Title: In Shock
Author: Nicksfriend
Rating:k+
Spoilers: For Gedda
Disclaimer: Bottom line...they belong to CBS and to those who make millions
Author's note:This is my fifth CSI fic. I actually jumped when the Undersheriff shot Warrick; I did not expect it...but I could see that it could have been survivable.
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As Nick drove towards the lab,his mind wondered; who had shot his friend? The passenger window was down,the driver's side up, a fiber found on the window, a discarded gun in the seat. Two shots,one to the neck, one to the chest,and Warrick's gun was not drawn. He did not fear this individual,he felt safe with this person.
He trusted whoever he rolled the window on the passenger side down for,this person offered no threat. Was it a fellow cop? Not Pritchard, Warrick would have never rolled his window down for Pritchard,he knew Warrick and it would have never happened like that, he was too cautious.
He needed to get to the lab,he wanted to see the analysis of the fiber and the other evidence gathered.
His thoughts were interrupted as he drove into the garage at the lab,he quickly opened his door, almost hitting the Undersheriff's car. He was about to enter the building when he heard his name called from the parking area.
"Stokes!" The Undersheriff called out to the CSI.
Nick stopped and looked at the disheveled appearance of his superior. "Yes sir." He replied,wanting to get inside to see the evidence.
"I'm sorry about Warrick." His voice seemed sincere but his facial expression remained stoic.
"He'll be fine," Nick returned but he did not see the next statement coming.
"I guess you haven't heard. I just talked to Catherine,Warrick died about ten minutes ago." He reached out,now in touching reach and gave Nick a pat on the back."I'm sorry, I know he was your friend." His false empathy hidden from the CSI.
Nick was unable to speak,that ability taken away by the news of his best friend's death,he wanted to vomit or scream, something,but he could only nod and walk away.
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Sara Sidle had arrived at the hospital after a rather unremarkable flight. She was anxious about seeing her friends again, it had almost been a year when she had walked out and left them without a word.
As she walked into the ICU waiting area she spotted Brass, Catherine and Grissom. Feeling rather awkward about her sudden reappearance she strolled over and gave Grissom a hug, tears running down his face,"I'm too late." It was a statement,not a question,she knew him too well,he was not a man of emotion.
He nodded, and waved Catherine over.
Catherine walked slowly away from Brass who had joined the group after her call,"Sara,how are you?" She asked,trying to keep the past actions of her friend removed from the emotion of Warrick's death.
"I've been good."She responded,tears welling up in her eyes.
Catherine turned to Grissom,"Are you going to check on Nick? I want you to tell him."
"Where is Nick?" Sara was concerned,the friendship that these two had shared over the years was beyond measure.
"I left him in the emergency room,they gave him something to sleep. I really do need to go back and check on him." Grissom started towards the elevator, Sara followed.
Catherine and Brass stayed behind,they gave each other a look of sadness for what had to be done.
"Doc Robbins will come here to complete the autopsy, using the facility downstairs." Brass commented out loud seeing that a number of officers were there to support a fallen fellow officer,the pain evident on their faces. "Taking his body back to the coroner's office would be too much for the staff to endure." Brass informed the group.
Catherine nodded, the tears still flowing down her face. "I'll call Gregg. Gil and I both talked about it earlier, we wanted to give him time to have his meetings." The pay phone would have to be used until she got her phone charged.
Brass gave her a small grin,"I need to make a phone call. Tell Gil I'll be back in a while."
Catherine nodded,she felt so alone now, even with the room filled with fellow officers and lab personnel, the feeling of loneliness was overwhelming.
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Grissom and Sara entered the emergency room area, going directly to the back where he had left Nick earlier sound asleep but upon entering the small room he was stunned to find another patient.
He burst out of the room to find someone, recognizing the doctor from earlier he walked up,"Where is Nick Stokes, he was in room eight earlier." His voice angry and upset at the same time.
"He signed out AMA, he wouldn't listen to me, he left about thirty minutes ago." The doctor seemed hurried and quickly walked off.
Grissom was concerned at his CSI, if he had gone back to the lab then Nick would probably get the news from the staff. Afraid of Nick's reaction to the news he motioned for Sara to follow him to his car, they had to find Nick.
