erinm_4600
in
12to32
Fic: Cruisin'
Title: Cruisin'
Author: Erin (erinm_4600)
Characters, Pairing: Ensemble
Rating: G
Summary: Grissom's got an interesting way of spending his day off.
Warning: I started this in 2002. True story. It was originally inspired by I Don't Have to be Me ('til Monday) by Steve Azar *Written for Round 57 of prompt-in-a-box. Prompt #12: day off *for gatechic and bizarra, because we need more GRILLOWS. ♥
Disclaimer: The original characters belong to CBS and the Bruckster.
Gil Grissom was sitting in his office, early Friday morning, when his phone rang. He didn't look up from the paper he was reading as he raised the handset to his ear. "Grissom."
"Mister Grissom, this is June, from HR." Grissom looked up and made a face for a moment.
"Yes?"
"Don't shoot the messenger," she began, "but the Sheriff is trying to balance the overtime budget..." she trailed off.
"And I won the short straw for a forced vacation?" he asked with a slight smugness.
"You sure did," June replied. Grissom could hear the forced smile, which made him smile.
"So noted."
"Three days should do it, Mister Grissom," the secretary told him. "You don't even have to sign anything."
Grissom let out a sigh and reached up to rub his eyes. "All right, thank you."
"Any time, Mister Grissom. Have a good weekend."
"You too." With that said, Grissom hung up the phone and continued to flip through the folder, occasionally making notes on the legal pad just right of the folder.
*~*~*~*
Grissom had been sitting at his desk for about an hour past the call from HR, and finally closed the folder in front of him. Looking at his watch, then to the clock on the wall, over there by his 'Big Mouth Billy Bass' - the batteries finally had to be removed for his own sanity - he tapped his pen a few times on the desk and stared at the door. A minute later, he was up from the chair and pushing out the door.
Nick Stokes and Sara Sidle were on a case over on the northwest side of town; a break-in that had left a guard dog dead and a question as to just how the perp had gotten past the dog in the first place. Warrick Brown had spent the night on paperwork for recent cases and was heading out at lunch for a long weekend of ESPN and groceries. Captain Jim Brass was probably hunting down some new lead of the week, and would be keeping to himself that weekend, as usual. Of all Grissom's team, Catherine was the only member not somewhere on the premises of the Las Vegas Crime Lab.
Grissom poked his head in on Nick, who was eating a sub in the break room, and let the younger man know he'd be out for the next few days. On the way out, Gil passed Warrick coming out of the office space he usually shared with Catherine Willows.
"Hey Gris... vacation days catch up to ya?" Warrick asked with a half-smile, half-smirk. Grissom gave him a skeptical look and Warrick shrugged. "HR misdialed. Got me, lookin' for you."
Grissom nodded and hitched a thumb over his shoulder. "You still leaving at eleven?"
Warrick nodded. "Three whole days, Gris," he said with a jealous air. "Whacha gonna do?"
Grissom eyes lit up a bit and he let a small smile slip. "I think I might go for a drive." Warrick gave him an understanding smile and nodded. He had seen Grissom's 'go for a drive'-car. Grissom took a few backward steps and added: "Have a good weekend, Warrick."
Warrick pointed at him. "You too, man. Drive safe!" he added a moment later, and got a wave from Grissom in response. Warrick shook his head and turned toward the break room. Once he reached the fridge, he leaned down to open the door and pulled a bottle of water, while Nick crumpled up the wrapper from his sandwich and tossed it toward the trash.
Sara came in behind Warrick and blocked the door from closing, so she could grab a bottle of water, as well. Nodding towards the hallway, Sara asked: "Where's Grissom going?"
Warrick finished a swig of water and replied: "Crusin' for chicks." Nick smiled and Sara gave him a dirty look.
*~*~*~*
Grissom pulled out onto the city street from his garage, if one could even call it a garage, and made a right turn toward the Strip. To anyone outside on the beautiful Friday afternoon, the sight of Grissom wouldn't cause them to think twice. However, to those who knew him...
Gil Grissom, lead CSI for the Las Vegas Crime Lab's night shift, was cruising the Strip in a Fire Engine Red '66 Mustang convertible, complete with white interior and the top down. A car-load of fraternity boys from the University of Las Vegas were plastered so close to the windows of their SUV that, any closer, they would have been outside their car. Grissom let a small grin slip as the light ahead of them changed from red to green.
