Note: Thanks for the reviews! So darn right, Brass does turn off the siren... Wanna know whether Michael will be saved or not? Read on!
Chapter 17: Tragedy Strikes
In fifteen minutes, the six vehicles screeched to a halt outside the old abandoned warehouse. the gigantic building was eerily silent, just a few broken down windows with wooded panels that termites managed to gnaw through. Gil Grissom arrived a few seconds behind them.
All the police officers had their guns out at the ready. Captain Jim Brass was barking out instructions,"Alright, I want no noise, got it? I get as much as a squeak, your fired. Go in there, search for the guy but make sure the young boy is safe first, got it?" he said in a soft but clear voice.
The officers nodded. Jen had gone to check out the perimeter. Soon, she returned and said,"Ok, we're splitting into teams. We have four different entrances, front, back and two side doors, take your pick,"
The CSI's soon joined the party, not surprise that their boss beat them here as usual. Everyone got out their guns but Nick held Sara back,"No, you stay behind in case anything happens,"
Sara could not argue so she nodded.
Brass looked around, doing a quick head count,"Nineteen of us, excluding Sara. Divide yourself up and let's go,"
After a moment, everyone had divided themselves and were getting ready to enter the building.
Sara had a bad feeling in her gut. Praying as hard as she could that Michael is OK right now, she called out softly,"Nick..."
Nick turned around. Sara said,"Find Michael and bring him back, ok?" Nick nodded and said,"I will..." and eighteen of them spreaded out to the four entrances.
Brass, Grissom and three police officers took the front door. Nick, Warrick and another two officers took the west side. Another six officers stuck together and took the east side. Jen, Wes , Catherine and the last officer took the back door.
Only the CSI's and detectives had latex gloves on. It was very dark inside the building.
Once inside, Brass looked around, and hand suddenly hit something on the wall. He tried to move his hand aside when whatever he hit moved too. Suddenly, the entire warehouse lit up in a dim white light. Brass had just hit a light switch.
Grissom and the three officers stared at him and Brass muttered, "Whoops..."
"So much as squeak he says..." mumbled one of the officers.
The six officers who took the east side had just gotten in, shutting the door behind them. "Geez, it's so dark in here!" whispered one of them.
Suddenly, a dim white light lit up the path. One of the officers glared at the one who whispered,"Well done, Rick, well done..." sarcasticaly.
"Who did that?" asked a scared looking cadet. The others gulped, and walked slowly down the corridor.
Meanwhile, Nick's squad too was greeted by the sudden light. Warrick immediately muttered, "Who told you guys to touch anything?"
The officers protested,"We didn't!"
Nick made a sushing sound as he took in the interior of the warehouse. It was about as high as a two story house. Rows of high shelves were placed from the beginning to the end at one metre intervals.
On the shelves, boxes of various shapes and sizes were stacked messily, blocking the next row from sight. Taking a deep breath, Nick ed his companions into one of the rows.
When, they got into the warehouse, it was completely dark. Wes and Catherine got out their torch lights when the officer with them suddenly sneezed. Wes, Jen and Catherine said,"SHHH!!" simultaneously.
Suddenly a dim light flooded the warehouse. The four of them raised their eyebrows. Wes asked the officer,"How do you do that?" The officer gulped.
Unbeknownst to all of them, all four teams were now in the many rows between the giant boxes. Everyone of them hardly dared to breath in case of alerting their suspect. (As if turning on the light wasn't a warning enough)
Slowly, but surely, everyone spilt ways, some were walking in pairs while others were alone.
Eventually, it was Wes who found something. In the middle of one of the long corridors, was a large gray suit case. 'Big enough to keep a four-year-old inside,' thought Wes with a shudder.
Soon, everyone was notified and they gathered around the suitcases, trying not to fear the worst. Brass has called Sara in, who was looking deathly pale.
An officer appeared and said,"Nothng, out suspect is definately gone, maybe he took the kid with him?"
Brass muttered,"Maybe not... Nick, you wanna open that?" pointing at the suitcase.
Nick did not reply. He didn't have any tears in his eyes either, he simply looked like he could no longer control his mind and body. He just stood there, staring at the suitcase, looking helpless.
Wes knew that Nick wouldn't be able to do anything now so he offered,"Hey mate, you want me to open it? I mean, it might not even be... well, it could just be a note giving another clue, right?"
Nick nodded numbly, his hands were shaking so badly. Grissom put a hand on Nick's shoulder.
Wes walked towards the suitcase, and bent down. Jen and Catherine had to hold on to Sara, who seemed to forget how to stand indepentantly.
Putting his hands on the suitcase buckles, Wes muttered a silent prayer,'Please don't let Michael be inside, please don't...' he clicked open the buckles. A mixture of tensed emotion filled the air. Their hearts beating a lot faster than usual.
Wes took a deep breath and swung the suitcase open...
Everyone's hearts leaped to their throats as they saw what happened. A short lifeless arm could be seen, prodding out of the suitcase.
But for Wes, who got a clear view of the suitcase's contents, it was pure pain. A tear rolled down his cheeck as he turned to Nick.
Nick had just regained full use of his body and he ran over to the suitcase, nearly knocking Wes over. Lying in the suitcase, was Michael. A once lively, young Michael, now reduced to a corpse.
Nick muttered, his voice getting gradually higher,"No... no... please no... NOOOOOO!!!!!!" crying over little Michael's body.
Sara made to run towards her dead son but never managed it, she had blacked out, falling into Catherine and Jen's arms. They doubled over, thanks to the added weight. Both of them had tears in their eyes.
Even the steadfast Grissom had tears in his eyes, even Brass, the hard and strict homicide detective captain, even the dozen police officers who hardly know Nick and Sara were gathered around, trying to choke back tears.
Wes snapped off his latex gloves, looking at the floor steadily. He looked up again and exchanged glances with Warrick. Both of them felt extreamly sorry for their friend. If only... if only they solved the code earlier.
Nick was sobbing uncontrollably, holding on to Michael's body.
No one could pull him away, no one felt the need to, no one felt the need to tell him that he was contaminating evidence, not even Gil Grissom, no one at all...
But one thing everyone felt, was pity, and sorrow. Sorry for this couple who had done so much to help put bad guys in jail. This payback is definately unfair.
Let Sheriff Brian Mobley yell at the squad for allowing evidence be contaminated. There wasn't much anyone could do for Nick and Sara. Not now...
TBC
Well, there ya' go! Told you there will be a character death. No worries, I'll never get rid of Wes, Jen or the CSI cast!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Jason Faunt (Wes Collins) 20th November!!!