XVII - AMAZING GRACE
Warrick had a dozen different emotions and thoughts ricocheting through him as he stood silently in the hallway holding Nancy's tiny hand. The first emotion - the largest emotion - was anger. He was angry at the whole damn situation. The second emotion - surprisingly enough - was one of extreme tenderness. Something about the little girl holding his hand so trustingly had broken through his normally reserved wall of cool, and he found himself genuinely concerned for her, and by association, her sister.
Nancy was yawning tiredly, trying not to cry as she heard her sisters muffled sobs through the kitchen door. Her smudged eyes would look at Warrick every few minutes, but so far she had said nothing since leaving the kitchen. Warrick thought she was going to fall asleep were she stood, and he crouched down on his haunches to regard her more closely.
"As soon as Grissom - my boss - says its okay, we can go back into the kitchen and be with your sister, okay Nancy?" His voice was surprisingly gentle.
"We're going to have to leave the commune. Papa Enoch will be real mad that we told you about Scotty. He said we weren't allowed to talk about him no more." Nancy's voice was sad, her small face serious, as she looked at Warrick.
"Is Mr. Winters really your father?"
The small girl shook her head. "No. My real daddy is dead in heaven with my mommy." Her voice was matter of fact, and Warrick half-smiled at her calm statement.
"How come you live here?"
"Don't know." Nancy shrugged. "Scotty and Katie and me moved a lot after mommy and daddy died. Papa Enoch was nice to us and gave Scotty a job on the farm, and we just moved in. All the kids call him Papa Enoch."
She looked at Warrick again, her large eyes unblinking. "I don't like calling him Papa Enoch. He's not my daddy." She yawned again. "Scotty's never gonna come get us, is he?"
Warrick blinked. How to answer that?
When he didn't respond, Nancy nodded her head matter-of-factly. "He's with mommy and daddy in heaven. He'll be happy there."
Warrick felt the sudden hot sting of tears burning his eyes, and quickly blinked them away. Nancy had leaned into him, and she was singing softly, her voice sweet and innocent.
" 'Mazing Grace, how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me -
I once was lost, but now I'm found,
Was blind but now I see."
As Warrick hugged the small girl tightly to him, the anger he had been feeling for the last few days slowly dissipated; replaced by heart felt pain and tremendous sorrow. Nancy was singing for her dead brother; Warrick knew this as surely as he knew his own name. He thought of Delia and realized it was past midnight - officially the twelfth anniversary of her death. His heart still mourned the sister he had loved. Before he realized what he was doing, his soft baritone merged with Nancy's childish voice.
" 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
how precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed."
Nancy's small voice faltered but Warrick continued, crouching in the hallway and singing softly as she rested a trusting head on his shoulder.
"Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
'tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.
When we've been there ten thousand years,
bright shining as the sun,
we've no less days to sing God's praise
than when we first begun."
Warrick smiled as he finished the hymn, his hand lightly stroking Nancy's hair. The little girl was nestled against him, silent tears streaking her tiny face as she smiled at Warrick.
"That was Scotty's fav'rite song," she whispered at him solemnly.
Warrick nodded. "It was my sister's favorite song too."
* * * * *
"This is a nightmare." Grissom's voice was tense, and he rolled his shoulders in an effort to relieve his tight muscles.
Beside him in the kitchen, Brass shrugged. "We can't take them all back to the station with us." He looked at Catherine for back-up when he said this, before continuing. "Katie gave us a fairly good list of the men she saw the night those two kids were murdered, so let's take them in for now. It will take us a couple of days to sift through all the items we've collected from here, and if anything else comes up we can always come back."
Brass looked to the far corner of the kitchen were Sara sat, talking softly with the stricken Katie. Warrick had returned Nancy to her sister, and the small girl was sleeping soundly against her side.
"Nick and Warrick went to determine the men in question, right?" Catherine's tone was soft, and she arched a brow in Grissom's direction. Grissom nodded in agitation, before sighing.
"Unfortunately, none of them are Enoch Winters. Katie says he was here that night."
"We'll take him in anyway. He's the de facto leader of this group, and that gives us ample reason to hold him for a little while - I can probably stretch it out 24 hours or so." Brass looked at Grissom, smiling tightly.
