It was getting dark. As they drove along the highway she watched the sun fall behind the golden mountains and the sky turn shades of pink. The wind had picked up and was blowing the fallen leaves skyward in miniature spirals. It had been a year since Susan Waterhouse died. They had found her killer in a secluded cottage in the forest and Grissom had been forced to shoot him when he tried to attack Sara.

His name was Douglas Hamilton. He had a violent history and when his wife Susan left him, he hunted her down and killed her. Taking a closer look at the x-rays reviled evidence of long term abuse.

They looked back through Doug's history and discovered that he had been married three times. In addition, that all three of his previous wives had gone missing and their cases sat untouched for years in the evidence lock up. No CSI, ever being able to pin him for murder. Until now.

Turning onto a side road, Sara was jostled around her seat as the SUV moved over the gravel road. About a mile up the road, they reached a small sign reading "Lake Mead Cemetery". The car pulled into the deserted parking lot and came to a halt.

Sara looked out the window and out over the cemetery. The sun was now only a sliver of golden yellow, lighting the horizon and Sara shivered as she stepped out of the car. She reached into the back and slid the small pine tree off the seat. Then started her decent to the cemetery below.

Grissom watched from the top of the hill as Sara dug a small hole for the tree and gently eased it in. She softly filled in the hole and packed the dirt down. He leaned against the car as she stood stretching her long legs and pulling her hat further down over her ears.

She visibly shuddered and Grissom started down the hill towards her. He stopped a few meters from her and watched as she stared at Susan's grave. He cleared his throat and she turned towards him with a teary smile.

He took the remaining steps and stood beside her. She gave his forearm a gentle squeeze and returned her gaze to the horizon. They stood in quiet understanding as the sun sunk and the moon made its journey into the night sky. One by one, the stars appeared and they slowly headed back to the warmth of the car.

Sara slid into the heated leather seats of the SUV and sighed as her body began to defrost. Grissom pulled the car out of park and drove off into the darkened forest. As they pulled out onto the dimly lit highway, Grissom smiled.

Sara had fallen asleep.

Sorry that it took me so long to update this but I do have a life and unfortunately, it doesn't leave much time for me to write. I promise I will try to get the next chapter up sometime this weekend if I can. I hope that it will be longer than this one. Please review, it makes me happy and motivates me to continue.

Thanks Flutterbied