DISCLAIMER: Don't own it... No money made... Just for fun and enjoyment.

SUMMARY: Sequel to Displacement. The CSI team and their recently hired coroner Stephanie are back to work solving cases, sharing companionship and generally making their way through the dire world of criminal investigation with humor and friendship... This one will show the development of the relationship between Grissom and Sara and there should be some other surprises down the road as well. Romance/Drama/Angst/Mature Situations

RATING: M for Mature - I'm starting this one out at "M", since we won't be waiting quite so long for the smut this time out ;) Also, there is a sprinkling of language throughout the story.

A/N: I just about have the scene set for the rest of the story. Just a little more development before we start hitting the serious meat of the story. I am still very surprised by the response this story is getting, so I am continuing to work very hard to live up to your expectations. However, I doubt this fic will be quite as long as the first one. The next one, on the other hand, might end up being longer. Which of course means that I am writing 2 fics (I started another NCIS onelast night)and outlining a third, all at the same time. I think fan fiction should be a registered addiction with the American Psychiatric Association. ;)

REVIEWS: I am always looking for ways to improve my writing, and your reviews let me know if I am hitting my mark. Thank you in advance for the time you take to review this story.


Chapter 10

Stephan Tompkins was having trouble remembering the last time he had seen this side of seven in the morning as he made his way through the parking garage of his office building that Tuesday. As he gathered his belongings for the exceptionally early day, he remarked to no one in particular, "If she wasn't such a good friend…"

He shook his head while he balanced the travel coffee cup with his newspaper and briefcase when he pressed the button for the elevator. And as he made his way up to his office on the top floor of the building, he thought about the years he had shared with his good friend Stephanie. She was the only person to still lecture him about his lifestyle on a regular basis. In fact, he decided, she was probably the only person who still believed he had any redeeming qualities at all.

Without a doubt, he knew that he was not what most would consider a moral man, but Stephanie saw through the bravado and knew him by his heart. She looked past his womanizing and saw that he never made any pretenses to being a one woman man, but always maintained his honesty in his romantic dealings. She knew that he did not let anyone get too close, not because he was cold hearted, but because he was so careful with his own heart. She encouraged him to not be so closed off, because she did not want him to spend his life alone. He had always joked that he could never be alone as long as she stayed his friend, but secretly he feared the truth of her words nearly as much as his fear of being hurt.

No, Stephan Tompkins was not a good man by most standards, but he was a fantastic lawyer. He only took cases he believed in, and he used the lucrative divorce cases he won over the years to finance the pro-bono work he did with children's services. His ultimate goal was to insure that no child should be left alone to deal with the abuse and neglect that he had witnessed in his lifetime. Stephanie was also the only person he had ever felt safe enough with to talk to about that part of his life. She knew what drove him, and she was the one he went to when the demons would come, and she was the one he turned to when his cases did not close successfully.

They had met the first week of their first semester at UC-Berkeley in the library. She was checking out their forensics collection and he was checking out one of the librarians. She had watched him trying to make time with the young woman for about ten minutes before she walked up to stand beside him and she gave him a quick jab with her elbow to change his attention's focus as she called over to the librarian and said, "So, how are the women's studies events here at the library?" When the other woman had gone into significant detail regarding the events and had even winked at the younger woman Stephan finally realized what had been going on and hung his head. Stephanie had then placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and told him that she just could not bear watching him waste so much time practicing all those moves on a woman that was far more interested in what was between her legs than his.

They had been best friends ever since that afternoon. Her dark humor and amazing wit kept him on his toes, and she never let him slide for anything. For his part, he had always tried to look out for her, and did his level best to keep her laughing whenever things were getting too heavy for her. But today he was getting an even better chance to repay his friend by helping out someone she knew.

Stephan had met the man and his soon-to-be-ex-wife at the wedding a few months ago, but it was not until he started investigating the relationship (at the request of his friend) that he realized just how bad off the poor guy really was. In addition to the indications of infidelity he had found in his first quick inquiries, the wife had managed to max out his credit. However, her credit had not a scratch on it, and in fact had improved since her marriage to the man. Stephan knew the signs all too well, and he was not looking forward to dropping the bomb on the man that morning. So, when the elevator opened up, he took a very deep breath before stepping off toward his office.

