Disclaimer: The concept and the people in the story are fictional and the property of several production companies. I only borrow them and return them unharmed and unmarked. No money is made of the story and no infringement is meant.

 

 

*Chapter 9 – Talks and kisses*

 

 

*Las Vegas*

 

Eric was nervous. Danny would be coming over in less than an hour and Eric still had no idea what to say to him. He wanted that feeling of belonging back that he had felt when he’d gone out with Danny. He wanted to make things right with him and yet his feelings terrified him at the same time.

 

He’d had an almost perfect relationship with Speed. Did he really deserve another shot at happiness?

 

You’re free here.

 

“What am I doing?”

 

The mumbled words seemed to echo throughout the room and Eric sighed as he looked around the room. He had set and re-set the table at least a dozen times and now that he was done, he was all nerves. He needed something to do, but before he could think of anything, the ringing of his phone saved him and sent him into a panic at the same time. What if it was Danny cancelling on him?

 

Eric checked the display and a smile crossed his face as he recognized the number.

 

“Calleigh, how is LA?”

 

Eric had stayed in contact with Calleigh, even after she herself had left Miami. Taking over the day shift in LA had been a huge challenge, but Eric knew only too well how Calleigh thrived on such challenges. She laughed now at Eric’s question.

 

“It’s still standing even with me there for over a month. But I had an interesting run in with the Feds yesterday, seems like they are a bit more human than the ones we had in Miami.”

 

More human? Eric shrugged mentally, and then remembered that Grissom had said something similar and he grinned; maybe California even mellowed FBI agents.

 

“We had a case recently where some of LA’s Feds were involved, Grissom said that the lead agent was a decent guy and apparently has some genius brother.”

 

Calleigh laughed. “You’re talking about Eppes, aren’t you? He’s the guy I referred to. He’s really decent although in a dark, dangerous way. His team is ok too, apart from one guy who’s got some kind of snob attitude going on... But maybe it’s just because I’m a blond girl.”

 

“He won’t act like that around you too long.” Eric knew that from experience and for a moment he wished to be there when Calleigh took on the other agent.

 

She laughed again at his comment and made an affirmative noise. “He won’t. I was already thinking of calling him to meet me at the morgue when I’ve got a floater...”

 

Eric remembered how Speed had once done that to him, and for a moment he tensed. Calleigh had obviously noted the hesitation and her voice had changed as she continued. “Sorry Eric, I...”

 

She was still treading around him on eggshells, Eric suddenly realized and with that realization came another one. He had never thanked Calleigh for the support she had given Speed and him, had never thanked her for always being there for him and a deep sigh escaped him.

 

“Eric, you ok?”

 

The concern in her voice made him feel three inches tall and he mentally kicked himself. “I’m fine. It’s just, I realized that I never said thank you, never told you how grateful I was for your support...”

 

“Eric, that’s what friends are for.” Her soft voice was gentle and Eric smiled sadly. “Yeah, but real friends don’t just take and that’s what I did.”

 

“Eric, that’s...” Eric interrupted her gently. “Calleigh, someone told me today that I’m hurting those that I profess to care about and that’s not adult behavior.”

 

He heard her gasp, but didn’t let her continue. “He was right, Calleigh and I’m sorry.”

 

She was silent for a long time and then sighed. “Eric, you haven’t hurt me. You were there for me when I needed you and you went through some really hard times. Everybody has a right to be selfish every once in a while. I’ve done it, you’ve done it. It’s called being human.”

 

Eric smiled at her words and suddenly missed her a lot.

 

“Eric, what’s brought this on?” Calleigh’s voice brought him back from his musings and he smiled at the direct question. “I’ve talked to H and he told me that he’s going to leave too.”

 

Calleigh didn’t sound shocked as she answered. “I know. It’s hard to believe, isn’t it? Still I think that it’s probably for the best anyway. He’s been surrounded by too many memories in Miami. And after you left, the team broke even further apart.”

 

“I know that it was the right thing for me to do.” Despite the loneliness in the first months, despite the fact that he still missed the beach, Eric knew that leaving had been the only way to survive.

