Warrick strolled back to the waiting area. Linds was still sleeping soundly. Even Grissom was out cold in the lounge chair next to her. Sara also slept against the arm of the love seat. 'Family' he thought to himself as he viewed the sight. Big brother Grissom, little sister Sara, little brother Greg, Uncle Doc Robbins, cousin Hodges, Archie and David, closest bro Nick, baby girl Lindsey and the love of his life Catherine. The heart that spent wrenched all day now felt free and full. Everything he ever really wanted in life he had, he just never saw it.

A familiar melody played over the waiting room. It was the lullaby that Cath had sung to Lindsey as a baby. It tugged at his heart-strings again. He longed to see Catherine. With Lindsey safe, he knew he'd see her smile and that's what he longed for the most. He listened to the song as Nicky walked up behind him. Nick stopped at the admission area and called for an attendant. He requested pillows and blankets. Warrick turned toward him.

"We all probably should rest some while we wait," Nick said softly to him.

"What's taking so long? They made it sound like Cath was in the clear. It's been at least an hour now?" Warrick fretted.

Nick shrugged as he responded.

"I'm sure the surgery's complicated even if it's not a life-threatening wound. They got everyone in there so it can't be much longer."

The admissions personnel walked up with pillows and blankets.

"One of the surgical nurses said a doctor should be out shortly. They're finishing up now," she smiled as she handed them the linens.

Warrick and Nick beamed in unison. As they walked off with the linens, the elevator doors opened. Lily and Sam Braun walked out quarrelling with each other as a uniform officer and two obvious bodyguards followed suit. Everyone that slept now stirred awake with the commotion.

"You're not family Sam. And I know Catherine wouldn't want you here!"

"I've been there for Mugs more than you ever had. If she doesn't want me here, I'll take my leave. It's none of your concern–"

"Hey!" yelled Warrick.

Sam and Lily stopped dead in their tracks.

"This isn't the time or the place," Warrick said sternly.

His head motioned over to Lindsey as he walked toward her. She looked curiously at the two senior people as the rest of the gang stared at Sam and Lily in disbelief.

All eyes were on Sam and Lily. Nick had walked toward Sara and dropped off a pillow and blanket to Grissom on the way. Lily changed her demeanor.

"Oh Lindsey sweetie!" squealed Lily instantly. "You're right Warrick. I'll leave it to Catherine to decide if she wants to see you Sam. I just think your presence is stress she doesn't need right now," Lily directed toward Sam as she rushed over to Lindsey.

"Hey kiddo," Sam directed at Lindsey. "Whatever Mugs decides is fine by me. I'm not gonna press the issue. I just want her to know I'm here," he answered Lily as he stepped further into the waiting area.

"The great Sam Braun has arrived," Lily muttered as she hugged Lindsey tightly.

"Oh shut your pie hole woman," Sam barked.

"People please. It's been a tough enough day without all this conflict now," Grissom said firmly.

Sam furrowed his brow but nodded an acknowledgement to Grissom. Lily doted on Lindsey who wouldn't budge from Warrick's side. The uniform officer cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Captain Brass asked me to drop off Ms. Willows' mom. Does anyone need a ride home or anything?"

Grissom, Warrick, Nick and Sara all shook their heads.

"Thanks officer, I think we're good," Grissom answered.

"Tell Catherine we're all wishing her a speedy recovery," he said cheerfully.

The CSI squad nodded. The officer turned around, pressed the elevator button and took leave. A doctor in surgical scrubs entered the waiting area.

"I assume you're all here for Catherine Willows?" he asked.

Everyone turned toward him. Warrick grimaced upon seeing the physician. It was a day full of ironies: there stood Tina's ex, David. David looked slightly frazzled at the sight of Warrick.

"Yes," Grissom responded bringing David back to focus.

David cleared his throat before he spoke.

"I'm Dr. Fields, the head surgeon for Ms. Willows. She's in recovery right now. We were able to successfully remove the bullet and repair the damage it caused. It was a small caliber gun so there wasn't extensive damage. The loss of blood could've been greater if someone hadn't created that make-shift tourniquet. A nurse will let you know when you can see her but I don't recommend a lot of visitors right now, she needs to rest."

