Chapter Four
Things had changed for Lilly, she didn't know why, but they had. She could feel it in the air around her. Ever since that one day at the Tiller home, Nick had begun to FLIRT with her at every opportunity, but who was Lilly to complain. Greg, however, seemed to be ignoring her. It didn't add up. It was a complete turn around from Lilly's first few days working with the forensics team. But the thing that bothered her the most was that she MISSED Greg's advances, his charming smile, and cocky attitude. At the same time though, she loved the attention that Nick was giving her. Lilly was at a crossroads, she didn't know where her heart was, or where she wanted it to be.
"What's eating you?" Warrick asked pouring a cup of coffee. Lilly looked up from her own mug where she was looking for answers in the hot amber liquid.
"Nothing." She replied shaking her head, "It's nothing."
"Well I'm here if you wanna talk." Warrick offered.
"Thanks." Lilly gave him a small smile.
"That's what friends are for." Warrick smiled and left. Lilly sighed, too bad he couldn't tell her what to feel.
~*~*~
It was hard, Greg wasn't about to deny it. Greg was sure of his feelings for Lilly, and he was confident that she liked him as well as he remembered her reaction to his touch just a day before, he just wanted her to figure it out herself. So in order to do that he had promised himself that he would give Lilly her space and allow her to sort things out for herself. But Lilly was just so captivating that it was all he could do to keep his eyes from following her every move. He shook his head and threw himself into his work. Work was the only thing that could keep his mind busy enough to keep it from wandering back to Lilly.
"You know Greg you've been really distracted lately. Anything you want to talk about?" Greg looked up to see Catherine standing in front of him giving him a curious look.
"Nothing's distracting me, why would you think that?" Greg asked as he turned back to his work.
"Oh nothing," Catherine said, "Just that you've been walking around here like you just lost your puppy."
"I wish it was that easy."
"Let me guess, girl troubles?" Greg nodded his head sadly.
"You could say that again."
"You wanna talk about it?"
"No not really."
"Well if you ever want to I'm all ears."
"Who knows, maybe I'll take you up on that offer one day." Catherine left and Greg was left alone, once again, with his thoughts.
~*~*~
He was in the clouds; nothing could bring him down. Nick had smiled so much that day that he was certain people thought he was crazy. And he was crazy, crazy about Lilly. She was an angel sent to earth, a beautiful creature who had shown interest in his advances. When Nick flirted with her, Lilly flirted back. It was an amazing feeling that made his heart beat faster.
"What's got you so happy?" Grissom walked beside Nick down the hall.
"Do I need a reason to smile?" Nick asked as they entered the break room.
"Well it would be good to have some reason, you know, so no one thinks you're insane." Grissom joked.
"Who cares what people think." Nick poured two cups of coffee and handing one to Grissom.
"True," Grissom said sipping the dark liquid, "So who is she?"
"What?"
"The only time I've ever seen you so happy go lucky is when there's a girl involved. So, who is she?"
"You...you wouldn't know her." Nick felt guilty lying to Grissom, but he doubted the older man would appreciate the fact that Nick liked Gil's goddaughter.
"Bring her in one day; I'd like to meet her."
"Oh...okay." Grissom left then, leaving Nick to berate himself for lying and allowing himself to be cornered.
~*~*~
Nothing added up. Neither in the Tiller case, or in Lilly's life. Everything was in turmoil, a jumble of thoughts and feelings that were incomprehensible. No matter how many times she went over evidence she couldn't make sense of it. Her muddled emotions were clouding her mind.
Lilly let out a deep sigh, letting all of her emotions out in one breath. She smiled half-heartedly at the small relief it gave her. She closed her eyes tightly and willed her mind to empty of all thoughts, which was easier said than done. After a few minutes she opened her eyes and focused all her attention on her job.
"We've got the mistress in interrogations." Nick poked his head into the small room where Lilly was going over evidence.
"I'll be right there." She said not looking up from her work.
