Ch. 26
JJ could tell the moment the gas had affected Brass. He was glaring at her and started babbling incoherently. In FHI she had been trained and exposed to different gases and drugs in attempt to make sure her body could hold off as long as possible. She frowned when she heard the sounds of a vehicle outside. She wasn't all that sure whether or not the killer had returned to make sure they were being affected by the gas or whether her tracking device had finally come through. She bit her bottom lip as she watched the warehouse doors open cautiously. She could tell that it was her team and shouted a warning to them.
"You need gas masks! It's that new experimental gas, I can't remember it's name but you need masks! Don't come in here!" JJ shouted before shutting her mouth and watching as the team members nodded their acknowledgment and backed out of the building to get the necessary equipment.
Nick jumped out of the SUV as it arrived at the warehouse and noticed a team of people putting on gas masks and muttering to themselves. He looked at the agent that had come to get him and heard him cuss under his breath. He could tell that it was bad news.
"Are they in there? Is JJ and Brass in there?" Nick asked anyone he could.
"Yeah but they have been exposed to a bad gas. They are going to need to be kept alone and in isolation." The agent that had brought him answered. "The team is going to go in and get them in a special suit before they are loaded into the isolation truck. From there they are going to be taken to an FHI facility to be monitored."
"I'm coming along." Nick said stubbornly.
"I don't think that's a good idea." The agent said shaking his head.
"Brass is my friend and boss and JJ has been a family friend for a long time. As far as I am concerned there is no discussion needed, I am coming along with them." Nick said stubbornly. He knew there was a chance that only JJ could help him get his daughter back and that meant he wasn't letting her out of his sight.
Grissom walked into his office and sat down with a frown. Nick had called him a few minutes ago and said that JJ and Brass had been recovered but were being kept by a government agency under isolation because of some exposure they had suffered. He had said he knew he needed to stay with JJ and Brass if he wanted any evidence to help them find the person responsible for everything that was going on. Grissom had agreed and told him to call and keep him updated.
"So does Nick know what's going on or who is responsible yet?" Krisalyn asked walking into the room without knocking.
Grissom looked up startled and shook his head. "He hasn't been able to talk to them. Brass is unconscious and JJ is being kept away from everyone. However he has been assured he will be allowed to be the first one to interview her."
"That's great. Maybe once this is all over we can get Ella back." Krisalyn said simply.
"Yeah maybe." Grissom said with a frown. Something was off about this whole thing and he wasn't all that sure what it was. If the FBI was dirty and someone in there was helping the killer than who was it and where was Ella?
Nick looked up when he heard the door open and noticed the head FHI agent standing there staring at him.
"What?" He asked simply.
"Apparently JJ will only speak to you about what happened. She said that there is something you need to know and you need to know it now. She knows who the dirty cop is and she thinks that you should be the one to take them down. She said something about your daughter being involved as well."
"Where is she?" Nick asked jumping to his feet.
"She is in room 1. She has finally been cleared."
Nick rushed down the hallway until he reached the room and he noticed JJ sitting on the side of the bed with her head down. She glanced up when she heard the door open and gave him a small smile.
"Are you mad at me?" She asked in the small voice she used to use when she was a kid and had taken his bike without asking and crashed it.
"No. I wish that I had recognized you or caught on to everything." Nick said with a smile as he walked in and sat in a chair opposite her. "I wish you had been able to tell me from the beginning what was going on."
"I couldn't Nicky. How is Ella?" JJ asked with a worried look.
"I wouldn't know. The FBI took her into protective custody." Nick said with a sigh.
"There is a file right there on the bedside table that you might want to look at before we talk." JJ said with a sigh.
"Do I want to know what's in it?" Nick asked glancing at the file that was sitting there.
"Probably not. But I think it's something that you need to look at." JJ said softly.
"JJ I know I said a lot of mean things to you…" Nick started but stopped when he saw her glaring at him. "What?"
"If you even think about apologizing for something that I pretty much knew you were going to do then we are going to have a serious problem." JJ said with a warning look on her face. "Look Nick I was acting like an obsessive, crazy weird chick who was willing to do anything to get you. I would have probably kicked your butt if you were attracted to me. However you could have at least pulled me aside somewhere alone to tell me you weren't interested so that I could have told you who I was."
"Did you honestly think I could have been the dirty cop?" Nick asked remembering his name on the list.
