Title: Love Bites
Pairing: Sara/Nick, Amelia/Speed, hints at Amelia/Grissom
Spoiler: Lost Son, Viva Las Vegas, Pilot, basically all CSI episodes up to season 4/5ish.
Summary: After Nick's older sister Amelia transferred from Las Vegas, he thought he'd never see her again. Then she became a victim in a serial killer's game. Now, the Las Vegas CSIs are racing against time to find the killer.
Disclaimer: I only own what you do not recognize. I.E: Amelia, Evan, and the victims and suspects. CSI Belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer and all of those smart people who created these fine CSI series.
My Original Note: I am adding Miami into this. There will be flashbacks throughout this story. Uh, I try to make the whole forensic part of this make sense, which I why I watch CSI while I write.
My New Note: Here is my rewrite of Chapter 2!
Chapter 2: Making Sense of it All
"Seems like only yesterday
This world belonged to me
And breathing in your presence
Was evident to me
Hours filled with words
Now silence takes their place
Each time I took for granted
The nearness of your face." -Milk Inc 'Things Change'
Sara stared at her cell phone. She had just had the oddest conversation. A lawyer from Miami was asking her about Amelia Martin. Sara told him all she knew, which wasn't much, and then they hung up. Thinking of Amelia had brought up sore subjects.
Like Grissom.
The lawyer asked her about Amelia's relationship with Grissom. Sara told him the truth, she didn't know much. Amelia had left before Sara got there. Holly Gribbs was Amelia's replacement, and Sara was Holly's replacement when Holly was killed. Even when Amelia had gone to San Francisco, Sara hadn't learned much about her. Just that she was, indeed, a great CSI and was abused by her husband.
It didn't take a genius to figure that out, but it was obvious that Grissom, Warrick, Nick, Greg, Catherine, and everyone else in the Las Vegas Lab didn't know. Sara was confused by it. Sara had known her for a week and she knew; they had known her for years.
Sara put her cell phone back in its holder and stared at the cup of coffee on the table. The phone call had made Sara agitated. She had had a bad few months. Ever since she had been caught driving drunk and Grissom drove her home, her feelings for Grissom had been on overdrive. Part of her wanted to admit all of her feelings for Grissom, but then there was Nick. Sara felt so much more comfortable with Nick. She could talk to him about anything, but with Grissom she froze up.
A few days after Sara's drunk driving incident, Nick asked her out. Sara said yes. Now, a few months later, her 'love' life was at a great place. She and Nick were slowly getting to know each other better. But now it seemed like Grissom was...jealous of their new relationship. It had been a weird couple of months.
A blaring rock song pulled Sara out of her thoughts. She looked out the window of the lounge to see Greg head banging in the lab. The sight brought a smile to Sara's lips. She watched as Nick, who was passing by, walked into the lab and turned the music off. She got up and headed over to them.
------
Greg stopped head banging as the music suddenly turned off. He inwardly sighed. It was 'Maxwell Murder' by Rancid. One of his favorite songs. Greg spun around to see Nick standing by the stereo with a smile on his face. Greg held up his hands.
"Before you say anything, I found that in my CD collection. What's so special about that? It's not mine. It's Amelia's." Greg said quickly. Nick frowned at her name. Even after four years, it was still a sore subject.
"It's been four years Greg. She's not coming back." Nick said. Greg frowned.
"Who's not coming back?" Sara asked, stepping up behind Nick. Nick cleared his throat.
"Amelia." Nick told her. Sara nodded.
"Oh, about Amelia. Yeah, so I got a call a few minutes ago. Some defense lawyer in Miami was asking me about Amelia and Grissom's relationship. It was weird." Sara said casually. Nick looked at her.
"What else?" He asked.
---The Phone Call---
"Hello?" Sara asked, answering her cell phone. She was sitting in the lounge, waiting for results on a case.
"Sara Sidle?" The voice asked. Sara didn't recognize it. The voice was male.
"Yes. Who is this?" Sara asked.
