A/N: Thanks to all who read and reviewed last chapter….I just have to comment on them:
pdhtgal: OH NO is right! I tried to update as soon as possible…hope you like it!
spikes_storm: That's so great to know you are enjoying the fic…thanks for your encouragement!
krisnina77: Yay! Thanks…actually when I first wrote Catherine's remark I had Obi-Wan instead of Yoda, but decided to change it because of the better mental image Yoda left…hee…anyways, thanks for your well-thought out review…it was great!
PassionatePapist: Where do I even begin! You had me rolling with this one…Ever thought about writing a humor fanfic for CSI? That would AWESOME! Anyways, keep the veggie peeler in hand…soon, very soon…oh yeah, I would love to know what song you assigned to THIS chapter!
Vegetarian: Ahhh….refer to bottom of page!
Mia: Glad to hear it…also refer to bottom of page for answer!
cRaZyPiXiE: just keep reading…I think you'll like my conclusion which will be coming soon!
MissyJane: Thanks so much! I hope you like it!
tv-fan-06: Ahh, the drama! Heh. So much drama! Thanks for your push…I think I started writing as soon as I saw your review!
Pam: You are so sweet and encouraging! Your reviews are very well-written and I am so excited to see that you regularly check up to see if my fic is updated! You don't know how much that means to me! Yay! I think I might cry…*sniff* Okay, I'm good ;-)
georges girl: Aww…thanks for the compliment!
Kirby Doggett: Hope you've got more equipment and gear…because this chapter, my crazy friend, has another *cliffhanger!* Muahahaha!
Now…on to the madness!
Dealing: Chapter Fifteen
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The windshield wipers furiously crashed back and forth in a vain attempt to dispel the rain that poured onto her car like an ocean wave.
No streetlights. No moon. The only guide Sara had was her own Tahoe's headlights to see through the blinding rain exploding from the sky.
Darkness had completely enveloped the night by then, the moon hiding behind the heavy storm clouds. As Sara sped along the path, trees became more abundant, crowding and drooping over the edges, yet remained a blur as Sara flew past them. The rain pelted loudly on her car, yet even louder, Sara felt, was the sound of her unsteady heart, deafeningly pulsating in her eardrums. Knuckles white, she held the wheel tightly, her face displaying complete concentration.
Somehow, someway, Claire had been kidnapped from the safe house. And although no confirmation had been made on the kidnapper, Sara had a pretty good idea of who had her. Her gut told her it was Randy McMasters.
She squinted her eyes harder and tried to steady her breathing as the vehicle picked up more speed. Then, all of a sudden, what seemed to be the twin red glow of taillights appeared through the impossible rain, making clear a vehicle was not far ahead of her.
Oh my gosh, Sara thought, her adrenaline pumping. There he is.
The path curved and for a moment Sara thought she lost sight of the other car. Panicking, she pressed harder on the accelerator to catch up. Suddenly the wheel jerked from under her tight grip, momentarily thrusting her Tahoe off the trail. In one swift motion, Sara wrenched the wheel over, making a sharp turn back on the path and regaining control.
Sara let up a little on the gas. Don't kill yourself, Sidle. How exactly would you plan on saving Claire then?
At that moment, every instinct screamed at her to call for back up. Fumbling for her cell phone she impulsively punched Nick's cell number.
"C'mon…c'mon…" Sara impatiently waited as the phone repeatedly rang. After several seconds, an automated voice told her to leave a message after the tone.
"Nick, it's Sara." She began anxiously. "Nick, Claire's been kidnapped from the safe house. I don't have any details for you except that I am in pursuit of a vehicle presumed to be holding Claire and the captor. I'm going to call the police department and give the description of the vehicle and my whereabouts as best as I can. In the meantime, I'm going to keep following him and will call back as soon as possible." The words flew from her lips so quickly and shakily that Sara only hoped Nick would be able to understand her.
