A/N: Sadly, I still do not own them and I don't make any money from doing this.

Many thanks to my wonderful beta Fwe, she's quick to help out and you really should check out her stories too!

xCrimsonxBlackxBloodx – This chapter is dedicated to you for you ability to nudge me out of apathy and into continuing the story – thanks!

Chapter 7 – Something To Believe In

He didn't feel the blade slice open his shoulder just the warm sticky sensation of blood dripping and the cool rim of the glass jar pressed against his back.

"Yes, yes, that's a good boy." McKenna whispered. "That didn't hurt a bit did it?"

Greg shivered, his knees gave out and he hung from the ropes tying his wrists. He wanted to scream but the fear of the knife kept him silent. At least the wack job hadn't carried on with what he'd feared he do. "Please let me go, people will be looking for me. My boss will come looking for me when I don't show up for work." Greg wished his voice sounded stronger.

"I'll fix that." McKenna said, "later."

The door closed and Greg was left alone in the dark shivering and praying that someone would come looking for him. "Grissom will come." He said. The sound of his voice repeating that over and over was the only thing that kept him from screaming whenever McKenna would come back, opening fresh wounds on his arms, shoulders and back and collecting the blood in a jar.

Though Greg was unaware of it, days passed. He had no concept of time. Occasionally he would fall asleep, resting his head on his arm. Sometimes he'd been awakened by the light being turned on. His muscles would tense. He knew what was coming, McKenna and a very sharp knife. Weak from the pain, blood loss and dehydration, Greg still repeated the mantra that kept him sane, "Grissom will come. Grissom will find me."

"Stop it." McKenna ordered, "Stop saying that, I'm tired of hearing it."

Greg's head lolled against his arm, "Grissom will find me." He said deliriously.

"Shut up!"

"Grissom will come, Grissom will find me."

"I'll make you stop, I will!" Brad screamed. The paintbrush in his hand shattered under the pressure of his clenched fist.

"Grissom will come…"

McKenna grabbed Greg by the hair and drove the broken wood through Greg's cheeks. For several minutes the only sounds in the dark room were McKenna's harsh breathing and Greg's wet coughs.

"You're bad. Bad, see what you made me do? Look at this mess." Blood had spattered across McKenna's hair, face and shoulders. "I have to clean up this mess."

McKenna left and came back with a pungent smelling cleanser. He scrubbed the walls muttering angrily under his breath, "Bad boy, you make it hard for me to work and if I can't work I can't take care of you. Bad, bad, I have to punish you now."

McKenna's words reached the place where Greg had hid himself away in his mind and he whimpered.

"Yes, yes, now you're sorry, but now it's too late. You made me use up all the paper towels and trash bags, you bad boy."

Greg could hear the water running and feel the heat of it on his feet.

"Now I have to stop working and go to the store because you're such a bad, bad boy." McKenna shut off the water, "When I get back you will be punished. You just think about that while I'm gone." The metal clips on the curtain rod rattled as he pulled the shower curtain closed.

There was a popping sound and McKenna cursed. "That was the last light bulb!"

Greg cried, pain and despair clawing at his heart. It made the pain worse, made it harder to swallow and he wondered if he would choke to death on his own blood.

The door slammed and Greg willed himself to try to get free. The damp socks gave him a little purchase on the tub side but he was too weak to reach the edge and he slid back down into the slowly draining water.

Resting his chin on his chest made the blood drip from his mouth, the sounds of the droplets hitting the water in the bottom of the tub was almost deafening in the otherwise silent room.

Greg moaned. He wanted to say the words that kept him going, to hear Grissom's name. Somehow saying it would make it come true. Someone had to be missing him by now.

He had no idea how much time passed when he heard the door open again. Greg's heart thudded in his chest, now McKenna would punish him. He tried to scream but he couldn't open his mouth and the pain was terrible.

The curtain was torn back and a hand touched him and he did scream, a thick and strangled sound.

Voices, someone that sounded like Grissom speaking softly to him and Greg let it carry him away, fearing the punishment to come.

END FLASHBACK

"The next thing I remember was waking up in the hospital," Greg laughed, "Face to face with my boss."

R2R:

lins: Don't worry 'bout it, McKenna's a nasty piece of work. Thanks for taking the time to read and review!

xCrimsonxBlackxBloodx: I gotta say I love your name shivers, gives me all kinds of angsty plot bunnies! Yeah, cliffies bite don't they? But it can be fun. Yeah, I think wrestling is funny, you know they're just acting. Thanks for reading and reviewing!