Hey all, thanks for still reading and reviewing Some of the italics in this chapter are continuing the theme of flashbacks to Grissom and Ecklie's session, but there is one section that is just a flashback. I'm sure you'll understand as you read.

Krazii13: Thanks for the review, glad you're enjoying it so far. And I promise, I am going to finish it. I always proof read my work but occasionally a couple of mistakes slip through the net. Apologies for any mistakes I miss.

x x x x

The Last

"Good morning Mr Brass." Dr Gonzo chirped when the detective walked in. The therapist nudged a mug of freshly-brewed coffee in his direction with a cocky little smile. Jim quirked an eyebrow at it before snatching it off the table and sinking into a sofa, taking a long slurp. "Will Mr Brown be joining us anytime soon?" Gonzo asked, checking his watch. Just as Brass shrugged, the door swung open and the man himself sauntered in with his own polystyrene cup of coffee.

"Sorry I'm late," he held up his hands in apology. "Damn coffee machine was playing up." As the words left his mouth his gaze fell on the mug in Jim's hands and a frown played across his face.

Gonzo tapped his pen on his notepad impatiently, waiting for the dark-skinned man to make himself comfortable.

"Alright-y then. Let's start at the beginning shall we?" He began once the two men had settled themselves.

"The beginning?" Warrick asked, shuffling awkwardly on the leather couch. Gonzo's lips twitched slightly.

"Holly Gribbs."

X x x

Sara groaned, curling back up into a ball. From her spot submerged beneath the covers she heard an amused chuckle.

"Good morning sweetie." Catherine greeted cheerfully, sitting on the edge of the bed. Sara felt the covers being gently tugged away from her and suddenly there was a pair of bright blue eyes peeping at her over the duvet.

"What time is it?" She mumbled, shuffling back up the bed to rest her head on the pillows.

"Late." Cath smiled, handing her a glass of water. "You must have been tired." Sara smiled gratefully, accepting the drink. She noticed Catherine staring at her and raised an eyebrow over the top of the glass.

"What?" She asked suspiciously when the blonde continued to smile at her.

"Nothing." Cath shrugged, reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "You just look cute when you're sleepy." Sara watched her stand up and walk away, a scowl etched onto her face.

"Cute?"

X x x

Warrick sighed, running a hand through his short, springy hair. "You've got to be kidding me."

"We're here to talk about issues of conflict amongst the team. And it is my understanding that Holly Gribbs' death resulted in you, Detective Brass, being demoted to Homicide Detective, and you Mr Brown, nearly losing your job." Both men exchanged uncomfortable looks and said nothing. "So, I repeat: let's talk about Holly Gribbs."

"Holly was ..." Warrick trailed off, taking a deep breath. "She was the biggest mistake I ever made." He admitted.

"Come on, do we have to do this?" Jim asked, sitting forward in his seat. The doctor turned his attention to the older man.

"I believe that you took quite a fall from grace after Holly's death." He probed. Brass laughed dryly.

"I screwed up." He shrugged. "Grissom is a better leader than I ever was."

"And you still believe that?" He pressed. "Even after Nick got kidnapped and Sara nearly got shot?" Brass' expression faltered.

"Hey, that wasn't Grissom's fault," Warrick jumped in defensively. "No one could know that was going to happen."

"You, Mr Brown, took Nick's incident to heart didn't you?"

"He's my best friend." Warrick seethed, struggling to restrain the anger flaring up inside him at the memory.

"You got married." Gonzo pointed out, indicating his wedding ring. Warrick rubbed the gold band absently, reigning his temper back in.

"Yeah. I uh, I guess my priorities changed."

"Warrick's been different since Nick got found." Grissom mused. "The same thing happened when Holly died – he can get really protective of the team."

"Protective and angry." Ecklie scoffed.

"Like what happened after Holly died." Gonzo said, getting them back on topic. Warrick released a slow breath.

"What happened with Holly made me pay more attention to who I was working with."

"Hmm." Gonzo nodded thoughtfully. "Would it be a fair assumption that this attentive side of you is particularly focused on Catherine and Sara?" Warrick frowned, offering a small shrug.

