I also skipped 6x17 because the whole TV crew following the CSIs just doesn't seem like something Ecklie would let happen. Especially given the case's subject. This episode will be three chapters long.


Sara knocked on Catherine's door and the redhead waved her in from behind the closed door. Opening the door, she walked in and closed it. The look on Sara's face must have worried her supervisor because her the redhead closed the file she had open and told the person she was on the phone with she'd call them back. Sara sat down, unable to say anything for a while but Catherine didn't rush her.

"I screwed up Catherine." She looked at her supervisor.

"Sara, I spoke with Ecklie and honestly, I agree once I read the case. Either one could have done it."

She shook her head. "After the trial I told Hannah that the DA would be filing charges. Same as I do a lot of people. Except she wanted to tell me something and so I listened. She said that a lot of people could get away with murder. Even implied I could."

Catherine chuckled. "Of all of us, you and Grissom would be the ones who probably could."

"She said it took a really smart person to make people think something that never happened." She looked straight at Catherine, "then she told me that she didn't kill Stacy, Marlon did."

"Are you serious?"

Sara nodded, "I sat in shock for a while till Sofia came to check I was okay. I didn't tell her, I couldn't. I came straight to you."

"Okay," Catherine put a large notepad and pen on the desk in front of Sara before she picked up her phone. "Here is what you're going to do. You're going to write out that entire exchange and I mean the entire thing." She started dialing a number, "then you're going to speak to Sinclair and let him know what happened. Then," she put up a finger and spoke to the person on the phone. "Hey Jeff, it's Catherine. Yeah, I know it's a bit out of the way but can you swing by my office. It's important, no it can't wait. It has to do with Marlon and Hannah West. Yeah, thanks." She hung up and turned to Sara, "where was I?"

"Telling me what I'm doing after talking to Sinclair." Sara stated while writing her statement.

"Right, then you are going to go home and pack a bag." She reached into her desk and pulled out a paper. "I'm sending you to San Francisco."

"What? Why?" Sara suddenly got concerned.

Catherine looked up, "look, Grissom called Ecklie and asked him to send a lab tech because of some this or that situation in San Francisco. Apparently, in full Grissom-fashion, he went for the conference and stayed for a case. I'm sending you instead. You're rattled and after the last few days, I need your head on straight. Especially with the Lester court case in two weeks." She started filling out a form. "So, I'm going to fill out an expense form and get you a plane ticket. See if Nick can watch Hank, I'm sure Kahlua and Hank will love it."

"Oh, thanks I guess." Sara stated.

"Look, it's a work vacation. Plus, you're from San Francisco, I'm sure there's a few people you'd love to say hello to." She smirked, "plus get Grissom away from all those CSIs and techs."

Sara tilted her head side to side. "Yeah, a couple girls were enamored with him. Most of the lab techs really."

"See, it won't be all bad." Catherine stated as she held out a form to Sara. "Loan form. You know what to do with that."

Taking the form, Sara folded it and put it in her jacket before continuing to write. "I doubt the appeal is still present though."

"Oh trust me, it is. You remember Wendy's statement when she showed up. Before you put her in her place?"


Catherine was walking with Sara around the lab when they got near the front desk. Both stopping to pick up their messages. The brunette chuckled as she was asked about her date the night before. "So how was it?"

"Oh good, we went to the restaurant you recommended. Gnocchi really was to die for." Sara told her as she turned to Judy. "Can I get…"

"Here you are." Judy smiled at Sara. "You come twice a shift now, I just hold them until you come. He doesn't come anymore unless he gets here before you."

Sara nodded. "Thanks, Judy."

Catherine smirked. "Today it's messages, next it'll be the kids."

"That's a maybe." Sara stated as she pointed the messages at Catherine. "We've spoken about marriage but kids, not yet."

"Oh, under six months and you've discussed marriage." The redhead looked amused. "I never did that till Eddie asked."

