Chapter Twenty-Four
Sunlight shone around her and Lilly drank in the fresh, clean air. Between being stuck in a dark, dank basement, and then confined to a hospital room, it felt good to finally be allowed outside. She stood still, just letting the sun sink into her skin.
"Come on Lilly." Her mother called from the car; "it's time to go." Go, Lilly loved that word. Time to go, to get away from the hospital, away from the memories. But she wouldn't get far she reminded herself. She still carried Scott's child, and was still uncertain of what she would do once the baby was born.
She climbed into the back of her parents' car and strapped herself in. Watching the hospital grow smaller in the distance, Lilly ran her hands over her abdomen absentmindedly. What was she going to do about Greg? Even thought they'd never actually been on a date, she knew she loved him, more than she'd ever loved anyone. Would he really accept her child? Lilly wasn't so sure anymore, not after the way he'd acted just a couple days before.
The car came to a stop and Lilly looked up surprised to see her apartment just outside the window. It was at that moment that all the fear Lilly had felt in the past week came rushing back. Her feet wouldn't move, her breathing became harsh, and her heart thundered in her chest. Invisible fingers crept up her spine and Lilly shuddered.
"We don't have to stay here tonight, we can rent a hotel room." Vivian said placing a gentle hand on her daughter's stiff shoulder, "After all, Gil said that the crime lab still wanted to look over some things in there." Lilly simply stood there and allowed her dad to pull out of the parking lot. Soon they were speeding off towards the hotel that her parents had just checked out of that morning.
~*~*~
Greg flipped through old cases, trying to get his mind off the fight with Lilly. It still haunted him and he felt like a real jerk for saying what he had. As he flipped through the files of the arson cases that Lilly and Catherine had worked earlier that year, something jumped out at him. He looked over each file carefully. Then it clicked.
"Catherine!" He yelled running out of the room in search of the blonde CSI, "Catherine!" He rounded a corner and ran straight into the woman.
"What's gotten into you?" Catherine asked, staring at the lab tech.
"You'll never guess what I found." Greg said.
"What?"
"Follow me." Greg grabbed her hand and pulled her down the hall. As soon as they entered the trace lab, he opened all the files.
"Look." He said pointing at them, "Each of the fingerprints came from a dead person right?"
"Yeah, what does that have to do with anything?"
"Look at how logged them into the morgue." Catherine looked closely at each file and a small smile split her face.
"Scott Kennedy."
~*~*~
"So he started the fires in hopes that Lilly would be put on the case?" Grissom asked as Catherine and Greg showed him the case files.
"That's the way it seems." Catherine replied.
"But it doesn't make sense. Why would he start the fires and then leave a single fingerprint behind?" Grissom asked.
"Who knows Gil," Catherine said, "Maybe he was subconsciously trying to help us catch him? I don't know."
"Stranger things have happened." Gil mused, "Add this to the evidence we have in the rape case, and call up Nick and Warrick. I want to have a meeting."
"You got it Gris." Catherine said.
~*~*~
Photos, video tapes, audiotapes, all of it was laid out on the metal tables for the CSIs to look over. All of it had been confiscated from Scott Kennedy's home, and all of it was pertaining to the stalking and kidnapping of Lilly.
"This is what we have so far." Grissom said to his team as they looked at everything, "It's more than enough to convince a jury to find Mr. Kennedy guilty, but we need to sift through and see if we can't find something more. Something that will help nail him on the arson cases as well. Nick your on video, Warrick audio, and Catherine and I will cover the photos." Nick and Warrick grabbed the video and audio tapes and headed off to their own rooms. Catherine and Grissom divided and spread out the photos.
"This is going to take a long time." Catherine stated as she looked over the boxes and boxes of photographs that they still had to go through.
"Then let's get started." Grissom replied.
~*~*~
Lilly felt like a caged animal as she sat in the hotel room. Her parents were constantly hovering over her, making sure that she was all right and insisting that she rest. She was sick of it. Resting was all that she had done ever since she got in the hospital, and now she needed to do something, to stretch the muscles that hadn't been moved in nearly two weeks. She waited until her folks were asleep, then she grabbed her father's keys off the bedside table and slipped out of the room.
She had no idea where she was going, she just drove. Winding through the streets of Vegas, she soon found herself at the forensics lab. Stopping the car Lilly turned the engine off and got out.
