Notes: I'm so sorry for the slow updates lately, I promise to try to be
better in the future. But as a consolation prize.how's 2 chapters today
sound? Goooood, I thought that might help.
Thank you everyone for being so patient, RL has been very very busy lately, just got back from a huge trip to Vegas and its finally slowing some. Remember to tip your waitress or review your writer! More soon I promise!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
For the third time in a week, Nick and Warrick comb through Joey Harringtons former residence at the halfway house, looking for any clue, any indication of where he may be hiding at. Another round of exhaustive interviews with other residents reveals that no one knows anything; Harrington had kept to himself, working whenever possible, a model for released offenders.
The two men slide into the Tahoe, both frustrated, neither saying much until Nick breaks the tension.
"Ok, ok. We have to think about this not so logically. Think like him. You're obsessed with Sara, what do you do? How do you contact her?"
Warrick scrunches his face in confusion. "I don't know, Nick."
"Come on, man. Think."
"Nick, I don't know. I suppose you would want to be close, but not so close that we could see him."
"Right..but where?"
Sara comes into the lab and swiftly picks up her mail from the slot, grabbing Grissom's, and a large envelope in Nick's slot also. Her protection had left when she entered the building; there is no need for a cop on her when she is surrounded by them. Dropping Grissom's mail on his desk, she notices he isn't there yet; he had come in a bit early to get an experiment started. She continues the rounds, working her way into the locker room where she finds Catherine getting ready. It has been a week since the flowers, and it has been an incredibly tense week, she felt on edge all the time. While there has been no further contact, memories have been enough to keep Sara wondering, and scared. She has returned to the habit of jumping when the phone rings it has Sara feeling not like herself and she hates it.
"Hey Sara. How's Junior?" Catherine asks, her tone light.
"Fine, still kicking up a storm, though. Forget science, I think we have a soccer player on our hands."
Catherine laughs lightly. "I'm sure Gil will love that."
Sara just shrugs and removes her coat, grabbing her badge out of the locker. Finally turning to the mail she flips through some reports she had been waiting for before coming to a regular letter envelope, her name and the labs address printed neatly on the front, no return address. Fear courses through her and the previously quiet baby now begins moving in response to her tensing up.
"Cath," she calls out quietly, staring at the envelope with fear.
"Yeah?" The older woman turns to her and recognizes the look on her face. Her eyes follow Sara's down to her hands, where she holds a white envelope.
Catherine quickly grabs a pair of gloves from her locker and takes three steps to Sara. Touching her upper arm lightly, Catherine takes the letter from her hands, turning it over and inspecting it before carefully opening the sealed flap. Inside lies a plain white sheet of paper, which Catherine pulls out and unfolds. Written in the same neat handwriting as the address, is a note.
"Sara, had forgiven you for shooting me. You were confused. Those people had you convinced I was the bad guy, that you didn't love me. I know you did. You have to, I would do anything for you, anything. But then you got pregnant Sara, how could you do that? How could you do that to me? How could you allow yourself? I don't understand. In time I think I can come to accept the baby, it is a part of you, and that means something. A baby wasn't in my plans for us, but things happen, accidents.happen Sara. They still have you confused, don't they? They have you convinced that he loves you, that HE would do anything for you. Would he kill for you? Cause I would."
The last line sends a shiver down Catherine's back and she looks at Sara who is a shade of white she didn't think possible.
"Sara, sit down. Now."
Quietly she obeys the command, not really thinking about it. Her mind is on the letter, the threat actually. Would he do it? Would he kill for her in some misguided attempted to win her over?
'Oh, God. He would.' she thinks and takes some deep breaths, trying to stop herself from becoming nauseous. 'Grissom, would he kill Grissom? He knows about the baby.hes SEEN me.' The thoughts fly through her head and that's when she loses the battle with her nerves. Standing up, Sara rushes into the bathroom and expels her lunch. Breathing deeply, Sara flushes and sits back against the tile. Shortly thereafter she hears the door open and Catherine snap her phone shut.
Catherine had seen it coming; Sara had gone from ghostly white to almost a green shade in an instant. She had put the letter back in the envelope and placed it in her jacket pocket for the time being until she could get it into the labs, quickly shooting off a call to Grissom. She has to leave him a message when voicemail had picked up. She opens the door and walks into the bathroom, quickly finding Sara in the farthest stall, sitting on the floor, shaking.
Quietly, Catherine kneels in front of her, pushing a section of hair off her face. She grabs one of Sara's hands in hers and squeezes; the younger woman hasn't even acknowledged her presence.
"Sara?"
Finally, Sara looks at Catherine and she sees fear in her friend's face.
