DISCLAIMER:Don't own anything associated with the show… I just like playing with the characters in it.
RATING: T – Teen (language and adult issues)
PAIRINGS: GSR & Yo!Bling pre-established in previous fics of this timeline.
SPOILERS: Sequel to "Displacement" and "Transitions"
SUMMARY: Everything is changing around Nick Stokes. Can he deal with it, and how it will affect him in the end?
A/N: Figured I'd put Chapter 2 up to finish setting the stage. Those of you used to my rapid fire postings might be a little frustrated, because this one is a little tougher to write, so I may not be posting as frequently. Please bear with me on this one, but I'm hoping it will be worth it for all concerned.
REVIEWS: Reviews are the way I know if people are enjoying the work or not. So, if you leave one, THANKS! And if not, I hope you found at least a little something to brighten your day, and thanks for taking the time to read.
Chapter 2
21:45 – 2006.12.03
C.S.I. Lab: Autopsy Room
The elevator ride to the Morgue was not a pleasant one for Nick Stokes as Sara questioned his need to confront Grissom about their assignment. Nick knew he should not have taken things as far as he did, but he was bothered by the sinking suspicion he had been left behind for a while now.
He was desperately happy that his friends had settled into their respective relationships, but there was still a part of him that felt jealous of their success in finding happiness. And unfortunately, those feelings seemed to be leeching into his work as well.
He knew in his heart his friends would never let their personal lives destroy their professionalism, but that green-eyed monster had a powerful affect on his mind, and so the doubts remained. However, if he was truly honest with himself, he would have to admit that his feelings of inadequacy were coming from somewhere he rarely liked to dwell. He had been questioning so many things since the day he was abducted, and he was not sure he would ever be able to find the answers to his questions without truly facing those demons.
He was shaken from his inner turmoil when Sara's words finally pierced through his contemplation. "I mean really, Nick… What's gotten into you lately?" Sara asked one of those questions for which he had no answer as they made their way to the Autopsy Room.
"I honestly don't know… Maybe I'm just feelin' like the odd man out, or somethin'," he tried to play off his unrest with a bit of humor.
Sara looked back at him and smirked as they stepped off the elevator and said, "Well, when you figure it out, will you let me know?" She put her hand firmly on his forearm before he could pass her and gave him her most dangerous grin. "Otherwise, I'm just gonna have to beat it out of you."
He smiled and shook his head. "Got it."
When they finally pushed through the doors to the Autopsy Room, they were both surprised to find it empty. Stephanie was usually exactly where she said she would be, so they could only assume something had taken her away from the Morgue. Nick pulled out his phone and then said, "I'll just call upstairs and have her p-…"
Before Nick could finish David came into the room with a body on his gurney. "Hey, guys… Can I help you with something?"
Sara smiled at the man's pleasant demeanor and answered, "We were just looking for Steph, and our DB."
David stopped pushing the gurney, walked over to the table near the slab and retrieved the notebook sitting there. "Well, I passed Stephanie going into the bathroom on the way in, but which DB are you looking for? I might be able to get you started until she gets back."
Nick was able to speak first, "Ah, DB found in the Lost Grin-…"
"Lost Gringo, got it… Multiple GSWs. Unique wound patterns. Atypical signs of exposure." He looked back up from the pad and then continued, "The body's been prepped, so the victims effects have been removed, and I've already collected all the trace." He moved across the room to a small wheeled basket, which he pushed towards to the two CSIs. "I was going to take it up as soon as I got back from the hit and run on Charleston Blvd."
Nick gave the man a quick clap on the back and said, "We can get that for ya, Super Dave. Looks like you got your hands full tonight." Nick gestured at the two bodies present when they arrived and also the one David had just wheeled into the room.
"So, where did you say Steph was at?" Sara was curious as to why the woman was taking so long if she had only gone to the bathroom.
"Standing right behind you."
When they both turned to face the voice, there was more than just a little surprise on their faces to see her looking a little too pale.
"Sorry, but I need to remember not to eat anything Gil gives me to snack on." Her explanation made sense to them both, because they had each lost stomach contents to one of his "tasty protein treats."
"After all these years, you haven't figured that one out yet?" Sara was the first to jump at the chance to tease her about the slip up.
"I've always liked the freeze-dried and the deep fried ones… But he likes to sneak some fresh ones in there sometimes, and those are just…" They could visibly watch her face turn green at the mention of the disgusting bug treats that Grissom was famous for, and for a second Nick thought she was really going to puke. "Okay, let's just not talk about it anymore."
She swallowed hard, and as she made her way back across the room David handed her a paper cup of water to help settle her stomach. She smiled at his kindness and the two continued about their normal routines. Stephanie slipped on the headgear and switched on the microphone as she began to explain. "John Doe, approximately twenty-five to thirty. Weight: two hundred fifteen pounds; height: seventy-one inches. GSW's to the thoracic and cranial regions, approximately thirteen entry wounds on the posterior side and seven exit wounds on the anterior side. X-Rays show three slugs lodged in the skull and one slug firmly resting between the second and third thoracic vertebrae. The remaining two slugs were retrieved when the body was prepped for autopsy and subsequently sent to Ballistics for analysis." She stopped and clicked the button once to pause the recording. "I recognized the wound patterning, but I left the determination up to Ballistics, just to make sure they got a clean and unbiased read."
