Title: Boundaries

Author: Evidence

Chapter: 4

Author's Notes: Thanks to D for the encouragement.

Pilanos was a small restaurant a few hundred years form CSI headquarters. Understanding what modern, busy workers needed they had built a drive through window offering pre made veggie wraps and Italian sandwiches. Grissom had already eaten half of his roast beef sandwich out of nervousness before they were two minutes away.

"Someone was hungry," Sara said glancing over at him as she drove with one hand and eating her pepper/tomato/cheese wrap.

"I have been too busy with work to stop at the grocery store."

"That's why there is take out," Sara said with a laugh.

"It's too expensive."

Sara laughed. "Oh Grissom, you make plenty of money to buy food. Maybe you don't like to eat alone."

Grissom gulped down the last of his sandwich. "Maybe," he said softly. He was still hungry but that sandwich would have to subside him.

Sara, as if reading his mind, asked, "Still hungry? Here have a bite of my wrap." She handed the wrap over.

"Thanks," Grissom said taking a bite.

"You can finish it if you want."

"Um...no, that's okay. Thank you."

They pulled into the lab parking lot seeing Hodges standing out in the middle of a parking space, staring.

"What is he doing?" Grissom asked.

"Maybe waiting for aliens to take him home?" Sara grinned.

Grissom shook his head and got out. "Hodges!'

David Hodges jumped and turned around. "Boss! Hey, I was just...um... never mind. Where have you two been?"

"Taking care of the evidence," Grissom replied starting into the building.

"Well your results are in on that nylon fiber found on the dog collar." Hodges followed behind them like a dog after it's masters.

"Go on," Grissom urged.

"The fiber is nylon as Sara had assumed but it's particular type of fiber, a fiber found in certain windbreakers."

Grissom stopped dead in his tracks. Hodges nearly crashed into Sara.

"Certain windbreakers?"

"Yup! Megacoyicde nylon used only by the Tee Sports Company. It was in the database." Hodges smiled.

"Why was it in the database?' Sara asked.

Hodges turned towards her. "Three local schools use the Tee Sports Company for their soccer and track teams."

Grissom raised an eyebrow and Sara reflected the same.

"And what schools are these?" Grissom asked.

"Hold on," Hodges replied pulling a paper form his back pocket, "Johnson High School, John F. Kennedy Memorial High, and Las Vegas Central."

"Good job Hodges," Grissom said, "I'm heading to the morgue- Sara would you start the paper work on the warrants for these schools."

"Well do," Sara replied and then cast a glance at a smiling Hodges. "What?"

"Oh I'm just happy Grissom complimented me. Sanders and I have a little competition going to see who can receive the most compliments from the boss. So far I'm ahead by two. Yes!"

Sara rolled her eyes.

"Doc, what can you tell me?" Grissom asked entering the dimly lit autopsy room.

"Doggone it I wondered when you were going to get here," Robbins said with a laugh.

"Sara and I were busy..."

"Oh," Robbins said whistling.

"Not...we were taking care of the victim's dog."

"Oh."

"Really!"

"I believe you, Gil. Your vic by the way died from a single wound to the jugular vein. It appears that something shaped like a screw penetrated the skin. He bled out quickly."

"A corkscrew, perhaps?" Grissom asked.

"Could be. I'll know more in a day or two."

"Thanks Doc," Grissom said starting off.

"Oh and I don't know if this is important to your investigation but Mr. Krammer had sex in the last few hours."

"It might be. I guess he was more than friends with his neighbor."

"Borrowed more than a cup of sugar, huh?" Robbins laughed.

"You're in quite the mood tonight Al," Grissom shook his head with a small smile and left the morgue.

The hours passed on to daybreak. The sun rose brightly over the mountains casting Vegas in a bright light.

Sara knocked at Grissom's door. "Ready to go? We can get a few hours of rest before going over to the high schools."

"Maybe we should just pull a double- I don't feel tired," Grissom replied staring at the crime scene photos.

"Okay but what about Bailey? He needs to go for a walk by now and we also have to pick him up some real food...well dog food."

"That's true. Okay just a few hours then I'm back at the lab."

"Sounds like a plan," Sara replied and lead the way to her Tahoe.

Grissom got in quickly stealing a glance at her as he clicked his seat belt into position. She was so close but still so far away. He wondered if this was how it was for the widowed neighbors. First just friendly hellos, then something simmering beneath the surface, followed by friendship and then something more. He wondered if it would ever work out that way for Sara and himself, if he would ever be ready to commit. He could picture the two of them grilling hamburgers for the Fourth of July although he had never used a grill in his life and Sara wouldn't eat meat.

"Grissom, are you okay?"

"Yeah, fine," he replied coming back to reality.

"You had this strange look on your face."

"Oh, I was just thinking...about the future."

"Pleasantly I hope," Sara said starting up the SUV.

"If it all works out the most pleasant future I could imagine."

To be continued...