Disclaimer: See chapter one.

AN : Forgive me for taking so long to post this. I have not forgotten it. I have just been unbelievably busy. So much so that this has been sitting in an almost complete state on my computer for over a month. I simply didn't have time to finish it. It should move quickly from here on in though, as I now have a little time on my hands. Forgive any errors this is unbeta'd. Thank you ALL for you reviews, and comments. Believe it or not they keep me motivated. Sorry if you get a second notification for this - I went back in and made a few corrections. I was in a hurry when I posted and that's what you get. Thanks for all of your reviews!

Chapter 28

A short rap on the door startled the twosome and forced them to break apart. Sara tried to pull away but found herself held in place by two strong hands. “I missed you…” He planted another quick kiss on her mouth. “I missed this…” His words were throaty and choked with unspoken sentiment.

Sara’s own emotions were reeling, all the pain and hurt she’d bottled up over the last month or so manifested itself in one simple tear. She swiped at it; pissed as all get out that she was crying yet again. It had to be related to the hormonal mess her body suffering through. That was the only explanation.

The knock was insistent but Grissom didn’t want to rush the situation. His fingers trailed a gentle path along her cheek and he smiled softly at her. “Do you need a minute?”

She shook her head, so he let her go and waited until she took a seat in one of his guest chairs.

“What?” He opened the door and tempered the roughness in his voice.

A worried looking Greg stared back at him. “Our ditch girl…” The former lab rat stepped into the room and cast a concerned look in Sara’s direction. “She was registered at the Yen. Has been in town for two days on her own. Her name is Tammy Baker from Oregon. Parents have been notified they’re flying in tomorrow morning.”

“Okay.” Grissom moved back behind the desk as the younger man moved further into the room.

It was a sudden movement and caught the slim brunette completely off guard, but within seconds she found herself wrapped in the arms of Greg Sanders. “I’m glad you’re back.” He intoned softly and then released her before he pulled her completely off the chair.

“Me too.” She smiled timidly at him and readjusted her fitted black top before relaxing back into her seat.

Grissom cleared his throat and his eyebrows crept up his forehead. “The case?”

“Oh yeah…” Greg flicked his eyes towards Sara uncertain if he should say anything in front of her, but Grissom motioned for him to continue. “Doc has her now, says the preliminary findings indicate that the blow to the back of the head with the hand axe was what killed her.”

“Warrick said that it looked pretty clear cut.”

Greg nodded. “But did he tell you about the hair we found clutched in her hand?”

Grissom shook his head.

“Red hair. Pulled out by the root. Mia has it now.”

A grimace passed over both Grissom and Sara’s faces, and he was on his feet and pacing in an instant. “Check to see if Tammy Baker rented a car.”

“Archie’s on it.” Greg shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. “The clerk at the hotel said she thought she had one, but we’re trying to confirm it now.”

“You think she killed her for her car?” Sara looked almost horrified, though surprise was something that didn’t come, she knew full well it was highly likely.

“You are to stay away from this case entirely.” Grissom said sternly.

“I told you I would remain hands off, but I want to know what’s going on.” She crossed her arms and her full lips disappeared into a grim line. “I deserve at least that much.”

Greg’s eyes shifted between Grissom and Sara, the tension was almost palpable in the room. “I’m going to go and process Ms. Baker’s clothes.”

The nightshift supervisor waited for the young man to leave and then returned his attention to the woman sporting the angry frown. “Look…” He moved around the desk and dropped in front of her so they were eye level then he took her hands in his; the warmth of his touch chasing away the cold pervading her skin. “I’m sticking to my guns on this one.” He massaged some warmth into her flesh, and simply reveled in the fact that he could touch her again. “And before you get any strange ideas, this has nothing to do with Alicia. I could care less whether I ever see her again or not. This has everything to do with you, and your safety. She’s dangerous and if she sticks around it will be for one thing only.” He didn’t follow his statement up with an explanation, he didn’t have to.

