FIC: Ashes to Ashes Ch. 7 [CSI Las Vegas - Ashesverse: Part 1]
Ashes to Ashes
Part One of the Ashesverse
Rating: PG
Previous Chapters: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six
Previous Stories: Oneshot Prologue
Author’s Note: This was supposed to be the last chapter, but it ran way too long, and so I divided it in two. Next chapter will be the end though, before I take a short break to focus on cleaning out some of my challenge prompts - this doesn't mean I won't be writing Nick/Sara stories, just not the sequel to this story. Thanks to all of my dedicated readers/reviewers, and here we go with chapter seven!
-one week later-
“Well, that was fun,” Sara said, throwing her purse on the side table as her and Nick walked back into his apartment, after a night out on the town.
Nick laughed. “I wish I would have had a camera. Your face was priceless.”
“If you would have shown any of those pictures to anyone, you would have been a dead man. And I am a former CSI; I would know how to hide the evidence,” she said, with a wink and a nudge.
“I’m sure our friends would solve my brutal and unprovoked murder. They are the best when it comes to following the evidence.”
“Even if it was me committing the crime?”
“Sara, you couldn’t hurt me,” he replied with a laugh, which earned him another smile from her. “I’m beat from going out; I’m going to go to bed.”
“Sounds like a good idea. Good night, Nick.”
“Good night, Sara.”
As his apartment descended into darkness, and each of the inhabitants fell asleep, dreaming of whatever it is CSIs dream of, a quiet calm settled. The only thing breaking the darkness was the tiny pinprick of light emitting from Sara’s cell phone, a constant and steady blinking indicating that she had missed a phone call…
Early the next morning, Nick awoke, stretching his arms above his head and taking in the rays of sunlight coming in from his window. He had a good feeling about the day. He and Sara had plans to go out to a late lunch with Greg and Catherine, and then the day was full of potential after that. He was expected to check back into the lab within the next few days, to work out how much more vacation time he’d be able to take. Knowing Sara as he did, she would completely understand when he had to go back to work. It was up to him - and Catherine, he supposed. If they needed him back, he’d be more than glad to go back, as long as Sara would be able to fend for herself. Which, he knew, she’d be able to, quite capably at that.
Walking out of his bedroom, he heard Sara’s voice cracking, as she raised her voice to an unseen person. “Sara?” he asked tentatively. “You okay?”
She gestured to the cell phone currently in her grasp. “Phone,” she hissed. “Yes, I’m still here,” she returned to her phone call. “Today?”
The person on the other end said something that evidently upset Sara, as she snapped her phone shut and catapulted it across the room, where it crashed against the wall and landed on the floor unharmed. She buried her face in a throw pillow, and began to cry. Nick gingerly sat down next to her and began rubbing her back in a soothing manner. “What’s wrong?”
She looked up at him, her eyes bloodshot and her cheeks puffy from her frantic crying burst. “They know something about Grissom, and they won’t tell me on the phone, only in person. I have to go back, Nick.”
“Back to Costa Rica?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“The sooner the better, which I take to mean, catch the next flight out.”
“I’ll drive you to the airport.”
“I was…kind of hoping you’d come with me this time, Nick. I could really use a good friend.”
“Greg would be more than willing. I could call him up and he’d already have his bags packed and everything by the time we hung up.”
She let out a small laugh. “No, Nick, I’d really prefer if it was you.”
“Okay,” he said, squeezing her hand. “Give me a little bit to pack and call to cancel our lunch plans. Greg will be devastated; he was so excited to see you again.”
“I’m sure he was.”
Nick punched in Catherine’s number, and prayed that he wouldn’t be waking her up. “Cath?” he asked, when he heard someone answer the phone.
“No, it’s Lindsey. Who is this?”
“It’s Nick. Listen; can you give your mother a message for me?”
“Sure.”
“Sara and I can’t make lunch, something came up. We’ll make it up to her and Greg later, but can you just tell her that for me?”
“I guess. Bye Nick.”
“Bye Lindsey,” he said, clicking his phone shut and sitting on his bed. It was time to pack. Not knowing how long they would be there, he figured that he would need at least a few changes of clothes. Aimlessly throwing shirts and jeans into a duffel bag, he sighed. If they wouldn’t tell her on the phone, it had to be something big, and he sensed that it probably wouldn’t be the news he knew she so desperately wanted to hear. At least she wouldn’t be facing the news by herself. No more of this flying solo thing for her.
He zipped up his duffel bag and hefted it up. Walking back out into the living room, he saw that Sara was perched on top of his couch, head cradled in her hands. “Penny for your thoughts?” he asked quietly.
“Nervous about what’s waiting for us on the other end of that flight,” she said, in a faint whisper. “Either Grissom’s alive, and all of my worrying the past few months is for naught, though we’d have to do a lot of talking about what’s happened, or he’s…not, and the past few years of my life come crashing down around me.”
He nodded, and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. “I’ll be there, Sara.”
“I know. Thank you, you don’t know how much it means to me,” she replied, reciprocating the hug. “We should probably get going. You called Cath, right?”
“I left a message with Lindsey.”
“Hopefully she remembers to pass it along.”
“We can get you there around…8:40 pm local time,” the ticket agent at the airport said, tapping her fingers across the keyboard. “You’d have to connect through Dallas though, is that okay with you?”
Sara looked up at Nick. “What do you say, Nick?”
“We’ll take it,” he said, handing over his credit card and glancing over at Sara. The look of pure dread in her eyes was unmistakable. She was scared to take the flight. The uncertainty was killing him inside, so he could only imagine what was going through her mind...
