Huge thanks as always to Marlou for her beta-ing and her friendship and thank you to everyone who has taken the time to review.
Nick kept up his perfect pace with Grissom as they stormed into the hospital reception area. Brass turned around to greet them, the grim knowledge in his features making them both very aware that the situation was indeed severe.
"I've talked to Lurie's colleagues, no one has seen or heard from him in three days."
"So we get a warrant and go to his home," Grissom raged, his voice revealing the anguish that raced through his body. "Jim you know as well as I do that he killed her."
"I know Gil," Brass groaned, "don't you think I know how much that case affected all of us? That woman could have been Sara." Taking a deep breath, Brass tried to regain his composure. "Look, he's sublet his apartment out to another doctor and they have no idea where he is."
"We have to find her," Grissom tried to calm his thumping heart, but nothing could stop the aching pain that raged throughout him.
"What woman could have been Sara?" Nick asked quietly, his eyes flitting between Brass and Grissom. "Guys, WHAT woman?"
Brass glanced over towards Grissom sympathetically, wondering if he had ever revealed how much the Marlin case had haunted him.
Grissom sighed heavily and for the first time allowed both Nick and Brass to see just how harrowing this was for him. He started to walk towards an empty waiting room, knowing that he probably couldn't hold on to his fragile balance for much longer.
Nick watched him leave, his eyes following numbly. Brass glanced at Nick and nodded silently, indicating that he would continue with his questions to the staff.
"Debbie Marlin was a nurse here," Grissom started quietly when Nick came into the room to come and sit down beside him, his voice shaking with emotion as he spoke. "She had been seeing many of the doctors here, Lurie being one of them."
"Okay," Nick nodded slowly.
Grissom's eyes closed as he visualized the young woman who had torn his life apart and caused him to question everything. "When…" his voice caught in his throat. "When I found her…she was facing towards the door, her eyes open…staring." Sitting forward, Grissom shook his head against the memories and opened his eyes.
"But we've seen sights like this before Grissom, there's so many things that have happened and we know they shouldn't have." Nick was trying so hard to understand.
"I thought…no I know…she…Debbie," bringing a hand to his face Grissom tried to hide the emotion that was welling up inside his eyes. "It could have been Sara… lying there. I couldn't breathe. She was so still, the life gone from her eyes and I couldn't move…God…I've been such a fool."
"Grissom," Nick gulped back the lump in his throat as he watched his mentor crumbling before his eyes. Lifting his hand, he hovered over Grissom's shoulder, not knowing whether he should offer him some comfort, but in the end he retrieved his hand and sat back again. "You're telling me that our Sara looked like the victim?"
"Yeah…" Grissom took a breath and regained his senses before swiping at his eyes defiantly. "They could have been twins, Nick. I can't tell you how relieved I was to see her outside on the sidewalk, alive"
"So Lurie knew all along," Nick nodded, anger growing in his veins. "He saw Sara and thought that he could just claim her like some consolation prize? No wonder she's been so sad lately."
"Nick…"
"No!" Standing abruptly he glared down at Grissom angrily. "I knew she wasn't happy, I've known for a long time. She wouldn't tell me anything other than she was feeling run down lately, and you and I both know that's not the problem here."
"Look, let's find Sara and then you can berate me all you want because God knows I have been beating myself up over my lack of involvement since the day I met her." Standing up, Grissom started to walk towards the open door only to glance back briefly. "Call Cath and Warrick, tell them to go over to Sara's apartment and look for anything to indicate that Lurie has been stalking her."
"You wanna send Cath over to Sara's?" Nick leered sarcastically.
"Yes, do you have a problem with that?"
"Yeah I have a problem with that!" Nick glared at his boss fiercely before lowering his voice into an angry whisper. "You've stood by and watched Catherine take Sara down time and time again. Warrick, Greg and me are Sara's friends, we're the only ones around here who notice everything about her. You and Cath, all you two seem to do is want to hurt her. Well you know what, I won't let either of you hurt her again Grissom, I swear the two of you won't."
"Catherine is thorough," Grissom told him quietly, knowing that he deserved the brunt of Nick's anger. "Look, let's just find her."
Nick's anger died away just as suddenly as it had come to leave him shaking with sadness. He knew Grissom had feelings for Sara, all of them knew it, but it was those same feelings that had caused Sara so much pain. Nodding his head sadly, he followed Grissom back out into the lobby where Brass was waiting.
"I got a lead," he told them excitedly, waving a sheet of paper in front of them. "One of the nurses remembers Lurie enquiring about buying properties in the Lake Mead area."
"That's good news Jim," Grissom nodded quickly, his pace quickening with a new sense of determination as they walked out of the hospital.