“Maybe she just skipped town.” Sara offered. It wasn’t what she sought, though, in fact she was hoping for just the opposite. She wanted the woman caught, tried, and locked up somewhere for the rest of her natural life. Nevada was a death penalty state, but there was no way someone already proven to be mentally ill, would ever get the needle. But one could always dream, she thought.

“It’s possible, but is it likely?” Grissom shook his head. “OCD is one of her many diagnosis.”

Sara shook her head silently. “I doubt it.”

“If I could wrap you in bubble wrap and keep you locked away until this is all over, I would.”

Sara’s shifted her eyes away from his face, trying to hide the hurt in her eyes.

“I know that’s not rational or reasonable, but its how I feel.” He gripped her hands more tightly, almost as though he were afraid to let go.

Sara seemed to absorb this for a moment, before offering him a slight smile. She didn’t want to let his words to affect her. With the future between them being as uncertain as it was, allowing herself to fall back into a relationship with him before things were truly resolved would only lead to more heartache. “I am going to sign a lease at one of the apartment buildings I went to look at with Catherine yesterday.”

A look of alarm drifted across Grissom’s face. “Can you wait a little longer?” His eyes were soft and pleading and they were winning the battle with her weakened determination.

She looked away again. “I need a place of my own. Something I can call my home. I feel out of sorts, and lost right now Gil.”

“I had hoped…” He let the words hang for a moment before continuing. “I had hoped you would move in with me. When this is all over.”

It wasn’t totally unexpected. Despite the conversation they’d had about the possibility of his impending fatherhood and Alicia’s future, he’d still hinted at cohabitation when she’d mentioned apartment hunting with Catherine the day before. “I can’t plan on something that may not happen.”

“Sara…”

“No.” She cut him off. “Please. I need to get a place. After everything that’s happened. I can’t see myself living at your place.” A flash of pain ran across her former lover’s face so she sighed. “That didn’t come out right.” She looked down and their tangled fingers. “It doesn’t mean that I don’t want to be with you, once everything is resolved. It’s the space itself - I just… It feels marred. And I don’t feel right asking you to leave the town house you’ve lived in for so many years. It’s your home. This is for the best.”

Relief flooded Grissom, and he smiled. “Home to me isn’t the roof I live under. I didn’t know what home really was until I met you.” He pulled her hand up to his lips and caressed it with his mouth. “Please wait. Let’s tackle one thing at a time. Don’t sign any lease. We’ll sort this mess out, and then we can look for a place together.”

Sara studied him momentarily, wishing for all the world that they might have a happy ending. Then she nodded reluctantly. “I’ll wait until this is over, but I can’t make any promises.”

He leaned in and planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. “A little time, that’s all I’m asking for.”

Any further conversation was interrupted by another knock on the door.

“This place is like McCarran at peak tourist season…” Grissom muttered under his breath and then he let out a much louder and more terse. “Come in.” before backing away from Sara and returned to his normal place behind his desk.

“Sorry Boss.” Nick stuck his head in the door. “We just got the info on the rental. The vic picked up a red mustang convertible from Budget. Brass has an APB out on it as we speak, but there’s a good chance she’s long gone. The California border’s only a few hours away. She could be out of state by now.”

“We were just discussing that and I doubt it.” He replied grimly.

Nick bobbed his head grimly and moved further into the office a white sheet clasped in his hand. “We have another one. Woman attacked on her way out of the hospital. Details are sketchy. Vartan drew it.”

“Is the woman dead?” Grissom glanced at the relative details on the paper.

“Yeah, and the husband is in surgery. He may not survive.” Nick ran a nervous hand through his bristled hair. “Warrick and Greg are working the evidence from the Baker case, so I’m stuck. It’s a waiting game.” He was referring to the hunt for Alicia. “It’s in Brass’ hands now.” Grissom seemed lost in his own thoughts for the moment so the Nick turned to the woman in the chair.

Sara smiled at Nick. It was an invitation for the younger man. “How you holding up, Buttercup?”

The attractive Texan could actually feel the older man bristle, but he wasn’t about to change his feelings or his behavior to accommodate him.

“It’s all good.” She nodded and scratched her fingers excitedly along the black denim of her pants. It was a restless move that spoke of barely contained energy.

