Chapter NINE

Catherine walked around the room. Higgins sat there watching the shadows from the light bounce off the table. "Who gave you the message?" Catherine asked suddenly.

"A friend." Higgins replied.

"Who's your friend?"

Higgins shrugged. "Just a friend."

Catherine sat down and stared at him until he started to be self-conscious and began to shift nervously in his seat. "A name?"

"No name." Higgins folded and unfolded his hands.

"When did your friend give you the message and why now?" Catherine watched him carefully, as he seemed to think about his answers.

"He came in the morning after work. He asked for a favour and seeing as it was only a message, I didn't see any harm. He said to deliver the message to a Doctor Gil Grissom at CSI in person. I did."

Catherine's jaw twitched as she thought of another question. "Name?" She asked again. He shook his head. "What about his work?"

He smirked. "Ah, well now that would depend on the person asking."

Catherine furrowed her brows in confusion. "How do you mean?"

"Are you Gil Grissom?" He asked leaning forward.

Catherine blinked and pulled out her cell phone. As she opened it the door opened. Brass walked in with Grissom following. "Gil?"

Grissom didn't look at Catherine. Higgins stood abruptly as Grissom walked towards him. Brass stood between them. "Do you want to ask or are you going to do something?" Higgins asked in a shaky voice.

Grissom breathed in through his nose and nodded. "Where does he work?"

Higgins smiled. "Local, quite close too. He doesn't like you much. Not much high praise, but your job. He likes the things you do. He's been watching you for a while now, surprised you hadn't noticed." Higgins saw Grissom's eyes drop to the ground. "I have a message."

Grissom's eyes snapped up and he took a step towards him. "Well?"

He shook his head. "First things first." Grissom nodded slowly. "Who's the brunette?"

Grissom turned to the door where Higgins was looking. "Sara." He answered turning back.

"Well, he seems to like you Miss Sara. It wouldn't surprise me if you weren't next on the list of things he has installed." Grissom advanced him. "I wouldn't Doc. You want the message or not?"

"Tell me now!" Grissom seethed.

"What did the bodies tell you about your past?" Higgins animated with his hand. His raised it to his mouth and pulled his index finger and thumb across his lips like a zip, turned it and threw the imaginary key away. Brass took him back to his cell.

Grissom's eyes shot back and forth trying to piece the clues together. Catherine watched him thinking. He still faced the wall and only turned when he walked straight from the room to his office. Catherine and Sara followed.

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He opened his filing cabinet and rifled through it. When Catherine walked through the door he began to speak. "Past? Past? Past cases? Like these ones, its here somewhere, where is it?" He closed the draw roughly and moved to the next one.

"Gil?" She listened to him rambling until he stopped and slowly pulled out a case file that looked old and tattered. "What's that?"

Grissom handed it to her. "I should have know." He leaned against the filing cabinet and rubbed his face. "Jeff Samson. Police officer 13 years ago. He was killed at a crime seen in front of his brother, his partner. He watched him die while I froze and let the killer get away."

"You froze?" Catherine asked.

He nodded. "I was a rookie. I had never fired my gun. Jeff's brother ran after the killer and killed him in cold blood. He went to prison on a manslaughter charge for about 6 years maybe more, but he never forgave me."

Sara approached him and touched his face. His eyes softened and locked with hers. "What's the brothers name?"

Grissom covered her hand and sighed. "I didn't recognise him. He'd changed his name."

"Who?" Sara pressed lightly.

He closed his eyes. "James Samson." He paused and focused on Sara's eyes. "Now James Quinn."

"No!" Sara gasped and covered her mouth. "We had him, we had him right here." She said angrily.

Catherine left to put an APB out on Quinn.

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6 hours and still no phone call or James Quinn. Brass searched his house and found nothing. Grissom sat in the break room and stared off into space as he tapped his pen on the table. Sara sat next to him and leaned against his arm. He put his arm around her and held her, not changing the rhythm of his pen as he continued to think.

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Quinn sat and watched the child. He was staring at him intently and it was making Quinn nervous. "Why are you looking at me?"

Mike blinked. "So I can hear you." He said evenly. His little body shook in fear, but he was just as good as his father at keeping calm in scary situation and although this was new for him, he didn't know whether to be scared or not. He was confused.

Quinn leaned forward and furrowed his brows. His eyes narrowed. "Hear me?" Mike nodded.