Vincent Lurie watched Sara with a mixture of love and pride. Debbie had always been feisty too, that's one of the things that he'd loved about her. Sara was not so different, but her feistiness sparked with anger in those deep brown eyes of hers, and if he was perfectly honest with himself, he kind of liked it.
"What do you want with me?" Sara asked him, her voice shaking with defiance as well as a little fear.
"I love you." His voice softened as he stepped a little closer.
"No you don't!"
"Oh I think I do," he smiled, "All I'm asking of you is to give me a chance to show you just how much."
Sara's heart pounded in her chest as he approached and she took a step back, away from him. "You call this love?" she asked calmly although her nerves were starting to fray. "You've locked me in a room, you've nailed down the windows; that's not love, that's obsession."
"Then I'm obsessed as well as in love," he told her matter of factly.
"Just let me at least call my friends to let them know I'm okay, they'll be worried." She tried to appeal to his softer side, hoping that he would fall for her ploy and trust her just long enough so that she could let someone know that she was being held here.
Lurie advanced closer until he was pressed against her body, delighting in the slight tremble that coursed through her. "Which friend?"
Sara's mind was screaming at her, pleading to end this nightmare, but she knew all too well that it wouldn't end until either she or Lurie was dead. Pushing her hands up to his chest she tried to shove him backwards but he pressed his entire weight into her, effectively pinning her to the wall. "Which friend?" he repeated, his breath tangling with her hair to blow against her ear.
Sara scrunched her eyes tightly closed and struggled against his touch. His stubble chin scratched against her cheek, stinging painfully as he leant in closer until she could feel his arousal pressing into her. Panic once again regained her and she started to struggle against his body but he had her pinned. "His name's Nick," she hissed, hoping that the distraction would make Lurie back off enough for her to get away from him.
Anger flared in Lurie's touch and he raked a hand painfully over her skin, his nails leaving stinging scratches over her flesh.
"Nick?" he snarled, pulling away from her sharply to turn away from her. "Your friend is a man?"
Sara edged along the wall slowly, her whole body aching with a mixture of Lurie's torment and her earlier bruises.
"Whore," Lurie growled as he whirled around to grab her by the arm forcefully. "You want me to release you so that you can go back to your boyfriend?"
"I…let me go, you sick bastard."
"Bitch!" With a loud slap he struck her across the face to send her tumbling to the floor. "You're no better than Debbie, she was a whore too." Turning abruptly he made his way out of the room to slam the door loudly behind him.
The fight in Sara had all but slipped away as she lay on the floor shaking. She was going to die, she knew it. Lurie's jealousy had sparked him off on a murder spree that had killed two innocent people, their only crime, being in love.
Tears mingled with the coppery taste of her own blood as she slowly pushed herself upwards. Lifting a hand to her face, she touched her cheek tentatively. She could feel her skin swelling beneath her fingers, the stinging sensations causing her to pull her hand back abruptly. She had to get out of here.
Grabbing onto the bed sheet she started to pull herself up to stand on shaky legs. Her eyes wandered towards the window, the nailed glass sealing her inside a torturous tomb. Reaching out, she ran her fingers over the pane and tried to hook the tips of her fingers around the nail head to see if she could maybe pull it out, but it was hammered too far in.
Trying again, she moved along to the next nail only this time using both hands, the sharp edges cutting into her fingers causing blood to drip down her hands and arm. Pulling her hands away she started to look around the room in search of anything that she could use as a lever to help her, but before she could find anything the door opened again and Lurie loomed in the doorway.
Sara froze, her whole body shutting down on her to keep her from moving. She could see Lurie moving closer towards her but she couldn't back away.
"I'm so sorry sweetheart," he whispered softly as he brought a hand up to the ugly bruise starting to form on her cheek.
Sara flinched as he touched her, closing her eyes so she couldn't bear witness to the next painful onslaught. She waited for the inevitable breath on her face but it never came.
"You made me hit you," he told her apologetically. "If you hadn't said those things to me I wouldn't have lost control. You know how much I hate to lose my temper."
Bringing up his other hand, Lurie cupped her face and bent over to kiss her forehead, "Your bath is getting cold."
Sara followed numbly, her consciousness already driving a wedge between reality and dreams. Her eyes absorbed the things around her, but she didn't see anything. Her skin bristled when Lurie touched her, but she blocked him away so she didn't feel. Nothing about the experience she was going through right now as he slowly undressed her, registered within. Her mind had closed itself off in a vain attempt to push this reality as far away from her as possible.
Lurie ran an appreciative gaze over her body before turning away from her to dip his fingers into the bath water to test the temperature. He'd already poured the same sensual bath oils and jasmine scent into the water, just how Debbie had liked it.
