Warrick Brown 's expression remained neutral when the "river card" was revealed. He spread his cards out on the table and watched Greg Sanders with amusement as the younger man stared back at him in complete shock. The lab tech threw down his two pair in disgust.
"Why did I agree to play this game with you?" Greg whined after his tenth defeat in a row.
"You need to learn how to conceal your emotions. During cases it's a skill that you'll use daily; poker's a way for you to work on that," the other criminalist stated matter of factly.
The younger man didn't seem too convinced, thinking that maybe he was just a perfect mark for the gambler to have a little fun without getting into trouble. Greg sighed. "When can you go back to work?"
Warrick shook his head slowly. He wasn't exactly suspended. However, when he had arrived back at the lab after overseeing Nick's new stay at the hospital, there were vacation forms already filled out and approved for a few days waiting for him. "I go back in a day or so."
Greg scrunched up his face. "So, why am I here so early?"
Warrick smiled. "It's called penance, my friend. Your shift here doesn't start for a few hours, but I wanted some company."
Greg lounged back in one of the dining chairs as he looked around the townhouse. "Nick does have a nice pad."
The other man gazed around in appraisement. "It's a'aight. He could use some decorating tips, some swankier digs."
Greg was going to comment further when the doorbell rang. He glanced at his watch, noting it was a two hours before the Graveyard shift would begin. Smiling, the tech wandered over the door, looked through the peep hole and opened it for the other guests.
Grissom, Sara, Catherine, and even Brass wandered into the living area of the townhouse, scanning around for its owner. Puzzled, Catherine looked up at the other two men expectantly. "Where's Nick?"
Greg grinned like the Cheshire cat. "It's not time for him to wake up from his nap."
Brass wasn't able to suppress a chuckle, and Catherine looked at the tech somewhat amused. "His nap?"
Greg gestured towards Warrick, who had gotten up and now was leaning his back against the sofa. "Nurse Ratchet has him on a tight sleeping schedule. Nick knows better to get up out of bed before he's supposed to."
Grissom arched an eyebrow, ignoring the good natured jab Greg took to the shoulder from Warrick. "Is that going to be anytime soon?"
"I'll go let him know he's got company, " Warrick stated as he strode over to the bedroom. He pushed open the almost-latched door; his words clearly drifted out from the far end of the hallway. "Wake up sleeping beauty, you have visitors." The CSI disappeared from the doorway for a moment and slipped into the confines of the bedroom.
After a moment Warrick sauntered back over to the awaiting group, crossing his arms in front of him. "It takes him a minute."
Sara peered towards the door. "How is he doing?" The female CSI wasn't able to visit Nick when he had gone back to the hospital for another day, as she'd been swamped with a new case of her own.
The end of Warrick's mouth twitched. "He'll be all right in a couple of weeks. He broke another rib during the scuffle with Fulton. Doc has him in a shoulder immobilizer. He tore up his ligaments more by not using that sling of his, and he's got a nice pimpin' cane for the knee he busted up. He's still suffering from fatigue, so sleeping pills have been added to help him get the shut eye thats required. "
Catherine gaped slightly. "Just two weeks? Should he be on leave longer?"
Warrick shrugged. "The knee's just swollen and the ribs are going to take the longest to mend. Let's not forget those scrambled brains of his. However, he's done nothin' but sleep here for the past two days straight. When he goes back to work, it'll be light desk duty for a while."
"I'm sure he can lend Greg and Hodges a hand in the lab," Grissom informed him.
The object of all the discussion slowly hobbled out of his bedroom. Nick Stokes was certainly a sight, and the rest of the group tried not to stare.
Nick's right shoulder was held firmly against his chest by the immobilizer, and his left hand was holding onto a cane that he was using to limp along. Warrick took pity on him and wandered over. "You need some help, gimpy?"
"Nope... I've... got... it," he managed to huff in between breaths as he made his way towards the sofa.
After several more excruciating moments, Nick sat down heavily and smiled somewhat sheepishly at the assembled group. "Looks like a party," he commented with mild sarcasm.
