Chapter 28
Grissom carefully arranged the framed photograph of Lindsay on his office desk. Upon his return, his first task had been to put up some of Lindsay's best artwork on the walls and a few photographs of his daughter. Some photographs included him in it. He had taken many of Lindsay and Catherine but he did not display those.
Grissom managed to position the photograph to his satisfaction and proceeded to sit down at his desk. He had come in about an hour early to enable himself to catch up. He wasn't surprised at the amount of work that had piled up on his desk. But catching a glimpse of his daughter's cheery smile in the photograph, Grissom did not regret a single moment of his vacation time. It had been mostly wonderful.
Spending unlimited time with Lindsay had been pure joy. Spending time with her mother, Catherine could not be classified so easily. The woman granted him moments of sheer ecstasy and evened those out with seconds of unbearable agony. And as always, Grissom shook his head ruefully. His thoughts drifted back to her. It was inevitable.
The remaining week he had spent at home after their heart- wrenching conversation had not been easy. They had talked more. But the conclusion of those talks was still not completely satisfactory to Grissom.
He was learning the hard way, that while you could love a person completely, you couldn't make the person love themselves if they refused to. Catherine stubbornly clung to the idea that her leaving was the best thing for them all. He had been unable to do or say anything to amend that.
In frustration, Grissom had finally made her promise to tell him when she would leave. Right now, the cast from her leg had not been removed. So there was no worry of her leaving just yet. Catherine had promised to tell him before she left and to not just disappear. He knew that she would break that promise if it suited her, but it was the best he could do. He would not use force to make her stay. He would just have to cope with things as they came.
When they had been able to ignore the unease between them, they had made many happy memories. Grissom simply resolved to treasure those memories. He had learnt that getting angry simply did not help anything. And besides, without him being conscious of it, he had already forgiven Catherine for her mistakes. She had given him Lindsay. He would forgive her far more for that miracle in his life. He had made up his mind to accept the consequences of life and move on.
"Put on some weight from all that vacation time, have you?" was Brass' greeting as he stepped into Grissom's office. He was the first person to come by, so far.
Grissom simply raised his eyes towards his friend. He was flipping through a report.
"Did you know that our lab's success rate has dropped 0.7% in the last month?" said Grissom, with a slightly annoyed voice.
"Oh, what a catastrophe! A 0.7% drop," snorted Brass.
Grissom simply gave him a look.
"Oh come on, Gil. The kids were doing fine. They just lacked a bit of motivation and finesse sometimes. The temporary supervisor wasn't all too happy to get bumped to nights. So they dropped a few sticks. It happens," said Brass.
"At least none of them are applying for a promotion or anything now," responded Grissom.
Brass rolled his eyes. He tossed the file he had brought in, on the table.
"Here, thought you might like to read this," said Brass.
Grissom gave him a curious look, as the detective did not elaborate. Upon reading the name on the file, Grissom's expression darkened.
"When did you get this?" asked Grissom. He skimmed through the pages recording Eddie Willows' criminal charges.
"A few weeks ago. Brought it by when I visited with Warrick but I left it in the car. Didn't feel like a good time to share then," said Brass casually.
"Have they found him?" asked Grissom.
"No, Ed Willows hasn't turned up on the radar so far. The kids traced Catherine's story. Found the place where he left her, found the vehicle. But no Ed Willows. Was a dead end," said Brass.
Grissom frowned.
"He left her for dead," said Grissom in a quiet voice.
Having known Grissom for so long, Brass knew that he was highly disturbed and deadly furious when he used that voice.
"Looks like it. But she survived," he said, watching Grissom carefully.
"If they get him, she'll have to testify," continued Brass.
Grissom read through the charges listed. His frown deepened.
"The most serious charge you have against him is assault and battery. Jim, he nearly killed her. Where's attempted murder?" said Grissom, in the same tone of voice.
Brass had anticipated this already. He took a deep breath.
"We can't gather enough conclusive evidence to charge him with that. The doctors who treated Catherine talked to us, but it wasn't enough. With Catherine's statement, that's the best we can do," he explained patiently.
"So at best he'll go away for five maybe six years and be out to hound her again, just when she's gotten back on her feet? That is if you catch him," sneered Grissom.
Brass sighed.
"Thought you should be clear on that," he said.
Grissom looked away. He was seething, Brass knew.
"Hey, don't shoot the messenger. I thought you'd better hear it from me than someone else. I'll leave you to calm down for a bit. Don't forget the assignments," said Brass, getting up to leave.
"Oh, and Grissom," said Brass, with his hand on the door knob.
"Don't do anything I wouldn't do. Be smart," advised Brass, as he left.
