SLOW BURN

~ Chapter 12 ~

Stepping clear of the slow moving Murano, Sara watched as Greg pulled the vehicle to a halt and opened all four windows before shutting off the engine, throwing open the driver's door and climbing out with a satisfied smile.

"There you go, good as new!" He cocked his head slightly as his smile widened into a grin. "Well, it will be as soon as everything dries out properly."

"Thanks for that, you're a life saver." Sara stepped in to inspect the freshly-cleaned vehicle as the heavy garage door slid to a close behind them. "I tried everything I could think of to get rid of the smell and it just wasn't budging."

"No problem," Greg assured her. "What's the point of having a friend with a car detailing business if you can't call in a marker every now and then?" Rounding the Nissan, he pulled open first the front and then the rear passenger side doors. "Apparently the reason people have trouble killing the smell when someone throws up in a vehicle is that stomach contents tend to seep between the base of the car seat and the backrest and the only way to deal with it properly is to rip the seats out and make sure that every single inch of them is cleaned before you put them back again." He pointed towards the foot wells. "He steam cleaned the carpeting as well although he did say you'd managed to do a pretty good job."

"I might have been able to do an even better one if it wasn't such tight quarters," Sara patted her protruding belly. "I don't fit into small spaces quite as easily as I used to."

"No," Greg chuckled. "I don't suppose you do." He nodded towards the access door Sara had left slightly ajar. "How's it going?"

"Better." She crossed her fingers. "At least, I hope it is; I managed to get a piece of toast and some milk into Ben and he's now taking a nap while Grissom has been asleep for almost three hours which is the longest he's gone without throwing up since lunchtime yesterday."

"It's strange that he copped the worst of it; especially since he wasn't even near the kid who started it."

"Yeah," Sara concurred. "Compared to his father, Ben got off lightly; he was sick a couple of times yesterday afternoon and last night but I think the main thing for him now is catching up on all the sleep he lost whereas Grissom seems to have had the lot - headache, stomach ache, abdominal pain, sore throat, vomiting." She shrugged. "You name it, and he's experienced it."

"Well, if there's anything I can help you out with, you just have to ask." Greg thought for a moment. "I could do a pharmacy run for you if you like, there's bound to be something-"

"No need," Sara assured him. "I called Helen early this morning for advice and she told me that keeping fluids up is the most important thing I can do at the moment. I did ask her about trying an anti-emetic for Gil but she advised against it unless the vomiting lasts longer than twenty-four hours so I think it's just a case of better out than in but, like I said, he hasn't thrown up for a couple of hours now and the last time Ben did was around eleven o'clock last night so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we're through the worst of it."

Studying her carefully, Greg frowned. "And you're okay?"

"Yep, I feel absolutely fine," she smiled reassuringly. "Eating and drinking perfectly normally and, while I could, no doubt, do with a little more sleep than I managed to get last night, I actually feel pretty energetic."

"Maybe the baby's boosting your immunity."

"I don't think so," Sara shook her head. "From what I've read, the mother's immune system is actually lowered slightly during pregnancy." She shrugged. "I guess I've just been lucky." She glanced at her watch. "Hey, would you be able to help me out with something else before you go?" She gestured over her shoulder towards the house. "It won't take long, I promise."

"Think it's safe?" Greg asked only half jokingly. "I'd hate to be the next one to come down with whatever the hell it is."

"It's a virus, Greg and I'm sure you'll be fine." Rolling her eyes, Sara turned towards the doorway. "Now, come on, I just want your thoughts on something, that's all."

Following her past the family room and kitchen, Greg was surprised at just how quiet the large house was; the few times he'd been there since they'd moved in, the place had been full of the noise of Ben playing or the contractor's men going about their various projects but now there was nothing but the sound of their footsteps as Sara led him from one end of the building to the other. She turned slightly and placed her finger over her lips in a shushing motion as they approached the closest of the open bedroom doors and, peeking in, Greg smiled at the sight of a tousle-haired Ben dressed in Spiderman pajamas sound asleep on the bed within.

"He looks like he's sleeping well," he whispered as they both cleared the doorway.

"He is, thankfully." Leading him into the next room, Sara moved to the very center and came to a stop. "If he can get another couple of hours of that, I think he'll feel a whole lot better when he wakes up."

