Author's Note: I'd like to thank stlouiegal and phnxgrl for their reviews. stlouiegal: Clark is a sick man. This chapter starts in the next scene in the episode. Also, I gave Finn's scene to Sara so she would have a little more screen time. Enjoy!

Chapter 37

Nick found Nolan in the break room. He was hunched over a coffee mug, displaying all the grief and helplessness of a father who had lost one child and feels there is nothing they can do for their other child. Nick wanted to help Nolan not feel so depressed, but the only way he could really do that was to bring Cara back. At least they had some good leads. He opened the door and walked in. He took a seat and looked at Nolan, trying to gauge where the man's head was.

Nolan spoke first. "I already heard. You didn't find Cara."

"No. Not yet. But we know who took her and we know why. A guy named Kieran Clark. There was a- a shrine in that barn. It seems as though the suspect has an obsession with a young woman. We haven't identified her yet, but she looks just like Cara."

"He took my two girls because Cara reminded him of someone?"

Nick nodded. "That's what it looks like, yeah. But… only a matter of time…"

"Before we get Cara back. Is that what you're gonna try and sell me?" Nolan was getting angry.

Nick shook his head. "John, I'm not trying to sell you on- on anything here, but I'm sure as hell not ready to quit. We're gonna find her."

"No doubt we will." Nolan stopped talking and Nick nodded, glad Nolan was thinking positively. Turns out he wasn't. "Just like we found…" Nolan's voice cracked, "Lexi."

"I'm sorry about Lexi. But hey, you can't just fold and throw in now. Come on."

Nolan was angry again. "I'm no tourist, Nick. I've run a crime lab for seventeen years. Cara's been missing for twenty-four hours, and that lunatic already killed Lexi." His eyes were filling with tears. "You and I both know how this thing's probably gonna end."

Nick stared Nolan down. "I'm not about to quit. And you're not, either." Nolan sighed. "You hear me? Hey, look at me." Nolan slowly raised his eyes again and Nick held them with his own, tapping on the table to emphasize his point. "I will find her."

Russell met with Sara and Greg in the layout room to find out what they had. "Okay, what do we know about Kieran Clark?"

Greg started the report. "He's known as the Bug Guy. He goes around to schools and kids' birthday parties, educating them about insects and reptiles."

Sara shook her head. "It's terrifying that he works around children."

Russell nodded and grabbed a picture from the table. "And the young woman in these photos, the one he's obviously obsessed with?"

Sara glanced at the pages in her hands. "According to the police report, her name is Jennifer DeMarcus. She used to work at a pet shop in Henderson. That's where they met. She had one date with Clark before she realized he was a head case, and then she told him that she wasn't interested."

"Let me guess. He wouldn't take no for an answer."

Sara nodded. "He kept coming around the pet shop, and then he started parking his car in front of Jennifer's apartment at night. She called the police on him several times."

"Did she get a restraining order?"

Greg jumped in. "Left town. Moved back to Georgia. Put as much distance between her and Clark as she could."

Russell looked back down at the layout table. "Clearly, he's still obsessed with her. So, what do you think? Kieran goes to the mall, sees Cara looking very much like Jennifer, and he decided to grab her."

Sara interrupted Russell's theory to add a few details. "Except Cara was with Pete Corday, so Clark had to get rid of him first."

Greg continued the story. "And by the time he was done with Pete, Cara was with Lexi, so he had to take them both."

"Right."

Hodges walked in. "The stone particles that Nick found in Lexi Nolan's head wound were coated. I identified a mixture of ethanol, alkylalkoxysilane, and isopropyl acetate."

Russell recognized one of the things Hodges said. "Oxysilane? That sounds like a sealant of some kind."

"Actually, it's an impregnating sealant, used to protect concrete from water and staining, uh, primarily walkways, driveways."

Sara turned to Hodges. "There was no evidence of sealant in the dumpster where Lexi's body was found, which means it had to come from where she was actually murdered."

Greg leaned on the table. "Lexi tried to escape. She was still feeling distress from the scorpion sting. Maybe she was near a driveway when Kieran Clark caught up to her and smashed her head into it."

"The sealant in Lexi's wound wasn't entirely cured," Hodges shook his head as he finished his report, "meaning that it was probably applied within the last couple of days."

"Okay. All right." Russell straightened up. "Let's do a search within a five-mile radius of where Lexi's body was found. We're looking for somebody who recently had their concrete driveway sealed."

Nick walked into the A/V room to find out what Sara had. "Hey."

"Hey."

"I heard you got something?"

"Yeah. Lexi's body was found right here." Sara had pulled up a map and highlighted the place where the construction dumpster was located. "Two miles away, on Harvard Drive," Sara highlighted the other house, "this house had their driveway sealed on Wednesday. Now, we know that when Lexi ran she didn't get very far, so Clark's gotta be holding Cara somewhere nearby."

Nick tore his eyes from the map. "I should get out there."

"Wait for backup."

Nick nodded. "I will."

Sara shook her head and muttered to herself as he took off. "No, you won't."

