Title: Double Exposure

Author: Msgrits

Disclaimer: I don't own CSI. Oh yeah but I do have a love child with Gary Dourdon.

Pairings: G/S and a small tiny hint of W/C

Ratings: R

Spoilers: At the turn of every page.

Thanks to my beta Ruth she is smarter than the average bear.

Chapter 1

The witness was curvy in the ilk of Marilyn Monroe and Jane Mansfield. She wasn't a blond; she was an olive skinned brunette with nearly black hair that seemed to darken as you looked at her. Her almost black eyes were surrounded by full long lashes which were all her on.

Brass had pulled her tax returns for the past five years. Her occupation was listed as a sex worker. She had cleared close to a 100 grand each year. Lillian worked at Lady Heather's Domain, a service for those who wanted to skirt the edges of sexual dominance without actually having sex, or so Lady Heather said and no one had been able to prove otherwise.

Brass tried not to be distracted by Lillian's beauty. It was a heady exotic mix of vague racial origins. She tried to suppress a smile as she saw him struggle with the effect that she was having on him. Gil Grissom did not sit at the table. His body was pressed into a corner with his muscled hands in his pockets and his blue eyes not covered by glasses. His head would tilt from side to side as his mind was presented new answers and more questions.

Brass' East Coast accent drifted through the room. "Ms. Kay…"

"Lillian. My friends call me Lillian and may I call you James?"

"No one calls me James."

Her tongue escaped from her mouth and licked her red lips. "I didn't ask you what other people called you. I asked you if I could call you James. Besides I suspect that some very important women in your life have called you James."

Gil Grissom's blue eyes danced with merriment as Brass tugged at one shirt sleeve.

Brass nodded. "You may."

"So James what can I help you with?"

"You are in charge of Lady Heather's when she's away."

"Yes."

"Can you tell me about Sherry English?"

"Sherry had worked with us for a couple of years. She was a dear person, kind, very sweet but also quite strong and pragmatic."

Lillian took a breath as she thought of her dead co-worker.

"She loved animals. She was going to vet school next year."

"Did she have any regulars?"

"Of course."

Grissom spoke from the shadows. "Anyone that scared you?"

"Yes."

"Who?" Brass asked.

Lillian's short red fingernails clicked on the table. "They gave their names as Jarvis and Leigh Bloodworth."

Brass looked around and turned and reached for a tape recorder.

"May I?"

Lillian nodded her ascent.

"Tell me of your impression of the Bloodworths? Anything in particular that comes to mind."

Her nails started tapping again as she remembered. "She was a tall, willowy, brunette, not pretty in a conventional sense. She was striking; strong jaw line, prominent mouth, jutting chin. He was a bit taller than she was, at least 10 years older, graying beard, green eyes, salt and pepper curly hair, skin a shade lighter than mine, probably wore glasses but I never saw them."

Brass wrote something on a pad.

"Who called the shots?"

Lillian found a corner in the ceiling with her eyes. The conference room was sterile and too white. It washed out even the olive skin of the trio.

"That's a hard one. Usually it's easy to tell. If I had to make a guess, I would have to say that he did, but barely. Maybe only because she let him."

Brass snorted. "Sounds like most male female relationships."

Lillian smiled. "True, but this was something else. He was intoxicated by her. You see a couple like them very rarely and you share a bit of the intoxication."

Gil shifted in the corner.

Brass continued. "What about her?"

"She adored him, worshiped him even but controlled him too. The reason they scared some of us was…and you have to be a person of some experience to see this. Sherry was not so she didn't pick up on it. They would have done anything for one another. They… Anything… That puts other people in danger."

"So what did they like to do?"

"Basically they just wanted Sherry to watch them."

"Do what?"

"Whatever they wanted. Their dime their time."

"What kind of sex."

"Mild domination, no whips, nothing to unconventional. Actually they could have done most of what they wanted to do in the privacy of their homes. I wasn't ever very clear why they came to the Domain."

Brass continued to scribble. Grissom shifted again.
"What else? Do you know what they did for a living if those are their real names?"

"I think that they might actually be married but I couldn't tell you if those were their real names or not. I overheard them commenting on a piece of sculpture once and my guess would be that at least one of them is an artist and the other knows a great deal about art."

"You know what kind of artist?"

Lillian started to shake head and then her eyes brighten. "You know I think she might be a painter. Yes a painter. She often had flecks of paint on her hands and maybe he was an art historian or maybe he taught art."

"Any tattoos or distinctive jewellery?"

"I don't know. One of the girls that worked with them before Sherry might know about tattoos. I'll check the books. They did wear the most exquisite rings."

Brass raised and eyebrow. "Well hers was platinum, his too. Hers was shaped like an inverted fan and it was inlaid with diamonds and emeralds. His was the Ankh symbol."

Grissom walked over to the table and did quick sketch. He pushed it towards her.

She tapped the white sheet with a red tip. "That's it. That's what hers looked like."

Brass looked at the sheet of paper. "Okay I know what an Ankh is but what is that?"

Grissom pulled a chair up to the table. "That's a lotus flower, the Egyptian symbol of love. Makes sense because the Ankh is the Egyptian symbol for eternity. He's saying that their love is forever. He designed the ring. Probably was done by Joshua Levine on Crescent. "

Lillian looked at Gil suspiciously. "How did you know?"

A light tap came on the door and Sara's form came into view. Grissom caught her eye and went to meet her. Sara stepped through door. His right hand touched her left elbow as she whispered in his ear. Her brunette hair covered both their faces. His eyes were half closed as he listened to her. One hand migrated to her back to create a loose embrace.

Lillian studied them. In an instant Sara was gone. Grissom motioned Brass to follow Sara.

Lillian continued to study Grissom's face. "It's good to see you again Dr. Grissom"

"You too Lillian." He moved to sit at the table.

Lillian's dark circle eyes gave the hint of some Southern Asian heritage. She nodded to the door.

"That young woman looks a great deal like Mrs. Bloodworth. It's mostly physical. She has a very different soul, strong and gentle, a little scarred but not broken. Is that how you know that he designed the ring, because of her? You would not insult her with something common. You want her to have something special. I assume that Mr. Levine is quite and extraordinary jeweller."

Grissom didn't speak immediately. By way of an answer he commented on the last part of her statement.

"Joshua creates the pieces for the Spanish royals and what used to be the French royal family. He cuts all the priceless stones for the Colin Company in Johannesburg. He only creates wedding pieces for people he believes are truly in love. He places rubies in each of their hands and then looks at the patterns they created in their hands through a
jewellers loop. If he doesn't like what he sees, he won't create the pieces even if it's for one of the royal weddings. His says that God came to him in a dream and told him that he had been given an extraordinary gift and it should not be squandered on the loveless."

"I guess I don't have to tell you that her husband looks a lot like you but as with her, different souls. So is she why we only saw you that one time?"

He tilted his head and looked far off as he spoke "We aren't. We have been friends for a long time and I am sure we will be friends always."

"You think you will scare her, that your appetites will scare her."

When he spoke his voice was low. "I can be a very intense man."

"Only for her Dr. Grissom. Only for her. Tell me what kind of appetites does James have?"

Gil turned his head as Brass came back into the room.

When the interview was done, Brass thanked Lillian. She spoke as she left the room.

"James you have all my numbers. If you need anything else please don't hesitate to call."

She opened the door. "And James I think you should know that I will be retiring in a few months. I am opening a flower shop. I hope to see you both on more pleasant occasions."

Her heels were soundless as she retreated into the hall.