Trials and Devastation

by Chameleon777

Sequel to 'Deep Descent.' The trial where Horatio Caine must relive his near-death experience at the hands of Jeffrey McKeen and the man's many associates is on the horizon, but the road to the main event and aftermath will not be pleasant for anyone.

4. Death and Life Part I

Two Days Later

Manhattan, New York

John was up early that morning, earlier than anyone else in the apartment, and he quietly gave himself his insulin, ate breakfast, and got into his court suit, which was over a bulletproof vest that his father insisted he wear to court under his clothes, and his glasses before sitting on the window seat with his diabetes bag to wait for his escort to court.

As he sat there, deep in thought, Caira came out of her bedroom wearing sweats, an old LV Crime Lab shirt that Grissom had gifted all the students in the pilot project, and a hooded jacket with her dark hair in a messy ponytail, and pink socks on her feet. She walked past the couch to the kitchen and suddenly noticed John sitting at the window in his court suit sporting a pained expression on his face.

Deeply concerned for her boyfriend, Caira quietly approached him and he looked at her eagerly, which prompted her to come forward to him until their lips met. He gently pulled her on to his lap and they began to kiss each other tenderly as they held each other. Gentle giggling filled the air.

The front door suddenly opened and the front light came on. Danielle froze, her expression amused as she saw John and Caira in mid-makeout on the windowseat. A moment later, a tired looking Holly came into the apartment being helped to walk by Sully, who was in a court suit, and Holly and Sully couldn't help but smile at seeing John and Caira as they were, "Um, hi," John spoke nervously. "We…"

"You were just blowing off a little steam before you go testify," Sully finished calmly as he set a suitcase near the door. "If you want to do that, though, maybe use your bedroom or hers next time so your siblings or your dad don't catch you. You're almost 19 and she's 18, so you can do what you want, but use some discretion about where you do it. By the way, since you're up and appear ready to go, can you and Caira please make up the hideabed for Holly? She's going to be resting up here today and helping your grandmother watch the kids so your parents and I can go to the trial with you today."

Caira immediately got to work turning the couch into the hideabed, but John immediately gave Holly a hug, "Caira, I…I don't have a good feeling about today," he suddenly spoke softly, gazing at Caira. "I know you said you wanted to go today to support me, but…"

"I am not staying here while you're at court, but I don't have to come to the courtroom until you testify," Caira interrupted firmly. "Is that fair?"

John nodded and Caira smiled, "Good, now fix your hair," she spoke gently. "I messed it up a little."

As John hurried to the bathroom to fix his hair, Bosco came out of the master bedroom wearing his court suit with his badge and holster on his belt, "Are we ready to go yet?" he asked firmly.

Danielle sighed softly as she helped Holly lie down on the hideabed, "I just have to get changed," she spoke tiredly. "Dad and I went to get Holly from the hospital this morning. Reporters have been hounding the hospital and a reporter even tried to get to her room when I was in there. Everyone's asking about Carlos and Detective Flack and why they haven't been found yet. I pepper sprayed that reporter when they asked me and Holly personal questions, by the way…"

Bosco frowned and Danielle sighed, "It was about footage," she explained grimly. "Someone sent some footage of Carlos and Detective Flack to the media in New York last night and it's going to be in the news today along with the trial. Holly was asked how she feels about her husband wanting to blow his brains out after being drugged and raped…"

"Good God," Sully muttered darkly, hoping that Carlos really hadn't done that. "Did he do it?"

Holly shook her head, "Ty came and visited with me a couple days ago and told me that he saw a video clip of Detective Flack getting Carlos to hand over the weapon that McKeen gave him," she explained shakily. "Ty said Detective Flack broke the gun…"

"You need to rest," Danielle spoke anxiously giving Holly a hug before she hurried into the master bedroom to change clothes. "You'll be a nice surprise for Tommy and Kylie when they wake up."

Sully exhaled, "Grace said that the responders out of our old Bed-Stuy firehouse are taking up a collection for our family cause they think the DCFS thing is crap," Holly spoke shakily as her cell-phone, which was in her purse that was on top of her suitcase, suddenly began to buzz. "Oh no…"

"Just ignore it," Sully spoke anxiously. "When Yelina gets up, she can help you with the phone calls."

Ellie's bedroom door suddenly opened and Kylie wandered out, having heard her adoptive mother's voice and wondered if it was just a dream. She gasped when she saw Holly and ran over to her, "Mommy!" Kylie breathed anxiously, gently embracing Holly. "I wasn't dreaming!"

Holly gently held and kissed Kylie, "Mommy, where's Monte and Daddy?" Kylie asked in a worried voice, pouting as she realized that Holly was alone. "Is Daddy still missing?"

"Sweetie, come lie down with me," Holly spoke softly. "It's a bit early for you to be awake."

Kylie obeyed and Holly sighed, "Monte is still in the hospital cause he's still growing," Holly explained softly while Sully watched silently. "And your dad…he's still missing, but I'm sure he thinks about us…all of us…every day."

Just then, Tommy wandered out of John's bedroom in slippers, sleep pants, and Carlos's old FDNY shirt, a shirt he hadn't taken off since his dad had gone missing, "Mom?" he asked softly, hardly able to believe what he was seeing. "You're…okay? What about Dad and Monte?"

"Come rest with us, Tommy," Holly spoke gently, seeing that Tommy didn't look well. "It's early. We can talk about Dad and Monte later."

Tommy obeyed and got into the bed next to Kylie, "Scoot over, squirt," he whispered gently.

Kylie moved, yawned, and promptly fell asleep again, feeling considerably safer now that she was near her adoptive mother and adoptive brother, "Get some actual rest today, Tommy, since you don't have class," Holly spoke gently. "I'll wake you in about an hour for your meds…"

Sully looked at Holly worriedly as Tommy fell asleep, "We'll be gone by then," he explained worriedly. "Do you want me to wake Yelina before I go so she can help you? She has to get up soon to get Ray Junior off to school anyway."

Holly nodded and turned her attention to her sleeping children while Sully went to the room he and Yelina shared and was both surprised and relieved to see Yelina already awake and dressed, "Good morning," Sully greeted her warmly as he hugged and kissed her. "What prompted you to get up so early?"

"Today's John's trial and I know you and his parents have to take him to the courthouse early," Yelina replied in a concerned voice. "I also noticed you slipped out early this morning with Danielle…"

Sully sighed heavily, "Holly was ready to be released from the hospital, but she can't stay on her own with the kids cause she's still recovering and it's not safe for them to be by themselves right now," he explained grimly. "According to Danielle, who went in to get Holly while I waited outside, someone sent some footage of Carlos and Detective Flack to the media in New York last night that included Jeffrey McKeen raping Carlos, giving Carlos a gun, and encouraging Carlos to blow his brains out, and it's going to be in the news today along with the trial. A reporter also bothered Danielle and Holly and asked Holly how she feels about her husband wanting to blow his brains out after being drugged and raped. Danielle pepper sprayed the reporter…"

Yelina looked horrified, "Thankfully, Davis had already told Holly about the same footage, which he saw at the Crime Lab a couple of days ago, and that the footage also showed Detective Flack getting Carlos to hand over the weapon that McKeen gave him," he explained shakily. "Davis said Detective Flack broke the gun on camera…"

Shaking her head in disgust, Yelina sighed, "And it wasn't the Crime Lab who gave the footage to the media?" she asked softly. "Hoping to bring attention to the case?"

"Oh my God, Yelina, no," Sully replied with a scoff. "Mac Taylor has more integrity than that. I know you heard of the chaos at the Vegas Crime Lab because of the crap with the pilot program and Ryan Wolfe's wife dying out there and how the lab's still being looked down upon cause of both those things, but the one here isn't like that. Mac Taylor runs a very tight ship."

Yelina nodded and Sully gave her another hug, "Are you going to be okay here today?" Sully asked worriedly. "I know you haven't been feeling too good since news of Jeffrey McKeen…"

"I'm safe and our son is safe," Yelina replied softly, frowning. "I just keep thinking about Maritza. I know Sergeant Boscorelli doesn't sleep well, especially since he heard that his rapist and his daughter's kidnapper is free. I hope he can be a good support to John with all that's going on inside of him…"

Sully sighed heavily, "That's why Danielle and I are going too," he explained grimly. "And I hope after things settle down, I can convince him to take some time off and maybe go on a vacation…"

"…You look beautiful today, Dani," Sully and Yelina suddenly heard Bosco speak quietly. "Maybe tonight, we should get a hotel room somewhere and just get some rest together. I'm so tired. I love you and just want to spend some time alone with you."

Sully and Yelina wandered out of the bedroom just in time to see Danielle, who was wearing dress pants, a nice dark shirt, and a long sweater and slip on shoes, straightening the tie that was part of Bosco's court suit, "Thank you, Maurice," Danielle spoke softly, giving him a kiss once she had straightened his tie. "Love you. Did you want anything to eat before we head over there?"

"No, I'm all right," Bosco replied softly. "How about you?"

Danielle sighed, "I think we should go before everyone else wakes up," she spoke softly. "John, Dad?"

Sully nodded, and John sighed heavily, "Right," Danielle said nervously. "Let's get going."

---

United States District Court – Manhattan

Exhaustion filled Horatio as he silently made his way into the courthouse and silently endured the pat-down and other security screenings that had been instituted since 9/11.

After he had shown his special permit for his emergency firearm, which had stayed in the holster on his belt the entire time he had to be in public, Horatio had been shown to a small waiting area where he was to wait for his Victims Assistance Advocate, John Sullivan, to meet him. They had spoken briefly over the phone since meeting at Stella's, as other than his brief visits to the cemetery and Crime Lab, he hadn't ventured into public for fear of running into media or other unwanted attention. Horatio hadn't personally wanted to leave Miami at all, but there had been such an argument among authorities about where to hold the trial, as Vegas hadn't wanted to hold it there and risk bringing more bad press to their lab and Miami hadn't wanted to bring bad press to their lab. It had finally been decided to hold the trial in New York, as that was where John Boscorelli was from and he was the whole reason why Horatio Caine had survived to testify against Jeffrey McKeen in the first place.

"Lieutenant Caine?"

Horatio looked up and was surprised to see Sully there, "Advocate Sullivan," he spoke in a formal tone.

"Morning," Sully spoke gently, taking a seat beside Horatio. "I see that you're by yourself…"

Horatio sighed, "All of this may have been too much for Stella and I's relationship," he replied softly. "She was still asleep when I left and I haven't been able to speak to her much. It's just been very overwhelming for me…all of this. Before I came to Miami, I spoke with a therapist and she gave me a journal. It's almost full because I've been writing everything down like she suggested instead of talking. As this day got closer, I realized that I might struggle with talking on the stand…"

"Well, that's what advocates are present in court during testimonies for," Sully explained reassuringly. "If you end up struggling, just make it known and you can direct your testimony to me instead of to the judge and they'll be present, but I'll be the one all the questions, follow-up, and everything is directed through. Advocates in Victims Assistance are present to help people who struggle to or absolutely cannot speak for themselves during traumas or in court…"

"I've actually never paid much attention to how Victims Assistance conducted their business," Horatio admitted shakily, sighing softly. "I've known people who utilized the program, but I've never…"

Sully looked thoughtful, "Well, from what I know of its history, Gil Grissom founded the program a long time ago after he had to give up a child for adoption and spent a good deal of time hoping they would be okay because he wasn't allowed to stay in touch with his child once the adoption was finalized because the adoptive parents and DCFS thought it would be too confusing for the child," he explained, having learned a bit about the backstory behind the program's founding when Grissom had deputized him as an advocate. "He did a lot of good after having a very painful experience. I remember my own little experience with DCFS when Danielle's mother dropped her off to me with custody papers. Danielle was just a baby and I was on the birth certificate as the father, but I still had to promise DCFS I'd be good about raising her. They weren't too happy when she got raped and had John as a teenager, but it got even worse when John told a paramedic colleague of his mother's that his birth father molested him. We all got investigated, but Edward Addison was ultimately found guilty. I think that eventually drove Danielle and I apart for a while, as I didn't see her and her kids for a while. I got letters, though. Gil Grissom sort of turned into her surrogate dad and I am still very grateful he was around when I couldn't be. I got pissed when the news absolutely beat the crap out of him over the pilot project and over Sofia Wolfe's death because neither of those things were his fault, but he took responsibility for them as if they were his price to pay just like he did when he had to give his baby up for adoption. I think he feels he has to pay for that decision emotionally, I think. It was better he did what he did, though, as that little baby would have suffered in Ellen Seville's care and God knows where it would have ended up if Jeffrey McKeen would have had a say in that placement like he tried to in Danielle's or Danny Messer's. I was just a young cop at the time, but even then, I knew Cathal Finney and his trainer, Jeffrey McKeen, were both crazy and dangerous and not to be trusted, so I took Danielle and got Danny Messer to his biological father…"

"Your instincts were good," Horatio replied softly. "His child…was that Greg Sanders? I remember the kid listed on the site under the founding story was only listed by his first name 'Gregory.' If he was Ellen Seville's child, as were Danielle and Danny Messer…"

Sully nodded and sighed, "I know Danielle and Danny keep in touch with each other quite frequently and have been trying to establish a sibling relationship, as Danny and his wife and daughter are quite often over at the apartment, but I'm not sure Greg wants that kind of a relationship with his biological siblings," he admitted softly. "When I talked to him about the whole thing, he got angry and fainted and I think he's still struggling to accept it."

