Catherine and Grissom had had enough scuba diving for the day, and after swimming back to the boat, they went and took a nap down stairs. They both needed to get out of the sun before either of them ended up with sun stroke. It was a little after three in the afternoon when the couple had removed their scuba gear, leaving it out on the boat deck and walking down below to the bedroom and flopping onto the king sized bed.
Catherine was still in her black and white polka dot bikini, not even bothering to get under the covers because it would take too much energy and effort. Both of those had been gone since the hike back to the boat. Next time, they were going to anchor a lot closer to what they were going to go and see.
She was on her side, her head making an indent in the fluffy pillow, as she slept soundly. The sound of waves lapping up against the hull of the boat was soothing. Her mind was off wondering to a silky sand beach with her and Grissom dancing in the sunset and the ocean waves crashing into the beach becoming music to their ears. It was the perfect romantic getaway.
Gil had slid himself in beside his wife. He was still in his blue and white swimming trunks and his bare chest was turning brown from all this sun exposure. He pressed his body up close to his wives back. The heat their skin was radiating off one another was almost unbearable. Gil wrapped an arm around his wives bare waist, his fingers caressing her stomach, as he could fell it rise and fall with every breath she took. He knew that she was out, but he himself could not sleep.
All Grissom could think about was the mystery of the underwater picture Catherine took at the coral reef. It didn�t make any sense. How could at once time it be a bear, and another be an eel. Catherine was not far off on what she said about Catlin even saying it was a teddy bear. There was no doubt in his mind that something strange was happening out in this ocean, he just hoped that it would not put him and his wife in harms way.
Grissom tried to concentrate on something else, he tried to get some sleep, but every time he shut his eyes all he could see was the teddy bear in the hole. His eyes lingered across Catherine�s beautiful body seeing the bruises from being thrown around the room like a child�s toy forming on her back and legs. However, her skin was so tanned that the bruising was hardly noticeable, but even if she was black and blue all over Catherine would still look like a goddess. Her beauty would never leave her, even when she was eighty.
All of a sudden Catherine jerked against Grissom�s body, sending Gil back to the real world. He could hear his wife moan as her legs that once used to be still, were stretched out and moving across the bed. Grissom had never seen this before, he had never experienced his wife having a nightmare. Even with all the cases the two of them have had to deal with over the years as CSI�s he has never seen her break down her walls and freak out.
Gil pushed away some damp strands of her hair that were plastered to her sweaty face. He could see her eyes darting around underneath her eyelids, and it looked like something out of a horror movie. He knew his wife was trapped in a horrible dream, but he wasn�t sure how to handle it.
Catherine�s body flipped, so that she was facing him now and her arms were pounding on his shoulders. Gil sat up, scared, and tried pinning her arms down before she punched him in the face. Her legs were having spasms, kicking at the bed as the whole mattress shook under them. Her head was moving from side to side at wrap speed and her moaning had now turned into full blown screams.
Gil quickly got on top of his wife, placing all of his body weight on her frail frame, he winced in pain as he could feel Catherine�s knee caps digging into his spine as he sat there gripping her wrists to stop her arms.
�Catherine, hey, Catherine stop.� Gil said trying to catch his wives attention.
It was useless. Catherine screamed at the top of her lungs, almost in Gil�s ear as tears streamed her face. The words she were saying made no sense, it was all garble, it was worse than Catlin trying to say something. Gil didn�t want to hurt his wife, so he loosened his grip on her wrists. It was a mistake, for Catherine snaked her hand out and punched him across the face.
Blood was beginning to dribble from his nose, leaving spots on Catherine�s stomach turning her brown skin red. He had never known Catherine could throw such a strong punch, but it felt like it was going to knock his whole nose off. Gil tried to catch her loose arm again, but she was moving it too fast for him to grab at. He wished that this spasm was going to end soon and never come back.
�Catherine, sweetheart, listen to me, wake up.� Gil said raising his voice.
He hoped that she could hear the anger in him rising and that would make her stop. When she didn�t stop he tried again, calling her name out, getting louder and louder until he was screaming just as loud as she was. Thankfully this was happening out in the middle of the ocean, where no one could hear them and wonder what was happening. Sometimes the isolation the ocean gave was not so bad after all.