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Nick walked into the lab, his mind trying to replay the events of the evening before and how it had all come to this, the death of his friend.
"Hey Nick." Hodges red eyes evident,"I'm sorry about Warrick." His words a kind gesture but Nick was not ready for the empathy just yet, his friend was gone, he was dead.
He walked by Hodges without a word and entered the locker room, his only place of refuge,it was dark and the feel of the metal against his face was comforting for some reason. He slid down into the floor and placed his head into his hands,his guilt plaguing his mind.
"Nick, are you okay?" the sweet voice asked,familiar, but yet he felt it was miles away.
He glanced upward at Wendy, her small smile almost hidden by the pained look on her face.
"I could've walked him to his car Wendy, if I had then he wouldn't be dead right now." His voice almost a whisper, holding back tears that wanted to be shed but he would not allow himself to grieve just yet, he had a job to do.
"You are a tough cowboy Nick Stokes but if someone had wanted him dead that badly then he would've still found a way to get to Warrick. They might have killed both of you." she reached over and gently took his hand.
"We knew Pritchard was still out there,yet we didn't take the right precautions. He could've had police protection, we could've protected him." Starring down at the floor unable to give the woman whom he had shared his lunch with so many times now sitting bedside him holding on to his hand.
"Listen, Nick you can't blame yourself because if you do then none of the rest of us can feel as if we did all that we could do for Rick. See, in a way we are all responsible for his death. We all should have seen this coming before he walked out of here tonight. But we can't go back and change things, we have to do the best we can now; maybe we can convince ourselves into thinking that we will never allow it to happen again; but we are all capable of knowing the truth, some things are out of our hands,they will happen regardless of our good intentions." Looking over at her silent, broken friend, she gave him a soft smile and a tight hug,"I'll be around if you need me."
He looked up and nodded,unable to give her a smile back. She then stood and left him in the dark room. He just leaned back and allowed his head to rest on the cold metal lockers. A sudden flurry of movement and noise in the lab got his attention though, the police scanner was on and some officer was saying that they had located Pritchard at the bus station, to approach with caution, he was considered armed and dangerous.
Nick stood to his feet, he would join the officers, he had to find justice for Warrick. As he collected his spare gun he walked out of the lab, Wendy spotting him from her station, "Hey, Nick!" Calling out his name, knowing where he was headed, she started to run after him.
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Grissom and Sara pulled up just in time to see Nick's vehicle pull out, glancing down in the console he saw Nick's phone which he had borrowed that morning.
Wendy was running out behind Nick yelling for him to stop but her words were not reaching him.
Grissom rolled down his window, "What happened?"
Wendy, who was upset for her friend, stopped and ran over to Grissom's car, "He knows that Warrick is dead. I think he is going to do something he'll regret."
Grissom motioned for her to move and pulled out of the garage without being able to ask anymore questions of the lab tech, knowing that Nick was aware of Warrick's death was enough information to know that Nick was about to do something stupid.
Knowing that he would be unable to reach Catherine, due to her dead cell battery, he picked up the phone and dialed Brass.
"Brass." His gruff,short of breath from running to his car, voice answered.
"It's Gil, I'm following Nick. He's going at a fairly rapid speed, is there something happening?" Attempting to keep his eye on Nick's vehicle and talk on the phone at the same time.
"I just received a call from the sheriff, they have a possible location on Pritchard. The bus station." Brass continued hurrying towards his car parked in the emergency room parking area.
"Listen, I'll follow Nick, I think that may be where he's headed." Nick was usually level headed but this was the first time somebody close to Nick had been killed. Holly had been new, she had not had time to establish the friendships that his team had made over the years. Warrick's murder was like some one had killed a member of their family. His concern was that his CSI would want revenge for his friend's death.
Sara looked over at her friend, her lover and saw something she had never remembered seeing, an uncertain Grissom,a man who always had all the answers was having difficulty trying to find a way to rescue his CSI, his friend.
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Pritchard had shaved his head , a baseball cap covering his head and oversized clothing,he had a plan. A plan that just might save his life.