Summary: A serial killer comes to town on the boy's night to work. Things don't go calmly for Nick or Warrick when the killer decided to not play nice.

Disclaimer: This is all written in fun and trial for something new. Everything CSI is not mine and never will be. It belongs to the creative talent of the actors, the writers, the directors, and producers. I am not making any money off of this. Only meant to offer something new on something already so great. No reason to sue.

Author's Note: Sorry this took so long to get up. I wanted to post it yesterday, but life doesn't seem to like me so much right now. But at least I don't have the problems our guys are having! I hope you all enjoy this chapter and it lives up to the others. Don't have a lot of time so I am going to stop yaking and let ya all get to the reading. Until next time! Bye!

Breath for me

Written by: duffshel

#14

"Gil, the rental was loaned out to the same guy, Thomas Steeler."

Grissom nodded his head at his phone even though he knew Catherine wouldn't be able to see him, "I will tell Brass and keep you updated as we go. Thank, Catherine."

He hung up his phone and turned in his seat to face Brass. The cop was once again driving with little abandon as he speed down the asphalt. There had been a few sightings around town about cars with the description they had, but no one had found the matching plates. It was a race against time.

"The same guy rented the new car. Thomas Steeler."

Brass nodded his head and grabbed for the hand set of his radio, "I need an APB put out for one Thomas Steeler, S-T-E-E-L-E-R. Search all hotel registries and close down the airlines for this guy. Do not let him leave the city."

Jim returned the hand set and turned to face Grissom, "Do you think we will be able to find him?"

"He was dumb enough to use his credit card to pay for his rentals, I would bet on it that he would pay for his hotel rooms the same. The files pulled on him were interesting and had some red flags. It seems that his brother was killed when Thomas was seventeen, but he was found clear of any involvement. He went off to college after that, but disappeared once his girlfriend was found dead. Her family seems to have bad luck when it comes to murder since most of the girls are connected to her in some way."

"How did his brother die?"

"It went down at a suicide, slashed his wrists. The file said that Thomas' mother wanted him to be put in permanent therapy since Thomas suddenly took a liking to male blood after that event."

"How did they clear him if he was so into blood?"

"The parents said the boys liked to play rough and often caused damage to each other, but didn't do anything fatal to the other. Thomas went to trial and said he never wanted to see his brother bleed so much. I guess between his sob story to the jury and the lack of evidence, he was cleared and it was said to be suicide."

The cop nodded his head and swerved around a truck that was taking its sweet time in front of him. There was no place in particular to head towards, but Gil wanted to be on the move so when something was found, it would be easier to get moving. Brass didn't mind the idea at all himself.

"But wouldn't someone have said something about that when they found his girlfriend dead?"

Grissom looked down at his phone, "There was no blood play with her, she was strangled. And some of Thomas' fraternity brothers swore as his alibis. Then, he was gone. And he never had met any of her family members so there was no connection that way. I guess the system just wasn't able to put it all together."

Jim nodded grimly, "I just hope we find something soon. This guy doesn't seem like the type to screw around and hold hostages too long. Nicky and Warrick must be up to their eyeballs with shit by now."

Grissom wanted to respond, but his phone went off, demanding his attention, "Grissom."

"Hey, its Catherine. I just got some new things up on our guy. The guy doesn't own a home or a car. Seems to be on the move, no one has a link to him. No one has been able to connect him to the murder of his old girlfriend since it seems to have been his first with strangulation. But with all the new evidence, we should be able to do it finally."

"Does anyone know where he was last?"

"I checked the files and all the places one of the dead girl's showed up, Steeler rented a car in the each of the same cities during the same times."

"Good work. It seems we have our man. Now we just need to find him and get our guys back in one piece."

Catherine sighed over the phone, "We are having no luck on our side. Hopefully one of our guy's in uniform will have better luck than us."

Both hung up without any pleasantries. There was no point at that moment. They both knew there was a lot of work ahead and they needed to find Nick and Warrick. Jim had heard pieces of the conversation, but chose not to comment on any of it.

The radio continued to crackle and sputter, but no voices jumped out of it with good news. Brass twisted the steering wheel in his hands as he raced into the passing lane. They were getting farther out from the Strip and the busy traffic. He was about to offer a new direction to Gil, when the radio went to life.

"I have a Ford parked in front of the Sleepy Inn. The plates match, but I don't have a room yet. Should I proceed?" a young voice stated.

Brass almost dropped the hand set in his eagerness to grab the damn thing, "No, no. Wait for back-up. Do not proceed to the room alone. What is you location?"

"The 1500 block of Winchester. It's across from the Burger King."

Quickly Brass figured his location to the sight. He was currently cruising south on Eastern Ave. They were heading in the right direction and were not far away.

"I am on my way. I will be on the scene in less than ten minutes. Hold you position and check to make sure they guy is in the hotel by phone. Do not leave your vehicle!"

Brass didn't even bother hanging up the set this time. He threw it on the floor and cursed the station wagon in front of him. It was one moment he wished someone would break a law and go over the speed limit. Gil thought the same thing as he moved to sit farther up in his seat. They were close.

!#$&()!#$&()!#$&()+

Nick groaned as he was thrown back down onto the bed which shook under the new stress. His whole body ached and he had nothing left in him to fight the man. The bones that once composed a solid hip bone were now grinding against each other. He had been beat up before, but never had he been shot twice and stabbed in the thigh. It was utter torture.