Turning around he reached out to gently take Sara's hand and tugged her gently towards him. She followed obediently, her haunted eyes unseeing. Lurie smiled lovingly as he released her hand to smooth his fingertips over her arm. "Come sweetheart," he whispered softly, helping her into the bath tub.
Sara's eyes stung with tears with every inch of her body that immersed into the water. Her guarded senses sprang into awareness to bring a burst of agonizing clarity on everything that was happening to her. With those same sensations came the ever present hopelessness of knowing she may never see the man she loved again.
Lurie's eyes roamed her body as she sank into the water only to pull her knees up to her chest and wrap her arms around her legs. Reaching out a hand to her shoulders he slid a fingertip down her spine, following the outline all the way down to her lower back.
Sara tensed beneath his touch and squeezed her eyes closed. No matter how many times she tried to retreat into the safety of her mind, his touch always brought her right back to reality.
"No butterfly," Lurie whispered hoarsely, snatching his hand away from her body to stand back abruptly. "There's no butterfly."
His voice echoed inside her ears and she started to rock, as if the movement would prevent anything evil from happening. Her slow movements caused the water around her to ripple against her body and flow over the edge of the tub, yet still she couldn't stop.
Lurie watched her slowly and ran his fingers through his greying hair. What had he done? What had he been expecting, that she would have an identical tattooed butterfly as the one that he'd paid for, for Debbie?
"I'm not Debbie," Sara whimpered, her teeth chattering with the cold as well as nerves.
"Get dressed," Lurie ordered suddenly, his voice grunting with frustration as he exited the bathroom, slamming the door behind him.
Silence filled the room and for a heart stopping moment she revelled in solitude, but the harshness of reality soon crashed down again around her.
"Oh God," Sara whispered to herself as the outpouring of relief swamped her eyes. She wished with everything she possessed that Grissom cared enough for her to be out there somewhere, searching.
"I couldn't do it."
Those words had haunted her in every dream, and every second of every day. He didn't love her enough to make sacrifices, and deep down, she already knew she had lost him.
"I couldn't do it. I couldn't do it. I couldn't do it…""Please be out there," she whispered softly as she closed her eyes against the tears. If she emerged from this nightmare unscathed she promised herself that she would give Grissom what he wanted from her, it would be hard, and it would break her heart, but she would let him go.
The bathroom door opened again and Lurie slowly came into the steam filled room. He watched Sara's still form and for a few moments he considered his options. He'd already come so far and he couldn't give her up so easily. Debbie or no Debbie, he still loved her.
"Let me help you out of the bath sweetheart," he soothed, his earlier anger forgotten just as quickly as it had flared.
Sara stiffened and bit back the sob that ached to escape from her throat. She knew enough about domestic violence to know that in Lurie's mind he saw someone else, and her provoking him would only cause another outburst of rage. Taking a deep breath she started to rise up out of the water and accepted the offered towel from him, but still careful to avoid eye contact.
"Are you hungry?" he asked softly as he wrapped the towel around her body.
Sara nodded silently, knowing that he would leave her alone if she agreed to his wishes. Relief flooded her senses when he moved away from her again and made his way towards the door.
"I'll fix us something to eat."
"I…" her voice faltered slightly as she fought for something to say. "Can I have my clothes…please?"
"Clothes?" he asked quickly, his voice rising a notch.
Sara shuddered with his reaction. He switched from anger to love, from abuse to remorse in mere seconds. He was a ticking time bomb with the trigger being one wrong word. Turning to face him she met his eyes. "What do I call you?"
"What?" he asked in confusion, her sudden question throwing his anger into the wind.
"Are you Vincent, or Vince?" she asked quickly while she had his attention, her mind registering some of her courage.
"Oh, I see…" His eyes glazed over in remembrance and a small smile graced his face. "Debbie liked to call me Vincent when we…" his voice trailed off.
"Okay Vincent," she whispered, keeping the tremor from her voice as she spoke. "I don't eat meat."
Lurie looked up quickly and stared at her as if she was some kind of ethereal being. Nodding slowly, he backed away from her and retreated.
Sara sighed in relief when she was once again left on her own. All she could do was play along with this terrifying charade and hope that someone out there cared about her enough to come searching, but the more she thought about her solitude, the more depressed she became.
Wrapping the towel tightly around her body she took a tentative step out of the bathroom. Sounds from the kitchen, clattering pots and pans, drifted up towards her. Closing her eyes briefly she tried to concentrate on the cool wooden floors beneath her feet instead of the smell of cooking eggs that only made her stomach retch even more.
Taking a deep breath, she made her way back towards the bedroom and closed the door tightly behind her. For the first time she took a slow look around the large bedroom, and in any other circumstances this would have been a perfect family home, but instead, it was her prison.