The storm weakened a little and the vehicle in front became clearer to Sara as she raced forward.
If the captor hadn't known someone was following him before, there was no mistaking he knew now. Just a few yards away now, Sara saw that his vehicle abruptly shot forward, creating a huge gap between them and then disappeared around another curve.
Through the haze of chaos that was clouding Sara's mind, she knew she was in trouble and suddenly realized the precarious nature of her position. In her haste, she'd put herself in danger. However, thinking only of Claire, she kept on knowing that at that moment, Sara was the only person Claire could count on.
Sara called the police department and they told her they were already informed of the kidnapping—the head keeper had called 911 just as Sara had arrived—but anxiously received the added information, including her whereabouts and the description of the vehicle: a white, older model Cadillac. Before they hung up, the police demanded that she stop her pursuit, that dispatch had already sent out the squad cars and she needn't cause unnecessary harm to herself by getting involved in this risky situation. Reiterating that she was not an actual law enforcement officer, they told her that she needed to step back and let the police take over from this point on.
Although Sara heard faint hums of police sirens in the distance, she pressed onward.
***********
Nick sat wearily at the break room table exhaustingly rubbing his eyes. After having arrived about fifteen minutes beforehand, he immediately made his way to the coffee maker, relying on the black liquid to reenergize him. Just as he was pouring in his sugar, the break room door flew open and in rushed a troubled looking Catherine. She was obviously out of breath yet didn't give herself pause before speaking to Nick.
"Nick…I've been trying to get in touch with you. Where's your cell phone?"
Nick furrowed his eyebrows and immediately reached down to his belt, where he found an empty cell holster. Groaning, he spoke, "Must've left it at home." His eyes then returned to Catherine who was shaking her head with a look of apprehension. The nature of her eyes immediately sobered Nick, and he quickly rose from his seat.
He hesitated slightly. "Why? Catherine, what's going on?"
"Nick, you're not going to believe this…"
***********
Please let her be okay, Sara prayed.
Despite her fears about the young girl, Sara had just seconds before slowed her Tahoe, figuring that she was, perhaps, endangering the situation even more by staying hot on the kidnapper's trail. She continued driving at a fast pace, yet remained out of sight for the time being. Her fears of losing sight of the captor were quelled by the simple reasoning that they were both heading down the same one way path which he would inevitably continue down.
Sara swallowed hard, her heart beating even more rapidly than before.
Briefly surveying her surroundings, Sara realized she had no idea where she was. This was most certainly not an area many Vegas civilians had frequented, including her. Her only hope that the police would find them was the mere fact that it was the only other path leading out from the safe house.
Sara focused on the outside noises, realizing she hadn't heard the sirens in awhile. With a keen ear, she let her car window down just a crack and listened. Sure enough, she heard the siren's echoes. They weren't yet in sight, but they were close.
Hurry. Please hurry.
************
Nick turned the key into the ignition and threw the car into gear, switching off the unbearably chipper voice on the radio station and gunning his Tahoe, heading in the direction of the safe house.
A cold knot was forming in his stomach and he was attempting to fight away panic, taking deep breaths, reminding himself that everything would be okay.
While in route to his destination, rain continued to sporadically pour down, let up and then come down hard again. In some places rain fell so fiercely that the traffic slowed to fifteen miles an hour. Cursing under his breath, Nick jerked the wheel, weaving in and out of traffic at a high speed, breaking every road law known to mankind.
The news Catherine relayed to him minutes before was absolutely chilling. Claire had been kidnapped. Sara was hot on the trail. Several questions immediately flooded his mind.
How on earth did this happen? Is Sara in real danger? Would this person hurt an innocent child? What is it going to take to stop him?
After he heard the situation while at the lab, he immediately grabbed his jacket and took off. Although it was not his place to become tangled into the matter, there was no stopping him. With Sara right in the midst of danger, he was left with no choice but to become involved.
