A/N: I just ADORE this chapter, written solely by co-author JellybeanChiChi. This chapter is just outstanding, and another favorite of mine. :)

Chapter 54

Once outside Catherine's place, Grissom almost wished he asked the taxi driver to wait for him while he was inside the house. But he had no idea how long he would be there. He felt uncomfortable standing in front of her house or in front of a neighbor's house waiting for a taxi, so he decided he would walk towards a park he knew was nearby. He figured he could call a taxi from there and wait on a bench.

Fifteen minutes later, Grissom's shirt was soaked with sweat. The summer Nevada sun beat down on him mercilessly and there wasn't a lot of shade available on the sidewalk. But he kept his slow sojourn. At the very least, the heat kept his mind off the heavy conversation he had had with Catherine.

That was until he saw her car trail alongside him. When he noticed her, he stopped, and so did she. He watched as she rolled down the automatic window. "Where are you going?"

Grissom pointed his cane to the south. "To the park. I figured I could call a taxi from there…"

"Farther than you thought, huh?" Catherine said. "Come in. I'll take you home."

"I'm fine."

"No, you're not," she insisted.

Grissom looked in the distance. With his slow pace, he probably had another 15 minutes to walk. "I can just call the taxi from here, and by the time I get there…"

"You'll pass out from heat stroke," Catherine said as she opened the door to her car. She got out and approached him. "We don't have to talk, Gil. Please. Give me this chance to help you."

"I thought you said you had plans."

"When did I say that?"

"When you opened the door and found me there."

"Oh. I lied." Catherine said with a small smile.

While she was trying to be funny, Grissom still couldn't appreciate the joke. But he walked to the passenger's side of the car and got in.

The drive was quiet for the first few minutes, but the tension became a little unbearable for Catherine. She had hoped maybe he would talk with her. Instead he looked out the window, a familiar look of sadness upon his face.

Catherine knew why he felt the way he did, and she also knew she was the source of that disappointment. But she did what she did out of necessity and hoped he would come to understand that.

Still, the silence bothered her. Did she miss her friend? She shook that thought of her head. Small talk, she thought. He can't brush off small talk. "So, where's Daniel today?"

"At home."

"By himself?" she asked, full of mirth that she hoped he would match.

But he didn't. "My mother came for a visit, and is watching him," Grissom said matter-of-factly.

"She must love spending time with him."

Grissom nodded his head.

"His birthday's coming up, right?"

Again, there was only a nod.

Grissom wasn't avoiding talking about Daniel; he was avoiding talking to Catherine. And that did make her sad. She had to admit, she did miss her friend.

The silence reigned once more and it caught up to Catherine when she hit a stoplight about three miles from his house. She swallowed the lump in her throat and willed her tears to dry before they fell. She would have been OK if she didn't glance to her right. That's when she noticed Grissom had turned his head and was observing her.

She quickly turned her head away. She couldn't possibly hold his gaze. At this point, the silence was welcome.

But Grissom broke that silence. "He's walking now. He took his first steps towards Sara and me when I was in rehab."

Catherine could picture that moment in her head and it was impossible to will a solitary tear that pooled in her eye.

"Catherine, look at me."

She bit her lip, took a deep breath and tried to put on the most composed face she could. But it's hard to hide something from someone who could read you like a book.

"If I did leave the lab tarnished, embarrassed or in disarray, I can say I'm sorry, but I will never say I regret leaving," he said, his voice low. "I don't know if I deserve the life I have now, but I cherish it, Catherine. I hope you can understand that. I hope that's explanation enough for you in regards to what I did."

Then, it was silent again. Five long minutes later, Catherine pulled into the Grissom driveway. She put the car in park.

"Thank you," Grissom said as he reached for the door. But before he could open it, Catherine stopped him by putting her hand on his forearm.

"Believing you murdered Jake Sullivan was one of the toughest moments I've ever experienced in my life," she said, her voice cracking slightly. "It's also my biggest regret. By far, my biggest regret."

