Title: Stalked - Chapter 10
Disclaimer: Yeah, like I need the responsibility of not destroying these characters. Right. Trust me, if they were mine, you'd probably hate me - because CSI would turn into GSR. So no, I don't own them.
Author's note: Boy, am I ever sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. I believe I agreed to blame it on the heat... 110 degrees folks. Tis Hot. One more chapter to go, hopefully it won't take so long to get it posted this time. Please review, I love reviews. So you + review (equals) Me loving you! Anyways, I'll let you get to it now... oh! After of course I make sure you know how much I appreciate having Sol as my faithful Beta, she rocks ya'll. I'm serious.
Greg watched as Grissom helped Sara from the car before leading her into the hospital. He fought against the urge to follow them in, knowing full well that she was safe with him, but at the same time needing to make sure.
Instead, he slipped into the driver's seat and drove away from the doors. Two minutes later he was parked in the lot. He flipped his phone opened and dialed.
"Stokes."
"Nicky..." His voice cracked again. "We uh, we found Sara."
Silence answered him.
"Nick, she's ok."
Greg heard the relief as the other man spoke. "Oh thank God." Words seemed to elude him as he stuttered before finally giving up.
"She's pretty banged up, but - she's going to be ok."
He heard Catherine in the background before Nick spoke again, this time not to him. "She's ok. Sara's alive."
Three seconds later, Catherine's voice floated over the lines at him. "Where is she? God, where's Grissom? No, that's a stupid question; of course he's with her. Where else would he be? We're coming. How is she? Is she hurt?" She stopped and took a breath. "Someone's going to have to process the scene. Did the bomb go off? We probably shouldn't process it, hell; we shouldn't even be processing this scene... I'll call Ecklie, see if he can get a few of the day people out there...and here... Where was she? Did you get Nitilian?" Another pause, longer this time. "Where are my keys? Nick, did you take the keys?" A million thoughts seemed to be running through her head.
She tried to continue but Greg interrupted her with a genuine laugh. "Jeez Catherine, you ramble when you're excited. We're at Desert Palms. I'll fill you in when you get here." He grinned into the phone. "She's going to want to see you guys. Don't forget Warrick, he's still at the lab."
Catherine's relieved chuckle was her first response, followed shortly by a deep breath. "As soon as Nick hands over the keys, we'll be on our way."
Greg folded his phone and turned his face toward the sky. The sun hadn't seemed this bright or this warm in weeks. He ran his hands over his face and through his hair before covering the distance between the parking lot and the front door.
A nurse pushed the wheelchair down the noisy hallway to an examination room. As they disappeared around a corner Grissom finally sat down in one of the hard plastic chairs. He had been asked to wait in the hall, and he wasn't doing such a good job. This was the first time since the cabin he'd taken his eyes off her for more then a couple minutes.
He sat, then he stood, then he paced. It wasn't that he wasn't a patient man; he just needed to be able to see her. He had just sat down again when Greg appeared.
"Coffee?" He offered Grissom a styrofoam cup with the hospital's logo printed on the side.
"Thanks." Something to keep his hands busy. He took too large of a drink and grimaced as it burned his tongue.
"It's hot Grissom." Greg was watching him with an amusement that Grissom had almost missed over the last two weeks.
"Thanks for the warning." His tone was sarcastic, normal. He shook his head lightly, before glancing back up. "I need to go outside and call Catherine..." He made to stand up.
"Already did. They're coming."
"Good." He looked over to the seat next to him. "Sit Greg, you've earned a break."
He hesitated only a moment before sitting next to Grissom. He wasn't quite sure what to say or how to say it, so he just leaned back against the plastic seat and stared down into his coffee.
They sat like that for almost fifteen minutes before Greg couldn't take the silence anymore and spoke up. "I found my handcuff keys."
Grissom looked over and saw the humor dancing in the other mans eyes. Part of him wanted to smack him for kidding around, another part wanted to thank him for continuing to be his everyday annoying self. Instead he just raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"
Greg blushed, he cheeks turning a light pink. "They were, uh, in my pocket."
Grissom narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth to reprimand him for being so idiotic, but instead he just smiled. Greg looked shocked when a low chuckle escaped Grissom's lips. He was about to comment when Catherine raced around the corner like her hair was on fire, followed closely by Nick and Warrick.
"Grissom! Greg! Where is she?"
"She's back in the examination room." Grissom stood and used the hand not holding the coffee to stop Catherine from taking off down the hall. "She'll be done soon. Then you can see her."
He looked from Warrick to Nick. "Who's processing the scenes?"