Nick and Sara leaned in closer to examine the bullet wounds and he tried to figure out what had created that pattern when he had to ask, "So, what did you think it was?"
Stephanie did not get a chance to answer as Sara said, "MAC-10, based on the shot grouping. And at pretty close range if this stippling is any indication."
"You've had some experience with them?" the coroner questioned.
Sara looked up from the body and said through her smile, "Probably from the same place as you." Her knowing look brought a grin to Nick's face and he waited for her to elaborate. "The MAC-10's are a favorite of the Asian gangs in San Francisco."
"Give the lady a prize." Both women got a good laugh at the exchange and Nick once again felt out of place. "So, if you'll notice the mottling of the dermal tissue, and the varying degrees of lividity…" Stephanie waited for them to catch up and turn their attention back to the body before continuing. "The victim also suffered from extreme exposure, which is not really uncommon for that part of the desert, except for the bizarre items we found in the trace elements."
Nick was ready with the question that time. "What kind of stuff?"
She shrugged as she moved across the room to the basket of evidence bags. "Well, it's not often you find pinion matter in the desert." She held up the bag showing needles from a tree and small pollen pods as well.
"Makes me think it was a body dump." Nick said as he pulled the folder from under his arm and leafed through it until he found the page he was looking for to read from it, "And the complete lack of evidence found at the scene would seem to confirm that."
"I wouldn't count on it." David chose that moment to cruise through the room to find a random piece of equipment.
Nick looked up to see the coroner's assistant walking through the room. "Wha'dya mean, Super Dave?"
"Well, they're always getting weird stuff washing into that ravine…" He adjusted his glasses as he dug through a cabinet and once he turned away from it he concluded, "Kind of why the research team is there in the first place."
As quickly as he had appeared, David was gone once again, leaving Nick to process what he had just said, "Yeah, so what kind of research is going on out there, anyway?"
Stephanie had the answer, "Evolution of Desert Erosion."
Nick and Sara both gave her incredulous expressions to meet her answer.
She could only laugh at their reactions as she continued to explain, "The high desert is the easiest place to study the effects of erosion on not only soil, but also the landscape in general. Erosion is a faster process in the desert environment and greatly reduces the time it takes to evaluate its effects, which leads to more effective research." When she could see their continued confusion, she tried to explain it further. "See, it's like a forced experiment, but with all the variables of the real world. You can see the actual reactions of nature to the elements imposing upon it, instead of only being able to recreate specific factors of each element or natural reaction."
Nick looked to Sara and she appeared to understand the concept, so he just nodded and hoped she could explain it to him later. He decided to steer the conversation to something that he could grasp and so he asked, "Okay… So, what's our time of death?"
Stephanie seemed to snap back into the case at hand in an instant, pulled her face shield back down and grabbed her scalpel before answering. "I have no idea."
That caused a laugh from the two CSI's. "I never thought I'd hear you say that." Nick teased and then asked, "So, why can't you give us a TOD?"
"Too much exposure… And that's what's weird." She pulled up one leg and showed them the odd mottling around the back of the left calf. "This is not the kind of thing you see purely from desert climate inversions. It's almost like this guy was flash frozen or something. But whatever it is, it makes getting a realistic time of death impossible." The coroner then made quick work of the Y incision before she added, "Well, for me anyway."
"What do you mean, Steph?" Sara winced as the incision was made, but she was dealing with the sight much easier than she had in the past. Nick realized that she must have been working on her problems with autopsies in the last few months.
"Oh, well, based on the research they're doing, and with the video and stills, I bet the research team would be able to give you a better frame of reference on time of death…" She continued about her work, not stopping to explain herself to them. "Plus they can give you some info on all the soil samples and other matter we found on the body. Hodges won't be able to do much more than give you a generic type of soil, but I bet their people can tell you where it came from, and maybe even help you find the primary scene."
Nick shook his head at the idea and asked, "How could they do that if we're dealing with a body dump?"
Stephanie looked up from her work and gestured for them to look at the victim's back as she pulled the body up to its side, "Right here… Do you see the plant matter in the wound?" They both found what she was referring to and realized that the wound did contain a small amount of what appeared to be pine needles and bark. "According to David, that park also has some mountain areas, which include some stretches of pinion. Might be your primary scene, but either way, it's worth a good look."
Looking to each other, Sara and Nick had to agree that she was right. "Before you put the body back down…" Sara reached for a pair of tweezers from the tray beside the slab and asked, "Can I get a sample of that to take to trace?"
"Beat you to it…" She pointed in the direction of the basket and said, "Collected pieces from each wound and sealed them up. I also made sure David took pictures of each wound, since the previous team didn't get much in the way of evidence collection in any phase of this case."
"Yeah, we heard that already." Sara took the folder from Nick and started looking for something else. "So, is there contact info for the professor in charge of this research team?"
Having already gone back to work, Stephanie answered her off the cuff, "Just call the main number and ask for the head of the geology program. And I'd be prepared for some fun over there."
Nick was intrigued by her comment and asked, "Why's that?"
Shrugging at the question, she responded, "I've just heard some real horror stories about those people. Real hard nosed, no nonsense, and a little caustic from all accounts."
Sara shook her head and asked, "Don't you ever have good news anymore?"