Catherine nodded in agreement. "And I'm sure once she's not so upset about her brother, Katie will provide us with more information. She knows more than she realizes."
Grissom sighed. "What are we going to do with her in the meantime? She can't stay here - they'll know right away she's the one who fingered them. We all know what happened to her brother - the same thing would happen to her."
"Well, we can't take her into protective custody. Especially not with a little girl. Mobley won't go for it, and no one has threatened her yet." Brass's tone was grim. "We'll take them to the station for now, and figure out what to do with them later."
* * * * *
Katie and Nancy were riding back to the station with Warrick; Nancy already sleeping soundly in the back of Warrick's car. For whatever reason, little Nancy had developed a strong attachment to him, and had insisted they drive with him. Sara had helped Katie pack a small bag of essential items, assuring the young woman that she would not be returning to the commune anytime soon - if ever. Katie had packed only a few items of clothing, an old photo album, and a battered Curious George she claimed Nancy never slept without. Looking at the threadbare and nappy animal, Warrick didn't doubt the verity of that statement.
Katie was very quiet as they left the commune, watching the farmhouse is it faded into the background, sighing.
Warrick fiddled with the radio tuner as he drove, before flipping off the radio in disgust. He glanced sideways at Katie, quickly noting her extreme pallor.
"You okay?"
Katie looked at him and smiled shakily. "I don't know what okay is anymore. I haven't been off the commune more than a handful of time in the last two years, and I'm scared."
"Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Warrick had turned back to his driving. "How did you arrive at the compound?"
Katie shrugged. "Katie is not my full sister, did you know that? She's my half-sister. Her mother was my father's second wife. My mother died about 20 years ago now, when I was seven."
Warrick's eyebrows rose at the surprising news that Katie was 27 years old, and he shot a quick glance in her direction again. He didn't really understand where Katie was going with this non-answer to his question, but he didn't interrupt her.
"My father was a lot older than my step-mother, but they loved each dearly. Scotty and I were both thrilled when they married, and thrilled when Nancy was born. We all adored her to pieces. Dad and Mary where killed in a car accident 2 ½ years ago. Scotty and I were given joint custody of Nancy, but neither of us knew what to do. I was just 25, and Scotty was 26. And Nancy - she was so sad. We were all sad." She smiled at Warrick as she said this, nervously twisting the rings on her fingers.
"A friend of Scotty's wrote him about Papa Enoch and the commune. He said there were children for Nancy to play with, and a real sense of family there. He invited us to join them - said anyone was welcome as long as they loved God. So we just picked up and left one day. Sold Dad's house, packed up our stuff, and arrived!"
"And you never left." Warrick's tone was matter of fact.
"Never left. Scotty's friend wasn't there anymore. I don't even remember his name."
* * * * *
By the time they arrived back at the office and separated the men they had brought from the commune, it was 4:30 in the morning. By the time they had fingerprinted and processed everyone, it was later than that.
Greg had stumbled sleepily from Grissom's office as Sara and Nick had trooped by, carting boxes of photo albums, boots, shoes, several rifles and guns - even four separate computer printers - and had groaned when they had jokingly ordered him back to the lab.
"Did you bring everything that wasn't nailed down?" he teased. Nick had merely snorted, but Sara had smiled.
"Nick will be bringing in the kitchen sink once we dump this stuff."
Warrick had carried a sleeping Nancy into the lounge room, gently settling her on the vinyl loveseat and covering her with his leather jacket. Katie had trailed in tiredly after him, slumping into an empty seat and mutely accepting the lukewarm coffee Warrick pressed into her hand.
"Try to rest. If you can remember the name of Scotty's friend, or if you think of anything - no matter how minute you think it is - come and find one of us." Warrick smiled at Katie, exceedingly gentle, before turning towards the door of the lounge and turning off the overhead lights. "No one will bother you for a while. Just relax. You're safe here."
______
Author's note: Short chapter, I know. Next chapter - questions, leads, revelations and a barbeque. Thanks for the reviews!
