ACT ONE
FADE IN:
EXT. LAS VEGAS (STOCK)
To establish.
INT. SUNRISE HOSPITAL - HALL - NIGHT
Nick steps off the elevator and follows the INTENSIVE CARE UNIT signs. He turns into the room.
INT. SUNRISE HOSPITAL - ICU - NIGHT
Seven rooms in a circle are centered around the nurse's station, giving them a full view of every patient. Two of the rooms are ICU Containment rooms. Doctor IAN Cooper and the four nurses in protective clothing are in the one that Nick's victim is in.
Ian spots Nick and motions him to wait. He steps into a clean area and it takes him a few minutes to strip down to his scrubs and come out.
NICK
What's wrong with her? What is she contagious with?
IAN
Scabies.
NICK
Dang it. I need to talk to her. Hook me up with
some scrubs.
IAN
Nick, you can't talk to her yet.
NICK
Come on, Ian. She's a serial killer's seventh
victim, and the first one alive.
Ian shook his head.
IAN
You don't understand, Nick. She has a fungus
under her esophagus. She won't talk, it hurts
too much.
NICK
She could write the answers.
He shakes his head.
IAN
She's suffering atrophy. I'm surprised she's
even able to keep her eyes open as weak as
she is. But I did send her blood work and
clothes to the lab.
NICK
Thanks. When will she be out of contamination?
IAN
Two to three days. As severe as the infestation
is on her, it's going to take several treatments
of Permethrin before the CDC will clear her.
NICK
I can't wait that long. Could I at least get a DNA
sample and fingerprints?
Ian doesn't agree right away. He looks at the room, then slowly nods.
IAN
Yes, but be gentle. Even the lightest touch
makes her hurt and she's lost most of her
fingernails.
NICK
I will be. Thanks.
INT. SUNRISE HOSPITAL - ICU 4 - NIGHT
Nick comes into the room wearing protective gear. He's carrying a swab with a plastic cap, inkpad, and ten card. He walks up to the bed, smiling at the victim even though he's wearing a mask.
The victim is awake, but stares at a picture on the wall.
NICK
I don't know your name. I'm sorry.
The woman's eyes slowly focus on him.
NICK (CONT'D)
My name's Nick Stokes. I'm a criminalist. I'm
going to collect some DNA and your fingerprints
to see if we can't find out who you are.
She slowly opens her mouth.
NICK (CONT'D)
Now how did you know I was going to take
DNA from there?
He swipes the inside of her cheek. She closes her mouth, watching him cap it.
NICK (CONT'D)
Now the fingerprints. It won't hurt, I promise.
Nick picks up one of her fingers. He notices marks and tracks across her skin where scabies have tunneled. Nick turns his attention back to his work.
INT. CSI BUILDING - LAYOUT ROOM - NIGHT
Nick is in the smallest layout room in the building. The light table takes up most of it. There is a whiteboard on one end; a lightboard covers the back wall, and a phone. Nick's laptop sits on the table amid case files and scattered photographs.
More photographs hang on the wall lightboards. Nick stands back against the table, staring at the photographs of the recent victim. CATHERINE comes in, standing next to him. They stare together for a few minutes.
CATHERINE
She's the latest one?
Nick nods.
CATHERINE (CONT'D)
Heard she's still alive?
NICK
If you call being in excruciating pain, starving,
and so weak that the most you can do is blink
alive, then yes.
Catherine frowns at him, but he doesn't notice. She turns, finds the recent file, and reads through it.
CATHERINE
Anything different with this one? Other than
she's alive.
NICK
Unlike the other victims who died with an
assortment of expensive foods in their
stomach, she only had bread, water, and
potatoes. She was infected with scabies like
the one before her, but there have been no
reports from the hospitals of anyone coming in
to be treated. Unfortunately the killer isn't that
stupid. She also was envenomed from a
Phoneutria fera.
CATHERINE
What the heck is that?
NICK
Brazilian Wandering Spider and they aren't
native to Nevada or the U.S.
CATHERINE
Was it injected?
Nick shrugs.
NICK
I couldn't tell a needle mark from a sore,
abrasion or lesion.
Catherine sets the file aside.
CATHERINE
She won't tell you about the kidnapper?
NICK
She can't talk and she doesn't have the
strength to write. I get my first good lead -- a
live victim -- and I can't find the guy because
he hurt her so bad she can't talk or write.
The two look back when the door opens. WENDY steps in with a smile and holding some papers.
WENDY
Prints and DNA from your Jane Doe gave her a
name. Natalie Emma Greer.
NICK
She has a record?
WENDY
Not exactly.
Wendy pulls out a piece of paper, handing it to him.
NICK
She consulted for the Missoula, Montana
Police Department for six years and left a year ago.
He looks at her.
NICK (CONT'D)
Did you get a current address?
WENDY
I have something better.
She holds up a missing person's report, and then hands him the remaining papers.
WENDY (CONT'D)
Her husband filed a missing persons report five
months ago, and it's missing the photo, but has
a current address.
NICK
Thanks, Wendy.
She leaves. Nick starts reading the report.
CATHERINE
Did you know that Henry can read lips? He
said he picked it up his first year in college
when he was stuck at the back of lecture halls.
He's almost as good as Catherine was.
NICK
(distracted)
Okay.
CATHERINE
Nick.
He looks up at her.
CATHERINE (CONT'D)
Henry could help you talk to your victim.
Nick looks at her.
NICK
How?
CATHERINE
(scolding)
You didn't hear anything I just said, did you?
Take Henry. He can help you.
NICK
How?
She leaves him confused.
