Catherine studied Nick. The lines around his eyes were a bit more pronounced and he had dark circles overshadowing them. It was time to get things rolling on this case, so both of them could get some much needed sleep. "Yeah, I think that's a good idea."
Catherine was searching for Nick. Dr. Robbins was backed up and the autopsy would be performed in the morning. It was the end of their shift and they still needed to run all the prints collected from the scene. It had been helpful that Gold's Gym kept extensive employee records, which included fingerprints. Catherine rubbed the tired muscles in her neck as she rounded the corner towards one of the lab rooms.
She found Nick making photo copies of the collection of prints and was scanning them into the computer to compare them to the gym's staff. Once this was done the CSI could determine if there were any prints that didn't match the employees, and learn who in the staff had been in that room. He was wearing the same blue lab coat the she was sporting now and sipping what had to be at least his third cup of coffee since they had returned from the scene.
"Any progress?" she asked.
Nick glanced up from the screen he had been glued to for the last couple of hours. "Well, it depends how you look at it. There were three sets of prints from the light switch, all staff. Michelle Wilson's, which she mentioned touching. There was also Roger Sikes' and Bob Fulton's."
Catherine looked at the results. "So, the owner and manager's prints are there. That can be from any time and not really probable. They work there."
Nick nodded. "Yeah, but all three of their prints were also on the weights and dumbbell."
Catherine's eyebrow shot up, "Really? So, who's Bob Fulton?"
Nick flipped through the folder that had been laying on the desk. "He doesn't work for the gym, he's more like a free lance contractor. He's a physical therapist that works with some of the ex-athletes that go there."
"All right. We won't get the autopsy report till the morning. We can re-interview people tomorrow and get a chance to talk to Mr. Fulton." Catherine explained, trying to wrap up things for the night.
Nick was placing papers together. "I'm actually going to test out a theory of mine tonight."
The other CSI's curiosity was piqued. "What's that?"
Nick removed his lab coat and they headed towards the door. "Roger Sikes claimed he went for a swim at 11, did about twenty laps, dried off, then ran into Michelle afterwards."
Both of them walked through the lab, heading for their lockers. Catherine knew what the younger CSI was thinking. "Twenty laps in under an hour. Yeah, that doesn't sound right. But, Nick..." She placed her hand on his forearm. "You're not going to swim laps somewhere? I mean, you need to stay fresh while we're dealing with these grueling hours."
Nick grabbed his leather jacket. "Don't worry. I'm just going to time a few people at my gym. I'm not up for a night swim."
The senior CSI smiled. "All right, but get some shut eye, all right? We've got another long one tomorrow."
The CSI lab was bustling with activity when Nick arrived for his shift half an hour early. That meant he saw the sun shining in the middle of the afternoon instead of the normal midnight that he clocked in. He had grabbed a bowl of cereal at his place and was already feeling the signs of an impending headache. He thought about stopping by to say hello to Greg, but the DNA lab tech was up to his ears in analysis from the big case Grissom and Sara were working on. Nick was heading to the morgue to see what the good doctor had to say about their victim. Nick remembered to shower and change into clean clothes, his short sleeved blue shirt and dark brown chinos made him feel a little fresher. He was carrying the results from his little experiment that had kept him at his gym longer than planned, but he was very eager to share the results with his partner.
He was rounding a corner when he eyed Warrick Brown heading his direction. The other CSI was dressed in a black suit with no tie, as he was off to court today. Warrick had a streak of bad luck that affected everyone else on the team. He had three different cases that he had been involved in on the docket for the week, so he'd been spending more time on the stand than in the lab. He lent a hand when he could on the political case the rest of the graveyard shift was involved in.
Warrick stopped, he and Nick shook hands and then exchanged their personal 'ghetto' low five. "What's going on, man?"
Nick tucked his papers between his arm and side. "Nothing, just about to check out my vic's report and then do some more follow up interviews."
"Yeah, I heard one of your suspects got a little out of hand last night." Warrick eyed the bruise that was peeking out from under the short sleeve on his friend's arm.
Nick was in such a hurry to get over to the lab, he had forgotten about the mark. "Yeah, well, that hot head is on my list of people to talk to today."
Warrick studied his friend for a moment. He knew Catherine and Nick had been burning the candle at both ends of late and it just angered him that political cases got top priority. Nick was still the beacon of robust health, but he looked really tired and that was just unlike him.
"You guys holler at me if you need anything. I'll try to help out if I can."
Nick smiled. "Thanks. I'll let you know."
Warrick headed down the hall and Nick continued on to the morgue. He was surprised to see Catherine already there. Wasn't she the one that had been on him about getting sleep, he mused, when she had arrived before shift as well?