Every muscle in his body was alert, tense. Craning his neck forward to focus on the road, he sped up and took the one road that led to the safe house.
Nick recognized all too well the sensation streaming through his body. The feeling of anticipation when his brain screams at him to get ready, when the adrenaline pumps so fast through his system that he knows something drastic is about to occur. This only made Nick drive faster, ignoring the numerous stop signs and the slick road conditions.
I can't believe her, Nick thought.
It was so like Sara to irrationally put herself in imminent danger. To not fully think through the situation at hand. Man, was she stubborn. He shook his head in anger, clenching his teeth, growing more anxious by the minute.
What is she doing! What could she possibly be thinking right now?! Nick slammed his fist against his steering wheel, so riled at Sara for foolishly compromising her safety like this. And he knew her all to well to think that she'd stop at any time before she absolutely had to. All Nick recognized now was that he had to get to her, and get there fast.
Nick didn't even see the safe house as he flew past it. He knew it would be there, yet kept his eyes fixated on the path before him as it became more narrow and enclosed with heavy trees and brush . He heard the sirens in the distance—somewhere ahead of him.
Occasionally, he used his brakes as the trail sharply curved and then stretched out again. His wheels sped along the recently lined tire tracks, confirming he was heading in the right direction.
The rain began falling, once again, in heavy pelts.
**********
Eyes wide, Sara focused on the image displayed beyond her windshield. Her headlights revealed a small field, enclosed by thick trees and foliage. Located off to one side of the field was a run down trailer….and next to the trailer was parked a vehicle—a white Cadillac. Sara took in a quick gasp and swallowed hard the lump in her throat. Maybe if her body hadn't been so numb with fear she would have recognized the warning flashing in her mind, telling her stop…wait for help. However, her adrenaline propelling her forward, she parked her car in the darkness and grabbed her gun out of the glove compartment.
Despite the rain, Sara hopped out of her car, gun grasped tightly between her trembling fingers. Her hair began to slowly become soaked, clinging to her face in dripping clumps. She brushed it off to the side, and then slowly crept toward the trailer, suddenly very thankful for the dark night to cloak her body.
She heard the sirens nearing her.
Suddenly, Sara's head snapped up. Almost swearing she heard a faint cry, she spun her body around, every sense heightened.
Nothing.
She continued on, moving ever so slowly, careful not to be unexpectedly caught off guard. Just several feet now from the vehicle, she crouched down to the ground, inching her way closer. She clung onto the gun bringing it close to her chest, holding it steady, readying herself.
Her heart felt as if it would explode in her chest.
Then in one swift motion, as she reached the side of the car, she jerked her arms forward, gun clasped with both hands, squinting through the merciless rain that only blurred her vision. Pressing the now dripping weapon close to the windows, Sara craned her neck to peek inside.
Nothing. Sara swore under her breath.
From behind her the haze of red and blue lights swirled, reflecting in the windows of the vehicle.
The trailer? Were they in the trailer? Sara wondered, casting a glance at the trailer's windows from which no light shown forth.
As the squad cars screeched to a halt, mud spraying all around, several uniformed officers quickly jumped out of the vehicles, placing themselves in a protected stance behind the car doors, guns aimed forward. At the sound of the chief's demanding shout, Sara spun around and froze.
"Drop your weapon!"
Sara placed her revolver on the ground, and then slowly stood, holding her hands up.
"Don't move!"
"I—," Sara began to defend herself.
"Identify yourself!"
"Sara Sidle!" She called through the rain. "Las Vegas Crime Lab!"
The chief immediately recognized the name and ordered his officers to let down their weapons. Given permission to pick her gun back up, Sara jogged toward the chief, heading against a stream of officers who were, just seconds before, ordered to raid the area.
The chief took a few swift steps towards Sara, holding one hand above his brow, shielding his eyes from the rain.
"What are you doing here, Sidle?" He asked, his voice low and ominous, a look of bewilderment on his face.