EXT. SUBURBIA LAS VEGAS - DAY
The streets are clean and trim. Nothing about Sin City reflects in this neighborhood.
I/E. CSI VEHICLE - DAY
Nick navigates around children playing in the street. In the passenger seat Henry watches in silence. He's not nervous, just fascinated by this side of the job. One he's never actually been a part of. Nick pulls up in front of a house, and then turns to Henry.
NICK
You say nothing. Just observe, then we're
going to the hospital. And maybe you can tell
me why Catherine said to bring you.
HENRY
Oh. I could tell you now.
NICK
Okay. Hit me.
Henry smiles.
HENRY
But then, Catherine said you had to figure it
out, didn't she?
Nick's eyes narrow.
NICK
Wait in the car.
HENRY
Okay.
Nick gets out and starts up the drive. He stops and turns. Henry is watching something else. Nick walks back and opens the passenger door, getting his attention.
NICK
Have you ever been to an interview before?
HENRY
Not outside of the lab, no.
Nick waves him to follow. Henry happily follows.
EXT. GREER HOME - DAY
The two get up and walk up to the door. Nick taps the doorbell. TRISTAN, a boy in his early teens opens the door. He has several spider bites on his arms and wears a Chilean Rose Tarantula on his head.
HENRY
That's a beautiful Chilean Rose.
Nick glances at him. He was supposed to stay quiet.
TRISTAN
Thanks. My mom's not here.
NICK
Is your father home?
TRISTAN
Yeah, but he doesn't know anything about spiders.
NICK
You think we're here to talk about spiders?
TRISTAN
When we lived in Missoula the police came all
the time to talk to her about spiders. Sometimes
bugs, but usually spiders. She knew a lot about
spiders. She's not coming back though.
NICK
She's not?
He shook his head.
JOSEPH Greer comes around the corner wiping yellow goo off a knife.
JOSEPH
Can I help you?
NICK
I'm Nick Stokes, I'm a criminalist with the Las
Vegas crime lab. Are you Joseph Greer?
JOSEPH
Yes.
NICK
Do you have a few moments?
Joseph hands the knife to Tristan.
JOSEPH
Feed the rest of the tarantulas, but stay away
from Olivia and Horton. They've been in bad
moods all week.
Joseph waits until Tristan has disappeared into the house to step onto the porch and close the door.
JOSEPH (CONT'D)
My wife is dead, isn't she?
NICK
Why do you think that?
JOSEPH
She worked with the police in Missoula and
had to tell families their loved one has been
found, dead, somewhere. I know what it
looks like.
NICK
We can't discuss the case yet. On the night
your wife, Natalie, disappeared, did you two
have an argument?
JOSEPH
No. Why?
NICK
Your report said she went with her friend Dana
to a movie premiere. Did they have an argument?
JOSEPH
No. Dana won tickets from a radio station and
they were ecstatic to go.
NICK
And Natalie won the backstage pass at the premiere?
JOSEPH
Yes.
NICK
Why did you wait for a day to report Natalie missing?
JOSEPH
I thought she had stayed the night at Dana's
until Dana called looking for her. I didn't know
she was missing until then.
NICK
When she consulted for the Missoula police,
did any of the people she helped convict
threatened her?
JOSEPH
Haven't people you've helped convict threaten you?
Nick nods -- there have been several instances.
NICK
Did anyone in particular stand out?
JOSEPH
Right before we moved she mentioned she
was having trouble with some guy named
John. He was following her everywhere, but
she said the police took care of it for her. Then
I was offered a job in Las Vegas and we
moved. There might have been others, but
Natalie rarely told me about work.
Nick pulls a composite of Natalie out -- the artist has added a little weight. Nick shows it to Joseph.
NICK
Does this look like your wife?
Without hesitation Joseph shakes his head.
NICK (CONT'D)
No?
JOSEPH
No. Is that who you found?
Nick glances at the composition.
NICK
Thank you for your time.
Nick turns to go.
HENRY
Mister Greer, do you have a recent
photograph of your wife?
Nick turns back. Henry disobeying makes him a little angry, but he isn't going to stop him. Yet.
JOSEPH
Yeah.
HENRY
May I look at it?
JOSEPH
Sure. Wait here.
Joseph goes back inside.
NICK
(hushed)
What are you doing?
HENRY
(hushed)
I have a hunch. Can I see if it's right?
NICK
What hunch?
HENRY
I think the composite might be off. It was
something I found in the tissue sample you
gave me.
NICK
What?
HENRY
Well, there's parts of the body that store fat
longer than others. The fat in the tissue was
pretty massive. I think your composite might be
off. Alot off.
Jospeh comes back and holds out a photograph. Nick takes it and compares it to the composite. It's apparent right away Nick's composite is off by a few hundred pounds. But to his trained eye, he can see features in the two that make them the same person.
NICK
May I borrow this?
JOSEPH
I guess.
NICK
Thank you. We'll let you know more when we can.
Joseph wants to argue, but he doesn't. He turns and goes back inside, softly shutting the door. Nick and Henry return to the Denali.
I/E. CSI VEHICLE - DAY
He pulls back onto the street. Henry doesn't speak, just watches the town.
NICK
Thanks Henry. That helped the case a lot.
HENRY
Sure.
NICK
Are you training to be a CSI now?
Henry laughs.
HENRY
I like my lab better. No.
Nick smiles.
NICK
Now come on. Spill it. Why did Catherine say
you could help me talk to my victim?
HENRY
I can read lips.
Nick laughs, amused by what had been an obvious clue the whole time.
NICK
You, Henry, never fail to surprise me.
HENRY
Thanks!
FADE OUT.
END OF ACT ONE