Warrick had a dozen different emotions and thoughts ricocheting through him as he stood silently in the hallway holding Nancy's tiny hand. The first emotion - the largest emotion - was anger. He was angry at the whole damn situation. The second emotion - surprisingly enough - was one of extreme tenderness. Something about the little girl holding his hand so trustingly had broken through his normally reserved wall of cool, and he found himself genuinely concerned for her, and by association, her sister.
Nancy was yawning tiredly, trying not to cry as she heard her sisters muffled sobs through the kitchen door. Her smudged eyes would look at Warrick every few minutes, but so far she had said nothing since leaving the kitchen. Warrick thought she was going to fall asleep were she stood, and he crouched down on his haunches to regard her more closely.
"As soon as Grissom - my boss - says its okay, we can go back into the kitchen and be with your sister, okay Nancy?" His voice was surprisingly gentle.
"We're going to have to leave the commune. Papa Enoch will be real mad that we told you about Scotty. He said we weren't allowed to talk about him no more." Nancy's voice was sad, her small face serious, as she looked at Warrick.
"Is Mr. Winters really your father?"
The small girl shook her head. "No. My real daddy is dead in heaven with my mommy." Her voice was matter of fact, and Warrick half-smiled at her calm statement.
"How come you live here?"
"Don't know." Nancy shrugged. "Scotty and Katie and me moved a lot after mommy and daddy died. Papa Enoch was nice to us and gave Scotty a job on the farm, and we just moved in. All the kids call him Papa Enoch."
She looked at Warrick again, her large eyes unblinking. "I don't like calling him Papa Enoch. He's not my daddy." She yawned again. "Scotty's never gonna come get us, is he?"
Warrick blinked. How to answer that?
When he didn't respond, Nancy nodded her head matter-of-factly. "He's with mommy and daddy in heaven. He'll be happy there."
Warrick felt the sudden hot sting of tears burning his eyes, and quickly blinked them away. Nancy had leaned into him, and she was singing softly, her voice sweet and innocent.
" 'Mazing Grace, how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like me -
I once was lost, but now I'm found,
Was blind but now I see."
As Warrick hugged the small girl tightly to him, the anger he had been feeling for the last few days slowly dissipated; replaced by heart felt pain and tremendous sorrow. Nancy was singing for her dead brother; Warrick knew this as surely as he knew his own name. He thought of Delia and realized it was past midnight - officially the twelfth anniversary of her death. His heart still mourned the sister he had loved. Before he realized what he was doing, his soft baritone merged with Nancy's childish voice.
" 'Twas grace that taught my heart to fear,
and grace my fears relieved;
how precious did that grace appear
the hour I first believed."
Nancy's small voice faltered but Warrick continued, crouching in the hallway and singing softly as she rested a trusting head on his shoulder.
"Through many dangers, toils, and snares,
I have already come;
'tis grace hath brought me safe thus far,
and grace will lead me home.
When we've been there ten thousand years,
bright shining as the sun,
we've no less days to sing God's praise
than when we first begun."
Warrick smiled as he finished the hymn, his hand lightly stroking Nancy's hair. The little girl was nestled against him, silent tears streaking her tiny face as she smiled at Warrick.
"That was Scotty's fav'rite song," she whispered at him solemnly.
Warrick nodded. "It was my sister's favorite song too."
* * * * *
"This is a nightmare." Grissom's voice was tense, and he rolled his shoulders in an effort to relieve his tight muscles.
Beside him in the kitchen, Brass shrugged. "We can't take them all back to the station with us." He looked at Catherine for back-up when he said this, before continuing. "Katie gave us a fairly good list of the men she saw the night those two kids were murdered, so let's take them in for now. It will take us a couple of days to sift through all the items we've collected from here, and if anything else comes up we can always come back."
Brass looked to the far corner of the kitchen were Sara sat, talking softly with the stricken Katie. Warrick had returned Nancy to her sister, and the small girl was sleeping soundly against her side.
"Nick and Warrick went to determine the men in question, right?" Catherine's tone was soft, and she arched a brow in Grissom's direction. Grissom nodded in agitation, before sighing.
"Unfortunately, none of them are Enoch Winters. Katie says he was here that night."
