Chapter Eight
The dance floor throbbed with the skills of the DJ and the thumping of bodies. As the night extended, the crowds got tighter and adrenaline soared higher.
Brass spotted Nick, Wendy, Warrick and Tina close together in the bar. Greg was nearby, charming a petite brunette. All around him, people were smiling, chatting, laughing, joking, dancing, kissing and drinking. Everyone was enjoying themselves.
And Brass knew that in one instant, in one horrifying instant, he could shatter all the celebrations. He was going to be the harbinger of the bad news, the dark angel to erase all their smiles.
He wished he could run back to his room and puke his guts out.
"Jim?" Brass turned to face Catherine's sister. In the pulsating darkness, she looked so much like Catherine that his heart almost stopped.
"Jim?" Nancy repeated, touching his arm. "Are you alright? You look pale."
"Grissom called me." He weakly murmured.
"What?" She strained her ears against the noise.
"Grissom called me.'
"I can't hear you… I…" A waiter appeared by her side and shouted something into her ear. "Hey… sorry… I have to go… but, get some sleep, ok?"
Sleep? Brass had the dreadful feeling that sleep was going to be out of the question for a long, long while.
He turned back to his team of CSIs. Warrick was the first one to notice him approach them.
"Hey Brass, come and join us for a beer."
Brass didn't reply. All his efforts went in trying to remain on his feet.
"Hey man, are you ok?" Nick frowned in worry. "You look as if you've seen a ghost."
"I need to talk to all of you. Meet me outside."
They all exchanged concerned glances. "What is going on?" Wendy asked.
"I'll tell you… but not here…" He swallowed. "Just get everyone outside."
Tina, who saw the seriousness on Brass' face, gently whispered to her husband. "I think we should do as he says."
Warrick nodded, watching Brass leave the club.
Brass paced the outside lobby to keep himself from shivering. The air from the vents seemed to be seeping into his bones to chill them. When he heard the clicking of shoes on the smooth tiles, he looked up.
"Ok, I got hold of only us." Warrick gestured around. Sure enough, there was him, Nick, Greg, Wendy, Stacy and Nancy.
Brass nodded. He was more than glad that Sara or Lindsay weren't among them. It was going to be hard enough telling them.
"Grissom called me… earlier." Brass shoved his hands in his coat pockets to stop them from quivering. "There was an explosion in the parking lot of The Boulevard."
"Is that why he's not here yet?" Greg questioned. "He's working the case?"
"No, he is…" Brass wet his lips. "He stayed behind for something else. There are reported to be around ten casualties in that explosion. Two shifts of CSIs are working on the case but it's still shorthanded. The… sheriff would have let Grissom and Sofia leave if… if he didn't suspect that… that…"
"Jim, what is it?" Warrick moved closer. He had never seen the Captain so mortified. The man's coolness could even outrival Grissom's.
Brass breathed to summon strength. "If he didn't suspect that Catherine had been in that explosion." He quickly closed his eyes, knowing that the looks on the others' faces would be too much for him to bear.
"What?" Greg murmured harshly after a long moment of silence. He strode up to Brass and took the man by his shoulders. "It's a joke, right? You are kidding… right? Right? Tell me you are kidding." He choked. "Tell me you are kidding!"
"Wait… you said that they suspect." Nick struggled to form words. "What do you mean? As in, they are not sure, right? She could very well be on her way… here… yeah, they are not sure. It could be a big mistake."
"Grissom called Catherine, both in her cell and her at her house. They didn't want to but Vartann and his men unofficially broke into her house. Her suitcases are still by the door. She isn't home. She never got on her plane. And there's an eyewitness who saw her…" A cry was battling inside Brass. "Who saw her in the blast. They even got her… credit card."
"It could mean nothing… it could mean absolutely nothing." Warrick stated vehemently. "Even Grissom can make mistakes… we all make mistakes."
Nancy, who had been standing shell-shocked at the news, looked up and her gaze fell directly on the stairs.
"Oh shit!" She exclaimed. Everyone glanced up her way and then followed her line of vision. When he saw what she saw, Nick found his pulse drop to nothing.
There standing on the stairs, watching them, listening to everything they said, was Sara.
Brass had made a career on quick action. In his line of work, one second of indecision could cost someone a life. But right then, he felt as if he was suspended in a perpetual state of indecision. Seeing Sara on the stairs, having little doubt that she had heard everything, he just wanted to escape and pretend none of this was happening.
"Sara…" He saw Wendy walk up to the brunette.
Sara was standing immobile. Her knuckles were white against the banister she gripped so firmly.
Wendy slowly reached out a hand. Sara's hand was cool on touch. Her eyes were so vacant; she could very well have been staring into nothing. Her lips were tightly sealed together. Her chest heaved with every labored breath she took.
"Sara." Wendy tried again. When Sara didn't respond, she knew she had no other choice. She shook Sara's hand, slowly at first but gradually heightened the intensity.
Sara finally turned to give her a blank look.
Everyone held their breaths. None of them were really sure what they were expecting from Sara. Hell, none of them knew what they should be expecting from themselves. The news had stunned them all to the degree where their minds and the rest of their bodies had stopped being in sync.
"We should get back to Vegas." Sara whispered but her words echoed louder than any shout could. Saying that, she spun around and climbed up the stairs.
Uh oh...
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