 

“So, tell me what’s going on with you? You sound nervous.” Eric cursed silently and yet couldn’t help smiling. Calleigh was still perceptive as hell.

 

“I’ve got someone coming over for breakfast.”

 

Calleigh giggled lightly. “Someone special?”

 

Eric didn’t even hesitate with his answer. “Yes.”

 

---

 

*Los Angeles*

 

Yes

 

Eric’s voice was completely serious and the conviction that lay in that one word took Calleigh’s breath away. She had almost given up hoping that Eric would find someone worthy to take Speed’s place.

 

“Who is he?” Calleigh knew that Speed had been the first man Eric had been with, but she also knew that he hadn’t become straight again with his lover’s death. Still she was almost sure that whoever had made him feel again was a man.

 

“His name is Danny.” Eric’s voice sounded hesitant and Calleigh sighed when he continued. “He works for a casino... He’s amazing, but I think I screwed up pretty badly with him.”

 

It couldn’t be so bad, if Eric was still cooking breakfast for the guy. Calleigh could hear though that Eric needed to talk and so she prompted him gently. “What happened?”

 

“We went out one night and had a really good time, but I panicked... It was too much, you know, too close to what I felt when I was with Speed. I left without saying anything...”

 

Eric’s voice was pained, and Calleigh sighed. She understood him and yet, she couldn’t help being angry. “Have you ever heard of talking?”

 

Again Eric sounded pained as he answered. “Calleigh, we...”

 

“Forget about it, I know you’re a guy.” She grinned a bit, but her smile faded as she continued. “Talk to him, Eric, if you feel so much, he’s worth it.”

 

“That’s what he’s coming over for.” Eric’s smile was apparent through the phone and Calleigh felt relief at the happiness. Eric changed the topic and they chatted for a couple of minutes. When she put the phone down, Calleigh was still smiling and she felt lighter than she had in ages.

 

After all these years, Eric was finally healing, she thought, and with Horatio moving away from Miami he too would be able to forget. There had been a time when she had feared for her two friends, but it seemed as if things were finally looking up.

 

“Calleigh?” Simon’s voice penetrated her reminiscing and she turned towards her colleague with a smile. “Yeah?”

 

Agent Sinclair stepped forward from behind Simon and Calleigh’s good mood vanished in a blink. The way Sinclair had looked at her at the crime scene had made her bristle and looking at him now, she could feel him judging her on the fact that she was blond and not FBI.

 

“Agent Sinclair, how can I help you?” Her voice had gotten significantly colder and she noticed how Simon tensed slightly. She sent a smile in his direction, before she addressed Sinclair again. “Let’s go to my office, shall we?”

 

She walked away without waiting for him to reply, and then stopped in the door to look at Simon again. “Can you run the trace from the downtown murder that Walker brought in? He needs it urgently.”

 

Simon nodded and while Calleigh walked towards her office, she contemplated that Simon really had improved a lot since she had had her serious talk with him. Finally they were inside her office and Calleigh almost reluctantly turned towards the coffee machine. “Would you like a coffee?”

 

Sinclair smiled and looked at the machine. “Does it taste like coffee? If it is anything other than tar, I’d love a cup.”

 

Surprised at the almost joke, Calleigh looked at Sinclair and saw that the Fed’s eyes were smiling. It transformed his face and surprised again, she turned around and poured some coffee.

 

“How can I help you?”

 

“Don said that you might have the results ready and since it was my turn to go and talk to the coroner, I offered to check with you.” Sinclair sounded sincere and yet Calleigh frowned. Was he implying that she was missing her deadline?

 

“I told Agent Eppes that the results would be ready by today, what makes you think that they aren’t?” She reached for her phone and watched Sinclair frown while she talked to Simon.

 

“Where are you with the report for the Feds?”

 

She nodded as Simon told her that he’d just mailed it to her, and with a couple of mouse clicks she opened and printed the report. Sinclair took it without even looking at it and Calleigh fumed silently.

 

“Do you need a translation?” Her words were snappish, but Sinclair only grinned. “No, but if you could pack it into a food analogy that would be great.”