Horatio frowned, "Greg was working in the Vegas Crime Lab at the time I was taken to Las Vegas," he replied in a concerned voice. "Is he here today to testify about the case? I wouldn't mind seeing how he's doing. He and I established a decent connection when he worked for me, so maybe we can talk…"

Sully shook his head, "This particular trial is about discussing your experience and John's rescue of you," he explained quietly. "If I remember correctly from the reports I read of your case, Greg had to recuse himself from the search for you because he was raped by Doctor Pride, one of your captors, and it would have been a conflict of interest for him to help find you. Greg still works in Vegas and I have tried reaching out and apologizing for the way he had to find out about his father, but he ignores my calls. I'm happy to give you his number after this is over, but you should really focus on today."

Realizing that Sully was right, Horatio nodded, although he felt very sad over the fact that Greg had suffered such pain, "How exactly is the trial going to proceed today?" he finally asked softly, electing to stop discussing Greg for the moment because it would only heighten his anxiety.

---

Los Angeles, California

"Greg?"

Greg stirred slightly as he felt Jenny's hand on his, but he didn't open his eyes, "What?" he mumbled groggily.

"We're getting ready to land, sweetie," Jenny spoke in a quiet voice. "You need to wake up."

Greg slowly opened his eyes and looked at her, "God, Jenny, I'm so sorry," he spoke in a shaky voice. "I…I just haven't been feeling good lately and I needed sleep."

A sad expression filled Jenny's face and she nodded, "I wish you would have told me sooner," she spoke in a concerned voice. "I wanted to be there for you and I thought you were mad at me…"

"I was really struggling with wanting to drink cause of Grissom being sick, Sara's comments, and all the crap I've been getting from the Crime Lab and I needed to get help first," Greg explained shakily. "I'm so sorry it took me so long to come home, but I needed like half a day's worth of meetings before I could function properly even after Brass and I went to one and then went for something to eat. He had to go back to work, but I promised him I'd be okay. I…I really need to deal with a lot of things, including this situation with Grissom and I need to talk to my adoptive parents about it. Thank you for letting us come to California with the kids for a few days. I know you want to see your dad, but…"

Instead of judgment, all Greg saw in Jenny's eyes was love. The same look that had been there after he had finally returned home after going to AA with Brass, sharing a meal with Brass, and then going to other meetings by himself to try and quash his cravings, his anxiety, and his upset about being mandatory days off after his fight with Sara at the lab. At home, he had finally opened up with Jenny about his stresses and admitted that he didn't feel he could face her parents at the moment because he was struggling with too many personal issues to be what they expected him to be. Jenny, of course, had thought that was a load of crap and told him so, but she also saw Greg was in a very bad mindset and visiting her parents might be a bad idea while he was that way, so she instead suggested that they visit his with the kids. Greg had then told her about Grissom and Ellen and how he had been adopted out as a baby because Grissom couldn't take care of him and had shown her the text Grissom had sent him right before his health had turned. Jenny had responded by encouraging him to sit down with his adoptive parents and talk it out, as his unsettled anxiety was most likely from not addressing his stress at the lab, which his family issues were partially responsible for. Greg had expressed gratitude for being married to someone who was close to getting her degree in Nursing, as her gentle nature would make her good with patients, and had quietly arranged with his parents to visit them. The plane ride had thankfully been quiet, and Greg had slept the whole way, unsure of what else to do because he wasn't feeling very good emotionally and Jenny had understood, deeply hating both the lab and Greg's birth parents for robbing her beautiful husband of most of the happy and kind personality that had attracted her to him in the first place. She, however, was not going to give up on him or see him as problematic like the Las Vegas Crime Lab was doing. She was going to love him and help him as he wanted it.

Jenny sighed patiently, holding Matthew as close as she could with her pregnant belly as the seatbelt sign suddenly came on and they turned their attention to Jessica, who was sitting quietly in her car seat, "Jen, give Matthew to me," Greg offered, holding his arms out. "You're clearly overwhelmed."

Nodding, Jenny handed Matthew over and Greg gently secured his son in the car seat he had been brought in. Matthew smiled, "So are you," Jenny replied in a concerned voice. "Did that Ecklie guy or Catherine give you crap when you asked for a week to go visit family in California?"

"No," Greg replied tiredly. "I think Ecklie's too scared of your mother to give me any crap."

Jenny chuckled and reached for his hand, gently squeezing it as the plane landed. Truth be told, Greg thought as the plane went to its designated gate at LAX, Ecklie had enthusiastically approved his request for a week off and had even insisted on it being paid leave, as he was tired of Greg coming in and doing doubles with the personality of a moody zombie, as it was affecting his ability to be a good investigator. Sara, meanwhile, had been suspended for two days without pay following their fight and was required to attend counseling, but Ecklie had told him to focus on himself and Greg was certainly trying, but Sara's words about Grissom not caring about him had cut him deep and that was a wound that would take a long time to heal…if it ever could.

By the time that Greg had left his thoughts of his issues in Vegas in the back of his mind, the plane was at the gate and the four of them took their time deplaning, as they had two carry-ons, a double stroller, and two diaper bags, although Jessica was slowly getting to the point where she would no longer need diapers. As they walked through the airport towards the luggage area, Greg kept his gaze forward the entire way because he didn't want to look at the various stores selling liquor and risk developing a craving for it. Fortunately, it didn't take them long to get to the luggage cart and get all their bags on a trolley and by then, Jenny was beginning to tire, Matthew was whimpering, and Jessica was outright crying and Greg was keeping quiet so he wouldn't snap at anyone or admit that he was developing a major headache from the stress of the last little while and the chaos of the day. He instead focused on silently directing them out to the area where those deplaning either left the airport or met with people picking them up.

Almost immediately, and much to his relief, Greg spotted his mother, Anne Sanders, standing with his Nana and Papa Olaf near a coffee kiosk and he waved at them. Anne Sanders squealed excitedly upon seeing her son and ran to him, quickly hugging and kissing him protectively while Nana and Papa Olaf quickly began fussing over Jessica and Matthew. After hugging Greg for what seemed like an eternity, Anne turned her loving attention to the pregnant Jenny and Greg quietly took the opportunity to buy himself a green tea from the coffee kiosk, move a bit away from the crowd, and down it so that the want to drink something would ease. Only when he was finishing the tea did his Papa Olaf come over to him, "My Gregory," Papa Olaf spoke warmly, gently embracing Greg with all the love in the world.

Greg, however, didn't reply to the kindness, as he didn't feel deserving of it after being lost in his struggles for so long. He felt absolutely shaky and miserable and he silently swore as he felt tears suddenly fill his eyes, something that his Papa Olaf quickly noticed and grew worried about.

"Come on, Gregory, your father is making breakfast at the house," Anne suddenly called out in a pleased voice as she looped her arm in Jenny's while Nana Olaf took control of Matthew and Jessica's stroller. "We shouldn't keep him waiting."

Sensing that not all was well with his grandson, Papa Olaf gently wrapped Greg in a side embrace and held him close as they followed the rest of the Sanders clan out of the airport with their bags on the trolley. When they reached the family van, Jenny sat up front with Anne after securing Jessica and Matthew and their carseats in the immediate backseat. Greg helped his grandparents load the bags and the stroller and then sat in the back of the van with his grandparents, resting his head on his Papa Olaf's shoulder for comfort because his Papa Olaf had not stopped holding him even since leaving the airport.

Between the LAX and his parents house in San Gabriel, Greg must have drifted off on his Papa Olaf's shoulder because the next thing he was aware of, he was being tucked into a bed, "Where am I?" Greg asked groggily, not recognizing the darkened room as he struggled with staying awake. "What…?"

"You're in your childhood bedroom, my Gregory," Papa Olaf's gentle voice spoke. "Your mama and papa fixed the bed so you could sleep with your wife while you visit, but you need to take a nap before breakfast. You fell asleep in the van, so I carried you inside. Nobody's going to hurt you here."

Greg tensed, the idea of sleeping alone in a strange bed suddenly triggering bad memories of his rape, "Papa Olaf, can you stay?" he asked shakily. "I…I can't sleep in a strange bed by myself. It hurts too much. I was raped by a department therapist and I can't sleep alone, especially not in strange places…"

Silence filled the room and Greg suddenly felt himself crying softly, "Grissom tried to let me get away from it by letting me take a sabbatical in Miami while he got the therapist fired and told Ecklie, but I never got counseling for the rapes cause the department wouldn't pay for it and I have no spare money," he wept shakily. "They told me to be content with her being fired and I eventually pressed charges, but the case is still pending cause the rapist…she did some other bad stuff…"

Terrified that his Papa Olaf was about to leave, cry, or get mad at him for keeping secrets, Greg sat up and was surprised to find his Papa Olaf sitting on the bed with him looking at him with wide eyes, "Did it happen more than once?" Papa Olaf asked softly. "You said rapes, Gregory…"

Pissed off at himself for the slip of the tongue revealing a secret he had tried so hard to keep to himself, Greg froze briefly before he finally nodded and sighed, his expression pained, "I only reported it once, Papa Olaf," he admitted in a pained voice, still crying. "I was…I was too scared…I don't remember how she managed to do it, but I always had a glass of water in the sessions, got woozy, and woke up feeling not quite right after and my clothes…they were always a mess. I couldn't prove anything happened, though, and I was scared of saying something and costing the department and the lab…"

"Oh, Gregory, to hell with the Las Vegas Police Department and the Crime Lab," Papa Olaf spoke anxiously, extremely sad and angry that his grandson's place of work had seen him endure such hell without providing support. "You need to talk about this and get support for yourself if they won't help you."

Greg exhaled and lowered his head because he was beginning to feel lightheaded and tired as his Papa Olaf gently rubbed his back, "You also need to tell your wife the truth," Papa Olaf spoke softly. "I somehow don't think she knows the whole story…"

"The whole story about what?" Jenny asked curiously as she suddenly came into the room pulling a rolling suitcase. "Is there something I should know, Greg?"

Greg froze, "Um…I was hurt by Doctor Pride more than once, but I only told Grissom once and got processed once," he spoke weakly. "I…I thought the Crime Lab didn't need to hear about the other times and I was scared to upset them more than I already have…"

Jenny's eyes went wide and Papa Olaf got off the bed, "I think you two need to talk privately," he spoke in a quiet voice. "Gregory, I'll tell your mother to keep your breakfast warm for you."