Grissom had been cruising for about ten minutes and was, at that moment, third at the light, when he noticed a familiar face crossing the street up ahead. He pulled his cell phone from his jacket pocket and hit the speed dial.
Catherine Willows had just crossed from one side of the Strip and was halfway across the intersection of the cross street when her cell phone rang. She pulled out her phone and flipped it on as she stepped onto the curb.
"Willows," she answered, shifting her entire body about ninety degrees, in order to avoid a group of tourists taking up their side of the middle, and slipped passed them.
"I thought you were spending the day with Lindsey," Grissom stated matter-of-factly.
"Well, hello to you, too," she replied with an annoyed tone.
Grissom smirked and nodded. "Hello, Catherine. How is your day off?"
Catherine rolled her eyes, not believing his forced tone for a second, but she smiled. "It's going well, Gil. How is your day at work?" she asked, in the same tone.
In the car, Grissom smirked and replied: "I'm gonna let you in on a little secret..." Lowering his voice, as if someone was spying on him, Grissom continued: "I'm not at work."
Catherine's smile lit up the whole block. "Are you feeling all right? Arms and legs all tingly? Fever? Hallucinations?"
Grissom laughed lightly. "No, just taking some time off..."
Catherine stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and nodded. "Ahh... you got down to 'use it or lose it' again."
"Something like that," Grissom replied.
"So... what do you plan to do with your day off? Do you even remember what those are? Need an instruction manual?" she jabbed.
The light changed to green and traffic began to move through the intersection. Catherine had started walking again, and Grissom hoped she would stop somewhere near the empty space a few cars up from where she was at the moment. "Well, I was thinking about lunch. You hungry?"
"You payin'?"
"I asked, didn't I?" Bingo! Catherine stopped just at the front of the empty space and was facing straight ahead. Grissom pulled into the space and faced her as he asked: "So?"
Catherine sighed. "All right, I'll have to meet you somewhere. I'm downtown... took the bus today."
"I can give you a ride to your house so you can get your car..."
Catherine gave him a sarcastic nod. "Yeah... because you know where I-" She was turning toward the street as she spoke and focused on Grissom, sitting in a very non-Grissom car and giving her his half-smile, half-smirk, which Nick had dubbed the 'Grissom grin'. "-am." After a moment, she turned away and said into the phone: "Where did you get that car?"
Grissom, being in a generally stupid-mood, leaned toward the steering wheel and whispered: "It's mine." Catherine cocked her head and then turned back to him. Grissom folded his phone back up and waved her into the car. "Come on... I'm hungry."
Catherine looked at him for a moment, trying to decide just what was wrong with her best friend. She shook her head, closed her phone and opened the passenger-side door. As she settled into the seat, Catherine glanced at Grissom, who was looking left, watching for a break in the traffic.
"Who are you, and what have you done with Gil Grissom?"
Without missing a beat, Grissom looked back at her and replied: "There is no Gil Grissom. It's all a lie." He added a grin and turned to make sure he had time to pull back onto the street. As soon as they were back in traffic, Grissom was immediately whacked in the arm by Catherine. "Ow." Catherine gave him a menacing 'Mom's not one to be messed with'-look and then sat back to watch the casino-laden scenery go by.
*~*~*~*
Grissom was watching the oncoming traffic, waiting for an opening to turn left. While he was doing this, Catherine was watching him. It was so creepy to see him, looking relaxed and... dare she think it... normal. Grissom could feel her eyes on him, and turned.
"What?"
Catherine shook her head. "Nothing." Grissom gave her a 'yeah, right'-look and focused back on the traffic. Once a spot opened, Grissom turned, then took another two lefts, bringing the car back to the Strip. He then took a right and started driving back in the direction he had come from.
"So... where are we going for lunch?" Catherine asked. Grissom just looked at her. He hadn't thought that far ahead in this little plan. Catherine smiled, able to read his mind without trouble and looked at the tourists on the sidewalk. As they passed the Golden Nugget, Grissom heard someone calling his name.
"Gris! Hey, Grissom!" Gil and Catherine looked up the block, near one of the little five-for-ten t-shirt places, just past the casino, where Warrick was standing. Traffic was stopped, at the moment, as a large crowd crossed the street up ahead. Warrick jogged over to the car and gave a small wave to Catherine.