The halls were strangely silent as Lilly walked through the building. People stopped what they were doing to stare at her and send sympathetic glances her way. Hugging herself tightly as if to ward off the stares, Lilly made her way towards trace lab to talk to Greg. She stopped when she saw Nick sitting in the video room, a black and white film playing on the screen. But it wasn't a movie it was her apartment! Lilly saw herself in the living room reading a book, in the kitchen cooking, sleeping in her bed, and...in the SHOWER!
"Don't tell me that's really me." Lilly pleaded. Nick turned around quickly, his eyes wide and startled. He immediately turned off the four video feeds.
"You shouldn't be here Lilly." He said gently.
"That jerk filmed me?" she cried, "Why didn't you guys tell me?"
"Grissom didn't want you to know." Nick said.
"Why not? I have a right to know if I was being video taped or not, don't I?" her voice bounced off the walls of the room. Dry sobs overcame her body and Lilly stared at the screen where only seconds before she'd been.
"Lilly..." Nick advanced, meaning to comfort her.
"Just leave me alone." She said running from the room.
~*~*~
She sped down the highway again. She wanted to cry so badly, but her tears had long since been dried up. Lilly didn't know where she was going and was shocked to find herself out her apartment complex. At the sight of the building, tears sprang to her eyes and she bit her lip to keep from screaming. She forced her feet to move, and slowly made her way up the stairs. Rain started to fall from the sky in heavy sheets and it wasn't but a couple seconds before Lilly was soaked to the skin. Slowly, one step at a time, she made her way up to the second story. She placed her foot on the concrete of the second story and her courage failed her. With a heavy sigh she turned to head back down the stairs, but her foot slipped. She reached out for the handrail, but her hands met empty air. The stairs were cold, wet, and hard as Lilly rolled down them. She tucked her head in her arms, so as not to smash her skull in. She felt her skin tearing as she continued to fall. Then she landed on the hard pavement of the parking lot. Lying there, still as a stone, Lilly let the rain continue to fall on her. Her tears mingled with the rain as she lay there, clutching her stomach.
~*~*~
Oh another beautiful cliffhanger. Lol. I'm only five more reviews away from that lovely number one hundred, so review and tell me what you thought.
Sunlight shone around her and Lilly drank in the fresh, clean air. Between being stuck in a dark, dank basement, and then confined to a hospital room, it felt good to finally be allowed outside. She stood still, just letting the sun sink into her skin.
"Come on Lilly." Her mother called from the car; "it's time to go." Go, Lilly loved that word. Time to go, to get away from the hospital, away from the memories. But she wouldn't get far she reminded herself. She still carried Scott's child, and was still uncertain of what she would do once the baby was born.
She climbed into the back of her parents' car and strapped herself in. Watching the hospital grow smaller in the distance, Lilly ran her hands over her abdomen absentmindedly. What was she going to do about Greg? Even thought they'd never actually been on a date, she knew she loved him, more than she'd ever loved anyone. Would he really accept her child? Lilly wasn't so sure anymore, not after the way he'd acted just a couple days before.
The car came to a stop and Lilly looked up surprised to see her apartment just outside the window. It was at that moment that all the fear Lilly had felt in the past week came rushing back. Her feet wouldn't move, her breathing became harsh, and her heart thundered in her chest. Invisible fingers crept up her spine and Lilly shuddered.
"We don't have to stay here tonight, we can rent a hotel room." Vivian said placing a gentle hand on her daughter's stiff shoulder, "After all, Gil said that the crime lab still wanted to look over some things in there." Lilly simply stood there and allowed her dad to pull out of the parking lot. Soon they were speeding off towards the hotel that her parents had just checked out of that morning.
~*~*~
Greg flipped through old cases, trying to get his mind off the fight with Lilly. It still haunted him and he felt like a real jerk for saying what he had. As he flipped through the files of the arson cases that Lilly and Catherine had worked earlier that year, something jumped out at him. He looked over each file carefully. Then it clicked.
"Catherine!" He yelled running out of the room in search of the blonde CSI, "Catherine!" He rounded a corner and ran straight into the woman.
"What's gotten into you?" Catherine asked, staring at the lab tech.
"You'll never guess what I found." Greg said.
"What?"
"Follow me." Greg grabbed her hand and pulled her down the hall. As soon as they entered the trace lab, he opened all the files.