As Papa Olaf left the room, Jenny joined Greg on the bed, "I…I'm sorry," Greg spoke shakily. "Papa Olaf carried me in from the car cause I fell asleep during the drive from the airport and I just got scared of the idea of sleeping alone and it just came out. I'm so, so sorry I didn't tell you…"

Horrified and sad that her husband had felt too scared to share true extent of what had happened between him and Dr. Pride, as the trauma he had kept quiet about could very much account for his recent antisocial behaviors, Jenny gently embraced him and held him as he cried softly.

---

Miami, Florida

A loud crack filled the air as an enraged Rocky Valence broke a loose board clean in half with his gloved fists, one of many loose boards that were laying around the warehouse where they had brought Flack and Carlos after arriving in Miami late the night before. They had taken their time getting to Miami because McKeen had insisted on pulling over in secluded areas and repeatedly teaching violent lessons to both Carlos and Flack as revenge for the broken gun, and Rocky had indulged him if only to shut the man up. Rocky had even participated in administering the lessons to Flack, as the man's spunk infuriated him to no end, but was always careful to wear his mask and gloves, as the room had been rigged with a camera because McKeen had wanted to broadcast his humiliation of Carlos to the world.

McKeen, however, had then confessed to sending bits of footage of Flack and Carlos's torture to the media in New York City and Rocky was angry, as that could very well get them both identified and captured by cops before they finished their business in Miami, returned to New York to get Dr. Vatelli, Tara, and Maritza, and then went out west to a safehouse in Nevada that Sam Braun had left McKeen.

"If you ever do anything that stupid again, I will split your head open like I split that board in half and finish this plan on my own!" Rocky roared, glaring daggers at McKeen. "Why did you send the footage to the media in New York?! To brag that you almost got Carlos Nieto to kill himself?! You don't always need to brag, McKeen! Just get the job done! God! No wonder I was assigned to babysit you! You're out of control and you're careless!"

McKeen nodded, now truly terrified of Rocky because the man had not slept or eaten since leaving New York, but he was still completely energized and ready, almost eager, to commit more crime. McKeen, meanwhile, had managed a short sleep once they had arrived at the warehouse in Miami only to be rudely woken by Rocky shouting at Detective Flack while beating him. Flack, who had not stopped trying to fight despite his numerous injuries, was now sealed in a walk-in cooler for a 'timeout,' while Carlos was in the same area as the two of them, but drugged to the gills on methamphetamines to the point where he was barely responsive despite the noise of the board breaking.

"What is the next step in the plan now that we're down here?" McKeen asked softly. "Are we killing Carlos and Detective Flack and then finding some random person off the street to take back…?"

Rocky scoffed, "I already have a hostage in mind," he replied firmly. "I just want to make his life hell before we get him! I haven't seen him since we were kids and I know very little about what he's doing now except what I was told! He's a sergeant in IAB at the Miami-Dade Police Department, apparently! That little punk actually went into law enforcement! He was probably inspired by..."

A loud banging suddenly filled the air, "Is he really conscious again?" McKeen groaned, deeply annoyed at the detective's resilience. "I'm getting tired just trying to keep up with the guy…"

"If you're not up to the task, maybe I need to get Doctor Grissom to help out instead!" Rocky snapped at McKeen. "I'm sure even with cancer, the man's got more guts than you!"

McKeen scoffed as the banging continued, "I'm not even sure what hospital he's at," he lied nervously, wondering if he could even get to Grissom again. "Even if I did know…"

"You know," Rocky interrupted coldly, glaring at McKeen. "Don't try and lie to me or I'll shoot you and make Carlos patch you up even though he's high as a kite right now! Where is he?!"

McKeen sighed, "Jackson Hospital," he replied softly. "At least he was two days ago. I bugged his phone with a tracker when he was in the Glades and it shut off two days ago…"

A small beeping sound suddenly filled the air and Rocky's eyes darted over to a small laptop that they had set up at the warehouse after arriving, "Someone just turned that phone back on and it's still at Jackson Hospital," Rocky spoke coldly, exhaling angrily as the banging continued. "I'll get you some help and then I'll go beat that detective like he's never been beaten before…"

"Forget the help!" McKeen shouted, infuriated that Rocky thought him incompetent. "I'll go alone! Just give me a gun!"

---

Manhattan, New York

"…All rise for the Honorable Judge Vincent Corsica…"

Everyone in the courtroom immediately stood up including Horatio, Sully, John, Jesse, Bosco, Danielle, Danny, Mac, Ty, and the many others, including media, who had gathered for the trial today. Others from the Crime Lab had also wanted to go to support John and Horatio, but Mac had made them go to work and had given himself, Hawkes, Danny, and Sid the morning off because he figured it would be long enough to sit in on the trial, make sure that neither John or Horatio would have any issue during their testimonies, and then he and Danny were supposed to return to work while Sid and Hawkes stayed, completely ready to lend their medical expertise if it was needed. Danny, however, had not told Mac of the plan he and Bosco had put together just in case things went south and fully intended to stay for the whole event whether Mac liked it or not. As much as officers from various areas in the NYPD had wanted to be there to provide emotional support and as much as old colleagues in the FDNY had wanted to also come, only so many could fit in the courtroom and so Sully had promised to have a gathering with everyone after the trial and had invited everyone to keep apprised of the event on television.

Meanwhile, in the back of the courtroom sat Judge Stokes, Derek, and an anxious Emily Yokas and they were there because they had been scheduled to have their visitation hearing in an adjoining courtroom, but due to renovations there, they had been put in the same courtroom as the trial and were later in the docket providing there were no issues with the testimonies that would cause delays. Faith, of course, was deliberately late with Alex, but had promised Judge Stokes she and her husband would show up on time for their hearing with their lawyers to protect Alex's best interests. Unknown to anyone, Derek had feigned anxiety that morning and his father had made enough concerning noises that Derek had ended up exempt from the normal security screenings, which had allowed Derek to the weapons he needed into the courtroom. Dr. Pride, meanwhile, sat in a corner of the courtroom beside a uniform who was not too happy with her being there without Flack.

Completely unaware of Derek's intentions to disrupt the trial, Judge Corsica gave the court a once-over before he sat down, "Court is now in session," he announced in a formal voice, smacking his gavel. "We are here today to try former Las Vegas police officer Jeffrey McKeen in absentia for the kidnapping and heinous torture of Lieutenant Horatio Caine, day-shift supervisor of the Miami-Dade County Crime Scene Investigation Department. We will begin with Lieutenant Caine's testimony. Please come up to the stand, Lieutenant Caine."

As Horatio made his way up to the stand and settled himself there with his emergency backpack, which he had brought with him while leaving most of his things in Stella's car so he could fly out once his part was done, he noticed Stella enter the courtroom and give him an encouraging nod as she sat in one of the few free seats at the back of the room. They had talked about his private visit to Elizabeth's grave and Stella had apologized for not going with him, as she had business to take care of that Pavel had asked her to handle if he had ever run into trouble. She had then promised they could go to the gravesite together after the trial, something Horatio had agreed to even though he had a very bad feeling about the trial. He had awoken feeling that something was going to go very, very wrong even though he had no idea what that something was.

"Lieutenant Caine?" Judge Corsica pressed, noting the glazed over expression on Horatio's face.

Swallowing hard, Horatio exhaled, "Yes, Your Honor?" he asked softly, gazing up at Judge Halstead.

"Are you all right to begin recounting your kidnapping?" Judge Corsica asked softly. "Or would you prefer to speak to Advocate Sullivan about your kidnapping while we all listen?"

Horatio sighed, but didn't say anything because he suddenly felt a small wave of anxiety fill him, so Judge Corsica nodded to Sully, who quickly got up and made his way to the stand, "Lieutenant Caine, if you could please begin at the beginning," Sully stated quietly. "And take your time."

"Well, it all began on August 1, 2006," Horatio explained in an uneasy voice, secretly pissed off at himself for needing support like a helpless child. "The night before, I had received a phone call from a Doctor Jonas Vatelli. Doctor Vatelli informed me that my nephew, Detective Robert Caine of the Miami-Dade Police Department, were welcome to visit Glades Medical Centre in Miami to search for the missing Maritza Boscorelli, but not to bring uniforms because they would spook his patients. I personally found the invitation suspicious and the specific invitation to my nephew even more suspicious, so I decided to ask a colleague of his, Detective and Crime Scene Investigator Timothy Speedle, to investigate the situation with me instead. I suspected my brother, Raymond Caine, was involved and didn't trust him…"

Exhaling softly, Horatio took a breath and was immediately plagued by guilt that he had almost gotten Speed killed, "Is Detective Speedle here today?" Sully asked firmly.

"No, he gave his testimony remotely with the aid of Miami-Dade Police Department's Internal Affairs Bureau," Horatio replied softly, determined to keep the attention off of Speed as much as possible. "Anyway, Detective Speedle and I arrived at the hospital and we were approaching, but we were suddenly greeted by Ray screaming, trying to run us over, and several of Ivan Sarnoff's men. Ray also shot my radio out so I couldn't call for assistance. Detective Speedle engaged in a shootout with Sarnoff's men, but he was quickly outgunned and injured. At that moment, Ray grabbed me, shot me in the abdomen, and dosed me with chloroform, rendering me helpless to escape."

Judge Corsica nodded, but didn't say anything, "Between August 1, 2006 and August 15, 2006, I have very little memory of what happened, but I do know I wasn't well because I had been operated on in an environment that was not sterile and I vaguely recall my captors fighting over it," Horatio continued shakily. "I also vaguely remember a Doctor Andrea Pride identifying herself to me, talking to me, and trying to make me comfortable…"

"And do you remember the names of the captors involved in your kidnapping at that point?" Sully asked in a concerned voice, deeply disturbed that the Lieutenant had lost so many days during his kidnapping.

Horatio frowned for a minute before nodding, "Doctor Andrea Pride, Raymond Caine, Ivan Sarnoff, Jill Adams, and Doctor Tara Price," he replied softly. "Doctor Price left, though. I don't know when."

"It's all right, Lieutenant," Sully spoke calmly. "Just focus on what you can remember."

Horatio nodded and sighed, "At some point, it began to get colder where I was and one day, I heard Sam Braun and Colin Jamison talk to each other and then I saw them towering over me," he explained in an uneasy voice. "Ray was also nearby and popping his knuckles after hitting me. Ray told Sam and Colin that Maritza was with her mother and Doctor Vatelli, but he didn't know where they were."

At the mention of Maritza, Bosco turned white and immediately grabbed Danielle's hand because he had not realized Maritza had been talked about by Ray Caine, Sam Braun, and Colin Jamison and he was now pissed and scared. Danielle gently squeezed his hand and that kept Bosco from having an outburst.

"…Ray was telling me that he was going to enjoy helping me die and I asked him if he wanted to kill me after he tried and failed to kill his ex-wife, Yelina," Horatio continued, keeping his eyes on Sully. Ray grabbed a hammer to beat me with, but Sam Braun stopped him, telling Ray he needed to rest…"

Tears suddenly filled Horatio's eyes, "Ray then said he had lung cancer and was dying and wanted me to die before he did," he spoke grimly. "Sam eventually talked him down and also ordered Colin Jamison to guard me with the same hammer. Colin stayed and when I tried to talk to him about his studies, he yelled at me and smashed my hand with the hammer before saying I reminded him of a colleague from Los Angeles who had tried to get him to quit the field after his girlfriend's suicide. Colin bragged about getting that colleague fired before threatening to break more of my bones…"

Quiet murmurs filled the courtroom, as everyone was becoming quickly appalled with by events that Horatio was sharing, "The next thing I knew, I heard Colin and Ivan arguing and Colin suddenly asked about Ray," Horatio spoke. "Colin said he had to get back to campus to study. Ivan said that Ray was ill, but that Doctor Pride and himself would be entertaining me that evening. Colin then talked about wanting revenge on the colleague from L.A. he mentioned. He seemed quite angry about that colleague, blaming them for his girlfriend hanging herself…"

John's eyes narrowed slightly at that, but he didn't say anything, "After Colin left, Ivan gave me a beating and Doctor Pride gave me a shot meant to trigger nausea and vomiting," Horatio explained grimly. "Ivan also waterboarded me. It was extremely cold and painful and I lost consciousness not long after that due to that and the drugs. I had no concept of time up there, so I don't know how long I was out cold for. When I finally woke, I woke to Dr. Pride reading, but I didn't know what to say to her that would keep me from being beaten or drugged even more than I already was. While I was trying to decide what to say, Sam showed up and he and Dr. Pride talked about Ivan being sent away for beating Doctor Pride. All of a sudden, Ray showed up again out of nowhere, asked me how it felt to know that I was going to die, and booted me in the abdomen. I grabbed Ray's boot and tried to talk him down, but Sam talked us both down. Doctor Pride then said something about Colin Jamison going to a casino after his Orientation, but Sam insisted he wouldn't drink. I…I then got into a fight with Doctor Pride…"

Horatio suddenly sighed, very reluctant to expose Greg's rape and violate his privacy, "Lieutenant?" Sully asked softly, worried that this was becoming too much for Horatio. "What did you…?"