"Hey Warrick," she said with a smile.
"Catherine. Nice to see you in the daylight." He ended his comment with a wink and looked to Grissom. "How's she runnin'?"
Grissom shrugged. "Not bad... had some trouble getting her started, but so far... so good..."
"Cool." Warrick looked towards the crosswalk and saw that the lights were changing. "Where ya goin'?"
"Lunch," Catherine said as she leaned on the door.
"Hop in," Grissom said, motioning to the back seat. Warrick thought about it for a second and nodded, then jumped over the side of the car.
*~*~*~*
The CSIs ended up getting lunch at their usual breakfast spot. Warrick thought Grissom was going to cause a scene when they arrived and there were customers in the usual booth, but Grissom was able to control himself. In fact, he didn't seem to care about much of anything today.
They were sitting at the table waiting for the check when Warrick's cell phone rang. "Warrick Brown."
It was Nick. "Hey man... whatcha doin'?"
"Just finishing lunch."
Nick nodded as he walked down the hallway at the Crime Lab. He stopped for a second and watched Greg through the glass window. Greg was obviously listening to something classical, or something drum-heavy, as he was swinging two pencils around in the air. He shook his head and continued down the hall. "Any interest in getting some overtime?"
Warrick reacted as if someone was scraping a fork against a plate. "Hit a dead end, didja?"
"No. Yeah. That, and I'm just really bored. It's creepy here without Grissom, man. Know what I mean?"
Warrick smiled. "Yeah... but I thought there was an overtime freeze.”
“No one told me,” Nick responded with a smirk.
Warrick snorted and let out a sigh. “All right. I’ll be there in fifteen."
"Cool. Later." Warrick hit 'End' and took a deep breath.
Catherine gave him a smirk. "It is impossible to say no to Nicky, isn't it?"
Warrick gave her a grim look and reached into his pocket. Pulling out a few bills, he tossed them onto the table. "I got it, Gris," he said as Grissom started to protest.
Grissom looked at him and replied: "Tip."
Warrick shook his head and stood up. "I'll see you guys on Monday?" Catherine shrugged.
Grissom stood up as well and answered: "Tuesday.” He paused a moment then shrugged. “Not my call.” Giving Warrick a nod, he added: “You need a ride back to the station?"
Warrick looked at Grissom for a second then nodded. "A ride would be good." Grissom nodded and offered Catherine a hand up from the booth.
*~*~*~*
About eight minutes later, Nick was sitting on the retaining wall outside the Crime Lab, waiting for Warrick, when Sara came outside looking for him. "Nick... what are you gonna do? Lead him inside? I think he knows the way.”
Nick stuck his tongue out at her. "Sometimes, Sara, it's nice to come outside and see daylight. Get fresh air. You can only smell so many dead people." Sara nodded, recalling the night she couldn't get rid of the aroma. 'A real man wouldn't care,' she recalled Greg saying. Sighing, Sara leaned against the retaining wall.
A moment later, they both did double-takes as a bright red Mustang pulled into the lot. Warrick was sitting up on the back of the seat, letting the wind blow on his face. Nick and Sara were more surprised to see Grissom driving the car than anything. Well, Nick was more impressed with the car, but he was a guy.
"You in a parade?" Nick asked Warrick, sarcastically. Warrick gave Nick a look and jumped out of the car. "I'm impressed, Grissom. Surprised, but you've got good taste."
Grissom simply smiled. "It's my job to keep you guessing, Nicky. How goes the case?"
Nick shrugged. "Ecklie keeps checking up on me and telling me how I should be investigating the case... but that's nothing new."
"That's our Conrad," Grissom replied, raising his hands in the air as he shrugged.
"Ehh, I can handle him,” Nick said, waving a hand at Grissom. His eyes were still going over the car. "What do I have to do to get a ride in this, sometime?"
Grissom just raised an eyebrow in response. "You should get back to work, gang. Wouldn't want to upset Ecklie, now would we?" Everyone simply smiled, waved goodbyes, and the younger CSIs headed back inside.
Once the door had closed, Grissom looked at Catherine and motioned to the city around them. "Shall we?"
Catherine looked behind them, then back to Grissom. Nodding, she responded: "Drive it like ya stole it." Grissom smirked and checked behind them, before pulling away from the lab and heading back to the Strip.
