Okay, sorry for having been rude about the reviews lately. Much thanks to those of you who have reveied, I thank you. To those who read this, yet don't review, PLEASE PLEASE review. I would really appreciate your thoughts on it...

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Chapter Six: More Clues and One Left Behind

"Alright," Grissom ordered, onece they had arrived at their destination, "Everyone spread out and search for a way leading down into the cellar... and keep your eyes open..."

It was Brass and another cop that found the double doors, that lay open, revealing an old, soot-blackened stairwell. Cautiously, the CSIs, the detective, and their four officers that had accompanied them decended into the dark that was the old cellar.

Inside wasn't quite as dark. A spotlight hung from the middle of the ceiling, casting an eerie glow onto everything. There was a faint noise, coming from somewhere at the back, but it was hard to tell what it was. Even though the group stopped moving, the sound got louder. Until they realized it was a woman's voice, crying, and repeating one thing over and over again.

"Help me."

"Beth?" Greg said, all of a sudden. He bolted for the source of the voice, and no force on the planet could have stopped him.

"Greg, wait!" Brass told him, but Greg didn't listen.

Greg ran through the room, and to the back. There was a tall, skinny door there, open a crack. The voice was coming from in there. He pushed open the door to reveal another large room. Huddled in the far corner was a slim, long-legged, pale skinned woman, with a delicate face, like a porcelian doll's. Her long black hair, that, when she was standing, reached the floor, was in a heap around her. She kept her left arm crushed against her body. Most likely it was broken.

She looked up when she realized she was being watched. "Greg?" she asked in a shaky voice. She shoved herself to her feet, keeping her arm against herself. She half-ran and half-limped towards Greg, then all but collapsed in his arms, sobbing.

Greg held her up, and let her cry. He heard the others behind him, but didn't turn around. "I don't think any of the others are here," he said. He didn't know why he thought that, but it was just a feeling. The other four were long gone.

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"Elizabeth?" Beth heard her name being said, and she snapped back into the real world. Real world... Ha! She would have rather been in her world that time. She'd had enough of the real world in that place, thank you very much.

"What?" she groaned, looking at her interrogaters. Brass, and Grissom... Greg had introduced her to them months ago...

"We need to know what happened," said Brass.

Beth looked towards the door. She saw Greg pacing back and forth outside. She looked back towards the two men, and said, "What happened? What happened is someone broke into my aparment, and dumped me in a dark room with four other people," she paused, and took a deep breath. She had no reason to be snappy with these men. They were trying to help. "I'm sorry... Like I said, he left me in that room, with the others... There were four different men, that I heard talking... The one who grabbed me was the one in charge... The other three were your run-of-the-mill henchmen. Not to bright, follow any order you give them... When.. When the ring-leader left for a while, the other three came into the room. They were going after the little girl, Summer."

She saw the look that crossed Grissom's face, and knew she had upset him, "But me, Ellie, and Susan stopped them... The other kid, she was still unconcious. I hit one of them, pretty hard.. So they took me instead, after giving Ellie and Susan a good beating... I-... I don't know how long it was before they took me back, but I know that they..." she stopped. Did she really want to say this? Did she really have to? She took another deep breath. She had too. But even knowing that didn't stop her from trembling at the mere thought of it, nor did it stop the tears that wanted to get out. "They raped me. That's all I know. I didn't see their faces... All I remember before being back with the others is hearing the men laugh..."

"Why did they leave you behind?" Grissom asked.

"When the boss got back, he demanded that we be taken outside... I saw it as a chance to get away, so I tried to run. They started shooting at me, and I fell down the stairs. Broke my arm. When they came to see if I was alive or not, the idiots that is, they heard me screaming, and thought that they had shot me... I heard them say that I wouldn't make it, Dumb asses didn't even see me. They just heard me... I heard a car start up, and drive off, and I managed to get to the back of the place, where I figured I'd hide for a while, then try to find someone to help..."

"How were the other girls, the last time you saw them?" Brass asked. Hadn't Ellie introduced herself as "Ellie Brass"? Maybe that explained the overdose of concern in his voice, for a detective.