Catherine�s breathing began to become constricted from Gil�s heavy body crushing her. She was slowly not being able to scream any longer, and her arms and legs were slowly beginning to relax. Gil could hear her trying to catch her breath, and he was wondering that if the only way to stop all this was to make her pass out. He didn�t want to do that, he didn�t want to hurt his wife, he loved her too much to intentionally make her pass out. Although, what she was going through was like something out of a movie, and he was in pain from watching his wife have a freak out like this.
Finally Catherine stopped. Her legs fell to the mattress and lay there straight as a board. Her arms felt like jelly in Gil�s hands, and when he let go he watched them fall to her side, draping over the side of the bed like a corpse. Her head tilted to one side, and she breathed one last thing before passing out. It was Evelyn.
Gil sprang up off of his wife, leaning his ear to her mouth and nose, hoping to God that she was still breathing. He could faintly hear her breathing, as if she were almost wheezing like an asthmatic. Gil used his trembling fingers and looked for her pulse in her neck. He could feel a pulse and looked down at her chest and could see it slowly raising and falling. His wife was not dead, she was asleep and breathing.
Catherine slowly opened her eyes as the room was fuzzy and blurred. She could faintly make out the painting that hung on the wall across from her. She remembered the print being of tropical fish surrounded by a coral reef. The thought of tropical fish and coral made her think back to the picture of the teddy bear. Tears well her eyes, cascading down her cheeks, clearing the blurriness she had before. Catherine moved her eyes around the room, unable to move any other part of her body, as if she were paralyzed. Her body was aching, unsure of how that came about, unless it was from the swim before.
Finally her husbands face came into focus. She could see the flush in his cheeks and the sweat on his face. She looked at his trembling hands, confused. Had something happened while she was asleep? If something happened, why didn�t he wake her up also? Gil looked like a scared boy, not sure of what was happening, and not sure of what to do. This scared Catherine, Gil had always been the strong one, and he had always been the one that she could go to if she were scared or worried or upset. Now, she had no where to go, if both were scared, who would be able to help them?
�Gil,� Catherine whispered, her voice was hardly auditable, but not for Gil.
�I�m right here Catherine,� Gil said clasping his hand tighter around her sweaty one. He expected there to be sweat, but not cold. It was as if he was touching a corpse.
�I-I love you, I love you so much,�
Gil had to look away from his wife�s face. He couldn�t bare the sight of more tears being shed from her beautiful blue eyes. It was as if the world as he knew it was coming to an end. His wife was in such a fragile state that she reminded him of a porcelain doll. If he touched her, even with the lightest stroke on her cheek, she would crack. His wife was not what she was a few hours ago in the water. The life that she had in her eyes been dead, the warm touch of her skin had turned deathly cold; it was as if she were a whole new person.
�I love you too sweetheart.�
Catherine smiled, it was as if her lips could go any wider they would crack and bleed. Her eyes were trained on Gil, like a little girl who was staring at her father for the very first time. They never once blinked, as tears began to cascade down her flushed cheeks. Her hand squeezed tighter around Gil�s, never wanting to let go as if he were her only connection to the outside world. Her stomach did not feel too well. It felt like menstrual cramps, pinching at her stomach growing fiercer with every breath she took.
�Gil, what�s happening to me?� Catherine asked, her voice becoming shaky.
Gil looked at his wife confused, what did she mean, what was happening to her? Was something going on that he was not aware of? As far as he knew she only had a nightmare and she was just beginning to get over it. It was as if she were saying that something or someone was trying to do something. Trying to harm her, or change her in ways that only the devil could want in a person. It was almost as if she were saying she were possessed.
"What do you mean?� Gil asked. He lay down beside his wife and could feel that the sheets were soaked. �Catherine are you wet?� he asked, and then realized afterwards what that sounded like.
�I-I�m co-cold,� Catherine shivered as her teeth began to chatter and her lips turned a tinge of blue. She seemed to have overlooked her husband�s last comment.
