Precious Things by SLynn

Spoilers: Up to 'Nesting Dolls'

Rating: R for violence and disturbing content.

Disclaimer: Not mine – well, some are mine, just not the ones you recognize.

Chapter 14: Maybes

Catherine and Warrick were already there by the time they'd arrived. Greg and Sara didn't even try to pretend they were surprised. This case was starting to affect them all.

"What have you got?" Greg asked sitting down and looking up at the board they'd been creating.

The board they'd made had pictures of five women, girls really. Underneath was writing indicating the type of crime, location found, time of death, all the basic information. Side by side, pictured as they were the similarities between them were evident.

"Our known victims," Catherine explained, "Emily Harris, Cynthia Haas and the latest Taylor Sinclair. The new guy, what's his name?"

"Sullivan," Greg provided.

"Yeah," Catherine said nodding, "he got a hit in missing persons. Contacted her parents."

"Another runaway?" Sara asked sitting now herself.

"Looks like it," Catherine answered. "This time she'd run off with her boyfriend, who as I understand is quite the catch. She's seventeen, he's thirty-two and has a record for petty theft."

"And before you ask," Warrick put in, "he didn't do it. He was in county lock-up during the time she was killed."

"So let me guess," Greg started, "she went to North Desert too?"

Catherine nodded.

"So who are the other two?" Sara inquired, indicating the two other women on the board.

"This is our db from last night. Jane Doe is actually Ashley Cooper, fourteen. She's been missing for five months now, about the same time Doc Robbins estimated she died. Another North Desert alum. We identified her through her dental records."

"And her?" Sara asked pointing to the fifth picture. The woman in it was the only one who wasn't a teenager.

"The rape case from three years ago that Amy matched the skin sample too. So far, our only living witness. Report says she didn't see his face."

"She looks familiar," Greg said now giving the picture his full attention.

"They all do. This is Ann Bosworth," Catherine continued, "thirty-two at the time. We've tried getting in contact with her but it looks like she moved."

"Well, apart from the age she does look the part," Sara concluded, "Blond and fair skinned."

"But why didn't he kill her?" Warrick asked. "We know it's the same guy that killed Cynthia Haas because the skin matched the semen. We also found semen stains on the sheet that Taylor Sinclair was wrapped in; we're still waiting on the results. But why change tactics? He could have buried each of these bodies and given himself months more time, years even."

Greg and Sara exchanged glances briefly, but not briefly enough for it to go unnoticed.

"He's trying to cover his tracks by copycatting Fenton's crimes. Throw us off, make us get all wrapped up in thinking Fenton had an accomplice or that maybe he wasn't guilty," Sara finally said.

"Inside job?" Catherine asked sitting now herself and feeling slightly off.

"No," Greg said shaking his head.

"But the details…"

"Were pretty much available to anyone with a computer," Greg finished looking down as he spoke. "I'd written it all down and when Ortega stole my computer she got all my files, gave them to Anderson who put them out on the web."

For a minute no one knew what to say. Sara finally broke the silence.

"Archie is checking the server. Seeing who downloaded it, tracking IP addresses."

Warrick nodded knowing that was going to take awhile.

"Want something new?" Nick asked from the doorway.

"Hey," Warrick said as it dawned on him, "weren't you and Greg supposed to take it easy today? It's not even two and you're both here already, Griss isn't going to be happy."

"Probably not," Nick said sitting down, "but we may have a lead. All the girls attended the same school right? North Desert. So I decided to look into the staff. The janitor there, Russell Blackwater, has a record. He was arrested on statutory rape charges three years ago."

"Arrested but not convicted?" Catherine asked.

"Yeah so he's not listed as a known offender and isn't in any database."

"So we've got nothing to compare him to the sample we already have," Greg finished, probably knowing that drill better then anyone else present.

"No, but we might have enough for a warrant. Not for DNA, but for bleach."

"Okay, I'm lost," Catherine said smiling at him.

Nick smiled back.

"Taylor Sinclair had bleach spots on her jeans," he began, "Hodges ran it and it came back as industrial strength, definitely not what you'd pick up at the store..."

"But something a janitor might use," Catherine finished. "Good job."

"Well, thank Hodges not me. He found it and ran with it. I was going to call Detective Sullivan and see if he wanted to serve his first warrant. Any takers?"

Greg really wanted to take him up on it but decided not too. He felt obligated to see out the computer thing with Archie.

"I'll go," Sara said instead.

"Cool," Nick said moving back to the doorway, "I'll meet you in the garage in ten."

Sara left after Nick did leaving the three of them silent for a minute. Catherine stood shaking her head as if she didn't quite like something about this. About any of this.

"Was that really a good idea?" she asked Warrick.

Greg, who had been getting ready to leave, stopped and turned back to her as well.

Warrick shook his head now and threw up his hands indicating he wasn't going to get involved or say anything more.

"What?" Greg asked feeling defensive and not knowing why.

"Well," she started cautiously. It had slipped out before she'd been able to stop herself. Catherine knew she should have just held her tongue in front of Greg, but it was too late now. "I just meant maybe Warrick or I should have gone instead."

