DISCLAIMER: I own nothing here. Please don't sue me. 'Nuff said.

Chapter 4:

Warrick sauntered into the break room in time to hear Nick talking up the last night's performance to Catherine. He grinned humbly. It felt good.

"Hey, War! I was just telling Cath about your moves."

"Those are trade secrets, Man!" He laughed, and appreciated the extra length of time Catherine's eyes remained on him, studying.

"You're going to have to play something for me some time." She winked at him, and sat down at the table to await Grissom.

"Where's Sara? She's usually here before any of us?" Nick looked to Catherine.

"I saw her talking to Grissom earlier with Greg. She was catching up on a case."

"Ah!" Nick smirked and shook his head. "Yeah. She was away from here a whole half a shift. Probably had withdrawal symptoms."

"Don't tease her about this one." Catherine looked at the two men sternly. "Seriously. It's been a rough case. I'm really glad she got to go out with you too goons last night."

That silenced the room, as did the appearance of Grissom and Sara in the doorway a moment later.

"Ok! Slow night tonight." He looked around the table at his crew. "Sara, Nick, you're with me on this rape case. Catherine, you and Warrick meet Brass at the Lexor. There's been some burglaries in the rooms. A few have been forced. Last one left an elderly woman unconscious in the bathroom."

"Great." Warrick frowned and looked over at Catherine who shared his enthusiasm for these kind of cases. Boring, and sure to cost the department a mint in powder and luminol. All to find that it was more than likely an employee all along. But let the evidence speak louder than the statistics.

Sara looked up at Grissom. Since when was Nick on this case? She had been handling it mostly solo the whole week. She hated it when Grissom did this. She could handle these cases just fine. She didn't need to lean on Nicky for support. She could do the job, and she resented the implication that Grissom thought otherwise.

Warrick raised an eyebrow as he caught the glare Sara was shooting at Grissom. If looks could kill they'd have a new crime scene on their hands.

"You ready?" Catherine nudged Warrick to get his attention.

"Yeah. Let's get this over with."

They walked in silence out to the Tahoe. After getting in, Warrick questioned Catherine.

"So what's with Sara? She looked like she was gonna beat Grissom when he put Nick with her."

Catherine glanced at him quickly as she drove.

"The rape vic they'd interviewed last week, the one that slipped into a coma, died night before last."

"Oh, man." Warrick looked over at her understanding now. Sara took those cases harder than the rest of them. Everyone has their problem cases. "She didn't say anything about it when the three of us were out on site the other night. She seemed fine. And she had a good time last night."

"She doesn't know yet. I'm guessing Nicky's going to have to break it to her."

"Oh." He looked out the window. Leave it to Grissom to chicken out on anything emotional. Especially where Sara was involved. "He should tell her himself. Why's he gotta pull Nick into this?" He knew the answer, but he was also fishing.

"I agree, but at least Nicky will be more comforting. Although she's going to be furious with Grissom."

Warrick almost felt sorry for their boss. Almost, but not quite. The man had been his mentor and friend for a long time, but the past few years, he had been distancing himself from them all. The past month, since they found out about his surgery, he had seemed to be coming back into the fold. There still seemed to be something amiss, however.

"Sounds like you really put on a show last night." Catherine chose to lighten the topic.

"Did my best. It was great having Nick and Sara there. Wish you could've made it to." He gave her a wide grin.

"I won't miss it next time. So. . . you been thinking seriously about your music career?" She knew a thing or two about that life since Eddy had once had her swamped in the darker side of it. She also knew that there was a good side. A side of the business where you basked in admiration, and got such a rush from just being around people who shared the same dream. It was a very tantalizing pull.

"It's just a hobby, Cath. Can't pay the bills with a hobby." He looked out the window again, lost in the daydream.

"But if you could pay the bills with it?" She pressed him, knowing the answer.

"It'd be tempting." He looked up as they pulled into the Hotel's parking garage.

He pulled the cases out of the back, handing one to Catherine. He glanced at the glowering hotel manager, who was currently giving Brass an earful, and laughed.

"But how could I ever give this up?" He smiled at Catherine, who just grinned and walked on. It was going to be a long, tedious shift.