A/N : Again, all my gratitude goes to Danie, who's really doing a wonderful job with the translation, and to you all, guys!! Thank you SO so much for all the amazing reviews and comments. You're just making my days, no kidding :)

Category: Romance/Angst/Action

Pairing : GSR

Raiting : T

Disclaimer : 'CSI' and all its characters belong to Anthony Zuiker, CBS and Alliance Atlantis. No copyright infringement is intended.

Spoilers : Up to the end of Season 5 (the GSR wasn't canon when I wrote this fic )

SUMMARY : When a new serial killer comes to Vegas, Sara has no choice but to go back to her past… GSR, WIP

Deadly Neglect

Chapter Four

"Are you okay? Holding on?"

Sara smiled at James, but didn't answer. What else could she do but hold on? Lock herself in her apartment? Weep? No. That wasn't what she did. She had to move, to act. She had to fight the guilt that had begun eating at her earlier and which was now slowly consuming her. Why should she feel guilty?

Because I'm in part responsible for the death of several people.

The usual 'Ifs' resonated in her mind. If she had made more of an effort to find Patrick… If she had tried to understand his problems when they were kids… If she hadn't forgotten him… But these 'Ifs' didn't solve anything; they only emphasized her regrets.

She suspected that James felt the same way. The fact that he was dragging on a cigarette was a good indication of it. James only smoked when he was frustrated, stressed, nervous, or frightened. And tonight, he likely felt a mixture of all those things. When he'd said twenty minutes earlier that he needed some air, Sara had watched him leave feeling very much the same way.

"You can go too," Grissom had gently told her. "I have to go talk to Ecklie."

She had followed James outside and surprised him lighting a cigarette.

Avoiding his question, she half-jokingly, half-seriously said, "You know that smoking will kill you."

James shrugged and slowly exhaled. "In light of how rarely I fill my vital organs with tar, statistically I'm more likely to be murdered by a serial killer than to die from lung cancer."

Despite the cheekiness of his response, he couldn't hide his frustration behind the sarcasm. Sara doubted he had planned to add to her distress, nonetheless, that was the result as she froze, a ghastly shiver traveling up her spine.

He could kill us. He could kill us both.

Noting her milky white complexion, James flicked his cigarette to the ground and drew her into a comforting hug. "I'm sorry, Lya," he murmured in her ear. "I shouldn't have said that."

Surrounded by the warmth of his arms, Sara felt herself relax, but she couldn't shake her anxiety. She turned her face into his shoulder. "What are we going to do, Jamy?"

He strengthened his hold on her and gently kissed her hair. "I can promise you that we'll do everything in our power to nab him before he kills again."

'Before he kills us,' she thought.

"Ahem… Excuse me."

The two friends lifted their heads and turned their gaze on the new arrival. Grissom was standing in the doorway, watching them with a strange expression on his face. Almost as a reflex, Sara tore out of James' arms and wiped the moisture off her cheek. She didn't dare look directly at Grissom as he approached them.

"I… uh… talked to Ecklie," he finally said, and only then did Sara look up, meeting his gaze.

As usual, he'd already hidden his feelings, and while that would have normally frustrated her, she was too distraught over the dangerous situation they were in to let her boss's behavior get to her. Still, she couldn't miss the strange light in Grissom's eyes when he looked at James.

"I explained the situation to him," he continued. "He was skeptical at first, but the evidence finally convinced him. He wants to solve this before news of it spreads. He's concerned about how it would affect the reputation of the lab."

This didn't surprise Sara. There was nothing more important to Ecklie than his job and the reputation of the lab. He'd astonished her once when Nick was kidnapped by using every possible means to find him.

"He's authorized me to put two more people on the case. I'll get Catherine and Warrick to help. Ecklie will transfer someone from days to help Nick and Greg with the rest of the workload until we close this case."