"Doctor Pride commented about how the Las Vegas Police was on higher alert at the moment and I asked if her dosing Las Vegas CSI Greg Sanders with GHB, which she had slipped into his water, had anything to do with that," Horatio spoke shakily, silently praying that Greg would forgive him for outing his secret in court because it had relevance to his own testimony. "We argued about CSI Sanders and I asked why she felt the need to hurt him with GHB and intimacy that was not consensual. When CSI Sanders was in Miami on a sabbatical from the Las Vegas Crime Lab back in 2006, he worked at my Crime Lab and he confided in me. Doctor Pride then pulled out a needle and asked me if I wanted to feel what Greg had felt and then gave me medication that put me to sleep…"

Swallowing hard, Horatio quickly composed himself before continuing, "I next woke to overhear Ray saying that I nearly overdosed from the drugs I was given," he stated coldly. "Ray then took my wallet and offered it to Colin as a reward if he proved his loyalty torturing me. I, however, wanted to know why Colin Jamison would want to hurt me and Colin explained that he was abused by his parents, but was never able to get help because his father was a cop and his mom was a dispatcher who beat him and his younger sister, Caira. Colin explained that his and Caira's parents overdosed when he was 20 and he tried to get his sister back from foster care, but couldn't, so he decided to go to school…"

John paled at hearing that, suddenly feeling very grateful that Caira was not yet in the courtroom because he knew she would have been affected by what was being said on the stand, "…Ray…Ray then bragged to Colin about sexually assaulting me when we were alone, but Colin ignored that and instead beat me with a baseball bat," stated Horatio, his voice trembling slightly. "Sam and Ray then gave Colin my wallet and badge and I could hear someone spitting on them as I passed out."

Horatio's anxiety rose, his gaze suddenly moving to John as he continued, "The next thing I can clearly remember is John Boscorelli talking to me and breaking my handcuff," Horatio spoke in a pained voice. "He also covered me with a blanket and then sat to rest. I also vaguely remember hearing John arguing with Doctor Pride about Colin Jamison kidnapping him. Doctor Pride tried to get John to leave, but John refused, gave me some juice, and I was so overwhelmed by the juice after not eating or drinking for a long while that I drifted off. When I woke, I was told by John that he was recording messages in case we both died, as he wasn't going to leave me, but our conversation was interrupted by Ray's arrival, and so I told John to hide in the dark part of the barn. Ray wanted to know where John was, but I wouldn't tell him and I…I'm ashamed to say I asked him if he was jealous that his ex-wife, Yelina, had left him and had fallen in love with John Sullivan Senior. Ray then aimed his gun, spotted John, and then John and Ray got into a fight. John ended up shooting Ray and then helped me into a wheelbarrow that was on the premises, saying he had found a back road off of the mountain we were on when he was taking walks to look for food. John dropped a bunch of juice boxes and snack bars and a blanket on top of me before he started taking me down the mountain at running speed. Several miles away, John stopped and fed me some juice without any regard for himself, admitted he didn't know where to go next, and then told me it was October. He was shocked that I had survived in such a bad state since August 1st, but he saw how much I was hurting from hearing that, so he began talking about mid-term exams before suggesting he try to figure out where we were. We then heard noise, and John said he didn't have energy to keep running, so he drew his gun as footsteps and headlights approached us, as he was very determined to fight. The last thing I remember before things get hazy is seeing John talking to some Las Vegas law enforcement officials and then passing out. I don't remember anything after that until I woke up in the hospital. I hope my testimony has been sufficient."

Sully looked to Judge Corsica, who nodded solemnly, "Thank you for your testimony, Lieutenant," he spoke in a shaky voice, horrified what by what he had just heard. "You and your advocate may both be seated. Um, is John Boscorelli here?"

As Horatio and Sully returned to the gallery, John stood from his seat, which was next to his parents, "Yes, Your Honor," John replied in a quiet voice. "I'm here."

"Do you have an advocate present with you?" Judge Corsica asked calmly, hating that someone so young had to be part of such a grim event. "According to this, your advocate should be…"

Jesse quickly rose and followed John to the front, "Officer Jesse Cardoza, Your Honor," he introduced himself, sighing as John got on the stand.

In the back of the courtroom, Emily's gaze was on John and realized that she had never fully stopped loving him even though she was now with Derek Stokes, had a child with him, and was pregnant with Derek's child while John was dating Caira Jamison.

Unfortunately for her, Derek also noticed Emily's look of longing and grew angry, angry enough that he nudged Emily roughly and she let out a loud whimper, clutching her stomach in the process to make it appear as if something was wrong with the baby because that had been part of the plan they had discussed in Thomas Wolfe's home. Judge Corsica looked at her quizzically and swore as Derek suddenly popped out of his seat, pulled a machine gun from his jacket and began firing in John's direction because he wanted John Boscorelli dead for stealing Emily's affection and attention from him.

As the bullets whizzed towards John, Bosco bolted through the shower of bullets to the stand and pulled John off the stand and to the floor, holding him down while Judge Corsica ducked under the stand. Dr. Pride and her babysitting officer, meanwhile, dropped to the floor, as the officer knew that Dr. Pride was too valuable to lose because she was facing even more charges after this trial was done.

The courtroom doors suddenly opened as some people began trying to flee to safety, but Ty, who was close to Danielle, pulled her to the floor since she wasn't armed. Danny, Sid, who pulled Stella to the floor with him, Hawkes, and Judge Stokes all dove for cover while Sully, Horatio, and Mac got their own guns out and engaged in a firefight with Derek while Judge Stokes kept screaming for Derek to stop. As Caira, who had gotten a cab to the courthouse to sit in on John's testimony, suddenly came into view, bullets from Sully, Horatio, and Mac's guns hit Derek all simultaneously, sending the older Stokes boy to the floor in a heap near the open door and Caira.

"DEREK!" Judge Stokes screamed, having seen his son fall after being shot three different times. "DEREK!"

Silently hoping that Derek was dead after shooting up the courtroom, Danny quickly rushed over to the stand and saw Bosco laying on his stomach unconscious, not moving, and bleeding beside John, "Dad?" John spoke shakily, his eyes widening as he saw that Bosco was unconscious and bleeding. "Oh, God! Dad! My dad's dead! My dad is dead!"

Danny quickly helped John up, "Mac, Sergeant Boscorelli's been hit!" he called out before turning his attention to John. "We gotta go, John. I promised your dad if something happened, I'd take you somewhere safe! We gotta go!"

As Mac, Danielle, and Sully swarmed in on Bosco, Danny hustled John out the side door and through an emergency exit that led to the underground parking garage. John was too deep in shock to do anything but let Danny hurry him to his vehicle and load him and his diabetes bag in the back of the car as Jesse and Horatio, who had followed Danny because they thought it odd that Danny was running away from the scene with John, approached, "I promised John's dad I'd get him to a safehouse if things went bad cause he had a bad feeling…" Danny breathed. "If you wanna come see I'm telling the truth, come on, but we gotta go…"

Trusting that Danny and Bosco had agreed on a plan beforehand, Jesse quickly joined John in the back while Horatio joined Danny in the front and both held tight as Danny tore out of the underground parking garage like a fire was chasing them. For what seemed like an eternity, Danny drove through the streets of Manhattan before finally coming to a stop outside of an older, but safe looking hotel.

As Danny let out a small breath, a faint whimper suddenly filled the air, "Uncle Danny…I…I'm hit," John's voice spoke shakily. "Oh God…I'm hit and my dad's dead…"

Danny's eyes widened in horror as he turned around and saw a stain of blood growing on John's shirt and on his hand where he was trying to touch it. Cursing, Danny got on his phone while Horatio got out of the vehicle and helped Jesse get John into a laying down position, "You, Cardoza, go to Room 100 and get the stuff that's there," Danny ordered anxiously, watching Jesse bolt from the car as Mac answered his phone. "Mac, it's Danny, I took John to a safehouse Sergeant Boscorelli and I arranged, but John's been shot and we can't take him to a hospital in case there are more shooters on the loose. Can you tell Sid or Hawkes to meet us at the Crime Lab with medical supplies? We'll have to take him there since we're close to that. Hurry up!"

Almost immediately, Jesse returned with a bigger backpack and a suitcase that had a note attached to it. He threw them in the back of the vehicle before getting in the front seat, as it looked like Horatio was doing his best to keep John from bleeding out using his jacket. Once everyone was in and the car was closed up, Danny took off towards the Crime Lab and parked in the underground garage, "We'll take him into the morgue," he spoke anxiously. "Where the hell are Sid or Hawkes?!"

"Where…?" John spoke groggily, beginning to feel woozy from blood loss. "Uncle…Danny…where are we?"

Instead of answering, Danny helped Jesse, who elected to carry John while Horatio continued to keep pressure on the young man's wound, get into the basement of the Crime Lab. Only once John was resting on one of the sterile tables in the quiet morgue, Horatio looked at Danny, who looked equally alarmed about the drastic turn of events.

---

Back in the courtroom, Mac had sent Hawkes back to the Crime Lab in a hurry after getting Danny's call about John being hurt and moved there because it was safer than a hospital.

Now, as he made his way through the now messy courtroom, he tried not to focus on the paramedics who were arriving and swarming on Bosco, who Danielle was trying to keep from bleeding out using her sweater to put pressure on his wounds and doing as much first aid as she could, getting herself covered in her husband's blood in the process. From what she had been able to tell, her husband had been shot in the abdomen and in the spine and he had also broken ribs after hitting the floor, breaks that had punctured his lungs, as his breathing was in such a way that he probably had at least one pneumothorax. Sully was equally horrified to see Bosco again injured so severely after surviving a major shooting not long ago, but he was doing his best to stay calm as there were enough frightened people around.

In the back of the courtroom, meanwhile, uniforms were sealing off the scene and Sid was trying to check over Derek's body, which was being held by a horrified, heavily grieving Judge Stokes. Emily Yokas, meanwhile, stood near the crime scene tape, deeply shaken about both Bosco being injured and Derek's death, as neither was supposed to happen, "This wasn't supposed to happen," Emily spoke shakily, gazing tearfully at the mess she had helped make. "I…"

"Did you have something to do with this?!" Caira suddenly yelled, having overheard Emily's comment.

Emily turned to find an angry looking Caira staring at her with venom in her expression, "I heard you say that this wasn't supposed to happen!" Caira shouted, something that immediately prompted Mac and Stella to come over to her. "What the hell did you do?! Did you work with Nick Stokes's brother to cause all this?!"

Mac's eyes widened in anger as he stared at Emily, who began to weep, "I didn't know Derek was going to shoot Uncle Bosco!" Emily wept. "We were only going to disrupt…!"