-to be continued-
Part One of the Ashesverse
Rating: PG
Previous Chapters: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six
Previous Stories: Oneshot Prologue
Author’s Note: This was supposed to be the last chapter, but it ran way too long, and so I divided it in two. Next chapter will be the end though, before I take a short break to focus on cleaning out some of my challenge prompts - this doesn't mean I won't be writing Nick/Sara stories, just not the sequel to this story. Thanks to all of my dedicated readers/reviewers, and here we go with chapter seven!
-one week later-
“Well, that was fun,” Sara said, throwing her purse on the side table as her and Nick walked back into his apartment, after a night out on the town.
Nick laughed. “I wish I would have had a camera. Your face was priceless.”
“If you would have shown any of those pictures to anyone, you would have been a dead man. And I am a former CSI; I would know how to hide the evidence,” she said, with a wink and a nudge.
“I’m sure our friends would solve my brutal and unprovoked murder. They are the best when it comes to following the evidence.”
“Even if it was me committing the crime?”
“Sara, you couldn’t hurt me,” he replied with a laugh, which earned him another smile from her. “I’m beat from going out; I’m going to go to bed.”
“Sounds like a good idea. Good night, Nick.”
“Good night, Sara.”
As his apartment descended into darkness, and each of the inhabitants fell asleep, dreaming of whatever it is CSIs dream of, a quiet calm settled. The only thing breaking the darkness was the tiny pinprick of light emitting from Sara’s cell phone, a constant and steady blinking indicating that she had missed a phone call…
Early the next morning, Nick awoke, stretching his arms above his head and taking in the rays of sunlight coming in from his window. He had a good feeling about the day. He and Sara had plans to go out to a late lunch with Greg and Catherine, and then the day was full of potential after that. He was expected to check back into the lab within the next few days, to work out how much more vacation time he’d be able to take. Knowing Sara as he did, she would completely understand when he had to go back to work. It was up to him - and Catherine, he supposed. If they needed him back, he’d be more than glad to go back, as long as Sara would be able to fend for herself. Which, he knew, she’d be able to, quite capably at that.
Walking out of his bedroom, he heard Sara’s voice cracking, as she raised her voice to an unseen person. “Sara?” he asked tentatively. “You okay?”
She gestured to the cell phone currently in her grasp. “Phone,” she hissed. “Yes, I’m still here,” she returned to her phone call. “Today?”
The person on the other end said something that evidently upset Sara, as she snapped her phone shut and catapulted it across the room, where it crashed against the wall and landed on the floor unharmed. She buried her face in a throw pillow, and began to cry. Nick gingerly sat down next to her and began rubbing her back in a soothing manner. “What’s wrong?”
She looked up at him, her eyes bloodshot and her cheeks puffy from her frantic crying burst. “They know something about Grissom, and they won’t tell me on the phone, only in person. I have to go back, Nick.”
“Back to Costa Rica?”
“Yes.”
“When?”
“The sooner the better, which I take to mean, catch the next flight out.”
“I’ll drive you to the airport.”
“I was…kind of hoping you’d come with me this time, Nick. I could really use a good friend.”
“Greg would be more than willing. I could call him up and he’d already have his bags packed and everything by the time we hung up.”
She let out a small laugh. “No, Nick, I’d really prefer if it was you.”
“Okay,” he said, squeezing her hand. “Give me a little bit to pack and call to cancel our lunch plans. Greg will be devastated; he was so excited to see you again.”
“I’m sure he was.”
Nick punched in Catherine’s number, and prayed that he wouldn’t be waking her up. “Cath?” he asked, when he heard someone answer the phone.
“No, it’s Lindsey. Who is this?”
“It’s Nick. Listen; can you give your mother a message for me?”
“Sure.”
“Sara and I can’t make lunch, something came up. We’ll make it up to her and Greg later, but can you just tell her that for me?”
“I guess. Bye Nick.”
“Bye Lindsey,” he said, clicking his phone shut and sitting on his bed. It was time to pack. Not knowing how long they would be there, he figured that he would need at least a few changes of clothes. Aimlessly throwing shirts and jeans into a duffel bag, he sighed. If they wouldn’t tell her on the phone, it had to be something big, and he sensed that it probably wouldn’t be the news he knew she so desperately wanted to hear. At least she wouldn’t be facing the news by herself. No more of this flying solo thing for her.
He zipped up his duffel bag and hefted it up. Walking back out into the living room, he saw that Sara was perched on top of his couch, head cradled in her hands. “Penny for your thoughts?” he asked quietly.
“Nervous about what’s waiting for us on the other end of that flight,” she said, in a faint whisper. “Either Grissom’s alive, and all of my worrying the past few months is for naught, though we’d have to do a lot of talking about what’s happened, or he’s…not, and the past few years of my life come crashing down around me.”
He nodded, and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. “I’ll be there, Sara.”
“I know. Thank you, you don’t know how much it means to me,” she replied, reciprocating the hug. “We should probably get going. You called Cath, right?”
“I left a message with Lindsey.”
“Hopefully she remembers to pass it along.”
“We can get you there around…8:40 pm local time,” the ticket agent at the airport said, tapping her fingers across the keyboard. “You’d have to connect through Dallas though, is that okay with you?”
Sara looked up at Nick. “What do you say, Nick?”
“We’ll take it,” he said, handing over his credit card and glancing over at Sara. The look of pure dread in her eyes was unmistakable. She was scared to take the flight. The uncertainty was killing him inside, so he could only imagine what was going through her mind...
-to be continued-