I think I sacrificed quantity for quality in this chapter. It's a shorty, but I still think you guys will like it. Merry Christmas, and ENJOY!
The lamp on the nightstand lit the room in a golden glow, allowing Catherine to stare continuously at the photo envelope that was changing her life even as she sat on her bed. Her mind was racing with everything that it could mean.
The picture that showed Warrick on the porch, talking to the mystery man, was the last one she had seen before she had heard Nick call out to her. She couldn't explain why, but she had hastily stuffed the pictures back in the envelope and slid them into her purse before he was aware that she even had them. He had printed the door of the car, and it wasn't until he had printed above the carved words that he had found anything.
A perfect hand print.
She jumped when her kitten, Sookie, hopped on the bed, her high pitched squeak shattering the silence. She rubbed her head against Catherine's hand, causing her to drop the envelope. The pictures spilled out onto the floor, and she let out a curse. She rubbed the back of Sookie's neck when the kitten continued to rub up against her hand and forearm.
"Why did I agree to let Lindsey bring you home? She doesn't even live here anymore." She stood and bent down to pick up the scattered photos. "I swear, you're gonna be the death of--" She broke off as one of the pictures she had yet to see caught her eye.
In the last picture she had seen, the other man had been facing away from the camera, and she had been unable to see his face. He was slightly heavy set, with gray hair and was wearing a plain dark brown shirt. In the picture that she was staring at now, the person with the camera had moved behind a different bush, and she could now see the gray haired man's face perfectly.
Dammit, what the hell was going on.
Catherine's brain was a jumbled mess as she merged onto Route 160 and sped toward Pahrump. Her heart was racing, and it felt as if the world were spinning around her. None of this could possibly be true. Three full years of mourning the loss of one of the most important people in her life, and she was just now learning that it may have all been a lie? She couldn't think about it. She just had to get to Pahrump. She had a feeling all her questions would be answered there.
Gil blinked at the fading rays of sunlight that were casting a yellow-orange glow onto the bedroom wall. A knock at the door had ripped through the finely woven threads of sleep, and as he cleared them away, he felt his partner stir beside him.
"Mmm... honey? Who's at the door?" she asked lazily.
"I don't know. Go back to sleep and I'll go check."
Sara mumbled a response before lifting the sheets above her head to block out the light.
Smiling, Gil swung his legs to the floor, yawning as he stood and shuffled over to the closet. He grabbed his robe and put in on, then headed out of the bedroom and down the stairs. Another knock at the door caused him to shake his head. Whoever was knocking was very eager. He unlocked the door and was surprised to see a frazzled Catherine Willows when he opened it, her hand raised half way to begin knocking again.
"Hello, Catherine. Good to see you." His smile faded as she continued to glare at him. "What's going on?"
She handed him a photo envelope and stared at him expectantly. "You tell me."