 

Honestly confused, Calleigh looked at him. “Food analogy?”

 

Sinclair got up and shook his head. “Never mind, thanks for the report. If we have any questions, we’ll call.”

 

He left with another smile and Calleigh sat in her office staring at his retreating back cursing furiously. Why had she ever agreed to work with the Feds? Hadn’t her experiences in Miami taught her anything? Eppes might be ok, but agents like Sinclair only proved that it didn’t really pay to help the FBI.

 

---

 

*Las Vegas*

 

“Danny” Delinda’s hand stopped Danny right before he could get into his car. “Where are you going?”

 

For a moment he hesitated, but he knew that his eyes gave him away, and so he shrugged. “Eric called and invited me for breakfast.”

 

Danny watched Delinda’s eyes change from concern to surprise to joy to distrust and back to joy and her expression reminded Danny so much of Ed that he couldn’t help but laugh. “You are so Ed’s daughter.”

 

Meeting his eyes, Delinda laughed too and shrugged lightly. “I just don’t want you to get hurt again.”

 

Yes, there was a clear possibility that he was going to get hurt, Danny knew that, but the simple fact that Eric had agreed to meet him, that Eric had called him had to mean something. Danny wanted to believe that they had a chance and with a shrug and a smile, he looked at his Delinda.

 

“I have to try.”

 

Delinda looked at him for a moment and then leaned down and kissed him on his cheek. “Good luck.”

 

The drive over to Eric’s was quick thanks to the light traffic and Danny’s GPS system which ensured that he didn’t get lost even though he didn’t really watch the road. His thoughts centered around the man he was about to see and what he meant to him.

 

Danny had never expected to fall in love with someone this quickly, this thoroughly, but it had happened and he wasn’t about to lie to himself about it. He had a chance at happiness, he thought with a smile, and he would take it.

 

---

 

Eric was ready when the door bell rang. Ready, nervous and terrified and at the same time he was full of hope. He looked around his flat and blushing he picked up a stray sock that had escaped his scrutiny. Thank god that he had found it before Danny had arrived...

 

The doorbell made him tense, before he took a deep breath and walked over to open. Danny was leaning against the side of the entrance and as their eyes met, something in Eric’s heart broke. He hadn’t known that he was able to feel so much longing for someone and for a second, he had no idea what to say.

 

“Can I come in?”

 

Danny’s words made Eric blush and he stepped aside and it wasn’t until Danny was in his living room looking at the breakfast table that Eric finally found his voice again. “I’m glad you said yes.”

 

Danny turned around slowly and again their eyes met. Eric was shocked at the wealth of emotion in Danny’s eyes. Anger and hurt seemed to battle with passion and something else, something that made Eric’s heart beat faster, something that he didn’t dare name.

 

“Let me make something clear Eric, you left. You were the one who ran away after a wonderful night, you were the one who didn’t talk about himself, you were the one who hid behind sex...”

 

Danny’s voice trailed off and he turned away breaking the connection between their eyes. Eric had felt every word as if it had been a blow to his face. Yes, he had done exactly what Danny had just said, but he had never intended for Danny to get hurt. Warrick’s words resonated inside his mind.

 

Right now you’re hurting those you profess to care about and that’s not adult behavior.

 

He could see how deeply he had hurt Danny, saw it in the tense shoulders and the way Danny’s hands were balled to fists. It made him want to take Danny in his arms, tell him that he was sorry, tell him that everything would be ok and the strength of that impulse made Eric shiver.

 

“Danny?” Danny tensed as Eric tentatively touched him on his shoulder and Eric’s heart ached at the reaction. “Danny, I’m a bastard and I… I’m sorry...”

 

Slowly, Danny turned around and looked at Eric. His eyes were wary, but after a moment of silence he walked over to the table and sat down. Eric swallowed his relief as he sat down opposite Danny and silently handed him the coffee.

 

“Why?”

 

Danny’s question made Eric look up from his plate and for a second he fought with himself. He had never really talked about Speed and the thought of doing it now frightened him. Eric knew that he had to decide if he wanted to move forward or remain in the past and as his eyes met Danny’s again, he made his decision.

