see previous pages for DISCLAIMER.. :-)
The Return Home
It was inevitable. They both knew it. But in all the time they'd spent in the countryside, Grissom and Sara had successfully staved thoughts of their return home. Their ill memories temporarily forgotten were too gruesome, least of all, for Sara to manage – this much, Grissom believed. Yet, in hindsight, he also believed he may have done a disservice to Sara, as he pondered his mistakes one by one: his intimacy with Sara; the decision to whisk her away from the city, and his failure to insure she kept her medical appointments with her assigned resident psychiatrist, as Dr. Wheeler had instructed.
Grissom pulled up into his garage and glanced over at Sara. It was just hours earlier, he thought, Sara was beaming and seemingly undaunted by her future. This was also reflected in her countenance. Yet, unbeknownst to Grissom, Sara was internalizing. She was fearful of revisiting the vivid terror of that fateful night, in that it might cause her to lapse – as her own mother did – and be branded with the stereotypical label of a woman gone mad. She was, unquestionably, afraid of losing her mind.
They exited the vehicle when Grissom spoke, disrupting Sara from her mentation.
"It's going to be okay, Sara." Grissom said, reassuringly.
"I know. I'm just…"
Sara paused. Although she struggled to maintain her composure, the tears quickly swelled in her eyes. She tilted her head, watching the few droplets fall freely under the influence of gravity; it was indicative to how she, herself, felt. The overwhelming sadness consuming Sara was replaced by a nauseous sensation, attributed to the memory of her assault, causing Sara to hurl uncontrollably. Stunned, Grissom attempted to take hold of Sara and provide her with as much comfort as he could, when she flinched.
"Can we go inside?" Sara said, her voice quivering.
Grissom nodded, then ran his fingers across Sara's face to remove the streaks of wetness. He stood before her looking into her eyes. The pain on her face engulfed Grissom. But for the moment, there was nothing he could do. He'd earlier cautioned himself that Sara was expected to experience low periods during her recovery – yet he never realized the impact of witnessing such an episode would have on him….