The Search by SLynn

Disclaimer: Not mine, not mine, not mine.

Spoilers: Everything up to 'Nesting Dolls' in Season 5 although I doubt seriously I drag all that up.

Notes: Sorry for the delay. Inspiration finally struck (or struck back) and here is the latest heavy on the angst. Expect another chapter fairly soon and thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed. I'll be thanking you more in another chapter or two. Oh and it has come to my attention that I've been misspelling Sofia's name. My bad. I'm fixing it in all of my stories eventually but for now, just this one. Thanks again! Enjoy.

Day Three

Nick had gotten very little sleep that night but was up at the crack of dawn and back out with the search party.

He and Warrick had stuck around for a few hours and helped Sara and Sofia clear some cases. They mostly did up paperwork, ran tests, and all things that could be done at the lab. Ecklie was supposedly bringing in some temp help for them that night, but no one was counting on it.

No one still believed it would be needed.

It had stopped raining at around four in the morning. Now it was seven and unfortunately they almost had to start at square one. Helicopters were still out of the question. The weather was better but still threatening. They'd have to push as far as they could today and hope for the best.

The search team, much smaller today, quickly regained the lost ground over the course of the morning, but by the time they'd started on new terrain the rain had begun to fall again.

Nick feeling dejected but certainly not giving up had to call it quits as well. He was due back at work again that afternoon and his optimism was waning. The rain yesterday had been light, a drizzle really. By the time he pulled his jeep up in front of Greg's house it was a virtual downpour. He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he hadn't noticed the car already in the drive.

Sara pulled the door open before he could even reach for the key under the mat.

"Hey Nick."

"What are you doing here?" he asked a little more then surprised.

"Checking on Chloe," she answered stepping back and letting him in.

"And evidently developing OCD."

Sara said nothing to it, just walked over to what she'd been doing before she'd heard him pull up. Cleaning the refrigerator.

"I needed something to do," she commented as if that explained it all.

"So what, Grissom's house too hard to break into?"

"Actually, yes. Besides Catherine's there feeding his collection. It was either this or work a triple. Brass banned me from the search, told me to go get some sleep."

"Yeah I think I've overstayed my welcome there too," Nick commented sitting down at the kitchen table.

Sara got up and joined him after a minute more just as Chloe padded her way into the kitchen.

"Find anything?" she asked, knowing he'd of told her right off if he had.

"No," he said with a shake of his head, "It's this damn rain. We'll be lucky to pick up where we left off tomorrow."

"It's not good is it," she said her voice getting a bit shaky.

"We're going to find them Sara."

Nick's own voice was all confidence and she took some comfort in that. But then again, when did Nick ever get despondent?

"I just wonder what kind of condition we'll find them in," Sara continued but sounding more solid. "Coldest spring in years and on top of that all this rain. They've been out in it two nights now, three days. Greg's already sick."

"Greg's sick?" Nick asked cutting her off. He hadn't known that.

"Yeah," Sara said with a nod, "has been for weeks. Sofia and I have been taking turns telling him to go home. He listens to everything else we tell him just not when to give it a break."

"Well considering the source…"

"You know I never thought he was that bullheaded before," Sara said completely ignoring his remark.

"Little did you know," Nick said with a laugh. Sara joined him.

"They're going to be fine. Really Sara, you don't have to worry. Griss knows what he's doing and it's not like Greg can't take care of himself. You'll see."

Chloe was now resting her head in Sara's lap. Absentmindedly she patted it all the time hoping Nick wasn't just being his usual self. That he was in fact right.


Sara was back at work at roughly the same time as Nick. Neither of them had gotten any sleep and were just waiting for something to happen, reviewing cases in the mean time.

"You have got to be kidding me," Nick mumbled flipping through a notebook.

"What?" Sara asked looking up from her own case file.

"Greg's notes," Nick said shaking his head. "They're impossible to read. It's like he's writing in code."

Sara looked over his shoulder and laughed.

"It's shorthand."

