A/N: Wow! I feel like I have been out of circulation for a while. I am ready, ready, ready for Hope Springs to finish. Honestly, I love this story, but it's time, and I have ideas for other fics I would like to do. Two more chapters and it's a wrap. I get great support from all of you, and I love it. I wish I could more adequately express how wonderful it is to hear from you.

Thanks as always to the amazing Marlou!

Sheila

Hope Springs

Chapter 18

It was the sand, always the sand. Lucy stretched her tanned legs deep into the sand and smiled. It was that smile of true satisfaction that most adults had already lost. Her hands were filled with sand, and she was busy building a mountain. It was littered with sticks and leaves that were strategically placed in a design that only she understood.

Grissom suggested that she make a hotel for bugs and she blinked in surprise. She looked around, but found nothing scurrying by. He chuckled softly and produced a handful of ants he had been collecting since he had sat down. Carefully he deposited them in strategic places and Sara wondered who watched them with more fascination. Lucy bent her curly head close to the sand pile and observed them scoot in and out of her creation. Grissom talked in low tones about their lives; telling her amazing facts about her hotel guests.

Sara sat on the edge of the sand box. Momentarily, the heaviness of her swollen body and relentless heat on her face and shoulders were forgotten because she was watching something that she believed was meant to be. She was sure of it. Lucy had recognized Grissom the moment she saw him, and Sara fought back tears when she came up to him with a big hug and called him Bunny.

The two of them were playing as if there was no one else in the world; Sara was forgotten on the side but she felt no jealousy. Rather a sense of pride filled her that she had found this gentle, patient man to father her children. Mary sat at a table several yards away, and Sara knew she should join her, but she sensed a solemn energy in the woman and expected that she had news. There was only one piece of news that Sara wanted to hear, and she expected that Mary would deliver it with a smile on her face. Sara couldn't sense a smile within twenty yards of Mary Revoy right now, and there was a pang of fear knocking about her gut.

Grissom let out a sigh of satisfaction and produced a beetle from the grass behind him. He deposited it on the hotel and began to gently prod it with his finger, telling her facts about their lives in tones reserved reserved for storytellers.

A contraction hit her again, but it was halfhearted like most of them were today. She was over a week past her due date and more than a little frustrated. It almost felt like a personal failing; something she must have done wrong that prevented her body from going into a proper labor. She had gone to the doctor and demanded answers. He had merely laughed at her, and told her that there were no hard and fast rules. Some babies came early and others came late. He did schedule her to be induced, and so she knew that tomorrow, come hell or high water, she was going to deliver this baby.

It didn't seem natural somehow and she added the inducement to her list of ways she had already failed this baby. She desperately hoped that her mood would settle once this baby was born, and her body became hers again. Two other toddlers crouched down beside Lucy, their chubby hands on their knees, and began to observe the goings on over at the bug hotel. Grissom moved back a little to give them room, and began to coax Lucy to interact with them. She looked up at them, her wild, brown curls framing her head like a wreath, and narrowed her eyes a bit. Sara noticed that Lucy tensed as if feeling territorial. The toddlers looked on, oblivious to the energy of their tiny host. Grissom gently whispered to Lucy, and Sara saw her relax. Within minutes, the two interlopers were participating in the remodeling of the premises. Bugs were captured with little hands and deposited in the sandy pile. Sara noticed that each child seemed to play their own version of this game, and she remembered from her reading that children at this age are generally not at a developmental stage for cooperative play.

Grissom slowly got up, wiping sand off his tan slacks, and came over to where she was sitting. He reached over with both hands, and she let him pull her to her feet. The heat and the aching and the contractions left her a little shaky, and she leaned into him.

"Should we go talk to Mary?"

"I don't like the look on her face," she whispered.

Grissom glanced over his shoulder at the woman sitting with her briefcase at the picnic table behind them. She peered back at him in sunglasses too big for her face. He sighed and tightened his arm around Sara. "Honey, we need to know."

Sara nodded and let him lead her over to the picnic table. Mary moved her briefcase over so that Sara had a place to sit. "Any closer to finding the pedophile?"

Grissom shook his head. "We're not sure that he is a pedophile."

Mary rolled her eyes. "If he's not, then he is just as evil, but I'm calling him a pedophile because it is the most visceral description I can come up with."