"Alright." Nick replied walking away.
~*~*~
"So you're telling us that Mr. Tiller was with you when his wife was murdered?" Lilly asked, the voluptuous woman across from her nodded, "Well that's funny, because Mr. Tiller told us he was on a flight coming back from a conference. And his story checks out." The woman had looked like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Miss Hart would you please tell us where you really where that night?" Nick said sitting down on the edge of the table. Tears sprung to the woman's eyes and she choked back a sob.
"I admit I was at Charlie's, but his wife was still alive when I went there." She cried. Her lawyer, a stout man in his late fifties, hugged her shoulders sympathetically and whispered in her ear. Gloria Hart nodded and accepted a tissue from him.
"Why'd you go over to the Tiller's home?" Nick asked.
"I wanted to talk to Monica, but when she found out who I was she lost it and started throwing things at me." Gloria said, "She screamed at me and told me to get out of her house and that she hoped I died."
"Why did you want to talk to Mrs. Tiller?" Lilly questioned kindly.
"I know it's hard to believe, but I felt guilty about my affair with Charlie and I wanted to tell her that I was gonna break it off with him. I'm not a bad person, you have to believe that. Ask Charlie, I can't even bring myself to kill a spider." She was near hysterics and Lilly felt her heart go out to the woman that was not much older than herself.
"Where did you go after you left the Tiller's?" Nick asked moving to the metal chair beside Lilly.
"I went to confession, I hadn't been since I started having the affair and I had to cleanse myself."
"Can someone attest to that?"
"Yes, you can ask the priest at St. Catherine's."
"Thank you for your time Miss Hart." Nick said. Lilly stood and followed him out of the room.
"What do you think?" Nick asked her.
"The truth? I think she's innocent." Lilly replied. Nick nodded.
"Me too." He said.
~*~*~
"Yes Sister Gloria was here last Friday. She was very upset about an affair she was having. I gave her twenty Hail-Mary's and thirteen God Our Father's." Father Michael said.
"Thank you Father." Nick said, "You've been a great help."
"Anything to help clear a child of God's of wrong doing." The Father said.
"Well we better go." Lilly said, "Good-bye Father."
"Go in peace my children." Father Michael blessed them.
~*~*~
The trip to the church had been helpful, but it still brought Nick and Lilly back to where they started. All of their suspects had alibis that checked out, and that left them with a dead body and no killer. The media had finally gotten whiff of the murder and were beginning to swarm the house and the forensic lab's lobby, waiting for a chance to talk with one of the CSI's on the case. The sheriff fielded the questions for the most part, leaving the two CSIs time, and privacy, to do their job.
"This is so annoying." Lilly complained as she hurried into the lab Saturday morning, guards holding off a handful of reporters.
"I know what you mean." Nick said, "How do they expect us to do our jobs if they keep pestering us for an interview?"
"I see you two have become very popular." Catherine laughed as she walked past them in the hallway, "When can we expect you to get your own television shows?"
"Very funny Cath." Lilly said sarcastically.
"It was wasn't it." Catherine smiled, "Just don't forget us little people when you make it big."
"You don't have to worry about that." Nick said with a chuckle.
"I'll let you two get back to work then." With one last laughing smile Catherine walked away.
"Well come on Lilly, we've got work to do." Nick and the teen walked down the hall.
~*~*~
"Nick where are you?" Lilly asked the quiet room she was standing in. Nick had told her to go to the Tiller mansion and he'd meet her later. The teen had been waiting almost an hour and he still had not shown.
Finally she heard the front door open and close.
"It's about time you got here Nick." She said walking into the front entrance hall. Lilly stopped short. Nick wasn't the one looking back at her.
~*~*~
Don't you just love this cliffhangers? Don't worry I'll update soon and you'll know what's gonna happen to Lilly. Don't forget to review. The count for who Lilly will end up with is Nick-0, Greg-6. Remember to cast your vote!