Gil tried touching her skin but it was like ice. He couldn�t lave his fingers on it for more than three seconds, scared they were get stuck. He watched her whole body shake, as her skin was turning blue. If he looked close enough he could see water speckled across her legs and arms, as if she were submerged in water and hadn�t dried off yet.
�Why don�t I take you up to the boat deck, some of the hot sun will warm you up.�
Catherine just shook her head, as her hair was beginning to go hard like cardboard. Water was dripping from the ends leaving droplets on the pillows and bedspread. She could hardly feel Gil�s warm touch as he pulled her up to her feet by her hands. A big wet spot was sunken into the sheets where her body used to lay. The warmth of the blanket Gil had wrapped around her shivering shoulders was so soft, but Catherine could not feel. Her body was ice, and she knew that standing out in the sun was not going to do anything.
Slowly the couple made there way up the steps. Puddles of water were sunken into the carpet, making a squishy sound when Gil�s feet passed over them. The water was almost as cold as the North Atlantic. He tried to forget about the mounds of water his wife was producing, that was now soaking through the woolen blanket, and tried to think about there romantic getaway on this yachts. Everything was going great, until today.
Catherine and Gil reached the galley when Catherine stopped. Gil had no idea what was happening, he wondered if she was becoming paralyzed from body temperature dropping so fast. The blanket she had draped over her shoulders fell to the floor with a flop leaving puddles of water on the hardwood. Catherine�s skin had turned blue, as she stood there shivering in her polka dot bikini.
Gil had no idea what she was looking at; there was nothing in the galley except for food and counter tops. He placed his hands on her shoulders, about to shake her as if she were caught in a bad dream. However, he jumped back, her body was no longer cold, and it was hot, burning hot. It felt like she was on fire.
�Catherine,� Gil said with no response from his wife. �CATHERINE!� he screamed, grabbing the blanket off the floor to cover his hands so he could turn her around to face him.
The look she gave him almost made him faint. Her eyes were blazing with flames, like she were possessed with the devil. Her skin was beginning to steam, puffs of smoke coming off her like a boiling pot. Her skin was no longer blue but turning pink, as if she were sunburned. Gil dropped the blanket on the floor, which now had burn holes in them from where his hands were. The fabric began to smell pungent, for the smell of burnt wool is most foul.
Gil didn�t even have time to react before Catherine grabbed his palm, clasping it in between her two hands. He screamed in agony as sizzling of skins pressing filled the galley. Smoke was rising, and the pain was becoming duller, or it was just too hot that Gil could no longer feel it on his skin.
"You�ll be next,� Catherine whispered, letting go of her husband�s hand. An evil smile was across her lips. It was so wide that her lips cracked, and blood began to trickle out from the sides.
Gil looked down at his hand and could see something was branded into the middle of his palm. It was a crown, the sort that Queens and Kings would wear on the top of their heads. It was burned into the middle of his skin; scorched skin was surrounding it turning a red-brown colour. What ever was happening was beginning to scare Gil. He couldn�t even tell if this was all real or if it was a dream.
Come play with me� a little girl�s voice could be heard in the distance. Gil looked up from his hand and his wife was no longer in front of him. She was no where to be seen in the galley. The only other person that was in there was a little girl.
Her face was pale, almost the colour of snow, with big blue eyes and long blonde hair tied into braided pigtails. Pink ribbon was entwined in each of the braids and tied into a bow and the bottom. The dress she wore was yellow, and was short sleeved with frills around the edges and the hem at the bottom. The dress went down to her knee caps and she wore small black shoes, they almost looked like doll shoes. In her hand she held a teddy bear. It was almost the size of her, and was as white as her skin.
When Gil thought about it, it actually resembled the teddy bear he and Catherine believed they saw in the bottom of the coral reef earlier today. Well, that is if the teddy bear was really there.
Suddenly the little girl extended her hand out to Gil, her fingers dripping with water, as a pool was beginning to form at her feet. Come play with me�she repeated her voice was sweet and soft, like an angels. Blood began to pool on her dress as smoke was rising from her hair. Blood lines traced down her arms, snaking around her extended fingers and dripping droplets on the floor. The sound of them was almost louder than Gil�s breathing.