Sara scanned the park. "It amazes me how many people still bring their children out in the open despite all of the warnings that have been posted."

He shrugged. "That sense of invulnerability, the idea that it will only happen to someone else, is always present for some people."

"Mary, have you taken time to think about us? Will you consider us for Lucy?" Sara shifted uncomfortably on the bench.

"I did my home study on the other family, and they have been spending time with her. They have been doing really well. It's going better than I had expected. Lucy looks forward to spending time with them."

Sara could sense what was coming. "You have to give us more time. Grissom only called you a couple of days ago. We haven't had an opportunity to present to you as a family."

"Sara, please. I don't have a lot of discretion here. Federal law says that preference is given to adoptive parents who are racially similar. I had hoped that there would be some wiggle room; there were questions on their application that worried me, but none of these questions have developed into concerns."

"Mary, are you telling us that you are making a recommendation for these parents to adopt?" Grissom had settled behind Sara, massaging her tight shoulders.

"There will be a probationary period, but I don't want to string you along. These are ideal circumstances for Lucy. I don't think that you should continue to seek her adoption. The odds are stacked against you. Both of you work tremendous hours, no experience with children, a baby already coming into the house, and then there are the inter-racial issues. I can't make a case for it."

Sara held one hand across her belly, while the other one capped her eyes in an effort to control the emotion that threatened to burst forth. Grissom's grip on her shoulders tightened.

"You played us." Grissom voice was soft in tone only.

She closed her eyes and looked down. "I did. I wanted this to work for you beyond the point of reason. I wanted this to work because there was something so pure about the detached scientist captured by a child, and then you, Sara, with that fierce edge of yours; the two of you coming in with nothing but the courage to follow your hearts. I thought it would mean more than all the right demographics, but I was wrong. They fit all the categories, and have passed the home study, and now it's out of my hands. Even if I wanted to recommend you, I am prohibited by federal law."

"Damn!" Grissom exploded. "We'll get a lawyer, Mary. This isn't over. We are not giving up on this."

"Stop it!" Sara wrenched away from his protecting hands, and turned to face him. "She never guaranteed either of us anything. She gave us a chance. That's all."

"It's not enough." He looked past Sara to Mary. "I have never wanted anything so much as I have wanted this life with Sara and children. Nine months ago, I didn't even know such a longing existed. Lucy is every bit a part of this new life as is the baby being born to Sara and I. This is about more than righting a wrong for Lucy's mother. There is something that happened between me and Lucy. It happened for Sara too. I…don't have the words to explain to you…that she's a part of us."

Mary took off her sunglasses and looked at both of them with shiny eyes. "I don't have a way to undo this. I wish I did."

Grissom started to protest further, but Sara reached up and put an arm on his shoulder, "Shhhh! She's watching."

Lucy was looking at them with a trembling frown etched onto her tiny features. Her hands were filled with sand slowly shifting through the cracks in her fingers, and her two small friends had disappeared. Grissom groaned and trotted over to her. Instinct more than experience told him that she was frightened by the raised voices. He scooped her up and hugged her; feeling her arms holding him tightly around the neck.

Sara thought she might drown in the sadness she felt, but she squeezed her lips tightly and managed a smile for Lucy. Mary shoved her dark glasses back on her face and looked away. He rocked her for a few moments, breathing in the soft smell of her skin. The beeper attached to his hip erupted, and he reached down to grab it. He looked at its display and frowned.

"What is it?"

"Brass."

"Give her to me," Sara ordered. Reluctantly, he pried the child from him, and placed her on the end of Sara's knee. She leaned over and awkwardly wrapped her arms around her. Grissom turned around and punched buttons on his phone.

Sara turned to Mary. "I should be angry at you. This is breaking my heart, but I guess I understand what you were trying to do, and I think I am grateful that I even had this opportunity to know her. More than anything I want her to be happy. If you think this is the right thing, then I have nothing to argue with you."

"That's very Mother Theresa of you, but I'm not sure of anything. I'm just trying to do the best I can without having clairvoyance."

Grissom came striding toward them. "Brass and Nick have a partial fingerprint. They want to try a new process that predicts the missing edges, EDG, and they want me to oversee the procedure. It's important. Right now, I am the only one certified to do the procedure. I'll take you with; have you home in a couple of hours." He avoided addressing Mary.