"I." She starts but swiftly stops. "I cant say it, cause if I say it Cath, then it might come true. Harrington might kill someone. Grissom, he could kill Grissom. Oh god." She puts her head back on the tile.
"Shhh." Catherine sits next to her and pulls Sara into a tight embrace, her arms wrapped around the brunettes slim shoulders, Sara's head resting under her chin.
"Let it out, Sara," she whispers, and shortly thereafter feels and hears hitching sobs emanating from her.
Sara accepts Catherine's offer, and for the first time really cries. She can't hold it in any longer; she tried to be strong. The thought of Harrington doing anything to Grissom, or the baby is the last straw. This is an overt threat, not like last time where it came as a surprise. Past experience has shown her that he is not to be taken lightly; he means what he says. When she finally has no more tears to shed, Sara lifts her head from Catherine and leans against the cool tile.
"Thank you, Catherine."
Catherine just shrugs. "I'd ask how you are but its apparent you are far from fine. Sara, I'd like to think I have something grand and inspiring to say, or something that will make you feel better and take away the terror, but I don't. What I do have is a promise that I will do everything I can to make sure you and the baby are safe. I know that promise might not mean much, but know it's sincere. I can't even begin to imagine what you are feeling and are going through, but if you need me, I'll be there for you. You need to take care of yourself, and let us worry about Harrington."
Again Catherine grabs her hand.
Sara nods and looks at Catherine. "How Catherine? How do I do that? I can't pretend its not happening. I can't pretend I didn't see that note, that the flowers never happened. I can't go back to 2 weeks ago, before I knew, when everything was finally on track. I can't keep him safe."
Catherine wonders for a moment who she means, but lets it go. "You have something wonderful to look forward to Sara. In four months you and Grissom will have a beautiful baby, and by then this will all be over. You need to concentrate on that, you can't ignore this Sara, you can't. You need to stay vigilant, but at the same time, you can do what every other pregnant woman does: go shopping, pick out patterns, paint a room, choose a name: anything but Gil, please, go to Lamaze, wonder how in the world an eight pound baby is supposed to come out."
Catherine smiles and carefully touches Sara stomach. "You need something good to focus on.and this is it. You can't let Harrington invade this too. Don't let him, cause if you do, then he wins."
Sara considers the woman's words and nods. "I'll try."
"That's all I ask. Lets get up off the floor, my ass is cold."
Sara laughs lightly and gets up. As they are brushing themselves off, the sound of Grissom's booming voice in the hallway gets their attention. He is calling Sara's name.
Sara opens the door and walks out, almost running right into him. "I'm here."
Grissom looks her over quickly, she is pale and still shaking somewhat. "Sara, Catherine called me, something about a note. What's going on?"
At that point Catherine taps her jacket pocket, not willing to touch it with ungloved hands. "I have it here. Let's get it to the lab and print it."
"What does the note say?" When neither woman answers, he stares down Catherine. "What does it say?" he repeats a bit more deliberately, reaching out and touching Sara's cheek, carefully stroking it with his thumb.
"When we get to the lab Grissom, not now." Catherine turns to Sara. "Grab Brass, will you?"
"Yeah, be right there." She looks at Grissom and gives him a saddened smile, that he can't hold her now, not like she wants him to, there are still too many people from the day shift wandering around. Instead he returns her smile and she turns to walk to the PD; Brass needs to know about this.
"What's wrong?" Grissom asks Catherine, knowing perfectly well she wouldn't have gotten rid of Sara if it wasn't bad.
"She doesn't need to see this again. She got sick the first time." Catherine states and walks into the lab. Donning gloves and opening the envelope, she flattens the letter so Grissom can easily read it.
Grissom quickly skims the letter, astonished at the madness of the author. "I.dont believe this Cath." The older man takes a few steps away from her and starts pacing, running one hand through his grey curls.
"Sara cant take much more of this, she shouldn't have to."
"I know, Grissom. We will do everything in our power to find him. Everything." She lays one hand on his shoulder, a mixture of determination, anger and compassion in her eyes. "You focus on her, and keep her focused on other things."
"Yeah, thanks." He smiles at Catherine as Sara returns with Brass following close behind. Quickly, Grissom takes one step to her and pulls her into his arms, more for his own reassurance than for hers. After a moment he releases his hold and looks in her eyes, the brown orbs not revealing the thoughts behind them
"You ok?" he finally asks.
"Yeah, I'm ok." At his dubious look she continues. "Maybe not great, but I'm ok."
He nods and tells Catherine he shouldn't handle evidence collection for obvious reasons. "You know what to do; I trust you Cath."
