A/N: Hey guys, I'm so so so so so sorry for not updating sooner. This week was really busy and everytime when I had time to write the right words just didn't want to come out. But today I finally managed to finish another chapter.

I just want to thank you for all the reviews you submitted. I'm glad you think my story is (kind of) realistic. I hope I can keep this up until the end.

As for the story itself: I promise that the hike will bring an unexpected twist - at least I hope I can surprise you.
Now enjoy the chapter!


Chapter 44

Sara groaned. She had no idea what she did to deserve such torture. A tiny part of her started to believe that Albert and Alex were a team and after Albert's mental attack, Alex now tried to break her physically. Okay, this was very very very unlikely, yet this whole hiking thing sucked.

The air was awfully sticky and after a good hour of walking, Sara was drenched in sweat. Despite the fact that they were in a shadowy forest, the brunette felt like she was in a big sauna.

And the weight she had to carry wasn't helping at all. Sara didn't know how it happened but somehow Catherine and Alex had tricked her when the psychologist had divided the stuff they needed for their trip. Catherine had to carry the compass, a tiny little object which didn't weigh anything at all. Sara on the contrary got the map AND the backpack – and that thing definitely was heavy! And what did Alex carry? According to her, the responsibility! Sometimes life just sucked.

And as if that all wasn't enough, the young CSI had also trouble walking. The ground was sandy and deep, which made it impossible to get a good grip – and the fact that they were just about to climb a small hill wasn't helping at all. Every step was exhausting and every few feet the ground under her feet slipped away, causing her to stumble. They would probably die before they reach the camp.

Catherine wasn't happy about their situation either. The blonde cursed silently as another one of those damn insects which seemed to have followed her from the start bit her. What the hell did that have to do with teamwork and trust?

Like Sara the older CSI had turned her pants rolled up, but unfortunately it didn't do much good despite giving the damn little flying monsters more space to attack her. This had to be the most ridiculous trust building activity that was ever invented.

The air was sticky and Catherine felt like she was walking on a beach in deep sand. Her body felt like it had already run a marathon, whereas they just left the mansion about an hour ago. Especially her feet were killing her. The blonde brought comfortable shoes for the seminar, but they were definitely not for hiking.

Catherine was glad that she just had to carry the compass. She glanced at Sara, who was walking, or better, stumbling a few feet in front of her. Now she almost felt sorry for her younger co-worker who she made carry the backpack. That additional weight had to make the whole experience a lot more exhausting. But there was no way that she would offer help to Sara. The brunette was younger and probably in better shape – she would manage.

It wasn't that Catherine thought she was in bad shape, but she was never really into sports. Somehow a balanced diet was everything she needed to look the way she did. And what they were doing here had similarities to extreme sport – and she just hated it. It made the good mood she had that morning slowly disappear.

Alex walked ahead of them. The psychologist didn't look as affected by the weather and the ground as she and Sara. That wasn't really surprising, considering that Alex told them that she spent every free minute doing some kind of sport. But she had to find walking up that hill at least a little bit exhausting, 'cause she had stopped talking about fifteen minutes ago – not that Catherine was complaining.

The older CSI had no problem with talking in a relaxed environment, but it wasn't a good idea while she was under stress or great exertion, because then she used to lose her temper fast. Catherine knew that she had to be careful today. She hoped that Alex was aware of that and would react accordingly.

Lost in thought Catherine didn't concentrate on the path in front of her anymore and missed the rock that lay in the way. It wasn't really big but solid enough to cause her to stumble and finally fall.

Sara and Alex stopped dead in tracks when they heard a short scream behind them followed by a thud and loud cursing. They both spun around to find Catherine flat on the ground, trying to get up again. It was a rather amusing sight, due to the fact that the slippery ground made the blonde lose her balance over and over again. While Alex just grinned at her, Sara immediately hurried to her side.

"Oh my God, Catherine! Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?" The brunette was concerned. It was bad enough that her hand was injured. She definitely didn't wish her co-worker something similar. She knelt down beside Catherine, grabbing her arm and helping her up.

The second Catherine was up on her feet again she spun around, glared at the stone which still lay innocently on the ground.

"Catherine?"

Before answering the blonde kicked the stony evil thing with all her strength, which made it fly somewhere into the woods. Unfortunately it wasn't a very good idea for the foot which kicked it. "Ouuuuch!!! That hurt. Damn little bastard!" Now she was hopping around on one foot, cursing loud.

Alex came to stand beside Sara and they were both watching the spectacle in front of them. The psychologist was still smirking and even the young CSI couldn't help the grin that started to appear on her face. Sara knew that it was wrong, but still … it was kind of funny.

Suddenly Catherine turned around and started hopping in the opposite direction, which meant to Sara and Alex. When she saw their smiling faces, she sent them one of her famous death glares.

"That's not funny at all! Wipe that grin of your faces!" Angrily the blonde limped past the two women and headed straight for on old stump, which lay a few more meters up the hill on the side of the path. When Catherine reached her destination she slumped down and started immediately to remove her shoes and socks and inspected her feet. The one which kicked the stone looked okay, even the pain was almost gone again, but unfortunately there were the first signs of blisters, too. The blonde groaned. When she noticed that Alex and Sara where still looking at her and didn't move at all, she just shook her head. "We are taking a break – NOW! That means you can stay where you are or you can come and sit down here." Her voice didn't leave any room for arguments.

