Author's Notes: Couldn't fool anyone on the whereabouts of the real samples. Great job. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: Still not mine.

Gassed
Chapter 14

Lindsay closed her cell phone and tossed it toward the end of her bed in frustration. Her trembling hands seemed to be further mocking her so she crossed her arms across her chest so she couldn't see them. Fat tears filled her eyes, threatening to spill over. That was all she needed right then, to break down in sobs in front of Danny and Flack. Fortunately Flack had stepped out of the chamber to keep a better look out for danger. Danny had moved from the side of her gurney to stretch out on several the of the seats that could fold out to form almost a gurney of their own. The tubing that was pumping the oxygen into his nose butted up against his glasses and it was difficult to see if he was awake or asleep.

"What's the matter, Montana?"

"Uncle Freddy still won't answer his phone. He's had time to make it home by now. Why won't he answer? What if something happened to him? Maybe I shouldn't have insisted that he leave."

Danny sat up, removing his glasses so that he could rub his eyes before resting them back on his nose. "I think it's probably too soon to get so worked up over it. Maybe he decided to stop to pick up something to eat on his way. What could have happened to him?"

Her nose was itching beneath the mask but she was sure Danny would fuss at her if she tried to lift the heavy plastic in order to ease the burning sensation. She blew out of her mouth hoping the air would somewhat ease it. She cut her eyes over to Danny. "The stress of today could have caused him to have another heart attack. The guy who tried to kill you might have followed Uncle Freddy home; he couldn't have been happy that his plans were thwarted. Anything could have happened and I'm stuck in this claustrophobically small cylinder unable to even go by and check on him."

Danny reached over and gave her a little nudge. "Hold on a second." He stood and walked to the door of the chamber, glad that his oxygen line gave him enough room to do so. He motioned for Flack to come over. He spoke to his friend for a couple of minutes before returning to once more sit on the gurney facing her. "I talked to Flack and gave him your uncle's address. He's going to have a unit in the area do a welfare check. Will that make you feel better?"

She shrugged, still looking unhappy. "Great, once more someone else has to do what I'm not capable of."

"Uh oh, looks like Grumpy decided to make an appearance after all." The Staten Island accent was prominent in his deep rich voice but it had a teasing quality to it. "Why do I have a feeling this is about more than just worrying about your uncle?"

She refused to look at him, turning her head to the opposite side of the room so that the waves of her hair blocked his view of her face. "Stuff it, Messer."

Her tone was uncharacteristically bitter and the tone cut him to the core. He frowned, reaching out to cup the bottom of her chin, turning her head back to face him. His blue eyes seemed to pierce straight into her soul. "Out with it, Montana. What's got you bent all outta shape? If I've done something to upset you, tell me what it was so I can fix it."

One of the tears that had welled up in her eyes slipped past her defense and plunged a trail down her cheek. Her lower lip quivered beneath the oxygen mask as she stubbornly willed the rest of the tears to stay put. She didn't need to burst into sobs to add to the weakness she was feeling.

Danny's frowned deepened, the corners of his mouth almost reaching the edge of his chin. He reached out and thumbed the tear away and then gathered her in his arms for a comforting hug. "I'm sorry, Montana. Whatever it is, I'm sorry. I'm sure Freddy's fine. He doesn't strike me to be someone that needs worrying about."

"Unlike his weak, pathetic niece, right?" Her voice, already muffled by the oxygen mask, was further muffled against his chest but Danny was pretty sure he heard her correctly. Cupping her head in both hands, Danny pulled it back so that he could look directly at her. Since he'd met her, she always seem to possess this air of confidence in herself and her abilities. Where was this insecurity coming from?

"Hey, nobody thinks you are weak and pathetic. Why would you even say that, Montana?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I collapsed at a crime scene today and had to be carried out. I'm stuck here in this bed while you and everyone else is up walking around. I can't remember vital parts of what I did at that crime scene that could have a bearing on this case. I may have put my favorite uncle in jeopardy simply because he came to check on me. Flack doesn't even trust me with my own gun. You and he are standing watch over me like I can't protect myself. And the ultimate is that I'm sitting here blubbering like a baby when you were just trying to make me feel better."