Her eyes settled on the closet doors and instantly the nausea rose up inside her throat. She'd only taken a brief look before when Lurie had shown her the contents inside and even for those brief few moments, the fear had started to eat away inside her. Taking a slow step towards the white closet doors, she regarded it for a long moment before finding a tiny piece of courage inside her. Lifting a shaking hand, she wrapped her fingers around the cold metal handle that sat proudly on the white painted door and took a deep breath before yanking it open.
Sara's arm dropped limply to hang by her side as she took another look at the rows of outfits hanging up, most of them still with the price tag attached and in the cellophane bags to keep them clean. Everything was so precisely draped, coordinated in colour, length and material.
For a few seconds she scanned the clothes numbly and found herself reaching out to touch the silken material of one of the dresses. The fabric caressed her fingers lovingly, the silk sliding over her skin. For a few heart stopping moments she was propelled into a fantasy world where the silken dress bore a significant meaning, and instead of Lurie being the tormentor, Gil Grissom was the groom.
Coming to her senses, she pulled her hand back quickly, as if the dress had burnt her. What was she doing? Already she was going back on a promise to herself and to Grissom. Pushing the thoughts away from her mind she snatched roughly at the hanging garments and started to rifle through the closet, hoping that Lurie had maybe placed her clothes somewhere in there.
After her frantic search revealed nothing, she growled furiously and swiped at the hanging clothes one last time before slumping down onto the bed. Her eyes welled again with sorrow. What had she done so wrong to be punished in this way? She'd already promised to back off and release Grissom, so why was this still happening? One pooling tear coursed a wet track down her cheek, carving its pain into her skin.
She had no idea how long she'd been here or how many days had passed. All she could remember was leaving the guys at the bar and the sun starting to rise over the horizon. When she woke for the first time, she was in this very same room with Lurie looming over her. She didn't even know where she was or even if she was in the same state anymore.
Looking up at the window again, she saw the tell tale sign of dusk approaching and the sudden fear of spending a night alone with Lurie, with her being conscious, flooded her with nauseating terror.
Standing up from the bed quickly, she pulled one of the garments off of the rails and pulled it on over her still damp body. There were no undergarments anywhere, and that in itself coursed fear throughout her. Would she be another rape victim who ended up on Doc Robbin's table? No, she couldn't let that happen. No. Not now, not ever.
Looking around the room frantically, her eyes settled on the window again, and soon the only option open to her now floated into her mind. She would rather die now and take her heartache with her than live a life of torment as Lurie's unwilling prisoner.
The window seemed to call her, promising her freedom. Taking a step closer, her eyes fell onto the bedside cabinet and the brass lamp that sat on top of it. Reaching down to it, she lifted it briefly, her fingers wrapping around the heavy base. With two hands she lifted it higher and pulled the plug from the socket before throwing it towards the glass.
The lamp hit with a loud thud, shattering the glass into a splintered spiders web. Sara stared at the damage before taking a step closer. The outside air filtered through the tiny cracks, and she breathed it in deeply. With a renewed strength, she bent to pick up the lamp from the floor and threw it again, delighted with the next wave of damage it had caused. She retrieved the lamp again and repeated the process, only this time the lamp went right through the glass and left a gaping hole in its wake.
Without thinking, she lunged towards the window and started to punch the weakened glass. The razor like edges sliced into her flesh, bringing drop after drop of her blood to pool down her arms but she didn't care. Nothing but escape registered inside her mind and knowing she was so close to freedom spurred her onwards.
She thumped blindly at the window, the ragged edges now dripping with blood. Deep red droplets had started to run tracks down the window, smearing the glass like a stained glass window, but still she kept fighting. With every punch, more blood spattered back, covering her and the area around her and she could feel her strength slowly slipping away from her, but the cool breeze that blew in through the gaping hole taunted her, making her punch harder.
Lurie opened the door with a loud crash and stared aghast at the site before him. Sara's silken dress was no longer white but a deep crimson. Blood spatter was everywhere and he was suddenly transported back to a bathroom, blood, lots and lots of blood. He watched her transfixed as she wildly punched at the glass, and then at the hole that had started to widen with her efforts. After a few seconds he came to his senses and ran forward towards her, his medical instincts taking over.
Sara vaguely heard the bedroom door thump open, and pummelled harder. She screamed for help, but her own voice echoed in her ears, and then she noticed the blood. Lifting her arms in front of her, she stared down at them in shock. Gaping wounds flowed with blood and scratches lay open with angry bruises adorning her hands. Someone was pulling her away from her task, but she suddenly lost the power to fight. Somewhere between her fear and desperation, she had come to a silent acceptance that allowed her to bare her soul. Dying was her only option out of her nightmare, and she welcomed the warm sense of peace that covered her before collapsing into unconsciousness.
TBC