Chapter 5
As Greg dropped the phone, he immediately went to shock. "Why would Sara have Grissom's fever?" he thought. He knew that he have to tell Catherine. This was it, their missing clue.
Greg ran like he was a madman. He needed to tell Cath. The only way that Sara would have gotten that fever if she and Grissom would spend time after shift. Greg was already nearing Cath when he suddenly bumped to a very grumpy Grissom.
"Hey Greg!" shout Grissom, he looked like he's having a bad day "Look where your going."
"Sorry Griss" replied Greg, offering him a hand. "I have something to tell Cath."
"Well, Catherine's just around the corner." Said Grissom, "By the way, have you seen my wallet?"
Greg's face turned pale. "No." he replied too fast.
Grissom looked at him. He raised his eyebrow. "Well, if you find it, give it to me."
"Sure thing, Griss." He answered, and then he walked towards Catherine.
Catherine and the rest of the guys were at the layout room. They now had the facts they needed. Greg sat down next to Archie. He was still panting.
"Alright people!" shout Cath "Times up. We have to give Grissom's wallet. He asked me if I have seen it anywhere. If we continue this, it'll be instant suicide. Archie you start."
Archie stood up and placed pictures on the table. "The background is a balcony of restaurant in San Francisco called Alfred's. It's a fine dinning cuisine with an amazing view at their balcony. The prices are unbelievable. $50 per head basis and it's not a buffet, that's the entrance fee. They'll cook you anything, from lasagna to spinach quiche. Not to mention the $10 sherbets after every course."
"How about reflections from the shot?" asked Warrick
"I did get one thing that you'll all like." He replied. He showed them his portable laptop. "I did get someone's reflection." He enhanced one part of the picture. Then he cleared its pixels. "Look." He ordered "It's Gilbert Grissom."
Everyone was staring at the laptop. It was definitely Grissom. He was a lot younger. No wrinkles, no eye bugs.
"So Grissom's in" Said Nick "But he did work sometime in Frisco. It could be that."
"So Grissom gets a foul ball" said Warrick
"You're up next Hodges." Ordered Catherine
"Well…" start Hodges "Sara's wearing a tailored dress done by Felipe's. It's a small tailoring shop in San Francisco. They do all kinds of dresses for formal events. But this dress must be special because these babies cost a lot of money."
"How much are we talking?" asked Doc. Robbins
"$500 up to $1000" replied Hodges
"What!" asked everyone.
Hodges only nodded his head in reply
"But Sara won't spend on something like that." Replied Cath "Unless. . ."
"Unless Grissom paid the dress" concluded Nick
"Strike 1 for Griss" Said Warrick
"Bobby, your turn." Announced Cath
"I got something off the bracelet." Explained Bobby "It's a one of a kind diamond and silver bracelet. And you guys won't believe what's under the charm." He slowly took out a small enhanced photo of the charm's backside. Sara was engraved on the charm "See." He said "It's specialized for Sara. I looked it over some of our files. I came across the person who made it. He's name is Pier Vi. He's a French jeweler. He makes these one of a kind masterpieces. And you won't believe this."
"What?" asked David
"He's here in Vegas." Replied Bobby in a happy tone "And we get a chance to talk to him."
"What the hell do you mean by 'we'?" asked Catherine who was in utter disbelief
"Well" Explained Bobby "He remembers Grissom very well. He said that he recalls every moment that Grissom was in his shop. I asked him if we could drop by his shop. But he said that cops weren't good for business. However he said we just give him a call and use the speaker phone."
"So what are we waiting for?" asked Nick, he was already in CSI mode
Bobby took out the speakers and connected it to his phone. He dialed the numbers in and waited. After the third ring, someone picked up.
"Hello?" greeted the voice "This is Pier Vi speaking."
"Mr. Vi?" asked Bobby "It's Bobby. We talked earlier."
"Ah yes." replied Pier, his accent was French but his grammar was in perfect English "Am I in speakers now?"
"Yes" replied Bobby "Can you tell us the whole story now?"
"Alright" answered Pier "It was about five years ago. Mr. Grissom came to my shop and asked for me. I was still in San Francisco back then. He asked for me, and my apprentice called for me. I went to him. And we shook hands. I asked him want he wanted. He said he wanted a one of a kind gift. I asked for whom. He said for a very special person in his life. I frowned at the answer. I wasn't really contented. I knew once I saw him that there's a story behind it. So I persisted. He gave in after awhile and said it was a lady named Sara. I asked what was so special about her. He answered by saying that his feelings for her was unexplainable. But suddenly his smile turned to a frown. I asked what the matter was. He said that he had to leave her for reasons. I asked what reasons. He said he had to move here in Vegas because of the lack of entomological studies at a near body farm, whatever that means? I told him if she could come. He said no. He said he wasn't good enough for her. That is why he was at my shop, to give a parting gift. To tell her he loved her but there was no use. That is when I gave him the bracelet. It's a one of a kind masterpiece I did several years ago. He asked if I could engrave her name in the butterfly charm that was at the end of the bracelet. I nodded. He waited while I was engraving the charm. When it was finished, he asked for a ring that was in one of the displays. My apprentice got it for him. He said that he would like to get it too. It was incase his mind changed, and wanted his special someone to go with him to Vegas. I gladly offered him the ring for free. He said he couldn't take it for free. So he got the bracelet and had the ring for 50 off its regular price. We said our goodbyes and he went off."
There was silence for a moment. But Catherine, who was all in tears, knew what she had to do.
"Mr. Vi, how much did the bracelet cost?" asked Catherine
"Half a million dollars"
Nick spitted out his coffee, Warrick fell from his seat, Doc Robbins almost fainted, David coughed a little, Bobby lost his balance and Catherine gave a short shout. It was quite obvious that the reply of Mr. Vi was too much
"And the ring?" asked Nick in a high tone
"The ring wasn't much. Even though it did have diamonds, it was made out of glass. I can say, Ten thousand US dollars."
Silence
"Thank you very much Mr. Vi." Said Bobby after a few minutes "Let's keep in touch"
"Alright, Bobby." He replied "Goodbye."
Then a soft click was heard.
Warrick straitened himself. "Strike 2"
"I do have information." Butted Greg "Grissom has a fever"
"And. . ." asked Nick
"Sara has a fever too."
Warrick gave a shrug. He didn't bother to look up. "I guess Grissom strikes 3."
Nick looked at the picture of Sara in the table
"He's out."
TBC. . .