"Ecklie acted human for once and told us to come see our friend. He put O'Neil and Sophia on the house and Brooks and Kellie on the cabin." Nick spoke up.
"Are the - " Was all Grissom got out before Nick interrupted him.
"They're good. They're not going to miss anything."
Grissom suddenly felt awkward, standing in the hallway surrounded by these people he had started assuming were his friends. In fact, everyone looked like they felt a little awkward at that moment; unsure of what to say, of how to act.
They weren't here in the CSI capacity this time; they were here as more than colleagues, even. This time they were here as friends. For as long as they had been working together, as good of friends one was with another, one on one; for the whole group to be standing here was foreign to them all.
Finally Warrick broke their silent circle when he stepped back and laughed.
Catherine looked at him like she'd missed the punch line of a silent joke. "What?"
Warrick grinned, his eyes still shining with laughter. "Relief?"
She rolled her eyes at him but didn't fight the small smile tugging across her lips. She tilted her head back and shook it. "Let's sit down." She moved to the row of chairs and settled into one. One by one the boys took a seat on either side of her. "So, fill us in. We want details." She crossed her arms over her chest and looked from Grissom to Greg.
Grissom looked at Greg with a serious expression on his face. "Greg did good. However, we may need to buy him one of those big koosh-ball key chains for his handcuff keys."
Everyone looked confused as Greg busted out laughing. "Oh man. Grissom just said 'koosh ball'."
Nick looked from Warrick to Catherine. "Is it just me, or is this the single strangest conversation we've ever had?"
They were just finishing with the details of the investigation when Brass walked through the doors. Grissom looked up and frowned at the seriousness on his face. "What is it?"
Brass moved directly in front of the group before he spoke. "I think we have your bad guy."
As one the team was on their feet.
"Where?"
"How?"
"In custody?"
"Really?"
"Yes!"
Their voices chorused down the hallway as one. Brass smiled. "We put a flag on his credit card, he was attempting to board a plane to Mexico. They detained him at the airport and I've got a unit on their way to pick him up now."
The doctor came around the corner then interrupting further questions and for the moment everyone pushed thoughts of Nitlinan to the back of their minds.
Grissom found his words first. "How is she?"
The doctor extended a hand. "I'm Dr. Hewlet, I'll be in charge of Miss Sidle's care while she's here. Dr. Grissom, I assume?"
Grissom nodded. "Yes. Can you tell me how she's doing?"
"Can I speak to you in private Dr. Grissom?"
Grissom looked over his shoulder at his friends. "I'll be right back."
He turned back to the Doctor and followed him down the hall to an office. "She's ok, right?" He frowned.
"Sara is going to be fine. Physically at least." He motioned for Grissom to take seat.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"She seems to have - detached herself from her abduction. She talks about it like it didn't happen to her, giving details like she would if she was describing someone else's attack. She's either really strong Dr. Grissom, or she's in denial."
Grissom's hand found his eyes and he tried to rub away the dull ache that was forming there. "Probably a little bit of both. When can I see her?"
"I'd first like to discuss her injuries with you. You say he's had her for a couple weeks?"
"Yeah."
"She's lucky. She's got a couple bruised ribs, a deep laceration on her thigh, a pretty bad sprain to her ankle, and you've seen the bruising and cuts to her face. Other then that..." He trailed off, suddenly uncharacteristically hesitant for a doctor.
Grissom caught on to what he was trying to say. "He didn't rape her."
"No, as far as we can tell, he didn't. It is possible that he could have, during the first couple of days, those injuries would have had time to heal. But she says he didn't. I'm hoping she wouldn't lie about that."
Grissom shook his head. "No, not Sara. She'd tell you."
Dr. Hewlet stood and Grissom followed suit. "A nurse is stitching up her leg, but follow me, she's been asking for you."
Grissom's heart kicked up a notch as he walked out of the office after the doctor. As they reached Sara's room, he stopped.
Hewlet looked back at him with sympathy written all over his face. "I never get used to this part, you know? Even when you're sure that they're going to be ok - it's still nerve wracking for the friends and family the first time they get a really good look at what's happened."
Grissom nodded. "The moment it becomes real."
Hewlet knocked on the door, and Sara's quiet voice floated back. "Come in."
As the door swung open Grissom braced himself. He'd seen her at the cabin, he'd watched her the whole way to the hospital, but he had yet to allow his mind to take inventory of her injuries.
His first thought when he saw her was how vulnerable she looked. Broken even. He didn't care what the doctor said, one look at her and he knew she wasn't strong, nor was she in denial. She was just scared, plain and simple. He had to fight against his every urge to take the quick steps into the room, pull her into his arms and make sure she was ok.