"Hello. This is Carl Milton. I'm a defense lawyer here in Miami, Florida. Do you know Amelia Martin?" He asked. A defense lawyer? Sara thought to herself. Why is he calling me and how did he get my number?
"Yes, I do."
"What's your professional opinion of her?" He asked. Sara suppressed a laugh.
"Uh, well, she is an extremely good CSI. She knows what she's doing." She answered his question as best she could. She really didn't know all that much about Amelia.
"Ok. What is your personal opinion of her?" Sara could tell by the tone of his voice that he didn't like her answer to his question.
"She's a very nice woman. A definite family oriented person, even if her husband did beat her."
"What? Can you elaborate?" Definite lawyer, Sara thought as she sipped at her coffee.
"She had bruises all over her upper arms. I asked her if her husband beat her, but she denied it. It was obvious though." The lawyer was quiet for a minute. It was obvious to Sara that he was not on Amelia's side.
"What sort of relationship did Mrs. Martin have with Dr. Gil Grissom?" He asked. Sara spit out her coffee. She definitely wasn't expecting that question.
"Oh, uh. I'm not sure. If they had any sort of relationship it was strictly professional. Grissom is a professional sort of man. He doesn't have relationships with his co-workers." She told him. "Other than that, I don't know. I didn't know Amelia very well. Why are you asking these questions?"
"I'm sorry, but I'm not allowed to say. Thank you for your time." He answered. Sara was set to ask another question when he hung up on her. Sara gaped at the phone before finally turning it off.
"Jerk." She muttered.
---1 Week Later- 9:00 p.m.---
When Sara told Nick about the call, she left out the part about Amelia's abuse. She figured he would find out soon enough. Plus, she didn't think it her place to say. That sort of information was best coming from the person being abused. It was her story to tell, not Sara's.
Sara was running late. She pulled up to the Police Department building and got out of her car. She hurried inside and went to the lounge. Everybody was waiting for her. She forced a smile and sat next to Nick.
"Ok, now that everyone's here. Catherine and I will continue to work on the D.B. at a parking lot at the mall. Nick, Warrick, and Sara, you have a D.B. outside of a gas station." Grissom said. He threw the slip of paper on the table. Warrick, Nick, and Sara all lunged for it. Warrick got it first. He looked it over and passed it to Nick.
Sara looked up at Catherine. She looked like she was on the edge and upset about something. Sara had rarely seen Catherine get upset about a case until they had all the evidence.
"Cath? You ok?" Sara asked. Catherine looked at Sara and forced a smile.
"I'm fine. I'm just on my last nerve with killers." She said. Sara nodded in agreement.
"I think we all understand you there." Sara said, standing up.
---Scene #1- 8:35 p.m.---
Catherine carefully walked around the car, looking at everything. A 31-year-old woman lay dead next to her white sedan. The window was broken and laid in pieces on the driver's seat, blood on some pieces. Catherine noticed a dent in the car door and quickly took a few pictures of it. She looked down at the body.
The woman had an average figure. Her beautiful face was accentuated by her short blonde hair and full pouty lips. Her body had obviously been positioned by the killer. She had been laid on her back, with her right hand flat on her stomach. Her left arm had been pulled out above her head, her fingers put in a design. Catherine took a few pictures of it.
"D." Grissom said, from his spot by her feet. Catherine looked over at him, confused.
"What?" Catherine asked. Grissom pointed at the woman's hand.
"It's sign language for the letter 'D'." He explained. Catherine stood up and nodded.
"Ok. So. Any I.D.?" She asked. Brass came up beside her, holding the woman wallet in an evidence bag.
"Her name is Aja Vechincova." Brass said. "According to this, she goes to University of Nevada, Las Vegas. She's 31." He said. Catherine stared at her.
"Vechincova. Must be Russian or something." Catherine muttered. Brass nodded and held up another evidence bag with a piece of paper in it.
"I'm no expert of European languages, but this looks like Russian to me." He handed it to Catherine. "It was in her car." Catherine studied it for a minute.
"Most likely." She turned to Grissom.
"Did you find anything?" She asked. He held up a shoe print and a swab.