Alex and Sara looked at each other, still amused by Catherine's behavior. It was Alex who spoke up. "I think we'd better not argue with her, if we don't want to end like that stone." The CSI immediately nodded in agreement and they made there way over to Catherine and sat down beside her.

"Are you okay?" Again it was Sara who was worried about Catherine's condition. Her voice was quiet and unsure. She really didn't want to upset her co-worker further.

Catherine turned to her, ready to snap at her for asking such a stupid question, but immediately changed her mind when she was met with worried brown eyes. She took a deep breath to calm down. "I'm not hurt, if it's that what you're asking."

Sara seemed relieved to hear that.

"But I'm not really okay." Now it was time to voice her displeasure about this whole activity. "I'm exhausted. My legs hurt from walking on that damn sandy ground. I'm totally soaked with sweat and I have probably a thousand insect bites. And now I'm not just sweaty but also dirty from the nice fall I just enjoyed and above all my feet start getting blisters. So…no, Sara, I'm not really okay." Before Sara managed to reply, Catherine went on with her rant and turned to Alex. "What the hell has this to do with team building anyway? I mean, come on! This is physical torture. We are hardly talking because we are all out of breath. I don't see your damn point."

Sara was speechless. From first hand experiences she knew that Catherine could lose her temper every now and then, but after yesterday or even that morning she didn't expect it during that seminar. The brunette thought about replying, but decided against it. The two CSIs were alike in that department. They both needed to cool off before a reasonable discussion was possible again.

Of course Sara wasn't happy to be here and she cursed this whole trip since the moment they started walking, but a part of her believed that Alex knew what she was doing and that everything they were doing had a purpose. So she had kept going.

Alex was caught off guard by Catherine's outburst. She really didn't see that coming. She had to admit what they were doing here wasn't exactly a walk in the park, but she didn't think of it as that horrible. The blonde was obviously angry and exhausted – a dangerous combination. "Please calm down, Catherine. I do realize that hiking in this weather is exhausting. The other years the weather was never as sticky as today. I swear, normally it's comfortably cool." She paused, trying to find the right words. "This trip is about spending time together. You are right, we didn't spend as much time talking as we should have. But I honestly think especially for you, it's important just to spend time together."

Catherine took a deep breath. Alex was right. She needed to calm down. This wasn't helping anyone. "I'm sorry. Can we take a break anyway? Please?" She hoped that a short break would lighten her mood again.

Alex smiled at her. "Sure. Actually that sounds like a good idea. Maybe we can catch up with that talking thing. How does that sound?"

The blonde CSI nodded. Everything including a break sounded good. And Sara looked also happy about the suggestion. The brunette took the backpack off, sat on the ground and leaned against the stump, relaxing her aching legs. She opened the backpack and took the three bottles of water out, handing her two companions one and keeping the last. "So what do we talk about?"

Alex accepted the bottle happily and tried to find a comfortable position on the stump before answering. "How about we continue were we stopped before we – how did Catherine put it? – run out of breath?"

Sara and Catherine groaned simultaneously. Their last topic wasn't exactly one of their favorites: Eddie's death.

With Albert they just talked about it shortly. Well, that wasn't really a talk – more a monotone from the old psychologist. He used it to support his statement that Sara wasn't good at her job but instead screwed up everything all the time. When he mentioned it Sara didn't defend herself, because deep inside she knew that he was right. With that one case she screwed up royally. And that was still nagging at her.

Catherine tried to defend her younger-coworker – at least for about thirty seconds. Then Albert started to attack her most vulnerable side – being a mother, a bad one according to him. They didn't talk about the case again later and more important: Catherine and Sara had never talked about it before. And by now Alex had probably figured that out.

"I have a question for both of you." Alex started after a while. "Think about it first and then answer. And I want you to be honest. I said that before and I will again. A friendship is built on honesty and as long as you lie to each other – even if it is to protect the other one – you will never be able to trust completely." The psychologist looked from one CSI to the other. She knew damn well that this issue was difficult for both women - the questionnaires had told her – but they needed to deal with it. "You might not like the idea and it most likely will make you uncomfortable, but I want you to tell each other your answers."

That earned her a curious look from Catherine and a scared look from Sara. "I know that Catherine said that she was just overreacting back then and I know that Sara said that she knows that not finding the murderer wasn't her fault. But is this really true?" Alex turned to Sara. "Do you feel responsible for not being able to close the case? Be honest to yourself and be honest to Catherine and try to explain why you feel that way." Then she turned to Catherine. "You said you overreacted, but are you sure you really really really don't blame Sara for not solving the case? Doesn't a little part of you still think that she could have done more? And if so, what could she have done."

Catherine and Sara looked at each other. Their eyes said both the same: 'I don't want to answer that!'


A/N: Well, that's it. What do you think? Any sort of comment is welcomed. I try to hurry with the next update but I can't promise anything. Sorry in advance if it takes a while again.
PS: I've never been to Louisiana, so I don't know anything about the ground or insects. You can consider that the not so realistic part of the story ;-)