A/N: Sorry again for making you wait so long. Sometimes I could post a chapter faster, but I really really want to get it corrected first. And if you have two people who need to read the chapters and send them back and forth via mail, then it takes some time. So, sorry again, but I hope you understand.

And now enjoy the chapter - which was hopefully worth the wait ;-)

Chapter 35

The next few hours went by fast. Alex, Catherine and Sara had returned to their former talking place in the park. Again they sat down at one of the big picnic tables and started to talk.

Actually Alex had planned to talk to the two CSIs about the argument which led to Sara's suspension, but they never reached that topic. Somehow the conversation drifted from the shift split to the event that finally ended it – Nick's abduction. The psychologist soon noticed that this was an important topic for both women. So, instead of directing them to the suspension-topic, Alex let them talk about their feelings during that incident. Even Sara opened up a bit and admitted how scared she was for her friend.

The story made Alex realize once again how sick some people really are and that – most of the time – the shittiest things happen to those who don't deserve them. The fact that Nick Stokes was fine and still working at the Las Vegas crime lab surprised her even more.

Around 7:00 pm the three women decided to have dinner after Alex reminded the two CSIs of the fact that this wasn't Vegas and nothing was open 24/7 – and the cook of the mansion would definitely call it a day soon. In order to get a warm meal, they left for the restaurant.

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When they finally reached the restaurant, all tables outside were already occupied, so they entered the building. Even the nice tables at the windows were already filled with vividly chatting people, so the three women were forced to take a table near the bar. Neither Catherine nor Alex were happy about that place, considering the proximity to the alcohol behind the bar. But to their surprise Sara didn't even seem to notice. The brunette didn't show any signs of nervousness. No permanent glances at the bottles. She just ate her pasta.

While she was observing her younger co-worker, Catherine's thoughts wandered back to what Alex had said earlier. Obviously the psychologist was right. Sara didn't need alcohol all the time – it was just the easiest way out as soon as trouble came up.

After taking another glance at Sara, Catherine came to the decision that the brunette looked a lot more relaxed since the sleeping arrangements had been settled. Seeing her like that reassured the blonde CSI that it seemed to be a good idea after all – even if she couldn't understand it.

Sara had said herself that she expected to have a nightmare. Wouldn't she be worried about that? Wouldn't she be scared? Catherine had a pretty good idea what her nightmares were made of, so Sara would most likely wake up scared, shaking and disoriented at first – Why the hell did she want to be alone?!? Was her co-worker really so used to that?

Alex's voice brought her out of her musings. "Since the two of you are separated for the night, I have a task for each of you." That earned her curious looks from the two CSIs. The psychologist sent them a smile and fished a few papers out of her folder. She gave a few of them to Catherine, the rest were handed to Sara.

"Those are questionnaires I want you to fill out over the night. Think good and long about your answer and be honest to yourself when you answer them. I can promise you that I'll be the only one who will ever see them. So you can write whatever is on your mind – you don't have to hold back. I also hold the opinion that sometimes it is easier for people to express their feelings on a piece of paper instead of communicating them with someone else."

Alex took a sip of her water before continuing. "Actually those are two questionnaires with a number of questions each. The first one is about yourself. I want to know how you feel about certain topics. I want to know how you see yourself. Stuff like that. On first glance some questions might sound banal, but do me the favor and try to really think about the answers before you write them down. Look deep into yourself and answer truthfully. The answers you come up with might even surprise yourself, because often we don't take the time to analyze our own feelings."

When Catherine and Sara nodded, the psychologist went on.

"The second questionnaire is about your co-worker or better how you see your co-worker." The two CSIs glanced at each other, not really sure what to think of that. "As I said before, the other one won't read your answers, so you can write whatever is on your mind. I simply want you do that in order to understand you and your relationship better. It will help me to prepare the rest of the week – and I think it will help you clear your mind. "

When Sara and Catherine silently started to skim over the papers, Alex interrupted them. "Don't read them now. Do it when you are alone and undisturbed. You'll both have that chance, because the staff has a meeting every night, so I'll be gone for about two hours. I want to talk to Dr. Waters about Albert."

Albert … Sara inevitably cringed when Alex said that name. She really really wished she had never met that man, because now her life was messier than ever.

"I suggest we go to your room now and you grab everything you need for the night. Then I show you my room."

When Catherine and Sara agreed, the three women left the restaurant.

xxxxxxx

When they arrived at Sara and Catherine's room, the younger CSI immediately started to go through her suitcase in order to get some fresh clothes for tomorrow as well as her toiletries. The tension in the room was almost visible. As soon as Sara had found everything she was looking for, she turned to her co-worker. " … well …" She didn't really know what to say. It was one of those awkward moments again. "… I got to go …" She sent Catherine and apologetic smile, not knowing what else to do.

Catherine put her best smile on, trying to reassure Sara. She still felt kind of hurt, but she figured it would be the best to give the brunette an easy way out. "It's okay, Sara. I'll see you tomorrow. I hope you have a good rest."

Sara nodded. She knew what Catherine was doing and she really appreciated it. Once again she admired the people skills of her older co-worker. She always knew what to say. "Thanks. I really appreciate that. Goodnight." The brunette stopped for a second, before teasingly adding. "And don't worry too much about me."

Catherine couldn't help but chuckle.

Alex too had a small smile on her lips. When it was obvious that everything was said, the psychologist turned to Sara. "Let's go." When Sara nodded she turned to Catherine one last time. "I guess I'll be back in about two hours. Take your time to fill out the questionnaire."

"Ok."

Then Alex and Sara headed for the door, only to be stopped by Catherine again. "Wait!" Both stopped dead in track when the blonde CSI ran into the bathroom. They looked at each other with raised eyebrows.

When Catherine reappeared again, she carried the crème from the first-aid-kit. "Put this on your hand before you go to bed. I really think you should leave the bandage off for tonight. And tomorrow morning I can re-dress it again – if you want I mean …" She trailed of and handed the crème somewhat shyly to Sara, who smiled at her.

"Thanks." Sara felt a little bit embarrassed. She had already forgotten about her hand again. To her surprise she felt a warm sensation running through her veins. It was really kind of nice to have someone looking out for you. Maybe she could get used to that after all. With a last "goodbye" Alex and Sara finally left the room.

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After a nice long, hot shower Catherine wondered how she could occupy her mind until Alex was back. Then she remembered the questionnaires she had put on the bed before going to the bathroom. Determined to answer the question as well as possible to help Alex help them, she went to her suitcase, looking for a pen. When she finally found one she went over to the bed and lay down. The blonde took a deep breath and started filling out the questionnaires.

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Meanwhile in a room on another floor of the mansion …

Sara was sitting at a little desk with a laptop in front of her. On their way to Alex's room, both women realized that Sara wouldn't be able to write anything with her injured hand. To get the questionnaires filled out anyway, the psychologist made her laptop available. And here she was. Typing with just your left hand wasn't the fastest way to express her feelings, but it was less painful and probably still faster then writing with her right hand. Sara had quickly skimmed over the questions before and knew that it would probably take a while to answer all of them. With a deep breath she prepared herself for a long night and read the first question.

A/N: Next chapter will be a longer one. We will get a lot of questions and a lot of answers.

BTW, thanks to all those who reviewed!! Don't hesitate to do it again ;-)