"Derek also shot John!" Mac snapped as he pulled his cuffs off his belt and quickly cuffed Emily's hands behind her back. "If Sergeant Boscorelli dies or if John dies, you'll be charged with murder!"

Caira's eyes widened in shock and she slapped Emily hard across the face, which Mac was too slow to stop, "Miss Jamison, I'll give you that one, but back off now or I'll take you in too," he spoke firmly as Sully suddenly approached with his gun out. "Go with John's grandfather…"

Sully handed his weapon to Mac, "What happened and where's John at?" he asked worriedly. "After he screamed that Bosco was dead, I saw Detective Messer hustle him out of here in a hurry…"

Emily whimpered, "This wasn't supposed to happen!" she shouted tearfully. "It wasn't!"

Hardly able to believe his ears, Sully gaped at Emily in shock, "You had something to do with this, Emily?!" he asked in a stern voice. "It's your fault that all this happened?!"

Judge Stokes's angry voice filled the air, "…Jillian, Derek is dead!" he howled anxiously in the phone, still trying to keep Sid away from Derek's body as Jo, Lindsay, and more uniforms including Brendan suddenly arrived after getting the call. "He shot up the courtroom and got killed after killing a cop!"

"Sergeant Finney, take her downtown!" Mac shouted, shoving the cuffed Emily into Brendan's arms. "She's responsible for all of this!"

Before Brendan, who was shellshocked by the whole event, could reply, paramedics came rolling by with Bosco on a gurney, "You can meet us at the hospital, Danielle!" one of the paramedics shouted to Danielle, who was still kneeling on the floor with her now bloody sweater in hand, trying to make sense of what had happened while ignoring Ty trying to convince her to get up. "New York Presbyterian!"

Ty finally managed to get Danielle to her feet and she promptly dropped the sweater, "Emily?!" Faith's voice suddenly filled the air. "Emily, what's going on?! Why are you under arrest?!"

Danielle turned towards Faith's voice and saw that Faith, who was alone, was trying to get past the tape to get to Emily, who was in cuffs and being held by Brendan, "Oh, my God, Emily!" Faith exclaimed, suddenly seeing Derek's dead body on the floor and bullets, glass, and blood all over the place and realizing that her daughter had been involved in something very serious. "What did you do?!"

---

Jackson Hospital – Miami, Florida

"…You have a lot of messages here," Ryan observed softly as he set the reactivated cell-phone on the portable table of Grissom's hospital room before smiling at Grissom, who was staring groggily at him from bed. "Do you want me to read any of them to you?"

Grissom exhaled softly, "Are any of them from Greg?" he managed to ask in a hopeful tone despite feeling very tired from two days of sedation and intubation in the ICU. "I wrote him a text…"

"He hasn't asked for the letter in the box you gave me, but I did call Vegas and ask if he was available to talk," Ryan spoke in a tired voice, sighing as he leaned on Grissom's bed rail for support due to fatigue from his own recent procedure. "Conrad Ecklie said Greg took a week of paid leave and is visiting family in California with his wife and kids, but he also has the option to extend his leave if he wants. Apparently, Greg and Sara got into a fight in the lab during work hours and Ecklie gave Greg some mandatory time off to recover from overwork while suspending Sara without pay for two days…"

Grissom blinked, stunned that Greg's and Sara's sanity had both clearly gone to hell in his absence. Instead of saying anything, however, he sighed tiredly and focused on Ryan's pale face, "You look tired," he observed in a weak voice. "Did you get to a doctor yet about…?"

"I had biopsies two days ago," Ryan admitted grimly. "And Tommy and Emily both know, and everyone at the lab except for Horatio knows. I…I'm afraid to tell him."

Grissom sighed, "Ryan, you need to tell him so he can support you and you also need to think about your son," he replied softly. "Do you have any of the results yet?"

"The doctor wanted to meet with me here today a little later to talk about them, but I came early so I could visit you because Doctor Stokes called me this morning and said you were being moved to a regular room again," Ryan explained in a distressed voice. "I also have to work this afternoon, but I'm trying to figure out how I can call in sick so I can go to the appointment and then spend time with Carlos by ourselves. I also have to bring back your stuff…"

Footsteps suddenly filled the air and a gun cocked, prompting Ryan and Grissom to turn towards the doorway, "You won't need any of your stuff where you're going, Gil," McKeen's cold voice suddenly filled the air as McKeen stepped into the room with a cocked gun aimed at Grissom. "Hello again, Ryan…"

Cursing, Ryan immediately drew his off-duty gun from his belt, but McKeen chuckled and pressed his gun deep against Grissom's head , "You shoot me, I shoot him," McKeen spoke darkly, glaring daggers at Ryan as he wrapped his arm around Grissom's throat. "I need a little help, Gil. I need you to come with me and clean up a little mess I made of some people. They're not being very obedient and one thing I've always liked about you is that you've gotten people to respect you and listen to you. We're gonna go for a little walk now, Gil, and Ryan is not going to stop us or I will blow your brains out all over the place…"

Ignoring Grissom's pained whimpers, McKeen yanked Grissom out of bed and kept him in a headlock with the gun pressed to his head as he forced him into the hallway, down the hallway, and to the stairwell. Ryan followed after them, unaware that Nick had been coming to see Grissom about Derek and had seen McKeen take Grissom on a hostage walk while Ryan pursued them. Terrified that someone else in his life was going to end up dead, Nick quickly got on his phone and called 9-1-1 as he forced himself down the stairs to see if he could help Ryan at all, hating that he didn't have room for a gun in the scrub pants, slippers, and loose shirt he was wearing.

As Nick reached the door that led outside and pushed it open, he saw Grissom belt McKeen in the stomach, which winded the man long enough for Grissom to get out of the headlock. McKeen, however, tried to shoot him and promptly missed. Ryan responded by shooting at McKeen and exhaling when a bullet caught McKeen in the left thigh. Cursing, McKeen limped off to a nearby vehicle and tore off before Ryan could fire another shot.

"I called 9-1-1!" Nick called out anxiously as he staggered over to Grissom and Ryan, his steps slow and deliberate because his body was hurting from going down the stairs as quickly as he did.

Ryan nodded, holstered his off-duty gun, and quickly turned his attention to Grissom, who was leaning heavily on a nearby dumpster looking winded and ill while his legs, which were covered in scrub pants, were trembling uncontrollably. As sirens filled the air, Grissom groaned and vomited all over the dumpster.

---

San Gabriel, California

"…Gregory?"

Anne Sanders poked her head into the bedroom that Greg and Jenny were sharing and smiled when she saw Greg asleep on the bed and cuddled up next to Jenny, who was reading a Nursing textbook while rubbing her growing belly, "Oh, is Greg still asleep?" Anne asked softly. "I saved some breakfast for him. He should really get up and eat something."

Jenny silently moved her hand off of her belly and gently stroked his cheek, "Greg, your mom says you should get up and eat," she spoke softly. "Are you ready to get up? I ate already, but I can eat again…"

"No, don't you have to take your written qual today?" Greg asked groggily as he opened his eyes and slowly sat up. "I can get up and eat and keep the kids busy. If you need to go to the library…"

Anne smiled at the two of them, "I can drive Jenny there while you eat," she replied softly, her fondness for her son's wife growing because it was clear Jenny was trying to better herself despite her troublesome past. "Food's in the kitchen."

Nodding, Greg kissed Jenny and his mother, got up from the bed, and wandered into the kitchen. He immediately froze when he saw the pitcher of lemon water sitting on the table with a plate of pancakes and a cup of syrup. Swallowing hard, Greg tried in vain to look away from the water, but it was no use as he quickly felt a flashback swallow him.

"Get out of the car, Sanders, or it'll be you next!" James shouted, his voice unsteady as he waved the gun. "Come on, nerdbomb!"

Before Greg could react, James smashed the window in with the gun and unlocked it, cursing as he and Darin pulled Greg from the car, "Your voices are familiar," Greg stammered. "Are you students?"

Screams filled the air as James and Darin dragged Greg off of the road and into a back alley, "Thirsty, Sanders?" James hissed as he pulled out a bottle of liquid that had been laced with GHB. "Drink up!"

Greg gagged as James and Darin forced the entire bottle of laced water down his throat before throwing him on the ground, "We're not done by any means, Sanders!" Darin howled, suddenly feeling enough of an adrenaline rush that he wanted to keep participating. "James, let's rough him up a bit…"

Tears filled Greg's eyes as he continued to stare at the water and frowned when he suddenly felt his stomach churn. As he hurried over to the sink and vomited repeatedly, turning his back on the water, his mother and Jenny came into the kitchen and froze at seeing him vomiting, "Gregory!" Anne exclaimed, deeply confused as to why Greg was getting sick. "Gregory, what's wrong?"

Jenny's eyes, meanwhile, went to the water on the table, "It's the water," she explained anxiously, quickly grabbing the pitcher off the table and running out of the kitchen to dump it. "Greg, it's gone…"

"What about the water is making Gregory so sick?" Anne asked in a confused voice as Jenny returned to the room with the empty pitcher. "It was just water with lemon. Gregory looks dehydrated…"

Greg exhaled weakly as he pulled himself away from the sink, "I haven't drank water since October 3, 2006," he spoke shakily. "A couple students named James Scott and Darin Mitchell from the pilot project carjacked me, forced me to drink water laced with GHB, and beat me up because they wanted to take me to Doctor Pride. I had to spend a couple days in the hospital and give evidence, but I wasn't raped. It's still an active case cause Doctor Pride's in New York on trial for something else, but Darin Mitchell was killed not too long ago while committing other crimes. I'll have to go to court eventually to deal about the assault and the drugging, but it might be a while. Sorry about any dishes that were in there…"

Anne quickly hurried over to Greg, who looked downcast about the mess in the sink, and gently embraced him from behind, "I'm going to be making an appointment for you to see my doctor while you're out here," she spoke softly. "Is it just water that makes you sick?"

"The sight, the taste, everything about it," Greg admitted shakily. "We don't drink it at home…at least when I'm there and I've been taking Pedialyte and juice boxes to work with me. It's…it's so stupid. I'm just like Grissom. I can't settle my issues like an adult and instead, I try to hide them until they cause problems for me. I may not have been raised by Grissom, but I'm so much like him. I suck at taking care of myself and I turned myself into a mess."

The mention of Gil Grissom caused Anne to pause, realizing that Gil had told Greg who he really was to him. For a moment, Anne was silent and looked thoughtful and then she finally turned Greg to face her with an expression of concerned love on her face, "Your name is Gregory Hojem Sanders," she spoke in a gentle, but firm voice. "Sanders. The way you're acting leads me to believe that Doctor Grissom told you about him and your birth mother in a less than appropriate way. Am I right?"

Greg nodded and Anne gently embraced him, "He's undergoing treatment for Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma right now in Miami and sent me a text a few days ago cause he was taking a bad turn," he explained shakily. "I just lost it, fought with a colleague, and ended up being told to take time off. I also needed to go to AA cause I wanted to drink. I've been struggling so much with a lot of things, including alcohol, Mom. I…I don't want to end up like my birth mother. Apparently, she's an addict in New York. I feel like I'm drowning because of everything…"

Suddenly feeling very angry at the way Grissom had chosen to address his past with Greg, Anne kissed his forehead, "As I said, your name is Gregory Hojem Sanders," she spoke firmly. "And you don't have to do or be anything you don't want to be. You also don't have to accept your birth family into your life if you're not ready or able to do that. Your father and I will support you in whatever you choose…"

Greg melted into his mother's arms and let her hold him, "I don't feel ready," he replied softly. "I don't know if I'll ever be ready to see Grissom as my father or want to get to know my half-siblings. I have two of them by my birth mother, apparently, and they've tried to reach out to me, but I…I find it so weird. I've always brushed them off because I don't see them like they want to see me. I've never been deprived of love by you and Dad and Nana and Papa Olaf. I've also been very loved by Jenny, Jenny's family and by the children Jenny and I are raising. I think Grissom expects…"

"My God, Gregory, forget what Gil Grissom wants and focus on what you want," Anne replied firmly as Fred entered the kitchen, having overheard Greg puking. "When Gil arranged for us to adopt you, your father and I asked him to not contact us or you after the adoption was final because I feared it would only hurt you. We wanted you to have a pleasant childhood and know that you were loved. Look at what's happening now that you know the truth. You're hurting and that makes me sad."