 

“I felt too much.” Danny’s face darkened at Eric’s words, but Eric forestalled any comments as he continued slowly, hesitantly. “In the last few years, I haven’t had a relationship. I’ve had sex, but with you it was more, it was...”

 

Eric felt Danny’s eyes on him while he spoke, and as he trailed off and looked at his plate, Danny slowly reached out and caressed his jaw until Eric looked up again.

 

“It was what, Eric?” Danny’s voice was soft, but at the same time it was pained as if Danny was afraid of hearing the answer.

 

“It was wonderful. When we were together, I was flying and afterwards...” Again Eric trailed off as his mind wandered back to the moment when he had woken up next to Danny. “Waking up next to you, I was at peace.”

 

Danny had stopped eating and was looking at him intently. Eric felt as if those blue eyes saw right to the bottom of his soul and he was tempted to look away, but his eyes were captives of Danny’s.

 

“Why did you run away if you felt at peace?”

 

Eric saw Danny’s confusion and again swallowing hard, he averted his eyes. “I was afraid of losing you.”

 

Danny frowned and shook his head. “You’re afraid of losing me, and that’s why you left?”

 

It sounded ridiculous, and Eric saw that Danny didn’t believe him. The only way to make him understand was to tell the complete truth, Eric realized, and with a deep breath he steeled himself against the hurt of talking about Speed.

 

“I lost my boyfriend two years ago. He was shot when he went to interrogate a suspect. He was the first man I’d ever been with...” Danny had paled at Eric’s words, but again Eric didn’t let him speak, instead continuing slowly, painfully. “... when I woke up with you, I realized that the only other time I had felt so complete had been with Speed.”

 

---

 

I lost my boyfriend two years ago. He was shot when he went to interrogate a suspect. He was the first man I’d ever been with.

 

Eric’s words resonated through Danny’s head and he stared blindly at the other man. Eric was speaking again and this time, Danny wanted nothing more than to reach out and hold him.

 

“...when I woke up with you, I realized that the only other time I had felt so complete had been with Speed.”

 

Many things suddenly made sense, things like Eric’s withdrawal when they had talked about Miami, things like how uncomfortable Eric had been in the club or even Eric’s flight after their wonderful night.

 

“That’s why you left.”

 

Danny wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or devastated. It was obvious that Eric still mourned for his dead lover. Eric was silent after Danny’s comment, but then he nodded slowly.

 

“I was afraid, it’s not rational, but I couldn’t face losing you.”

 

Eric’s voice trailed off and Danny watched as Eric got up and walked to the window where he stood silently staring outside. Eric’s words penetrated his mind slowly and he swallowed hard as he understood. Eric hadn’t left because he was still in love with his dead boyfriend; Eric had left because he was afraid of losing Danny.

 

Relief and joy spread through Danny at the implication, but Eric’s obvious despair and pain sobered him immediately. He got up and walked over to the window. Eric was lost in thought and the fear on his face made Danny want to cry out. He didn’t though; instead he reached out and gently put his hands around Eric and pulled him towards his body.

 

“Do you remember what I told you when I first met you?” Danny felt Eric relax slightly and lean against him. He didn’t answer him though, so Danny continued quietly. “I told you that I wouldn’t abandon you.”

 

A shudder went through Eric’s frame at the words and Danny simply held him closer. “I meant it, Eric, I won’t leave you, I’ll be there.”

 

It was a heavy promise to someone he’d really only met twice and slept with once, Danny thought, but at the same time it felt right. He felt a connection with Eric that he hadn’t felt with anyone before and although he knew that he couldn’t make the promise of forever, he still wanted to.

 

“Do you want this, Eric? Do you want us?”

 

Danny held his breath after his question and he could feel how his heart was beating faster and faster as he waited for Eric. He had given Eric a lot of power, and as Eric turned in his arms, Danny tensed.

 

“I want us, Danny, I do. But I’m scared.” Eric’s voice was small and he suddenly sounded incredibly tired. Danny sighed and pulled Eric towards the couch in the living room. Eric didn’t resist as they sank onto the couch and Danny felt warmth and happiness at the way Eric was leaning against him. His hands caressed over Eric’s arms and along his body in a soothing, non-sexual way.

