A/N: While the team are working on a double homicide, Nick's girlfriend makes an appearance and an incident takes place. Kinda casefic.
Disclaimer (so I don't get sued): I don't own anything. All rights reserved.
Story Notes: Set around Season 9.
- CSI: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION -
Heads turned as they saw the explosion from the garage. The two CSIs lay on the ground, disoriented and feeling nauseous. Someone called in the bomb squad, while another alerted the other people on the other levels of the building. Becca had been going to ask the CSIs for advice when she witnessed the scene. Greg and Riley passed out on the ground, covered in ash and dust.
Greg drowsily sat up, looking at the evidence that sat untouched in the corner with the lids on. They'd been smart enough to keep everything they collected from being contaminated, which was good on their part because it meant it could still be of use to the investigation. He blinked rapidly, in attempt to clear the blurring of his sight. It proved to work as soon enough his sight cleared up a lot better.
Beside him, still lay his co-worker that seemed to have taken the more dangerous hit for them both. Greg knew that she had been the one to push him out of the way of the explosion, but had his safety come at the expense of hers? It was unclear. He reached for her arm and lightly jogged it. Nothing.
Catherine, Nick and Ray had all come down as soon as they heard what happened. Becca went over to the older CSIs and told them what she had seen on her way there. While Catherine talked to Nick's.. girlfriend, he and Langston rushed over to check on their injured colleagues. Greg was still in a daze, and upset that Riley wasn't waking up.
"Riles, come on!"
Riley's eyes were shut. Her chest was still and she was bleeding from multiple gashes and cuts on her face and around her neck area. Ray checked for a pulse and eventually, he found one. The blonde was alive but unconscious. "Is she alive?" Sanders questioned the elder men worriedly. "She's alive."
"How did this happen?"
"Riley.. she- uh- she saved my life. The evidence.. from the car is over there. Riley got the pictures of the bomb that was in the trunk before it detonated."
Nick went over to the evidence boxes and checked them. Inside, they both contained many pieces of evidence and their cameras. The CSI checked through the camera roll towards the end and that's when he found the pictures of the bomb. Greg wasn't lying. It was smart. That made it a lot easier to find out how the explosion was caused and who put that in there. "There's pictures on here."
CSI Willows told a patrol officer to take the 'witness' away and joined the rest of her team. "So you and Riley were processing the car when she found a timed bomb. She warns you, takes pictures and grabs the evidence before you two run out?" Greg nodded, staring at his unconscious partner. He wanted her to be okay. That she would wake up, and yet, he still couldn't be completely hopeful. She'd taken a nasty amount of impact for him. Something he would never be able to thank her for.
The ambulance had taken some time to arrive, but as soon as it did, both CSIs were on their way to the hospital. That left the remaining three to carry on with what they had started. Dayshift had been called in to help them with the case, while they looked into the explosion part of the case. Greg and Riley had gotten hurt doing their jobs and the rest of the team knew that they had to find their killer before any other incidents took place.
None of the three could believe what had happened. "Do you think the killer knew we would be investigating the double homicide?" "Possibly. That or the bomb was made by someone else and meant for the victims, but they'd been killed before they could get blown up." Catherine sighed, and as did Langston. Nick had gone to talk to Ashley about what she saw along with Brass leaving the two older members of the team to try and figure out how this happened.
Catherine observed the garage, trying to see if anything looked out of place or unfamiliar. "Adams saved Greg and suffered more impact from the explosion than he did, which would indicate that the explosion went outwards as opposed to up." Ray didn't say anything and nodded.
"Adams is a great CSI. I hired her on my own accord and when I heard what happened, I had to check it out." Ecklie said.
Willows pointed to the garage. "Greg has a concussion and Riley.. she's not too stable."
"Oh God. You're going to find out who did this?"
"It's what we do." Ray shrugged.
In the waiting area of the Crime Lab, Nick was talking to his girlfriend about the incident. He needed to know what she saw. "Ash, what did you see?"
"Nicky, I was going to ask your friend.. Greg?.. for some directions and I'd seen him in the garage earlier so it seemed like a good idea, but I saw them laying on the ground. Bloody and beaten. He tried to wake the blonde up but she wouldn't wake up. He immediately became a little distressed when she didn't, reasonably. Then you guys came."
Becca knew that Riley remembered her from when they went to college together. They studied Criminal Law at the same time. She was quite hurt seeing Riley in a state like that, and even Greg's demise had affected her. There was something in his eyes that gave her a warm impression. One she liked. Trusted. Working for internal affairs, Ashley knew all about these things but had never once actually witnessed it. And it was worse than she could've ever imagined.
The older CSI hopelessly trying to wake up his partner while all she did was lie still. It was painful to watch. "Did you touch either of them?" "No. I waited for proper assistance." Nick didn't know if that was good or bad. As much as it was great that the evidence was conclusive and aligned with her story, although, part of him wouldn't have minded if Becca had checked for a pulse on either and called 911 sooner.
"How did the explosion look?"
"Internal. The impact was definitely more prone to going sideways than upwards. They got flung awfully violently."
"..You could've attended to them sooner. Riley's suffered severe head trauma and Greg's still concussed. The truth is.. it's not good. We were already trying to solve a homicide, and now.. this. I don't blame you for what happened to them.. but you need to think more as a concerned bystander rather than an internal affairs officer."
The intervention was interrupted by Catherine who came in with a worried look on her face. "Nicky, we need you to go over the evidence they collected from the car." "Ok."
He left Ashley where she was and followed his boss out of the room. "What's wrong?"
"I'm going to see Riley. I'll let you know if anything's happened."
"Ok."