Dr. Robbins smiled as the CSI entered. "Looks like you two both got here early." He pointed at the body. "I was just finishing up with Catherine."
Nick looked at her. "Recap?"
"It would seem someone was trying to steer us off course on this one."
Puzzled, Nick looked to the coroner for an explanation.
The doctor smiled in amusement. "You victim was strangled first, by a cord of some kind. See these ligature marks." He pointed to some dark bruising that appeared all around the neck.
"Yeah, I see." Nick leaned over to study the blackish bruises.
"Well, those were made first. Then covered by a second set of bruises caused by the weight of the bar. That bruising is purple and happened post mortem." The coroner explained.
Nick and Catherine looked at each other, both thinking the same thing. What would be the reason for trying to hide the first set of marks?
"Why go through the trouble of trying to make it seem like he died while trying to lift too much weight? Doesn't make much sense," Nick questioned out loud.
Catherine peered at the body, and then back to the confused expression of her partner. "I don't know. To hide what he used to strangle him? These marks didn't leave any wounds around the neck, no fibers or anything. Or maybe to throw off where he was killed."
Nick thought for a moment. "You think he was moved? "
Catherine shook her head, at a loss for a reasonable explanation. "I'm not sure. David said TOD was around midnight. That's about the time when the owner said she found him. But she didn't notice anyone out of the ordinary."
Both criminalists continued to discuss the case as they exited the morgue and headed for a small conference room. Catherine got a call from Jim Brass and talked to the detective on the phone while her partner pulled out the file folder he had been carrying.
Catherine flipped her cell shut. "Jim verified Blair Olsen's alibi, he had an appointment with a Deana Ford till after midnight." The CSI suppressed a grin when she saw the eager glee in her partner's eyes. He was smiling too much and that's when she noticed the paper. "Got something on your experiment, Nicky?"
Nick chuckled. "Glad you asked. It takes a normal person over ninety minutes to do twenty laps in the pool. I don't think our buddy Sikes was in the pool as long as he claims or even went swimming to begin with."
"How many people did you watch for this little test?" Catherine inquired.
There was that smile again. "I watched six swimmers for a couple of hours. Talked to a few of them, too."
It was her turn to smile. "How many phone numbers did you get?"
Nick's grin got larger. "One."
"Just one?" Catherine laughed before focusing back on the case. "Our boy Sikes may not have been in the pool then, and he's certainly strong enough to lift 350 pounds."
"Yeah, that's true. Still don't have a motive," Nick said, frustrated.
"He seems to ogle all over the owner. Maybe there's some history between them. I mean they did start the gym together?" Catherine reasoned.
"He certainly acts like the jealous type. Might do some digging on their history. See if there was something that set this guy off." Nick gathered his papers.
"We won't jump the gun yet. We have no real physical evidence whatsoever," Catherine cautioned.
"Then we'll keep narrowing our focus on suspects till we can find some." Nick replied matter-of-factly.
Catherine Willows shook her head. Nick Stokes was one cocky criminalist sometimes, but that was one of the reasons why she loved working with him.
Both CSI's were using a small office to conduct their interviews at the police station. Catherine sat back and enjoyed one of the few moments of inactivity. Grissom had promised that she and Nick would get two days off in a row sometime next week. She adjusted her brown leather jacket, as it was very chilly in the room they occupied, and she was only wearing a sleeveless cream colored blouse and a pair of khaki pressed pants.
She heartily wished for a cup of coffee as she looked over at her younger partner. Nick was restless, pacing the office, and his nervous energy was starting to drive her crazy. She was running on fumes; although her fatigue was not showing on the case, she could tell it was making her a little edgy. Catherine grabbed Nick's arm as he passed by her. "I don't think we want a trail in the carpet here."
Nick lowered himself in a chair and rubbed his hands through his short hair. All of his eagerness from earlier that day was now ebbing away to a full blown headache. His temples hurt and he kept trying to ignore the pain by diverting his attention walking circles in the office. He was about to ask his partner for an aspirin when Bob Fulton finally arrived.
The squat man nervously fiddled with his glasses as he stood in the room. He was wearing a Gold Gym's T-shirt and black dress pants; a very odd clothing combination to say the least. He appeared to be in his early thirties, with thinning hair, and held his hands in front of him.
"Mr. Fulton, why don't you sit down, " Nick suggested to the anxious man.
Bob slowly sat down, grimacing slightly.
Nick looked at the pit bull-looking guy with interest. "Bad knees, Mr. Fulton?"
"Yeah, blown from too much sports in high school," he laughed.