Grissom looked down at his hands. He wasn't sure how he felt. There was a definite shift between them and a chasm had formed that most likely couldn't be bridged. But maybe a new path might be possible.

"Do you…" Grissom cleared his throat. "You want to see Daniel?"

Catherine smiled, astonished at the offer. "I'd like that."

Grissom opened the front door for her and led her inside. He sneaked a peek in the living room and heard nothing in the kitchen. "They're upstairs in his room. Go ahead. Takes me a little longer. First door on the right."

Catherine took the lead and when she got to the child gate at the top, she expertly undid the latch and put it aside for Gil, who still had seven steps to go. She went to the right and saw Grissom's mother and Daniel. "Hello," she said as she waved to them both.

"Catherine?" Grissom's mother said aloud.

"It's been a long time," Catherine said slowly, so his mother could read her lips. She went to Daniel who was standing in his crib. "Hey there, Daniel."

Daniel heard his father's gait and cane before he entered the room and put up his arms to signal, "Let me out, lady. Daddy's home."

Catherine picked him up and Grissom waved at him and then his mother. The two exchanged signs and then Betty excused herself to go downstairs.

"She's going to start some coffee," Grissom explained.

"He's gotten so big."

"Well, it's been a while since you saw him last," Grissom said, poking his son in the belly, which garnered giggles. "You mind holding him for a second. I want to change my shirt." He pulled on the sweat-stained shirt that dried but smelled.

"Go ahead I got him."

Grissom left for the bedroom on the other side of the stairway. While Catherine said she had Daniel, he squirmed relentlessly out of her grasp. "OK. OK. You want down. I get it."

No sooner had he been put on the floor did Daniel make a beeline for his parent's bedroom. Grissom hadn't closed the door, and Daniel walked inside and grabbed onto his father's calf before he could fall down.

Grissom had taken off his shirt and was just going to put on another one when he felt Daniel's weight on him. He smiled wide and scooped the boy up. "I thought you were in your bedroom," he said as he tickled Daniel's sides and under his arms garnering more giggles. "You just want to cause problems, don't you?"

He let the boy stand on the bed and held his hands while he encouraged him to bounce on the bed. "One. Two. Three!" At "three" Grissom pulled up Daniel in a big jump, which the boy loved. He repeated the action over and over.

Catherine watched the two from the doorway with utterly mixed emotions. Who wouldn't want to see their longtime friend enjoy an innocent moment with a cherished child? The fatherly moment elicited a watery smile. And while that kept her mesmerized, she couldn't take her eyes off Grissom's back. Without the shirt she saw the angry red lines and raised scars from his attack. That image made her smile waver ever so slightly.

She knocked on the door frame, surprising Grissom, who turned around while still holding Daniel's hands. "Oh, sorry, Cath. Come in." He let go of Daniel's hands and the boy sat on the bed with a plop. Grissom quickly put on his shirt then picked up his son before turning to Catherine.

"He's a real heart breaker," Catherine said. "Keeps you busy."

"Yeah, in a good way," Grissom said. "I need to take him downstairs."

"I'll hold him. It's probably easier for you to take the stairs without this sack of potatoes," Catherine said, taking Daniel in her grasp. "I'll follow behind you. Take your time."

Once they got to the first floor, Catherine gave a kiss to Daniel on his head and handed him back to his father. "Thanks, Gil. He's a sweetie."

"You want some coffee?"

"No. I should go."

Grissom put Daniel down and held the boy's left hand in his right hand. He gestured for Catherine to take the boy's other hand. She picked up the cue, and the trio walked to the door together. Once at the door, the two released Daniel's hand and he latched on to his father's healthy right leg.

Catherine chuckled at the image. A chubby fist in the toddler's mouth and the other arm snaked around daddy's leg. And Daddy couldn't look more content, even as he held a cane in his left hand. She lovingly stroked Grissom's arm and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "You deserve this life, Gil."

She left without either one of them saying, "goodbye."

"Stupid bolt. Come loose."

