Sorry guys, a really quick chapter. But I have worked out probably where I'm heading with it now. I've got a really busy few weeks coming up with exams, work and moving home but I'll try and get some more chapters under the belt as quick as I can.

P.S. A few bits of bad language in this chapter so if you're only a wee young thing or if you're easily offended, please look away : )

CHAPTER 11

Warrick drove from Nicks home straight to the lab for the start of his swing shift. He was worried sick about Nick going to visit Kelly Gordan but he had a plan.

Grissom.

He would speak with Grissom and get him to stop Nick.

Nick may not have always agreed with everything Grissom had said, but he had always done what Grissom had told him to do.

Warrick arrived at the lab and made his way straight to his former boss' office. As he expected, he was already in and was sitting behind his desk, flicking thorugh journals as if searching for something.

Warrick knocked gently on the open door and Grissom looked up over the top of his reading glasses, waving him in to take a seat. Warrick sat heavily, weighed down with concern for his best friend, and watched his mentor as he flicked page after page after page until finally he found the article he was searching for - a photograph at the top of the page and an article with the large heading 'Hypersensitivity and Fatal Anaphylaxis with Red (Solenopsis Invicta) and Black (Solenopsis Richteri) Imported Fire Ants'. Even looking at the photograph of the damned ant made Warricks skin crawl. God only knew how Nick had tolerated the ants crawling and biting him for so long, Warrick thought. He was sure that if the situation was reversed, he wouldn't have lasted half as long as his friend.

Grissom looked up and noticed Warrick staring at the photo and quickly marked the page and closed the journal.

"Have you been to see Nick?" he asked Warrick without preamble.

Warrick nodded and cast his eyes down to his lap momentarily before looking back up to make eye contact again.

"Is something wrong?" Grissom asked, suddenly concerned. Fear and concern seemed to be his new best friends since Nicks abduction.

Warrick groaned and rubbed his hands over his face.

"He wants to go to see Kelly Gordan in jail, Gris." he said quietly. "He thinks he needs to see her before he can move on."

Grissom sat back in his chair and interlaced his fingers to form a triangle in front of him. He looked over his glasses again at Warrick, raising one eyebrow in question.

"And you dont think that he should?" Grissom replied.

Warrick pushed himself out of the chair in a sudden movement.
"Hell no!" he roared angrily. "Jesus, Gris, he's just out of hospital. He's still getting his head around all this. He's not ready to go to the shops yet, let alone go to the goddamn jail to meet with some goddamn bitch who's goddamn father tried to kill him. Goddamn it Grissom!!"

Grissom continued to sit back, watching the outburst, analysing Warricks response, without showing any emotion himself.

It infuriated Warrick even more.

"Fuck, Grissom!! He aint strong enough to cope with this shit at the moment. He gets it into that thick Texan skull o' his that he can only move forward by hurtin' himself even more. Well, I'm not standing around letting him beat himself to a pulp."

Grissom shrugged almost imperceptibly.

"OK." he replied, "So, what are you going to do about it."

Warrick brought his hands back up to rub at his face again before sinking back down in the chair. Defeat. The anger in the outburst had abated now and he was left right back where he was at the beginning - with a mule headed friend who wouldn't take no for an answer.

"Well, thats the problem." he admitted, "He's not listening to me at the moment. I'm just pissing him off even more."
Grissom shrugged with his eyebrows before dropping his hands back in his lap.

"Thats why I thought maybe you could talk him out of it."

Grissom frowned in thought.

"Warrick, have you thought that maybe Nicks right about this? Maybe he does need to do this to move on?"

Warricks head sprung up. He glared at Grissom over the desk, his eyes burning with intensity. Grissom held up a hand to halt Warricks objections before they started.

"He's not a child, Warrick. He's obviously given it a good deal of thought. Maybe he needs to face Kelly Gordan to get some closure."

Warrick was shaking his head in disbelief.

"Grissom, how is this going to end well for him? He's barely able to function at the moment. He can't even manage by himself. How is he clear headed enough to be able to make that sort of call. He's still drugged up to the eyeballs on sleeping tablets and shit. He cant make that sort of decision rationally. He'll completely fuck himself up in the head if he goes ahead with it." His voice was becomming louder and more forceful the more he spoke. The anger was welling up again.

Grissom sighed deeply and leant forward over the desk. He pulled off his glasses and rubbed at his eyes, suddenly very tired.

"Fine. Warrick, I'll go over in the morning and talk to him. But I wont talk him out of it if his reasons are well thought out. I trust him. And you need to as well."

A really short chapter - sorry. Will try for a longer one next time.