"Look." He said pointing at them, "Each of the fingerprints came from a dead person right?"
"Yeah, what does that have to do with anything?"
"Look at how logged them into the morgue." Catherine looked closely at each file and a small smile split her face.
"Scott Kennedy."
~*~*~
"So he started the fires in hopes that Lilly would be put on the case?" Grissom asked as Catherine and Greg showed him the case files.
"That's the way it seems." Catherine replied.
"But it doesn't make sense. Why would he start the fires and then leave a single fingerprint behind?" Grissom asked.
"Who knows Gil," Catherine said, "Maybe he was subconsciously trying to help us catch him? I don't know."
"Stranger things have happened." Gil mused, "Add this to the evidence we have in the rape case, and call up Nick and Warrick. I want to have a meeting."
"You got it Gris." Catherine said.
~*~*~
Photos, video tapes, audiotapes, all of it was laid out on the metal tables for the CSIs to look over. All of it had been confiscated from Scott Kennedy's home, and all of it was pertaining to the stalking and kidnapping of Lilly.
"This is what we have so far." Grissom said to his team as they looked at everything, "It's more than enough to convince a jury to find Mr. Kennedy guilty, but we need to sift through and see if we can't find something more. Something that will help nail him on the arson cases as well. Nick your on video, Warrick audio, and Catherine and I will cover the photos." Nick and Warrick grabbed the video and audio tapes and headed off to their own rooms. Catherine and Grissom divided and spread out the photos.
"This is going to take a long time." Catherine stated as she looked over the boxes and boxes of photographs that they still had to go through.
"Then let's get started." Grissom replied.
~*~*~
Lilly felt like a caged animal as she sat in the hotel room. Her parents were constantly hovering over her, making sure that she was all right and insisting that she rest. She was sick of it. Resting was all that she had done ever since she got in the hospital, and now she needed to do something, to stretch the muscles that hadn't been moved in nearly two weeks. She waited until her folks were asleep, then she grabbed her father's keys off the bedside table and slipped out of the room.
She had no idea where she was going, she just drove. Winding through the streets of Vegas, she soon found herself at the forensics lab. Stopping the car Lilly turned the engine off and got out.
The halls were strangely silent as Lilly walked through the building. People stopped what they were doing to stare at her and send sympathetic glances her way. Hugging herself tightly as if to ward off the stares, Lilly made her way towards trace lab to talk to Greg. She stopped when she saw Nick sitting in the video room, a black and white film playing on the screen. But it wasn't a movie it was her apartment! Lilly saw herself in the living room reading a book, in the kitchen cooking, sleeping in her bed, and...in the SHOWER!
"Don't tell me that's really me." Lilly pleaded. Nick turned around quickly, his eyes wide and startled. He immediately turned off the four video feeds.
"You shouldn't be here Lilly." He said gently.
"That jerk filmed me?" she cried, "Why didn't you guys tell me?"
"Grissom didn't want you to know." Nick said.
"Why not? I have a right to know if I was being video taped or not, don't I?" her voice bounced off the walls of the room. Dry sobs overcame her body and Lilly stared at the screen where only seconds before she'd been.
"Lilly..." Nick advanced, meaning to comfort her.
"Just leave me alone." She said running from the room.
~*~*~
She sped down the highway again. She wanted to cry so badly, but her tears had long since been dried up. Lilly didn't know where she was going and was shocked to find herself out her apartment complex. At the sight of the building, tears sprang to her eyes and she bit her lip to keep from screaming. She forced her feet to move, and slowly made her way up the stairs. Rain started to fall from the sky in heavy sheets and it wasn't but a couple seconds before Lilly was soaked to the skin. Slowly, one step at a time, she made her way up to the second story. She placed her foot on the concrete of the second story and her courage failed her. With a heavy sigh she turned to head back down the stairs, but her foot slipped. She reached out for the handrail, but her hands met empty air. The stairs were cold, wet, and hard as Lilly rolled down them. She tucked her head in her arms, so as not to smash her skull in. She felt her skin tearing as she continued to fall. Then she landed on the hard pavement of the parking lot. Lying there, still as a stone, Lilly let the rain continue to fall on her. Her tears mingled with the rain as she lay there, clutching her stomach.
~*~*~
Oh another beautiful cliffhanger. Lol. I'm only five more reviews away from that lovely number one hundred, so review and tell me what you thought.