Foretold by SLynn

Summary: A woman walks into the crime lab only to tell Greg Sanders about her murder, a murder he's going to solve. Is she just playing games or is it something more?

Spoilers: Through 'Gum Drops'

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: I'm just borrowing and will return them all when I'm done, virtually untouched.

Notes: Pay attention, this is the most information I have and probably will give out about the case at hand. Oh, and I've been waiting for a very long time to use this song.

"And I find it kind of funny
I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you
I find it hard to take
When people run in circles its a very very
Mad world"
Gary Jules 'Mad World'

Chapter 10: Madness

'I had that dream again. The one where I'm falling. Just falling without stopping. I don't know why it scares me so much, but it does. I can't understand it. Not at all.'

'There was more to the dream than before. I was pushed. I felt it, I was pushed. Someone pushed me off a ledge. It was horrible. Even though I knew it was only a dream I really thought I was dying. It's getting where I can't sleep at all. I just want it to all go away.'

'I've stopped going by Mrs. Juarez's house. Last night, after having another nightmare, I realized I started having them after we'd met. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before, but it has something to do with her. Something, but I'm not sure what. I'm not sure of anything anymore. What if I'm just losing my mind?'

'It's happening during the day now. Almost all of the time. I can't get her face out of my head. It's not me falling, it's her. Always her. I have to go back and ask Mrs. Juarez about her, but how? What will she think? Her son has already called the cops on me, if I go back now, what will that look like? Besides, I don't think she knows. I'm sure she doesn't, or she'd have asked me to speak with her instead of him. Maybe this is my payback. Karma works like that, I think. I took her money and now I'm paying for it. Her daughter is haunting me.'

'Today in the newspaper I saw a face. I've seen it before, in one of my dreams. He's connected to all of this somehow, but I just can't put it together. I was never good at riddles.'

'Why are all the clowns bloo?'

'I think the man from the paper did it. Why else would I keep seeing him in my dreams? He was there in the desert. He must have been there. He must have killed her, but I'll never be able to prove that. I have to find out more.'

'I'm spending all my spare time now looking up the man from the paper. I've even seen him a few times around town. I know so much about him, except how he fits into all of this. I know now he couldn't have done it. I looked her up and she went missing too long ago, he's just not old enough. But he is somehow involved. The key to it all. I got such a strong feeling when I saw his picture, I'm sure of it. Maybe he'll be good at riddles and figure this all out. Maybe then I can rest.'

'I thought the nightmares would get better, but they haven't. If anything it's worse. Finding him was supposed to finish this for me. I've been trying my best to tell him everything, but it never comes out right. Half the time I don't know what I'm saying myself. It makes no sense. Why is this happening?'

'I've been writing notes in my sleep. They're all over the place. What does this mean?'

'She was murdered. She was. I saw it. I saw it all. Her hands were tied with a bright blue scarf. It's horrible and I can't get it out of my head. I wish I'd never met any of them. Wish I'd never seen her, or him, or known about any of this. I didn't want to know. Oh God, I didn't want to know.'

'I was wrong. He isn't the key to this. I am.'

'I think I've done enough. At least, I've done everything I can. Set things in motion. He has to stop it before it happens again. And it will. It will. And there isn't much time. The monster is waking. I woke with it.'

'I'm ready now.'

Sara closed the last journal with a sigh. She'd been pouring through it for the last few hours, having come in early specifically to do so, and none of it made sense.

Well, it did and it didn't.

It had obviously made sense to Ashley at the time, but she'd never read anything more vague before in her life.

There were a few things however she could assume.

One was that the man mentioned was Greg. That was an easy choice. They'd found all the information Ashley had gathered about him and even the picture from the paper mentioned in the journal. Sara even remembered when that picture had been taken, because despite being in it herself, Nick and Warrick had only hassled Greg at the time.

And to some extent now even Ashley's crazy obsession with Greg was making sense. She'd thought he'd committed a murder and wanted to know more; maybe even needed too. She'd probably begun fishing around his life to dig up dirt only to find none and then later to decide that he'd been too young to be the culprit after all.

Which begs the question, when did this supposed crime take place?

And exactly how did Mary Juarez fit in? She was Ashley's last scam victim, that they knew, but who was the other woman mentioned in the journal? Was she the one murdered? And if she was, why didn't Mrs. Juarez know about it?

Sara mentally stopped herself.

This was madness.

She was getting sucked in. She was letting Greg suck her into this wild goose chase.

The most probable explanation was that Ashley Baker was a very disturbed young woman who didn't get help in time.

"Hey."

Sara was startled by the voice from behind, however familiar, but quickly recovered.

"Hi Nick," she said as she gathered up the papers.

"So what, are you and Greg competing for like employee of the month?"

"What?" Sara asked, standing as she finished her stacking.

"Well it's still an hour before shift and it looks like you've been here for at least two already. Greg told me he's been here for four. No other explanation, right?"

Sara could easily see what he was getting at. Nick knew what they were up to, what they were investigating.

"I was just going over some old paperwork."

"Yeah well, I wouldn't let Ecklie see you doing that," Nick warned. "But if you need an extra set of eyes…"

"I know who to ask," Sara finished for him with a smile. "Thanks."

Nick just smiled back at her as he left.