"I guess." He answered uncertainly. "I look out for all of my team. But yeah, I guess I keep a closer eye on the girls."

"Hmm. Well, you're doing a bang up job so far." The doctor added sarcastically. Before Warrick could lunge for him, Brass spoke up, sending a sideways warning glance to the man sat next to him.

"Hey, if I get murdered, I want these guys investigating it. That's all that needs to be said." He explained slowly, making his point clear. Dr Gonzo chewed his lip thoughtfully for a moment.

"So, you have never had a problem with this team?"

"Never." Gonzo's trained ears picked up on the brief pause before his answer and he quirked a sceptical eyebrow.

"So then, you didn't blame Warrick Brown for Holly Gribbs' death?" Jim opened his mouth to speak but no words came out. Beside him, Warrick dropped his head in shame. Dr Gonzo took the resounding silence as confirmation. "I believe Miss Sidle also took issue with you when she first arrived." The question was directed at Warrick but both men looked up.

"Sara and I ... we had our moments but we worked it out." He sat back, happy to have had a question he could answer with ease.

"Hmm." Gonzo nodded thoughtfully, turning his attention back to the detective. "Like Mr Brown here, you also seem to have a soft spot for the women of the team." Jim chuckled dryly, offering little more than a shrug as answer, but Gonzo wasn't finished yet. "I understand this causes a bit of strife between you and Grissom sometimes?"

"What?" Brass asked, puzzled. "I don't have a problem with Gil."

"Even after his mistake nearly got Sara killed?"

"That wasn't Gil's fault..."

"I'm not talking about the shooting."

"What happened, Gil?" Jim insisted, stalking him down the shadowy hallway.

"She's fine. She's just a bit shaken up." Grissom explained over his shoulder, never stopping moving. Brass sped up his pace, finally catching up with the supervisor.

"I don't know what you know about her that I don't, but either way you've got to get her out of here."

"She wants to stay, Jim."

"I don't care. I want her out of here Gil, before another of these psychos gets their hands on her." The detective demanded.

"She can handle it. I'm keeping an eye on her."

"Like you were keeping an eye on her in that office?" Grissom inhaled sharply, taken aback. "Call Catherine, she can take her place." Brass continued.

"No." Grissom interjected hurriedly. "No." He repeated more gently. "Sara is fine. She can carry on."

"You'd better be right about that." Jim warned, waving a threatening hand in his face.

Warrick sent Brass an intrigued look. He knew what had happened to Sara in the mental institution and knew that both Brass and Catherine had both bawled Grissom out for it. He did not, however, know the details until now.

"Look, Grissom is not always the most considerate person when it comes to the people around him, but he is a good supervisor and he cares about his team." Brass insisted, dodging the subject.

"I'm sure he does." Gonzo nodded. "But that doesn't answer my question: why did you get so angry?"

"I care about this team." He said through gritted teeth, starting to lose patience with the doctor.

"Like you care about Ellie?" There was a pause.

"Ellie gave up on me." Brass mumbled. "Sara's my second chance. I don't want to lose her too."

X x x

"How do you think the guys are doing?" Sara asked quietly, folding the last of her clothes up.

"I don't know. I guess we'll find out soon enough." Cath answered quietly. She was sat on the edge of the bed, ignoring the mountain of packing to be done that was heaped beside her. While Sara had lived out of her suitcase for a week, Catherine had pretty much moved in.

"Cat?" Sara called, getting her attention. The blonde jumped out of her reverie, surprised to find the young woman stood in front of her with a concerned look on her face. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She nodded, suddenly springing to her feet and launching into her packing in a bid to look busy.

"Catherine." Sara called again, taking the spot Cath had just vacated on the bed. Cath sighed and dropped her clothes, looking away.

"I just ... I guess it's just hard to ... you know." Sara did know. Wordlessly, she wrapped her arms around Catherine's waist, pulling the woman towards her. Cath smiled softly, running her hands through Sara's hair. She took a deep breath, revelling in the feel of having Sara pressed so close to her.

They remained like that for a long five minutes, just enjoying the peaceful silence. Finally, Cath pulled out of the embrace, running a hand through her hair and surreptitiously wiping her eyes. "Come on hon, let's get this over with."