"Lindsay, the girl who was unconcious for a long while, was fine, except for a bruise across her cheek. Susan was unharmed, until those guys beat her up... then she was all cuts and bruises. Ellie was the same, but she came in with a big gash across her arm... the little one, she had a big cut down her side... someone had bandaged her up, but the bandages were starting to turn red by the time they took us outside. Heard the boss talking about stiching her up...But she was a fighter none the less. All of them were... I was too out of it to try and fight. I only managed to run because that was all that had been on my mind. But the other four, they tore the three henchmen up. They didn't get hurt again, 'cuz the boss was telling 'em not to harm any of us. I think one of them was about ready to ignore the order, when Summer took a good chunk out of his hand... Wailed like banshee."

Outside the room, the rest of the team was listening. All were glad to hear that their loved ones were alive, but none were happy to hear what had gone on. Or what had happened. Greg was like Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde over it all. One second he would be saying how glad he was Beth was back, then the next, without missing a beat, would be spouting off all the horrible things he'd do to the ones who'd raped her... He was starting to get a bit scary, but no one could calm him down.

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"Okay, what do we have?" Sara asked, when the team, minus Greg, was all gathered around a table.

"We know that the other girls are alive and-" Grissom started, but Nick cut him off.

"and biting? She pick up that trick from you or her mother?"

Grissom shook his head, and continued, "anyway, we know they're alive, or were a few hours ago... From the scene we found several shoe-prints in the dust, but nothing that could help us. No prints at the scene. No note, either. There was, however, a small piece of something, that Hodges has confirmed to be a chalkboard. Along with that. we found the chalk to go with it. And we've got the rape kit from Beth..Hodges is runnig that now."

"When Warrick and I went back to the scene," said Catherine, "we found bullet casings. 9mms, and one .50 caliber round. Bobby says it's most likely from a magnum. Also, I went back down into the cellar, and I found one of Lindsay's old school books... One she forgot to return. It was the one from her chemistry class. And it's no use to check for tire imprints in the dirt... We obscured any when we drove up."

"Okay... so a bit of chalk board, chalk, and a-" Brass was saying, before the girl who normally sat at the front desk interuped.

"Um... Excuse me, but I was told to give this to all of you..." she tossed a plain white envelope on the table, and started to try and leave, but Warrick stopped her. "Wait a minute... Did you see the guy who gave this to you?"

"No... Nothing more than his hands... he was wearing gloves. I didn't even look at him..." she turned, and left, looking as if she was frightened they were going to do something to her.

"You know," said Sara, "we need someone at the front who actually looks at who gives her messages... It would be a really big help."

Catherine had already opened the letter, to read it aloud.

My apologies for not leaving behind a note before, but I was in somewhat of a hurry to leave before you got there, and for what happened to Beth. I know she's not dead. Those idiots thought I couldn't hear her screaming down in that basement. As punishment, for first attempting to rape Summer, then raping Beth, and then only adding to insult by lying to me, I've disposed of them. Such a pity. Good help is hard to find these days. But where I've got them now, I think the girls will be easier to handle.

I suggest you get some sleep before you continue your investigation... You've missed some evidence at the basement. Fresh eyes find fresh evidence.

Puzzle Master

Also in the envelope was a photo of three very badly beaten very dead men.

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Greg leaned against the wall, watching Beth. She was curled up in the hotel room bed, arm wrapped in a cast, and wearing one of his t-shirts. Beth hadn't wanted to go back to the apartment. Not that they could have gone anyway. It was still a crime scene. So, to a hotel they'd gone. She still hadn't said anything to him.

He got into bed with her, expecting her to move away from him, but she didn't. She instead, turned over, and snuggled closer to him.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you the other day," said Beth, against his chest, "I shouldn't have..."

"I'm sorry to," said Greg.

"For what?"

"For not switching when you asked...If I had, I'd've been home nights and-"

"He'd've gotten me during the day," Beth interupted, "I give up on that argument." She looked up at him, and gave him a quick kiss. "I thought I'd never get to do that again."

Greg kissed her in reply, but he didn't make it a quick one. That kiss let Beth know just how much Greg Sanders had missed her.

