Chapter 2

Alex sat, stunned at what she'd just learned. Her grandparents and mother had met the Sanders family long ago before her birth. However, Ed had said that was only the beginning of the story. She couldn't begin to imagine what the rest might be. But first, there was something else puzzling her.

"Wait, Greg never told me you guys were from L.A." she tried to get the story straight in her own mind.

"We're not," Ed replied. "I had to go to L.A. for a business meeting. Cecilia wanted to come along and the doctor said it ok because she wasn't due for another month."

"Ok," Alex nodded, the beginning coming clearer. "So, what's the rest of the story?"

Ed placed the picture of Alex's mother Olivia holding an infant Greg on the coffee table in front of him and looked straight at Alex. "Your grandmother decided to bury your grandfather in L.A since he'd always wanted to be buried next to the ocean and didn't care which one."

"She probably wanted to piss off his family, too," Alex interjected.

"Probably," Ed agreed. He'd known of Elizabeth's dislike for Sam's family. "We attended the funeral and that's where I first met Elizabeth and Olivia; they were the only other people at your grandfather's funeral."

Alex shook her head. "Stubborn old bird," she mumbled about her grandmother. Then she added clearly, "My mom was what…" Alex did some quick math in her head. "Seventeen at the time?"

"Yes, she was still a teenager," Ed confirmed. "She and your grandmother were so nice. After they left to go back to Virginia, we kept in touch."

"Oh? Did you guys ever see one another again?"

"That is the rest of the story," Ed replied. "We exchanged a lot of letters and pictures. But we didn't see one another again until Olivia's funeral."

Alex's eyes got wide. "You've met me before too?"

Ed let out a small chuckle. "Well, if you call holding an infant meeting…"

She let out a small laugh, too. "Yeah, I guess that is kinda silly."

"But," he told her, "Have you ever seen a picture of a small child holding you as an infant?"

She thought for a moment. "Vaguely," she replied, a flash of an image of herself as an infant, her face crinkled in mid cry, lying in the lap of a young child smiling. Then, as she thought about why he was asking, she added, "That was Greg?"

Ed once again nodded. "He, like most children, was very interested in you because you were smaller than he was. He begged and begged to be able to hold you, but Elizabeth didn't want to let you go."

"Yeah, I bet she was holding me tight," Alex replied, trying to comprehend all of what she was hearing.

"Finally, Cecilia convinced her to let Greg hold you. You were crying so hard, but Greg was just tickled. He had the biggest grin on his face…" Ed remembered the scene in his own mind. Thinking back, he couldn't believe Greg was ever that little.

"When we got back to California, we heard less and less from your grandmother. No doubt because she was busy raising you," Ed continued.

"This is all kinda surreal," Alex told him. "I mean, what are the odds?" She paused for a moment then asked, "Is that the last you saw of us?"

Ed let out a shaky sigh, remembering the last time he actually did see Elizabeth and Alex. "No," he responded. "The last time I saw you was Cecilia's funeral."

Alex thought back. Greg had said his mother died when he was ten. That would mean that she was around seven. She thought hard for a moment, trying to remember the funeral. After a few seconds, her mouth dropped out. "On my god," she exclaimed, the event coming back to her.

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Greg's cell phone rang. He looked down at the called ID. "It's the lab. I have to take this," he informed them. "Will you two be alright?"

"We'll do just fine," Alex replied, motioning for Greg to answer.

Greg walked out of the living room and down the hall to the bedroom. He said a quick pray that Alex and his dad would get along. "Sanders," he answered the phone, not knowing who from the lab it would be.

"Greg, it's Catherine," she greeted him. "I know you had the day off and don't work graveyard anymore, but do you think you could come in? The lab is swamped."

Greg let out a sigh. He hadn't worked graveyard in about two months. Once he and Alex got engaged, he had a choice: go back to being a lab rat or switch to days. So he switched to days. He liked being a CSI and working the same time as Alex was a bonus; it allowed them to spend more time together. "Catherine, my dad's in town. I'm having dinner with him and Grissom and Alex tonight."

"I know," Catherine replied. She was well aware of their plans. Grissom was settling into his role as a parent, but still needed advice from time to time and in those times, he turned to Catherine. Although her daughter was younger, she still had a lot to offer. "He's coming in after dinner."

Greg rolled his eyes. Of course he's coming in, he thought. Is he ever really anywhere else? Greg looked at his watch. "I'll be around twelve, is that ok?" he responded.

"That would be great! Thanks Greg," Catherine replied and hung up.

Greg shook his head. He knew Alex wouldn't be happy about him going in tonight, but he hated to let the lab down. They'd been his family for so long and now, one of them was going to be family, literally.

Greg walked back down the hall and into the living room where Alex and his dad were. He came up from behind them and saw them sitting on the couch talking. He knew this was a good sign.

"No," Greg heard his dad say. "The last time I saw you was Cecilia's funeral."

Greg stopped, confused. He didn't quite understand what his dad had just said, not having heard the previous conversation. Mom's funeral?

"Oh my god!" Alex exclaimed.

"What?" Greg asked, surprising the other two; they hadn't heard him approach.

Alex stood up and turned to look at Greg. She didn't know how to explain the conversation she and Ed had been having. Or how to explain what she'd remembered. After a moment of silence, she replied, "Your mom's in heaven now with my mom. Maybe they can be friends?"

Greg's jaw dropped. Alex's word evoked a long forgotten memory of his mother's funeral. He had walked away from the gravesite, not being able to take looking at the coffin anymore. A young girl came over to him and said the exact words Alex had just recited.

"That was you?" he asked Alex.

She slowly nodded, remembering the same exchange.

"What have I missed?" Greg knew he'd been left out of an interesting conversation.