�W-who are you?� Gil stuttered shifting backwards, until the counter wouldn�t let him go any further. With every step he took back, she took one forward.
Come play with me and you will see� the little girl replied and then began to giggle, as blood began to seep from every opening in her body. Her face was streaked with red; blood from the corners of her mouth spilled onto her dress and was running down her legs. Her clothes were slowly being eaten away, not by moths but by fire, burn holes were erupting all over her dress. Flames began to spring from her body. It was as if she were a fire angel.
Come play with me�come play in the flames of hell! She screamed and then began to laugh. It wasn�t her childish giggle; it was a cackle, and it more fearsome than her appearance�.
Gil bolted up off the covers, almost falling right out of the bed. The room was in complete darkness, for night had come to the couple on the yacht. The moon could be seen through the small porthole, but it was not big enough to cast some light into the small cabin. Quickly Gil turned on the bedside lamp, his breathing was quicker, it was almost as if he was about to have a heart attack.
None of what he had just seen could have been real. However, everything was so vivid; it felt as if it had actually happened. He looked beside him to see his wife, who was dressed in a tank top and underwear, her usual pair of pajamas, was softly breathing and turned to her side away from him. He gently touched her skin, feeling its smoothness and heat being radiated from it from the hot stateroom. She wasn�t freezing or dripping wet, or on fire like in his dream.
That was enough to convince him that everything he had thought of in the past few hours, including the burn on his hand and the little girl who was a raging ball of fire standing in their galley was all just a figment of his imagination. Gil sat back, leaning his head against the headboard as he could feel the pounding of his yearly migraine brewing in his temple. Gil closed his eyes, trying to get his breathing back to normal, as the pounding was growing fiercer and fiercer.
Gil looked over at his wife to see that she didn�t move a muscle and was deep in sleep, for the light that was bright enough to illuminate the whole room, was turned on. Usually lights bother her and she wakes up, but tonight she was too exhausted from their diving excursion. Gil knew that his pounding in his head was not going to get any better, just get worse, until he would so something about it. He gingerly lifted the covers off of his body realizing that his t-shit was drenched in a layer of sweat, and his legs were sticking together like glue because of the humid air.
Gil stood up, careful not to awaken his wife and walked around the bed that was slowly rocking in the light waves outside. He could hear creaking coming from the haul of the ship, and it was almost relaxing, like a lullaby to a finicky baby. He walked into the small bathroom that was just off the bedroom and turned on the light. Gil couldn�t even recognize the man that was staring at him in the mirror. It was him, but a tired, older version that actually frightened Grissom. He sighed, not wanting to look at the depressive state his appearance has turned into and opened the mirror to reveal a hidden medicine cabinet.
He took out the prescription bottle that was filled with his pills he takes for migraines and attempted to remove the childproof lid. However, when he was about to use his left hand to pry off the lid a shoot of stinging pain came. Gil looked down at his hand and dropped the bottle of pills on the floor. There, in the middle of his palm was a burn, a branded picture of a crown was staring back at him. The exact same thing that he saw in his dream. How could that have happened, how was that part of his dream real when the rest of it was not.
Gil quickly took his pills, and put a bandage around his palm and headed back into the bedroom. Before he headed back to his side of the bed he stopped and looked at his wife. She was sound a sleep, her beautiful eyes closed, her lips parted as she breathed in and out. Her golden blonde hair draped over her shoulder, as the covers were off her body, unable to stand them in this heat. Her legs looked golden in the light, she was his goddess.
There was nothing wrong with his wife, she was exactly the same she was the last time he looked at her, the exact same as she was when they began this trip. However something was happening to him, and he didn�t know what. Gil lay back down on the bed, snuggling up close to his wife and draping an arm over her waist. He turned off the light and shut his eyes hoping to forget about every thing that just happened. However, one thing was still buzzing in the back of his mind. The sweet voice of the little girl�
Come play with me�.come play with me in the flames of hell!
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