A/N Many thanks as always for the reviews. Each and everyone is very much appreciated. of course, this wouldn't be possible without the fantastic beta from picollina789, whose encouragement, advice and patience has meant so very much.
"How are Gris and Sara doing?" Nick asked Catherine as they shifted through the evidence from the now ex-sheriff's house. It had been a week since Grissom and Sara had moved to a safe house facing Lake Jacqueline in Summerlin.
Catherine suspected that even now, Ecklie still felt responsible for giving Garrett the opportunity to abduct Sara and endangering the life of not just Sara and her unborn baby, but Grissom's too. As a result, he had called for all hands on deck, including extra manpower from days and swing shift. He was determined to leave no stone unturned.
Catherine recalled the tension in the air when she'd visited them before the start of shift. As she'd walked into Grissom and Sara's living room, it was obvious that she'd walked in on an argument between them.
Grissom had stood still, clutching a cushion to his stomach, his face creased with pain. Sara's body had been tense as she pushed her hair back from her face with one hand, looking far from happy.
Before Catherine even had a chance to say hello, Grissom had thrown the cushion on a nearby chair with a grimace, before limping out of the open sliding doors and into the spacious backyard.
Catherine glanced briefly in Nick's direction as she continued to concentrate on shifting through the evidence.
"I think the strain of being confined to the safe house is getting to them," she admitted quietly, not wanting to speak ill of their friends. "Not that I can blame them. They're frustrated, they're not sleeping well and on top of that, Gil feels like he didn't do enough to protect Sara and the baby."
"He almost lost his life trying to protect Sara and the baby," Nick said, looking up from the table briefly. "He did the best he could, if not more, under the circumstances. He's being far too hard on himself."
"He's tired, in pain and feeling overwhelmed by everything that's happened," Catherine replied. "He just wants answers, as we all do, and he has to rely on others to find them for him. He's a hands-on kind of guy, Nick, and taking a back seat isn't his style."
"Do you think they'll be all right?" Nick asked worriedly as he searched through a pile of papers. "They haven't had the greatest of starts to their married life together. What they've been through could break anyone."
Catherine shook her head with a smile.
"They'll be fine, Nicky," she assured him. "They broke policy to be together. As long as they've got each other, they'll survive anything."
Nick frowned as two photos fell out of the papers he was looking through. One was of two boys that were clearly brothers. He took a guess that the older of the boys was in his late teens and the younger boy was no more than seven or eight. He flipped over the photo to see if there was a inscription.
"Tyler and Frank D, Summer '76," he read out loud.
Nick picked up the second photo, which showed the older boy alone. On the back was only a name. Tyler Darrow.
He showed Catherine the two pictures. His instincts told him that there had to be some importance attached to the pictures for Rory to have kept them.
"I'm going to run the name and see what comes up," he said as he left the room.
It was late afternoon and the cool breeze that blew in off the lake was enough to cool the trapped heat of the midday sun.
Sara paused a moment as she stepped out into the spacious backyard of the safe house, appreciating the cool breeze that wafted over her and tousled her hair.
Palm trees dotted the property, providing shady spots that fell naturally over the pool that neither had any interest in using since arriving there just over a week ago.
Grissom stood by the low rear wall, facing out towards the lake and the sailboats that dotted the horizon.
It had been just over a week since his desperate fight with Garrett. Although still painful, his broken nose was healing and the splint had been removed. The swelling around his eye was starting to go down and wasn't as puffy as it once was. The vivid, purple-red colored bruise was still quite prominent around his eyes, but it was now tinged with sickly shades of green and yellow.
The bruising on his ribs and stomach was still extensive and still proved painful, despite his efforts to keep ahead of the pain. It made getting to sleep almost impossible. He'd been assured that his cracked ribs were healing, but that was little comfort when he had a coughing fit and had to hold a cushion against his stomach for extra support and comfort.
He turned as Sara approached him, silently handing him a tall glass of lemonade, its sides dripping with moisture. The ice cubes clinked gently together as he took the glass from her with the smallest hint of a smile.
She disappeared indoors briefly before returning to his side with her own chilled glass, standing an arms length away from him.
Grissom took a sip of the cool drink, continuing to watch the sailboats on the lake. He put his glass down on the wall as the silence hung heavily in the air between them. He sucked on his bottom lip. He hated it when they fought, even if it wasn't very often.
Finally, he turned to face her. She was leaning with her back against the wall, still an arms length away from him, staring at the paved floor of the backyard.
"I'm sorry," Grissom finally said, his voice still scratchy and raw after a week of recovery.
Sara placed her glass next to his on the wall as she stepped closer to him, looking up into his face.