Greg exhaled softly as Fred came over to them and he embraced both of his parents at once, "I love you, Mom and Dad," he spoke softly. "This whole mess with Grissom…it's just overwhelming."

Fred and Anne held Greg tight while Jenny excused herself to the living room, wanting to give Greg and his parents privacy, "I know that I'm loved," Greg said softly, sighing quietly.

Anne and Fred released their son and smiled at him tenderly, "Fred, can you get Greg something to eat and some juice while I make him a doctor's appointment, please?" Anne spoke softly. "Thank you."

While Greg's parents fussed over him in the kitchen, Jenny silently returned to the room she and Greg shared because Papa and Nana Olaf were busy fussing over Jessica and Matthew in the living room and she needed to prepare for her test. As she sat down on the bed to have a final look at her book, however, she suddenly received a text message from Jillian Stokes. Her heart stopped when she saw Jillian's message:

Dear Jenny,

Derek is dead. He died during a shootout at Horatio Caine's trial that he instigated. I'll send more details soon, as Derek updated his will recently and left Jessica some things.

Jillian Stokes

Horrified, Jenny tried to get up off of the bed to find Greg and let him know what had happened, but her body suddenly was engulfed by a sharp pain from head to toe. A shock rocketed through her body as she fell into the flashbacks where Derek had been less than kind to her and had even been violent with her when he hadn't been in a good frame of mind. It was one of the reasons she couldn't tolerate being around Nick, something she had never been fully open with Nick about: Derek's violent streaks had left her lifeless in a way. Greg, however, had been so gentle and loving to her that she had been slowly getting her spark for life back. The physical and sexual violence she had suffered at Derek's hands had been one of the things she and Greg had talked to Dr. Heather Kessler about when they went to talk to her about how to connect better as a couple when they were struggling and Greg hadn't told anyone else about Derek's violence, very determined to carry the responsibilities of caring for himself, his wife, Jessica, Matthew, and their unborn child alone and free of judgment. To help ease their struggles, they had also decided to not have any more children following this one, as it had not been an easy pregnancy for Jenny due to the violence her body had suffered from Derek's sporadic visits with her when she was pregnant with Jessica and the current pregnancy was proving a struggle to keep, which is why Jenny only did online schooling: she hadn't wanted to risk going to class and possibly suffering a miscarriage. Greg hadn't told anyone about anything, Jenny knew, and she wished he had, as carrying all of the responsibilities himself, plus his own traumas, had turned out quite badly for him.

And the idea of Derek daring to leave Jessica something in his will made Jenny sick, as Greg had legally adopted Jessica as his daughter with the blessing of Bill and Jillian Stokes…

Why had Jillian Stokes felt the need to text her about Derek's death? Jenny wondered as another pain shot through her body. She and Greg had promised Bill and Jillian that they could stay in Jessica's life, but that didn't mean she wanted Jessica to know Derek. According to the court in Las Vegas who had overseen the adoption and in her heart, Greg Sanders was Jessica's father and a darn good one.

I need some help. Jenny realized as the pain in her body increased. I just can't move.

Since she couldn't move, she threw her book on the floor to try and attract attention, "Jen?" she suddenly heard Greg call out in a concerned voice.

Another burst of pain shot through Jenny's body and she let out a pained cry before she finally surrendered to the fact that she couldn't move. Fortunately for her, Greg had heard her cry even with his hearing aids and he, Fred, and Anne came quickly, "I can't move," Jenny whimpered, crying as she suddenly felt an odd gush between her legs. "Oh, God, something…"

"Fred, call an ambulance!" Anne shouted as Greg sat on the bed and held the hurting, frightened Jenny in his arms. "She's bleeding and there's water everywhere…"

Fred hurried from the room and Jenny cried, "It's too soon," she whimpered anxiously. "Greg…"

"It's okay," Greg replied anxiously, quickly pushing all thoughts of Grissom and Ellen from his mind so he could be there for his obviously scared and ill wife. "I've got you, Jen. Everything's going to be okay."

Jenny groaned, "Derek's dead," she spoke shakily. "Jillian Stokes…texted me…"

Greg's eyes widened in shock as Jenny started to cry, "I'm scared, Greg," she whispered shakily.

Making a mental note to phone Jillian later on and asking her what she was thinking by telling Jenny about Derek's death, as he didn't feel that was necessary, Greg gently kissed Jenny's forehead and tried to comfort his terrified, hurting wife, "It's okay," he whispered shakily, gazing straight into her eyes. "It's okay."

---

New York Crime Lab – New York

"…He was smart, wearing this vest to court. He got hit through the vest, as the bullet was tough, but it was a through and through… I saw a wound in his back too. The bullet might still be at the courtroom. He probably passed out from shock or low blood sugar. He needs to be in a hospital, not down here!"

"…I promised Sergeant Boscorelli that I would take John to a safehouse we arranged if something went wrong at the trial. We were headed to the safehouse when John told me he had been shot and I brought him here cause I thought you could fix him…"

John opened his eyes, but quickly found he couldn't speak because he was wearing an oxygen mask over his face, "He passed out and he's bleeding!" he heard Hawkes yell. "He needs a hospital!"

"If we take him to a hospital, there could be more shooters out there we didn't account for!" John heard Danny yell anxiously. "Do you really think Derek Stokes could have pulled that off if he didn't have backup nearby?! And Jeffrey McKeen is still on the loose! Get his vest off of him and give him antibiotics and bandages! I brought some clothes in for him!"

A throat suddenly cleared, "Gentlemen, if you take a moment to stop yelling at each other, you will see that Young Mister Boscorelli is awake," Horatio's voice suddenly spoke before John saw Horatio look down at him, "John, it's Lieutenant Caine," Horatio spoke softly. You were shot through your vest and Doctor Hawkes needs to take it and your shirt and jacket off of you so he can look deeper at that wound…"

John painstakingly lifted his arms and Horatio gently undid and removed the necessary clothing, revealing a growing bloodstain on his undershirt in his ribcage area, "If that bullet didn't hit any organs, it'll be a miracle," Hawkes spoke in an angry voice. "Let me get an x-ray…"

"It hurts to sit up," John whispered, immediately leaning into Horatio for support. "I think I broke a rib or two when my dad…"

Horatio gently held him, "That vest got absolutely shredded," Hawkes grumbled as he pulled the portable x-ray over to the table. "Didn't do a darn bit of good…"

"Gentlemen, please," Horatio spoke sternly, beginning to get pissed off at the unprofessional behavior he was seeing. "Okay, John, Doctor Hawkes is going to give you an x-ray and then see where we need to go from there. Detective Messer, perhaps you could phone John's mother since she is your biological sister and let her know what's going on? I doubt she was informed of the arrangement you had with Sergeant Boscorelli. Jesse, can you please get the diabetes supplies and check his sugar and then see if there's a blanket somewhere for him? John, I'm going to lie you back down now so Doctor Hawkes can take an x-ray and see how bad the damage is. It's going to hurt, but I need you to be brave and stay calm, all right?"

As Horatio and Jesse helped Hawkes with John, Danny moved to the morgue's restrooms and quickly dialled Danielle's number.

---

New York-Presbyterian Hospital

"You're shaking," Danielle heard her father say in a concerned voice as they sat together in the hospital waiting room, waiting for news on Bosco, who was now in surgery. "Do you want me to call Yelina and ask her to bring you some warmer clothes? Those scrubs can't possibly be warm enough…"

Danielle sighed, "The police had to take my clothes as evidence because I got covered in Maurice's blood trying to help him," she replied anxiously. "And nobody will tell me anything, even where John got to. Danny just grabbed him and took him somewhere…"

Danielle's phone, which she had managed to keep hold of after the police had taken her clothes, suddenly rang and she swore before answering it, "What?" she asked crossly.

"Hello to you too," Danny's voice filled the phone. "I wanted to call and tell you about John. Your husband and I met a few days ago and made an agreement that if something went bad during the trial, I was supposed to get John to a safehouse, but things sorta went bad…"

Danielle froze, but said nothing, "John's at the Crime Lab getting taken care of by Doctor Hawkes right now," Danny continued nervously. "John got shot at the trial, apparently, but it's not as bad…I don't think…as…"

"Maurice is in surgery," Danielle finished coldly, deeply exasperated at both Maurice and Danny. "And I'm sitting at the hospital with my father silently praying that Maurice doesn't die. I had to give my clothes to the police cause I got covered in blood trying to help him. I don't know what the agreement you and Maurice had, but…I trust you. I trust you to keep John safe because I can't right now…"

Silence filled the air, "Um, you're at the hospital?" Danny asked quietly. "Could you find a minute, if you decide to stretch your legs, to check on Mommy? She got some bad news today and I know about it cause I was around, but she wants you and Greg to know too cause…"

"Then you need to tell Greg," Danielle replied irritably. "And that woman…Ellen…can wait."

As Danny was trying to explain that that wasn't the case, Danielle hung up on him and pocketed her phone, deeply pissed at Danny for bothering her over such a petty matter when it was obvious more important things were happening around them both. Before she could explain what Danny's call was about to her father, who was highly curious about it, tears suddenly filled Danielle's eyes and she found herself turning to her father and crying on his shoulder instead.

---

Miami, Florida

Irritated that he had been paged to work away from a visit with his parents, something that he had cleared with Speedle, Rick silently climbed out of the beater he had managed to buy for himself and Lenny and fetched his crime scene kit out of the backseat. The uniforms near the tape eyed him and his car with amusement in their faces as he approached sporting glasses, business casual clothes, and a crime scene kit, but a quick look from Rick silenced them before they could speak.

It was quickly becoming common knowledge throughout the department that he had transferred to the Crime Lab from IAB with approval from the Chief and Horatio and Rick had been asked a lot of questions about why he had done that, with some of his former colleagues and some of the uniforms even mocking him for being too mentally unstable to work anywhere but under Horatio's supervision due to his past in Las Vegas. He hadn't reported any of the bullying to Speedle, as he had assumed that some of the lab techs had heard his outburst and fight with Delko and the news was spread from there, so he had to handle it alone because he hadn't had to blurt his past out to Delko or anyone, it had just happened and he should have rightfully exercised more self-control in the work environment.

"Sergeant Stetler," Calleigh's voice suddenly filled Rick's ears. "Thank you for coming."

Rick sighed, quickly looking away from the amused expressions of the officers to face Calleigh, "I had to lie to my parents that Mandy called and forgot her lunch at home and she needed me to bring it to her, but it let me slip away without trouble," he replied softly. "I hate lying to my parents, but…"

"Enjoying being Caine's puppy, Stetler?" one of the officers suddenly called out, grinning at Rick because he saw Rick talking to Calleigh as if he were checking in for instructions on what to do there. "You're better off on Caine's leash anyway than being the rabid mutt you were in Vegas…"

Rick sighed and moved past the tape with his kit, choosing to ignore the cruel comments simply because anything he did to stand up for himself would be reported back to Horatio and that might cause Horatio to rethink their arrangement. As he looked around to determine what had happened, Tim came over to him, "Jeffrey McKeen showed up at the hospital while Ryan and Doctor Grissom were having a visit and McKeen tried to kidnap Doctor Grissom and roughed him up a bit…" Tim explained grimly. "The problem we have is that Doctor Grissom is not talking to anyone or letting anyone touch him and I figured you might be helpful because Calleigh said you used to work with him and might be able to get him to cooperate. I'll supervise from a distance. Normally I wouldn't allow this cause you two worked together, but I don't think he'll let anyone else touch him…"

Rick nodded, but didn't say anything and Tim gestured over to a dumpster near the back exit where Grissom was leaning heavily on the dumpster with only his hospital slippers, thin green scrub pants, and a hospital gown keeping him warm. His neck looked heavily bruised and his eyes were glazed over as if he weren't present at all, but his expression was filled with a solemn pain that Rick had not seen in years. Sighing heavily, Rick silently made his way over to Grissom while gloving up and when he reached Grissom, he set his kit aside and gently cleared his throat, "Gil," he spoke softly. "Hey."

