iDisclaimer: Same as before, they're not mine.
Author's Note: Thanks to everyone for the great reviews, and I'm very sorry this update took so long. It's a bit brief, but I promise the next one won't take as long...I hope. /i br ------------------------------------ br
The part of the room that Brass indicated extended as an irregular projection on the north side of the house. Its walls were glass, forming a grimy half-hexagon that, during the time the house was occupied, would have provided a breathtaking view of the gardens that sprawled beneath it, now filled with weeds and vines turned brown by what little winter weather Las Vegas encountered.
Suspended by a metal chain from a beam placed between its walls, the barely recognizable remains of a human form was the only part of the view Sara noticed. The figure was beyond anything she'd ever seen. She felt her stomach churn and tasted the bitterness of bile rising into her throat while she struggled to take in the horrible picture.
The male victim's skin had been torn away, exposing the red flesh and bone beneath. Bits of it still clung to the heavy chains surrounding its wrists and ankles. A long cut had been slashed into the stomach and the abdominal muscles ripped aside, exposing an empty cavity where the entrails should have been. Along with the skin, the eyelids had been removed, and the victim's eyes stared an eternal, disturbing stare that seemed to bore into Sara's own eyes.
She gasped as she felt acid lurch farther into her esophagus and ran back into the hallway toward the stairs, but failed to make it before the sour vomit forced its way from her mouth. Gasping for air, she coughed and willed her digestive system to return to normal function. Wiping the corner of her mouth with her sleeve, Sara opened her eyes to inspect the damage she had done. Thankfully, she had opted not to eat anything before work that night.
"Sara?"
She turned to see Grissom standing in the hall behind her and winced. "I'm sorry. I don't know why that happened..." She shook her head, disgusted with not being able to control her reaction.
"At least you made it out here where there's less chance of compromising the evidence."
He handed her a tissue, then, satisfied that she was alright, returned to the room, knowing the embarrassment of an uncontrolled reaction was enough without having someone else looking over your shoulder.
"Any ideas on who might have done this or why?" Grissom asked as he rejoined Brass.
"None, so far."
Grissom stepped closer to the body, careful to avoid the gelatinous mass in the center of the blood pool that he assumed to be the previous occupants of the abdominal cavity, and began his inspection. The chain that looped around its neck and over the beam was thicker than the ones binding the wrists and ankles, but their weight combined with the dead weight of the body had almost severed the neck, which now caused the head to hang back at an odd angle. Two puncture wounds were visible underneath the chin, corresponding with two more on the chest, the latter set spaced slightly farther apart and extending deeper into the flesh. The victim's back was covered with lacerations and puncture wounds much like those on the chest, but whether they were made by the same instrument would remain a mystery until tests were run at the lab.
"Whoever did this wasn't worried about time." Grissom observed the man's fingers, most of which bent in several places where no joint should have been. "Torture like this would have taken hours at the least. Probably days."
Sara returned to the room and had to still her stomach for a second time. The reaction wasn't as severe as the first, but she was aware of what awaited her this time. She pulled on a new pair of gloves and joined Grissom.
"What happened here?" She shone her flashlight over the body, taking in her first up-close look at the body.
br ---------------------------------------- br iWhat did you think? Should I continue? Any ideas you'd like me to consider?/i
Author's Note: Thanks to everyone for the great reviews, and I'm very sorry this update took so long. It's a bit brief, but I promise the next one won't take as long...I hope. /i br ------------------------------------ br
The part of the room that Brass indicated extended as an irregular projection on the north side of the house. Its walls were glass, forming a grimy half-hexagon that, during the time the house was occupied, would have provided a breathtaking view of the gardens that sprawled beneath it, now filled with weeds and vines turned brown by what little winter weather Las Vegas encountered.
Suspended by a metal chain from a beam placed between its walls, the barely recognizable remains of a human form was the only part of the view Sara noticed. The figure was beyond anything she'd ever seen. She felt her stomach churn and tasted the bitterness of bile rising into her throat while she struggled to take in the horrible picture.
The male victim's skin had been torn away, exposing the red flesh and bone beneath. Bits of it still clung to the heavy chains surrounding its wrists and ankles. A long cut had been slashed into the stomach and the abdominal muscles ripped aside, exposing an empty cavity where the entrails should have been. Along with the skin, the eyelids had been removed, and the victim's eyes stared an eternal, disturbing stare that seemed to bore into Sara's own eyes.
She gasped as she felt acid lurch farther into her esophagus and ran back into the hallway toward the stairs, but failed to make it before the sour vomit forced its way from her mouth. Gasping for air, she coughed and willed her digestive system to return to normal function. Wiping the corner of her mouth with her sleeve, Sara opened her eyes to inspect the damage she had done. Thankfully, she had opted not to eat anything before work that night.
"Sara?"
She turned to see Grissom standing in the hall behind her and winced. "I'm sorry. I don't know why that happened..." She shook her head, disgusted with not being able to control her reaction.
"At least you made it out here where there's less chance of compromising the evidence."
He handed her a tissue, then, satisfied that she was alright, returned to the room, knowing the embarrassment of an uncontrolled reaction was enough without having someone else looking over your shoulder.
"Any ideas on who might have done this or why?" Grissom asked as he rejoined Brass.
"None, so far."
Grissom stepped closer to the body, careful to avoid the gelatinous mass in the center of the blood pool that he assumed to be the previous occupants of the abdominal cavity, and began his inspection. The chain that looped around its neck and over the beam was thicker than the ones binding the wrists and ankles, but their weight combined with the dead weight of the body had almost severed the neck, which now caused the head to hang back at an odd angle. Two puncture wounds were visible underneath the chin, corresponding with two more on the chest, the latter set spaced slightly farther apart and extending deeper into the flesh. The victim's back was covered with lacerations and puncture wounds much like those on the chest, but whether they were made by the same instrument would remain a mystery until tests were run at the lab.
"Whoever did this wasn't worried about time." Grissom observed the man's fingers, most of which bent in several places where no joint should have been. "Torture like this would have taken hours at the least. Probably days."
Sara returned to the room and had to still her stomach for a second time. The reaction wasn't as severe as the first, but she was aware of what awaited her this time. She pulled on a new pair of gloves and joined Grissom.
"What happened here?" She shone her flashlight over the body, taking in her first up-close look at the body.
br ---------------------------------------- br iWhat did you think? Should I continue? Any ideas you'd like me to consider?/i