A/N: Many thanks to JellybeanChiChi, for the awesome beta on this chapter. She also wrote a good portion of this chapter, so i can't take full credit. Lots of appreciation for your comments/reviews.

CHAPTER 21

Sara sipped on her mango smoothie as she absentmindedly pushed Daniel in a baby swing at Desert Breeze Park. Nearby Hank lay on a grassy patch as he kept guard of a small diaper bag on the bench and the stroller by his side.

It was day three of Grissom being missing, and Sara hadn't heard anything from anyone. The last person she spoke with about the mysterious disappearance was Nick the day before. The 24 hours since her conversation with him did nothing to alleviate her shock, hurt and anger.

Nick all but made her feel like a fool for believing something terrible had happened to Grissom. It seemed that Nick and all her colleagues — her longtime friends — had accepted the unbelievable account that Grissom committed murder even before he could be tried. And in the process, they separated themselves from Sara, as if she was a pariah. Nick wanted Sara to understand there was no other way, and if she were in their shoes she would be doing the same thing.

That idea swirled in Sara's head over and over for 24 hours. As she stayed in the home she shared with the man she loved. As she cared for the child they created out of love. As she consoled and was consoled by the pet he had brought into their relationship and who she loved more and more every day.

Through all that she examined whether she was wrong in her sentiment. Maybe she was playing the role of a wife and not considering the role of the CSI. And every time she evaluated all those notions, Sara came to the same conclusion.

Bullshit.

Whether as a wife, a lover or a CSI, it didn't matter what hat Sara Sidle would put on because the fact remained the same: Grissom would not kill another human being. And Grissom would not stage an elaborate breakout of a maximum-security prison that made multiple people and a bus disappear in thin air. He's not David Copperfield, magician extraordinaire. He's Gil Grissom. Former CSI, longtime bug geek, son, husband, father and man who believes in law and order and the rule of morality and decency.

Was it really out of the realm of possibility that someone set up Grissom? Sara didn't think so and she hated that her colleagues — people who had known and worked with Grissom for so long — couldn't think about that as a possibility as well.

If only I could see the evidence, Sara said to herself as she sipped her smoothie.

She shook her head and let out a sigh. She came to the park this morning to try and get her mind off of things. Sitting in that house letting her mind run free while waiting for a phone that would never ring drove her nuts. She didn't want that to happen again today. So she strapped Daniel in a stroller for a long walk, first to a smoothie shop about a five minute walk from the house, and then to the park, which was on the way home.

Seeing that Daniel was losing interest in the swing, Sara brought it to a stop and took Daniel out. She walked toward Hank, who lifted his head up and sat up for her.

"Holding down the fort, I see," Sara said as she placed Daniel in the stroller. While she sat down and prepared a bottle, Hank sniffed at Daniel's feet as the boy smiled and shuffled his feet up and down. The moment of ordinary normalcy made Sara smile. She finished prepping Daniel's bottle and picked him up from the stroller. Daniel was quick to grab at the bottle in his mother's hands. "So impatient. I wonder where you get that from?"

The trio quietly enjoyed the mid morning sunshine under the shade of an oak tree. Sara was looking down at Daniel when she heard Hank sit up and make low, growling noises. The canine sentry became alert as he noticed a man approaching them.

Sara squinted her eyes as she watched the tall man in a suit approach her family. She held Daniel a little tighter but then recognized who the man was.

"It's OK, Hank. Stay."

Seeing the boxer, the lawyer stopped a respectable distance so he might be invited to sit. "Hello, Sara. Beautiful morning for a day at the park."

"Mr. Jacobsen," Sara responded with a nod. "It's OK, Hank. Sit. He's fine."

"Fine dog you have. Takes good care of you."

"We take care of each other," Sara said. "Why are you here? Do you have news?"

"May I sit down?" he asked cordially.

Sara scooted to the edge closer to Hank. She left the diaper bag on the bench, but scooted it closer to her as well. "How did you know I was here?"

Jacobsen sat down. "I went to the house first, but there was no answer. Gil told me you both love walking to this park on sunny days. Thought I'd give it a shot."

"Oh," Sara said forlornly.

"And to answer your question, I don't have any news yet. I'm sorry, dear. I was actually hoping you might know something. Have you heard anything from Hobson?"

The name made Sara's blood boil. "You mean that loser you put on Gil's case? No, I haven't heard from him. Why?"

"He missed an important early morning court date today."

"Shocking."

"It actually is, Sara," Jacobsen said. "I'm worried there's something truly amiss."

"Forgive me for not having the patience or compassion for Hobson Nash," Sara said, cognizant not to raise her voice too much so she wouldn't disturb Daniel or Hank. "But that man has done nothing but hide the truth from me about my husband, and has been a useless attorney."

"I know you're disappointed with him, Sara. I am too. I wish to hell I wasn't away on family matters when all this went down with Gil. I handpicked Hobson because he was one of the rising stars in the firm. And with Gil's reputation, I thought..." Jacobsen paused to compose himself and sat up straight. "This has exploded in a way I never thought fathomable. If I could turn back time, I would have returned sooner."