Catherine reads between the lines: this is the one case they can't afford to screw up, because the consequences are unthinkable.
tbc.........
Thank you everyone for being so patient, RL has been very very busy lately, just got back from a huge trip to Vegas and its finally slowing some. Remember to tip your waitress or review your writer! More soon I promise!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
For the third time in a week, Nick and Warrick comb through Joey Harringtons former residence at the halfway house, looking for any clue, any indication of where he may be hiding at. Another round of exhaustive interviews with other residents reveals that no one knows anything; Harrington had kept to himself, working whenever possible, a model for released offenders.
The two men slide into the Tahoe, both frustrated, neither saying much until Nick breaks the tension.
"Ok, ok. We have to think about this not so logically. Think like him. You're obsessed with Sara, what do you do? How do you contact her?"
Warrick scrunches his face in confusion. "I don't know, Nick."
"Come on, man. Think."
"Nick, I don't know. I suppose you would want to be close, but not so close that we could see him."
"Right..but where?"
Sara comes into the lab and swiftly picks up her mail from the slot, grabbing Grissom's, and a large envelope in Nick's slot also. Her protection had left when she entered the building; there is no need for a cop on her when she is surrounded by them. Dropping Grissom's mail on his desk, she notices he isn't there yet; he had come in a bit early to get an experiment started. She continues the rounds, working her way into the locker room where she finds Catherine getting ready. It has been a week since the flowers, and it has been an incredibly tense week, she felt on edge all the time. While there has been no further contact, memories have been enough to keep Sara wondering, and scared. She has returned to the habit of jumping when the phone rings it has Sara feeling not like herself and she hates it.
"Hey Sara. How's Junior?" Catherine asks, her tone light.
"Fine, still kicking up a storm, though. Forget science, I think we have a soccer player on our hands."
Catherine laughs lightly. "I'm sure Gil will love that."
Sara just shrugs and removes her coat, grabbing her badge out of the locker. Finally turning to the mail she flips through some reports she had been waiting for before coming to a regular letter envelope, her name and the labs address printed neatly on the front, no return address. Fear courses through her and the previously quiet baby now begins moving in response to her tensing up.
"Cath," she calls out quietly, staring at the envelope with fear.
"Yeah?" The older woman turns to her and recognizes the look on her face. Her eyes follow Sara's down to her hands, where she holds a white envelope.
Catherine quickly grabs a pair of gloves from her locker and takes three steps to Sara. Touching her upper arm lightly, Catherine takes the letter from her hands, turning it over and inspecting it before carefully opening the sealed flap. Inside lies a plain white sheet of paper, which Catherine pulls out and unfolds. Written in the same neat handwriting as the address, is a note.
"Sara, had forgiven you for shooting me. You were confused. Those people had you convinced I was the bad guy, that you didn't love me. I know you did. You have to, I would do anything for you, anything. But then you got pregnant Sara, how could you do that? How could you do that to me? How could you allow yourself? I don't understand. In time I think I can come to accept the baby, it is a part of you, and that means something. A baby wasn't in my plans for us, but things happen, accidents.happen Sara. They still have you confused, don't they? They have you convinced that he loves you, that HE would do anything for you. Would he kill for you? Cause I would."
The last line sends a shiver down Catherine's back and she looks at Sara who is a shade of white she didn't think possible.
"Sara, sit down. Now."
Quietly she obeys the command, not really thinking about it. Her mind is on the letter, the threat actually. Would he do it? Would he kill for her in some misguided attempted to win her over?
'Oh, God. He would.' she thinks and takes some deep breaths, trying to stop herself from becoming nauseous. 'Grissom, would he kill Grissom? He knows about the baby.hes SEEN me.' The thoughts fly through her head and that's when she loses the battle with her nerves. Standing up, Sara rushes into the bathroom and expels her lunch. Breathing deeply, Sara flushes and sits back against the tile. Shortly thereafter she hears the door open and Catherine snap her phone shut.
Catherine had seen it coming; Sara had gone from ghostly white to almost a green shade in an instant. She had put the letter back in the envelope and placed it in her jacket pocket for the time being until she could get it into the labs, quickly shooting off a call to Grissom. She has to leave him a message when voicemail had picked up. She opens the door and walks into the bathroom, quickly finding Sara in the farthest stall, sitting on the floor, shaking.
Quietly, Catherine kneels in front of her, pushing a section of hair off her face. She grabs one of Sara's hands in hers and squeezes; the younger woman hasn't even acknowledged her presence.
"Sara?"
Finally, Sara looks at Catherine and she sees fear in her friend's face.