His gaze shifted to Grissom questioningly. “So you’re back at work?”

The scowl on the nightshift supervisor’s face said it all.

“I am.” Sara kept her face almost impassive but there was a note of triumph in her voice.

“Okay, Nicky this one’s yours, until we get any news on…” His words trailed off. He knew he was supposed to be unemotional yet he couldn’t manage it. An intense anger bobbed to the surface every time he even thought of the woman, and he frowned. “…her.”

Nick nodded knowingly and his eyes dropping to Sara. “One possibly, two vics, and a mountain of eyewitnesses to sort through… Can I have Sara?”

Grissom had wanted to keep his former lover close at hand so he could maintain a close watch on her, and at the sight of Dr. Ranier’s report he’d started forming plans that would bury her in the lab for a few days. But the criminals in Vegas seemed determined to pre-empt this, and the insinuation in the younger man’s seemingly innocent question dug into his heart making his decision all that much more difficult. Thick fingers rubbed at tired eyes – there really was no way around it without sparking some major ire from the young woman. “You can have her… for the case.” He added almost possessively.

Sara held her hand up for a high five and winked at Nick as he slapped her one.

Grissom’s scowl grew even further.

“My kit’s in my car.” Sara offered and made for the door.

“We can grab it on the way out.”

“Nick…” Grissom stopped the younger man as he was halfway through the door.

He turned “Yeah boss?”

Grissom waited until Sara had disappeared around the corner of his office. “Do not let her out of your sight.”

“I had no intention of it.” He replied and ran to catch up with his partner, leaving an unhappy and irritated nightshift supervisor in his wake.

“I’m goin’ for burgers you want some?” Warrick stuck his head into the drying room and waited as Greg collected an errant strand of red hair off of the Tammy Baker’s clothes.

“Yeah. The works with extra pickles and onions.” The former lab rat mumbled and squinted. “There’s some fluid here. Not blood. It looks almost as though something was spilled on her.”

Warrick stepped in and eyed the dry and hardened area the young man was pointing to. Then he leaned in and sniffed it. “Odorless…colorless…Can’t be semen, location’s all wrong.” The stain was up near the left shoulder blade.

“Maybe a drink… Vodka?” Greg offered.

“Well she was at a bar before she was taken. Maybe she was bumped from behind and someone else’s drink was spilled on her.” They’d traced her final steps back to a small Italian eatery beside the MGM. Apparently, she’d spent the better part of the evening sitting at the bar; nursing a few drinks and shooing away drunken would be suitors.

“Why semen? I thought Alicia looked good for this.” Greg queried as he cut out a small swatch of the material and dropped it into a jar.

“Doc’s report came back. The vic had had sex prior to her death. No DNA, but abrasions indicating aggressive activity.”

“So she was raped?” The young man looked mystified.

“He couldn’t be certain. He said maybe raped with an object, because of the lack of excessive trauma, either that or just rough sex.” The former gambler explained.

“Well that’s just great…”

“Look, for what its worth I think we’re right and that bitch is caught up in this in a big way.” Warrick shrugged. “But it’s another theory of the crime; and we have to keep an open mind.”

The younger man rolled his eyes.

“It could be irrelevant but get it to trace, anyway.” Warrick patted his partner on the back and turned to leave. “I’m gonna go get those burgers.” Stepping out into the hallway, he was almost run flat by a dark haired CSI. He smiled widely. “Hey girl… You’re back.”

“Yup.” She grinned, her eyes trailing a path between Warrick and the tall Texan who had barely managed to avoid colliding with her. A silent look passed between the two men and then she felt herself tugged into a powerful embrace.

“That’s good to hear. How you feelin’?” He let her go and then shoved his hands into his pockets almost shyly..

“I’m okay.” Her words were tentative and brought a flash of pain to her eyes, but she maintained her smile.

“That’s good. You need anything I’m here, okay?”

The hurt in her dark orbs faded to a tenderness and she nodded. “Thanks, I may take you up on that.”

“I expect you to…” He threw a thumb back over his shoulder. “Listen, I’m going to get baby CSI here and I some grub. You guys want something?”

