Beth made it to Grissom's townhouse in record time. When she pulled into his driveway, she noticed that his townhouse was dark. There was not a single light on in the whole structure. Beth hoped beyond all hope that he was on his way over to Greg's house, but something in her gut told her that he wasn't. She knew that there was one way to find out. She exhaled the breath that she had been holding, and exited the car. She walked over to Grissom's garage and peaked through the window. What she saw made the butterflies in her stomach worse. She saw Grissom's Tahoe parked in the garage, mocking her. A thought flitted across her mind and was just as quickly dismissed. Maybe Grissom had gotten a ride with someone else? No, everyone else was at the party. A wave of nausea rolled over her, as she headed toward the front door. She knew something was wrong, but she had no idea what it could possibly be. Thoughts flew through her head. Had anyone written any threatening letters to Grissom lately? She didn't have to think about that too long. Every criminal within a ten mile radius of the Las Vegas Crime Lab hated Dr. Gil Grissom. They didn't have to write any threatening letters.
Beth quickened her pace until she reached the front door and stopped dead in her tracks. His door was open. Grissom was too highly organized a man to just leave his door open. She pushed the door open slowly. "Grissom?" There was no response. She tried again. "Grissom, are you home?" Again, there was no answer. She decided that she should call Greg before she went in. She pulled out the cell phone and dialed his number.
"Hello?"
"Greg, it's me."
He could tell from the sound of her voice that something was wrong. "Beth, what's wrong? Are you okay?"
"It's Grissom. His car is here, but all of the lights are off and his front door is open. I'm nervous Greg."
"Okay, I'll be over in twenty minutes. Just be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you."
"I'll be fine, just get here as soon as you can."
"I'm out the door now."
"Thanks Greg."
"I love you Beth."
"I love you too, Greg." She hung up the cell phone, put it in her pocket and stepped into the darkness that had enveloped Grissom's home. She flicked the light switch that was closest to the door, but nothing happened. A chill went down Beth's spine. She called out Grissom's name again as she stepped further into his home. There was still no answer.
When she turned the corner into the living room, all of her fears were confirmed. She saw Grissom lying on the floor, unconscious. His hands and feet were bound with rope and there was duct tape over his mouth. She rushed to her mentor's side. She pulled out her cell phone to call 911, but was interrupted.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The voice belonged to a man. She turned to look at the man who had invaded Grissom's home and life. He was sitting on the stairs that led up to the second floor. He could not be seen from the front door as he sat there, but he had apparently watched her as she made her way through the house. He was a tall, muscular man with dark hair and even darker eyes. He had a cool and collected demeanor about him that made Beth sick. Suddenly, all of her fear was gone, and only anger, disgust and hatred were left in its place.
"Who the hell are you?"
"That's unimportant at this time-"
"What do you mean unimportant? What the hell are you doing here?"
"You ask too many questions." With that said, he pulled out a Glock 36 and aimed it directly at her head. "Now I suggest you sit down beside Grissom and shut up."
She had no choice but to obey his commands. She thought it was odd that he knew Grissom's name. She decided that he was a criminal that had been convicted by evidence that Grissom had presented in court. Grissom had made many enemies that way. She reluctantly sat on the floor beside Grissom, as she had been instructed. The man came up behind her and proceeded to tie her hands and feet. She struggled against him, but he was too strong for her. When he had her hands and feet bound, he placed a strip of duct tape over her mouth and returned to his roost on the stairs. She sat on the floor helpless, knowing that Greg would arrive in minutes and would walk right into this madman's trap. To keep her mind off of what was going to happen, she focused her energy on the ropes and trying to loosen them. She struggled against them in every way possible.
Roughly five minutes passed before she heard a noise outside. She had been vigorously working on the ropes and had succeeded in loosening them a little. The noise had been a car pulling into the driveway. Her mind reeled when she realized who it was that had pulled up. Greg had just arrived. She tried to scream out, but there was no sound. The man chuckled quietly as he watched Beth struggle.
"Beth? Grissom? Are you guys here?"
Beth began to cry when she heard his voice. She knew that he would not be able to see the man until it was too late. He had no idea what he was stepping into.