Author's Note: Hopefully everyone has had a smooth transition from summer back into their school life; I for one am pretty grateful to not be in school and have the house to myself again as my brother has returned to school! Major thanks to all those who have reviewed and those who have put this story on their notifications, I don't have the words to adequately express my appreciation. Thank you, and hugs for all. Everyone have a wonderful weekend, and I shall see you all again on Tuesday!

Here's to chapter eight! Hurrah!

"Definite signs of a struggle, Cath."

"Where, Gil?"

"The kitchen mostly, and there is nothing in the bedroom or bathroom."

Catherine's sense of reality came back for a second and she stared at the phone. "Gil? You were in Sara's room? Why would you do that to yourself?"

Grissom was confused. What the hell was she talking about? "Cath, explain, please."

"Gil! You think just because she's missing, it gives you the right to snoop around her room and her privacy? I can't believe you!"

He almost smiled. Catherine, along with the rest of his team, were still not aware of the fact that he and Sara were together, or that they had been for quite some time, and that he was allowed to go anywhere he wanted in her apartment.

"Catherine, I'm sure when I tell her about it, she'll understand."

"Gil…" she started, but he cut her off.

"Cath, can we please get back to the situation at hand?"

She mumbled something incoherently about 'having his head' but retracted her comments back to their missing friend. "Sorry. Okay, well, if you find anything important, bring it back to the lab."

"Will do," he promised, and hung up.

Catherine stared at the phone, hoping that when Sara was found, her completely oblivious friend would get a clue about the brunette who was so obviously in love with him. She would hate to see Sara survive this whole ordeal only to get hurt in the end.

OoOoOoOoO

Grissom walked slowly around the apartment, looking for some type of clue to lead him to Sara. There were different things, things that only someone very close to him would recognize as being his, scattered around the place. A toothbrush in her bathroom, a handful of entomology text books, and his straight razor set to the left of the bathroom sink, but nothing significant to this investigation.

He noticed a cloth lying on the floor, and picked it up between two latex-covered fingers. Sniffing it briefly, he felt fear grip his heart; the sweet smell emitted from the cloth was halothane.

OoOoOoOoO

Catherine hurried by Grissom's empty office on her way to find Brass and Sofia, but also looking for her teammates to let them in on the new developments.

A tinny ringing sound distracted her from her thoughts, and she turned to the source; Grissom's computer. Silently praying that it was just an email inviting him to a lecture in Boston or something, she eased her way into the office and sat down behind the desk. Shaking the mouse to rid the screen of his bug-littered screen saver, she saw that his inbox had been updated with a new email, and it had the same sender as the ones previous to it. Clicking on it apprehensively, it opened to reveal yet another shot of Sara, this time lying on a bed, her eyes closed.

The note accompanying this one read;

Gil, so good to talk to you again. I still have your stupid girlfriend, and we've been having the most delightful discussions. We've been talking about all kinds of things, like those beautiful girls you met on campus, and the similarities between us. If I were you, I would hurry up and get here. I would hate to have to start this little party without you.

Until next time.

There was no signature. Catherine couldn't believe this guy. He was taunting Grissom in such a cruel way… it really wasn't fair to him, to Sara, or to the rest of the team.

But then again, she told herself, life isn't fair.

OoOoOoOoO

This is definitely something significant, Grissom thought angrily, forcefully bagging the cloth. He must have arrived after I left, attacked her when she was vulnerable, in her own home. That stupid son of a bitch, I'll kill him when we find him. Grissom looked around the kitchen again, searching for any other clues to the struggle that had obviously occurred. Finding nothing else, he made a vow to himself, and Sara.

That's it, he told himself. This morning was the last time I'm leaving without her. She can't stay here in this place. She's got to move in with me, she's got to stay with me, forever, no question about it. Surprised by his own determination, but not backing away from it, he headed back down to his car, ready to head back to the lab. He hoped that this small piece of evidence would be the thing to find Sara, but he had learned early on not to put too much faith in hope.

OoOoOoOoO

Sara stared at the door, too afraid to move from the bed, and Grissom's letter still clutched in her trembling hands. He'd left about an hour ago, and still hadn't come back. She was beginning to think that maybe he'd forgotten about her, but that faint flicker of hope died when he walked through the door carrying a medium sized square box. Recognizing it immediately, she felt her heart sink. It was the same type of box that Grissom received miniatures in; she'd seen them at his townhouse and in his office many times.

"What's that?" she asked quietly, feigning confusion.

"A miniature box, Sara," he answered coolly, as if it was obvious. "I have already sent one to Gil, but it has no body in it. Stupid old man probably hasn't even realized it."

"Hey," Sara said, sitting up. "Gil is neither stupid, nor old. Don't ever call him that."

"Ooh, protective much, are we?" he taunted, his eyes gleaming.

"Yeah actually, I am," Sara retorted, her anger fuelling her confidence.

"Whatever. I'm sending him this miniature now, and it's got your tiny little dead doll body in it. I can't wait for his reaction."

She glared at him, not fully able to form words. "You sick bastard," she swore angrily. "Why the hell are you doing this? To me and to Gil? We haven't done anything wrong!"

"I don't care. There were people who hurt me and who did screw me over, but your people did NOTHING to stop it! Now you and Gil and all of your pathetic little friends are going to pay." He moved away from her, and didn't speak another word as he carefully placed the small scene into the box, and headed to the door again. "Next time you see me, Sara, I'll be here to kill you."

to be continued...