The ex-jock smiled sympathetically. "Mr. Fulton, I recognize you from last night. What were you doing coming by the gym so late, when you work there during the day?"
"I live near by and was coming home from the grocery store. When I saw the flashing lights and everything I decided to stop by and check things out."
"How long have you been working at the club, Mr. Fulton?" Catherine asked.
"I've been there for about six months."
"And in what parts of the gym do you work with people?" Nick asked, trying to determine why his prints were on the light switch in the weight room.
"I stick to the physical therapy room most of the time." Fulton started drumming his fingers on the table.
"Do you ever go into the weight rooms or other facilities to work out, or to conduct business?" Catherine asked.
Fulton stared at the CSI. "No, not really. I just stick to where I'm supposed to be."
"What about last night?" Nick asked.
"No, just a few hours in the physical therapy room, working with an ex- soccer player, Dennis Buckman." The man continued to drum his fingers on the desk and was starting to tap his foot on the floor.
"Sir, could you explain to us why we found your fingerprints on a light switch in the weight room?" Nick looked at him. He didn't like being lied to, and if this man was being deceitful about where he had been that day, then what else was he hiding?
Fulton began tapping on the desk with just his pointer finger; the noise was echoing loudly in the small office. He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. "What... my prints... I don't understand?"
Nick leaned in closer. "Yes, they were found on the light switch."
Bob surreptitiously glanced around, and his voice dropped to a whisper. "I-I could get into a lot of trouble with Roger Sikes. He doesn't like me using the facilities at the club. Says I still would have to pay fees. So... I... ah... well, I sneak in from time to time. I did that day around 4 p.m.."
Nick stared at him intently. "Mr. Fulton, it's not good to lie to us."
"I-I know. I'm sorry. I just didn't want Roger to find out."
Fulton's foot and fingers had not ceased tapping, and the noise was starting to grate on Nick's nerves. He ignored the annoying gestures and tried to forget about the increasing tension in his temples. This interview was looking like a bust and he wanted to move on.
Catherine noticed her partner's weariness, but she still had a couple of questions of her own. "Mr. Fulton, why are you afraid of Roger Sikes?"
"He's got a-a horrible temper. I just don't like it when he yells at me."
Catherine arched an eyebrow; this guy was timid as a mouse. "Did he ever lose his temper with anyone else? Did he argue with a lot of people?"
Bob shrugged. "He got into it with people all the time. He and Walter fought constantly... mostly over Michelle."
This got Nick's attention. "What did they argue about?"
"Michelle is a big flirt with just about anyone. She loves to show off in front any man who has her attention."
"Yeah, we noticed that," Catherine said wryly.
Nick gave her a pained look. "Are she and Roger a couple?"
Bob Fulton stopped tapping the table, and now both his knees were vibrating as both feet were bouncing up and down. "They've been off again and on again. He always thinks they're a couple. That's why he had it out a few days ago with Walter, because Roger has been dating Michelle for the past month."
Nick was excited about this new information. There was some personnel history going on at Gold's Gym. This could lead to motive, however in their job that was just icing on the cake. With so little physical evidence, this time around motive could lead to real clues.
Nick had been mulling over these ideas, but was having a tough time with all the noise their witness was making with his nervous tapping. In a tone little harsher than he intended, Nick blurted out, "Will you please stop that insistent tapping, Mr. Fulton?"
Bob Fulton bolted out of his chair and pounded his fist on the table, startling both criminalists. "All you have to do is ask nicely!" he yelled.
Nick stared wide eyed at Fulton. The CSI stood up slowly and placed his hands out in front of him in a calming manner. "I'm sorry, Bob," Nick said in a calming voice, almost as he was speaking to a rebellious child. "Didn't mean for it to come out like that."
Catherine had her mouth open in shock at the outburst from someone she had pegged as timid. She glanced at Nick, who shot her his own confused, almost amused expression. Bob Fulton for his part was wringing his hands in front of him, the color in his face changing from red to white.
"I-I'm so sorry. I'm just very nervous," Bob fumbled with his words.
Nick smiled, "It's all right, Mr. Fulton. We want to thank you for your time."
The three shook hands all around and Bob exited the interview room. Nick looked at Catherine with an innocent expression on his face. "Don't even say it."
Catherine smiled. "You've got a way with these people, Nicky. Must be all that ex-jock charisma."
Author's notes:
This is a transistional chapter. I had to cut it here or it would have made the next chapter way too long. Thanks to everyone for thier comments, they really do help an author. This story will have regular updates so there are no worries there.
A.Remains- You can breath now! Its good to see some of the "A Walk in the Woods" fans that havefound my new project. I hope you enjoy it! I'm always interested in your thoughts.
