A/N: Ha ha, evil hat is being naughty, lol. New chapter here for you guys. This chapter and at least one to follow will reference some events of what happened in Retribution; part one of this series that I wrote way back when. Not necessary to have read but it will probably help for your understanding.
Thanks muchly to PrintDust for the beta, your help is gratefully appreciated.
Thank you for all your reviews :) Please keep them coming.
Time for a few secrets to come out I think...mwahahaha...
Chapter 20
Ryan whipped his gun from his belt as Grissom stood static. Sara jumped and so did her husband.
Grissom held his hands up in submission. "Okay...okay..." Nervously he walked over to the stairs. His heart rate increased knowing he was heading towards the cellar again. He could feel his pulse clicking in his ears...throb...throb...throb. He prayed he wasn't going to end up down there.
Ryan pointed his gun to the bottom steps. "Sit down," he ordered as Sara watched on anxiously, her hands on her lap, her fingers slipping in and out of each other.
Looking to the stairs very confused, Grissom hesitated. He turned back to Ryan. "I don't..." He silenced himself knowing the look his captor was giving him was a very impatient one.
After a long, deep breath, Grissom sat on the third step up, facing the gunman.
"Give me your hands," Ryan demanded, taking a set of cuffs from his pocket.
Swallowing hard the CSI shakily held out his hands and Ryan grabbed them. He snapped one of the cuffs around Grissom's right wrist before pulling his left hand through one of the bars on the stair rail. He then cuffed his left wrist, securing him to the wooden framework.
With a grin on his face Ryan patted Grissom on the head like a dog. "Stay," he chuckled, turning and walking back to Sara.
Grissom looked to his wrists and then to the woodwork he'd been fastened to. He tugged a little and instantly realised he wasn't going anywhere. He had a bad feeling growing in his gut...
Sara looked on with some trepidation as Ryan stopped in front of her.
"Up...if you please," he requested, surprising softly this time.
She looked to Danny, noticing his eyes were now closed.
"Don't worry about him," Ryan advised. "Looks like he's away with the fairies right now and will be for some time."
On a heavy swallow, Sara pushed herself to her feet. "Where are we going?" she asked, shooting her husband a quick glance. She knew that in his current position, he couldn't do anything at all to help her should she need it.
Ryan's tongue slowly drew across his bottom lip. "You are a mess; so, you are going to clean yourself up."
Sara caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror on the far wall of the living room. He was right. She looked like something out of a horror movie. Carrie sprang to mind.
However, changing in front of him - if there were any clothes in the house she could change into, urged a queasy feeling to grow in her stomach. She made a mental note that he also, wasn't looking particularly fantastic.
He pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "Let's go..."
Taking a breath Sara set towards the stairs and Ryan followed closely behind. Grissom's eyes met hers as she drew nearer and she stopped at the base of the stairs.
She gave him a soft smile as he looked at her helplessly; giving his bonds another gentle tug.
Ryan broke their moment though, giving her a small push in the back. "Come on...today would be good."
Biting down on her tongue, Sara did as he asked and slowly climbed the stairs, manoeuvring past her husband. He watched her over his shoulder but his eyes snapped around again when he felt Ryan standing beside him.
The thug leaned in close, placing his lips right next to Grissom's ear. "If you or the little piggy over there tries just one single attempt to be clever..." Grissom closed his eyes as Ryan's stale, warm breath brushed over his skin, "...I will end you both. Are we clear?"
The supervisor's eyes slowly opened and he nodded. "Yes," he whispered. "Very..."
"I'll be checking on you..." Ryan smirked as he stepped away and Grissom watched as he reached the top of the stairs and directed Sara down the corridor and out of his line of sight. The CSI didn't like this at all and he certainly didn't like the thought of his wife alone with that maniac...
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Sara felt an eerie chill run down her spine as Ryan stopped her, tugging gently on her arm.
"Now what?" she asked, getting more and more nervous with every second that ticked by.
Ryan looked around, up and down the short corridor they were stood in. Numerous doors set out around them. "Where's the bedroom?" he asked, knowing Sara had already looked around the upstairs earlier.
Sara pointed to two doors down. "There are two next to each other. The main one is first, a smaller one after it."
"And the bathroom?"
