A/N: Thanks to all those who continue to read this story and for the positive reviews. Not a long chapter again, another kinda filler I guess. GSR soon.

An Action Plan.

The knock on the door caused Catherine and Grissom to pull apart. Showing what Catherine thought was amazing self control Grissom stood, and she thought he was going to answer the door.

"Would you mind getting that Cath? I….I want to wash up a little" he sounded so tired.

"Of course. You go freshen up a bit. I'll get rid of whoever it is" Catherine could understand that he didn't need anyone to see him at the moment.

I didn't really surprise her to find Jim Brass on the doorstep. He looked pretty distraught himself and Catherine stepped aside to let him in.

"What are you doing here Jim, I left a message to say I'd call you when if I needed to."

"I know Cath, but I wanted to come anyway. How's he doing?" he sounded almost as tired as Gil. She understood his need to be there, Sara was important to him too.

"He's holding up. Just. I think the next step is to get him to Washington as soon as possible."

"That's one of the reasons I'm here. The boys have arranged a flight out of McCarran at five in the morning. I'll get him there. You just need to arrange for someone to meet him at the other end" Jim told her.

"Wow! That's great, one less thing he will have to worry about. I'm sure he'll be pleased with that."

"I'll be pleased with what? Hello Jim." Grissom had returned to hear the last bit of their conversation.

If they were surprised at how calm Grissom looked and sounded, the hid it well. He looked incredibly pale and tired, but his face was the professional mask he had always hidden behind. Catherine gave him a weak smile and headed to the kitchen.

"Coffee Jim? Gil?" she asked over her shoulder not really waiting on an answer.

"What will I be pleased about Jim" Grissom turned to his friend and gestured to the couch.

"The boys have booked you on a morning flight to Washington. It leaves at five and I will be your driver" Jim told him as he sat down.

"You're right, I am pleased. That was to be my first job" he turned as Catherine entered the room. "Do you have the name of the hospital Cath, I want to call, and I want to speak to Sara's supervisor too. What's his name again?"

"Actually I don't remember Rod mentioning the name of the hospital. I'll call him. Marshall, his name is Rod Marshall" she told him as she reached for her cell. She was still scrolling through the numbers when Grissom's phone rang.

"Gil Grissom" he listened carefully for a moment then stood and headed for his bedroom for some privacy.

Catherine and Jim exchanged a look before Jim spoke.

"Probably the hospital, guess we'll have more details when he's done."

Catherine just nodded and the two went back to sipping their coffee and waiting for Grissom to return.

It was ten minutes before he returned and the look on his face was enough to worry them both.

"Gil? Was that the hospital?" Catherine asked anxiously. She could see that he was struggling to remain calm.

"Umm….yeah….that was her doctor. She…ah…. They need to operate to relive some pressure on her brain. They want to do it tomorrow morning. She…umm….hasn't regained consciousness but he assures me she is strong enough to cope with the surgery." He looked from Jim to Catherine. "They won't know if she has suffered any lasting brain damage until she wakes up, which could be twenty-four hours after the surgery."

Neither Jim nor Catherine knew what to say, so Catherine just enveloped Grissom in another hug. She could feel him shaking and understood just how much strength it was taking him to maintain control of his emotions right now.

Jim looked at his watch to see that it was now just after one thirty. They had a little over three hours before Grissom's flight left Las Vegas. Moving to the kitchen he took down three glasses and the remaining half bottle of Scotch that he and Grissom had shared a week ago. He poured three good stiff drinks and carried them into the living room. Handing one to Catherine and another to Grissom he held his own glass up towards them.

"This is not a toast, but an acknowledgment of one very strong, independent woman, we all love and are not going to give up on. Not for one damn minute" he said solemnly.

Grissom, Catherine and Jim touched glasses together briefly before the two men slammed back their drinks and Catherine downed hers a little more slowly.

They sat again and Jim refilled their glasses. This time they sipped at their Scotch, each appearing deep in thought. It was Grissom who broke the silence.

"I was going to Washington in January" his quiet voice startled his companions.

"You were? You never said" Catherine answered.

"Yeah. Sara asked me to visit her for a couple of weeks. We were finally going to give us a go. You know? She even wanted me to stay with her." He sounded so defeated it almost broke Catherine's' heart.

"I take it things have been going well between you then?" Catherine asked.

"Yeah….We….ah….we've been talking a lot lately. We finally got all the shit in the past sorted out. Things have been great" Grissom took a deep breath and his voice shook when he spoke again. "I finally realised how much I love Sara and this trip was going to be my chance to prove it to her. I finally figured out what to do and some bastard with a bomb comes along and now I may never have the chance to tell her. What if she….what it I…." he broke off, dropping his head into his hands.

Catherine and Jim looked at the broken man in front of them, each contemplating the words and the emotion behind them.

"You know Gil?" It was Jim who finally broke the silence, and as Grissom lifted his head from his hands he continued.

"I think you might be underestimating Sara's strength and more importantly her determination. That girl never gives up. If she was willing to have your sorry butt in her apartment, after all you put her through, I think she may have already realised how serious you are about pursuing a relationship. If I know Sara she is not going to let you off the hook that easily. She's been waiting for years for you to say those three little words" he paused and looked at his long time friend, seeing the glimmer of hope rekindled in his eyes.

"She isn't going to give up easily and you shouldn't either my friend" he finished as he stood and retrieved their glassed.

"Jim's right Gil; now is not the time to wallow in self pity. Sara needs you and you need to get organised to go be with her. Come on I'll help you pack" Catherine held out her hand to pull him up.

He took the offered hand and followed her into his room. They were right, he knew it, and right then he determined he would be the strongest he could be to help Sara through this. So it was with a renewed vigour that he set about the task of packing and readying himself for what he knew was going to be a tough day ahead.