Chapter Nineteen
Catherine sat in her airline seat fuming, staring out the window. Davis sat silently, not knowing how to handle the situation. He had found the turn of tables on Catherine funny. She was hounding Grissom and Sara the entire conference and got what she gave. Of course, she didn't see it that way. She had stormed out of Grissom's room and hadn't said a word to any of them since, not even at breakfast the next morning. Now here they were on their afternoon flight home, and she still hadn't gotten over it.
"You think she will ever talk to us again?" Sara whispered to Grissom from two rows behind Catherine.
"Yeah. She just needs time. She doesn't like being on the receiving end of practical jokes."
"Can give but not take." Sara grinned.
"Yeah." Gil took Sara's hand and squeezed it gently. "But at least we got her off our backs for a while."
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Catherine arrived for the next shift early. They had landed early in the afternoon, so she got a good amount of sleep, but she was still tired and angry.
"Hey, Cath! Welcome back!" Warrick smiled at her from the end of the hallway. She caught up to him and walked with him to the break room.
"So, did you have fun with Davis?" Warrick chuckled.
"He's not so bad. It's those other two I'm angry with."
"What? Sara and Grissom? What happened?"
"I don't wanna talk about it." She went and poured a cup of coffee and sat down at the table.
"Oh, come on. What's got you so upset?"
"Fine. But you can't tell anyone." Catherine told him about Davis hearing noises from Gil's room, and her walking in on Gil naked. Warrick had tears streaming down his face from laughing so hard. Then she told him her plan.
"So, how'd it work out? Your plan."
"It didn't. THAT"S what I'm angry about! Linda told them about it and they got me instead."
"Hey, guys!" Greg bounded into the room and poured a cup of coffee. "Must be talking about something juicy."
"Why do you say that?" Catherine asked him.
"I saw Hodges lurking at the doorway when I walked up. He's such a gossip."
"UGH!" Catherine got up and started to pace. "We'll finish this later. Ok, Warrick?"
"Yeah. Yeah, no prob."
Nick walked in to the room, followed by Sara. They both got coffee and sat down. Catherine sat back down, not saying a word.
"So, Sara, Catherine, how was the conference?" Nick asked of his female CSI's.
"Oh, it was very informative. The sessions were excellent. The food was acceptable. Plus I had some fun. Didn't you, Catherine?" Sara pursed her lips, trying to hide he smile.
"Yeah. It was great." Catherine stated flatly.
"What's wrong?" Nick looked from a smiling Sara to Catherine. "What happened?"
"NOTHING happened, ok, Nick? Just leave it alone!"
"Ooookay. Fine." Nick looked questioningly at Sara who just shook her head.
"Ok. I have assignments." Grissom came into the room and immediately went into Supervisor mode.
"Catherine, Ecklie still needs your help with some Day and Swing shift evidence because of a flu outbreak. Warrick you can help her."
"Great!" Warrick said sarcastically and got up to follow Catherine out the door.
"Nick, Sara. We got a suspicious death at a residence. Brass is there waiting."
"Thank you." Nick took the slip from Grissom and headed out the door, Sara behind him. She winked at Gil as she passed.
"So, I guess that leaves me and you, Bossman!" Greg was beaming.
"Yes, it does. But I have paperwork. YOU get to process a burglary."
"Solo?" Greg loved when he got the chance to work solo, even on a burglary.
"Yes, solo. Unless you don't think you can handle it." Gil held the slip out of his reach.
"Come on, Grissom." He snatched the paper out of his hand. "I can handle it."
Catherine and Warrick headed to Ecklie's office to find out what he needed them to do. He filled them in on the progress they were making and sent them to the garage to process a van used in a bank robbery.
"Hey, Catherine!" Davis was in the garage in his coveralls, covered in grease.
"Davis. You're still here?"
"Yeah. Pulling a double. Lots of stuff to get through. I just finished printing a car. The van is all yours."
"Great." Warrick started to get to work.