 

“I’m scared too.” Eric looked up at Danny’s words and frowned lightly. Danny smiled and shrugged. “I’ve never had a relationship with a man. I’ve had sex with guys, but never a relationship.”

 

Eric smiled and reaching out, he linked their fingers together. “And I’ve had a relationship and afterwards I had sex. Maybe we can heal and learn together.”

 

Eric’s words made Danny’s heart leap and he pulled Eric closer. “Sounds good to me.”

 

A playful smile crossed Eric’s face as he turned around and looked at Danny. Danny smiled back, and he knew that Eric could see the happiness in his eyes as Eric reached out and caressed his face.

 

“Thanks for coming over.”

 

Danny laughed and shook his head at Eric’s blindness. As if he would have said no. “Thanks for calling.”

 

---

 

It was the perfect moment for a kiss, Eric thought and after a second of hesitation, he moved so that he wasn’t leaning against Danny anymore and instead faced him. Danny smiled softly and leaned in at the same time as Eric did. Their lips met and Eric remembered all those incredible feelings that had overwhelmed him the first time they had slept together. Danny’s lips were soft, tender and yet strong. Eric lost himself in the kiss giving himself over in the soft slide of their tongues against each other.

 

Eric’s hands roamed over Danny’s body and he felt Danny tense. Looking up, he saw Danny’s eyes clouded over with insecurity. Knowing what Danny thought, he reached out and caressed his lover’s face.

 

“I won’t run again, Danny. I can’t promise that I won’t be scared, but I won’t run away again.”

 

Danny’s body relaxed slowly and Eric knew he had been right with his assumption and once again he caressed the other’s face softly before murmuring. “Because of you I’ve managed to move on, I’m not there yet, but I’m moving. Join me?”

 

Gently he disentangled himself and reaching out he led Danny towards the bedroom. Once there he turned around and hugged Danny tightly, possessively before capturing the soft lips with a hard kiss. “I want this to work, Danny, I promise.”

 

Danny’s eyes were fixed on his hands as he slowly undressed and unlike the last time, Eric wasn’t high on passion and alcohol. This time they both knew what they wanted, they both were on the same page and still Eric shivered as he felt Danny’s eyes like a tangible caress on his body. Slowly he walked over with his chest bare and pulled Danny towards him.

 

“I need you Danny.”

 

Saying it out loud made it more real, Eric realized as a surge of need coursed through his body. He slipped out of the rest of his clothing and lay back on his bed while he watched Danny undress. His lover was a piece of art, he thought, as he feasted his eyes on the long legs, the defined abs, the muscular chest and finally Eric’s eyes met Danny’s. The desire in the blue eyes took his breath away and he reached out for his lover. Danny smiled and simply looked at him for a long time. “One day, I’ll visit you in the lab and drag you into a storage closet...”

 

The comment came out of nowhere and went straight to his cock, Eric moaned at the mental image the words generated, but every coherent thought went away when Danny kissed him. The world seemed to simply fall away except for the two of them. The fear that still lurked in Eric’s heart made his movements more desperate and he clung to Danny almost frantic. He wanted to show Danny everything through that kiss. His heart his soul, everything that he was.

 

Eric felt as if his heart was a trapped bird fluttering against his chest, his thoughts spinning wildly. Danny softly ended the kiss and smiled down at him. “This time we do it right.”

 

Last time hadn’t been right? Eric rolled his eyes at the corny comment, but Danny grinned at him and his lips started to slide along Eric’s jaw nipping, biting, kissing, and claiming their way down his neck to his collar bone. Eric gasped at the assault and his hips thrust forward to grind against Danny.

 

“It didn’t feel like we did something wrong last time.” Danny laughed at Eric’s comment, but as he looked up his eyes were clouded with passion.

 

“I bet we can do better though.” Slowly he pushed Eric back and then let his hands move along overheated skin, soft and tender first and then with more and more power and heat.