Sara nodded, "Go, take care of it. I want to stay; just a little while longer. Mary can drop me off at home."

He set his mouth. "I think it is better if we stay together. You're so close to your time."

"Mary will take care of me. I want to spend more time with Lucy."

Grissom looked ready to argue, but produced nothing more than a grimace. "Brass and Nick are coming to pick me up so I'm leaving the car, but I don't want you driving it, understand? I'll pick it up later."

"You're the boss." She reached over and squeezed his hand. "See you in a couple of hours."

He reached down and kissed Lucy on her curly head. The child reached up for him, and he stepped back a little, putting space between himself and the girl. Sara blinked in surprise. He was so much more sensitive than he ever allowed people to see. Losing Lucy was going to leave a permanent scar on his heart. Sara would feel it too, but she knew Lucy's happiness would compensate her pain.

She let him turn and walk away. "It's okay, baby," she said as she rocked Lucy. "You still get to see Bunny. He's just gotta go to work right now."

……………………………………………………………………………………………

Grissom climbed in the truck, offering nothing more than a grunt as greeting. Nick raised his brows and chose not to inquire as to his boss's mood. Brass was a different animal, and Nicky wasn't sure if he waded in because he didn't understand the dangers or because he didn't care.

"How's my pumpkin? You got her playing with bugs yet?"

Grissom turned away and stared out the window. Brass looked at him out of the corner of his eye. "Lucy's doing okay, right?"

"Mary's not giving her to us, but I'm sure you know that. How does that fit into your grand plan?"

Brass stared out the front window. "It didn't." He banged his hand against the steering wheel. "Shit!"

Nicky closed his eyes and dropped his head back onto the seat.

"She picked the other family. Said she didn't really have a choice."

"Can you still keep in touch? You can still see her, right? I mean…damn, I don't know. I don't…"

Grissom turned his attention away from the scenery. "Don't you? You've had all the answers up to this point. Why stop now?"

Brass let out a breath. "I'm sorry, Gil, I should never have gotten involved."

A silence descended, and Nick wished he could safely exit out the window.

Finally, Grissom sighed, "You wanted something good to happen for Sara and me. I can appreciate that. I even bought in; it just wasn't meant to be."

"The other family is good?"

Grissom swallowed, "They sound perfect for her. I should be happy. They will have everything she needs; better than what we could give her."

"Bullshit!" Brass said in response. "You would have been great parents! Let's get a lawyer."

Grissom glared at him.

Nicky rolled his eyes, and leaned forward from the backseat. "All right, that's enough. Shut up, Brass! You've done enough. Grissom is going to hit you if you keep this up, and you're going to land us in the backseat of a parked car. And the one I'm going to blame is not going to be Grissom. So, either stop the car so I can get out or let's just talk about the friggin' fingerprint."

Brass gripped the steering wheel and stared out the window. Grissom went back to staring out the passenger window. Nick breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed back into his seat.

……………………………………………………………………………………..

Sara was hot. All of the invulnerability she was feeling earlier was gone as was her joy. Lucy had become fascinated with a toddler swing and it was all she could do to keep pushing the swing. Mary offered to help, but Sara wanted this time, needed it in fact, to just be about her and Lucy. It had only been ten minutes since Grissom had left, and she was doing her best to balance her emotions. The sun was bright overhead, and the park was still filled with the screams of children playing. In the background, she heard a woman calling for her son.

Sara knew Mary would let them see Lucy again; maybe even a few more times, but that still didn't help her know how to say good-bye to this child. She couldn't help feeling selfish. In a day, she would have a child of her own, and yet she couldn't let go of the pain of losing Lucy. Again, she heard a woman screaming above the din of a busy park.

She wondered if there was a way they could stay involved, something where they could see Lucy from time to time. They could still buy her gifts for holidays and birthdays. Maybe Grissom would still have opportunities to teach her about science. Sara harbored these fantasies, but was frightened to speak them. She suspected that they would never represent reality to the new adoptive parents. The woman screamed again, this time yelling her son's name over and over. As if waking from a sleep, Sara looked up. Mothers were gathering around a woman standing in the middle of the park who was yelling, "Jeffrey!" over and over in a shrill voice.

