Journey Through the Past- Chapter 6
A/N: Sorry for the long delay. Life definitely got in the way. This story is definitely the therapy I need. Anyway, my apologies. Thanks to all of you for hanging in there. BTW, this chapter is unbeta'd, so all the mistakes and goofs are definitely mine!
Gil leaned back in his chair as the rest of his team filed into his office. Quietly, Catherine shut the door and closed the blinds. It wouldn't be good to have Ecklie wander by and see Gil in his office. Nick, Greg, and Warrick quickly took seats in front of Grissom's desk and settled in. Catherine stood behind the guys with her arms crossed, keeping a critical eye on Grissom.
Warrick winced noting his boss's slightly swollen left eye, the sling, and broken wrist. "So how you feelin' Griss?" he ventured tentatively.
"I'm doing okay…just very stiff and sore," understated an exhausted Gil Grissom, as he tried to get into a more comfortable position.
Grissom looked at his team gathered before him and slowly began. "I owe all of you an apology. I should have had more confidence in you guys as a team. I…I..uhh… lost perspective." Shaking his head slightly, Grissom pushed on. "I think some background information will help you understand what we're dealing with. Twenty years ago when I was a coroner with LA County, Lucas Mallory committed a number of murders, all of which involved drugging, torturing, and killing his victims. He's basically a sadistic sociopath with a genius IQ. Most of his victims were young adults, ranging in age from 17-24. He tortured and murdered ten people before he was arrested and sentenced to prison. Mallory was serving a life sentence without parole, but, somehow, about a year ago he managed to escape. His whereabouts were unknown. That is until now. I believe he is here in the Vegas area."
Catherine stared hard at Grissom. "Wait a sec, Gil. Not all of his victims were within the 17 to 24 age range?"
Grissom shut his eyes and swallowed hard and slowly whispered, "Two of his victims were a six month-old baby boy and the boy's mother. The bodies of the mother and son were burned beyond recognition." Grissom closed his eyes and continued on, "The mother was my wife, Rachel, and the boy was our son, Scott."
"Oh, God, Gil…….," Catherine whispered. Nick and Warrick stared back at Grissom in disbelief. Greg sat stone-faced as he watched the pain in Grissom's face turn into sadness and grief.
With a sigh, Grissom continued on. "I...I really haven't shared this with anyone. I had put that part of my life behind me. Brass and Sara are the only ones who know about Rachel and Scott, but they only know that they died in LA. They don't know the circumstances of their deaths." Grissom looked at each member of his team. "Rachel was a CSI, level 2. She was assigned to the Mallory case along with myself and two other CSI's. I was the only who came out alive from that investigation. I left LA soon after the completion of the case."
"Gil, you're too close to this case. Let us handle it. We'll get Sara back and get this guy. Give us your insights and what you know about how this guy operates, but take a backseat. You're too emotionally connected. You've already lost your edge and perspective," Catherine pointed out.
Nick, Warrick, and Greg held their breaths as the tension in the room dramatically rose. Grissom pursed his lips and with an edge to his voice, tightly said, "Catherine, we've already had this discussion. I…I can't back down or out."
"Gil, that was before all this other information came out."
"You know, Buddy, she's right," Jim Brass spoke quietly. No one had noticed Brass slip into the room. "Your edge isn't where it should be. You're in a dangerous place, Gil. As a friend and a colleague, this is not a good idea. You need to step back."
"Jim, you of all people, should understand why I need to be involved," Grissom's anger and impatience starting to rise. "The longer we sit here and discuss whether or not I am on the case, the longer Mallory has Sara, doing God knows what to her."
Sighing, Catherine asked, "So how does the case in Henderson connect back to Mallory?"