“I heard that.” Greg’s voiced kicked up over the regular sounds of the lab.

A short giggle and a tight guffaw followed the remark, but Nick and Sara both shook their heads. “Nah man, but thanks, we’re off to a possible double at Desert Palms.” Nick slapped his friend on the back

“Catch up with you later.” Sara followed after the Texan.

“I’ll hold you to it.” The dark skinned CSI’s rich voice trailed the young woman down the hall.

“Judge Chzarny is an ass.” Catherine Willows dropped her coffee cup onto Grissom’s desk with a resounding thunk and dropped into the chair in front of him.

“I’m sure his wife doesn’t think so.” Grissom countered, barely looking up from the report his nose was crammed into. The woman easily 20 years his junior had been all over him at the last charity ball.

“Then she’s either a saint or after his money.” The blonde replied wryly. “And I’m inclined to thing the latter.” A nervous ball of energy she swiped her cup up from where she had placed it mere seconds before and took another swig. “Can you tell me why he wanted to personally inspect the seals on each and every piece of evidence I presented?”

“Perhaps because it went missing and there was some concern that it had been tampered with?” Grissom suggested and finally tore his attention away from the file on his desk.

“Oh please. I know how to do my job. If anything had been messed with I would have let him and the DA know.” Catherine scoffed and leaned back into the chair.

“Even if it meant letting a murderer go free?” Grissom asked pointedly.

“I admit there are times that the temptation to follow my own moral pendulum is pretty strong, but I have always resisted.” The blonde took another gulp of her coffee and waited for Grissom to agree with her. When he didn’t she simply rolled her eyes. “Okay, most of the time I resist. But I have never done anything that would be considered illegal, or likely to cost me my job except for this whole thing with Alicia, and as you know there were extenuating circumstances.”

At this Grissom eyebrows hiked up his forehead. “Aside from that, which I might add is something we still have to deal with, do I need to remind you that Chzarny was the judge in the original Sam Braun case? The one that got tossed because of the personal DNA match you ran at the lab?”

Catherine let out a resigned sigh at what was coming next - most likely yet another reprimand for that particular incident. Grissom was nothing if not predictable. When he didn’t jump into his usual diatribe, she smiled at him concern held in her eyes. “Everything okay?”

He scowled. “If you must know. NO.”

“Is it something I’ve done?”

Grissom let out his own sigh and drew his hand across his beard. “No.”

“Good, then lay it on me. I’ll see if I can help.”

“Sara’s back at work.” Grissom frowned,

“Oh…” She eyed him curiously for a moment. “I guess sending her to Dr. Ranier didn’t pay off.”

Grissom shook his head. “I didn’t want to do it to her, but I figured if it worked it might help keep her out of the field and safe for a little while longer.”

“Where is she now?”

“On a case at Desert Palms with Nick.” Grissom frowned.

The blonde woman thoughtfully slipped her hair behind her ear. “Well then she’s in good hands.”

Another scowl decorated his face. “Yeah.”

“But?”

Blue eyes met blue. “Alicia’s dangerously unpredictable, she wouldn’t even have to get close - one well aimed shot would be all it would take.”

Silence floated between them for a moment and Catherine studied the look in her old friend’s face. It was one of fear, and it appeared out of place on the man. “Hopefully, she’s long gone.”

“Everyone’s been saying that, but you know as well as I do that that’s unlikely. If she is delusional enough to play out her little charade with me as long as she did, then she won’t be easily swayed.”

Confusion was evident in Catherine’s reply. “Charade?”

A heavy sigh escaped Grissom. Removing his glasses, he took another swipe at his tired eyes before he closed the file on his desk and leaned back into his seat. Normally, he wouldn’t have shared his personal business with anyone, it was inherently against his nature, but exhaustion had weakened those barriers. “It’s a long story.”

“I have time. Tonight is my night off, Linds and mom are still out of town, and the court win today has got me hyped.”

“If you’re hyped we could always use you here.”

“I’m not that hyped. I just dropped in to return the evidence to holding and say hi.” She smiled tempestuously. “After I hear you out, it’s me, the mini bar, a hot bath in the Rampart’s celebrity suite’s massive tub and then bed.”