The Danny Messer usual way of handling emotional scenes was to joke his way through or to ignore the situation until it was better but some inner sense told him that his usual method would have the opposite effect here. He shook his head. "This is an effect of the gas right? It's gotta be cause there's no freakin' way you can actually believe what I'm hearing ya say. Montana, that could have just as easily been me that took the inside of the townhouse and I would have been the one to have sucked in more of that gas. Don't forget that I'm the one the guy came after trying to kill earlier and he probably would have if you hadn't sent Freddy to check on me, so I think that means you protected me. Sure, Flack and I are here but it's not just to protect you; we both might be in danger. This guy even took out Mac so I don't think we can afford to take chances with anyone's safety; that's why Flack is sending someone to check on your uncle. Maybe I'm moving around more than you are but in case you haven't noticed; I'm on a short leash as well. What happened at the crime scene will come back to you as the carbon monoxide exits out of your system. You've seen that already. When you first woke up you didn't even remember arriving at the crime scene and now you can remember pieces of it. And as for as you sitting here blubbering, well, I can't say I mind the excuse to hold a beautiful woman in my arms for a minute or two." He gave her a little smirk, hoping to coax a smile out of her.

Lindsay swiped at her eyes with the crook of her arm. She looked a little less upset but only slightly. "I noticed you didn't touch on the fact that Flack doesn't trust me. My hands were shaking like an alcoholic going through the DT's. I can't blame him for not wanting to give me my gun but it didn't stop it from hurting any less."

"Let me show you something." Danny offered, pulling back enough so that he could hold his own hand out for her to see. Though he tried with all his effort to hold it absolutely still, there was still a slight tremble that was only noticeable if you were looking directly at him. "It's better than it was when the ER doc first examined me. I get that you are scared about the long term effects of the gas cause I'm scared for myself as well. We just gotta trust that we got treatment in time that we'll make a full recovery."

Behind him, her cell phone began to ring. Danny reached back for it, glancing at the caller ID before handing it to Lindsay with a smile. "It's Freddy."

She took the phone from him and flipped it open, "Uncle Freddy, are you okay? Where have you been?"

"Relax Doodlebug, of course I'm fine. What's with sending the Calvary to check on me?"

"You weren't answering your phone and I was worried something happened to you."

His chuckle tickled her ear. "I guess you could say something did happen to me. Your mama happened. I swear I think that woman has surveillance cameras in my house or something. I no sooner walked in the door and my phone started ringing. I got an earful about how Doug had hidden all her credit cards to prevent her from booking a flight out to check on you and was I sure you were okay. I heard the beeping of the other line when you called but there was no way I could get her to stop asking questions long enough for me to switch over to answer the other line. I assured her once again that you are going to be fine and that you were being well taken care of."

She blinked, causing a few lingering tears to slide down her cheeks. "Thanks for talking her off the ledge again. I'm sorry if I scared you and your neighbors by having a patrol car stop by and check on you."

"Keeps the neighborhood on their toes, gives them something to gossip about. I may spread the rumor that I'm a material witness in some major crime or something like that just to make it sound even better. You sure you're okay over there? It's not like you to overreact like that."

A rosy blush crept into Lindsay's cheeks. "I guess its just been a long day. I'll be okay."

"Let me talk to Danny. I'm sure he's right there with you." Obediently, she handed the phone to Danny who said hello. "Be honest with me son, and if you can't with her right there, excuse yourself so that you can be honest. Is she okay? She sounds upset and panicky. Now, her mother has been known to panic over being down to the last 2 rolls of toilet paper until she gets to the store, but not Lindsay. Never Lindsay. Right now she sounds like she needs talking off a two inch ledge at the top of the Empire State Building. Do I need to come back or can you talk her off it?"

Danny recognized that he was now in a precarious position. If he walked away to answer Freddy's question, he would be playing into Lindsay's earlier stated fears of feeling weak. She needed to hear what he had to say just as much as Freddy. "Lindsay is fine sir. Like she said it's been a long day and the carbon monoxide is playing hell with her emotions right now. There's nothing to worry about. By the time you get back here tomorrow, she'll be her usual self again."

"If you are sure. I'm trusting you to take care of her." There was an almost hard tone to his voice, and Danny knew that there was a distinct warning there. Take care of Lindsay or face him. Danny gave Lindsay a slow wink.