She saw Mary emerge from the crowd and trot over to her. She was punching numbers into her cell as she ran. "It's a 3 year old boy. He was playing in the sand just a couple of minutes ago, and now he's gone. I'm calling for help. We can organize a search."

Sara lifted Lucy out of the swing and put her down. She grabbed her hand and began walking rapidly toward the crowd. Mary followed behind, shouting particulars into the phone. Sara looked wildly around her. Everywhere she looked, women were grabbing their children and holding them close. Sara broke through the crowd, searching for the mother. The shaken woman was surrounded by people, all talking to her at the same time. Sara reached in and grabbed the woman's shoulders, shaking her gently. "Look at me. I work crime scenes. Tell me exactly where your son was sitting when you last saw him."

The woman tried to focus her attention. Slowly, she turned and pointed at a spot in the sand. Sara waved her free arm. "Everyone back away! Please!"

She turned and handed Lucy to Mary. Immediately she could tell that the scene was comprised. There were footprints everywhere. A half built sandcastle was abandoned. The women stood behind her, murmuring softly.

She saw candy wrappers and napkins strewn in one spot next to the sand. There was something about it that looked anything but random. She leaned back, bracing herself with both arms. "Call Grissom and Brass," she ordered. "Tell 'em this is it. This is our kidnapper." Mary took Lucy and moved away from the crowd.

She stood up and ordered the women to give her more space. A large black woman took over and pushed everyone several yards away from her. She squeezed her eyes shut and struggled to understand the meaning of the trash. She had to know why someone would grab a child and drop trash. Was it purposeful? Was there meaning? She turned around, thinking, thinking, thinking. If it wasn't purposeful, if it had no meaning, why would the trash get left?

She looked around, noting the general cleanliness of the rest of the park. It was a nice park, almost always clean. Every time she came, there was at least one maintenance person wheeling a barrel around, picking up trash as kids played. In fact, she had seen a guy doing that very thing just a few minutes ago. Everything stopped for a moment and she groaned deeply.

Around the park, she looked for him. He had just been here. A trash man picking up wrappers and napkins who could also pick up children and dump them in his barrel. A messy operation for sure; one where trash was sure to be spilled as he stuffed the child inside. "The trashman," she squeaked. "Where's the trashman?"

The women looked at her, but no one moved. Sara tried again, "The guy picking up trash with the barrel; where is he?"

The women moved apart, looking around the park. The park had become a silent place. Beyond them, nothing moved. Then a woman with three small children clinging to her legs pointed to the parking lot. A man was disappearing around the back of a van.

She wrapped one arm around her increasingly cramping belly. "Stay back, all of you! I'm law enforcement. I'm just gonna get close enough for a license plate. No one follow." She started moving as fast as she could, trying to ignore the sweat pouring down her face and the pain shooting through her belly.

Behind her there were shouts, and then the voice she had come to know from the black woman sounded and all voices stopped. Sara swallowed hard and kept moving. She reached the edge of the parking lot, and could see that the van doors were still open. She didn't see the trashman anywhere, but the barrel was already loaded in the back. She looked around, holding her breath, trying to sense his presence. She got to the second row of cars, and felt panic rising in her. She was no longer visible to the women in the park. She was close enough to see the plate, but it was blocked by the open door. She edged around out into the open, and found herself less than twenty yards from the barrel in the back. Again, she looked around and saw no one. Concern for the child overcame her and she approached. There was the sound of sirens in the distance, and Sara was tempted to just plant herself behind a car and wait. Seven months ago, she would never have considered it; she would have been too focused on the situation, but now, she knew that life was about more than just her choices. She took note of the license number, and started to back away. Even before she saw him, she could hear his heavy breath. She whirled around, her arms up ready to strike, but his big hands grabbed her arms and he pushed hard. Sara backpedaled and landed hard against the back bumper of the van. She moaned and slid down to the ground. Squinting against the sun, she looked to see an older man in a city park uniform staring down at her. "Las Vegas crime lab," she mumbled, "Show me what's in the barrel."

He ignored her, instead reaching behind her into the back of the van and rummaging around. When he stepped back, she saw a tire iron in his hand. She breathed in hard, and squinted at him. Before he could make a move there was a blur and he was stumbling away from her. There was the sound of a crack and then another. Sara pulled herself up to her knees and watched the man stumble and fall. Behind him, she saw one of the mothers with a Little League bat standing over him. Other mothers stood around her holding bats, sticks, and one woman was even holiding a tennis racket in her hand.

