Sara visibly crumpled, becoming completely hysterical as she realized that
Nick was still trapped underneath the house; a house that she now had a
better view of; a house that resembled nothing of the structure that she
and Nick had crawled under hours before to process a crime scene. Images
of the scene of the 1989 Bay Area earthquake flooded her mind and the sting
of her grandmother's death hit her full force as she realized that Nick
might have just met a similar fate.
The rescue workers tried to move her away from the house, to get checked out by the paramedics, but she refused. She kept muttering over and over. "You have to buy the lemons. It's you're turn." Tears streamed freely down her cheeks and she found that she had no strength left in her legs.
Grissom approached her with concern on his face. "Sara, you need to let the paramedics look you over. We need to make sure you're ok."
She just shook her head. "He has to buy the lemons. It's his turn."
"Sara." Grissom wasn't following what she was saying. No one was following what she was saying. All they could tell was that she'd just gone through a very traumatic ordeal and was obviously very upset. The fact that Nick hadn't gotten out before the debris covered the hole just compounded things.
"No, I'm not leaving! He has to buy the lemons." Sara continued to cry, wrapping her arms around her legs.
Grissom placed a hand on her shoulder. "Sara, let the paramedics check you over."
Sara shrugged his hand away and continued crying hysterically.
"Grissom." Catherine cleared her throat and gestured to Grissom.
He stood up with a perplexed expression on his face. "Something about lemons."
Catherine gestured for him to follow her out of earshot of Sara. "They can't get Nick to answer the phone."
Grissom's face fell. He felt as if he'd had someone kick him in the gut. "Tell them to try again."
"Grissom, it doesn't look good. He said there wasn't much space in there and the opening is completely covered." Catherine tried to talk it out. She was trying to keep her emotions out of the situation.
Grissom narrowed his gaze at Catherine. "I will not give up until we know for sure. Do you understand? Find a way in there. For all we know, the phone is broken. It doesn't mean that Nick." Grissom couldn't bring himself to say the words. None of them even wanted to think it.
Warrick had moved to sit next to Sara on the ground and simply wrapped his arms around her and let her cry. He could tell that no one was going to get her to move away from the scene until she saw Nick with her own eyes, whether or not he was breathing. They just had to hope that Nick was still ok, that the void had just gotten smaller and that he'd managed to take refuge in it.
Greg came and sat down next to Warrick and Sara. He reached over for her hand and just held it as tears streamed freely down his face. Nick was like the big brother he'd never had. He knew some of what Sara was feeling. He'd lost an uncle in the Bay Area earthquake. He had been crushed to death in his car on the Oakland Bay Bridge. He and Sara had talked about her grandmother once when she'd found out he'd lived in San Francisco for a little while and he'd told her about his uncle. All they could do was offer each other support and wait. Waiting was the hardest.
"He was supposed to buy the lemons." Sara began to mutter again. Her voice was choked with sobs.
A smile played at Warrick's lips. He knew that the pair traded off buying lemons to scour out the smell when they pulled a decomp, and he knew that this was how this case had started out. "Sara, I'll make him buy the lemons. He's got to be ok. You've got to believe that."
"Warrick, he was right behind me. He's supposed to be out here. We're supposed to be laughing about this by next week." She was rambling and crying. Her heart was breaking into a million pieces. She had discovered that while she was stuck in that void with Nick that she'd never had a better friend in her entire life and that she was in love with him.
Greg squeezed her hand. "Sara, he's going to be ok. This is Nick. He has to be ok."
Sara glanced up at him and met his gaze. She could see her pain reflected in his eyes. She could tell that everyone else was hurting too, that they were all waiting, together, for word about Nick. "He has to be. He has to buy the lemons." She started crying again and collapsed against Warrick sobbing.
Grissom and Catherine stood at a distance talking to Commander Reynolds. Grissom was insistent. "We need to try again. He's in there and he's going to come out ok, I don't care what you're gut tells you. I go by the evidence, and right now there is no evidence that Nick is dead. I'll get the thermal imaging equipment back here and we'll go again. We are not giving up."
The commander went back to his crew and they began to evaluate how to approach the situation, hoping that Grissom was right, but feeling in their gut that it was most likely too late for the young CSI.
Catherine got back on the phone and started rattling cages again, trying to find some piece of equipment that would help them lift the house, something that would allow them to free Nick and find out if he was still alive, or if the rescue commander was right and Nick was dead. She watched Sara as she talked on the phone, her heart going out to the young woman. She knew that Nick and Sara had a strong bond between them, and that they had been through hell over the last several hours while they'd been trapped. It was natural that Sara would be upset, but as Catherine watched her, she surmised that it was quite possible that the relationship between them was much deeper than any of them had previously suspected. If Catherine had been a betting woman, she'd bet her last dollar that Sara was in love with Nick.