 

“Danny”

 

Blue eyes met his at the silent whisper, eyes that were dancing with a mixture of feelings.

 

“I need to feel you close.”

 

---

 

The quiet admission made Danny tremble and he shivered even more as Eric started to reciprocate the touches and strokes, mapping his chest and his back as thoroughly as he probably examined a crime scene.

 

“Danny, don’t tease.”

 

Danny remembered their heated passion from the first night and he refused to repeat it. Not that it hadn’t been good, but he knew now that Eric had used their passion to withdraw from him and he wouldn’t let him do that again. He wanted Eric completely, wanted him out of control and open. He reached for the condom on the nightstand and quickly sheeted himself and Eric, before he caressed his lover again and again.

 

“Just feel.” Eric moaned as Danny kissed along his chest and Danny felt the sound as much as he heard it. Eric’s skin was soft and hot and tasted of almonds. The combination of the taste and the musky scent of Eric’s passion made Danny’s head spin as he came closer and closer to his destination. The feeling of Eric losing control made Danny tremble, the knowledge that it was him who had turned Eric into this state made him want to cry with joy. He nuzzled his face against Eric’s cock and knew that he would never forget this moment, and as he licked over the head he was addicted to the taste.

 

“Danny, please.” It wasn’t really a word, more a sound and Danny moaned at the longing in Eric’s voice as his lover thrust up into the heat, unable to control his movements. Danny had done this before, but he had never felt so powerfully aroused, had never felt so much as if he was both giving and receiving pleasure and he shivered as he felt Eric’s hands in his hair. It took a while until he realized that Eric was tugging at his hair and looking up he met eyes that had turned black with lust.

 

“Turn around, please.” Eric’s words made no sense but then Danny’s brain caught on and with a smile he turned so that Eric’s lips were right at his cock. The sight alone was almost enough to bring Danny to the brink.

 

“Love how your mind works.” Eric grinned at the slight teasing and turned his attention to Danny’s cock. Danny still smiled, but the smile turned into a scream when Eric’s throat constricted around him. He wanted to pay attention to Eric, wanted to make him feel as much as he did, but he knew that it was a lost cause.

 

"Eric, please I'm not gonna last this way."

 

His lover hummed around his cock and Danny threw his head back as the heat and love exploded in multiple colours as he came.

 

Coming down from his high, he felt hands caressing him softly, calming him and looking up he saw Eric smile at him. Danny blushed embarrassed, but Eric shook his head and caressed him again. Danny felt a surge of love and rolled them over so that Eric was on top. For a moment, Eric seemed surprised and Danny smiled. “I want you in me.”

 

Eric reached out and soon enough, a slick finger slid into his body and Danny arched against the intruder trying to take it further. He felt sated and yet anxious to have Eric inside him but his muscles didn’t cooperate with his wishes and so he could only watch as his lover slicked his cock, shifted his position and then Eric’s eyes locked on him and Danny didn’t know what made his head spin more the passion in the blue eyes or the incredible feeling of becoming one with Eric.

 

Eric bit his bottom lip and began thrusting forward slowly and carefully. Danny could see that his lover wanted this to last but the frenzy that had captured them before got hold of them again. Eric moved, sliding even deeper in and Danny gasped at the connection that seemed to come alive as he felt Eric’s body cover him. Danny finally saw Eric as he had always wanted to see him, lost in passion and out of control. Eric wasn’t holding anything back right now and Danny loved to see him like this.

 

Eric tensed and his entire body went rigid before he screamed his release and Danny watched enthralled at the picture of pure lust and beauty that Eric presented. He felt Eric move out, heard the rustle of tissues and then the soft caresses as he was cleaned.

 

Danny tensed wondering what Eric would do now, but his fears were calmed as he felt Eric lay down next to him and snuggle close. Turning so that he could hold Eric close, Danny looked at him. “I’m glad you called.”

 

Eric smiled lazy and sated. “Yeah, me too.”

 

---

 

Grissom lay awake in his bed. His head pounded and whenever he closed his eyes he saw pictures of slaughter and death. Faces of victims he had seen throughout his career seemed to taunt him with their dead eyes and feeling exhausted and desperate he reached for his pain killers.