Author: Erin (erinm_4600)
Characters, Pairing: Ensemble
Rating: G
Summary: Grissom's got an interesting way of spending his day off.
Warning: I started this in 2002. True story. It was originally inspired by I Don't Have to be Me ('til Monday) by Steve Azar *Written for Round 57 of prompt-in-a-box. Prompt #12: day off *for gatechic and bizarra, because we need more GRILLOWS. ♥
Disclaimer: The original characters belong to CBS and the Bruckster.
Gil Grissom was sitting in his office, early Friday morning, when his phone rang. He didn't look up from the paper he was reading as he raised the handset to his ear. "Grissom."
"Mister Grissom, this is June, from HR." Grissom looked up and made a face for a moment.
"Yes?"
"Don't shoot the messenger," she began, "but the Sheriff is trying to balance the overtime budget..." she trailed off.
"And I won the short straw for a forced vacation?" he asked with a slight smugness.
"You sure did," June replied. Grissom could hear the forced smile, which made him smile.
"So noted."
"Three days should do it, Mister Grissom," the secretary told him. "You don't even have to sign anything."
Grissom let out a sigh and reached up to rub his eyes. "All right, thank you."
"Any time, Mister Grissom. Have a good weekend."
"You too." With that said, Grissom hung up the phone and continued to flip through the folder, occasionally making notes on the legal pad just right of the folder.
*~*~*~*
Grissom had been sitting at his desk for about an hour past the call from HR, and finally closed the folder in front of him. Looking at his watch, then to the clock on the wall, over there by his 'Big Mouth Billy Bass' - the batteries finally had to be removed for his own sanity - he tapped his pen a few times on the desk and stared at the door. A minute later, he was up from the chair and pushing out the door.
Nick Stokes and Sara Sidle were on a case over on the northwest side of town; a break-in that had left a guard dog dead and a question as to just how the perp had gotten past the dog in the first place. Warrick Brown had spent the night on paperwork for recent cases and was heading out at lunch for a long weekend of ESPN and groceries. Captain Jim Brass was probably hunting down some new lead of the week, and would be keeping to himself that weekend, as usual. Of all Grissom's team, Catherine was the only member not somewhere on the premises of the Las Vegas Crime Lab.
Grissom poked his head in on Nick, who was eating a sub in the break room, and let the younger man know he'd be out for the next few days. On the way out, Gil passed Warrick coming out of the office space he usually shared with Catherine Willows.
"Hey Gris... vacation days catch up to ya?" Warrick asked with a half-smile, half-smirk. Grissom gave him a skeptical look and Warrick shrugged. "HR misdialed. Got me, lookin' for you."
Grissom nodded and hitched a thumb over his shoulder. "You still leaving at eleven?"
Warrick nodded. "Three whole days, Gris," he said with a jealous air. "Whacha gonna do?"
Grissom eyes lit up a bit and he let a small smile slip. "I think I might go for a drive." Warrick gave him an understanding smile and nodded. He had seen Grissom's 'go for a drive'-car. Grissom took a few backward steps and added: "Have a good weekend, Warrick."
Warrick pointed at him. "You too, man. Drive safe!" he added a moment later, and got a wave from Grissom in response. Warrick shook his head and turned toward the break room. Once he reached the fridge, he leaned down to open the door and pulled a bottle of water, while Nick crumpled up the wrapper from his sandwich and tossed it toward the trash.
Sara came in behind Warrick and blocked the door from closing, so she could grab a bottle of water, as well. Nodding towards the hallway, Sara asked: "Where's Grissom going?"
Warrick finished a swig of water and replied: "Crusin' for chicks." Nick smiled and Sara gave him a dirty look.
*~*~*~*
Grissom pulled out onto the city street from his garage, if one could even call it a garage, and made a right turn toward the Strip. To anyone outside on the beautiful Friday afternoon, the sight of Grissom wouldn't cause them to think twice. However, to those who knew him...
Gil Grissom, lead CSI for the Las Vegas Crime Lab's night shift, was cruising the Strip in a Fire Engine Red '66 Mustang convertible, complete with white interior and the top down. A car-load of fraternity boys from the University of Las Vegas were plastered so close to the windows of their SUV that, any closer, they would have been outside their car. Grissom let a small grin slip as the light ahead of them changed from red to green.