In a low voice, Grissom replied, "Mallory's last victims were Rachel and Scott. As I told you, their bodies were burned beyond recognition- the results of an explosion. The victims in Henderson were approximately the same ages as Rachel and Scott. The explosives used in the Baxter case were the same type used in Rachel and Scott's case. The warehouse in Henderson was also similar. I was uneasy about the evidence, hoping that it was all just coincidence. A couple of days later, an envelope was waiting for me at the reception desk. Judy had stepped away from her desk and the envelope was just there. That's why I went to the warehouse…alone. At least, I thought I was alone."
"To what end, Gil? What were you expecting?" Brass asked him incredulously. "Damn it, Gil! You know better. Tell me, why that particular warehouse? How did Mallory get you to agree to this little rendezvous?"
"I don't know what I was thinking. Everything that happened in LA came flooding back. It was like I was in some kind of a time warp and I was back in LA," Grissom said lamely, realizing how stupid it sounded.
"What did Mallory want?" Brass exclaimed.
"Mallory was never charged with Rachel's and Scott's deaths. There wasn't enough evidence to prove that he was behind the explosion. Plus their deaths did not match the MO's of the other murders. He was sentenced to prison for the deaths of the other victims. When Mallory contacted me, he said he had information about the both of them. That they weren't really dead, but that he knew where they were."
"You believed him, Gil? What did he offer you?" Brass exclaimed incredulously.
"He told me he knew where she and Scott were and that if I wanted them back, I should come to the warehouse," Grissom said looking away and realizing how incredibly stupid it all sounded.
"Why was Sara there, Gris?" inquired Nick. "Did she know about Mallory?"
Grissom regarded Nick a moment before continuing on, "Sara has known about Rachel and Scott for some time. When the Baxter case came up, she knew something was off. I can't hide much from her. However, I didn't let her know about Mallory's message, but I guess she was keeping a pretty close eye on me." Looking away from his colleagues who were staring at him over this new revelation, Grissom relayed to the rest of the team how Sara had followed him to the warehouse without his knowledge and how he had desperately tried to get her to leave before Mallory or any of his followers showed up.
"He won't hurt Sara, but he'll use her as bait. The warehouse is similar to the one where we found Rachel and Scott. In fact, upon entering the building, it was like I was back in that time. He fixed it up to look exactly like the one Rachel and Scott were found in before the explosion." Grissom's voice shook slightly, and the throbbing in his head, shoulder, and ribs was starting to intensify. He reached into his desk drawer and pulled the envelope with Mallory's message and slid it into the case file.
Catherine, taking note of Grissom's pallor and pained expression, turned to the men in his office. "Well, guys, it looks like we've got our work cut out for us. Warrick and Nick, take the file from Griss and starting looking for clues about where this Mallory could be hiding out. Greg, I need you to help Hodges with the rest of the evidence and go through everything with a fine toothed comb."
Brass stood up and said, "I will check out my sources on the street. Sophia and Vartann should also be able to get some information from their sources. If Mallory is hiding somewhere in Vegas, something should turn up. We'll need to check who owns that warehouse and the warehouse in Henderson where Marissa Baxter was found."
When the room was cleared, Catherine sat down and studied Gil. Grissom was exhausted and definitely in pain. Leaning back in his chair with his head back and eyes closed, Grissom softly said, "Well, Cath, I really blew it this time, didn't I? I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."
"Sorry that you didn't tell me about your family before or sorry about Mallory? Look, what makes you so sure that he won't hurt Sara?"
Grissom opened his eyes. "Both. I..I just wanted to put that part of my life behind me. Rachel and Scott were the best things that happened to me and they were ripped from me so suddenly. When I realized that Mallory was here in Vegas, everything came flooding back. I thought that I could move on. And I actually had...Sara made me realize that I could love again. Now Mallory has her…God, Catherine, I can't lose her too. I don't know that he won't hurt Sara…It's just a feeling that I have….he's out to get me."
"Gil….We'll get her back," Catherine gently said. Understanding of so many of Grissom's quirks suddenly becoming clear to her- how cases involving small children, especially babies greatly affected him, the anger she clearly saw when dealing with men who abused women. Gil had always stressed to his team about just processing the evidence objectively and not to get personally involved, to not get ahead of the evidence. But occasionally, a case could be a trigger. Catherine remembered the Zachary Andersen case. Grissom rarely showed emotion, but his anger got the best of him over little Zachary's death.