"The killer stepped in the blood." Grissom looked at Brass.
"After we drop this off and hand out assignments, we'll go over to the school. Catherine, you go to the autopsy." Brass and Catherine nodded.
"Right boss." Catherine took a few more pictures and then headed to her Tahoe.
---Scene #2- 9:23 p.m.---
"I hate gas stations." Sara muttered as she, Nick, and Warrick stared at the body of the woman. All three CSIs had their cameras in their hands, but had yet to take a picture.
"Dang. Tons of people around and I bet no one saw anything." Nick said. Sara looked around. It was a large gas station. She turned to the body and took a few pictures of her body as a whole.
"Names Akia Valdez-Whitmore. The wife of millionaire James Whitmore, who is out of town." O'Reilly said. "She's 32, Mexican, and works at a grocery store." He looked down at her and noticed her hand. He looked at the three CSIs, who were now taking pictures and processing the scene. "What's with her hand?"
Nick, who was closest, stared at it closely. Her left arm was extended fully, past her head. Her left hand was in a fist, save for her pinky, which was extended.
"I don't know. It could be anything." He said, he then took several pictures of it.
"Isn't that the letter 'I' in sign language?" Warrick asked as he took pictures of a bloody footprint.
"I don't know. We'll have to ask Griss." Nick replied. He stood up and took pictures of the broken, bloody window and the dented door. Nick lowered himself to the ground and looked under the car. He spotted something underneath the car. He grabbed his flashlight.
He clicked it on and shone it under the car. It took him a second to realize what it was.
"Sara! Rick! Check this out." He called out, smiling. Sara and Warrick stood next to Nick and lowered themselves to the ground. The followed the light and smiled as they recognized the object.
"A bloody knife." Sara muttered, smiling from ear to ear.
"Why my dear, I do believe we've found the murder weapon." Nick said sarcastically, also smiling from her to ear. Sara rolled her eyes in response.
---University of Nevada, Las Vegas- 9:30 p.m.---
Grissom and Jim sat patiently with Susie Michij, Aja's roommate. Susie wiped the tears from her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Aja was a great woman. She came from Russia four years ago. She was an exchange student. She was only supposed to be here for a year, but she loved it too much." She explained. She had a very noticeable Russian accent. Grissom and Jim nodded, showing they understood.
"Did she have a boyfriend?" Grissom asked.
"A boyfriend? Oh yeah, uh. Sergei. Sergei Danliv. An exchange student from Oesha." She told them.
"Oesha?" Jim asked.
"Belarus. He shares a room with Michael Hudson. They are in a different dorm. Aja and Sergei argue all the time. They always fight about the little things. It can be very heated sometimes." She told them. Grissom raised his eyebrows.
"So they physically fight?" He asked. Susie nodded.
"Sometimes. But he said he was going back to Oesha for the weekend." She said. "You should check with Michael." Jim nodded.
"Thank you for your time, Ms. Michij." Jim said with a smile. Susie smiled back.
"Very few Americans can pronounce my last name without help. If I can help in any other way, just let me know." She said as she walked them to the door. They nodded and left. Grissom gave Jim a look as they left.
"I think she likes you." Grissom said as they walked down the hallway. Jim chuckled and straightened his jacket.
"Just wait till she finds out how poor I am." Jim said. Grissom chuckled and shook his head.
"I'm going to head back to the Lab and see if Catherine and Al got anything from the autopsy." Grissom said as they left the dorm hall. Jim nodded and got in his car. As Grissom got in his car he couldn't help but think about Aja and if the killer was Sergei.
---Crime Lab- 9:34 p.m.---
Catherine stared at the Russian woman on the slab. She looked so peaceful, it made Catherine's heartache. But she reminded Catherine of Amelia. Catherine had spent most of her free time thinking about Amelia ever since she saw her in Miami two years ago. Amelia looked troubled and Catherine was embarrassed that she said the things she said before Ames could tell her what was wrong.
"A piece of glass went through her skull and penetrated the brain." Al said. Catherine looked at her as he held out the glass.