Mike watched as Quinn turned in his seat and started the engine of the van.

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Catherine studied the old and new file to find similarities and found many, all to do with the way the body was found. Stabbed and lots of blood. Turning a page she saw a picture of Quinn. He was leaning against a large white transit van. It looked brand new, as she read more about the past and release forms from prison, Catherine noticed that Quinn still owned the white van. It was on off only a few things that were still in his name before he went to prison.

Pulling out her cell phone, she told Brass that she had a hunch and to keep eyes out for the van and gave him the number-plate.

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Sara's eyes were closed as she leaned her head on his shoulder. He was still tapping the pen, but it was a soft tapping. Grissom's cell phone rang and he reached for it without disturbing Sara. "Grissom."

"White Transit Van under the name of James Samson. Last seen in the car park of the Bellagio hotel 4 days ago. I have the security videotape. He was following you and we have a recent picture to put out. I've got people out looking."

Grissom closed his phone and looked down at Sara. "Brass is putting a look out for Quinn's car."

"Can we do something? I can't stay here." She asked groggily.

"Why don't we go home and wait? You need to sleep." He kissed her hair and got up.

"Only if you try too." Grissom nodded and grasped her hand tightly.

Chapter TEN

"Very quiet. Do you think Mummy and Daddy will be home soon?" Quinn turned to Mike after getting no response. "When do Mummy and Daddy get home?" Mike just stared at him. "Mmmm." He hummed and turned back to look out the front windscreen.

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Grissom and Sara walked through the door and noticed that the place had been cleaned. "At least the guys didn't make a mess." Sara mumbled dropping to the couch.

Grissom rubbed his temples and sat down with her. "I don't understand these messages." He muttered. His head was hurting and the throbbing was beginning to cloud his mind.

"Gil. Come here, lay back." Sara pulled his shoulders back against her chest. Her fingers massaged his scalp, allowing his mind to clear a little. "Better?"

"Yeah." He waited a few more minutes before attempting to regroup his brain.

'I got the most important piece to the Dr. Gil Grissom puzzle.'

Mike

'If you want to find me, you need to go home.'

No Mike or Sam

Blood

'Local, quite close too. He doesn't like you much. Not much high praise, but your job. He likes the things you do. He's been watching you for a while now, surprised you hadn't noticed.'

Close to the Lab

Office buildings Police station Hospital Building sites Shops Etc.

His brother was killed He likes forensics He's been following/watching

'Well, he seems to like you Miss Sara. It wouldn't surprise me if you weren't next on the list of things he has installed.'

Likes Sara A list

What was he going to do?

He can't get close to her She won't be on her own

'What did the bodies tell you about your past?'

13 years ago - Police officer shot - Jeff Samson

Brother/partner - James Samson/James Quinn

Knife

No knife found

Bodies

Blood Blood Blood

DNA

Epithelial's

Thomas Higgins

'If you want to find me, you need to go home.'

No Mike or Sam Sam is missing, presumed dead with the amount of blood found

Mike snatched from his bed He's frightened, scared

'You need to go home.'

What does that mean?

Home Empty

Or was it?

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Grissom opened his eyes and sat up. "Sam." Sara sat forward and rubbed his back. He turned to her. "Sam's here."

Sara shook her head. "They couldn't find her Gil."

"She's here. He had to get rid of her, hide her so the case was focused in two places. Separating the team to search for them both, exhausting links to and connections to find them." Grissom stood and turned around a few times. He looked out the back patio doors from in front of the couch. His eyes narrowed. "Call Brass. Tell him Quinn is coming here. He's probably here now." He pointed at the phone. Sara picked it up did what he instructed as he went outside and wondered around the garden.

Grissom scanned the grass the best he could in the bright sunshine beaming down on him. He shielded his eyes and continued searching. He was looking for something, but what? Moving to the back of the garden he found a crowbar and recently disturbed grasses and mud. Pushing the layer of grass away, he revealed a man hole cover. Just as he was going to find something to open it without using the evidence, a loud crash was heard and Grissom ran back into the house.

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Minutes earlier.

Sara was on the phone and had just hung up when the door opened and she was charged at and thrown into the glass cabinet by the wall of the living room.

"Nice." Quinn chuckled. "Just the sort of thing you need. More blood to brighten up the carpet."

Quinn pulled out a gun and pointed it at Grissom as he ran through the door. One round went off and Grissom fell to the ground.