Sara now pointed to the door right next to them. "There..."
He took her arm and urged her towards the first bedroom. When he opened the door, he reached for the light switch, flicked it on and pushed her inside. Sara jumped as she entered the room, a roar of thunder taking away what few nerves she had left. The lights flickered and she exhaled a heavy breath.
She stared at the bed in front of her and it looked so appealing, if only she could just lie down and sleep. If only...
She stood motionless as Ryan moved to a wardrobe. "Let's see what we can find, shall we?" he mumbled. The wardrobe door creaked and Ryan stepped back, his eyes wandering over its contents.
"Hmm..." He rubbed a hand over his chin, obviously in thought. "Well..." He reached inside the piece of wooden furniture and pulled out a black t-shirt and a pair of grey slacks. "...it's good the former occupant of this house was a little on the larger side."
Sara didn't seem impressed by his comment and looked away.
Ryan sniggered. "Not quite your style," he admitted sarcastically. "But, they should fit and they aren't covered in blood."
She looked back to him and then over the clothing. Nothing like the thought of wearing a dead man's clothes...
He kinked his head to the door. "Bathroom," he ordered.
Under his watchful eye, Sara left the bedroom and headed for the bathroom. She entered the room, pulled the cord for the light and faced him.
She felt her pulse hitch as he moved in closer to her but all he did was side step to place the clothing down next to the sink. Sara sighed with relief as he stepped back and out of her personal space.
"I am going to allow you some privacy," he began, looking around the room. "I don't have to, but I will." He tapped his fire arm. "Push me just one little inch and your husband will be joining the others in the basement with a bullet in his head. Do you understand?"
Sara too looked around the bathroom. There was a window but she wouldn't even dare, even if she was capable. "I understand," she replied quietly.
"Good." Ryan backed away. "You've got twenty minutes and I'm just outside..." He exited the room, pulling the door closed but he left it open just a little.
Sara sighed heavily and moved to the mirror over the sink. Her shaky fingers wrapped around the porcelain appliance and she stared at herself. She tried to run a hand through her blood coated hair without much success. Her eyes scanned over the few shampoos at her disposal. This was going to be fun...
Ryan, with his back to the door, heard the shower turn on. He smiled to himself and quickly slipped away and back to the stairs.
Grissom, who was lost in a million thoughts, looked up when he heard a creak above him to see Ryan looking down at him. The thug descended a few steps to check where he'd left the cop. The officer was still in the same position he had been left in, still out of it.
"Comfortable?" Ryan asked.
The CSI shuffled awkwardly but didn't answer the question. He came back with one of his own instead. "Where's Sara?"
"Freshening up," Ryan replied giving Grissom a wink. "Don't worry...I'll keep my eye on her." He smiled broadly turning on his heel to go back upstairs.
Grissom's eyes widened at his captors comment and he again tugged at the cuffs. He could do nothing but curse as he heard Ryan laughing before disappearing from view.
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Sara undressed, although she wasn't about to strip herself totally bare. She peeled away her blood-soaked shirt and slacks, dropping them in a heap at her feet but she remained in her bra and panties.
She shot a quick look to the door and a breeze whistled around the exterior of the house causing her to shiver.
Taking a hold of the shower head she pulled it from its holder. Washing over the sink was going to be easier and much more comfortable to her given her condition. Lucky for her, the metal tubing coming from the appliance was long enough to reach the sink. She leaned forward and began rinsing the blood away...
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Roughly fifteen minutes later, Ryan leaned against the wall next to the bathroom door and looked at his watch. He'd checked on his downstairs captives three times and had come across no issues.
The sound of the shower had stopped almost five minutes earlier and he found his eyes constantly flicking towards the door.
Sara had washed her hair and body, managing to get most of the blood off her skin. She took a moment to simply hold her tummy, and whisper to her unborn children all-the-while fighting back a tear.
She had an odd thought once clean that the bathroom was certainly going to need a good sprucing considering the mess she had made.
She dried her hair as best she could, but given that she had no brush she looked like she'd been dragged through a hedge backwards. It was an effort to pull on the pants, but she did feel more refreshed after her wash. Her body still ached and she felt more and more drained with each minute that passed by.