Grissom grinned; Catherine was easily swayed by the trappings of luxury. It was one of the reasons she had fallen into stripping for a living; High pay, high profile, little effort. Fortunately, for her Lindsay had come along and changed her outlook and choice of profession. “Bed… I remember that… Distantly…”

“Mmmmm… I hear you...” She eyed him silently for a moment. “You know, if you’re having trouble sleeping at Nick’s friend’s place, I’m sure I can get you a place at the Rampart. May not be as big but the beds are comfy.”

“I’m having trouble sleeping period. The location doesn’t matter.”

The blonde woman was about to suggest that it might be more comfortable for Nick and Sara if he weren’t there, but then thought the better of it. Something odd was going on between the threesome and as with most things it would come to a head at some point and then she would get answers to a few of the questions that had been nagging her. She grimaced slightly and then twisted it into a pained smile. “Well the offer stands if you change your mind. Sam’s hotels are nothing if not luxurious.” She reminded him, waited a moment and when he didn’t begin his long story she prompted him. “Okay. So explain the “charade” to me.”

Grissom scowled at his own big mouth, leaned back into his chair and began a loose history of his relationship with Alicia/Marla.

“Baby seat in the back…” Nick’s flashlight roamed the rear bench of the car bouncing off of the stained and darkened interior of the old ford. Despite his attention to the case he couldn’t help but catch Sara’s gaze. She was hunched over the body of the young woman on the passenger’s side busily snapping photos.

He cursed himself silently. Had he known there was an infant involved he would never have asked to have her work the case with him.

“I’m okay…” She said softly, noting the apprehension on his face. “Do we know if there was a baby in the seat at some point?” She ventured.

“Vartan didn’t say anything about one.” Nick cast a glance over his shoulder, his eyes coming to settle on the detective. He was talking quietly to the distraught woman who’d found the couple. A small crowd had gathered at the end of the sparsely populated parking lot and they were watching the situation unfold, curiosity etched into their faces.

“Do we know why they were here?” Sara queried, pulling his attention back to her. “Were they visiting someone? If so then maybe the child’s at home with a sitter or something.” She speculated, at the same time grasping the flashlight from her kit. Flicking it on, the slim brunette trailed it across the female victim’s shirt. “I think she was still breast feeding…” Sara commented, the light in her hand coming to rest on the two barely visible stains on the woman’s dark brown t-shirt.

“The infant is less than 24 hours old.” Vartan’s comment startled the twosome as he leaned his head in the driver’s side door.

“So there was a child in the car?” Nick asked straightening himself up, and turning to face the man.

“Yeah, sent her back into the hospital with one of the uniforms. Safer for her in there. She’s in the neonatal ward. Mom gave birth around this time last night. No complications so they sent her home because she had no insurance and she couldn’t afford to stay.”

Nick nodded silently.

“Any word on the father?” Sara asked snapping a few more close-ups of the stains on the woman’s shirt.

The detective shook his head grimly. “None yet. He’s still in surgery.”

“Excuse me…” A timid voice resonated from a few feet away

Three sets of eyes fell on a petite Hispanic nurse who was nervously shifting from foot to foot.

“Can we help you?” Nick asked, moving to block the view of the victim.

“Yes… I’m Luisa Mendoza. I took care of Mr. and Mrs. Jonas while they were in the obstetrics ward.” She crossed her arms in front of her, her hands working furiously up and down them as if she couldn’t get warm.

“I see.” Nick flashed a look of concern in Sara’s direction but quickly returned his attention to the young nurse. “Well I’m sure one of the officer’s will be in to talk to you sometime within the next hour or so.” He eyed Vartan who nodded in agreement and moved to help escort the young woman away from the car.

“I just finished talking to an officer Melowsky.” She informed them.

“Then if you need to go home that’s fine as long as we have your contact information.” Nick replied and returned his attention to processing the car. The woman’s next words made his blood literally stop running through his veins.

“I wasn’t planning on going home. I just wanted to know what happened to the other twin…”