Nick drove out to Harvard Drive to check out the driveway the canvass had uncovered. He parked the SUV across the street and got out, looking at the driveway. It had a homemade "keep out" sign across it. He looked around and spotted the car Kieran Clark drove was parked around the corner from the keep out sign. It was in front of a yellow house with a porch. From the outside, it looked like a normal suburban home.

Nick made up his mind. There was no way he'd be waiting for backup. Every moment he waited was another moment closer to the time Cara might be killed. Nick pulled his gun from its holster and checked it before hurrying to the front door. He paused by the door and listened, but it sounded like his approach had gone unnoticed. He stepped in front of the door and kicked it in.

"LVPD!"

Clark was home. "Get over here."

"Kieran Clark!"

So was Cara. "No! Let me go!"

Clark was holding Cara in front of him with a knife in the hand that was around her body. Nick pointed his gun at him. He couldn't afford to miss, so he took his time with his aim, hoping he would be able to resolve this without resorting to killing Clark. Cara was terrified. She was still wearing the clothes Lexi had bought for her, but her makeup had run a little.

"Drop the knife."

Clark wasn't about to do that. "Don't come any closer."

Nick softened his voice. "Put the knife down."

Clark adjusted his grip on the knife. "I'll slit her throat."

"Hey, me and you, we can work this out. But you don't need to hurt her."

"What I need is for you to leave."

Nick couldn't do that. "Now, we both know that's not going to happen."

"Go!" Clark screamed at Nick and Cara gasped. "I will kill her."

Nick held up his hands, his gun no longer pointed at Clark. "I know about the girl from the pet store. Jennifer. I mean, isn't that the girl you liked?" He lowered his arms, his gun at his side.

"I love her."

"Okay. All right. But she's not her." Nick gestured to Cara. "Her name is Cara Nolan. She's thirteen years old. She's never done anything to hurt you. I know… when you saw her at the mall, you thought…" Nick took a couple steps to get closer to Clark, "'That's Jennifer'. But take a closer look." Clark looked at Cara. "That's not her. She's a child, and she… she needs to go home."

Clark still held Cara close to himself. "You're wrong." He moved the knife to her throat. "She's mine."

Nick raised his gun again. "Let her go!"

Tears were running down Cara's face. She was terrified, but she couldn't do much more than gasp in fear. Clark's knife was at her throat. Any moment now, he could decide to end the girl's life. Nick wasn't going to let Nolan lose another daughter. He took careful aim.

Clark was looking at Nick. "I can't let you take her."

He moved the knife to cut Cara's throat and Nick pulled the trigger. Cara stumbled back as Clark's hold on her vanished and the knife clattered to the floor. Clark's body collapsed at the same moment, his life ended the instant Nick's bullet entered his skull. Cara looked up at Nick and he rushed forward to envelope the girl in his arms so she would know she was safe at last.

"It's okay. It's all right. I'm a friend of your dad's."

Cara was sobbing in relief. "Thank you."

Nick looked down at Clark's body. "It's gonna be all right."

Nick went straight to Cara's hospital room after he'd been cleared by I.A. Nolan was inside with Cara, who looked like she was going to be alright despite the ordeal she'd been through. Nick knocked on the door to get Nolan's attention and they nodded to acknowledge each other. Nolan excused himself from his daughter's side and went to speak to Nick.

"How's she doing?"

Nolan sighed. "Physically, she's okay. She's been through a hell of an ordeal, but… she's alive because of you. You never gave up. Thank you for bringing her back to me."

"You're welcome."

"You know, Nick… I've been thinking about the choices I made. Working weekends and evenings. Missing school plays, soccer games. Sometimes going days without seeing my girls. For years, I've been putting other people's families ahead of my own. I don't want to do that anymore."

Nick's eyebrows raised. "So, what are you saying? You're gonna hang it up?"

"Well, Cara needs me. Now more than ever."

"It would be a big loss for your crime lab."

Nolan nodded. "Not with you there."

"John, we've talked about this. I've already got a job."

Nolan looked down and sucked in a deep breath. "I'm not asking you to just join the team. I'm asking you to run it."

Nick looked away to process this. He was being asked to become the director of the crime lab in San Diego. It was a huge opportunity. No, Nolan couldn't really be serious. "You want me to take over the crime lab in San Diego?"

"I know it would be in good hands with you at the helm."

Nope, Nolan really had just said that. Nick was floored. The first time Nolan had talked to Nick about coming to San Diego, it had just been a sideways shift in geography. Now he was being offered a huge promotion. It was a lot to take in.

Nick couldn't help stammering when he responded. "Uh, I- I, uh… That's a big job."

Nolan could understand what Nick was feeling. "You don't have to answer me right now. Just promise me… you'll think about it?" Nick sighed and nodded. Nolan shook his hand. "Thank you, Nick." He turned and reentered his daughter's room.

Nick stood outside it, still a little in shock. He had no idea what he was going to do now.

A/N: That's it for this chapter. I will take a week or two off from posting to proofread (again) the next episode before I post it. Stay tuned!