Nodding slowly, Greg glanced around the near-empty room he was now standing in and then at the drop cloth, paint cans and brushes that all sat together against the far wall. "You bought me here to paint?"

"No, I bought you here to give me your opinion on the bits I painted," Sara told him with a happy smile. "This, in case you haven't already guessed, is going to be the baby's room and I spent what little free time I had this morning experimenting with paint samples." She pointed to the three large rectangles of color that now graced the wall opposite the window. "So, now I'm looking for opinions."

"Okay." Surprised by the request, Greg moved closer to the wall and studied first the light cream tone then the pale beige and, finally, the soft sage green colors that she'd chosen. "Still being stubborn about finding out the baby's sex, I see." Looking back over his shoulder, he grinned. "You do know it makes it easier for people to buy gifts for the baby if they know whether they're shopping for a boy or a girl, right?"

"It would make it much easier for the parents too," Sara countered. "But, for now, we don't want to know; we both like the idea of it being a surprise." She cocked her chin at the wall. "So, which one do you like?"

"I don't know…" Staring back at the three colors, Greg gnawed at a thumbnail as he thought. "Do you have a theme in mind; you know, clowns, teddy bears, that sort of thing?"

I've seen a wall decal online that I'd love to have in here," she offered. "Two adult owls and three little owls sitting together in a tree." She thought for a moment. "It's a silhouette though so it'll go with any of those colors."

"Doesn't that mean you'll have to have another kid?" he teased.

"It's a decal, Greg, not a blueprint; just because I like something that has five owls in it doesn't mean I'm going to plan my family around it." She narrowed her eyes. "Now, pick a color."

"Can I try something first?" Both eyebrows rose in question.

That depends entirely upon what it is, Sara answered warily.

"It's okay, it won't hurt." Holding his open hand out, he nodded towards her abdomen. "May I?"

Taken aback, she stepped slightly away. "What are you going to do?"

"Trust me, Sara." Greg chuckled at her reticence. "I just want to try something, that's all."

Pressing his hand lightly against the swell of her stomach, he closed his eyes, an expression of deep concentration on his face and stood perfectly still. Sara watched him carefully, still unsure exactly what it was he was trying to achieve until, a handful of seconds later, both eyes blinked open and his mouth quirked up into a satisfied grin. "Why did you choose those paint colors?"

"The first two because they were about as neutral as I could get, I suppose and the green simply because I liked it." She shrugged. "If I don't use it in here, I think it'll go in the guest room; it's fresh and clean looking but it's also very serene and calming."

"Use it in here," he said with utter conviction as he nodded towards her belly. "My guess is she'll love it just like her mother does."

"You think it's a girl?"

"I'm no expert but yeah," Greg nodded. "The thing with the hand is something Nana Olaf showed me years ago; she said she could speak to an unborn baby with her mind and, as she spoke, she'd get a picture of the child forming in her head." He shrugged self-consciously. "I've never really tried it myself but I have some of her talents so I thought I'd give it a go and I could see her, Sara, I could see your baby."

"And what was Nana Olaf's success rate?" Unable to keep the scepticism from her voice, Sara narrowed her eyes as she watched her younger friend. "Fifty/fifty by any chance?"

"That's something I'm not entirely sure of," he confessed with a sheepish smile. "I was about fifteen at the time and the last thing on my mind was learning about my grandmother's prenatal talents but I definitely saw a baby, Sara and it was, without a doubt, a little girl."

"No offence, Greg but I think it's going to take something a little more definitive to actually convince me that your right." She grinned. "Especially since I'm pretty sure it's a boy. Mind you, since Grissom keeps reminding me that I better not get too stuck on that idea in case it's wrong, I have the sneaking suspicion he'd probably be quite happy if you were right." She nodded. "I could see him with a daughter."

"And you?"

"I don't know; I just can't really picture myself having a little girl." She grinned and shook her head. "Can you imagine me at ballet classes?"

The sudden sound of a ring tone sounded in the room and Greg hurriedly fumbled his cell phone from his pocket.

"Wow," he commented dryly as he punched the flashing green handset symbol to silence the sound. "I had absolutely no idea that ballet was compulsory." He smirked as he raised the phone to his ear. "Sanders."

