Fic: Between The Covers, Chapter 7 (CSI, Nick Stokes / Greg Sanders)
Title: Between The Covers, Chapter 7
Pairing: Nick Stokes / Greg Sanders
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Not mine, etc.
Feedback: Always Welcome
Notes: Set after season seven. Contains references to seasons 1-7.
CSI Las Vegas Main List
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
“Anyone here? Hello?” Warrick staggered blindly across the lobby till he found the counter. He bragged it with both hands and pressed his eyes shut.
“Warrick?” Sara approached him carefully and the confused receptionist a small shrug. “Warrick, are you okay?”
“Sara? I can’t see anything.” He tried to aim his speech to the sound of her voice, but his field of vision was still filled by blank whiteness. “Are you still there?”
“Yeah, I’m here. What happened to you?”
“I was coming in and some scrawny little bastard shoved his camera right at my face. Flash went off and everything went white.”
“Someone was waiting for me at the door too. Wanted a comment on that article they’re gonna do. Just keep your eyes shut, it’ll go away.”
“That guy’s lucky I can’t punch him without seeing him…”
“Your guy was a gentleman compared to mine. I can still remember what he said when I told him where to shove his camera. He said: Come on honey, pop a tit out. How often do you think people wanna take your picture? You’re not that interesting.”
“No one wanted me to pop anything out.”
“Then be grateful and stop whining.” Sara pulled her ringing cellphone from her pocket and snapped it open. “Sidle. Yeah? Which sample? Are you sure? Yeah, I’m on my way. Thanks.” She pocketed the phone and gave Warrick a worried look. “Are you getting any better?”
“All white and some shadows, like outer lines-”
“Great, you’ll be fine. I gotta go.” She twirled around and marched down the hallway before he could react.
“Sara? Sara?” Warrick gripped the counter again and aimed at the approximation position where the receptionist usually was. “Is she still there?”
“No.”
“Is there anyone else around?”
“Not right now.”
“Where’s the locker room? I think I better wait there for a while. Preferably in the dark…”
“Right…” The receptionist came around the counter, and turned him around. “Walk straight ahead, then turn-”
“I know where it is, I just can’t see it! Which way’s the corridor?”
“That way.” She corrected his position again. “Maybe I should come with you-”
“I don’t need help, just point me at the right direction.”
“Okay.” She guided him to the hallway and placed his hand on the wall. “Follow the wall.”
“Thanks.”
Warrick shook his head, but it didn’t seem to help his sight. He took one staggering step after another. He counted his steps, but since he wasn’t sure how many steps the trip would take the task seemed slightly ridiculous. He gave up and focused on keeping his balance. Finally his hand reached the corner. Just as he was turning to follow the wall, another body crashed into him, making them both loose their balance. Warrick could hear a high-pitched yelp and a pair of hands grabbed him for support. Sudden push and pull took away last of his sense of balance, and they crashed against the wall, ricocheted across the narrow hallway, bounced few more times till they hit a hole in the wall. Warrick`s mind quickly filled the gap and figured out they must have stumbled into a closet. They were both still too stunned to react to the creaky sound of the door before it was too late. The lock clicked loudly and the small scrape dived into darkness.
------------------------------------
“Willows.”
“Hey, Cath.”
“Nick?” Catherine signed off from her computer and got up, holding the cellphone with one hand and smoothing her wrinkled jacket with the other. “I though you’d be enjoying the night off.”
“I am, you got a minute?”
“Sure, I was going to take a break and get something to eat. I’ll just get some more gloves and then I’ll sign out.”
“I’ll make this quick so you can get on with your break. I need a little favour.”
“What kind of favour?”
“Can spread the word for me at work? Greg wants to get people together tomorrow for lunch, catch up and so on. The usual place.”
“What time?”
“Around twelve. Are you free?”
“Yeah, and I’ll spread the word. How was his sabbatical?”
“Good. He even got a tan now.”
“In the Vegas night that never lasts long.”
“You sound like one of his film noirs.”
“Maybe I’m just getting old. Or maybe just tired. One foulmouthed perv was haunting both me and Sara when we came in.”
“Are you okay?”
“I am, but he’s not. First he had some words with Sara, then he moved on to me.”
“Was he out of line?”
“He wanted to know how much I charge for a lap dance. I told him I was out of his price range and walked away.”
“So you took the dignified way out. I’m proud of you.”
“Don’t be, that wasn’t the end of it. She made some crack about my sagging assets and how it’s better I keep them hidden anyway. You know, the usual trash when a woman says no.”
“What did you do to him?”
“What do I always carry with me nowadays?”
“Pepper spray?”
“Why would I need that when I carry a gun?”
“Yeah… Brass knuckles?”
“No, you’re thinking about Jackie.”
“Right… Just tell me.”
“My phone. I called the security to remove him.”
“That’s all?”
“Not exactly. They may have had a little accident while escorting him of the lot and the perv may have ended up with a bloody nose, but it was just an accident.”
“You don’t need to explain that to me, I remember what they’re like. But anyway, you`ll tell everyone about tomorrow?”
“I’ll handle it, and tell Greg welcome home from me.”
“I will.”
“Probably shouldn’t talk too much about food, makes me hungry. Or hungrier anyway.” Catherine stopped at the supply closet and yanked the handle. “Who the hell locked this again?”
“Locked what?”
“Supply closet. Are they really so stingy, that they gotta keep rubber gloves locked up?” She twisted the lock and pulled the door open.
Nick couldn’t really figure out what happened then. He heard a loud scream, followed by two more screams. Then a loud thump as the phone hit the floor.
Chapter 8