11

Riley's hand shook as she sat in the overheated courtroom, a lawyer pacing in front of her. Over and over, he questioned her about what she remembered, making her go into great detail on everything. She didn't want to relive the nightmare time and time again, but she knew she'd have to in order to put this guy behind bars.

Looking up into the crowd, she saw all the other CSIs, waiting, watching. She didn't see Jaiden, wondering if they were keeping her out in order to make sure that each one had said their own story, not using bits and pieces from each other's version. As she scanned the faces staring at her, she paid special attention to the look on Sara's face. In all her time knowing Sara, Riley had learned that Sara was quite the head case when it came to rape and domestic violence, and it showed now as she stared at Riley with tears in her eyes.

"Is it true, Miss Porter, that Mr. Bronson drugged you into the adjoining bedroom and violently raped you?" The lawyer paced more, glancing up at her occasionally after interrupting her train of thought.

"Yes, that is true."

"Did you try to stop him even though you were sedated with…what was it…ketamine?" he asked, flipping through the case file, glancing quickly at her between each piece of paper.

She nodded her head. "Yes, it was ketamine, and yes, I did try to stop him. When he put me on the floor, he crouched over me, and I struck him on the left side of his head while my wrists were bound."

"I see. Now, you said earlier that he raped you. By this, you mean he had intercourse with you, correct?"

Riley' raised an eyebrow, unsure of where his question was leading. "Yes, that is correct."

"Now Miss Porter, when you were informed of your pregnancy, were you informed of the fact that Mr. Bronson is sterile?"

Riley's eyes widened in relief. If Blake is sterile, she thought to herself, then that means it's not his baby: it's Greg's. Then she realized that Greg now knew. She looked at him, and leaned over the stand towards him when she saw him hyperventilating, whispering incoherently as she did. Warrick's eyes were wide as well, the same look on his face as all the other CSIs, save for Grissom. He just looked away, knowing that not telling anyone his discovery was a bad idea.

"No," she whispered, a cross of anger and sorrow filling her soul.

The lawyer saw her hurting, and dismissed them, asking for a recess.

As everyone filed out of the room, Riley didn't move; she just sat there in her chair, silently sobbing to herself. After a few minutes, only she and Greg were left in the room. He sat in his chair, staring down at his feet, his elbows resting on his knees and his hands clasped in front of him.

"So you're pregnant?" he asked softly, looking up at her for a moment. Wiping her eyes on her sleeve, she nodded.

"Yeah. I found out the day of my checkup, a few days after you proposed to me. I didn't want to tell you, because I automatically assumed it was the rapist's baby, and I was afraid that if I was bearing his child, you wouldn't want to marry me anymore." She stood up and walked over to him, reaching out to touch his shoulder. "I'm sorry Greg. I wasn't trying to shock you like this. I didn't even know they'd bring this up during the trial. Please, don't be mad at me. I love you very much."

Greg was silent, his eyes closed. "I don't know what I feel. In a way, I'm relieved that you aren't carrying his child, in another way I'm terrified to think that I'll be a father soon, and I'm disappointed in you for thinking that I would turn you away." He looked up at her. "Riley, don't you know me better than that? I told you when we first started going out that you could tell me anything. Did you believe me?"

"I know I can tell you, I was just afraid to. This wasn't an easy thing to deal with. I was so scared. I just wasn't thinking clearly." She laid her head against his chest, leaving wet spots from her tears.

He pulled her closer to his body and smiled down at her. "Do we know if it's a boy or girl?"

"I don't know yet. I think it's a little too early to tell."

"Well, then we're going to have to start thinking of names for both sexes. How about Greg Jr.?"

She smacked him hard as she laughed, and he nipped at her ear playfully.

Jaiden sat in the small room she was designated to until her time to testify. She wrung her hands a bit out of nervousness and fear. What if my statements aren't good enough to put him away? What if they don't believe me because of my ketamine overdose? Although she thought it a nasty habit, she began chewing on her index fingernail. After a few minutes, she looked down at it, and it looked terrible. Warrick would question her about it, but at that point in time, she didn't care.

Suddenly, the bailiff walked in, her escort to the courtroom. She slowly followed him, fear welling up inside her. Her eyes widened as she entered through the large wooden doors, everyone now back in session after the short recess, everyone looking at her as she walked by. Panic seized her mind, and she began to perspire a bit. Her breathing was heavy as she made her way up to the bench. Warrick sat in his chair, watching her closely to make sure she was alright.

Leaning over to Grissom, he whispered, "Do you think she'll be alright? Will they accept her testimony?"

Grissom's eyebrows furrowed as he frowned. "I don't know Warrick. I certainly hope she'll do alright. I guess we'll just have to wait and see."

As she sat at the bench, Jaiden continuously ran her fingers through her long black hair nervously. The District Attorney stood in front of her, his hands behind his back as he spoke.

"Miss Mooreland, do you remember anything about the night you were raped?"

Jaiden breathed deeply, slowly, before answering. "I remember some things. The ketamine in my system only gave me some of my memory from that night. When the CSIs first questioned me, I said something about gas cans, and Brad Pitt, and a large body of water. They put it together to add more to the story."

"Miss Mooreland, Mr. Bronson denies raping you. He said that the entire escapade was a mutual agreement between the two of you. He says you didn't struggle, you never told him no. To put it in his terms, you…" the lawyer paused to look at Bronson's statement before continuing. "Ah, yes, he said you seemed rather aroused and excited by the idea. Do you agree with this statement?"

Silent, Jaiden just sat there, staring blankly out at the crowd. "Miss Mooreland?"

"He tricked me," she murmured, a sob threatening to take over. "I was still affected by the ketamine, and I was hallucinating. I-I, I thought that it was my boyfriend I was with, not him. Mr. Bronson is correct in saying that I was getting into it, but I didn't mean to. I mean, I thought he was Warrick! I was reliving a memory; at least, it started out as a memory. Then it became its own reality. If I had known that it wasn't who I thought it was I would've struggled so much to get away."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw some of the jury members raise and eyebrow at her statement. They aren't believing me, she thought desperately. The world then started to spin slowly; she felt a wave of panic rush through her.

"I need air," she gasped. Without waiting for a dismissal, Jaiden stood up and ran out of the courtroom, bursting though the doorway and into the hall. For a moment, all Warrick did was watch in horror as Jaiden ran out, but soon he was on his feet and following her, more than one thing on his mind.