"We're taking care of each other. We'll see you in the morning." He hung up the phone and returned it to Lindsay. "As scary protective as he sounds, I'm not sure I ever want to meet your dad or brothers. It's obvious family isn't just important in your family; it's everything. It's nice to see."

Lindsay gave his arm a squeeze. "I'm sorry things are so tough right now with your family."

Danny nodded, not sure if he could handle the shift in conversation but willing to try if it got Lindsay's mind off her own insecurities. "How did you find out?"

She lowered her eyes slightly. "I kind of stuck my foot in where it didn't belong. Or rather I stuck Uncle Freddy's foot in. I knew it bothered you that your parents hadn't come to check on you so I asked Freddy to try to convince them to come. Your mom told him about Louie. I'm so sorry, Danny. That had to be hell on you especially right on top of losing Aiden."

Danny shrugged. Talking about his own feelings was not a subject he'd ever been comfortable with. "I should have gone to see him when Mom called. I didn't and he died. That's on me. I gotta live with that guilt that I missed my chance to say goodbye. Anybody else's blame doesn't even come close to that."

"I'm sorry you had to go through it alone." Lindsay admitted softly.

Danny looked at her, his own eyes now red rimmed. "Me not saying anything wasn't personal. I just couldn't talk about it."

She shook her head. She knew all about how the demon of grief could weigh you down and make it difficult to discuss with anyone. Very few people and practically no one outside of her family had been privy to the enormity of the grief she still felt at the loss of her friends. Hell, the only one in New York besides Freddy that even knew about the shooting was maybe Mac and that was only because it was a part of her personnel record that had followed her from Bozeman. And if Mac knew he hadn't said anything to her about it. "I understand. You don't owe me an apology or explanation."

Now that he had started, it was like Danny couldn't stop until he unloaded the whole story. "Mom had called me that afternoon just before we all left the lab. She was busting my chops again about needing to visit Louie and I knew she was right but it was just so damn hard talking to him and him just lying there. Besides, we were all getting together to remember Aiden and I felt like I needed that time, that she deserved to have me honor her memory like that. And while at that bar, I discovered I was right. The sadness was still there but remembering the good times, hearing stories about her, some familiar and some totally new, helped make the sadness bearable. I felt better when we left that bar than I had felt all day but I still wasn't ready to go home and certainly wasn't ready to go to the hospital."

Lindsay remembered that day well. Even though she had never met Aiden, she felt like she knew her better after hearing everyone talking about her. Afterward everyone had said goodbye but suddenly Danny asked her if she'd like to grab some pizza with him. She'd been surprised by the invitation but had quickly accepted. They hadn't talked about anything important but before either of them realized it, it was almost midnight. Danny had made sure she got back to her apartment before heading home himself. "That's why you wanted to go to dinner."

Danny nodded. "I didn't want to be alone but I didn't want to talk about Aiden anymore either. I knew you would do that for me. I got home and the message light on my answering machine was blinking. Ma just blurted it out that Louie had died and hung up the phone. It was like I had been sucker punched. Still, I listened to the message about ten times hoping I had heard it wrong."

Instinctively Lindsay hugged him, much the way he had held her only moments earlier. What a horrible way to learn that your brother had died. After a few minutes, Danny pulled away. Although his eyes were red, no tears had fallen. He continued his story.

"I did come close to calling you after I finally realized the message wasn't going to change. I picked up the phone and had dialed all but the last digit of your number and then I just hung up the phone. I don't know why." He paused. "That's a lie. I know exactly why I didn't call you. I knew if I called you, you would be right there. You'd be supportive and compassionate, everything I needed but didn't deserve. Instead I went to the hospital. My parents had left but the funeral home hadn't picked up Louie's body yet. The hospital personnel let me stay with him until they did. After that I called Mac and took a sick day and then just got on my bike and rode. I went through two tanks of gas before I finally went home and collapsed in bed."

Lindsay knew just how far he could go on a tank of gas and realized he must have ridden for most of the day in order to go through two tanks of gas. "No one at the lab knows?"

Danny shrugged. "I think Mac knows. There's not much that gets past him but he's not going to say anything unless I do first; that's just his style. But no, I haven't told anyone. It's not like Louie and I were that close before he was injured. Seems almost hypocritical to make a big deal out it now."