Sara wanted to ask why Ecklie hadn't assigned the entire team to the case given that her life was now in danger, but she dismissed the question. It was hardly the time to question the animosity that existed between her and the assistant director, on top of which, she suspected that had this happened last year, he would have told her to deal with it herself. This was an improvement…

"Okay," she finally said. "What's the plan?"

"I called everyone back for an emergency meeting. I'm also waiting for the dayshift CSI to get here."

"You don't have to wait any longer, Gil," came a female voice behind them.

Sara didn't have to turn around to know whose voice it was, but she did anyway. Sofia Curtis. What awful thing could she have done in this lifetime to deserve this? Other than forget a childhood friend. She'd never killed anyone, had never stolen anything; she paid her taxes, worked hard, then what? It wasn't enough that her former best friend was a serial killer and would probably try to kill her as well, Sofia Curtis had to come stick her nose in her business!

I am cursed.

She drew on every ounce of self-control she possessed. Keep your cool. You don't have to smile at her—but don't cry either. Look at her like she's a walking piece of trash if you must, but remain calm.

But Sofia wasn't paying attention to Sara; her eyes were on someone else, behind her, a small annoying smile playing on her lips.

"Good evening, Sofia," she heard Grissom say, a note of surprise in his voice which he quickly masked, as usual.

"Given the time, I think you mean good morning," she countered, her smile widening.

Sara's jaw clenched further and she looked away, refusing to see any more.

"Uh… you already know Sara," said Grissom. "This is James MacDouglas from the FBI office in LA. He's here to help."

"Good morning." James greeted her politely but without an ounce of friendliness. Normally much more cordial, Sara figured he'd picked up on her feelings toward the other woman and responded in kind.

"Welcome to Las Vegas," Sofia replied.

Sara closed her eyes for a moment and then looked at James. "See you in the conference room," she said evenly and then, without so much as a glance in Grissom's direction, pushed on the door and went inside.

Sara was again careful to avoid his gaze when she joined them in the conference room a few minutes later. Gil would have been lying if he'd pretended not to understand the reason behind the distance she was putting between them. But he had to admit that he was equally uncomfortable.

It never occurred to him that Ecklie would send Sofia. The case and the danger Sara found herself in had been preoccupying him all night so that when he talked to Ecklie, he wasn't thinking about Sofia or the fact that she was a member of day shift, thus a potential candidate to help Nick and Greg. Her sudden and unexpected appearance, not to mention finding himself in the same room with the woman he was sleeping with and the woman who'd always had an astonishing emotional hold on him, was toying with his concentration.

Sara wasn't the last to arrive. Warrick and Greg had yet to show, but the rest of the team including MacDouglas and Sofia were there. Ecklie was also present.

Warrick finally walked in with Greg in tow and apologized for being late. "We were following a lead…you know what that's like."

Gil nodded, and immediately launched into his briefing. "First of all, thank you all for coming on such short notice. I know this is unusual, but as it turns out, the case Sara and I are working is much more complicated than we anticipated and it touches us personally.

The CSIs exchanged intrigued looks; some worried, but Sara kept her eyes downcast.

"In order to solve this case as quickly as possible, we need to do a team reassignment," Gil continued. "Warrick and Catherine, you'll work with us. Nick and Greg, Sofia will be helping you with the rest of the workload."

Gil noticed the surprised looks; Warrick looked decidedly uncomfortable.

"Uh…Grissom, I know you don't like us to question your decisions in these situations, and I'm really not trying to negotiate, but we're at a critical stage in the store robbery/murder. If you're not going to pull everyone off their case, couldn't you arrange it so I keep mine?"

Warrick was right. He didn't appreciate him questioning his decision, and call it what he wanted, he was negotiating with him. He started to answer, but Sofia cut him off.

"He's right, Grissom. Warrick should continue working his case with Nick and Greg and I could help you. I prefer a challenge anyway."

Okay, this wasn't good. It was bad. His gaze slid over to Sara and he found her looking back at him. She stared as though pleading with him to do something.