Sara let her anger taper down a bit. She had never been sure how much to trust this man, especially in light of her experience with Hobson. But she had to admit; he looked remorseful. "Well, neither one of us can turn back time, so we have to deal with what's going on. And I'm worried, Mr. Jacobsen. Very worried about him."

Jacobsen knew Sara wasn't talking about his subordinate. "I'm worried about Gil, too, Sara. And I want to do everything I can to make it up to you and him and your family. Everything. And, in light of circumstances, I would like to formally offer my services to represent your husband."

Sara didn't understand exactly what was going on, but she went with the flow. "Yes. I agree to that, Mr. Jacobsen."

"Thank you."

The awkward moment still unnerved Sara, who didn't know exactly what to say. "Umm... Does that mean I have to give you payment. I saw that on TV. But I have no cash."

As if on cue, Daniel gave his beloved ant to Jacobsen. Both adults smiled at one another knowing the child had inadvertently dissolved some tension. "Well, Master Grissom," Jacobsen said. "That's quite a gesture. Thank you."

He took the ant from Daniel, who held a serious, introspective look. "Well, it's official, I'll be your counsel." Once that was said, Jacobsen handed the ant back. "And if Daniel doesn't mind holding onto the collateral for me."

"He won't mind at all, Mr. Jacobsen," Sara said, her soft expression turning serious once again. "So where do you go from here?"

"Right now, I think it is important to try and find Hobson, your former attorney."

"You said it was a big deal he didn't show up for court. Are you thinking he left town?" Sara asked, as she put down Daniel's bottle and placed him on her shoulder.

"That's an awful big jump, Sara," Jacobsen said. "I'm don't think that should be an immediate conclusion, but I've called his estranged wife. I've called a few friends I know of. Of course I tried his cell phone and house number."

After garnering a burp from Daniel, Sara went into full investigator mode. "Did you go into his office to see if he had packed anything away?"

"I did go into his office to retrieve some phone numbers. There was nothing, really amiss. Paperwork was there. A phone log I knew he had."

"What about personal things?" Sara asked. "Were there any personal items missing from the desk that you can remember? Photos? Favorite CD? Maybe something that would remind him of a loved one..."

"The baseball." Jacobsen blurted out. He looked reflective as he glanced toward Sara. "He had a baseball on his desk. It was the first homerun his son made in Little League. It wasn't there."

"Are you sure?" Sara pressed. "Maybe it had been gone for a while and you hadn't noticed?"

"I don't believe so," Jacobsen said.

"If Hobson was to skip town, you think he would have left that baseball behind?"

Jacobsen took a deep breath, but before he could answer his phone rang. "Will you excuse me for a moment? It is work."

As Jacobsen took a few steps away from the bench to make the call, a new feeling of dread swept over Sara. If Hobson had skipped town that would not bode well for Grissom. To the authorities, they will believe the lawyer going missing only cements the fact that Grissom staged a jailbreak.

But Sara never trusted Hobson, and knowing he had hidden the truth from her before about how Grissom was faring in jail only meant he could be hiding a lot more. Jacobsen might have thought Hobson was a good lawyer, but what if he was part of some conspiracy against her husband. What if Hobson knows where Grissom is and now he's in the wind?

And the worst part of all this was Sara believed she might be the only person worried about Grissom and his well being instead of assuming he is a guilty man on the run.

Sara returned Daniel to her lap and gave him his favorite ant stuffed animal. As she watched Jacobsen came back to the bench, she noticed he looked more worried than before. "What's wrong?"

"That was one of my partners at the law firm. I need to speak to him at the office," Jacobsen said. "Sara, as far as I'm concerned you are Hobson's most important client, and I believe you deserve full disclosure about any information we have. Would you be willing to drive with me to the office?"

Sara stood up with Daniel in her arms. "I need to get back to the house and drop off Hank. It won't take me long to walk home, it's only a 15 minute walk..."

"Don't be silly," Jacobsen said, as he picked up the diaper bag. "I have the car seat for my grandson in the car. I can drive you to the house, and then to my office, if you are comfortable with that."

Sara wasn't quite sure. "You don't mind having a boxer in your car?"

Jacobsen smiled. "It's just a 5 minute drive. What can happen in 5 minutes?"

They walked quickly to the car and strapped both Daniel and Hank in the backseat. As promised they arrived to Sara's doorstep without a hitch. While Jacobsen waited in his car, Sara settled Hank in the house with fresh water and food and put a new diaper on Daniel. Although Sara called her mother-in-law about the possibility of taking care of Daniel, Betty Grissom had a series of doctor appointments. The duo decided if Sara could drop Daniel off at the daycare for a few hours, Betty would pick him up when her appointments were done.

The trio drove in relative silence for about five minutes, until Sara asked, "What you said back at the park, did you mean that?"

"About being Hobson's most important client? Absolutely."

Sara let out a soft sigh, waiting a moment before speaking again. "Gil didn't kill anyone. And he didn't escape prison."

Jacobsen also waited a moment before speaking. "I believe that to be true, too, Sara."

The two said nothing more on the drive. The only sounds were that of the engine and the occasional soft babble from Daniel.

There was still so much anxiety about the situation, yet, for the first time in a long while, Sara felt solace. Someone believed as she did. Someone else believed Grissom was innocent and said it out loud.

Maybe Sara wasn't alone after all.