Sara was dangerously close to going into shock as she continued to stare at the crumple house, watching for any sign that Nick was alive, that he'd be out there with them soon.
The rescue crews kept calling into the house, hoping that Nick would answer, but all they got in return was silence.
The rescue workers tried to move her away from the house, to get checked out by the paramedics, but she refused. She kept muttering over and over. "You have to buy the lemons. It's you're turn." Tears streamed freely down her cheeks and she found that she had no strength left in her legs.
Grissom approached her with concern on his face. "Sara, you need to let the paramedics look you over. We need to make sure you're ok."
She just shook her head. "He has to buy the lemons. It's his turn."
"Sara." Grissom wasn't following what she was saying. No one was following what she was saying. All they could tell was that she'd just gone through a very traumatic ordeal and was obviously very upset. The fact that Nick hadn't gotten out before the debris covered the hole just compounded things.
"No, I'm not leaving! He has to buy the lemons." Sara continued to cry, wrapping her arms around her legs.
Grissom placed a hand on her shoulder. "Sara, let the paramedics check you over."
Sara shrugged his hand away and continued crying hysterically.
"Grissom." Catherine cleared her throat and gestured to Grissom.
He stood up with a perplexed expression on his face. "Something about lemons."
Catherine gestured for him to follow her out of earshot of Sara. "They can't get Nick to answer the phone."
Grissom's face fell. He felt as if he'd had someone kick him in the gut. "Tell them to try again."
"Grissom, it doesn't look good. He said there wasn't much space in there and the opening is completely covered." Catherine tried to talk it out. She was trying to keep her emotions out of the situation.
Grissom narrowed his gaze at Catherine. "I will not give up until we know for sure. Do you understand? Find a way in there. For all we know, the phone is broken. It doesn't mean that Nick." Grissom couldn't bring himself to say the words. None of them even wanted to think it.
Warrick had moved to sit next to Sara on the ground and simply wrapped his arms around her and let her cry. He could tell that no one was going to get her to move away from the scene until she saw Nick with her own eyes, whether or not he was breathing. They just had to hope that Nick was still ok, that the void had just gotten smaller and that he'd managed to take refuge in it.
Greg came and sat down next to Warrick and Sara. He reached over for her hand and just held it as tears streamed freely down his face. Nick was like the big brother he'd never had. He knew some of what Sara was feeling. He'd lost an uncle in the Bay Area earthquake. He had been crushed to death in his car on the Oakland Bay Bridge. He and Sara had talked about her grandmother once when she'd found out he'd lived in San Francisco for a little while and he'd told her about his uncle. All they could do was offer each other support and wait. Waiting was the hardest.
"He was supposed to buy the lemons." Sara began to mutter again. Her voice was choked with sobs.
A smile played at Warrick's lips. He knew that the pair traded off buying lemons to scour out the smell when they pulled a decomp, and he knew that this was how this case had started out. "Sara, I'll make him buy the lemons. He's got to be ok. You've got to believe that."
"Warrick, he was right behind me. He's supposed to be out here. We're supposed to be laughing about this by next week." She was rambling and crying. Her heart was breaking into a million pieces. She had discovered that while she was stuck in that void with Nick that she'd never had a better friend in her entire life and that she was in love with him.
Greg squeezed her hand. "Sara, he's going to be ok. This is Nick. He has to be ok."
Sara glanced up at him and met his gaze. She could see her pain reflected in his eyes. She could tell that everyone else was hurting too, that they were all waiting, together, for word about Nick. "He has to be. He has to buy the lemons." She started crying again and collapsed against Warrick sobbing.
Grissom and Catherine stood at a distance talking to Commander Reynolds. Grissom was insistent. "We need to try again. He's in there and he's going to come out ok, I don't care what you're gut tells you. I go by the evidence, and right now there is no evidence that Nick is dead. I'll get the thermal imaging equipment back here and we'll go again. We are not giving up."
The commander went back to his crew and they began to evaluate how to approach the situation, hoping that Grissom was right, but feeling in their gut that it was most likely too late for the young CSI.
Catherine got back on the phone and started rattling cages again, trying to find some piece of equipment that would help them lift the house, something that would allow them to free Nick and find out if he was still alive, or if the rescue commander was right and Nick was dead. She watched Sara as she talked on the phone, her heart going out to the young woman. She knew that Nick and Sara had a strong bond between them, and that they had been through hell over the last several hours while they'd been trapped. It was natural that Sara would be upset, but as Catherine watched her, she surmised that it was quite possible that the relationship between them was much deeper than any of them had previously suspected. If Catherine had been a betting woman, she'd bet her last dollar that Sara was in love with Nick.
Sara was dangerously close to going into shock as she continued to stare at the crumple house, watching for any sign that Nick was alive, that he'd be out there with them soon.
The rescue crews kept calling into the house, hoping that Nick would answer, but all they got in return was silence.