Title: Last Chance - Chapter 9

Disclaimer: Did I own them in the last chapter? Do you think my financial situation has changed that drastically in the last few hours? Enough for me to purchase them? No, it hasn't. They'd be a good investment though. No infringement intended. Don't sue. Thanks!

Authors' note: This chapters not as short as I would like it to be. :) It is short, but I'm going cross-eyed from typing. So I apologize for the mistakes. They are all mine. And no, you can't have them either. :) Hang onto your shorts. Here we go again.

They both raced from the building and to the car. Sara's heart was pounding and unshed tears burned at her eyes. She wasn't quite sure why this case had her so worked up. She thought she'd been doing better. Staying emotionally unattached. But now . . . maybe because it was her last case? Maybe because it was a child - a small child - involved. Maybe a combination of them both? All Sara wanted to do was cry. That made her laugh softly and Grissom looked over at her with worry on his face. She just shook her head and looked at the floor. Cry? No, what she wanted to do was go home and get so damn drunk she forgot this day even existed. But she'd left that path a long time ago. And she had enough willpower to not drink just so she wouldn't have to fight round two with herself. She was just tired. Overworked. Over-stressed. And sadly enough coming down from her high that being around Grissom all day had caused. Reality was making her crash and burn. And damn if it didn't hurt as much as her happiness had felt good. She yawned as the pulled into the lot.

Grissom looked over at her. "You know, you can go home, get some sleep . . . if you want to."

She met his gaze. And again he didn't look away like usual. "I wouldn't sleep anyway. Besides, I'd rather be here with you. I've missed us." She stated matter of factly. She took her eyes away from his and got out of the vehicle.

She strode purposefully toward the building. She knew that had been an awfully ballsy thing to say but it had been out of her mouth before she knew it was coming.

She rolled her eyes at her reflection in the door. "Stupid" she thought. She held the door open and waited for Grissom to catch up to her.

He walked in ahead of her and as the door was falling shut behind them he mumbled "I've missed us too . . . " He wasn't looking at her when he said it, hell, he wasn't even facing her, but Sara's breath caught in her chest like she had been sucker punched. Her step faltered for half a step before she regained her composure.

She opted not to state the obvious, that it was his fault they never worked together anymore. And just followed him down the stairs, why are we taking the stairs, to the morgue. This time he held the door open for her but didn't look at her as she walked past him.

Dr. Robbins was shutting the door to the cooler when they walked in.

"Hey Doc, is she our girl?"

"Dunno yet . . . just got her back here. Walk over here with me. Maybe you can tell." He led them over to one of the stainless steel beds. "I'm warning you guys. It's not pretty."

"When is the death of a child ever pretty?" Sara said with a small tremor.

"She was beaten, raped, and beaten some more. And that is not even the worst of it." He pulled back the sheet and Sara grimaced and Grissom actually flinched.

"Oh my god . . . the poor baby . . . " Sara almost moaned. She thought she had steeled herself for this, but apparently her armor had some chinks in it. Grissom sighed beside her and when she looked over his eyes were closed and his expression was pained.

Maybe the tin man does have a heart after all . . . Sara thought absently.

You couldn't tell the girls identity from her face anymore. Pre-mortem cuts and bruises covered her entire body and the postmortem swelling and bruising had contorted her face like a fun-house-mirror. But Nick had been right, she did look like their girl.

Sara pulled the pictures of Maddie out of her pocket. They had been taken at her last birthday party, a pool party, and she was wearing nothing more then an orange bathing suit. Sara had noted a birthmark on the back of her left leg, about the size of a quarter, in the shape of a butterfly.

"Doc? Can we roll her?"

"Yep, we can do that . . . "

With Grissom's help Al rolled the child onto her side. Sara couldn't find the birthmark. She breathed a sigh of almost relief. Even if this wasn't Maddie, someone had lost a child today . . . in a horrible fashion.

"It's not her Griss . . . DNA will confirm it . . . "

"That means we still have a girl out there . . . " Grissom shook his head.

Sara sighed. "Lets go . . . "

Robbins covered the girl again and Grissom got on his cell phone to call nick to let him know.

"Sara, we should go home, get some rest."

"Grissom, there's still a child out there. And Brass should have that warrant soon . . . " she trailed off knowing he was right, but, like always, she hated to leave. And it wasn't like the trail was cold. They had a suspect. A GOOD suspect. A warrant in the works. And - "No Grissom - not yet ok?"

"Sara . . . " Grissom sighed, he seemed to be doing a lot of that today.

"...But Griss . . . you can go home if you want. I can call you if . . . " he was obviously tired.

"I'm not leaving you to do this alone Sara. And I wouldn't sleep either,"

Sara couldn't help herself, hearing the defeat in his voice she reached out and touched his arm. "Grissom . . . " her words were cut off as her cell phone chirped.

Jumping like she'd been pinched, she fumbled with her phone. "Sidle . . . ok . . . perfect . . . meet you there." She hung up.

"Brass, he got the warrant. You coming . . . or . . . "

"I'm coming . . . "

Sara nodded. "Ok then." She walked out of the room.

She got behind the wheel of the Tahoe. She figured that Grissom had been driving all day, and it was her turn. When he got to the car, she expected him to be annoyed, mad, or even to demand that he drove. What she didn't expect was gratitude.

He buckled his seatbelt and leaned his head against the seat. "Thanks Sara . . . for driving I mean."

"No problem Grissom . . . no problem at all."

His eyes fell closed and he faced toward the window. Sara wasn't sure if he was sleeping or thinking. But either way he didn't say another word until they were almost there.

To Be Continued . . .