A/N – Okay, I hope you like the chapter. Like I said in earlier chapters, I'm trying to write case files. I'm kind of teaching myself, so… if it sucks, sorry. If you like it, let me know. Thanks to everyone for the kind reviews so far. Keep 'em coming:)
A/N 2 – Here's a stupid piece of trivia. The title for the darn story actually came into existence, because as I was thinking of this story, I was contemplating whether or not I wanted to make chocolate truffles. The only problem with that (besides the fact that it's time consuming, and trying to keep four kids out of it would be a royal pain) is that I'd have to temper the chocolate. Hence… Tempered. Plus, I wanted to write a story about an exhausted, emotionally voided Grissom. A couple of months working doubles seven days a week is liable to make anyone cranky.
Disclaimer – If I write them a little OOC, do I really need to worry about being sued? At that point, they're only names. Okay, maybe I do. Fine. Please don't sue me, I've gotta feed four kids, two dogs, and a husband.
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As Grissom walked down the halls of the lab the next night, reading through the incoming cases, he was getting irritated. Finally have the ability to really sleep and relax, and it looks like I'm going to pull a damn double, he thought to himself, frowning. He held two 419s and a B&E in his hand.
Unfortunately, Greg saw him coming and noticed the frown on his face. Shit, Sara didn't get the message, he thought, and resigned himself to another crappy shift. It wasn't until the men had nearly passed that he heard Grissom's quiet, "Sara says thanks," and saw the quick grin on the older man's face. The scowl came back full force when Grissom glanced back down at the slips in his hand.
As Greg walked down the hall, he smiled to himself. Miracles really did happen.
After a quick stop in his office, Grissom made his way to the break room. Upon entering, he said, "Greg, I'm giving you a solo B&E tonight. Nick, Warrick – I've got a DB in a residence. Vega is on scene already. Catherine, you and I have a DB in an alley off the strip. Brass is waiting for us."
Nick grabbed the paper out of Grissom's hand, and he and Warrick argued their way out of the break room. "No way, man. I've got the address, so I'm driving. Besides, you're just scary." Shaking his head, Grissom looked over at Catherine and said, "I'll meet you in my office in a couple of minutes." Handing her the assignment slip, she headed out.
Alone in the break room, Grissom looked at Greg, until Greg became so uncomfortable, he squirmed. As seconds ticked by slowly, and seconds turned to minutes, Greg's anxiety level increased, forcing him to shift from foot to foot. Grissom just stared at the young CSI, until he felt his point had been made. Finally, Grissom said, "Meet me in DNA," turned, and left the room. Greg stood there for a few heartbeats, knowing that if he ever interfered again, his boss could find many ways to make his life very uncomfortable. Finally finding his legs, Greg rushed after Grissom.
In the DNA lab, Wendy worked on a backlog of DNA samples, while secretly reading a novel under her desk. Only a couple of other people knew she kept a book hidden away for slow days. Unfortunately, it was slow going while she waited for the DNA to run through the equipment, so she was reading when Grissom walked in.
His raised eyebrows at the sight of her snapping the novel closed had her face flushing pink, and she winced. "Grissom. Sir. Grissom," She stammered. Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself, I'm a good employee, and I do a great job here, before continuing more steadily, "I'm waiting on some results. If reading in here is a problem, I can certainly take it to the break room. However, staying in here is often more efficient."
Raising his hand, Grissom said, "It is fine. Actually, I saw your application to take the exams to be a CSI." Looking around the lab, he asked, "Do you have a lot to do tonight?"
"Actually, no," she replied. Using her hand, she pointed to the waiting samples and said, "These are all day shift backlog. I just have to finish the reports for the samples currently in process, and they should be done in another five to ten minutes."
Grissom looked at Greg and quietly asked, "Do you have any problem taking Wendy into the field with you?" Greg smiled, shook his head, and said, "Nope. No problem at all."
When Grissom looked back at Wendy, her face had broken into a grin, and the flush of embarrassment he'd seen earlier was replaced with a look of excitement. "Do you want to observe Greg on a B&E?" he asked. When she laughed "Yes!", Grissom nodded once and left the two of them. On his way out the door, he turned back to warn them, "If anyone comes in with DNA, you may get called back. Be prepared to hightail it back to the lab at any time."
Entering his lab, he found Catherine waiting for him. He'd been hesitant to pair himself with her, knowing she'd likely say something to make him uncomfortable. However, he knew from years of experience that she'd find a way to say it to him anyway. So he bided his time. He didn't have to wait long.
"You look more relaxed," Catherine said in the car. Turning in the passenger seat to look at him a little more clearly, she said, "You look a LOT more rested." Grissom did little more than nod in acknowledgement, but Catherine wasn't satisfied. Huffing out a small breath, she added, "Don't let yourself get that tired again, Gil."
Grabbing their kits, the two senior CSIs made their way to the alley, and under the crime scene tape. Brass met them halfway to the body and gave them the stats.
