she had been a little too forward with the teasing earlier and giving that mock punch. It was still a new relationship and she thought that she may have overstepped her bounds.
She prayed she wasn't seen as she went in and went to her locker and opened it. It wasn't to happen though. She barely had pulled out her side bag when Nick said, "There you are. Been wondering when you'd get your nose out of paperwork."
Sage gave a slight smile as she fixed the change of clothes she put in there just in case and replied softly, "Why is that? Aiming to see who can finish first?"
Nick shut his locker and walked over to stand by hers. He had noticed that she had spoken softly and wondered if something was up. "No. Just waiting until you clocked out."
"Well I'm out," Sage replied as she finished and shut her locker. She shouldered her bag over the shoulder and hooked the strap across her chest. She looked more like a UNLV student than ever. "Is there something that I can help with?"
"What's with the politeness all of a sudden?" Nick gave a slight smile, wondering why she was behaving like a nervous rookie. "Ran out of rejoinders?"
"No," Sage replied with a slight nod. "I got plenty of them. I just wasn't sure of which one to use. I'm sure the ones with Texas references would push your buttons too much." She was slightly smiling and her tone was teasing and mocking since she got the impression that he wanted banter.
"Yeah it would since I've been trying to figure out how you guessed correctly I was from Texas," Nick replied.
"Takes one to know one," Sage replied with a straight face that would have been comical. "Actually I had a college roommate from Texas and the twang just stuck. Besides you should have known I was from bayou country by my accent. I guess the adage that us Southerners know whose who… not so."
"I guess not," Nick replied with a chuckle. He cleared his throat slightly and continued, "Listen uh… I know we got off on the wrong foot when we started but you're not bad Parker. You're good at what you do."
"Same to you, Stokes," Sage replied. She noticed the expression on his face when she called him by his last name. "I can call ya Nick but that would imply something else wouldn't it?" She gave a mock frown as she made her joke.
Nick caught on right away. He actually didn't mind her calling him by name like that. It would be their thing. "Nah I think we should stick with the last name basis. People might start thinking we like each other. Can't have that now can we?"
"No, we can't," Sage replied returning Nick's smile with one of her own. She made a slight clearing of her throat. "Well I guess I better go."
"Well I was thinking that maybe you'd consider having breakfast with me. My treat," Nick said. It had been his intention to ask anyway. It was the least he could do and he actually found her banter quite fun. She had a way of getting someone to rise to a challenge.
Sage studied Nick for a moment, not sure what the intention was. Of course she could be making a big deal about nothing. She teased, "Are you sure this is not an attempt to poison me and get rid of me?"
"If I wanted to get rid of you, I'd find some other way," Nick countered. "Seriously though, my treat Parker. Consider it like a job well done."
Sage thought about it some more. He did admit in his way that he liked working with her and the apology was his own. She nodded, "Alright."
Nick gave a smile and motioned for her to leave. "I got just the place."
"Shall I drive?"
"If I say yes will you try to get us there in one piece?"
"Maybe." Sage gave a mischievous grin as she walked out to her car. She almost laughed when Nick admired her wheels, a classic Dodge Challenger. She said then, "Of course I wouldn't do anything stupid to my baby."
Nick shot a look at her that was spoiled by the smile that emerged since she was chuckling and trying to prevent laughter from erupting. He got in and said, "You are evil."
Sage laughed at that as she turned the keys in the ignition and the Challenger roared to life. "Maybe I should have let you drive but then no one would be ogling now would they." She pulled out of the parking lot and headed out to the place that Nick suggested.
"Everyone likes a good looking beauty."
"You know something Stokes, I think this might be the start of an interesting partnership."
"Finally something we can agree on."
A/N: And here we come to the end. Looks like things will be going well for Sage and Nick and the fun is just getting started. Thanks to all who have favorited, followed and reviewed and we'll see ya next time on Desert Secrets...