Sara left shortly after him, moving down the hall in search of whichever room Greg had holed himself up in. Finding him in three attempts in the smallest layout room, she entered after tapping quickly on the door.

"Hi," Greg said looking up briefly, "I was going to come find you. I've been going over these old murder cases."

"I've been reading Ashley's journals," Sara said sitting across from him.

"Anything interesting?" Greg asked, his attention fully caught.

"Lots really, I'm just not sure how much of it is believable."

Greg leaned in on his elbows anxious to hear more, causing Sara to blush despite herself as a flood of emotion came crashing over her.

She knew he was only interested in what she was saying, what she had to say, but the gesture was also intimate and made her think things she'd already put an end to that morning.

"Um," she said, leaning back slightly as she did so, "for starters she's been having dreams about death. Falling from heights, being pushed, things like that."

"Well that fits in with these cases."

Sara nodded in agreement before moving on.

"She also thinks the Juarez's are connected. She wrote about either a sister or a daughter of Mrs. Mary Juarez being murdered. Wasn't a whole lot of detail and no name."

"None of the victims were named Juarez," Greg remarked, finally leaning back and away from her as he did so, "but if it was a sister she could have had a different last name. But I read the police report, Mary Juarez is in her late sixties. Any sister of hers is going to be around that age, all of the women killed were in their twenties and thirties."

"Unless she has a much younger sister."

Greg nodded, having not thought of that.

"Still, the murders were twenty years ago," Sara mused. "A daughter maybe?"

"There is a Jane Doe, the last one…no, the first. The first one found was a Jane Doe. Could that be her? If it is, we could find a fresh lead on who did these murders."

Sara thought about it, about the wording in the journal. How Ashley had written that Mrs. Juarez must have not known and as crazy as it sounded, it also sounded like it fit.

"It could," Sara finally answered, "but how are we going to prove it? We can't just go walking into Mrs. Juarez's house and tell her we think her daughter was murdered. We don't even know if she has a daughter."

"Let me handle that," Greg said firmly. "I'll check into missing persons, county records. If she has a daughter, it'll be there."

"Even if she does," Sara continued, trying hard to dissuade him, "then what? We go to cold cases and ask Detective Harper to authorize us to get a DNA comparison? That's even assuming there is a sample available on hand from the original case or that Mrs. Juarez can be persuaded to cooperate. And if there is no sample, this Jane Doe is likely buried in the county cemetery and we'd need a court order to exhume her. Forget that by that point Ecklie will know what we are up to raining down grief on us all, because Harper will never agree to it in the first place. He's going to want a good, solid lead before he even considers it. He just doesn't reinvestigate these cases on whims."

Greg nodded but she could tell none of it was getting through.

"Listen," Sara said, "it's time to let this go. Greg, I think it's admirable that you care so much, but you can't solve them all. You can't save them all."

"Sara," Greg began, clearly taking his time to gather his thoughts, "I know I can't. But this is different. We could have a chance here to really do something important."

"Our job isn't just solving serials."

"I know," Greg returned, looking hurt at the thought. "I didn't mean that. I meant that we could finally give this girl a real burial, her family some real peace of mind. It's been twenty years, Sara. Twenty years. I can't even imagine what that'd be like. I know it's not the ending anyone wants, but at least it's an ending."

"You're right," Sara said with a short nod, looking down.

"So, you're still going to help me?"

"Of course I am," Sara confirmed immediately.

"Okay," he said, sounding more positive than before, "let's visit Mrs. Juarez tomorrow then. After shift?"

"Sounds…"

Greg cell rang cutting Sara off mid-sentence.

He quickly stood and excused himself, stepping to the far side of the room which really wasn't saying much given its size.

"Sanders," he said into it, as once more Sara tried to look interested in anything but his conversation.

A heavy sigh escaped him. Accidentally she caught his eye to which he gave her a small smile as he mouthed 'Anne' as he shook his head. Sara smiled back before looking away to give him as much privacy as possible.

"Anne," Greg tried interrupting, "it was given to me."

A series of loud, angry words followed that statement, none of which were discernible.

"Yes, both. What do you care about coins anyway?"

Greg threw his head back and sat on the end of the table, his back completely to Sara now.

"No I'm not selling them. I don't care…"

Greg stopped there and his voice dropped noticeable before continuing.

"…I don't care if I do need the money, I'm not doing it."

Sara was beginning to wish herself anywhere but where she was.

"Anne, I can't do this now. I'm at work. We'll talk later, okay? Bye."

Greg hung up without giving his sister a chance to say anything else. Turning back around he tried to act like nothing had happened but it wasn't working. Sara could read it on his face how angry he really was.

Instead of mentioning it, Sara just reminded him that they had a shift meeting to attend, to which he looked greatly relieved. However, before they got out the door, he stopped her.

"Sara," he began, taking in a big breath, "um, I don't want it to be…I don't think it is, but I don't…I'm not going to bring up this morning. I'd like us to just pick up like we were, like friends. I meant that."

And, without reason, certainly without design, Sara just looked him in the eyes, smiled, and kissed him once on the cheek before touching her hand to his chest and walking away.

Greg was still watching her walk away when Nick partially roused him out of his near stupor.

"What was that about?" he asked, having seen it all.

"I have no idea," Greg answered honestly.

It was all madness.