"Why's that?" Greg asked now not only feeling defensive but sounding it.

"We all know how involved Nicky gets, especially with cases like this. And Sara's not much better. In fact, she's worse. We just sent them both off to confront a man suspected of having sex with a minor with a rookie detective. I'm just not sure that was the wisest thing we could have done. They could end up jeopardizing the case."

"As I understood it this was Nick's case," Greg said as evenly as he could. He did not want to start a fight with Catherine but felt like that's where this was heading. Fast. "He's not going to jeopardize that. And neither is Sara. I think I'd know…"

"Greg," she cut off, "no offense but when it comes to Sara you're not exactly impartial."

"Okay," he said his voice rising a bit, "that's fine. I'm not. But that doesn't mean she isn't good at her job. Or professional. She wouldn't…"

"You don't work with her Greg," Catherine cut in her voice matching his in tone and volume, "so you don't know that. She's gone off before and all I'm saying is this is the type of thing that usually sets her off."

"I don't work with her now, but I have before."

"Greg, you're letting your personal relationship cloud your judgment. Sara can be a volatile on these types of cases. She shouldn't be out interrogating suspects."

"Don't talk to me about personal relationships," Greg said warningly. "Sara and I aren't the only ones here who have ever dated a co-worker. We're not even the only ones here who have kept it a secret."

Catherine stared at him in shock due almost entirely to his emphasis on the word 'here'. Twice. What exactly was he saying?

"If you have a problem with Sara or Nick or anyone that isn't me I'd appreciate it if you just kept it to yourself or at least waited until I was out of the room before you started in. Go to Grissom if it bothers you so much."

Greg left without a backwards glance leaving both Catherine and Warrick speechless. He knew that he'd been out of line. Catherine was the assistant shift supervisor and he could get in serious trouble for that, but she'd been wrong too.

Of course, she hadn't been entirely wrong. Greg had never seen it for himself but he'd heard about Sara's outbursts. And yes, this was the type of case that would probably set her off. Greg just didn't know why.

That's probably what had gotten him mad. They'd been looking at him like he should have known that; that he should have known the root cause of Sara's problems and he didn't. Sara knew him like the back of her own hand and what did he know about her really? Not much.

Greg knew Sara had a brother. That she must have parents, not that she'd ever mentioned them. He knew she went to Harvard and that she was genius. And that she probably knew more about him then anyone else in the world.

Anything that had happened to her before she started working in Las Vegas was completely unknown to him.

It was a startling and somewhat scary revelation.


Sara and Nick were back late that afternoon, Detective Sullivan joining them for his first trip to the crime lab. Coming into the break room they spotted Amy and Warrick.

"How'd it go?" Warrick asked as soon as they got through the door.

"Got the bleach samples," Sara answered, "amongst other things."

Warrick just raised his eyebrow at her.

"Found semen in the closet," Nick supplied without any further comment.

"So I've probably got work to do then," Amy said getting up.

"Wait a minute," Nick said warmly, "Thompsen has them for now."

Nick smiled at her and then remembered Sullivan was with them.

"Charlie," he said turning to him now, "I don't think you've met Amy Chen. She's the DNA tech on graveyard so be nice to her or she'll sit on your results for days."

"Ignore him," she returned, giving Nick a wink, "he's just mad because I don't run his samples first."

"Nice to meet you," Charlie said with a smile shaking her hand.

"You too," Amy smiled in return.

"And this is Warrick Brown," Nick continued as Warrick stood to greet him as well. "Another CSI here to make your life miserable."

"Charlie Sullivan," Warrick said questioningly, "You aren't related to Walter Sullivan are you?"

Charlie nodded and smiled sheepishly.

"He's my father."

"Good man," Warrick said smiling as he shook his hand, "We were sorry to see him retire."

"Well, so was my mother," Charlie joked, "but he'd figured thirty-five years was long enough."

Sara looked around before asking where Greg and Catherine were.

"Well," Warrick said a bit uneasily, "Catherine went home. She'll be back in tonight before shift starts. Greg's around here somewhere, probably the in the computer lab with Archie still."

Sara nodded.

"We were talking about grabbing dinner out tonight," Nick said now to Amy and Warrick, "All of us. You in?"

Amy and Warrick both nodded, no one had gotten a decent meal all day.

"Do you want to call Catherine?" Nick asked to Warrick, "I was going to call Griss."

Warrick pulled a face taking everyone back but Charlie who didn't know how odd that was.

"I'm not so sure we should get Greg and Catherine in the same room just yet."

"What happened?" Sara asked stepping closer.

"There was a disagreement, let's just leave it at that. If you want more, ask them yourself."

Sara nodded and he knew she would. Nick looked very much like he was going to keep asking but didn't.

"I'll go see if Greg wants to go," Sara said stopping momentarily in the doorway before doing just that. "You should at least ask her."

Warrick shrugged. It couldn't hurt. Knowing Catherine she'd at least want the option of turning down the invite instead of not receiving one. Maybe she'd show anyway and they could put all the awkwardness past them.

Maybe.