Catherine pulled Davis aside. "Look. You didn't tell anyone about the conference did you?"
"Well, yeah. I had to give Ecklie a report on it."
"He makes you give a REPORT on the conference? What is this, 8th grade?" Davis just shrugged.
"Anyway, I don't mean the sessions. You KNOW what Im talking about." She was staring him down.
"Oh. No. THAT was not in the report. But I did tell a my wife about all of it."
"Oh, well. Yeah. I guess that's ok." She eyed him for a moment. "Just don't talk about it at work. You know how the rumor mill is around here."
"Yeah. No problem. Do NOT worry."
"Ok. Well, I better get to work before Ecklie chews out my ass."
"Yeah. I got to clean up and get the prints processed."
Warrick and Catherine worked for several hours in silence. They got several prints, some blood samples and some trace chemicals.
"So, you going to tell me what Griss and Sara did to make you so upset?" Warrick eyed her with concern.
Catherine looked around, making sure no was around to overhear. "Well, I told you how I was planning on catching them in the act. Well, Linda was convinced it wasn't true, so she told them! So, they set it all up! They were talking, you know, saying things that sounded dirty, but really weren't. Like a Three's frickin Company episode!"
Warrick grinned, trying not to laugh as Catherine told him all about it. "Well, I can see why you are upset. But don't you think you're just a little TOO upset?"
"No. Why? Am I over reacting?" She thought about it for a moment. "I guess I would have found it hilarious if the tables were turned."
"Yeah, you would!" Warrick laughed and patted her on the back."Besides, I don't see Grissom or Sara, for that matter, as the type to just have a fling. Do you? I mean, if I were them, I would have done the same thing."
"Yeah. I guess Gil's too boring and unemotional for a fling. Fine. I'm over it. Just don't go telling Nick or Greg. Ok?"
"You got my word."
Near the end of shift, Catherine and Warrick emerged from the garage and made their way to the Trace lab. As they walked down the hall, some of the lab rats looked at her strangely and smiled.
They entered the trace lab and found Hodges whispering to Archie. "Hey. Got some stuff for you." Warrick put the evidence on the table for Hodges.
"Oh. Ok." He looked at the evidence bag and then looked up at Catherine. "Hello, Catherine."
"Hodges." Archie made himself scarce and Hodges had that smug look on his face. "What did you hear me tell Warrick?"
"What?
"You KNOW what I'm talking about." Catherine stood right in front of him now.
"Nothing. Honest. I didn't hear a thing."
"Come on, Cath, lets leave Hodges to his work." He pulled on her arm to follow.
The next night, Sara decided to arrive at work early and get a head start on her evidence. When she entered the break room, she saw Davis pouring a cup of coffee.
"Still working doubles, Davis?"
"Yeah. Two people came back, but now two more are out. I think we are going to be using Warrick and Catherine again."
"I am sure she will be happy to hear that." Sara poured a cup and was about to leave.
"Hey, uh, Sara?" Sara turned and smiled at him. "There's uh, rumors. Going around."
"Rumors? What kind of rumors?"
"Well. There are several. In fact. Uh, one is that you and Dr. Grissom had a fling at the conference and that Catherine caught you. And the reason she is so mad is that she's jealous."
"Good grief! How do people even get this information!"
"Well, that's not all. The other is that you and Catherine aren't speaking because you had a fight during a threesome with Grissom."
"OH. My. GOD! What is WRONG with people!" Sara stormed out of the room towards Grissom's office.
"Hi, Sara!" Hodges called to her from the trace lab. She stomped past him to Gil's office. She entered and slammed the door shut.
"You heard." Gil took his glasses off and set them down on the desk. Sara stood there in the middle of his office fuming. Gil walked over to her a took her in his embrace. "Don't be so upset. It's just rumors."
Sara pushed him away from her. "Not here. We don't need to add fuel to the fire."
