Hmm…no one wants me to continue this do they? Just kidding :D Here's the next chapter.

Chapter Two

Nick let out a sigh, leaning forward, putting most of his weight on his elbows as he dropped his head into his hands. He glanced from the photos that were strewn over the surface of the table, to the clock that hung on the wall. Fifteen past eight, and since the clock was slow, that made it nearly twenty minutes. He shook his head, slightly amazed; they had some of the finest technology provided, and they couldn't even fix a clock. It had been slow for years now.

A tapping sound brought his attention back to the photos; he glanced over to find Warrick watching him. "Focus man, we need to figure this out."

Nick only nodded as he leaned back in his chair, "I know, but Sara and Greg should be here by now, and we're not figuring anything out."

Warrick laughed, clasping his hands in front of his mouth, "Knowing Greg, he's probably trying to call someone for a ride because his car is a piece of junk, and knowing Sara, she's probably the one who volunteered."

Nick laughed, "More in likely, that still doesn't explain why they are late."

"What's got you so wound up?" Warrick wondered, picking up a photo, then another.

"Game's on tonight, in ten minutes. I didn't pay for that new cable company to sit here and miss all my shows," Nick argued, picking up his own photo.

Nick had changed to a new cable company after being stalked by Nigel Crane, it had taken Nick some time to shake that fact off, but he was strong. Now it was as if the incident had never happened.

"Yeah, well we can't leave until they get here, they're taking over the case for us, Grissom wants this one solved, so for now, focus, let's find something."

Nick only nodded, hiding his disappointment as he went back to examining the photos.

Sara's cry of surprise turned into one of pain as she was shoved onto the floor, her knees grinding into the hard tiles. She lifted her head back up, ignoring the warnings that were given her. Greg was flat on the floor, head to one side, a slim yet deep cut ran the length down the left side of his face, starting just under his hairline, crossing over his eye and ending on his cheekbone. He had been hit right in the face; the two men had to be coming in quickly, or already inside when Greg rounded the corner.

Blood had begun to pool out from under his stomach, staining the floor beneath him. Sara tried to call out his name, tried to wake him up, but was cut off as the assailant grabbed her hair, forcing her head down.

"Stitch! I thought I told you to tie him up!" The first man cried.

The younger, lankier man ran over to him, allowing Sara to see him for the first time, just out of the corner of her eyes. He was dressed in black, typical for a robber, and had face mask on. He couldn't have been much older than 20, barely over five feet tall, but it was hard to tell from her perspective.

"He was out Mando, he can't hurt no one," the man labeled Stitch complained.

"And what happens when he wakes up?" Mando snarled, twisting his hand in her hair, causing Sara to wince with every word he said. She lifted her eyes again to see the younger man tying Greg's hands together, behind his back like hers, and then bound his feet with several feet of rope he was carrying.

"There, he's tied," Stitch complained, kicking Greg in the stomach for emphasis. There was no response from him, confirming that he was indeed unconscious. "Besides, it's not like we're going to be here that long."

"You never know," Mando told him, shoving Sara face first to the ground, "Stay down," he warned her again, pressing the rifle against her back. She felt him move back, release his hold on her hair, and for a split moment, she thought about escaping. But only for a moment, as her eyes came to rest on Greg, then the thoughts were banished from her mind.

She tried calling his name, risking raising her voice above a whisper, just barely, hoping that he would hear her then. But there was nothing more than his soft breathing, almost strained, in and out. He was still bleeding, fairly rapidly, something that worried her.

She lifted her eyes, looking for the two robbers. She couldn't see them, but she could hear them, they were digging through the cash register. Up closer, by the front doors, the store owner lay, eyes open slightly. She wasn't breathing. Sara swallowed, closing her eyes for a moment before opening them again.

She looked past the young woman, out into the darkness that had set around the store. How long had it been since they came in here? How long would it be before it ended? No, she couldn't think like that, they would get out of here, but how was the question.

First things first, she reminded herself, her attention returning back to Greg. The bleeding needed to stop. Sara glanced back up, making sure her captors were still focused on the cash instead of them. Luckily they were; either they weren't very good criminals or they weren't very bright, but on either hand, she still needed to be careful.

