Disclaimer: If you've bothered to read this line well it shows that I don't own anything except your attention
A/N So here it is the next chapter as promised again thank you for the reviews I won't leave you in the lurch I am about to chapter 8 in writing and the next couple of chapters after that are going to be hard to write, but I don't want to let you know too much. Any comments please let me know I'm always looking to make chapters better as I'm still a newbie at this fanfic stuff.
As they arrived at the second crime scene Grissom looked withdrawn in the passenger seat. "Shall we go" Catherine asked as she peered over, he didn't seem to be making any movement to open the door. Then suddenly he reached for the handle and got out. "Ok" Catherine exclaimed as she followed out of the Tahoe.
"Female victim mid thirties, dressed in a red silk dress seems to be the same MO as the last one" Brass commented as they walked towards the body. Grissom reached the body first and what happened next caught everyone by surprise. Grissom looked at the body took two steps back and collapsed.
What the hell am I doing here? Why was I looking at the body I just dumped?
"Oh my god, get the paramedics over here" cried Catherine as she got down on her knees beside her friends head.
"Come on Grissom wake up, that's it Gil open your eyes" she requested as she gently shook him. He opened his eyes looking confused for a couple of seconds then focused on Catherine. Catherine then left his vision as two paramedics peered down on him. "Can you stand Mr Grissom?" one asked as the other went to help him up.
"I think so" he managed to get out before getting hauled to his feet and escorted over to the ambulance.
While Grissom was getting checked out, both Nick and Warrick arrived at the crime scene. "Sorry, Cath left my cell at the lab, didn't realize until War came knocking on my door this afternoon, where's Griss?" Nick asked as he surveyed his crime scene. Catherine motioned towards the ambulance
"He's in there, collapsed by the body, paramedics seem to think its just exhaustion, but I'm not so sure" Catherine commented with worry etched in her voice.
"Damn, I should of taken him off the case, last night" Nick exclaimed
"Nick you weren't to know that this would happen man" Warrick piped in.
"No you don't understand I found him collapsed in his office last night, he put it down to not eating but I didn't believe him, but I wasn't about to argue with him you know how stubborn he can be" Nick said with exasperation.
"It's not important in what we should have done what is more important that one of us takes him home and the rest of us process the scene." Catherine replied.
"I'll take him" volunteered Warrick "I mean you two have already been to one scene like this it makes more sense for you two to stay here" he could tell they wanted to argue but then realized he was right. "I'll see you back here after I've dropped him home" and with that he headed towards the ambulance.
Warrick stepped around the ambulances big open doors into in front of the bay. "How's he doin' guys?"
"Well he needs to eat, sleep and generally get rest, he's suffering from exhaustion" one of the paramedics replied.
"Hey, Gris I'm your taxi service for this evening, any tips would be much appreciated" Warrick joked with a small bow unfortunately this didn't have its desired effect on Grissom he didn't even look up at him, instead he just got up from the seat mumbled a thanks to the paramedics got down from the ambulance and started to walk towards the Tahoe that Nick and Warrick had brought to the crime scene. Warrick thanked the paramedics then ran to catch up with him. Grissom had already reached the Tahoe and was inside by the time he caught up. As Warrick jumped in the drivers seat he took a good look at Grissom, he looked terrible, he obviously hadn't been sleeping, by the looks of it he hadn't even changed his clothes from last shift but they looked slept in which was odd, he was being too quiet even for Grissom and avoiding Warrick's gaze this could not be good. He didn't think it was just exhaustion no he agreed with Catherine and Nick there was something else going on here.
It was nearing end of shift and Catherine had gotten nowhere fast she was going over the old case files that Nick had given her in Grissom's office and Grissom was right these did seem to be the same guy. But again lack of any evidence, this was starting to get frustrating plus the guy had broken his pattern, what did this all mean. She gave a sigh as she put down the file. Just then she heard footsteps approaching as she looked up she saw a flustered brunette come through the door.
"You're not Grissom, I'm going to kill him when I get my hands on him I had to take a Taxi from the airport to here cost me an arm and a leg plus I had to put up with the guy talking all the way here while he drove, where is he, his Tahoe's still parked outside".
"Well hello to you to Sara, you're right I'm not Grissom, but I think you should sit down before you try and find him" Catherine suggested as she motioned towards the chair opposite her. Sara's face dropped at her words she knew something had to be wrong if Catherine was sitting at his desk, plus with her request to sit something was not right.
"What is it Catherine, tell me? Where is he? Why are you in his chair?"
"Calm down Sara, he's at home, before you go rushing over there let me tell you why, this afternoon he collapsed at a crime" Sara gasped at this comment and made a motion to get up she had to see Grissom
"But" Catherine continued "He's ok well at least from what we can tell it was just simple exhaustion, he's at home resting" Catherine was going to tell her suspicions that something else was going on but Sara didn't give her a chance as she raced out the door. Sara was half way down the hallway when she realized she didn't have vehicle, Grissom's was outside she could use that, lucky she had a spare key.
The house was dark when she walked in she started to call his name then stopped as she realized that he may in fact be asleep. She walked towards the bedroom, but first what she saw in the living room shocked her. Books and crossword puzzles everywhere on the coffee table all open, this disturbed her as she knew he was only this untidy when he couldn't sleep, he would often flit from book to book or do crosswords to try and lull his mind into sleep and by the amount of books he had on the table he was having a lot of trouble sleeping. She hastened her pace to the bedroom, what she saw there broke her heart, he was on top of the covers fully clothed with a bottle of his migraine pills sitting on the bedside table. He looked awful big bags under his eyes, his skin pale, she didn't have the heart to wake him so she just lay down beside him on the bed and put her hand in his, as she drifted off to sleep.
She shifted on the bed then opened her eyes expecting to see Grissom's form beside her but it was empty. She lifted her head off the pillows, he wasn't in the room
"Grissom" she called out into the silence.
"Grissom?" she called again as she wandered into the living room, seeing him in the kitchen she started to approach but something about the way he was standing made her stop. He was holding a knife up to the light watching it gleam then suddenly he cut the back of his hand with no scream or wince as if it hadn't hurt at all, he turned to face Sara. Sara studied his face the eyes they weren't his, I mean they were still his blue but the showed no compassion, nothing just hardness. Sara took one step back shocked at what she saw. Grissom reached a hand towards her and went to speak but all he managed to get out was Sa before he collapsed to the floor. He dropped the knife as he fell which thankfully skidded out of his grasp on the tiles. Sara stood there for a second taking in what had just happened, before she approached Grissom.
"Grissom, Grissom wake up? Come on baby open those blue eyes" she requested as she bent down to checkout his pulse. No response, damn she was going to have to shake him something she didn't want to do after what she had just seen, what if it wasn't Grissom that woke up. No that was silly this was Grissom and he was hurt she had to do something.
"Grissom, come on bugman, don't leave me alone." She said with more determination as she shook him hard. His eyelids started to flutter as her voice registered inside his head.
"That's it" she encouraged. Finally he opened them up to reveal his eyes full of sorrow.
"Can you talk? are you hurt apart from your hand? We should get you to a hospital"
"Sara, help me" The way he said it was like a small frightened boy it made Sara start to cry "Oh god, what's happened to you" She asked as she held his head in her lap and stroked his hair.