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As much as they hated to, the team had taken the perp's advice. they did need some sleep. Like Greg and Beth, Catherine, Warrick, Grissom, Sara, and Nick had gotten hotel rooms. Brass was the only one who could go home, as he was the only one whose home wasn't a crime scene.

The idea behind even getting a room seemed to have eluded Catherine Brown comepletly, however, for she was pacing back and forth in front of the window, worrying. Warrick was worried too, but he knew that both of them needed to be wide awake if they were going to find Lindsay. But, as said before, that idea had eluded Catherine.

"Catherine, Honey," said Warrick, "Stop. Just get some sleep."

"How am I supposed to sleep after what Beth told us?" she asked, not stopping. She was going to wear a hole in the floor.

"By telling yourself that you'll be able to help Lindsay if you do," Warrick replied, "Come on, you haven't slept since you were working that robbery case, thursday night."

"I wasn't sleeping, I was resting my eyes," she retorted, "I didn't sleep any that-," she stopped when she realized she had fallen into his trap, "Okay, you win..." she sighed, defeated, and got into bed. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow.

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The rain that had recently started pouring down reflected Sara Sidle's mood. She sat on the edge of the bed, staring out the window, through the part in the drapes. She knew Grissom was behind her, staring at her.

"Grissom, either move or talk, one of the two... You're creepy when you stay that still and quiet."

She heard him chuckle, and then move. He sat next to her on the bed, "What're you thinking about?"

"About how much I want to find Summer, and the others," she said, and half-turned to look at him, "and other, random things..."

Grissom took her hand in his, and gave her fingers a squeeze, "We'll find them, Sara."

"I know we'll find them," she replied, "It's the condition we find them in that I'm worried about," she sighed, and added, "I wish I could handle this as calmly as you..."

"No you don't," he said, "And I only keep it together for Summer. Besides, you're doing good." He put a hand to her cheek, leaned forward and kissed her. As always, Sara felt any worries disappear. He had a talent for doing that, and he knew it.

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Nick lay staring up at the ceiling. It felt so strange, not to have Susan nex to him. Like him, she had a night job, so their schedules worked out. He'd gotten so used to having her there, next to him, over the past year and a half that it was difficult to even fathom sleeping.

That was the thing about getting attatched to someone. The moment they were gone, you didn't know what to do. He rolled over in bed, staring at the wall. He could hear someone walking in the room above him, and wished they'd stop. other wise he'd never get to sleep.

Finally, after an hour, or so, his wish was granted, and all was silent.

Perhaps he'd get some sleep after all. One could only hope.

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Brass was the first one back to the lab. He hadn't slept a wink. So, he just drank coffee to help him stay awake... Alot of coffee. God, I'm turning into Sara... He thought. And no sooner had he thought it, than Sara came in, looking grouchy as a wounded bear.

"Where's the coffee?" She grumbled.

"Where it normally is, Darlin' " said a groggy sounding Nick, from behind her.

"Don't let her drink to much of that," Grissom warned, arriving only seconds after Nick.

Greg was next. "Morning," he yawned.

"What're you doing here, Greg?" Brass asked, "You earned some time off. You should be with Beth."

"I would be, if she hadn't all but kicked me out. Said I couldn't stay home until the others were found- Sara save me some coffee!" he cut himself of when he saw Sara heading for the coffee pot.

Remembering what Greg was like with coffee, Brass said, "Gil, I wouldn't worry about Sara... Keep an eye on him."

"The coffee's already being raided?" said Warrick, poking his head in the room.

"Who cares about the coffee," said Catherine, "give me something with alchohol in it, and I'll be happy camper."

Once all of them had their coffee, and were somewhat awake, they sat at the table, to review what they had. Which was: a bit of chalk board, and chalk, 9mm rounds, and one .50 caliber round, and nothing else. It wasn't much to go on, but it was all they had. So, to work they went, trying to put the pieces together. The semen from Beth came back without a match, so there was even more pieces to put together. It wasn't easy...

And they doubted they'd be finding the place any time soon. And with only fourteen hours left, time was quickly running out.