"No, but in order for my supervisor to see it I had to thoroughly investigate you to clear you. It was the only way." JJ pointed out with a sigh.
"I understand that I guess. I wish I had given you the chance to tell me the truth. Maybe this whole thing could have been solved a lot fasted with both of us working on it." Nick said as he glanced at the file again.
"You're stalling for time, why?" JJ asked him simply.
"I don't know, I guess because a part of me knows what I am about to see in there. Do you think that there is a chance that it's my fault that this guy came here to Vegas?" Nick asked voicing one of his biggest fears yet.
"I'm not going to lie to you to make you feel better Nicky, that was something I was never really good at when it came to you. This guy did come to Vegas because of you." JJ said with a slight wince.
"Why me? What did I ever do that caught his attention?" Nick asked as he jumped up from his chair and walked over to the window and stared out. "I won't be able to get my daughter back with this psycho lose and if the dirty cop is within the FBI then she is already in severe danger."
"The FBI didn't take Ella Nick." JJ said in a small voice.
"What do you mean?" Nick asked turning around and staring at her.
"FHI has her stashed away and I can promise you that she is safe." JJ said biting her lip nervously.
"You ordered it didn't you?" Nick asked as he walked back over towards the bed and stood looking down at her.
"Intimidating me isn't going to get you anywhere. Yes I did ask FHI to get a court order to take her into protective custody." JJ said with a sigh. "You will thank me for keeping her safe later on."
"I want her back JJ." Nick said simply.
"I can't give her back to you just yet. Nicky just trust me on this one all right. Read that file and help me take down a serial killer and his dirty cop accomplice." JJ said getting to her feet quickly and then sitting back down as the room started spinning. She gripped her head in her hands. She started to try and take deep breaths and closed her eyes but no matter what she did her head wouldn't stop spinning.
"JJ calm down. Just breath in slowly and let it out slowly." Nick said as he sat down on the bed beside her. She felt his arm around her shoulders and the old sparks she used to feel when he would hold her to make her feel better came back. She reminded herself that he was a father and that he was engaged and there could never be anything between them because of the agency she worked for.
Nick was biting his lip to stop from saying something stupid. He had always had feelings for JJ when they were growing up and now he could feel that old spark igniting again. He knew there was a reason they had been thrown back together at this point. He reminded himself that he was a father and that he was engaged to Krisalyn.
"Nicky, are you all right?" JJ asked as she finally managed to get herself semi back to normal.
"No but I will be soon enough." Nick said as he got off the bed and grabbed the file sitting right there. He opened and read through it before his temper started to rise and he felt like maybe now was the time to forget about the badge clipped to his pants.
Grissom was getting more and more concerned the longer it had been since Nick had checked in. He was even more annoyed that he didn't know what agency had Brass and his CSI JJ or where they were being held at the moment. He and Brass went way back and he wanted to know where his old friend was and what his condition was. He walked into the room where his team was all gathered around waiting for any word on their friend and any new information about JJ. No one was sure yet whether or not she was friend or foe but one thing was for sure they wanted to know everything there was to know about her.
"Nick hasn't checked in since he last told me that JJ and Brass had been recovered by a government agency and that they were being held somewhere. I am unaware of their conditions or locations." Grissom informed everyone staring at him.
"Have you tried calling him?" Catherine asked with an arched eyebrow.
"Yes I did and he isn't picking up the phone." Grissom said frustrated.
"You don't think that he was forced to say what he said and that the killer has him do you?" Krisalyn asked with a scared look on her face.
"I really don't know what to think anymore." Grissom stated simply.
"How sure are you about this?" Nick asked he placed the file back on the nightstand.
"As sure as I am that you gave me my first kiss after Jimmy Dereks broke up with me and started dating my best friend when I was twelve." JJ said with a sigh.
"He was a jerk." Nick answered automatically.
"We aren't talking about the past jerks that have been in my life, we are talking about the current jerks that are killing people." JJ said with a smirk on her face.
"So what happens now?" Nick asked with a worried look on his face.
"FHI is already in position to take down the dirty cop. After that we go after the killer who may or may not know Brass and I escaped. Until the cop is takin out of the picture you can't make any phone calls or leave here, but you can see Ella." JJ said with a smile.
"All right I just hope that your reports are accurate and that this is all over as soon as possible." Nick said with a sigh as he shook his head and thought about everything that was about to happen.