"Grissom." Her voice was raw and shaky.
"Sara." He knew his voice gave away all those emotions he'd tried to keep at bay.
When she held out one hand, he didn't hesitate to cross the room and grasp it. She smiled weakly. "I'm ok Grissom." Who was comforting whom? He must look worse then he thought.
"Are you?" With his free hand he pulled the bedside chair closer to the bed and sat down.
Again she flashed the weak smile he was beginning to realize was fake. "I'm not in a thousand pieces scattered across the desert, so yeah, I'd define myself as being fine."
Grissom opted not to pressure her anymore, or to point out the lack of humor in her statement. If sarcasm was how she wanted to deal with it for the moment, he wasn't going to stop her. "There's a whole group of people waiting outside to see you. You think you're up for that?"
She smiled again, still weak but genuine this time. "Yeah."
Grissom looked over at the doctor still standing by the door. "Is that ok?"
Hewlet spoke up for the first time since entering the room. "Yes, but just two at a time and keep it short. Alright?"
Sara looked over as though noticing him for the first time. "When can I go home?"
"We'd like to keep you here overnight for observation, get one of our in-house psychologists down here to talk to you before you leave."
"I'd really just like to go home." She leaned her head back against the pillow, closed her eyes, and sighed. "I hate hospitals."
"In the morning Miss Sidle. We'll try to get you discharged first thing." He pushed the door open. "I'll be back to check on you in a few hours. Try and get some sleep."
Alone with Sara, all Grissom could do was look at her. Her eyes were still closed and for a moment all the tension was wiped off her face. He let his eyes fall from her face and quickly scan what he could see of the rest of her. Her arms were covered in small bruises and scrapes, and her foot was elevated off the bed by two pillows.
He felt her squeeze his hand and looked up to find her watching him. He cleared his throat and stood up. "I'll go get the guys. Who first?"
"Flip a coin." She pulled her hand free. "Will you come back?"
Reaching down he tucked a strand of hair behind her ears, careful of the bruising. "I'm not leaving."
Greg stopped outside Sara's hospital door and turned to Nick. "What do we say?"
Nick slung his arm around Greg's shoulders and smiled at him. "You'll think of something. Just don't say 'Glad you didn't get blown up.' I don't think that would go over so well."
Greg pulled away and punched his arm lightly. "I'm not an idiot."
"Whatever you say Greg." He pushed open the door and stepped inside. "Hey Sara!"
"Nicky!" She didn't have to fake her enthusiasm. She held out her arms for a hug.
As he pulled her gently to him he whispered in her ear. "I'm glad you're back. We've missed you."
She pulled away and he saw the unshed tears in her eyes. "I was afraid you didn't."
He smiled. "How could we not? You're our friend. We almost went crazy missing you so bad." He re-tucked the strand of hair behind her ear. "Some of us more then others." He looked over his shoulder at Greg, who was standing by the door shuffling his feet.
"Come here Greg." Sara held out her arms again.
With a smile that lit up his whole face Greg walked toward the bed. He stopped beside her and Nick moved out of his way.
He moved to hug her and stopped. "I don't want to hurt you..."
"The only thing that would hurt me is if you refused to give me a hug." She grabbed his arm and pulled him into her. "See? No pain."
He laughed and pulled away. "Did I ever tell you how much I love you?" His eyes were bright with humor.
"Nah, but I get the idea."
Nick reached around Greg to grasp Sara's hand. "Your doctor gave us strict instructions to let you rest. And there's still a few more people anxious to see you with their own eyes."
"You just got here!" She protested.
"We'll come see you tomorrow - ok?"
She sighed. "Alright."
Greg eased off the edge of the bed and followed Nick to the door. "Take care of yourself ok?"
Sara answered with a mock salute. "Yes Sir."
With an eye roll and a shake of his head he let the door fall shut behind him.
Catherine strode into the room like she'd done it a hundred times before. "Sara! Gosh girl, it's good to see you!" She walked over and seated herself at the edge of the bed, leaning in to give Sara a quick squeeze.
Sara smiled as she pulled away. "Good to see you haven't changed Cath."
"And you haven't lost your sense of humor."
"Where's Warrick?"
"Right here." The door swung open and he stepped in. "Apparently Catherine couldn't wait for me to get done in the bathroom." He grinned and held up his hands. "Don't worry, I washed."
"Good to know." Sara cocked an eyebrow at him and he laughed.
He walked toward the bed and dropped a quick kiss on her forehead before settling into the chair. "I know you need your rest, but I just wanted to see for myself that you were ok."