She was conjuring up a plan when a sudden whirring noise filled the air. It was quiet at first, something she almost passed up until it got louder. Sirens; they had also caught the attention of the attackers.

"Cops" Stitch yelled, "someone ratted us out."

"We don't know that yet," Mando scolded him, coming around the corner. Sara watched as he approached the doors, looking outside. Sara prayed for them to stop, as they grew even louder, but they were moving to fast, and before she knew it, they were passing by, and growing quieter.

"You don't panic unless you need to," Mando said, turning back to look at Sara, who was watching him. "Don't worry honey, we'll take good care of you."

Sara only grimaced as she laid her head back down of the floor, facing towards Greg. Closing her eyes, she began to formulate a plan.

It was now nine, Nick and Warrick were still looking over the photos, both of them agitated. Nick was missing the game, and Warrick was late for a dinner meet. Neither of them said anything, hadn't said anything for the past twenty minutes. The case was a confusing mess of nothing, or so it seemed. Nick had wanted to give up on it, but as high as priority as it was, he knew better than to even question Grissom's reasoning.

"You find anything yet?" Warrick finally asked, after nearly a half an hour of straining silence.

Nick only shrugged, grabbing up more photos. No, he hadn't found anything, he wasn't even really paying attention. He was too upset about Sara and Greg being late; too tired to really even concentrate anymore. Both he and Warrick had come in early, and now they would be staying late. He wasn't aware that he was drumming his fingers on the table until Warrick brought his own hand down, stopping the motion.

"Don't," Warrick pleaded, "I have a headache."

Nick only shook his head, but he did stop, turning back to the photos. It got him, how many times did an infant have to die before people learned. "Cars, swimming pools, backyards. Where will it be next?"

Warrick only shrugged. "Sad, really is sad, there's not much that we can do."

"We can find the killer," Nick said, practically throwing the papers down on the table. "And we're not going to find it here."

Warrick agreed silently. "Back to the car then?"

"I guess, recheck everything. Nothing's unsolvable, we just need that one piece of the puzzle, and everything will start to fit," Nick said, taking the lead out of the room. They ran into Grissom on the way.

"You two still here?" he asked, somewhat surprised.

"Back up hasn't arrived to relieve us yet," Nick shrugged it off, walking past him.

"Sara and Greg haven't come in yet?" Grissom wondered, turning to Warrick who had stayed behind.

Warrick shook his head, "If they're here, they got caught up in something else, forgot about us."

"Have you tried calling them?" Grissom asked, stating the obvious.

Warrick shook his head, taking off down the hall after Nick, "Haven't had the time."

They had been moved; Sara watched as they drug Greg across the floor, propping him against the freezer doors. They had pulled her to her feet; Sara had wrestled with them, her mind clearer now. It wouldn't be much longer now before the robbers would take off, and they had already made it clear that no one was coming out alive. Why they hadn't killed them off now was a surprise.

Her struggles hadn't lasted long, as she was shoved into the glass next to Greg. Not hard enough to break it, but hard enough to stun her momentarily. It took all her strength just to keep her balance, sitting on her knees. Without the use of her hands, she felt helpless, a shiver running down her spine as her captors laughed at the way she swayed. One of them used their foot to push her over. She hadn't fought back then.

"Keep them out of sight for now, until we finish here," Mando told Stitch, as the two walked back towards the counter.

They hadn't known, but they had been more of a help than Sara could ask for. She was sitting right next to Greg, right next to the wound that was still bleeding. Turning a little to her left, she was able to bring her hands against his chest, tracing down towards his stomach. Feeling carefully she was able to locate the small wound; it felt like a gunshot, more in likely what it was, considering all the gunfire that was released before.

Forceful pressure, she reminded herself. Crossing her hands as best she could, she pressed against the wound, leaning all her weight against him. She couldn't tell if she was stopping the blood flow, or even slowing it, all she could do was hope. Hope and pray as the night went on.

TBC