"I know you're frustrated, Gil," she replied quietly, moving a stray strand of hair from her face. "I know you want answers and I do too. But we have to trust Catherine and the team that they are doing everything they can to get to the truth. If Dunbar isn't going to talk to Brass or Conrad, he's not going to talk to you. Going to Nevada State Prison will only boost his ego and waste your time."
Sara paused and took a sip of her soda, using the opportunity to gather her thoughts.
"Maybe Dunbar didn't know of Garrett's intention to use me as bait to draw you out, but he still instigated the whole thing."
She paused again, her eyes searching his face as she reached out and touched the side of his head, her fingers covering his ear.
"Garrett almost killed you, Gil."
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
"I love you, Gil, and I need you. I want you around for quite a while yet. Until we know who else is working for Dunbar, let the team handle it."
Gently, he pulled her towards him, being careful of his ribs. He smiled crookedly as his fingers brushed through her hair.
"I love you too, sweetheart," he whispered hoarsely.
His gaze locked with hers and his lips grazed against hers. Her arms snaked around his neck, careful of the cast on her left wrist, deepening the kiss.
Several hours later, they were back in the yard together. Sara hugged Grissom's arm as her head rested on his shoulder, watching the sunset, when Jim arrived.
"Sorry to burst your romantic bubble, but what can you tell me about this fella?" Jim asked as he handed over a photo.
Sara released Grissom's arm as he took the photo, holding it close to his face. Grissom frowned slightly and shrugged as he returned the photo to Brass.
"Should I know them?" he asked, mystified. "What do two boys have to do with Mike Garrett or Rory Dunbar?"
"What can you tell me about a Tyler Darrow?" Brass asked instead.
"I remember that name," Grissom said slowly. "He was found guilty of falsifying evidence. I testified at his hearing. It was my testimony that sent him to prison. Why?"
"Tell me about the case."
"What's this about, Jim?" Grissom questioned, starting to get irritated.
Sara squeezed his hand gently, reminding him to keep calm. He took a deep breath, wincing as a sharp pain lanced over his chest. It was a minute or two before Grissom spoke again.
"Tyler Darrow was a young cop when I was just starting out as a CSI in Minnesota. We'd worked a few cases together. He was one of the few cops that seemed to understand the importance of forensics and evidence, or so I thought, " Grissom began.
Sara and Jim took seats as Grissom continued to talk.
"We'd been working a triple on a homicide and none of the evidence was making sense. Philip Gerard sent us both home, but I couldn't let it go. Something just wasn't adding up, so I went back to the lab and went over all the evidence that had been collected, including all of the lab results. It took awhile, but I learned that Tyler had fabricated all the evidence and the entire case was compromised. I presented all my findings to Philip and Tyler was arrested. During the I.A. investigation that followed, it came to light that tampering with evidence was only the tip of the iceberg and he had fingers in a lot of pies. Prostitution, drug dealing, and extortion... offering protection to the criminals he'd recruited. His family pleaded his innocence, but the case was solid and the evidence against Tyler was sound. I was called to testify against him, he was found guilty and sentenced to fifteen years in prison. His family tried to appeal the sentence, but the conviction stood."
Jim nodded and then handed over another photo, this one of a teenage boy.
"What about him? Remind you of anyone?"
Grissom gazed at the photo a moment. He could tell it was of a teenage boy somewhere in his mid-teens, but it was hard to see the details without his glasses. Finally, he shook his head and gave the photo back to Jim.
"Can't say that I remember him," Grissom admitted, taking a seat next to Sara. "Who is it?"
Jim pushed yet another photo towards Grissom.
"What's the connection between Rory Dunbar, Ty Darrow and the teen?"
Jim moved the photo of the unknown teen and Rory next to each other. Then the photo of the two boys Nick had found.
Jim remained silent as Grissom finally made the connection. He glanced at Jim with wide eyes as everything finally clicked into place.
"Rory Dunbar is Tyler Darrow's younger brother!" Grissom asked shocked by the discovery.
Jim nodded.
"He was known as Frank Darrow then. He was in court the day his brother was convicted. It hit him hard and he always maintained his brother's innocence and the claim that he'd been set up. Any of this sound familiar?" Jim asked. Grissom and Sara both nodded. Mike Garrett had claimed the same thing.
"Did you know that Tyler's wife was seven months pregnant with their third child when he was arrested?" Jim continued.
"Yes, I did," Grissom admitted. "But I-I couldn't turn a blind eye to was he was doing either. I would have compromised myself too…"
"Hey, I'm not judging," Jim soothed, moving his hands in a placating gesture. "You made the right call, Gil. I'd have done the same. Do you know what happened to Tyler after he was convicted?"
Grissom nodded, remembering the teenager Jim had shown him.
"He was found dead in his cell. He hung himself. Frank blamed me for his brother's death. He claimed it was my persecution of his brother that made him take his life."