"I wish everyone would stop saying that. I'm a big girl, I think I know when I need rest." She rolled her eyes.
"Tomorrow is going to be a long day. I'd rest while they were forcing it on you." Catherine's tight smile did nothing to hide the truth in her statement.
"Who's going to be questioning me?" Sara's question came out in a dull rush.
"I don't know for sure. Probably someone from PD's day shift. They would have had less interaction with you, meaning their questions and your answers will be more honest and to the point."
Sara closed her eyes. "Wonderful."
Catherine stood. "It's going to be ok Sara. Might not be easy - but you've got friends. And we've got your back. Ok?"
Warrick patted her hand as he stood. "This isn't something you're going to have to go through alone, girl. Trust me on that one."
She smiled and nodded at them. "I know. Thank you."
"Anytime." Catherine angled her head to the clock above the door. "Our five minutes are up, we'd better get going before your doctor brings in the night club bouncers to throw us out."
Sara nodded and settled herself back into the pillows, the small smile falling from her lips as the door clicked shut behind them. She didn't want to be here. And more importantly, she didn't want to be here alone. Not yet.
By the power of some small miracle, Sara had managed to fall asleep. When she eased her eyes open again she was aware of a presence in the room, and she turned her head to the side to determine whose gaze she could feel.
"Hey." Grissom's voice interrupted her thought process before she could determine whose form was slouched in the chair.
"Hey yourself. How long have I been asleep?"
"Not long enough. Did I wake you?"
"No. I'm glad you're here." She extended a hand and was momentarily surprised when he took it without hesitation for the second time that day.
"Jim stopped in about twenty minutes ago." He stopped and sighed. "But he had to get back to the station. They're bringing him in for interrogation."
Sara didn't need to be told who he meant by 'him'. "They found him?"
"Yeah. Right after they brought you here... we didn't want to say anything until we were sure it was the right guy."
"I'm surprised you're still here..."
"Yeah. So am I, but I wanted you to know we have him. And I wanted you to hear it from me."
"So you are going then?"
"Unless you want me to stay."
She squeezed his hand tightly. "Just... just stay with me until I fall asleep again?" Her words were said in an almost whisper, like she was ashamed of not wanting to be alone.
"Of course." He slid the chair closer and rested his gaze on her face as her eyes fluttered closed. "Sleep Sara. I'll stay."
And he did.
Nity had said nothing more then asked for a lawyer in the last twenty minutes. Needless to say, this was not part of his plan. And he was angry. Apparently he'd underestimated the talent of the Vegas PD.
But the worst part of it was that nobody would tell him if Sara was still alive. And apart from asking outright, and by doing so confessing; there was no way he could find out. The criminal in him hoped that they hadn't found her, hoped that she was dead and gone so that she couldn't identify him, couldn't testify against him.
But the other part of him; the man, the most human element in him, wanted her to be alive. He wanted her to be safe and surrounded by people that cared about her. And it drove him crazy not knowing.
The detective that had initially tried to question him had said his name was Brass. Nity had recognized him before he had even closed the door behind him. He was that cop who was at a good number of Sara's scenes with her. Great. Another 'friend'.
He had been very vague about what Nity was being charged with, even though he was fairly certain that he had a right to know. If it was murder - he'd know if she was dead.
"You know what for. We'll discuss it at greater length when your lawyer arrives," had been all he was told before being left alone in this interrogation room with just the guard standing at the door.
Nity was about to give in and ask the guard about Sara when the door swung open and Brass walked back in. He met Nity's eyes with a hard stare. "Your lawyer is here. Let the games begin."
A man Nity had never seen before stepped in behind him and shut the door. "Mr. Bergsten, my name is Raymond Bloomsere. I'm your court appointed attorney, and I'm advising you not to say anything."
"Well, it might help if I knew why I was here." Nity leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms, attempting to look both confused and a little smug.
"Well, for starters - kidnapping and assault on a member of law enforcement." Brass replied as he took the seat across from Nity. "Among other things. Arson, murder, faking your death... would you like me to continue?"
Nity's heart dropped. "Murder? Who did I kill?"
"Your girlfriend - her lover." Brass smiled. "Or maybe your lover and his girlfriend. We haven't worked out all the kinks in that story yet. But trust me, you picked the wrong team of CSI's to mess with. If anyone can get this all cleared up, it's them." Another drawn out pause. "Sara included."
Nity swallowed hard. "S...Sara?"
"Yeah, you remember her. The woman you left tied to a bomb out in the desert?"
Again he felt his stomach crawl its way into his throat. "I - I don't know what you're talking about." She was alive.