Nick looked at the notes and frowned.

"How am I supposed to read it?"

Sara took the notebook out of his hands and sighed.

"Victim Melissa Atwater, twenty eight, strangled. Time of death approximately nineteen hundred hours. Signs of struggle, forced entry. Should I go on?"

"You taught him this didn't you?" he said with a grin. "What is this, some kind of ploy to keep grave shift cases a secret?"

"Actually, no I did not teach him this. Blame Sofia. She taught me too but I still prefer writing it out."

Nick laughed and shook his head.

"So she's not bad then?" he asked, sounding serious.

"Well, they both like her."

"And you don't?" Nick asked.

"She's good at her job."

Before Nick could question her further about the absolute vagueness of her answer they were interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Sorry," the receptionist said as she peeked inside, "Catherine just got a call and she's out."

"I can take it," Nick said starting to stand.

"Actually, the caller asked for Sara if she was available."

They both looked surprised.

"Okay," Sara said now getting to her feet, "Who is it?"

"She said she was Greg Sanders sister."

"Oh," Sara said now really taken back. "Okay, can you transfer it to Grissom's office?"

"Right away," the woman answered before turning to go.

"Do you want company?" Nick asked.

"Yeah," she said and they both headed down the hall to where the phone was already ringing.

Sara took a deep breath before picking it up, sitting down behind the desk. Nick hovered nearby looking just about as nervous as she felt.

"Sara Sidle," she said into the receiver.

"Hi, I um, hi. I'm sorry to call like this I just didn't know who else to call."

"Katie right?" Sara asked now, trying to put her at ease all the while thinking it really should be Nick having this conversation. He was the people person, not her.

She was surprised at the nervous laugh on the other end.

"Yeah, well only Greg calls me that. Everyone else calls me Kathleen."

"I'm sorry Kathleen…"

"No, really. You can call me Katie."

"Okay," Sara said taking another deep breath. "Is there anything I can answer for you? Do for you?"

"Yes," the young woman said sounding relieved, "my mom told me what happened today and I just wanted to know if you'd heard anything yet. If there was anything new?"

She sounded so optimistic, so hopefully optimistic that Sara would have given anything to tell her there was.

"Well," Sara started, "we've been searching the area that your brother was last seen in but unfortunately the weather hasn't been very cooperative."

"I saw," Katie said cutting in, "I mean, I've been checking all day. One of the news stations there had an article but there hasn't been much else. It was pretty basic I was hoping you might know more."

"I wish I did," Sara said softly.

All she heard on the other side was a breathy 'oh' that so forcefully brought Greg to mind it was nearly unbearable.

"Let me get your number," Sara found herself saying, doing her best to shake off the uneasiness. As helpless as she felt about this whole situation, it must be fifty times worse for Katie who was not only unable to do anything but also on the other side of the country. "As soon as we find something, hear something, I'll call. I promise."

As Katie continued to thank her and give out her cell phone number, Sara quickly jotted it down.

"You really don't know what this means to me," she said her voice sounding thick. "I really can't say enough. I knew from the way my brother talks about you that you would but I didn't expect… he really does… I'm sorry."

From the sounds of it Katie had started to cry. Sara only realized she was too when Nick put his hand on her shoulder.

"I hate it that he's so far away," Katie said after a minute, "but he really loves it. He really talks about all of you like your family. I feel like I know you because of that."

"He's going to be okay Katie," Sara said as steadily as she could.

"Yeah," she returned sounding better now, "Of course he is. I knew I was being… thank you. Thank you."

She didn't say anything else other then goodbye and Sara sat there with the phone still in hand for a good solid minute after that.

Nick finally took the phone from her and hung it up after hearing the busy tone coming from the receiver.

"How is she?" he asked tentatively.

"Scared," Sara said looking up at him finally. "Like all of us I guess."

Sara wiped the palms of her hands across her cheeks as she stood. She pocketed the number she'd written down hoping that tomorrow she'd have a reason to call it.

Hoping she'd have a good reason to call it.