Things had changed for Lilly, she didn't know why, but they had. She could feel it in the air around her. Ever since that one day at the Tiller home, Nick had begun to FLIRT with her at every opportunity, but who was Lilly to complain. Greg, however, seemed to be ignoring her. It didn't add up. It was a complete turn around from Lilly's first few days working with the forensics team. But the thing that bothered her the most was that she MISSED Greg's advances, his charming smile, and cocky attitude. At the same time though, she loved the attention that Nick was giving her. Lilly was at a crossroads, she didn't know where her heart was, or where she wanted it to be.
"What's eating you?" Warrick asked pouring a cup of coffee. Lilly looked up from her own mug where she was looking for answers in the hot amber liquid.
"Nothing." She replied shaking her head, "It's nothing."
"Well I'm here if you wanna talk." Warrick offered.
"Thanks." Lilly gave him a small smile.
"That's what friends are for." Warrick smiled and left. Lilly sighed, too bad he couldn't tell her what to feel.
~*~*~
It was hard, Greg wasn't about to deny it. Greg was sure of his feelings for Lilly, and he was confident that she liked him as well as he remembered her reaction to his touch just a day before, he just wanted her to figure it out herself. So in order to do that he had promised himself that he would give Lilly her space and allow her to sort things out for herself. But Lilly was just so captivating that it was all he could do to keep his eyes from following her every move. He shook his head and threw himself into his work. Work was the only thing that could keep his mind busy enough to keep it from wandering back to Lilly.
"You know Greg you've been really distracted lately. Anything you want to talk about?" Greg looked up to see Catherine standing in front of him giving him a curious look.
"Nothing's distracting me, why would you think that?" Greg asked as he turned back to his work.
"Oh nothing," Catherine said, "Just that you've been walking around here like you just lost your puppy."
"I wish it was that easy."
"Let me guess, girl troubles?" Greg nodded his head sadly.
"You could say that again."
"You wanna talk about it?"
"No not really."
"Well if you ever want to I'm all ears."
"Who knows, maybe I'll take you up on that offer one day." Catherine left and Greg was left alone, once again, with his thoughts.
~*~*~
He was in the clouds; nothing could bring him down. Nick had smiled so much that day that he was certain people thought he was crazy. And he was crazy, crazy about Lilly. She was an angel sent to earth, a beautiful creature who had shown interest in his advances. When Nick flirted with her, Lilly flirted back. It was an amazing feeling that made his heart beat faster.
"What's got you so happy?" Grissom walked beside Nick down the hall.
"Do I need a reason to smile?" Nick asked as they entered the break room.
"Well it would be good to have some reason, you know, so no one thinks you're insane." Grissom joked.
"Who cares what people think." Nick poured two cups of coffee and handing one to Grissom.
"True," Grissom said sipping the dark liquid, "So who is she?"
"What?"
"The only time I've ever seen you so happy go lucky is when there's a girl involved. So, who is she?"
"You...you wouldn't know her." Nick felt guilty lying to Grissom, but he doubted the older man would appreciate the fact that Nick liked Gil's goddaughter.
"Bring her in one day; I'd like to meet her."
"Oh...okay." Grissom left then, leaving Nick to berate himself for lying and allowing himself to be cornered.
~*~*~
Nothing added up. Neither in the Tiller case, or in Lilly's life. Everything was in turmoil, a jumble of thoughts and feelings that were incomprehensible. No matter how many times she went over evidence she couldn't make sense of it. Her muddled emotions were clouding her mind.
Lilly let out a deep sigh, letting all of her emotions out in one breath. She smiled half-heartedly at the small relief it gave her. She closed her eyes tightly and willed her mind to empty of all thoughts, which was easier said than done. After a few minutes she opened her eyes and focused all her attention on her job.
"We've got the mistress in interrogations." Nick poked his head into the small room where Lilly was going over evidence.
"I'll be right there." She said not looking up from her work.