"Gil, lay down and rest for a bit. It will be a little while before we have anything more to work with. We need your perspective on this, but your head has be clear and not fighting fatigue."
Catherine reached into Grissom's jacket pocket and pulled out the pain medication. Handing him the meds and a bottle of water, she made sure that Grissom took the needed drugs. With a weary look and a slight nod, Grissom accepted Catherine's help to his couch where he lay down heavily and slowly drifted into an uneasy sleep.
To say that Lucas Mallory was frustrated that his plans had gone awry was an understatement. He had wanted Grissom under his control without the authorities being alerted, so that he could take his time carrying out his plans. Now that plan was ripped to shreds. He would have to find another way to get the criminalist.
Mallory decided he would have to move his operation temporarily to an abandoned mining operation some two hours north of Las Vegas now that the authorities were alerted to his whereabouts. Mallory's sadistic nature was the driving force behind everything he did. Twenty years in prison had given him time to think and scheme, and he would not allow a group of cretins, his devoted followers, to ruin things for him. They were fairly easy to manipulate, and he was confident that his plans would eventually work out. Mallory just had to be patient. After all, he had been able to keep Grissom under surveillance for almost a year with no one being the wiser. His contacts in the Vegas area plus the use of a police scanner enabled him to gain information about each of Grissom's team on the graveyard shift. He even had photographs and bios of them.
Sam brought Sara in to Mallory, leading her by her arms that were still bound behind her. He roughly pushed her into the room where she stumbled to her knees. Mallory leered at the slender brunette on the floor and licked his lips. He reached down and grabbed a handful of hair and pulled her head back. Sara did not look up, but deep inside she was seething. She tried to let the outrage that she felt not reach her eyes.
Mallory considered the woman on her knees before him. He recognized the young csi before him. She had been lying on her side with her back to him when he first saw her in the other room and didn't see her face. Grissom's woman! Lucas grinned in spite of himself. This might work out after all. His original intent was to gain control over Grissom, and then, of course, Grissom's team would be involved.
"Ms. Sara Sidle. Grissom's better half, I see," Mallory said with a grin.
Sara tried to keep the shock from her voice. "How do you know who I am? I..I don't know what you're talking about. Who are you?"
Sara's captor just laughed. "Don't try to act innocent with me. I know that you and Grissom are together. He's quite smitten with you, you know."
"What do you want with him anyway? What could he possibly have or know that would make you want him so badly? Grissom is just a quirky scientist," Sara tried to counter.
"Sara. May I call you Sara?" Not getting a response from his captive, Mallory just smiled and continued, " My name is Lucas Mallory, and the great Dr. Gilbert Grissom and I go way back…all the way back to his days when he was a coroner with LA County.
Mallory looked at Sara and sneered. "Grissom and I have a history together. He has affected my life in ways you couldn't imagine. I'm sure that when he moved here to Vegas, he thought that a change of scenery would put the past behind him and that he could forget our history together. But I have so much I want to share with him. I've learned so much since we last met. Prison can offer one great opportunities for education and growth. I want him to enjoy and appreciate my new found knowledge. You are going to be quite helpful."
Sara shivered involuntarily. She didn't like the sound of that. "Well, I have nothing to do with whatever went on between you and Grissom in the past. Please just let me go. You know he'll come after you. I can convince him to back off if you just let me go," pleaded Sara.
"You know, you remind me of someone else. Did Grissom ever tell you about Rachel? Yes, his lovely Rachel. She pretty much said the same thing. Pleaded with me to let their boy live. Do you know the best part? I got to watch Grissom fall apart. He broke down at the crime scene. Fell right down on his knees and cried," laughed Mallory. "Well, I have even better plans for him this time around."
TBC
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