Grissom was silent for a moment before he turned his head to look at Rick, an act that immediately caused him to wince and look away again, "You look good," Grissom spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. "A lot like you used to before…"

"I suppose it suits me," Rick replied softly. "You're not looking so good yourself, Gil. Do you wanna tell me about that?"

Grissom sighed, "It's honestly taking all of my strength just to stand here, but if I sit down, I might pass out," he said softly, his voice unsteady as he spoke. "My neck hurts from being put in a headlock and my head's killing me from having a gun jammed into it and I can hardly breathe from being rushed down flights of stairs…"

Before Rick could reply, Grissom's legs gave out without warning and he began falling, but Rick quickly grabbed him under the arms to stop him from falling. Grissom let out a shaky whimper, scared about being grabbed, but Rick gently guided the man over to a nearby patch of grass before gently sitting him down. Grissom promptly gagged like he was going to throw up, so Rick let Grissom lean on him briefly, "Deep breath," Rick spoke softly into Grissom's ear. "I'll give you my jacket if you're cold."

"You have to process me first, Rick," Grissom replied shakily, taking a deep breath as he spoke. "I'll be fine. Don't compromise the evidence…"

Even though he didn't fully believe Grissom was all right, Rick nodded and reluctantly went to work processing his friend. Grissom, meanwhile, sat on the grass quietly and followed instructions when he was asked to do something.

As Rick was finishing up, Tim wandered over to them to see how things were going and Candace was with him, pushing an empty wheelchair that had a folded blanket in it. Grissom exhaled softly, feeling considerably stronger now that he was sitting down, but he didn't turn his head.

"His neck hurts too much for him to turn his head," Rick explained, gazing at them briefly before looking back at Grissom. "Gil, are you okay with…"

Gil nodded, "It's Nick's sister," he replied softly. "I can see her out of the corner of my eye. She won't hurt me. I just don't feel that great, so…if you think I'm trying to be rude by not talking much…

A faint, shaky breath escaped Grissom's lips as he took a brief break before continuing, "My neck hurts from being put in a headlock and my head's killing me from having a gun jammed into it and I can hardly breathe from being rushed down flights of stairs…" he explained tiredly. "I'm also coming out of sedation…"

"I know this isn't the best moment to ask for a statement, Doctor Grissom, but what exactly happened?" Tim asked in a quiet voice as he brought a recorder out and pressed PLAY.

Grissom sighed, "I was visiting with Ryan Wolfe when McKeen showed up…" he began softly. "Ryan was telling me about messages on my phone and we were talking about personal things. I don't know how McKeen found me. Ryan's been hanging on to my things while I've been in ICU and he only brought my phone…"

A strange expression suddenly came over Rick's face, "Is your phone still in your room?" he asked in a concerned voice.

"Natalia went to process the room before you got here," Tim spoke up in a concerned voice. "Why?"

Rick sighed, "Get her to check it for a tracker," he replied grimly. "McKeen may have bugged it when Gil was held hostage in the Everglades. It's one of McKeen's obsessions…bugging electronics. I…I'd love to stay with you, Gil, but you need to get checked over and I need to…"

Tim, however, turned away and suddenly waved to Natalia, who was coming out of the hospital with gloves and an evidence bag, "Natalia, can you take the evidence Rick collected back to the lab with you?" he asked in a concerned voice. "He needs to stay with Doctor Grissom and Detective Caine's already giving me a look about you being here. Have the AV Lab check the phone for trackers."

"I threw up all over the dumpster," Grissom spoke shakily. "It…it needs to be processed…"

Tim looked over to where Robert was talking with Ryan, who had surrendered his gun to Robert and was now being flanked by a worried Walter and Nick, "Walter!" Tim called out. "Come here and process the dumpster!"

As Walter made his way over to the dumpster, Rick extended his hands to Grissom while Natalia gathered the evidence and photos Rick had taken, but Grissom looked reluctant to get up, "We'll just take you inside the emergency room, check you out, and get you warm," Candace spoke gently.

Grissom took Rick's hands and reluctantly let himself be helped from the ground into the wheelchair, but he kept hold of one of Rick's hands. As Candace and Rick took Grissom around the hospital to the emergency room entrance, Ryan finished his conversation with Robert and followed after them because he noticed none of the uniforms on scene were helping Rick and Candace with Grissom and he had to go into the hospital anyway for his appointment. Once he was inside, Ryan watched two nurses come over to aid Candace and Rick with Grissom. Rick alone helped Grissom on to the bed and then covered him with the blanket that was on the chair. The two exchanged a few quiet words and Rick adjusted the bed before helping Grissom rest his head on the pillow. Rick then drew the privacy curtain and Ryan sighed heavily, knowing he wasn't going to have time to stick around to how things turned out because he would be late for his appointment if he did that. As he left, however, he didn't notice that Nick was following him because he wondered why Ryan would follow Grissom inside only to abandon him.

"Ryan!" Nick called out as he caught up to Ryan at the elevators. "What are you doing?! Grissom…"

Ryan scoffed as he glared at Nick, "I have an appointment with my oncologist," he snapped coldly, deeply pained and exasperated by the situation. "I was gonna go there after I was done talking to Grissom. I need to find out if I've got cancer again. Excuse me."

The elevator door slid open just then and Ryan entered the elevator. Even though he was grieving over Derek and upset about Grissom, Ryan's news shocked him to the core and Nick found himself stepping into the elevator with Ryan, "Lemme go with you," Nick offered softly. "You look like you could use a friend."

Ryan's expression filled with sadness as the door slid closed, "Thanks," he replied in a quiet, somber voice.

---

San Gabriel Valley Medical Center - San Gabriel, California

Greg fought the urge to swear as his phone buzzed yet again, making him even more anxious than he already was while waiting for doctors to check Jenny over. She had been brought by ambulance and he had come with her while his parents and grandparents had stayed with Jessica and Matthew, promising to come to them as soon as possible. Once the ambulance had arrived at the hospital, Jenny had been taken by doctors and Greg had been forced to wait in chairs with nothing but his thoughts and his constantly buzzing phone for company. When the phone wouldn't stop buzzing, Greg answered it.

"Greg Sanders," Greg spoke in an annoyed voice, figuring it was Ecklie checking on him to make sure he was actually taking time off or Brass to check on how he was doing with his sobriety while on vacation.

A sigh filled the phone, "Uh, hi Greg, it's your half-brother, Danny Messer," Danny's voice filled the phone, quickly prompting Greg to turn the speaker on because Danny's accent was hard to interpret. "I found your number in the national CSI database and I need to talk to you really bad. Our birth mom, Ellen Seville, isn't doing so well and…"

Greg's eyes narrowed dangerously, "Um, Danny, it's not really a good time for me to talk," he replied, deeply annoyed that Danny had gotten his number through inappropriate means. "I…"

"I have to talk to you about our mom," Danny spoke anxiously. "I found her drugged and laying in a garbage bag a few days ago and she's been in the hospital ever since then, but not really getting better even after the drugs wore off. The doctors ran tests and our mom's really sick, Greg…"

Irritated that Danny wasn't getting the hint that he didn't want to talk to him, especially about Ellen Seville and whatever issues with drugs she seemed to have, Greg scoffed and began to pace the waiting room, "Why do I need to know that Ellen was found drugged and laying in a garbage bag?!" he asked irritably. "Do you want me to thank you for telling me why I've had such a struggle with alcohol?! Do you find it funny to tell me that a drug addict gave birth to me?! She probably gave me away so she could go find her next high! She didn't fight for me, so I'm sure as hell not gonna care about her! You can't make me! Whatever that woman is to you, she's nothing to me! My mother is Anne Sanders!"

Tears filled Greg's eyes as he ended the call and closed his eyes to compose himself. He suddenly felt someone embrace him and cuddle him, "Mom," he whispered, recognizing his mother's warm hug. "I…"

Anne Sanders exhaled anxiously, having heard Greg's entire conversation as she arrived and feeling deeply touched that Greg saw her as his only mother, "Greg, it's okay," she finally spoke in a gentle voice. "I love you. It's okay."

The two continued to hug for several minutes before pulling apart and looking at each other. Anne immediately dried her son's tear-stained face with her hands, "My half-brother, Danny Messer, phoned…" Greg explained shakily. "His New York accent was hard to understand, so I turned the speaker on. Why do I need to know about my birth mother? She's a drug addict and she's probably got Danny trying to contact me so I'll give her money. I wish I could be kind to her, but I don't have the energy to care about her or to take care of whatever she needs when I'm barely able to care about myself or take care of myself right now. That's why Ecklie told me to take time off…and now look what's happening…"

Anne looked worried, "Did you need to go to one of those meetings or call your sponsor?" she asked in a concerned voice. "If you need to take care of yourself, I can stay here and wait for news…"

"I'll call my sponsor for a chat once I know what's happening with my wife," Greg replied softly. "I also have books I brought that I can read when I get a moment."

Before Anne could reply, a female doctor in blue scrubs came into the waiting area, "Greg Sanders?" she asked in a concerned voice, sighing as Greg nodded worriedly. "I'm Doctor Martinez and I'm overseeing the care for your wife. It seems she has gone into labor and it's…"

"It's only the second trimester," Greg interrupted anxiously, suddenly fearful for his wife and unborn child. "Why is she going into labor?"

Dr. Martinez sighed grimly, "Her body isn't responding well to the trauma that it perceives the pregnancy to be," she explained in a concerned voice. "Was she ever a victim of domestic violence?"

"Not by me," Greg replied in a worried voice, realizing that Derek was to blame for his wife's current condition. "She was badly abused by her ex even when she was pregnant with their only child, who I have since adopted as mine. We flew here. Did that cause…?"

Dr. Martinez shook her head, "We have to take the baby via C-section, but we can't sedate your wife cause it's too risky, so she's going to get a spinal before delivery," she explained softly. "Flying didn't cause this. She said her pregnancy's been tough from the beginning…"

Sadness filled Greg's face, "Can I be with her?" he asked worriedly. "I…she's everything."

"We need to take her right away, so you can follow us upstairs, but then you have to wait in the surgical waiting room," Dr. Martinez explained in a concerned voice. "She's been asking for you…"

Terrified, Greg clung to Anne, "Mom, please stay with me," he pled anxiously, on the verge of a panic attack because of this and Danny's call. "I…I can't do this alone. Please stay with me, Mom."

Nodding, Anne held tight to her son as they followed Dr. Martinez to the trauma room. Jenny was laying on the gurney with a gown and blanket covering her body while an oxygen mask covered her very pale face. "Jen, we're here," Greg spoke softly, unable to keep from crying as he and Anne approached Jenny and took her hands to keep her calm. "We're here. I love you."

---

New York Crime Lab – New York, New York

"That's amazing," Hawkes spoke in an awed voice as he studied the x-rays he had taken of the area where John had been shot. "It didn't hit any organs. It looks like it bounced off of a rib and right out again. That's why there's two holes so close together…"

Horatio's eyes narrowed, "I would hardly call someone surviving getting shot amazing," he replied sternly, deeply perturbed about how casual everyone seemed about the situation. "Do what you need to to treat his injuries, please, so he can go rest somewhere other than a morgue."

"Nothing can be done for the ribs but bandages and rest," Hawkes explained. "The gunshot wounds, though, can be cleaned with gauze, antibiotics, and a tetanus shot. I borrowed the stuff from the mobile medical unit I volunteer with since it was on my way here. You mentioned gunshots…"

Horatio gave Hawkes a look and Hawkes fell silent, staying quiet as he cleaned John's wounds as best he could, bandaged them with gauze, and then wrapped John's ribs, "Jesse, can you get John a shirt, please?" Horatio asked once the job was complete. "It's not warm down here."