Grissom had been cruising for about ten minutes and was, at that moment, third at the light, when he noticed a familiar face crossing the street up ahead. He pulled his cell phone from his jacket pocket and hit the speed dial.
Catherine Willows had just crossed from one side of the Strip and was halfway across the intersection of the cross street when her cell phone rang. She pulled out her phone and flipped it on as she stepped onto the curb.
"Willows," she answered, shifting her entire body about ninety degrees, in order to avoid a group of tourists taking up their side of the middle, and slipped passed them.
"I thought you were spending the day with Lindsey," Grissom stated matter-of-factly.
"Well, hello to you, too," she replied with an annoyed tone.
Grissom smirked and nodded. "Hello, Catherine. How is your day off?"
Catherine rolled her eyes, not believing his forced tone for a second, but she smiled. "It's going well, Gil. How is your day at work?" she asked, in the same tone.
In the car, Grissom smirked and replied: "I'm gonna let you in on a little secret..." Lowering his voice, as if someone was spying on him, Grissom continued: "I'm not at work."
Catherine's smile lit up the whole block. "Are you feeling all right? Arms and legs all tingly? Fever? Hallucinations?"
Grissom laughed lightly. "No, just taking some time off..."
Catherine stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and nodded. "Ahh... you got down to 'use it or lose it' again."
"Something like that," Grissom replied.
"So... what do you plan to do with your day off? Do you even remember what those are? Need an instruction manual?" she jabbed.
The light changed to green and traffic began to move through the intersection. Catherine had started walking again, and Grissom hoped she would stop somewhere near the empty space a few cars up from where she was at the moment. "Well, I was thinking about lunch. You hungry?"
"You payin'?"
"I asked, didn't I?" Bingo! Catherine stopped just at the front of the empty space and was facing straight ahead. Grissom pulled into the space and faced her as he asked: "So?"
Catherine sighed. "All right, I'll have to meet you somewhere. I'm downtown... took the bus today."
"I can give you a ride to your house so you can get your car..."
Catherine gave him a sarcastic nod. "Yeah... because you know where I-" She was turning toward the street as she spoke and focused on Grissom, sitting in a very non-Grissom car and giving her his half-smile, half-smirk, which Nick had dubbed the 'Grissom grin'. "-am." After a moment, she turned away and said into the phone: "Where did you get that car?"
Grissom, being in a generally stupid-mood, leaned toward the steering wheel and whispered: "It's mine." Catherine cocked her head and then turned back to him. Grissom folded his phone back up and waved her into the car. "Come on... I'm hungry."
Catherine looked at him for a moment, trying to decide just what was wrong with her best friend. She shook her head, closed her phone and opened the passenger-side door. As she settled into the seat, Catherine glanced at Grissom, who was looking left, watching for a break in the traffic.
"Who are you, and what have you done with Gil Grissom?"
Without missing a beat, Grissom looked back at her and replied: "There is no Gil Grissom. It's all a lie." He added a grin and turned to make sure he had time to pull back onto the street. As soon as they were back in traffic, Grissom was immediately whacked in the arm by Catherine. "Ow." Catherine gave him a menacing 'Mom's not one to be messed with'-look and then sat back to watch the casino-laden scenery go by.
*~*~*~*
Grissom was watching the oncoming traffic, waiting for an opening to turn left. While he was doing this, Catherine was watching him. It was so creepy to see him, looking relaxed and... dare she think it... normal. Grissom could feel her eyes on him, and turned.
"What?"
Catherine shook her head. "Nothing." Grissom gave her a 'yeah, right'-look and focused back on the traffic. Once a spot opened, Grissom turned, then took another two lefts, bringing the car back to the Strip. He then took a right and started driving back in the direction he had come from.
"So... where are we going for lunch?" Catherine asked. Grissom just looked at her. He hadn't thought that far ahead in this little plan. Catherine smiled, able to read his mind without trouble and looked at the tourists on the sidewalk. As they passed the Golden Nugget, Grissom heard someone calling his name.
"Gris! Hey, Grissom!" Gil and Catherine looked up the block, near one of the little five-for-ten t-shirt places, just past the casino, where Warrick was standing. Traffic was stopped, at the moment, as a large crowd crossed the street up ahead. Warrick jogged over to the car and gave a small wave to Catherine.