Mary walked up to the fallen man, "We're going to look in that barrel. You move a muscle and these women will be more than happy to beat you to death. And when we find that child and all the other children you have taken, not one of these women will be missing a minute's sleep over what we had to do to you."

She reached over to help Sara to her feet, but Sara grimaced as Mary pulled at her arms, and sat back down on the ground. "Did he hurt you bad, honey?"

Sara shook her head and groaned, "Just bruised me up. Get at the barrel. Find the child."

Mary nodded.

"Where's Lucy?" Sara felt her head swimming in the bright light of a hot, summer day.

"She's fine. There is a woman keeping her with her own kids. I'll go get her but, first, let's get you out of the sun." Mary leaned over and took hold of her shoulders. Other arms appeared and the women picked her up and set her on the grass under a tree. More shouts and the barrel was pulled out of the back of the van. The sirens were deafening, and squad cars showed up, parking on the sidewalk and doubleparking in the middle of the street.

Through blurry eyes she saw women digging through the barrel. There was a yelp and one of the women pulled a limp child from its depths. Shouting occurred from all directions. The child's mother was there too, grabbing at his limp form.

"Chloroform," she croaked, "chloroform." A woman swiveled her head and nodded. She urged the women to get the boy into some shade and then began fanning his drugged breathing. Sara wanted water, she thought about offering $20 for a bottle of water, but she seemed unable to communicate her need.

Things started to happen fast. Police officers appeared and swarmed the downed man. Others chased the women over to the shade and tried to pry the child from their midst. Chaos ensued until they slowly realized a more cooperative role. Soon paramedics ran past with a stretcher. The kidnapper was on his feet now, his hands secured behind his back. She recognized Brass standing next to him, talking intently into his ear. The man shook his head emphatically, but it didn't slow Brass. He started shouting at the man.

"He pushed her against the van hard. I saw it." Sara turned her head to see who was telling this story. She saw Mary trotting toward her, Lucy in her arms. A couple of paramedics followed her.

"Sara!" came a shout from another direction. She turned her head in that direction and saw Grissom and Nick running at her. She tried to sit up again, but another pain hit her gut hard. Within seconds, there were no less than five people crouching before her, but her attention was taken with the intense blue eyes staring into hers.

"I'm fine," Her smile came off as a grimace. "Just hot and tired and thirsty. I got too close. He pushed me, but I'm fine." She tried to stifle a moan as another cramp gripped her. "And some cramping, but we know better than to pay attention to that."

"You can't even sit up. What's wrong?" Grissom looked at the paramedics checking blood pressure and pulse.

"I'm just, um…overtired," she mumbled. "Do you have water? I'm so thirsty."

One paramedic looked up. "Blood pressure is 90 over 60. Shock, maybe some sunstroke."

Another cramp tore through her and she moaned. Lucy screwed up her face and started to cry. Mary turned her tiny head away and walked away.

"She's in labor, isn't she?" Grissom was stroking her hair gently.

"'Fraid so. We got to get her on the bus." The paramedics ignored further inquiries. One attached an IV while another began slamming the kits shut. Nicky helped them transfer her onto a gurney. Pain was continual now, and every movement brought harder cramping. Grissom stayed with her face at every second. 'It's okay, Sara. It's okay. This is good, you know. Just what you've been waiting for, honey. We're going to have a baby."

Brass appeared out of nowhere, eyes wide. "Is she going to have a baby?"

"And this is a surprise to you?" Nicky walked past, patting him on his shoulder. "You weren't tipped off by the weight gain?"

"Ahhh, it hurts," Sara winced. "Shit! Whose idea was this?"

He forced a smile, hiding the anxiety building in him. "If I remember correctly, neither one of us was doing much thinking at the time."

"Are you ready for your son?"

"Yes, but right now, Sara, this is all about you. You mean everything to me."

Paramedics loaded the gurney onto the ambulance, and Grissom climbed in after. A paramedic turned and frowned at him. "Are you family?"

"You bet I am." Grissom brushed past the man and settled in beside her.

TBC