Silence fell as he listened to the caller and, watching him closely, Sara guessed that whatever it was he was hearing was something he'd really rather not. She could hear the faint drone of the caller's voice but couldn't make out what was being said although Greg's occasional curt nods underlined her assumption that it wasn't particularly welcome news.

"Okay…" Raising his free hand, Greg checked the time on his watch. "I can be there in about twenty minutes but, until I am, keep everyone away from the scene, alright? It's going to be easier to work out if it really is him if everything is left untouched. " He listened and nodded again as he ran his hand through his hair. "Okay, thanks; I'll see you then."

He jabbed his finger at the phone's keypad, exhaled noisily and then shoved the handset back into his pocket.

"It looks like our guy is back."

"Really," Sara winced at the news. "Damn, it's been so long since the last victim; I was hoping he'd moved on."

"You and me both." Greg sighed heavily. "A woman called 911 this morning to report her daughter missing; apparently she was meeting up with some friends at a bar last night, walked outside to get some fresh air around eleven thirty and hasn't been seen since. Her friends figured she'd gone home early and didn't particularly worry about it but her car was located half an hour ago still in the bar's parking lot with what looks like the contents of her purse scattered on the ground beside it and a check of PD's night logs shows another car was reported stolen from the same lot a little after midnight." He locked eyes with Sara. "Sound familiar?"

"Too familiar," she confirmed. "It looks like he's up to his old tricks." She gestured towards the bedroom door. "You'd better get going."

"Yeah, I'd better." Walking back down the hallway, he jiggled his car keys in his hand as he neared the front door. "Want me to call you with whatever I find?"

"Only if it turns out that we're wrong and it isn't him." Trailing after him, Sara silently hoped for everyone's sake that it wasn't. "If it is, we're not going to be able to do anything further until she shows up again and, going on past experience, that's not going to be for at least three days."

"So, if we're right, you're not going to be curious about what I find at the scene?"

"Not particularly," Sara answered truthfully. "I'll catch up with everything when I'm back on Tuesday night."

"You know…" Greg's lips curling up into a wry grin. "I remember a time when Sara Sidle would have dropped everything – even if it was her downtime – and turned up at any crime scene that had a chance of being linked to hers."

"Well that's when I had different priorities." Reaching past him, she pulled the heavy front door open. "My family comes first now and, no matter how interesting or intriguing the case is, the job is a distant second."

"I've noticed." Greg commented as he looked out towards his car parked by the curb. "And you know what? Comparing the two, I think I like this Sara better than the other one."

"So do I, Greg." Standing proudly in the doorway of her family's new home, Sara grinned happily. "So do I"

The stupid bitch had no one to blame but herself.

Staring out through the smears and streaks that marred the window beside him, Zephyr made a conscious effort to appear calm and untroubled to his fellow passengers as he seethed inwardly at the woman who'd had the nerve to spoil his carefully crafted plan. Without her interference he'd have been on his way by now but, instead, he had to make his way back to the house to spend, what was now going to be, a wasted day before he could head out again tonight in the hope of finally being able to get his latest idea underway.

He tugged the bill of his baseball cap further down to obscure his features even more than it already did. He hated public transport with a passion; in a car he had anonymity but it was impossible to hide a six foot six inch frame on a bus and the last thing he wanted to do in public was draw any more attention to himself than he had to.

He rubbed his hands up and down against the faded fabric of his denim jeans and ran through the final moments that he'd spent in the stolen Toyota Camry he'd left just half an hour ago in the outer reaches of one of the Cannery Casino's parking lots. Knowing that the area would be covered by security cameras, he'd wiped the sedan's interior down as thoroughly as he could before climbing out and standing with a deliberate slouch as he ran the rag in his hand over all parts of the driver's door that he could have conceivably touched before slamming it shut and walking away. Unsure of just when he'd be out of the cameras sights, he'd kept up the slump pretence as he'd exited the lot and crossed East Craig Road to North Lawrence where he'd then straightened up again before hurrying his way along Mendenhall Drive to Losee Road and the bus route north that would eventually get him home.

As for the woman, he'd made sure that she'd be found some time before the end of the week, and he'd also made sure that the person he'd chosen to discover her would get just as big a surprise by her sudden and unexpected appearance as he had.

A/N: Thank you SylvieT :)