Sara shook her head. "Kind of something you discuss when you start dating. Prevents mixed messages. The idea of kids can change over time but marriage, that's a big one."

"Sara Sidle!" Both Sara and Catherine turned to see a brunette standing a few feet away.

Catherine leaned her head towards Sara. "Friend of yours?"

"Sort of, she worked in San Francisco with me." Sara waved, "hey Wendy, long time no see."

Wendy instantly hugged Sara and Catherine laughed as Sara froze. "Oh it's so good to see a familiar face here." She pulled away. "I didn't know if you'd still be here. I thought you'd be here but Lacy and Richard, they said you'd have been at Quantico by now." Wendy held onto Sara's wrists. "Casey too."

"Why are you here?" Sara asked nervously.

"Oh, I'm the new DNA Tech." She grinned and released Sara.

Sara looked to Catherine. "I'm going to disappear. Excuse me." She turned and left down the hall.

"I shouldn't have hugged her." Wendy stated. "I mean, she's never been touchy-feely."


Catherine held out her hand and Wendy shook it. "Hi, Catherine Willows. CSI III and Assistant Night Shift Supervisor. Why don't I show you where the locker room is."

"That'd be great Miss Willows, thanks." She pointed to herself, "Wendy Simms."

"Catherine, we're very informal around here."

Wendy looked confused. "Really? At the second busiest lab in the country?"

"Oh yeah. Cuts through all the wasted seconds you use by being formal." Catherine stated and started towards the locker room. "This way."

"All I'm saying is that if the timeline is wrong, we're screwed." Nick stated as he walked past them with Greg. "Find Grissom or Sara, one of them can do the math properly."

"Dude, I did the math and it's right. It's the timeline that's wrong." Greg told him.

Sara turned the corner and Nick called after her. "Hey Sara, newbie here did an entomological timeline and the math is wrong. That or decades of entomology went wrong in ten minutes."

"Give me that." Sara took the file from Greg as they stood by the locker room. "Ten days." She handed it back and Greg looked down at the file again. "How many did you get?"

"Seven."

"Temperature, Greg, temperature." She slapped his arm and kept walking.

Nick chuckled and slapped Greg's back. "Dude, why you think you'll win against Sara when it comes to entomology I'll never understand. I mean, she…"

"Nick, Greg may I introduce Mia's replacement." Catherine caught their attention. "Guys, this is Wendy. She's from San Francisco."

Greg held out his hand. "Hi, Greg Sanders. I used to be the DNA guy but now I'm in the field."

"Nick Stokes." He took Wendy's hand after Greg. "CSI III, this idiot is a CSI I. Don't let him fool you."

Wendy looked between the three. "You called him an idiot, isn't that a write up?"

"What?" Nick asked while all three looked at her.

"Oh, well in San Francisco there's a write up if we name call. Director Dillard is a stickler for policy."

Catherine looked amused. "You'll be fine here. In no time we'll have you corrupted. Name calling, not that big a deal unless it's unwarranted or to our director."

Nick chuckled. "Oh yeah, last one to do it was Sara."

"Sara?" Wendy shook her head. "No way, she's a rule follower to the core."

"Sara? A rule follower?" Greg asked before the three started laughing.

Catherine pinched her nose to calm down. "Oh Sara is in no way a rule follower, at least anymore. She's been suspended the most out of all of us. I think she's been suspended, what three times?"

"Twice." They turned to see Grissom, "but now it's on Catherine to make the decision in the future." He looked to Wendy, "you must be our new DNA technician."

Wendy nodded somewhat stunned. "Yes…"

"Gil Grissom, Wendy Simms." Catherine motioned between them.

"Make sure you get her blood before she starts." He stated and started to walk away.

Wendy looked to Catherine and back towards Grissom. "Why?"

"So many reasons." He turned into his office.

"Do you really need my blood?" Wendy asked.

Catherine chuckled and nodded to the locker room. "Pick a free locker and we'll start the tour."