"The first victim is Allison Trowler. According to her driver's license, she's from Boise, Idaho. The body was checked by the paramedics, but not moved. The second vic is also from Boise, Idaho. His name is James Brickman. He died en route to Desert Palms." Pausing, Brass sighed, and continued, "Her purse looks like it was rifled through, and his wallet was found next to his body."
"Tourists," Catherine stated, frowning. Without another word, Catherine and Grissom set to work collecting evidence.
On the other side of town, Nick and Warrick met Vega at the front door of a typical three bedroom home. The detective didn't need to point them towards the body, as it lay sprawled in the entry way. Quickly, Vega gave them the stats.
"The vic's name is Megan Spears. A neighbor thought she heard yelling, so she called it in. Patrol came in and found the door unlocked. When no one answered, they opened it and found this."
Carefully sidestepping the large pool of blood on the linoleum, Nick and Warrick entered the house. "We've got blood splatter on the wall next to the door." Looking on the inside of the door, he continued, "It looks like the door was shut – the blood splatter continues across it.
Kneeling next to the body, Warrick snapped pictures. Looking up at Nick, he said, "It looks like the jugular was cut."
Nick looked around the entryway again, and placed his kit in the arched doorway to the living room. "If you'll take the body, I'll take the house," he said. At Warrick's absent nod, Nick pulled open his kit and began to work.
Catherine and Grissom made it back to the lab long before Nick and Warrick. Greg beat them there by hours. The B&E had ended up being a case of sheer stupidity on behalf of the person breaking and entering. The suspect had ended up leaving fingerprints absolutely everywhere, including on the hammer used to break the window. After being picked up, Wendy watched through the one-way mirror as Greg presented the evidence to the suspect and his lawyer, and the suspect cracked.
While the bodies were being processed in the morgue, Catherine and Grissom went to the layout room to examine the items they'd logged into evidence. Opening the two brown bags, Catherine pulled out dozens of smaller baggies.
"What does the evidence say," Grissom murmured. Walking around the table, he continued, "Allison Trowler has long blond hair. James Brickman has short dark blond hair. The hair we found on Allison's sweater is nearly black. The handkerchief we found next Brickman's body contains blood. We need to get those to DNA. She carried a small leather purse and wallet. The wallet is empty of everything but her ID. However, there are several pieces of expensive jewelry sitting in there."
Catherine put in, "Anyone after cash would have just taken the whole purse – not just gone through the wallet." Picking up the hair samples, Catherine looked at the clock and said, "Shift ended a couple of hours ago. We still need to wait for the bodies and DNA to come back with results for the hair."
"You're right," Grissom said. Catherine delivered the samples to DNA, then came back and helped Grissom load the evidence into a secured locker. As they parted in the hallway, heading towards their respective offices, Grissom said, "Call it a night. We'll look at it fresh tomorrow."
When Nick and Warrick walked in, they were tired and dragging in bag after bag of evidence. Setting up in another evidence room, they pulled out all of the plastic baggies of evidence.
"Okay, let's do a review," Warrick said. Sighing, he rubbed his eyes, and said, "I'm feeling a bit loopy. Why don't you take it."
"You're not taking the pills, are you?" Nick asked, and Warrick barked a laugh. Sighing once again, Warrick replied, "No. But I'm still having trouble sleeping. The divorce is turning out to be a little harder than I expected." Rubbing his eyes, he quietly said, "Tina's pregnant."
When Nick's eyebrows shot up, he just said, "Okay." Looking back at the evidence table, he began to arrange the plastic baggies, thinking about Warrick's words. "You know, Warrick, why don't we start hanging out more," Nick offered. When Warrick shook his head, Nick continued, "Look, it's not pity. It's friendship. Face it, we used to hang out all the time before you got married."
Warrick leaned back against a counter, and studied the Texan. Nick had always been a good friend to him. However, when he'd been kidnapped, it had terrified Warrick, and if he were being honest with himself, made him pull back from that friendship. Deciding to take the right step this time, Warrick smiled and said, "You know, that actually sounds good."
Looking at the clock, Nick said, "Shift was over hours ago. What do you say we get the hair and fiber samples to analysis and grab a bite to eat." Warrick smiled back when he said, "Sounds like a plan to me."
The two worked side-by-side pulling out the evidence that needed to go to Trace and DNA. While Nick dropped off blood and hair samples to DNA, and some fibers to Trace, Warrick packed the evidence into a locker and shut it down for the night. Meeting Nick in the hall, they headed to Frank's for a bite to eat, and then home for rest.
When Grissom got home, he went next door to the "sitter" and picked up Hank. The dog immediately went into the bedroom and jumped up on the bed, searching for Sara again. This part of the routine Grissom hated, because it reminded him she wasn't there. Grabbing the leash off the dresser, the boxer bounded back down, tail wagging. He laughed at the dog's antics, because he could almost hear the dog thinking, Walk, walk, walk, walk, walk. Smiling, he headed out and down the street, with Hank at his side, knowing he'd be talking to her again that night, as agreed.
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A/N – Okay, you know the drill. Click the handy review button and let me know what you think. THANKS!