"Sofia, I know you're a very good CSI, but in this case I'd rather—"

"I think it's an excellent idea," interrupted Ecklie. "As you said yourself, Gil, this case is personal; having someone not so directly involved on it would be beneficial. Brown, you'll stay with Sanders and Stokes. Willows and Curtis, you're going to help Grissom, Sidle and Agent MacDouglas. Get to work."

With that he left them in stunned silence.

This is very bad, thought Gil, and the beginnings of a migraine pounding his skull seemed a presage of worse things to come.

When Ecklie left the room, Sara had to control an urge to pound her head on the table. How could this have happened? The last two people she wanted to share her personal problems with were Catherine and Sofia.

She'd never really gotten along with Catherine. They'd gone through periods of quiet indifference, but had also had some pretty charged moments. Their 'quarrel' last year, which had landed her in Ecklie's office and led to a suspension, hadn't helped their relationship. Sara later realized that she had overreacted but she couldn't help it. Domestic abuse cases always put her on edge, and that one was no exception. As she'd told Ecklie in no uncertain terms, she had not apologized to Catherine, but she hadn't tried to take anything back either. Their relationship in the past months had been somewhat friendly, but Sara knew that Catherine had never really forgiven her. And for that reason, the prospect of laying a big part of her life bare to her wasn't making her day.

But her aversion to having to reveal her most painful secrets was multiplied by a hundred, no, by a thousand, at the mere thought of Sofia.

During the months they had worked together, Sofia, Greg, Grissom, and her, Sara had made an effort to be friendly toward the other woman, even if it had been difficult. She had to admit that the jealousy she felt whenever Sofia was around Grissom didn't help. She had quickly picked up on the sexual attraction between Grissom and Sofia, and that had deeply hurt at the time. How could she not be hurt when the man she had loved for years was exchanging flirtatious smiles with another woman? When Ecklie brought their team back together, she'd felt relieved. Her work was emotionally draining enough without having to throw heartache into the mix.

She didn't have to dwell on how much more potent her pain had been yesterday when she heard Greg and Warrick speak of Grissom and Sofia as a couple.

So, yeah, to know that that— would be working with her, for the length of this difficult case was making her crazy. She felt like throwing up, or leaving the room just so she wouldn't have to hear another word out of that woman's mouth.

And Sofia was yapping because for the last few minutes Grissom and James had been briefing her and Catherine on the case. Sara was no help. She hadn't uttered a word since the beginning of the meeting, limiting her participation to nodding when she felt a confirmation of facts was necessary.

She abhorred feeling this emotionally weak.

"We'll split up," Grissom said when they'd concluded their briefing and all questions had been answered. "Catherine and Sofia, I want you to go back to the crime scene and look for anything we may have missed. Meanwhile, Sara, MacDouglas, and I will try to learn more about Patrick Miller."

Sara watched in horror as Sofia opened her mouth to protest, but a pointed look from Grissom discouraged her from speaking her mind. She would have thanked him, silently, if yesterday's anger hadn't resurfaced.

"Okay," said Catherine as she rose to her feet. "We'll call you if we find anything."

Half a minute later, Catherine and Sofia had left and Sara was beginning to feel better. She had felt, and hated, the women's prying eyes on her as Grissom and James explained the situation. She hoped that they'd have enough time to get it all out behind her back so she wouldn't have to suffer their curious glances on their return.

A hand on her shoulder startled her out of her thoughts. It was James, staring at her, his gaze full of worry.

"Are you feeling okay?"

She managed a smile. "Yes," she answered unsteadily. "It's all a bit…much," she admitted with a vague hand gesture at the turn of events.

"Shift ends in an hour and a half," said Grissom softly. "I'll understand if you want to go home and get some rest."

Sara looked up at him. He also looked worried. I'm not worried, I'm concerned. Those words, spoken a long time ago, came back to her and her heart clenched anew. Yes, she could see that he was concerned about her. But why? Why did it have to be this way? Why did you do this to me? she wanted to shout. But she wouldn't. She hated him, but unfortunately, she also loved him.

