Chapter 27
Grissom reeled from the force of the strike. He gasped, staring at her. "Catherine? What's wrong? What the heck did I do?"
Catherine kept her hands at her sides, clenching her fists to keep from wrapping them around Grissom's neck.
"What did you do? What did you do?!? Are you actually asking me that question?" 'Uh oh,' she though, 'This is getting a little out of hand. I should switch to the other problem.' She quickly checked herself and then calmed down a little bit. The time will come to chew Grissom's head off for hurting her friend, but now was not the time.
"Yes, I actually am asking you that question. what is the matter with? What the hell was that for?" He rubbed his quickly reddening cheek. The outline of fingertips could be seen on the clear skin above the beard. Grissom's face showed his pain, and Catherine flinched inside. Looking down at her hand, she saw the three rings, settled upon her fingers and flinched. 'Tough luck.' she thought. Taking a few deep breaths, Catherine tried to switch from Sara's defense to her own.
"Why did you have to take me off the case Grissom? I'm a good CSI, and you know it. plus, ir was Lindey's life on the line, and you wouldn't even talk to that bitch. I was the only one that was doing their job, and you freaking took me off!!
Grissom was thinking of some way to get rid of Catherine's anger, or at least channel it into another direction. She was worse than a bull right now. Hey eyes shooting daggers at him, her hair a bit disheveled, her hands rigid at her sides, fists clenching. He gulped. Fists.
"Catherine, you know exactly why I took you off the case. You have to understand. You're the next in line right after me. You're wise that the others, you have to understand." He saw Catherine didn't give a damn about what he was saying. There were no signs of her anger lessening, 'Maybe another tactic will work...'
"You know, what you did could get you another month of unpaid leave? You disregarded your supervisor's directions. You put yourself in danger, and you stalked someone. Catherine, that's a major offense. If Mrs. Fields finds out, if she doesn't already know, she can press charges."
Catherine's face changed from the 'raging bull' to the 'deer caught in headlights' She'd never really thought about that, and it was true. She could go to jail. Visibly shuddering, her mind swept back to grissom. "How dare you throw that in my face? I was the one who found the two prisoners, wasn't I? Sure, let her press charges, I don't give a damn. I won't go to jail, and I will not let my daughter see her mother as a criminal. You got me?" She advanced towards Grissom, her entire posture evincing her threat. "Even if she does press charges, I know five people that will testify that I was not stalking her. No one will ever know. No one will ever suspect."
Grissom stepped back from Catherine's towering form, eyeing her warily. Her heels putting about an inch between their heights. He counted in his head, 'Sara, Warrick, Nick, Brass, that's only four. Wait, did she mean the fifth person to be me?' His eyes shone with his discovery. . .
Catherine raised an eyebrow, challenging him to defy her. "What? Are you going to testify against me? Then, you'll share a room with Sara in this hospital. You got that? And as for the unpaid leave, I've done that once, I'll do it again. You can't scare me Grissom. With anything. Don't even argue, I WILL win, and you know it."
Grissom was about to retort when Brass appeared around the corner. His eyes zoned in on Catherine as she stood with clenched hands, glaring at Grissom.
"Did I just hear you threaten Grissom, Mrs. Willows?" Catherine spun around, her eyes wide with surprise. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to escort you down to the station."
Catherine turned fully and channeled her anger towards Jim Brass. His smile disappeared immediately. "Well, I guess this is a bad time?" Catherine huffed and turned on her heel. She made her way back to Sara's room, her stride proving that she was not screwing around anymore. Long strides, clicking heels, shoulders back, arms swinging wide at her sides, Catherine disappeared around the corner.
"What happened here?" Brass was astonished. Whatever had made Catherine so angry at Grissom? "What did you do this time, Gris?"
Grissom snapped out of his reverie and shot a piercing look at the captain. "I, haven't done anything." With that he turned to follow Catherine's footsteps. He didn't want her in Sara's room, upsetting the frail woman. As he approached Sara's door, he saw doctors and nurses rush towards another room. He heard the commotion and felt sorry for the person occupying that room. Coming to a door, he turned the knob softly. Seeing a middle aged man in the bed, he jumped back, muttering an embarraseed, "Sorry." He'd walked into the wrong room. 'Stupid." he thought.
Suddenly, fear gripped his insides and churned them all up. 'Sara!' his mind screamed. His instincts told him to go to the room he had just passed. The one with all of the commotion. With anxious steps, he turned around and made his way slowly to the right room. Step by excruciating step. Finally, he reached the right, and halted outside. Listening to all of the shouting voices.
"Her pressure's dropping."
"There's internal bleeding."
"What the hell happened here?"
"She's hyperventalating. Miss, please, stop crying. You're hurting yourself more."
"Damn it, she won't stop."
"Give me a breathing mask, now!"
"Ma'am, please move out of the room. You have to give us room to work."
"No! I will not leave my friend here!"
Grissom froze. That voice. The familiar voice. Catherine's voice. He barged in and saw Catherine fighting with a doctor. "I'm not going anywhere!"
Grissom made his way up to Catherine, nodding to the doctor that he would take care of it. He grabbed Catherine's arm in a steely grip. "Get the hell out," he ground out through clenched teeth, his hand tightening on her struggling arm.
Catherine's face screwed up in pain as Grissom's hands slowly squeezed her arm harder and harder.