Sara never minded the task of pulling apart a car for evidence, but she had to admit the task was less difficult as a twenty-something CSI than a 36-year-old pregnant mother CSI. So when the bolt she was trying to pry free was being a brat, she took it personally. She strained as she tried to turn the wrench Lefty Lucy.

"Don't make me come at you with cutters," she threatened. "My hormones are out of whack so don't try me, you stupid, freakin' bolt."

Finally succeeding she let out a healthy "HA," for no one to hear but herself.

Yet as she stood back from the car she heard someone offer applause. She turned around in surprise. "Catherine? Is that you?"

"Last person you expected to see?"

"Well, yeah, I guess," Sara said.

"Do you still ask to take apart the cars, or is it some kind of weird lottery you always win?"

Sara smiled. "I don't mind. It's kind of solitary work, which lately…" She abruptly stopped talking, but asked kindly. "You're a little early for shift. Is everything OK?"

Catherine's foot tapped unconsciously on the floor. "You got a minute to talk?"

Her smile slightly melted, Sara took a cloth to clean some grime off her hands. "Sure. What's up?"

"Well," Catherine started. "Gil surprised me with a visit this morning."

"What? He drove to your house?" Sara exclaimed. "But I took his keys away. He must have a spare somewhere in secret. Dammit, with his meds he shouldn't be driving…"

Catherine put up her hands in surrender. "Relax. He took a taxi."

"Oh," Sara said, pulse suddenly slowing down. "OK."

"And before you freak out, Daniel was at home with your mother-in-law."

"Yeah, he said she was going to drop by before lunch to check on them," Sara said. "Gil was afraid Daniel had a little fever this morning so insisted he not go to daycare. I think he just wanted to spend the morning with him since he didn't have therapy. He wanted Betty to drop by in case they needed to go to the doctor."

"Well, Daniel looked fine when I dropped Gil back off at your house."

"Oh, good." Sara felt as uncomfortable as her tone indicated.

It was not lost on Catherine. But she didn't exactly feel at ease at the moment either. "I… uh… Sara I need to tell you something and I need you to hear me out. Let me explain."

Sara's face looked both curious and worried, and suddenly Catherine saw Sara not as CSI Sidle with a crush on CSI supervisor Grissom, but as a woman who had faced her share of tribulations. Enough to pick up on something that would make her anxious, but also enough to know challenges can be surpassed.

"You've been kind of going solo for a while, haven't you?" Catherine started.

"Uh… I'm not sure what you mean."

"Well, at the lab, you've been on a lot of cases by yourself?"

"Yeah, but, you know. I get partnered every once in a while. Things are different on the day shift. I'm kind of the odd girl out."

Catherine nodded. "I guess, you've also been kind of solo on the home front, I mean when Gil was … out of commission… you were with Daniel by yourself."

The serious look on Sara's face showed she wasn't amused by this line of questioning. "If 'out of commission' you mean either in jail, or taken hostage, or in the hospital, then yeah, Daniel and I were on our own."

"Good to have Grissom home?" Catherine asked.

"Of course it is. Cath, what is going on?"

Catherine looked down on the floor then raised her head to look into Sara's eyes. "When everything happened to Gil, I told the guys to … lay low…"

"Lay low?" The irritation in Sara's voice was obvious.

"Yes. Lay low."

Sara leaned against the car she was working on and folding her arms across her chest. "Lay low? Or stay away?"

"Same thing."

"No. It's not," Sara said. "Catherine, you told them to stay away from me?"

"I know it sounds awful, Sara…:

"Awful and unbelievable!" Sara threw her wrench down into her tool box on the floor. "Why?… How could you have done that?!"

"You have to understand why I did it," Catherine started, putting up her hand before Sara could retort. "Please, just let me try and explain."

Sara shook her head. "You can try."