"Piece of glass from the window of her car." Catherine responded. Al nodded and pointed to her skull.
"Heavy bruising on her skull also. There is also a stab wound in her lower back. Other than that, she was in great shape and perfect health. Nothing else for me to say right now, I'll let you know later." He said sadly. Catherine sighed and smiled at him.
"Thank you." Catherine turned and walked out of the autopsy room. She walked down the hallway and headed towards the lab. When she got in there Nick was talking with Greg.
"Yeah. Found it underneath her car. Did you find a match?" Nick asked. Greg nodded.
"Sure did. But not just to your victim." Greg handed him the piece of paper as Catherine stood next to him.
"Then who else did it match?" Nick asked, looking at him. Greg looked at Catherine. Her jaw dropped.
"My vic?" Catherine said, stunned.
"You got it. The blood on the knife that Nick found matches both of your victims." Greg said. Catherine and Nick looked at each other.
"Interesting." Catherine murmured.
"A possible serial killer." Nick said. Greg turned and held up two shoe prints.
"The one on the left is from Cath and Griss's D.B., the one on the right is from Nicks. Both from the same shoe, same size, everything. Now. The blood from Cath's print is from your body. The blood from Nick's print is from an unknown." Greg told them. Catherine frowned.
"There may be another body out there." Catherine said sadly. Greg nodded.
"Very possible."
"If there is, we may be running out of time." Nick turned and left the lab. Catherine smiled at Greg.
"Good work Greg." She said. Greg smiled proudly as Catherine left the lab.
---Miami, 2002---
Amelia leaned down and looked at the entry wound on a body. She looked at Alexx.
".45 caliber?" She asked.
"You got it." Alexx said. Amelia nodded. Alexx handed her the small evidence bag with the bullet inside. "Pierced the heart and stopped there. He also has discoloration on his mouth." Alexx pulled open his mouth and Amelia looked.
"Weird. What about the other guy?" Amelia asked, looking at the second male body. Alexx and Amelia walked over to the second body. Alexx pointed at the two bullet wounds near his heart.
"First one missed his heart, the second one was dead on. .45 also." Alexx told her. Amelia took the small evidence bag from Alexx with the two bullets in it. Amelia looked at the woman on the other slab. She was wrapped in plastic.
"The Las Vegas case?" Amelia asked. Alexx followed her gaze then looked back at her, she knew what Amelia was thinking. Alexx had been the first one to know that Amelia came from Las Vegas, Horatio was the only other one who knew.
"Yeah." Alexx said quietly. Amelia shook her head. Suddenly everything was blurry and her head was spinning.
"I need to go." She said, holding onto the edge of the table.
"You ok, sweetie?" Alexx asked, looking at her. Amelia took a deep breath and nodded. The last thing she needed was to see anyone from Las Vegas. Not now.
"I'm fine. Just. I don't know. Probably just a migraine." Amelia forced a smile and Alexx gave her one of her looks. Amelia gave her a real smile, fully knowing that look. "Don't start Alexx. I need to check out these bullets, see if they all came-" Amelia stopped as the doors opened and Horatio and Catherine came in. Amelia's voice was stopped in her throat.
"Mel." Horatio said. Amelia smiled at him.
"Hey H." She said. He crossed his arms. He was giving her that look. Amelia groaned inwardly. Not now H, Amelia thought to herself.
"Two DBs?" He asked, looking at the two male bodies. Amelia followed his gaze and nodded. She looked back at him.
"Yeah. They worked together and were found three streets apart. I need to head over to ballistics." Amelia said, holding up the two bags of evidence. Horatio nodded and smiled.
"If you need any help I can get Delko or Speed to help." He said. Amelia shook her head and started walking towards the door, not looking at Catherine.
"I'm good H. I'm good." She told him before walking out of autopsy. Inside autopsy Catherine turned to Horatio.
"So this is where Amelia came to." Catherine said. Horatio looked at her and nodded.
"Yeah. You know her?" He asked. Catherine nodded.
"Yeah. At least I thought I did."