She shook her head in refusal. "You already let me leave early yesterday; it will end up being a problem for you. Anyway, I'm too involved in this investigation to take off," she told him in a tone that would brook no argument.

He looked at her for a long moment and then finally nodded. "Very well. We need a computer."

A few minutes later, in the computer room, James was pounding on the keyboard. "I already researched Patrick in LA." He connected to the Internet and retrieved a file. A newspaper page loaded on the screen. The headline read, 'Teenager brutally murders step-father.'

Sara skimmed through the article… Ted Evans was brutally murdered last night… had just been released from jail after serving a five-year sentence for pedophilia… Patrick Miller, his stepson and last victim before his incarceration, has disappeared… Evans' neighbors identified the young man from photographs…

"Ted Evans was incarcerated in November 1983," James explained. "He was released in December 1988, ten days before Patrick turned eighteen. He was murdered a week after his release. His neighbors saw Patrick leave the building with his clothes covered in blood and called the cops. We have no doubt that Patrick wanted people to know that he'd committed the murder since he left his wallet and his IDs at the scene. The police put out an APB, but he was never found, and he hasn't resurfaced since. Some think he was killed, others think he changed his identity and left the country. Given what we know now, I'm leaning toward the latter."

Sara was surprised by this information. She was not aware that her childhood friend had committed murder when he was seventeen. James opened another page in the file. It contained information about Patrick's childhood.

"I finally found out where he was sent when he was thirteen. No wonder we couldn't find him, Sara. He moved every month. 'Unwilling to adapt' is what the psychologists said. They also noted Patrick's high IQ and his ability to learn. Unfortunately, he didn't use his abilities to try to assimilate into society. He was always running away; the last time was in December 1988 when Ted Evans was released from prison. He then disappeared from the face of the Earth."

This information was far from reassuring. They now knew that Patrick was in Las Vegas, but who was he?

Judy had always taken her receptionist job seriously, and she was proud to work in one of the best labs in the country. She was professional and attentive to callers. Of course, some of these callers had a sick sense of humor, but she'd learned to quickly identify a prank call. At times, the calls were strange and disturbing, and she liked those the least. But she had to handle them. It was her job after all.

"Las Vegas Crime Lab, how may I help you?"

She frowned as she listened to the caller. This was no hoax; what she heard was turning her blood to ice. Obeying the mystery caller's demands, she grabbed her pen and started to write.

Gil removed his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose in an attempt to ease his migraine. But of course, it wouldn't.

What MacDouglas had just told them about Patrick Miller was disturbing. This dangerous criminal was running around Las Vegas and they had no way of identifying him. He glanced at his watch. Six-thirty; a half hour from end of shift and all he wanted to do was go home, take his pills, and sleep. Sleep so he could stop thinking. But at the moment, that wasn't an option.

He was punch-drunk on the events of the last twelve hours. He was no super hero; there were limits to what his nerves could take and he had already reached his emotional quota for the next month.

Someone obviously disagreed.

A soft knock had all three of them turning toward the door. One look at Judy's pale complexion told Gil that something had happened.

"What is it, Judy?"

Eyes riveted on Sara, she slowly approached him and handed him a piece of paper. "I just received an anonymous call, sir. He asked me to write this down and give it to you."

Gil frowned and grasped the note. Slipping on his glasses, he read aloud:

"Mr. Grissom,

I hope you enjoyed the corpse I left you. She was a pleasant woman and very nice to talk to. Well, to be honest, I did most of the talking. All she did was sob. But I can guarantee that when her turn comes, Sara won't be sobbing.

Give her my love. James, too while you're at it. I would tell them myself, but I doubt they're that interested in what became of me. Or should I say, they weren't interested? Something tells me that I am suddenly very much on their minds. Tell them for me that they'll know everything they want to know in due time.

After that, you can pick up their bloody bodies.

Pat."

Slowly, Gil lifted his head and his eyes locked with Sara's.

TBC