Outside, Ryan pushed away from the wall and stared at the door. He just couldn't help himself, the urge to take a peek was just overwhelming him. Seriously, what man wouldn't sneak a look?
He edged close to the door, his hand rising to push it open just a tiny bit more than it was. He looked through the gap just as Sara turned around, shirt in hand ready to put on. Her back faced him.
His eyes widened as they immediately fell upon her back and the scars her skin housed. Without hesitation he burst into the room as an uncontrollable anger seeped through him.
Instantly, with her own eyes widening, Sara spun around and she held the shirt over her front, trying to conceal her body from him. "What...what are you doing?" she gasped, stunned and afraid of why he'd suddenly just barged in.
He pointed at her, his nostrils flaring. "What the hell happened to your back?" he demanded.
Sara's head spun in circles. He must have been watching and she hadn't even thought about hiding her marks. Why would she? She was so used to them now.
"I..." She held the shirt tighter, backing away a little. She wasn't entirely sure what to say.
He stepped closer as she retreated. She could see he was angry and it surprised her. Her scars had nothing to do with him or their predicament.
"Tell me what happened to your back."
Sara shook her head. She really didn't want to get into that.
Ryan's fingers clenched tightly and he winced, his pain obvious but he didn't seem to care. "Tell me Sara..." he continued but calming a little. "Tell me who did that to you."
Her eyes flicked to the door and he noticed and then a look of realisation dawned upon him. He shot a hand towards the door, pointing again.
"Did he do that to you?" he shouted now, angry again.
"It's not what you think," she replied swiftly.
His eyes darkened. "I'll kill him," he growled stepping away so quickly Sara didn't even have chance to respond.
"No!" she shouted as he disappeared through the door. "Shit..." Panic ran through her and she rushed to slip the t-shirt over her head. Within a few seconds, she was following...
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Grissom looked up upon hearing thundering footsteps coming his way. He didn't expect to see Ryan coming straight for him with an enraged look upon his face and he especially didn't expect the thug to raise his fist and plow it right into his face before he could even blink.
His head snapped back, crashing right into the wood work, his bonds preventing him from going very far and he instantly saw stars, feeling a trickle of blood coming from his nose.
Sara reached the top of the stairs just as Ryan pulled out his gun.
"You bastard!" he shouted as Grissom managed to raise his head and attempt to see straight.
"No!" Sara hollered as Ryan raised his weapon, flicking off the safety. She ran down the stairs as fast as she could and managed to push him just as his finger tensed on the trigger. His arm shot upwards, sending the bullet through the ceiling. He stumbled down numerous steps but managed to keep his balance.
Ryan stared at her, growling, spit flying from his mouth through his evident rage as he raised his gun again.
Swiftly, Sara protected her husband's body with her own, facing her captor but preventing him from attempting another shot. "You shoot him; you have to shoot me first."
Grissom groaned as his eyes managed to focus. He had absolutely no idea what was going on though.
Ryan sidestepped but Sara followed, keeping her husband totally blocked from his path. "He hurt you," he pointed out. "I don't like that," he spat.
Swallowing the huge lump in her throat, Sara felt Grissom move so she quickly slipped a hand behind her and motioned a finger to him in a negative manner. "Keep quiet and don't move, Gil," she whispered.
"I told you, it's not what you think." She tried to keep her composure, being aggressive with him at that point would not help them. "And you've hurt me; does that mean he can shoot you?"
Ryan's eyes narrowed and he scoffed. "I haven't hurt you like...that," he snarled.
"I would consider choking the life out of me or pointing a gun at my head to be quite a threat, wouldn't you?"
"This isn't about me!" he snapped.
"Isn't it?" Sara questioned, her head shaking a little.
Sara managed a quick look over her shoulder. Her husband's eyes catching hers in an instant and she felt for him as she watched another trickle of blood spill from his nose. She faced her captor again. "I will tell you what happened. I'll tell you why I have the scars and it's nothing like you think...You couldn't even imagine..." Her voice broke a little and she felt Grissom try to reach up far enough to clasp her hand. "Just...please...calm down and lower your gun."
He contemplated her request for what seemed like an eternity and Sara could feel her legs turning to jelly as she waited for his answer. She wasn't exactly sure what she was going to do if he refused...