"I arrived at the safe house just seconds after Claire was taken. I followed the car as close behind as I could and just got here." She turned to face the chaotic scene of officers rushing the trailer. "They were in that car." She waved her hand towards the Cadillac, her voice shouting through the thick rain. "But…I—I don't know where they are now."
The harried chief narrowed his eyes, studying the whole area. Distractedly, he spoke to Sara, "Well, we'll take it from here. We appreciate your leads but you understand you need to leave."
Noticing Sara's resilience he inched closer to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll get 'em." And with that he turned and headed in an opposite direction.
Sara understood that she needn't get in the way, yet couldn't pull herself from the area until they found Claire. She desperately scanned the woods, wanting to help, not knowing exactly what to do.
**********
He saw the kaleidoscope of lights rip through the darkness, and seconds later slid his Tahoe to a halt several feet behind the cop units.
Jumping into the rain, his pulse quickening, he immediately noticed Sara's lonely figure nearby. A wave of relief flooded over him; she was okay.
He rushed towards her. "You're crazy, you know that?!" He called out.
At the sound of his voice, Sara whirled around. "Nick!"
He was shaking his head now, distractedly looking towards the chaos nearby. "You could have gotten yourself seriously hurt. You're unbelievable." He shouted louder than necessary over the blinding rain.
"I was helping out." She defended through clenched teeth and turned to move towards the commotion. Nick reached out and grabbed her arm.
"You need to leave…now"
Sara yanked her arm free, standing rigid and turned her head. Her focus drifted back to the commotion at the trailer, her eyes searching, scanning. "I'm a part of this now…I need to find Claire." She said, not looking at Nick.
He moved in front of her to gain back her attention and pointed his finger at her accusingly. "You are NOT supposed to be here!" Nick's anger took his voice up another octave.
The glare of irritation he turned on her was matched by a stubborn one of her own. Sara then bit her lip, recognizing a sort of compassion in Nick's eyes behind his anger.
He reached inside his pocket and abruptly tossed his Tahoe's keys at her. "Go get in my car and wait for me. I'll be there in a minute." He gave Sara one last stern glare before turning away, jogging towards the head chief who was standing near one of the cruisers, speaking rapidly into a walkie-talkie.
Sara stared at his back before dejectedly walking back towards his vehicle, surveying her surroundings. The police lights splashed off the trees, flashing without sound. Officers swarmed the trailer, shouting threats and demands, yet from the sound of it, Sara knew they hadn't found anything yet.
Claire and her captor were nearby. They just had to be…lurking somewhere in the darkness. Please, please let her be okay.
Just then, a chilling scream pierced the darkness.
Sara jerked her head up, alert, her heart skipping a beat.
Claire.
And then, before she knew it, she was running. Running in direction of the sound, running into the woods, adrenaline singing in her ears.
************
A/N: Please respond and let me know what you think! Comments are greatly appreciated! The next chapter will be updated shortly(hopefully)!
Because of the comments others have recently posted, there may be a lingering question or two in your mind…Here are some answers to a few:
Sara was eating chicken in the last chapter…what's up with that? Yes, I know…major vegan slipup on my part. Just another thing that, in fact, proves I am not a perfect being. While I could change it, I won't, and for the sake of my fanfic Sara will be a pseudo-vegetarian.
Why exactly does Sara care so much for the children? Well, for one, Sara has a big heart. In my story she was there at the crime scene the night of Connie's murder and had seen the look on their young faces as they were told that their mother had been killed and was not coming back. Being of kind nature, and partly because of her mental vow to Connie, she felt the least she could do was spend time with the kids…and while doing so, grows to love them.
Do the CSIs actually carry guns on them? While I don't know the definite answer to this question, I do know that in the episode Play with Fire Sara did, in fact, have a gun on her(remember when she was the first to pull it on that guy?)
I hope that helps!