Ken had a strange gleam in his eye as he stared down at his prey. He had enough of these two. They had been entertaining, but then they went and did stupid things. Their lives might have been longer if Nick didn't break loose from the bed. Now, he had a date with a belt.

"I don't know what you were thinking. You are not going to be able to save each other. There is no chance. You are both going to die now."

He reached over the side of the bed and grabbed his belt. The leather once again felt heavy in his hand. It was a relaxing feeling. Ken would never get sick of it.

"This will not be as painful as you think. Just don't struggle."

Warrick pulled on the table stand again even though he knew it was useless. His leg was numb and his pants were soaked with his blood. The crimson stain was seeping onto the carpet steadily. He ignored the fuzz that seemed to be covering his brain.

"Nick? Don't do this! Please leave him alone."

"Are you begging now, Warrick? You are beginning sound like all those girls I help out of this world. Don't worry, you will be next. But I want you to watch first."

He bent closer to the Texan as he straddled his hips. The bed protested again with a moan and the mattress sunk even more. Nick was breathing heavily and his eyes were glazed. There would be no fighting from this one. It was be nice and simple. Ken felt a little disappointment at the prospect, but was excited all the same. He guessed it wasn't necessary for it to be a female.

"Now, smile for me Nick. Don't want to die with a frown," the belt was looped swiftly.

!#$&()!#$&()!#$&()+

Grissom was on his phone again, this time with Sara. He wanted everyone filled in and he knew Catherine wouldn't want to drive alone to the scene. He made sure to tell Sara to get Greg to come as well. Once he hung up the phone, he grabbed the sides of his head with his hands.

"How much farther Jim?"

"We will be on the scene in three minutes. I will be able to go through the two lights that will be in our way, but I can't say how easy it will be to get onto Winchester. That intersection is a real bitch."

"Just drive. I have a bad feeling. We need to get there now."

Brass nodded and slammed harder down on the gas. The car groaned in protest before the tires grabbed the pavement and took off.

!#$&()!#$&()!#$&()+

Sara ran down the hallway at full speed. Her sneakers squeaked on the panels of the floor. She was searching for Greg and Catherine. The former lab tech. was walking out of his old DNA lab as Sara almost ran right past.

"Greg! They found the killer! He is at the Sleepy Inn across town. Grissom and Brass are almost on the scene. They believe they found Nick and Warrick with him."

Greg immediately perked up with the news and took off running after Sara. His eyes were still sore from all the repressed tears, but now he couldn't help the large smile on his face. The guys were almost back in the hands of the good guys.

"Sara? Where are we going?"

"We have to meet Catherine. We are going to go with her to the scene. I talked to her already. She is waiting for us in the parking lot."

"Are they sure they found them?"

"We don't know if they are there, but it is where Steeler's car is sitting. And I guess there is a record of a room being taken out in his name. He has to be there. And the guys will be as well."

"I sure hope you are right."

The two CSI's ran out the glass doors, not caring if they would cause any damage to them. Catherine was waiting at the curb, her SUV running and ready. Sara jumped in the passenger seat while Greg got in the back. Their door was barely closed when Catherine took off.

"We will get there in seventeen minutes with traffic. I am putting on the lights so we won't be stopped by the lights."

Sara and Greg didn't say anything. None of them knew what to say. The tension was high and they were all excited with the prospect of this finally being over. The car screamed with the hard turn, but it stayed straight and took off once again.

!#$&()!#$&()!#$&()+

The belt felt warm against his skin as Ken lowered it down onto Nick's neck. Nick thought he would panic and be able to fight this man off, but his body wanted nothing more that to lay there and do nothing. His eyes were seeing stars.

"Nick, fight him! Do something!"

Warrick thought he was going to pull his arms from the sockets, but he couldn't get free. He couldn't help his friend, his brother. His heart felt like it was shattering and he couldn't stop the tears from running down his face. Never before had he cried like this before.

"Please Nick! I can't lose you!"

Ken smiled at the weak voice of the black man. It did nothing to make the Texan under him move any. The belt was getting tighter. The man's breathing was getting harsh. Ken was going to play this out. He was going to tease.

"This is better than I thought it would be. I may get more of a kick out of this than I thought ever possible."

The leather creaked under the strain as it tightened even more. Nick felt his throat constrict and couldn't seem to pull in air anymore. It was painful, but he couldn't get his arms to move much. They simply lifted from the sheets, leaving blood stains where ever his finger tips touched. He managed to move his lower body a little, but the side to side movement of his back and pain-filled hips did little to dislodge the man. The stars in his eyes were getting brighter and more frequent.

Ken leaned forward as he pulled as tight as he could. The struggles of the other man in the room drifted from his hearing. All he saw and heard now where the struggles of the writhing man underneath him. He was going to get off on this one. It was exhilarating. He pulled forward with his arms, pulling Nick by the belt into more of an upright position.

His lips brushed against Nick's. The blue color was the same as all the girls, but the taste and smell was different. He repeated the action, but with wider lips and longer connection. Nick's eyes widened a little with this, but they also got dimmer. Ken leaned even more forward, this time letting his lips brush Nick's outer ear.

"Come now Nicky. Breath for me!"

It was nothing more than a husky whisper, but to Nick, it was a knife to his heart. The room went dark with the man whispering cruel things in his ears. He couldn't hear his brother crying for him anymore. He couldn't feel himself crying either.

"Breath for me!"

TBC….so that's the title….