Wendy left the locker room a few minutes later to just find Catherine. "So, tour?"

"Yeah, we'll start this way." Catherine motioned to the left. "So the central lab is circular with offices and closets and door spaced between. So we have the breakroom towards the back with the garage and ballistics on one side and A/V on the other. Those are the three of the four cardinal points. Then we have DNA and Tox on one side and Fingerprints on the other located centrally. My office and Grissom's office are located in corners, opposite of each other."

"You know the rumors were right." Wendy stated and Catherine looked at her.

"What rumors?" Catherine asked as they entered the breakroom.

"That Gil Grissom is the hottest entomologist in the country." Wendy stated. "We had this other entomologist but he's like, maybe second."

Catherine turned and saw Sara in the doorway behind Wendy. "I wouldn't really go around voicing that. The rumor mill here is legendary and not in a good way."

"Do you know if he's married?" Wendy asked Catherine.

"Who?" Sara asked as she acted innocently as she walked to sit at the table.

Wendy turned, "Dr. Grissom."

"I don't think so." Sara told her as she started working on a crossword. "But I know he has a girlfriend. Well, the whole lab knows actually."

"Oh." Wendy stated, "anyone know her?"

"Everyone." Catherine replied and threw a soda at Sara, who caught it.


Grissom walked into the breakroom and paused at seeing Sara at the table, back to him. "Sara?"

Sara turned around, "yeah Babe?"

"Give it." He held out his hand and she stood, holding out the crossword for him to take. "Oh look, you didn't start this one. That's at least one I haven't found finished."

"You shouldn't leave them laying around."

"You've stolen the last seven off my desk."

Sara smirked. "You complaining to me, about my actions?"

"No Dear, never." He smiled at her and turned to leave.

Catherine chuckled. "This happens every day. When are you going to stop stealing them, Sara?"

"Never." Sara stated as she left the breakroom, "hey Gil, you need to speak to Greg about entomological math. I had to redo it for him today."

Catherine shook her head and turned to Wendy to see her glancing at the door to breakroom. The brunette turned to her, "that was a power play, wasn't it?"

"Oh yeah. I don't know how Sara was when she was in San Francisco but here, she's a force to be reckoned with." Catherine stated. "Officially, she's just another CSI but unofficially, she's Grissom's protégé and that was well before they started dating."


"Yeah, I forgot about that." Sara stated looking up before looking back down at the pad. "I may have gotten a little territorial that morning."

Catherine chuckled, "well he survived obviously."

"Obviously."

"Just don't get too territorial or combative while there. Wendy said something about the director there, Dillard, being a hardass."

Sara nodded, "Ecklie is so laid back compared to him. If I had done what I did to you and Ecklie with him, I would have been fire and never been hired in any lab in the country."

"She said you were a rule follower."

"My supervisor was a kiss-ass so blowing up on a suspect or breaking a rule wouldn't have been a good idea. My partner, Casey, she covered for me after my first incident. We didn't switch up like here. She realized that battery, kidnapping, stuff like that was hard for me so she'd always question the suspects and send me back to lab. I was thinking of transferring out somewhere when I got Gil's call. He offered me a spot here after the investigation and I jumped."

Catherine chuckled, "that's why she looked confused when the boys and I laughed at that statement."

"Follow the rules enough and you get reprimanded heavily instead of fired when something happens. Figured I'd need to in order to save my job if Casey was out one day." She shrugged, "Gil knew about it, we talked back then. I guess he figured if he had an open spot, he'd save me from myself. I wasn't thriving, I hadn't progressed in three years and I was still a Level II."

"Well he made a good choice, even if you were a nightmare for a while."

Sara smiled at her. "Oh you know you hated me for like a year."

"Hey, I can hate someone and still think they're a good choice."

Sara put the pen down and handed the pad to Catherine. "That's everything."

"Well as soon as Sinclair gets here, you can get out of town for a few days."