So sorry about the wait on an update… I kind of wanted to give myself some space from the story, to get a better feeling for Sara's reactions in this chapter.

Chapter Fifteen

Sara sprayed Luminal over the leather interior of the car, it glowed purple, proving blood trace on the backseats of the red Porsche that had been brought into the lab's garage for her to process that night. She spent a lot of time processing items from the field without actually investigating any crime scenes, sometime after shift she'd drive over to take a look at where the objects had been, get a better feel for the atmosphere and surroundings. She wasn't expected to know who had killed who, but she felt it gave her a better idea of how to handle her evidence. It would be fair to say she barely slept, ate takeout more often than not, and was easily working 70 hours weeks, paid or not.

Her supervisor enjoyed being 'in the action' which meant he caught the bad guys, and Sara did the paperwork, but she was grateful for the opportunity still. She loved her job. Sara had reached CSI level 3 status a year ago, beating many of the people that had been hired before her. She was proud of herself, but ached for someone to bounce ideas off of, whether it be about sociology, or the latest episode of The X-Files. The people she worked with at the lab were nice, but they kept themselves to themselves, and therefore Sara did the same.

She pulled her gloves from her hands as she climbed out of the car, placing the gloves in a sealed bag in case they would need inspecting for trace evidence later in the case. She glanced at the clock on the wall, it read 5am. She had two hours to go till the end of her shift.

"Sara," Jane, one of the other CSI 3s that worked the Graveyard shift, popped her head around the garage door, "Thomas wants to see you in his office."

Sara nodded in acknowledgment of Jane's words, and headed out of the garage, handing her evidence from the car into Trace, slightly nervous of the idea of Thomas, her shift supervisor, wanting a word with her. She only ever really spoke to anyone, including him, at case handouts at the start of shifts, when he's simply tell her to 'wait for his evidence to come in'. Heading down the winding corridors of the lab, she eventually reached his office door, and knocked three times.

"Come in." he called.

Sara pushed the wooden door open. Thomas' office was clean, but very small, full of bookcases and an old desk, a couple of wooden chairs. The lab lacked funding, and Thomas had put every penny he'd managed to get hold of into technology, rather than furnishings. She respected him for that. Taking a seat in front of his desk, she met his eyes as he stopped shuffling through the mess of papers on his desk.

"I just got a phone call about you," he started, "from the lab in Las Vegas."

"Oh." Sara knew that's where Grissom had been working; she assumed he was still there. It had been two years since his letter to her, she'd never responded, it had like he'd torn out her heart and ripped it into a million pieces, she was still fragile from it, still hurt, but she knew why he'd done it. He was trying to do what was best for her – she didn't agree with it, she still wished every night she went home to her empty studio flat that he was there, but she didn't hate him. Her heart was surging at the mention of the Vegas lab. Was it Grissom? What did he want?

"The shift supervisor on Graveyard shift…"

It's Grissom. It's Grissom.

"He's having an issue with one of his member of staff. He wants you to investigate it," Thomas paused, "He asked specifically for you."

Sara remained silent, she didn't want to put her foot in it, it may compromise her whole work at the San Francisco lab that the man she'd slept with those years ago had been the one to put in a good word for her, that pretty much for her this job.

"Gilbert Grissom. He came to me before I hired you, told me about how intelligent you were, that I should hire you immediately. You went to one of his seminars?"

Sara nodded.

"Well, it's only for a couple of days, and it is investigating a member of their team, rather than a crime in the field… but seems how he suggested you to me in the first place, I think the San Francisco lab owes him. If you want to go, that is?"

She didn't expect a question to the posed to her, and certainly not one of this magnitude. Grissom wanted her to go to the Vegas lab, he'd asked for her… to see her again, to work with him. Sara felt as though her whole body was torn with the decision before her. Could she face him after everything? What if he only caused her more heartache?

"Well, I've said yes," Thomas grinned, "You need a break from this lab, go and see what Vegas have. I know you'd never take a proper holiday, so think of this as it," he paused, noticing her seriousness, "I can call him back and decline if you'd prefer."

"No." it slipped from her lips before she'd even thought about it. Her heart had decided.

"Go on then," he smiled, "go home, pack a bag, get the next flight to Vegas, book a hotel. Stick it all on expenses, Sara." He winked at her.

"Thanks, Tom." She rose from her seat, quickly.

"Go on! Get out of here!" he laughed, waving her off.

Sara couldn't help but rush to the locker room, filling her rucksack with items she may need in Vegas – her camera, her notebook, her CSI jacket. Slinging her rucksack over her shoulder, she drove home to pack for her trip.