"Yeah." He pulled away and sat behind his desk. "Look. You can ignore it or defend yourself. But it WILL go away. It's not the first time around here, you know."
"I know." Sara sunk down into one of the chairs facing his desk. "I just hate all of this. You know? The sneaking around. The lying to my friends, the people I trust with my life!"
"I know, Honey. But it will eventually pass."
Sara got up and headed to the layout room and began working on her evidence.
They were all gathered in the break room an hour later, waiting on assignments and some announcement that Ecklie had for them all.The night shift crew was seated at the table and scattered around the room were several lab rats including Hodges and Archie.
"So, Sara. I hear you and Cath and Griss had a three way at the conference." Nick laughed as did Greg and Warrick. Catherine was not amused. She shot them all a death glare.
"Just knock it off, all right? It's embarrassing! Who makes up this stuff anyway?" Sara was getting louder and louder. "And what if it was true, huh? It's certainly NO ONE's business! I mean do people not have enough work to do? I sure do. I don't have time to make up stories about people. Do you?"
Grissom moved behind Sara when he heard her getting upset. He placed a hand on her shoulder. She jumped a little. "Everything ok, over here, gentlemen?"
"Yeah, Boss" Nick replied, hiding his smile. Warrick just held up his hands and shook his head. Greg nodded in the affirmative.
"Okay Everyone. I have some announcement." Ecklie stood in the doorway of the break room, looking smug as usual. "I understand that some rumors are going around and it's affecting our productivity. This is a place of business and I expect you to conduct yourselves accordingly. I hate having to take time out to lecture you like a bunch of 6th graders, but apparently some of you are acting that age. So. Just do your work and leave the gossip at the coffee shop, ok?"
The crowd mumbled in agreement.
"I also have the updated policies of the department. So, please review and sign the last page and return to me or Supervisor Grissom. I need them by the end of the week. Ok. Back to work, people."
The lab workers filed out, taking a copy of the updated policies with them. Grissom passed a copy to each of his team members sitting around the table. Ecklie pulled Grissom aside and to speak to him. Sara began to thumb through the policies and her eyes grew wide. There was only one policy update. One.
"So, if the rumors are rumors, why is he updating the fraternization policy?" Nick drawled on about it for a few minutes. "Sara?"
"What?" She looked up from her paper at Nick.
"I said, lets go. You, me and Greggo got a double homicide."
"Oh." She looked around and noticed Grissom was standing at the table with assignment slips, and Catherine and Warrick were gone. He looked at her with concern, but she ignored him and got up following Greg and Nick out the door.
After shift, the team decided to meet for drinks at a local night club. They were sitting around a table, sipping drinks when Nick again brought up the new policy Ecklie handed out.
"Just because he doesn't have a life doesn't mean others don't want one. Right, Sara?"
"What? Why are you singling me out?"
"Whoa. Whoa. Im just saying!"
"Oh. Yeah. He's an ass." She sipped her beer then smiled at Nick. "Guess this means you can't ask Mandy out."
"What?" Warrick laughed and patted him on the back. Greg just grinned at him.
"Well. I think it's a good policy. Fishing off the company pier is ALWAYS a bad idea." Catherine commented while making eyes with a man across the room.
"Where's Grissom? How come he didn't join us?" Greg asked the group.
"Well, you know, Gil. All work and no play." Catherine looked at Sara. "Right, Sara?"
Sara held back her anger and simply stated. "Well, he's not here."
The guys just laughed. Greg held up his colorful drink, embellished with an umbrella, and made a toast.
"To the night shift CSI'S! The best damn team in town!"
"Cheers!" They all clinked glasses and laughed.
Greg looked over at Sara. She was still upset. So was Catherine. He wondered what amount of truth was embedded in the rumors. He knew Sara and Grissom had a past, but neither would admit to it. Could the rumor of her and Grissom be true? Did Catherine catch them? This was a mystery he was bound and determined to solve.
A/N: Sorry it took so long to update! Lots going on. So, please read and review. More to come soon!