"Thank you doctor!" Lily cried out dramatically and clasped her hands together.

Sam rolled his eyes at Lily's outburst but remained quiet. Sara excitedly latched onto Nick. Grissom released his tense stance at the doctor's news. David smiled at Lily then looked back at Warrick. Lindsey stayed at Warrick's side and held his hand. She looked back and forth between the two.

Anger had left Warrick; the man had helped Catherine and that's all Warrick cared about at the moment. He softly said 'thank you' and David acknowledged him with a nod before walking off. Lindsey was satisfied with the exchange and didn't bother saying anything.

"Captain Brass was gracious to inform me of all the details. Thank you for all your hard work and support. I know it will mean a lot to Catherine and it means a lot to me and Lindsey. You have all really gone above your call of duty," Lily said stately.

"Catherine is more than our co-worker Lily. She's a dear friend, there's no need to thank us. She's done the same for us," Grissom responded.

"She's more than a friend, she's family," Nick said emphatically.

Grissom and Sara nodded. Warrick was focused the doors to the surgical wing, his thoughts were no longer in the room.

"Well I'm honored you all feel so strongly about my Catherine. She'll be so pleased. I'm sure she'll express her appreciation to you when visit. Hopefully she'll be up for company soon," Lily said in an uppity tone.

She got Warrick's attention.

"We're not leaving till we see her," Warrick quickly responded.

The rest of the team nodded.

"We're not gonna disturb her Lily, we care about her. Once we see her, we'll take leave. Well everyone with the exception of Warrick; he's staying with Lindsey," Griss added.

Lily looked astounded. She gave them all a confused look, stopping at Warrick.

"Oh that won't be necessary. Captain Brass said the perpetrator of this atrocity is dead. Didn't you all know?" she blurted out.

"He's dead?" Lindsey's voice asked timidly.

Griss, Sara and Nick groaned in disbelief. Warrick rapidly turned to Lindsey.

"Yeah. He tried going after your mom when we came looking for you and I shot him. A nurse came and told me while you were sleeping that he never made it to the hospital alive. So no worries Kiddo. Ok?" he said tenderly.

Lindsey nodded happily at Warrick. The team smiled at him. Sara's eyes welled up with tears again.

"See, so there's no need for you to stay," Lily replied.

"I want him to stay. And mom said he'd take care of me so stop telling him to go Grandma," Lindsey demanded.

"She also told you to be good to your Grandma so simmer down Lil Bit. Grandma's trying to be polite," Warrick coaxed Lindsey.

"Honey, you'll be safe with me. There's no need to bother Warrick," Lily pressed.

"Yeah like I was safe with you last night? No way!" Lindsey argued back as she wrapped her arms around Warrick.

Everyone was taken aback by the statement. Warrick rubbed Lindsey's back affectionately.

"Hey, hey," Warrick directed toward Lindsey.

He looked at Lily.

"Its ok Lily, its no bother. I already promised so it's a done deal," he responded.

Lily looked bothered.

"Well it's ultimately Catherine's decision. I'll respect her wishes," Lily muttered.

"Then its settled 'cause Mom already said," Lindsey snapped.

"Quit sassin' young lady," Warrick corrected Lindsey.

He and the gang couldn't help but smiling. Lindsey was all Catherine. The only one not finding amusement in the moment was Lily, Sam chuckled as Lily pouted and sat down in defeat. A nurse appeared from the surgical wing.

"Ms. Willows can see you now. Well not all of you. Two at a time please," she told the group.

"C'mon Lindsey," Lily called.

"Ok but I'm going again with Warrick," she answered looking at Warrick as she stepped away from him.

He nodded at her. Lily didn't look at the group; she took Lindsey's hand and walked with the nurse. Everyone took a seat except Sam, he ordered his goons to wait in the car for him before he sat down. The CSIs all sat near each other.

"That's one determined little girl," Grissom commented.

"Oh c'mon, that was all Catherine. Who didn't see that?" Sara said with a smile.

They all smiled except Warrick: He stared off to the distance.

"Earth to Warrick, come in Warrick," Sara attempted to get his attention.