Grissom reeled from the force of the strike. He gasped, staring at her. "Catherine? What's wrong? What the heck did I do?"
Catherine kept her hands at her sides, clenching her fists to keep from wrapping them around Grissom's neck.
"What did you do? What did you do?!? Are you actually asking me that question?" 'Uh oh,' she though, 'This is getting a little out of hand. I should switch to the other problem.' She quickly checked herself and then calmed down a little bit. The time will come to chew Grissom's head off for hurting her friend, but now was not the time.
"Yes, I actually am asking you that question. what is the matter with? What the hell was that for?" He rubbed his quickly reddening cheek. The outline of fingertips could be seen on the clear skin above the beard. Grissom's face showed his pain, and Catherine flinched inside. Looking down at her hand, she saw the three rings, settled upon her fingers and flinched. 'Tough luck.' she thought. Taking a few deep breaths, Catherine tried to switch from Sara's defense to her own.
"Why did you have to take me off the case Grissom? I'm a good CSI, and you know it. plus, ir was Lindey's life on the line, and you wouldn't even talk to that bitch. I was the only one that was doing their job, and you freaking took me off!!
Grissom was thinking of some way to get rid of Catherine's anger, or at least channel it into another direction. She was worse than a bull right now. Hey eyes shooting daggers at him, her hair a bit disheveled, her hands rigid at her sides, fists clenching. He gulped. Fists.
"Catherine, you know exactly why I took you off the case. You have to understand. You're the next in line right after me. You're wise that the others, you have to understand." He saw Catherine didn't give a damn about what he was saying. There were no signs of her anger lessening, 'Maybe another tactic will work...'
"You know, what you did could get you another month of unpaid leave? You disregarded your supervisor's directions. You put yourself in danger, and you stalked someone. Catherine, that's a major offense. If Mrs. Fields finds out, if she doesn't already know, she can press charges."
Catherine's face changed from the 'raging bull' to the 'deer caught in headlights' She'd never really thought about that, and it was true. She could go to jail. Visibly shuddering, her mind swept back to grissom. "How dare you throw that in my face? I was the one who found the two prisoners, wasn't I? Sure, let her press charges, I don't give a damn. I won't go to jail, and I will not let my daughter see her mother as a criminal. You got me?" She advanced towards Grissom, her entire posture evincing her threat. "Even if she does press charges, I know five people that will testify that I was not stalking her. No one will ever know. No one will ever suspect."
Grissom stepped back from Catherine's towering form, eyeing her warily. Her heels putting about an inch between their heights. He counted in his head, 'Sara, Warrick, Nick, Brass, that's only four. Wait, did she mean the fifth person to be me?' His eyes shone with his discovery. . .
Catherine raised an eyebrow, challenging him to defy her. "What? Are you going to testify against me? Then, you'll share a room with Sara in this hospital. You got that? And as for the unpaid leave, I've done that once, I'll do it again. You can't scare me Grissom. With anything. Don't even argue, I WILL win, and you know it."
Grissom was about to retort when Brass appeared around the corner. His eyes zoned in on Catherine as she stood with clenched hands, glaring at Grissom.
"Did I just hear you threaten Grissom, Mrs. Willows?" Catherine spun around, her eyes wide with surprise. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to escort you down to the station."
Catherine turned fully and channeled her anger towards Jim Brass. His smile disappeared immediately. "Well, I guess this is a bad time?" Catherine huffed and turned on her heel. She made her way back to Sara's room, her stride proving that she was not screwing around anymore. Long strides, clicking heels, shoulders back, arms swinging wide at her sides, Catherine disappeared around the corner.
"What happened here?" Brass was astonished. Whatever had made Catherine so angry at Grissom? "What did you do this time, Gris?"
Grissom snapped out of his reverie and shot a piercing look at the captain. "I, haven't done anything." With that he turned to follow Catherine's footsteps. He didn't want her in Sara's room, upsetting the frail woman. As he approached Sara's door, he saw doctors and nurses rush towards another room. He heard the commotion and felt sorry for the person occupying that room. Coming to a door, he turned the knob softly. Seeing a middle aged man in the bed, he jumped back, muttering an embarraseed, "Sorry." He'd walked into the wrong room. 'Stupid." he thought.
Suddenly, fear gripped his insides and churned them all up. 'Sara!' his mind screamed. His instincts told him to go to the room he had just passed. The one with all of the commotion. With anxious steps, he turned around and made his way slowly to the right room. Step by excruciating step. Finally, he reached the right, and halted outside. Listening to all of the shouting voices.
"Her pressure's dropping."
"There's internal bleeding."
"What the hell happened here?"
"She's hyperventalating. Miss, please, stop crying. You're hurting yourself more."
"Damn it, she won't stop."
"Give me a breathing mask, now!"
"Ma'am, please move out of the room. You have to give us room to work."
"No! I will not leave my friend here!"
Grissom froze. That voice. The familiar voice. Catherine's voice. He barged in and saw Catherine fighting with a doctor. "I'm not going anywhere!"
Grissom made his way up to Catherine, nodding to the doctor that he would take care of it. He grabbed Catherine's arm in a steely grip. "Get the hell out," he ground out through clenched teeth, his hand tightening on her struggling arm.
Catherine's face screwed up in pain as Grissom's hands slowly squeezed her arm harder and harder.