"Sure you do. Brunette, about five foot nine...give or take. Legs that go on and on..." Brass scrunched his brow. "She probably gave you a hell of a time while you had her chained up in your basement. Girl's got spunk."
"That's enough Detective Brass. You cannot harass my client like this." Bloomsere spoke up. "Innocent until proven guilty remember?"
"Nah - here in Vegas everyone is guilty until proven innocent." There was a knock at the door and Brass stood up and walked over. He carried on a short whispered conversation with someone on the other side.
Finally he backed away looking annoyed. "Fine. You know you shouldn't be here Gil."
"I know." Grissom walked through the door and took the seat that Brass had been occupying.
Turning to Nity he asked, "Mind if I call you Nity? That's what Sara refers to you as." He crossed his arms over the table. "I know Jim ruined the surprise - I wanted to be here when you found out she was alive. But I had somewhere more important to be. I apologize for that."
"I believe I was just telling him," Nity jerked his thumb toward Brass. "That I don't know what you're talking about."
"Yeah, you do. And I think - I think that you love her as much as you say you do. But let me tell you Nity, I've been to court. I know what kind of hell witnesses, survivors - have to go through when they are forced to testify against the men that hurt them. And I don't want Sara to have to go through that. And if you think about it, I don't think you do either."
"Dr. Grissom!" Nity's lawyer barked. "You are not going to coerce a confession out of my client!"
"Nobody's coercing anything - I'm just stating a fact. It's his decision what he wants to do."
Nity sat back in his chair. "I was wrong." He shook his head. "Six years of watching... how could I possibly have missed it?"
"Mr. Bergsten, I'm telling you as your lawyer to keep your mouth shut." Bloomsere clapped his hand on Nity's shoulder.
"No, no, it's quite alright." He turned back to Grissom with a half smirk. "I might not have given her back had I known she wasn't going to get her heart broken like she broke mine."
His lawyer fell back in his seat defeated. "Can we make a deal?"
Brass spoke up from his position in the corner. "That's up to the DA. But somehow I don't think our friend here is going to be seeing the light of freedom for a long time."
Nity was still staring at Grissom with amazement. "How did you not let yourself love her? How did you hide it from yourself? From me? Hell, from everyone but her?"
"Unlike you Nity, I realized that she was always more important then my own selfish emotions. I knew I couldn't make her happy." The weight of those words pulled on Grissom's heart. "I accepted that she would be happiest without being chained to me... I gave up, I gave in - and I let her go."
Nity sighed. "And now?"
"And now...what?"
"Now that you've let yourself love her? That you've accepted it and gave into it? Will you be able to go back?" Nity frowned. "Or will you do as I asked and let yourself love her in return?"
Grissom stood up. "Nitlinan - what I do or do not feel - that is mine, and you have no right to it. You took her away from me. And by some miracle, you gave her back. But that doesn't mean you're privy to my heart... or hers." He turned toward the door and took three steps away from the table.
"Dr. Grissom... "
Grissom turned around to face Nity again.
"When you break her heart again, make sure to tell her I said 'Told you so.'"
Not giving a response, Grissom turned back toward the door and exited the room.
Brass sat down again in front of him. "Ok, so let's go over this." He slid a tablet of yellow legal paper across to him. "Your statement. I'll question you further when you are finished to fill in the blanks."
Grissom walked into the hospital and directly to Sara's room. It was way after visiting hours and he knew she was probably sound asleep, but the urgent need to see her was turning him into a wreck.
He'd planned on going home and sleeping so he could wake up and come take her home in the morning. But his mind's autopilot had a plan of its own and instead of pulling into his own lot, he'd found himself shutting off the engine outside the hospital.
When he reached her floor, the nurse on duty had just looked at him and nodded. He smiled his thanks and pushed her door open. And there she was, still safe, still alive. That same autopilot had him scooting the chair beside the bed and had her hand in his before he knew what he was doing, but she didn't even stir.
When he rested his cheek against her hand, the events of the day suddenly caught up with him all at once, and he found his eyes dropping closed. Within minutes he was sound asleep. And despite the position he was sitting in, it was the best sleep he'd had in weeks. No nightmares plagued his rest, no dreams made his heart race. She was safe now, and his subconscious was subdued.
This isn't the end - one more chapter I think.
And just because I can -sobs- I have been hearing these horrible horrible rumors that WP shaved his beard. PROTEST! AHHH!
Sorry - I love the dimples, I do I do, but I've become verdy attached to that beard. He CANNOT rid himself of it! Noooooooooo!
Ok. End Rant.