Sara had taken to the love seat, while Catherine made her way towards the couch and sat down at the other end. The lead on the Gold Gym's homicides noticed that her colleague appeared more rested. The color was back in his face, and he seemed less haggard and exhausted. The easy smile was back in his face, and that filled her with warmth. "You look better."
Nick's face reddened slightly. "Yeah, well all I've done is sleep for two days," he said, casting scathing a look in Warrick's direction.
Warrick snorted. "I'm not falling for any pouting, man. You're going to learn the definitions for 'relax and recuperate'. Not my fault you can't take care of yourself."
Nick growled low in his throat, and Sara tried to suppress a giggle. The female CSI glanced over at Greg. "So, if Warrick's the nurse, who are you supposed to be?"
"I'm the other baby-sitter," the tech replied.
Nick was starting to get a bit miffed. "Guys, knock it off."
After a few minutes of extra ribbing, the room fell into silence. Nick tried to find a comfortable position on the couch, while propping his leg along most of the cushions. "Since I've been out of the loop after the initial arrest, are any of you going to update me?"
Brass took his cue to fill in some of the missing details. "Bob Fulton signed a complete confession in his hospital room, but his lawyers are going to still plead insanity. We got him for three counts of murder, as he copped to Michael Ross' death. We've also got him for two counts of attempted murder, and aggravated assault."
Nick nodded, taking in all the information. "And Sikes?"
Catherine took the opportunity to elaborate. "We've got him on pocession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute. He had a major steroid ring going on, and when he was interviewed he admitted to being hostile because he thought we were on to him about his operation. Of course he still had that whole Alpha male ego thing with you. He thought Fulton was going to squeal on him about the drug trafficking. That's what Fulton threatened him with unless he met him at the gym the other night."
Nick traced the shoulder immobilizer absently with his left hand. "I take it he pulled through without complications?"
Catherine shook her head slowly. "He was shot in the kneecap. He's officially disabled with a permanent limp."
Nick bowed his head slightly. The Ox-Man had proved to be an absolute asshole, but no one deserved to be assaulted like that. The CSI was still disgusted with himself over jumping to conclusions on that aspect of the case. He looked over at Catherine. "Do we know why Fulton killed Nancy?"
The female lead shrugged. "Fulton knew she was coming to speak to us. We don't know anything beyond speculation. We asked Fulton about her; he said she was on his "list" anyway, so it was all a matter of time to him."
"I guess I was just at the wrong place at the wrong time?" Nick speculated out loud.
Grissom took the opportunity to add his thoughts. "Bob Fulton was taking steroids on a daily basis. During the last few weeks, he was consuming them several times a day. He kept a stash at the gym. When he saw you with them, he lost control of his temper and attacked you. Then rest was just an act of uncontrolled rage and delusional behavior."
Nick was silent. He sort of knew the answer to the question before he'd mentioned it, but it was good to be able to confirm his thoughts. Warrick had been mum about any details of the arrest. The other criminalist had wanted to keep Nick's mind off the case, but he had also spent most of his time here at his townhouse, so he wasn't privy to all the details that were coming from the interrogations.
The whole team stuck around for a while, chatting about different topics and happy to spend a few moments away from the lab, even if it was the result of a horrific ordeal. Time elapsed and the team began to assemble to head to work. Warrick was even going to leave to catch some sleep at his own place, leaving Greg to remain with Nick for "his shift."
Nick stood up and hugged each member as they left. Jim Brass wandered over to shake the younger man's hand. Nick looked at the detective with a mixture of embarrassment and deep gratitude. "I never got a chance to thank you for saving me. I'd hate to think what would have happened if you hadn't come in when you did."
Jim wasn't one to get overly emotional; he clasped the other's man uninjured shoulder good naturally. "Sorry I popped one of your ribs."
Nick grinned. "It's better than the alternative. Next time I need someone to help with physical labor I know who to ask for help."
"Get better, Nicky." Jim followed Grissom and Sara outside.
Catherine slid her arms around Nick and gave him a gentle hug. She kissed him on the cheek. "I have two of my own spies now, mister. So follow orders and I'll see you later."
