Gerri fought to get her jacket on as she trotted out the front doors of the lab, running smack in to Grissom in the process.
"Where's the fire, Gerri?" he asked, steadying her as she finally worked her arm through the sleeve.
"I was stupid, sloppy. I forgot something, but now…." she stopped, knowing that she was making no sense whatsoever, and Grissom was giving her a look that confirmed that fact. "I missed a blood smear on the glass shard. I'm heading back down to the church to talk to Father Dominick to see if I can get blood samples from all of those who were in the room from the time Sister Katherine was discovered and the time we got there."
"You think someone from the church did this?" Grissom asked, raising an eyebrow and making Gerri unconsciously think of Spock.
"Maybe. You were the one who said that they had to be Catholic." Both of them looked across the parking lot as Sara impatiently honked the horn in the Tahoe. "Gotta go." Gerri grinned and gave into a passing notion in her head. She stood up on tiptoe and brushed a quick kiss against Grissom's cheek and then dashed off. She hopped into the Tahoe and slammed the door, looking out the windshield at Grissom. The lead CSI was standing there, looking completely shocked and confused. Sara stared at Gerri, astounded at what she had just seen.
"Come on, Sara, go. Step on the gas before he figures it out and comes over here." Gerri urged her, buckling her seatbelt and leaning back in the seat. Sara obeyed and dropped the SUV into drive and took it out of the parking lot. Both women looked into the rearview mirror and saw Grissom shaking his head and turning slowly to enter the building. Gerri burst out giggling.
"What the hell was that?" Sara demanded, looking at Gerri incredulously.
"I honestly don't know." the giddiness wore off rather quickly and she dropped her head into her hands, with a slight smile on her face. "A sudden urge, and I did it."
Sara shook her head, "Braver than I am." she muttered.
Gerri looked up, with a sudden light in her eyes. "You're not going to be upset with me, are you?" she asked cautiously, dropping back into an old pattern from high school. She had always been overly cautious when attempting a relationship with anyone she knew her friends had liked.
"No." Sara laughed, "Paranoid lady, aren't you?"
"Just have to make sure. Not that I think there's much hope for Gil and I ever again." she turned with a mischievous grin on her face. "You and Gil, now that's a possibility."
"Right, when he notices that I'm not a toddler anymore." Sara snorted.
"Give him time, Sara. Like I said, it won't happen overnight."
*****
Grissom stalked back to his office, unsure of whether to be happy or upset with Gerri. That girl, woman, he correct himself, frustrated the heck out of him. He closed the door halfway when he entered the office and went over to one of the myriad shelves that lined the office. He gently picked up his tarantula's cage and carried it over to his desk. He sat in his chair and carefully opened the lid. He reached inside and gently lifted the spider out, letting her walk across his hands. Handling the tarantula was a sort of meditation for him, something to relax him and allow himself to think. He watched the spiders slow, graceful movements as she traversed the contours of his hands. He let himself fall into silence, replying Gerri's actions over and over in his mind.
The sound of footsteps coming across his office snapped his attention away from the spider. Catherine stood in front of his desk.
"Hello, Cath." he said, offering the tarantula towards her. "Care to hold her? She's very gentle."
"Thanks, but no thanks, Grissom." she sat in the chair watching as Gil replaced the spider in her cage and closed the lid. He stood and carried it back over to the shelf where he had taken it from a few minutes earlier. "Nicky said you looked a little intense when you came inside." she informed him as he sat back down. Grissom vaguely remembered Nick scuttling out of is way as he had went through the hallways.
"I was."
"May I ask why?" Catherine crossed her legs and leaned back in her chair. Grissom sighed and looked towards the ceiling.
"She kissed me." simple reply for Catherine, the result of a not so simple situation.
"Who kissed you Gil?" Catherine was string wide-eyed at him.
Another sigh. "Gerri. I stopped her to ask where she was going, she was headed back to church to get them to consent to giving us comparison samples. She thinks someone from the church committed the murders. She said goodbye, and then suddenly stood on tiptoe and kissed me."
"Full on lips or just a peck on the cheek?" Catherine asked, trying to hide the smile on her face. Grissom gave her a stern look.
"This isn't funny, Cath." it wasn't funny, not to him, it was confusing. "It was on the cheek, and it surprised the heck out of me."
"Surprise isn't always a bad thing, Gil." Catherine admonished him. "Besides, what's the harm of a little kiss on the cheek? Maybe she still likes you."
Grissom grimaced. "That's what I'm afraid of."
*****
"Thank you for taking the time to see us, Father." Gerri said as the were ushered into the priest's small office.
"Of course. We want this matter resolved as quickly as you do. What can I do for you ladies today?" he smiled at them, wondering what they wanted. Instinct told him that he wasn't going to like it very much.
Sara spoke up. "We need to get blood samples from everyone who was in that room before we got here."
"You think someone in the Church committed the murder?" the color drained from his face, and he crossed himself. "Unbelievable, but we will consent to your request. As I said, we want this resolved quickly."
"Thank you, Father." Gerri smiled, "May I ask who was I the sachistry before we came?"
Father Dominick leaned back and thought for a few moments. "Let's see. There was me, of course. One of the altar servers, I believe it was Janet Altman, but she's too young to do something like that." he shook his head slowly. "She was the one who found the body, poor dear. Oh, and there was Father Thomas. Janet got him when she couldn't find me at first. Father Thomas found me a few minutes later and told me what had happened."
"No one else?" Sara asked.
"No, we three were the only ones."
Gerri nodded and began to stand. "Thank you, Father. If you and Father Thomas could come down to our lab later, we can do the blood samples then." Father Dominick nodded and rose to show his visitors out.
"We will, in a couple hours? I have to conduct the youth mass tonight."
"That works for us. If you could also contact Janet's parents?" Gerri mentioned as they stepped out the door into the warm evening.
"Of course. You two ladies have a nice evening, and Father Thomas and I will see you soon. God bless."
Gerri and Sara nodded as they walked towards the Tahoe. We're going to need more than God's blessing on this one, thought Gerri. She sighed and leaned back in her seat, hoping that Gil wasn't there when they got back. She wasn't quite ready to explain her actions to him, not just yet.
*****