Taking another breath before he pushed through the doors of his office, he found three faces waiting for him: his receptionist, his dear friend and his new client. "Well, that's a heartening thing to find this early in the day." He turned to his receptionist after winking at his friend, "Cindy, please tell me you've been taking care of these fine people?"

"Of course, Mr. Tompkins." The beautiful young woman was quick with her smile and her answer.

Stephanie rose from her seat and Warrick followed her action, but then Stephanie walked up to the man and wrapped her arms around him. "Scoundrel through and through, but damn if you still don't look good doing it."

He returned the hug and gave her a peck on the cheek, "Flattery will get you everywhere, my love." He turned in her arms and faced Warrick's direction, "Mr. Brown, sorry to see you again under these circumstances, but I am happy to offer my assistance." He gestured toward his private office, "Please, let's get this thing started."

All three made their way into the office, with Warrick and Stephanie taking their seats in the guest chairs at the front of his desk. Stephan took his own chair and then took a file out of his briefcase to set down in front of him. "Mr. Br-…"

"Please, call me Warrick." Warrick leaned forward uncomfortably in his seat, "This thing is hard enough without feelin' like I'm in the principal's office."

Stephan smiled through his chuckle, "That's good. You're gonna need that sense of humor and humility to make it through something like this." He looked at his friend and smirked, "First off… Let me tell you that there is no way in the world you can afford me, so, if I so much as see a check with your name cross my desk, I'm going to be very offended."

Warrick was instantly uncomfortable with that idea. "Hey, I'm not lookin' for any chari-…"

"Please, this is no charity case… You and your reputation are quite familiar to me. I actually do a great deal of legal work for the community center where you have been something of a hero figure for the kids there." Stephan was being completely serious and Warrick was a little shocked at a divorce attorney being involved with the same community center.

"I don't get it, I thought you were a divorce attorney… Those people don't use divorce attorney's." Warrick looked to Stephanie for some kind of answer, but she was smirking at his confusion.

"He doesn't advertise it, 'Rick, but Steph is a bit of crusader for children's advocacy. You could say that Vegas divorce finances his superhero alter-ego." Warrick was beginning to understand what was happening: he had been setup.

"So, this was rigged?"

Stephan sat back in his chair and gestured outward, "Hey, it's Vegas, baby… It's all rigged." When Warrick snickered at the obvious statement, the man leaned forward again and picked up the folder once more, "When Steph called me, I took some liberties." He handed Warrick the folder and waited for him to get started. "I won't lie to you, it's not pretty. However, it is something we can get you out from under, if you're willing to tow the line."

Warrick flipped through the contents of the folder and his good humor began to fade very quickly. When he gripped his forehead and started to fight the tears that were threatening to spring forth, Stephanie moved closer to him and tried to give him some comfort. His voice croaked out his next words, "You got all this in less than a week?"

"I'm afraid she doesn't seem to have much faith in your being able to put two and two together… Or getting an attorney." That last statement was too much for Warrick and he had to know what was behind it.

"What do you mean by that?"

Stephan took a deep breath and Stephanie held his shoulders a little tighter. "As I said, I took some liberties… One of those was to place her under surveillance." He waited for those words to sink in to the man seated in his office and once he was certain Warrick was ready, Stephan continued. "She's made some statements to the effect that she believed you were just going to rollover and not know what happened until you were skewered in the end." Warrick simply sat there shaking his head, completely dumbfounded that he could have been so mistaken about the woman he married.

"Warrick, I promise you, that if you are willing to follow my advice, I will set everything right. You will be able to walk away from this thing like none of this ever happened."

There was a long silence after Stephan made his promise, but then Warrick sat up and looked the man directly in the eyes as he spoke, "There's no walkin' away from this, and I'm always gonna know it happened."