"Alright." Nick replied walking away.
~*~*~
"So you're telling us that Mr. Tiller was with you when his wife was murdered?" Lilly asked, the voluptuous woman across from her nodded, "Well that's funny, because Mr. Tiller told us he was on a flight coming back from a conference. And his story checks out." The woman had looked like a deer caught in the headlights.
"Miss Hart would you please tell us where you really where that night?" Nick said sitting down on the edge of the table. Tears sprung to the woman's eyes and she choked back a sob.
"I admit I was at Charlie's, but his wife was still alive when I went there." She cried. Her lawyer, a stout man in his late fifties, hugged her shoulders sympathetically and whispered in her ear. Gloria Hart nodded and accepted a tissue from him.
"Why'd you go over to the Tiller's home?" Nick asked.
"I wanted to talk to Monica, but when she found out who I was she lost it and started throwing things at me." Gloria said, "She screamed at me and told me to get out of her house and that she hoped I died."
"Why did you want to talk to Mrs. Tiller?" Lilly questioned kindly.
"I know it's hard to believe, but I felt guilty about my affair with Charlie and I wanted to tell her that I was gonna break it off with him. I'm not a bad person, you have to believe that. Ask Charlie, I can't even bring myself to kill a spider." She was near hysterics and Lilly felt her heart go out to the woman that was not much older than herself.
"Where did you go after you left the Tiller's?" Nick asked moving to the metal chair beside Lilly.
"I went to confession, I hadn't been since I started having the affair and I had to cleanse myself."
"Can someone attest to that?"
"Yes, you can ask the priest at St. Catherine's."
"Thank you for your time Miss Hart." Nick said. Lilly stood and followed him out of the room.
"What do you think?" Nick asked her.
"The truth? I think she's innocent." Lilly replied. Nick nodded.
"Me too." He said.
~*~*~
"Yes Sister Gloria was here last Friday. She was very upset about an affair she was having. I gave her twenty Hail-Mary's and thirteen God Our Father's." Father Michael said.
"Thank you Father." Nick said, "You've been a great help."
"Anything to help clear a child of God's of wrong doing." The Father said.
"Well we better go." Lilly said, "Good-bye Father."
"Go in peace my children." Father Michael blessed them.
~*~*~
The trip to the church had been helpful, but it still brought Nick and Lilly back to where they started. All of their suspects had alibis that checked out, and that left them with a dead body and no killer. The media had finally gotten whiff of the murder and were beginning to swarm the house and the forensic lab's lobby, waiting for a chance to talk with one of the CSI's on the case. The sheriff fielded the questions for the most part, leaving the two CSIs time, and privacy, to do their job.
"This is so annoying." Lilly complained as she hurried into the lab Saturday morning, guards holding off a handful of reporters.
"I know what you mean." Nick said, "How do they expect us to do our jobs if they keep pestering us for an interview?"
"I see you two have become very popular." Catherine laughed as she walked past them in the hallway, "When can we expect you to get your own television shows?"
"Very funny Cath." Lilly said sarcastically.
"It was wasn't it." Catherine smiled, "Just don't forget us little people when you make it big."
"You don't have to worry about that." Nick said with a chuckle.
"I'll let you two get back to work then." With one last laughing smile Catherine walked away.
"Well come on Lilly, we've got work to do." Nick and the teen walked down the hall.
~*~*~
"Nick where are you?" Lilly asked the quiet room she was standing in. Nick had told her to go to the Tiller mansion and he'd meet her later. The teen had been waiting almost an hour and he still had not shown.
Finally she heard the front door open and close.
"It's about time you got here Nick." She said walking into the front entrance hall. Lilly stopped short. Nick wasn't the one looking back at her.
~*~*~
Don't you just love this cliffhangers? Don't worry I'll update soon and you'll know what's gonna happen to Lilly. Don't forget to review. The count for who Lilly will end up with is Nick-0, Greg-6. Remember to cast your vote!