"We'll take him in anyway. He's the de facto leader of this group, and that gives us ample reason to hold him for a little while - I can probably stretch it out 24 hours or so." Brass looked at Grissom, smiling tightly.
Catherine nodded in agreement. "And I'm sure once she's not so upset about her brother, Katie will provide us with more information. She knows more than she realizes."
Grissom sighed. "What are we going to do with her in the meantime? She can't stay here - they'll know right away she's the one who fingered them. We all know what happened to her brother - the same thing would happen to her."
"Well, we can't take her into protective custody. Especially not with a little girl. Mobley won't go for it, and no one has threatened her yet." Brass's tone was grim. "We'll take them to the station for now, and figure out what to do with them later."
* * * * *
Katie and Nancy were riding back to the station with Warrick; Nancy already sleeping soundly in the back of Warrick's car. For whatever reason, little Nancy had developed a strong attachment to him, and had insisted they drive with him. Sara had helped Katie pack a small bag of essential items, assuring the young woman that she would not be returning to the commune anytime soon - if ever. Katie had packed only a few items of clothing, an old photo album, and a battered Curious George she claimed Nancy never slept without. Looking at the threadbare and nappy animal, Warrick didn't doubt the verity of that statement.
Katie was very quiet as they left the commune, watching the farmhouse is it faded into the background, sighing.
Warrick fiddled with the radio tuner as he drove, before flipping off the radio in disgust. He glanced sideways at Katie, quickly noting her extreme pallor.
"You okay?"
Katie looked at him and smiled shakily. "I don't know what okay is anymore. I haven't been off the commune more than a handful of time in the last two years, and I'm scared."
"Do you mind if I ask you a question?" Warrick had turned back to his driving. "How did you arrive at the compound?"
Katie shrugged. "Katie is not my full sister, did you know that? She's my half-sister. Her mother was my father's second wife. My mother died about 20 years ago now, when I was seven."
Warrick's eyebrows rose at the surprising news that Katie was 27 years old, and he shot a quick glance in her direction again. He didn't really understand where Katie was going with this non-answer to his question, but he didn't interrupt her.
"My father was a lot older than my step-mother, but they loved each dearly. Scotty and I were both thrilled when they married, and thrilled when Nancy was born. We all adored her to pieces. Dad and Mary where killed in a car accident 2 ½ years ago. Scotty and I were given joint custody of Nancy, but neither of us knew what to do. I was just 25, and Scotty was 26. And Nancy - she was so sad. We were all sad." She smiled at Warrick as she said this, nervously twisting the rings on her fingers.
"A friend of Scotty's wrote him about Papa Enoch and the commune. He said there were children for Nancy to play with, and a real sense of family there. He invited us to join them - said anyone was welcome as long as they loved God. So we just picked up and left one day. Sold Dad's house, packed up our stuff, and arrived!"
"And you never left." Warrick's tone was matter of fact.
"Never left. Scotty's friend wasn't there anymore. I don't even remember his name."
* * * * *
By the time they arrived back at the office and separated the men they had brought from the commune, it was 4:30 in the morning. By the time they had fingerprinted and processed everyone, it was later than that.
Greg had stumbled sleepily from Grissom's office as Sara and Nick had trooped by, carting boxes of photo albums, boots, shoes, several rifles and guns - even four separate computer printers - and had groaned when they had jokingly ordered him back to the lab.
"Did you bring everything that wasn't nailed down?" he teased. Nick had merely snorted, but Sara had smiled.
"Nick will be bringing in the kitchen sink once we dump this stuff."
Warrick had carried a sleeping Nancy into the lounge room, gently settling her on the vinyl loveseat and covering her with his leather jacket. Katie had trailed in tiredly after him, slumping into an empty seat and mutely accepting the lukewarm coffee Warrick pressed into her hand.
"Try to rest. If you can remember the name of Scotty's friend, or if you think of anything - no matter how minute you think it is - come and find one of us." Warrick smiled at Katie, exceedingly gentle, before turning towards the door of the lounge and turning off the overhead lights. "No one will bother you for a while. Just relax. You're safe here."
______
Author's note: Short chapter, I know. Next chapter - questions, leads, revelations and a barbeque. Thanks for the reviews!