Lindsay nodded. "I won't say anything to anyone. I'm also not going to tell you not to blame yourself cause I know that's easier said than done. But I know what happened now and if you need to talk…"

Danny gave her a wistful smile. "I know who to go to. Thanks, Montana."

"Detective Monroe, I'm going to take a blood sample to check your carboxyhemoglobin levels." Dr. Touger came into the chamber looking over her chart. Flack followed behind him, discreetly verifying that he was actually suppose to be there. The doctor also looked over at Danny. "Jill told me about the attempt on your life before she left. I understand that you officially checked out of the hospital AMA in order to maintain your safety and that of Detective Monroe. That however does not change the fact that you still need treatment. I'm going to check your levels as well. Once I get those levels back, we'll do a third treatment."

Danny nodded. "Thanks. My headache is almost gone; that's a good sign isn't it?"

"A very good sign." The doctor agreed then looked at Lindsay. "How about your headache?"

"Still very much present and painful. Jill gave me something for pain but it hasn't helped." Lindsay admitted. She didn't add that she hadn't followed Jill's orders to get some rest along with the painkiller. Too much had happened that had kept her for sleeping.

Dr. Touger nodded. "I'll give you something else once I take the blood samples." He looked at Flack. "I know you are worried about another attack. Once we start the treatment, this chamber will be sealed for 90 minutes. Chances of anyone getting in here is pretty well impossible. Detective Messer would benefit from being in here during the treatment but I would recommend that you stay outside in the antechamber. If something should happen, you'd be freer to give chase if you weren't locked up in here."

Lindsay suddenly dug her fingernails into Danny's arm. He winced and looked at her worriedly. "Montana?"

"A 9 mm handgun. That's what I couldn't remember. I found a 9 mm handgun at the crime scene. Stella didn't mention finding a gun."

Danny smiled at her. "See Montana, I told you it would come back to you."

"I'll call Stella and let her know while the doc here is taking his samples. I'd hate for him to get needle happy and start sticking one in me just for the fun of it." Flack announced as he once more stepped out of the cylinder.

- CSI: NY - CSI: NY - CSI: NY -

Adam led them to the elevators, talking as he did. "Okay, see, I thought about just hiding it in plain sight in the fridge in the break room. But then, I thought about other things people leave in there and decided that might not be the best idea. So where else would it be cold enough to protect the contents of the cooler and yet still be safe?"

"You put it in one of the storage drawers in the morgue." Mac supplied.

Adam looked a little disappointed that he'd figured it out so easily. "Yeah, but not just any drawer. I figured if our suspect figured out we'd switched the samples before he left he might look there and try all the unused drawers so I asked Sid if there were any bodies in storage that wouldn't be going anywhere and wouldn't be an obvious choice. Sid said there was an unidentified homeless guy that came in yesterday. Seemed perfect."

Once in the morgue, Adam pulled out the drawer and picked up the cooler. "One set of samples, perfectly safe."

Stella took the cooler from him. "Come on Adam, let's take these up to the lab and start processing them. Mac, you should go lie down in your office for awhile. We'll get you if we find something."

Mac knew it was useless to protest. He nodded. "Don't take any chances. We have no idea what's in those vials. I want them analyzed under a vent hood in case it's toxic. Before you start analyzing the samples, maybe you divide the contents of each of the vials into separate containers and hide them in different places. That way when our suspects realize Adam tricked them and they come back for the real vials, we've got a little insurance."

Adam smiled. "Dude… I mean, Boss, you would make a great conspiracy theorist. Very devious. That's why they pay you the big bucks."

Mac frowned. "I'm just tired of these guys being so many steps ahead of us. You started us on the road to being ahead of them and I don't want to take any chances of them regaining the lead."

Just before the elevator opened at the lab, Stella's phone rang. "Bonasera…Hey Flack… she did? Great…Was she certain about that?…Okay, thanks." She hung up the phone frowning.

Mac looked at her. "What's happened now?"

"Lindsay remembered what else was missing from the evidence we took from the house. She remembers collecting a 9 mm handgun. There was no weapon in her evidence box when we took it."

"We knew there was a possibility that more evidence was taken; why do you look upset?"

Stella looked from Mac to Adam. "Because Sid's autopsy report showed our vic was killed with a 45 cal. The weapon Lindsay recovered wouldn't have been our murder weapon."