"Hey Warrick," she said with a smile.
"Catherine. Nice to see you in the daylight." He ended his comment with a wink and looked to Grissom. "How's she runnin'?"
Grissom shrugged. "Not bad... had some trouble getting her started, but so far... so good..."
"Cool." Warrick looked towards the crosswalk and saw that the lights were changing. "Where ya goin'?"
"Lunch," Catherine said as she leaned on the door.
"Hop in," Grissom said, motioning to the back seat. Warrick thought about it for a second and nodded, then jumped over the side of the car.
*~*~*~*
The CSIs ended up getting lunch at their usual breakfast spot. Warrick thought Grissom was going to cause a scene when they arrived and there were customers in the usual booth, but Grissom was able to control himself. In fact, he didn't seem to care about much of anything today.
They were sitting at the table waiting for the check when Warrick's cell phone rang. "Warrick Brown."
It was Nick. "Hey man... whatcha doin'?"
"Just finishing lunch."
Nick nodded as he walked down the hallway at the Crime Lab. He stopped for a second and watched Greg through the glass window. Greg was obviously listening to something classical, or something drum-heavy, as he was swinging two pencils around in the air. He shook his head and continued down the hall. "Any interest in getting some overtime?"
Warrick reacted as if someone was scraping a fork against a plate. "Hit a dead end, didja?"
"No. Yeah. That, and I'm just really bored. It's creepy here without Grissom, man. Know what I mean?"
Warrick smiled. "Yeah... but I thought there was an overtime freeze.”
“No one told me,” Nick responded with a smirk.
Warrick snorted and let out a sigh. “All right. I’ll be there in fifteen."
"Cool. Later." Warrick hit 'End' and took a deep breath.
Catherine gave him a smirk. "It is impossible to say no to Nicky, isn't it?"
Warrick gave her a grim look and reached into his pocket. Pulling out a few bills, he tossed them onto the table. "I got it, Gris," he said as Grissom started to protest.
Grissom looked at him and replied: "Tip."
Warrick shook his head and stood up. "I'll see you guys on Monday?" Catherine shrugged.
Grissom stood up as well and answered: "Tuesday.” He paused a moment then shrugged. “Not my call.” Giving Warrick a nod, he added: “You need a ride back to the station?"
Warrick looked at Grissom for a second then nodded. "A ride would be good." Grissom nodded and offered Catherine a hand up from the booth.
*~*~*~*
About eight minutes later, Nick was sitting on the retaining wall outside the Crime Lab, waiting for Warrick, when Sara came outside looking for him. "Nick... what are you gonna do? Lead him inside? I think he knows the way.”
Nick stuck his tongue out at her. "Sometimes, Sara, it's nice to come outside and see daylight. Get fresh air. You can only smell so many dead people." Sara nodded, recalling the night she couldn't get rid of the aroma. 'A real man wouldn't care,' she recalled Greg saying. Sighing, Sara leaned against the retaining wall.
A moment later, they both did double-takes as a bright red Mustang pulled into the lot. Warrick was sitting up on the back of the seat, letting the wind blow on his face. Nick and Sara were more surprised to see Grissom driving the car than anything. Well, Nick was more impressed with the car, but he was a guy.
"You in a parade?" Nick asked Warrick, sarcastically. Warrick gave Nick a look and jumped out of the car. "I'm impressed, Grissom. Surprised, but you've got good taste."
Grissom simply smiled. "It's my job to keep you guessing, Nicky. How goes the case?"
Nick shrugged. "Ecklie keeps checking up on me and telling me how I should be investigating the case... but that's nothing new."
"That's our Conrad," Grissom replied, raising his hands in the air as he shrugged.
"Ehh, I can handle him,” Nick said, waving a hand at Grissom. His eyes were still going over the car. "What do I have to do to get a ride in this, sometime?"
Grissom just raised an eyebrow in response. "You should get back to work, gang. Wouldn't want to upset Ecklie, now would we?" Everyone simply smiled, waved goodbyes, and the younger CSIs headed back inside.
Once the door had closed, Grissom looked at Catherine and motioned to the city around them. "Shall we?"
Catherine looked behind them, then back to Grissom. Nodding, she responded: "Drive it like ya stole it." Grissom smirked and checked behind them, before pulling away from the lab and heading back to the Strip.