Jesse quickly brought a loose, sleeveless workout top and black hooded jacket over to John, having grabbed them from John's suitcase when Hawkes was tending to the wounded young man. Horatio quickly helped John put the loose shirt on, "I've only got oral antibiotics and a tetanus booster left," Hawkes explained softly. "I promise, we're almost done."

Horatio was both impressed and concerned that John gave no reaction to the antibiotics, or the tetanus shot, instead gently hugging himself as much as he was able without disrupting his injuries. As Horatio was trying to figure out where they could take John to rest safely, Sid arrived with Derek Stokes's bagged body on a gurney and Judge Stokes in tow. Judge Stokes immediately grew angry upon spotting John and Horatio quickly got between John and the grieving judge, fearing that there could be violence and knowing that John was not in any shape to defend himself.

"John Boscorelli," Judge Stokes spoke angrily. "You were the one Emily was looking at before Derek started shooting up the courtroom! I heard a lot about you from Emily and Derek! It's your fault Derek's dead! If Emily hadn't been looking at you, Derek would have been fine and he'd still be alive! Mark my words, John Boscorelli, I'm going to slap you with a wrongful death suit over this and I won't let you forget what you did! You killed my son and you're going to pay for that!"

Jesse and Danny quickly helped John off the table while Horatio continued to stand in front of Judge Stokes with his hands on his hips, "And you!" Judge Stokes snapped angrily, glaring daggers at Horatio. "You're the one who corrupted Nicolas and Candace into hating their brother and then you told those horrible lies in court about him! He was sick! He was sick and you pushed him to do this!"

Seeing that the man was so deep in grief that he would not be swayed to another line of thinking, Horatio turned, gently took John's arm, and led him from the room before Judge Stokes could unleash more abuse on either of them. Danny and Jesse soon met up with them and they quickly got in Danny's vehicle, "Judge Stokes seems pretty pissed," Danny observed worriedly. "Do you think he'll…?"

"I'm not sure, but what John needs now is rest and quiet in a safe place," Horatio spoke firmly as John laid back in his seat and closed his eyes. "I am quite concerned that Judge Stokes may make good on his threat if he sees John again anytime soon, so perhaps I should just take him to Miami to Jesse's safehouses for rest. There are staff there who will help him and look after him."

Jesse sighed, "My work isn't done here, but if you want to take responsibility for him until I can, I'd say go for it," he replied in a worried voice. "Detective Messer, I know it's not what you and Sergeant Boscorelli planned, but this might be safer…"

"This whole day's been blown to hell anyway, as has the plan we had," Danny replied grimly, shrugging. "John, do you wanna go to Miami with Lieutenant Caine?"

Even though he would be away from his family and back in the same city where so much had happened to them and to himself, John found himself nodding because he feared his family facing retributions from Judge Stokes that they couldn't financially afford to deal with if he didn't go away for a while.

"That's settled," Horatio replied calmly. "Detective Messer, if you could please give us a ride to the airport, I'll call Stella on the way and have her meet me there with my things. I was going to leave after the trial anyway, so everything was already packed and in her car anyway."

Danny nodded, pissed and saddened about how the day was turning out. He quickly began to drive through the streets in silence, keeping his eyes on the road while Horatio and Jesse kept their eyes on John. John, however, said nothing and simply sat there looking asleep while in actuality, he was lost in shock and sadness over how the day was turning out for not only him, but also his family.

When they finally arrived at what appeared to be LaGuardia Airport, Horatio quickly got himself and John's things out first. He got the suitcase and backpack out and as he was helping John, who was not saying one word to anyone, out of the car, Stella arrived in a car and her eyes widened at what she was seeing, "Horatio?" she asked uncertainly. "I brought your bags like you asked. What's…?"

"I'll explain later," Horatio replied anxiously, quickly getting a hold of John. "Okay, John, can you make it into the terminal? I can probably get you a wheelchair once we get inside, but I'm going to need you to move your legs for now. I'll keep a hold of you, all right?"

Stella quickly got Horatio's things out of the trunk and put them on a nearby luggage cart before seeing John's suitcase and backpack. She quickly added them to the cart because she could tell asking about them would not be a good idea, as Horatio was barely keeping John together at the moment. Danny and Jesse, meanwhile, both looked alarmed at how quiet and withdrawn John seemed.

"If you could help us with the bags, Jesse, I'd appreciate it," Horatio spoke firmly, quickly taking control of the situation. "Thank you for all your help, Detective Messer. Stella, I'll call you."

Jesse took control of the luggage cart while Horatio gently led John into the airport, "You're going to need your ID for a ticket, John" Horatio instructed gently. "Do you have it?"

Nodding, John got his wallet out of his pants pocket and passed it to Horatio. Horatio took the wallet and sat John down on a bench near the elevators as he wandered over to an airline counter. Jesse stood near John with the luggage cart, shocked and pained that things had turned out so horribly. Several minutes later, Horatio returned with two tickets to Miami and a staffer who was pushing an empty wheelchair. Horatio quickly took his backpack off the luggage cart and then passed John his own diabetes backpack while leaving the suitcases and bigger backpack on the cart.

Jesse suddenly removed the note from the suitcase, figuring that John might want to read it when he felt better, "Um, John, this was on the suitcase in the safehouse," he spoke nervously, passing the note to John. "It's from Sergeant Boscorelli…"

Swallowing hard, John immediately put the note in the backpack that was now in his hands to read later because he already wasn't feeling his best and reading a note from his dead adoptive father would make him too sick to get on the plane, and he needed to get away for his sake and his family's sake.

Horatio raised an eyebrow, but said nothing about John's decision to put the note away and instead focused on helping the younger man into the wheelchair, "Our flight is pretty soon, so we need to go," Horatio spoke in a gentle voice. "I've already explained everything to the staff, so I just want you to relax. Jesse, bring the bags, please, and they'll be taken care of."

Trusting that Horatio would indeed help him get away from the mess that was now his life in New York, John allowed himself to be lost in thought for a while, communicating and interacting with Security and other airport officials only when he needed to. He could hear Horatio doing a great deal of communicating for the both of them and it seemed to be acceptable, so he chose to stay silent.

The next thing John knew, the wheelchair was being stopped in the first-class section of a fairly empty plane and he was being helped into a seat, buckled in, and covered with a blanket. He wanted to ask Horatio why they were in first-class seats, but Horatio was at the front of the plane on the phone so John simply closed his eyes and pretended to sleep, knowing he would get no real rest after seeing his adoptive father get killed protecting him and then being threatened by a grieving, angry Judge Stokes.

Once Horatio was off of the phone, after sending a message to MDPD Dispatch for Frank Tripp, a CSI, and a doctor to meet him and John Boscorelli at Miami-Dade International Airport in three hours, he took a seat next to John and buckled up before taking John's hand in his own to try and calm the obviously terrified young man. As much as he wanted to stay awake and in his world of emotional disconnect because it was easier for him, John found himself quickly lulled into safety and surrender by Horatio's simple, but very caring gesture and slowly drifted off to sleep, resting his head against Horatio's shoulder as he did so. Horatio simply let him stay there, relieved that he had been able to give the younger man at least a morsel of comfort in what had been nothing less than a hellish day.

---

Miami, Florida

Rocky's angry curse words were the first thing McKeen heard as he staggered out of the car and into the warehouse pressing his bloodstained hand against the spot in his thigh where Ryan Wolfe had shot him, "That little bastard Ryan Wolfe was with Grissom!" McKeen howled angrily. "He shot me!"

"I thought you killed Ryan Wolfe along with his sick wife, or is that something else you didn't do right?" Rocky asked in a cold, unimpressed voice as he looked over McKeen's thigh wound. "It looks like it's still in there. "It's a good thing Carlos is coming off of his high and now aware of his surroundings again or else you might die! I'll get him to take care of you…or do you want to die?"

McKeen used his good hand to flip Rocky off and Rocky scoffed, angry that his own plans had been delayed because of McKeen's obsession with revenge, "Now I have to clean up your mess yet again and you're fortunate that we have a hostage that I can use to distract the cops so they won't use all their resources looking for you!" Rocky snapped, glaring daggers at McKeen. "Detective Flack's outlived his use to us anyway! Now, you had better be good for Carlos while I prepare Detective Flack for his last bit of service with us! If I hear you've misbehaved, I'll kill you too! Carlos!"

Carlos, who was now struggling with withdrawals from the methamphetamines and pain from the sexual torture McKeen had put him through, struggled to sit up, but he managed it using his arms, "Carlos, you need to help McKeen clean up his mess," Rocky spoke coldly. "I need to go deal with Detective Flack!"

Without waiting to see if Carlos was capable of obeying or helping McKeen, Rocky stormed to the cooler where Flack had been held and he opened it. Flack was laying in the middle of the cooler floor, struggling between consciousness and unconsciousness after the latest beating that Rocky had given him to shut him up. As Rocky approached him, he noticed that the heavily bruised and bleeding detective was shivering uncontrollably from his time in the cooler. Deeply amused by the effectiveness of his lesson, Rocky grabbed Flack with his gloved hands by his hair and ignored Flack's pained scream, "Shut up!" Rocky screamed. "There's no one around to hear you scream and nobody cares that you're in pain, so you might as well save your energy! I need you to help me keep the cops too distracted from looking for McKeen because he's making trouble for me! Get up!"

"My…my leg," Flack managed to say shakily, knowing he couldn't stand on a broken leg.

Rocky, however, forced Flack to his feet and half-frog marched him, half dragged him out of the cooler. Rocky then roughly handcuffed Flack's hands behind his back, ignoring Flack's whimpers of pain as he did so, "I…I'm not helping you," Flack argued shakily. "You're going to have to kill me…"

"This probably will," Rocky replied in an amused voice, smirking underneath his mask. "You and I are going to go for a little drive, Detective Flack, and you're going to make so much of a mess for the police that they'll leave McKeen alone for a while and that will allow us to get on with our plan!"

Continuing to smirk, Rocky grabbed Flack by his neck, marched him over to the car that McKeen had stolen from a nearby lot for his unplanned visit to Grissom, and shoved him into the trunk, "Save your air, Detective," Rocky hissed darkly, laughing manically as he slammed the trunk. "You'll need it."

As Rocky got behind the wheel of the stolen car, buckled up, and tore out of the warehouse with no particular destination yet in mind as to where he wanted to dump Flack's battered body, McKeen swore and slapped Carlos hard across the face, "Hurry up!" McKeen shouted angrily. "My leg hurts!"

Instead of responding right away, however, Carlos simply lay there, trying to figure out how to explain that he wasn't able to stand up in a way that wouldn't earn him more trouble from McKeen.

I can't feel my legs. Carlos realized as he lay there, trying to get up so McKeen wouldn't touch him again. I can't feel anything below my waist. I haven't been able to feel anything since…when, exactly?

"What the hell are you doing, Carlos?!" McKeen snapped angrily. "I'm going to bleed to death here!"

Carlos exhaled weakly, "I can't get up," he replied in a pained voice, bracing himself for a beating or something worse because he knew McKeen would not tolerate that. "I can't feel anything below my waist."

McKeen's eyes widened in shock and he didn't say anything for a moment. He finally forced himself to limp across the floor to a box of supplies that they had pulled out of the truck, a truck that was now parked at the back of the warehouse. He fished a bag of stolen medical supplies out of the box and brought them over to Carlos, glaring daggers at the former paramedic as he dropped the bag within reach of him before sitting down close to him, "If you're lying about not being able to feel anything below your waist, you'll wish I had killed you while we were still on the boat," McKeen hissed darkly.

"I wish I was lying," Carlos replied shakily, trying to ignore the trembling in his hands as he reached for the supplies that McKeen had put within his reach to treat his leg injury. "I really wish I was."