Hello friends! I know it's been ages, but my muse finally returned to this story :) I hope some of you are still out there - I promise I won't keep you waiting so long for an update this time!

x X x

She hadn't realised it until a few months after Lindsey was born just how many different types of love there were.

There was the sudden rush of love, the feeling of falling off a cloud. The kind of love that brought butterflies and giggles and rose-tinted glasses.

But then there was the more subtle kind of love – the kind that sneaks up on you.

That's the love that hits you when you least expect it. It can be there for years, lurking just beneath the surface and then – Bam!

Like a Thunderbolt.

That's the kind of love she had for Sara. She hadn't even realised it was there, simmering away quietly, and all of a sudden it was staring her in the face like the most obvious thing in the world.

She couldn't identify when it had started, or where it had come from. But there was denying that it was there .

x X x

Grissom bustled through the corridor, his usually unflappable demeanour in tatters. It had been a long day already and his shift hadn't even started yet.

As one of the senior supervisors, whenever anything major happened within the lab, he was expected to be present to deal with the fallout. He had barely managed to fall asleep for the first time in days, when Ecklie had phoned him and demanded that he get back to the lab immediately for an emergency managers meeting.

Barrelling into the break room, his ungainly entrance disrupted the amiable conversation between the grave and swing teams and they all looked up in curious anticipation.

"Boss?" Nick queried.

"Hi guys," he greeted somewhat breathlessly. "Thanks for coming, I know you're busy. There's just something that Ecklie and I need to let you all know."

"About what?" Catherine asked, intrigued. They had all been summoned via pager, but none had been offered any kind of explanation for the impromptu request.

Before he could answer, Ecklie strolled in himself, looking equally as unsettled as Grissom.

"Thanks for coming, guys." He cleared his throat. "I won't keep you long; I know you all have cases to get back to."

"What's going on, Conrad?" Nick asked, sliding into a seat at the bench beside Warrick.

"There has been a development and I wanted you to hear the known facts from us, before the rumour mill gets hold of it." He explained. "Belinda Bell, the PEAP counsellor, has been suspended."

Catherine, loitering at the back of the room, felt her blood run cold. She was sure that her cheeks were flushing red, but thankfully nobody was looking at her.

"I can't discuss the reasons why at this time," he continued, maintaining his air of well-rehearsed professionalism. "I can only say that we were informed by the hospital where she also works of an internal investigation and have suspended her pending the outcome of that investigation. I am informing you of this to prevent any malicious or incorrect information being spread, and also to provide an opportunity for anyone to come forward if they have any concerns about Belinda that they'd like to raise with us. And of course, I reassure you that a replacement is being sought and their details will be provided as soon as possible, should anybody feel they need PEAP support."

The boys and Sofia shared an ambivalent look between themselves, mostly unfazed by the news, and quickly shrugged it off. Only Greg, who had remained by the coffee pot, was wearing a concerned frown.

"Does anyone have any questions they'd like to ask?" Ecklie continued, not in the least bit surprised when no one piped up. "Good. Well, don't let me keep you from your work."

Suitably dismissed, the teams filed out, with only Greg casting a lingering look over his shoulder as he departed, leaving the supervisors alone.

Catherine remained where she was, gripping the counter behind her for support. Her legs had gone weak and she wasn't sure that she trusted herself to walk to the centre of the room.

"Apologies that you weren't in the meeting earlier," Ecklie began, moving towards her. "But Grissom and I wanted to discuss it with you privately."

"Why?" she asked, hearing her own voice crack.

The two men shared a look, before Grissom took the bait.

"How's Sara doing?"

"She's okay," Catherine answered awkwardly. "She's still very shaken up."

"I understand that she was working with Belinda." Conrad offered, his voice laden with faux concern. "Once we get the new PEAP instated, we can arrange some more sessions for her."

Catherine relaxed a little. They were worried about who was going to support her going forward. That was all. They didn't know that Sara was the reason for Belinda's suspension.

And she was all for the idea of someone else taking over her friend's mental health care.

However, her relief was a little pre-emptive.

"There is another concern." Grissom licked his lips, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "Belinda was suspended for unprofessional conduct with a patient, and Sara was very reluctant to go back to her after the shooting."

"You think there's a connection?" Catherine asked uneasily, trying not to give anything away with her expression.

"We'll need to check either way." Ecklie exhaled. "Someone will have to talk to her and find out whether anything untoward has ever happened. If she makes any allegations, we'll need to open our own investigation."

"I'll talk to her." Catherine jumped in hurriedly. "But, not yet. She's not ready for that kind of conversation just yet."

"No, I imagine not." Ecklie hummed. "Do us a favour, Catherine. When you feel the time is right, broach the subject with her carefully and see how she reacts. The sooner we can establish that nothing happened within the Lab, the sooner we can put this situation to bed."

Catherine nodded, not trusting herself to form words.

If Ecklie was hoping to sweep this under the rug and let the hospital deal with it, he was going to be very disappointed.

x X x

Greg slung his bag over his shoulder as he reached the bottom of the metal staircase leading into the basement parking lot.

Crossing the deserted space, he slipped his cell phone out of his pocket and frowned at the lack of messages. He had texted Sara to make sure she was okay following the revelation about Belinda; but then he supposed it was still early. She might still be asleep.

Tucking it back into his jeans, he instead took out his keys and clicked the button, seeing the lights of his car flash at the far side of the lot.

Reaching the vehicle, he opened the back door and tossed his bag inside with a weary sigh.

Ordinarily, he would go and visit Sara in person, but since she was at Catherine's right now, that didn't seem like a viable option. Hopefully, once she woke up, she'd accept his offer of meeting for lunch and he could catch up with her then. Ideally, without Catherine tagging along as a minder.

Naturally, he was grateful to the blonde for looking out for his best friend, but he really needed to discuss this with her in private.

He slammed the door closed a little too hard and moved to open the driver's door, but his fingertips had barely brushed the cool metal of the handle before he suddenly felt a sharp pain at the back of his skull and found the hard concrete ground rushing towards his face.