"I." She starts but swiftly stops. "I cant say it, cause if I say it Cath, then it might come true. Harrington might kill someone. Grissom, he could kill Grissom. Oh god." She puts her head back on the tile.
"Shhh." Catherine sits next to her and pulls Sara into a tight embrace, her arms wrapped around the brunettes slim shoulders, Sara's head resting under her chin.
"Let it out, Sara," she whispers, and shortly thereafter feels and hears hitching sobs emanating from her.
Sara accepts Catherine's offer, and for the first time really cries. She can't hold it in any longer; she tried to be strong. The thought of Harrington doing anything to Grissom, or the baby is the last straw. This is an overt threat, not like last time where it came as a surprise. Past experience has shown her that he is not to be taken lightly; he means what he says. When she finally has no more tears to shed, Sara lifts her head from Catherine and leans against the cool tile.
"Thank you, Catherine."
Catherine just shrugs. "I'd ask how you are but its apparent you are far from fine. Sara, I'd like to think I have something grand and inspiring to say, or something that will make you feel better and take away the terror, but I don't. What I do have is a promise that I will do everything I can to make sure you and the baby are safe. I know that promise might not mean much, but know it's sincere. I can't even begin to imagine what you are feeling and are going through, but if you need me, I'll be there for you. You need to take care of yourself, and let us worry about Harrington."
Again Catherine grabs her hand.
Sara nods and looks at Catherine. "How Catherine? How do I do that? I can't pretend its not happening. I can't pretend I didn't see that note, that the flowers never happened. I can't go back to 2 weeks ago, before I knew, when everything was finally on track. I can't keep him safe."
Catherine wonders for a moment who she means, but lets it go. "You have something wonderful to look forward to Sara. In four months you and Grissom will have a beautiful baby, and by then this will all be over. You need to concentrate on that, you can't ignore this Sara, you can't. You need to stay vigilant, but at the same time, you can do what every other pregnant woman does: go shopping, pick out patterns, paint a room, choose a name: anything but Gil, please, go to Lamaze, wonder how in the world an eight pound baby is supposed to come out."
Catherine smiles and carefully touches Sara stomach. "You need something good to focus on.and this is it. You can't let Harrington invade this too. Don't let him, cause if you do, then he wins."
Sara considers the woman's words and nods. "I'll try."
"That's all I ask. Lets get up off the floor, my ass is cold."
Sara laughs lightly and gets up. As they are brushing themselves off, the sound of Grissom's booming voice in the hallway gets their attention. He is calling Sara's name.
Sara opens the door and walks out, almost running right into him. "I'm here."
Grissom looks her over quickly, she is pale and still shaking somewhat. "Sara, Catherine called me, something about a note. What's going on?"
At that point Catherine taps her jacket pocket, not willing to touch it with ungloved hands. "I have it here. Let's get it to the lab and print it."
"What does the note say?" When neither woman answers, he stares down Catherine. "What does it say?" he repeats a bit more deliberately, reaching out and touching Sara's cheek, carefully stroking it with his thumb.
"When we get to the lab Grissom, not now." Catherine turns to Sara. "Grab Brass, will you?"
"Yeah, be right there." She looks at Grissom and gives him a saddened smile, that he can't hold her now, not like she wants him to, there are still too many people from the day shift wandering around. Instead he returns her smile and she turns to walk to the PD; Brass needs to know about this.
"What's wrong?" Grissom asks Catherine, knowing perfectly well she wouldn't have gotten rid of Sara if it wasn't bad.
"She doesn't need to see this again. She got sick the first time." Catherine states and walks into the lab. Donning gloves and opening the envelope, she flattens the letter so Grissom can easily read it.
Grissom quickly skims the letter, astonished at the madness of the author. "I.dont believe this Cath." The older man takes a few steps away from her and starts pacing, running one hand through his grey curls.
"Sara cant take much more of this, she shouldn't have to."
"I know, Grissom. We will do everything in our power to find him. Everything." She lays one hand on his shoulder, a mixture of determination, anger and compassion in her eyes. "You focus on her, and keep her focused on other things."
"Yeah, thanks." He smiles at Catherine as Sara returns with Brass following close behind. Quickly, Grissom takes one step to her and pulls her into his arms, more for his own reassurance than for hers. After a moment he releases his hold and looks in her eyes, the brown orbs not revealing the thoughts behind them
"You ok?" he finally asks.
"Yeah, I'm ok." At his dubious look she continues. "Maybe not great, but I'm ok."
He nods and tells Catherine he shouldn't handle evidence collection for obvious reasons. "You know what to do; I trust you Cath."
Catherine reads between the lines: this is the one case they can't afford to screw up, because the consequences are unthinkable.
tbc.........