"Because of the new evidence, we've been able to investigate this family a little further," Brass said. "When Frank decided to follow in his brother's footsteps, he had to legally change his name to separate himself from his family's past. After that, he was able to follow your career. He moved to the same state as you within two years. It seems he'd learned a trick or two from his brother, including recruiting criminals to do his dirty work for him. He just learned from Tyler's mistakes and was better at it. Garrett was just his latest success. And Rory knew Garrett wouldn't need much convincing to join Rory's vendetta against you."
Jim paused a moment before continuing.
"Catherine said that you want to talk to Dunbar. As your friend Gil, I'm advising you to stay clear of him. He almost succeeded in his vendetta. You've got an amazing young wife to consider and in a few months, you'll have your hands full with the baby. They're all that matters."
"Sara, there's nothing more to discuss," Grissom insisted forcefully.
It was three days after Brass' visit and Sara had overheard a very important phone call.
"I almost lost you both, and I can't face that again," Grissom continued. "I won't place you or myself in that position again. Nothing is worse than losing you, or each other. My mind is made up. You and the baby are far more important."
"You've really thought this through, haven't you?" Sara stated.
She started to realize that Grissom was being completely serious about this situation. She'd slowly become aware of a change in him over the past weeks, more so after Jim's discovery of Rory's past. Looking back, she realized the subtle change had begun while he'd been in L.A.
"I have," Grissom said with finality, his voice breaking into her thoughts.
He sighed, his voice softening along with his gaze.
"I love you, Sara, more than I can ever hope to express to you," he admitted. "And as cliché as it sounds, I want to spend the rest of my life with you, grow old with you... and watch our children grow."
"Our children?" Sara questioned with a raised eyebrow and smirk on her face. "So you plan on having more?"
With a cheeky grin, he gathered her into his arms, stealing a kiss.
"The thought has crossed my mind," he admitted, his tone telling her that the decision was entirely hers to make.
Her smirk widened into the full Sidle smile he hoped their children would inherit.
"Let's see how we do with Cricket, first," she suggested, resting her hands on the back of his neck.
"Absolutely," he agreed quickly.
He gave her a slow and lingering kiss, thinking of how far he'd come since learning of the pregnancy.
He'd been terrified at the very thought of becoming a father. Now, he was looking forward to the birth of his first child and considering the possibility of more, if Sara was willing. His unexpected trip to L.A made him realize just how deep his feelings for her were. And he'd been genuinely shaken when Catherine had made him realize he'd started to take Sara for granted and that he'd failed to notice that she was struggling with the pregnancy. He'd vowed then that he'd try harder to tell how her how he truly felt. The last few months had shown him that life was precious and could be taken away in an instant on a mere whim. He'd been afraid of losing her, but now the very thought of a life without her or the baby was unbearable.
When the kiss ended, Sara sighed contentedly.
"When are you planning on telling the team?" she asked.
"Tonight. Jim's coming over and taking us to the lab. Conrad also needs to be informed."
"You're sure you really want to do this?" Sara asked a final time.
"I do."
After leaving Conrad's office, Grissom and Sara entered the break room and were greeted warmly by their colleagues. After all the well wishes and careful hugs, the general chat turned to the future.
Grissom glanced at Sara with a slightly raised eyebrow and Sara nodded and grasped his hand, entwining her fingers through his, squeezing reassuringly. She knew how difficult this announcement was for him. This was their first public display of affection in front of the whole team and the room quickly quietened, as everyone anticipated what Grissom had to say.
"After some careful thinking, I've decided to leave the lab," he said in his soft voice, aware of the shock his statement would make. "I've decided to take a teaching position at the university to try and improve their science program and when the occasion permits, to guest lecture."
"But why?" Nick asked, looking shocked. His expression was mirrored by the others seated around the table. "There's plenty you still need to teach us."
Grissom allowed a small smile as he shook his head.
"You've learned all you need to know. Even Greg has excelled. You're always learning and you'll continue to learn from each other. I have to do this. I have to do what's right for Sara and my family. This isn't a goodbye, just a new beginning. And we'll stay in touch, and we'll visit with Cricket. Conrad is aware of my decision and also agrees with my recommendation of Catherine becoming supervisor. It's time for me to go."
Sara's grip on Grissom's hand tightened. When she glanced at Grissom, he nodded his head slightly in encouragement.
"I've also made a decision," she said. "I've decided to change to day shift once my maternity leave is up. Since Gil will be working days at the university, it's reasonable that I should too. But we can all still hang out and we'll visit."
After several minutes of silence, as the news sank in that Grissom was really leaving, Nick summed up what everyone was thinking.
"We'll miss you, Grissom."
He inclined his head slightly, in acknowledgment. He'd miss them too.