"You know how the lab is. You know the gossip mill. You know how territorial this place can get. When I saw that evidence, I don't know how to explain it Sara, I think I went so numb I needed to isolate everyone else." Catherine's gaze turned distant. "None of them liked what I told them. But Warrick seemed to try and understand straight away, and Nicky… he was so conflicted by issues of betrayal, on Grissom's end, and maybe on his own end, too. Then there was Greg. He was the toughest nut to crack. He finally relented after a huge shouting match."

"I…" Sara started but needed to stop as the bubble of anger rose in her chest. "I don't even know what to do with this information, Catherine."

"Sara, I thought I was doing the right thing by doing what I did, but, thanks to your husband, I realized it really accomplished nothing in the long run," Catherine said. "And I don't want you to look on what happened and blame the guys. I pushed them to isolate themselves away from you and Gil."

Catherine watched as Sara stood silently, her gaze focused on another part of the garage. She was deep in thought and Catherine had no idea the reaction Sara would have. After a long moment, Sara pushed herself off the car and stood almost immediately in front of Catherine. Standing nose to nose, with her arms still crossed in front of her chest.

"It did accomplish something. Distance. Isolation. Horrible, terrible feelings of betrayal for me and for Gil. I've been questioning a lot of things since this happened."

"I can imagine."

"No, I'm not sure you can. But I wouldn't want you to ever have to," Sara said sadly. "And what exactly did you mean when you said, 'thanks to my husband?'"

"The reason why Gil showed up at my house unannounced was because he was angry with me," Catherine said. "He wanted to know why we — the team — abandoned you."

"That must have flown like a lead balloon," Sara said without a hint of mirth.

"You can say that again. You know how I am." Catherine looked as if she was going to reach out and grab Sara's hands, but at the last minute pulled away. "I was surprised he let me drive him home. The stubborn ass thought he could walk a mile in the midday sun to call a taxi from a park by my house." Catherine paced a bit, now with her arms crossed in front of her chest. "I was surprised, but he invited me in the house. I got to see Daniel. He's just a beautiful child, Sara, and, God, Grissom loves that baby."

Sara's face softened ever so slightly. After all, Catherine was talking about the two most important people in her life. "Daniel loves his dad a lot, too. He had a hard time being separated from him."

Catherine looked down to avoid losing it at that comment. She took a deep breath and did something she did not do often. "I realize now my actions, despite having the best intentions, were dead wrong. And, Sara… I'm sorry."

At that moment, Sara couldn't avoid the anger and bitterness she held towards Catherine. She could have told her to "go to hell," but Sara also knew apologies do not come lightly when it comes to Catherine Willows. This moment in time belonged solely to Sara and Catherine awaited how the woman would react. Sara had every right to hold the feelings she had. It all came down to how she would choose to react.

She took a deep breath before she spoke.

"Apology accepted." Sara's tone was laced with reflection, which might also be recognized as ambivalence.

Catherine let out a breath she didn't realize she held. "Thank you."

The two shared a silent moment that felt somewhat awkward, but necessary. Just as Catherine recognized how her actions damaged her relationship with Grissom, she saw how the same was true with Sara. Yet, the couple individually offered her an olive branch. Their reactions gave the single mother a lot to think about.

After a minute or two, Catherine put down her hands and reached into her jeans for her keys. "Well, I'd offer to help here, you know for old times sake, but I'm not dressed."

"Thanks for the offer, but I'll be fine," Sara said, her reaction still guarded. "And… thanks for driving Gil home."

"Stubborn fool. Some things never change with him," Catherine said, trying to lighten the mood.

"He always will be Grissom, no matter what." Sara said with the upmost seriousness.

"Yeah. You're right," Catherine said, reflecting on how because she had forgotten that notion two months ago much damage was caused. After a beat, she addressed Sara again before leaving the garage. "Take care, Sara."

Standing alone, Sara lost interest in the car she was supposed to process. The silence in the garage enveloped her. She felt an urge to get away with a friend and chat.

Exiting the garage, she took out her cell and scrolled through her contacts. She smiled as she heard a groggy voice on the end. "Hey Greggo, did I wake you?"