The team left, Warrick grabbed his duffle bag and collected his things while Greg went into the kitchen to begin cooking supper. Nick carefully hobbled back to his couch; the visit had worn him out a little. It was time for his meds, as his body painfully reminded him as the aches became evident with each movement. He began to get lost in his thoughts while he tapped his cane on the floor.
Warrick made his way over, crouched down and gave his buddy another round of ghetto low fives. "I'll be back tomorrow, man."
"Thanks for everything 'Rick... for backing me up... and for being there." Nick looked at his best friend. "Now please... go away." He grinned widely.
Warrick stifled a laugh. "You know I always got your back, bro."
Nick didn't get up as his coworker left. He leaned his head back and closed his eyes. The past week had taken its toll on him both mentally and physically. He exhaled a deep breath, knowing how differently things could have ended. He promised himself to practice better judgment. He knew he was a good CSI, but he still had a few things to learn. The criminalist was just grateful to be surrounded by people he could count on.
His musing was interrupted by the sound of a pot crashing to the floor. He opened his lids and sighed. "Don't destroy my kitchen, G!" he yelled.
Nick rubbed a hand over his face, chuckling. One thing was for sure, he needed to get back into shape so he could reclaim his townhouse again.
The End.
Author's notes:
First off I want to thank my beta Krysalys for all of her patience, suggestions and support for this story. It was wonderful to bounce ideas off you. The evil red ink was my friend, and you will always be my angst buddy! Big hello and thanks to Sunset, you've been a kind friend during this and I'm glad we became buddies. Also a huge shout out to Shacky for all of our late night e-mail exchanges.
A HUGE thanks to all of you who commented and gave me feedback during this saga. After a while it was very cool to see what you reactions were to all of this, and I'm happy so many people got enjoyment out of all the ups and downs of this journey. If you're still a lurker don't be shy and say hello! To those who hung onto every chapter all of you rock!
I should not be gone for long. I'm in the middle of writing something new, planning the next one,and I have a couple of one shots to post some time soon. Keep an eye out, I shall return. If anyone wants to say hello or talk about writing or the show feel free to e-mail me. note: I know I'm not that evil. It seems the chapter with the most hits were of course Chapter 6, followed by 7. I guess we all have a bit of evil in us. :-) The next popular were chapters 12 and 13 when Greg took Nick home, isn't that sweet!
shoebe:
Thanks for all of your comments. To think the original spark to this story was to have Nick butt heads with a difficult suspect. Hence Roger was born. Glad to see it was a nice mislead. I'm glad you could picture this as an actual episode.
csifan:
So, it concludes. Thank you for your feedback, my like minded psychic. Your insightful comments were always a pleasure.
staresp4cat:
One of the most true loyalists. Thanks for all of your continued support. I hope this wrapped up things nicely. I'm sure I'll see you soon.
Designation:
I liked the final confrontation. I'm glad you did as well. My beta told me it was like the "race of the gimps" at the end. It needed to be tense, but in the end our guy won out. Thank you for you wonderful feedback. Look forward to new things from you soon, I hope.
sokerfreak:
Thanks for your comments. It is sad to end it, but there will be new things in the future.
stonedtoad:
Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it.
witchsword:
I love that line as well. Can't you picture Griss and Cath with their arms crossed, looking all the world like they'd like to throttle Warrick and Nick if they could. Thank you.
mudhousejunkie:
Thank you for all you patience and comments. You're a doll. Keep your eyes open for later things.
groban:
Did I ever mention that I love Warrick and Nick together! He gives Nicky such a hard time, its so much fun. Thank you for all the feedback. Glad to see you again after WITW.
Tanquay:
Thank you once again. I fell like a broken record, but it was such a thrill to see such loyalty. You're thoughts were always appreciated.
rozzy:
What can I say my evil vixen friend. I do give Nick a pounding no pun intended, but he's a tough guy, and makes such interesting things to write. I don't know if I could ever writing anything else, but I'll always try to be creative as possible while maintaing a sense of realism.
