A/N – I am so sorry I haven't updated lately. I'm right in the middle of midterms. (YUCK!)
What are you guys doing to me? I have a math midterm in the morning, its 11pm and I'm writing fan fiction…something doesn't seem right… lol
Chapter 19:
"Boss! You're going to want to see this!" Greg exclaimed. Grissom followed him quickly to the DNA lab.
"What is it?" he asked quickly, raising his eyebrows at the elated face of the young lab tech.
"I processed some of the few pieces of evidence that we hadn't gotten to yet from the rape case. I got a positive match to Chris!"
"That is wonderful! I'll call Brass right away. This is just what we needed to get him in jail. Tell the others if you see them." Grissom rushed to his office and gave his friend a call. As he hung up the phone, he sighed in relief. Chris would finally be off the streets and Sara would be safe and able to move on with her life again.
Grissom hurried down the hall to see Warrick and Catherine walking out of, what at first he suspected to be the woman's washroom. He brushed it off quickly and joined his friends to tell them the good news. He wanted to see Catherine's reaction.
"Really? You mean we can arrest him?" Grissom nodded happily.
"Sara won't even have to testify. We have proof that connects him to the other rape case. If we put enough pressure on Josh Whitman or Chris Hartman, we may be able to get a confession from either of them." Both men turned to look at Catherine. She was smiling.
"It's wonderful. That jerk needs to be thrown in jail..." She stopped abruptly as she felt her cell phone vibrate. .
"It's Sara – one second. Hey Sar. No, not too busy here. Yeah, for sure someone can. You sure you're ready? Okay. Bye." She hung up.
"What's going on?" Warrick asked. "Does she want to come in now?" Catherine nodded.
"She can't sleep. Too many things on her mind. She figures, if she talks about it, then maybe it will help. She called her shrink too. She thinks it would be a good idea to finally get it off her chest."
"I'll hop over and pick her up. I'll be back soon." Warrick announced and turned to walk out to the parking lot. Grissom looked at Catherine.
"Is she going to be okay talking about…whatever?" Catherine sighed.
"No, but she needs to." The both turned to see Nick walking down the corridor, a smile the size of Texas on his face.
"Please tell me that what Greg just told me is true…" Grissom nodded. Nick let out a shout of joy before hugging Catherine, and then to his surprise, Grissom.
"I don't know how to thank you guys." Grissom replied,
"No need Nick. As long as Sara's okay. I just want life to go back to normal." Catherine responded with a smile, thrilled to see Nick so happy again, but knowing in her heart Sara's life would never be the same as it used to be.
-+-+-
As soon as she arrived, Sara was greeted with hug after hug from almost the entire staff in the CSI building. Grissom watched from a distance. She was still too thin, and pale, but he could see her old smile starting to come back. She had a long road ahead but she was strong and he admired that about her. The bruises on her arms were starting to fade, arms that she wrapped protectively around her stomach. She was still feeling insecure. He could see it in her posture, in the way she was acting. Uncomfortable. He couldn't blame her. After the roller coaster ride she had been on, it was no wonder.
However, there was one person he noticed that she looked relaxed around. Nick had his arm wrapped behind her back, and she leaned ever so slightly towards him. He was good for her, and Grissom was happy for them. It had never entered his conscience of Sara and Nick being together, but after what he had witnessed the last few weeks, more than ever he believed that they were good for each other. If there were anyone Sara would rely on in her time of need, it would be Nick. The small crowd finally made their way into the break room.
"Hi Grissom." Sara whispered quietly.
"Hey Sara – how are you doing?" She shrugged, but then gave a small smile.
"Better." He couldn't help but smile back.
"Where's Jim?" She asked innocently, looking around the room. She had requested that all her personal friends be there. Nick grinned at her.
"There's something we need to tell you Sara. Good news." Just then there came a loud noise from the hall and they all turned to see what it was. Chris was yelling at the two officers holding him, along with Brass. Nick immediately grasped Sara's hand. Not sure what she was going to do next, it surprised everyone when she slowly stood up and walked towards the door, stood in the entrance and watched the scene he was making.
"Sara…stay in here." Nick got up and stood beside her. Her gaze didn't shift, but she squeezed his hand back. "Please. You don't need to see him. That's the good news honey. We got him – he's being arrested. He won't ever hurt you again." She nodded, but continued to watch. Warrick, Catherine, Grissom and Greg weren't sure what to do.
Chris finally noticed the pair of eyes staring at him from the doorway of the break room. He started to fight desperately to get out of the grip of the officers and make his way over to where Sara was. Brass saw the look of fright on her face as he looked at her with such hatred in his eyes. He finally broke loose. Nick immediately pulled out his gun and stood in front of Sara. Brass did the same, both men aiming their guns, wishing they could pull the trigger. The scene froze for a few moments as Brass slowly made his way to the man, stuck half way between two men who wanted him dead more than anything else in the world, guns drawn in their hands.
His anger overtook him as he thrust his gun to Chris's head.
"You will never hurt her again – you hear me? You deserve to die." Brass shouted at him.
"BITCH!" he shouted at Sara. Nick lowered his gun, and had his other arm around her, holding her tight, half trying to drag her away from the situation but she stood firm. "You'll pay for this! This isn't over!" This time Nick lost it and started to make his way over to the man. Sara wasn't going to pay. He was. He was going to pay for hurting the woman he loved more than his own life.
"No!" Sara shouted as she ran over. "Not like this." She pleaded. She grabbed gently onto Brass's arm, and he conceded and lowered his gun. She turned to Nick, his gun drawn and pointed directly at Chris. "Nick. Please." He turned to look at her, and when he saw the pleading tears in her eyes, he too lowered his gun. The two officers came forward and handcuffed Chris. He looked Sara straight in the eye, but she didn't back down.
"You can't stop me." He whispered. Nick and Jim both looked on, confused.
"I would die before I would let you ever have the chance." She said quietly back. With that she turned around and walked back into the room, Nick at her side. They were all stunned at what had just happened, and sat in silence until Brass walked in and closed the door. Sara took a deep breath.
"There's something I need to tell you all…"