The time was nearing for Warrick. He still felt an urgency to see Catherine but something nagged at him... Was he really in love? Or was he confusing a strong bond with intimate love? And if he was in love with Catherine, was this the right time to tell her his feelings? She had so many things to deal with… Lindsey… being shot. Warrick wanted to help her with all those things but he wondered if he'd be able to after confessing his feelings. He didn't know how it would affect Cath. He definitely hadn't considered saying them in front of Lindsey. Warrick looked at Sara and smiled feebly.

"Yeah I heard you. Lindsey's got all of Cath's great attributes," he finally responded with lighthearted sarcasm.

The comment even made Sam Braun chuckle.

"You're not worried about Lily are you? There's no way Lindsey's gonna let that go," Sara inquired.

"Nah, I'm not worried. I was just thinking about how crazy this day's been," he answered.

"Yeah but it's over Buddy. Lindsey's safe and Catherine's gonna pull through. We can look ahead to better days," Nick countered.

Warrick smiled as best as he could under the circumstances. He tried to focus on Nick's words.

"If anyone knows how to deal with all this, it's you Nicky," Warrick replied.

Nick nodded. They all knew what Warrick meant. Even Sam Braun who cut in the conversation.

"Hey Gil. Its Gil, right?"

"Right Sam. What can I do for you?"

"Well since uh Warrick here's gonna go with Lindsey, would you go in with me to see Mug– Catherine? I'm sure everyone'll trust that you won't let me stay if she doesn't want to see me," Sam said humbly.

"Yeah that's fine Sam," Grissom answered him.

Sam turned to Warrick.

"Could we go before you? I know Cath won't want to see me for too long if she'll see me at all and I figure that you'll be around for a while with Linds," he asked timidly.

It was strange seeing Sam not bark an order. His soft spot was exposed: Catherine.

"Uhm yeah. That makes sense. I'll wait last with Lindsey. Griss, you gonna take Lily home?" Warrick asked.

"Yeah," answered Grissom.

"So you two go after Griss," Warrick said to Sara and Nick who nodded in agreement.

A short silence stood before Lily and Lindsey came out of the surgical wing. Lindsey bolted toward the loveseat and picked up her linens on her way to Warrick.

"Well she's still under the anesthetic so don't expect to talk to her," Lily said snidely.

"That's ok. We'll talk to her soon enough. We just want to see her before going home," Grissom answered as he and Sam walked up.

"Well she didn't say if she wanted to see you Sam," Lily retorted at Sam.

Grissom held a hand up toward Lily and interjected before an argument broke out again.

"Lily, just let him see her. We'll be out in a minute."

"Very well," Lily said in defeat as she walked to a lounge chair.

Griss and Sam disappeared into the surgical wing. Sara turned to Warrick who had Lindsey snuggling against him.

"Looks like someone's quite fond of you," she said to Warrick as she looked at Lindsey.

The sight made both Nick and Sara smile. Warrick smiled at Sara.

"Looks that way," he responded.

"Warrick's the best. He always does stuff with me. –Stuff that I like. And he listens to me when I talk," Lindsey said in a tired voice.

Lily had taken Grissom's pillow and propped her head with it against the chair she sat in.

"Catherine looks awful. Don't be surprised when you see her," she warned.

They all rolled their eyes.

"How good would you look if you were shot Grandma?" Lindsey barked causing Nick, Sara and Warrick to stifle smiles.

"Oh Lindsey hush. I know she was shot. I'm just warning her friends that's all," Lily answered.

"They're not friends, they're family," Lindsey stated as she situated Warrick's arm over her to her liking.

"Whatever Lindsey," Lily said in an aggravated tone.

Sara muffled her giggles as Nick bit his lower lip in attempt to not aggravate the situation further. Warrick just smiled and watched Lindsey.

"Don't tell Mom she looks bad Warrick. I don't mean for you to lie but just don't talk about how she looks. It'll make her feel bad," she asked as she closed her eyes.

"Don't worry Linds. Your mom couldn't look bad if she tried. She's always beautiful to me," he coaxed her.

Lindsey smiled as she slipped away to sleep. Warrick quickly realized what he had just said in front of everyone then quickly dismissed the irrational fear. Lily raised an eyebrow but Nick and Sara just smiled.

"Yeah, Cath's a beauty," Sara chimed in.

"Always," Nick added.