 

Looking at the bottle for a moment, he hesitated knowing only too well, that he had reached his daily dose two pills ago and yet, he knew that without dulling the voices and dimming the eyes, he wouldn’t find any rest. He swallowed a pill and lay back with a groan. His bed felt cold against his heated skin, but instead of refreshing him it made him shudder and pull the comforter closer. He craved warmth but nothing seemed to help. It was as if a deep cold had seeped into him and chilled him right down to his bones, a chill which not even the Las Vegas heat could break.

 

Slowly the pill began to work and Grissom felt his mind calm down, he sighed with relief but as he fell asleep his last thought was that he wouldn’t feel so cold, if he wasn’t so alone.

 

---

 

 

*Chapter 10 – Meeting friends*

 

*Los Angeles*

 

Colby had never liked math in school, mainly because he had never understood the practical reasons for it. Why did he have to know when the train would arrive if no one in his country traveled by train? He had asked his math teacher this question once and had gotten a detention for being naughty, it hadn’t turned him into a better student, but it had cemented the fact that math was useless in daily life.

 

The army and especially his deployment to Afghanistan had changed a lot in his life and had given him a new perspective on many things; not necessarily on math though as he had only learned again and again that those carefully planned strategies weren’t worth their paper when it came to a real war.

 

So of course he had been skeptical when he’d started working with Don Eppes and had met Charlie. How could a math geek help them solve crimes and find killers?

 

That had been two years ago and now as he walked through the corridors of CalSci, Colby could only shake his head at his naiveté. Charlie’s math had saved countless lives, and with his ability to make an easy analogy for even the hardest math, Charlie had proven that math was indeed something that was used every day.

 

Looking at his watch, Colby realized that he was early and that Charlie would still be in lectures. For a moment he hesitated, but then he turned towards the class room and silently slipped inside and sat down to watch Charlie perform.

 

I’ve never seen two brothers so completely different and yet so alike.

 

David’s comment ran through Colby’s head as he watched Charlie walk around, talk with enthusiasm and wit about a topic that Colby had never heard of. In this moment, Charlie owned the room and was so much like Don when he organized a search or coordinated a mission that it made Colby smile. The two brothers both had an incredible charisma, but where Don’s aura was right in one’s face, Charlie’s was more subtle and tended to sneak up unnoticed.

 

Colby sighed as he looked down at his notes and shook his head. They still had nothing on the two dead men that had been found a week ago and Charlie was their only hope.

 

“Colby, hey did you like the lecture?” Colby had been so caught up in his musings that he hadn’t realized that Charlie’s lecture was finished. Sneak up unnoticed indeed, he thought and got up to follow Charlie to his office.

 

“Did you find anything useful in the notes?” Charlie searched for something on his desk and Colby grinned at the clutter in the office before he reached out and selected a red gumball. Charlie dutifully noted the color and then showed Colby some papers.

 

“I found out what the notes are about, but they don’t make much sense to me. It’s geothermic math which is used to calculate the strength of hurricanes and tropical storms, but the formulas are old, not state of the art. It’s more like...”

 

Colby had been following Charlie’s explanations intently and as Charlie frowned, he nodded slowly. “More like something a student would learn in his first year?”

 

Surprised Charlie looked at him and Colby smiled as he saw the sudden interest in Charlie’s face. “Yeah, but for a student it’s still heavy stuff. I mean if your dead guys were students then there’s only a handful of universities which teach that kind of meteorology in the US.”

 

Colby noted the comments down, but as he looked up he smiled. “Is CalSci one of them?”

 

Charlie shook his head. “No, hurricane’s aren’t too much of a concern for L.A, so there’s not too much funding for that kind of research. I’m not sure which universities would teach this subject, but I can find out.”

 

“Could you, that would be great?” Colby knew that Charlie’s name would open doors in the academic world that would forever be closed to the FBI and he wasn’t above taking advantage of that fact. When Charlie nodded, he felt relieved and yet at the same time he tried to find a reason to stay a bit longer.

 

“You have time for lunch?” The words were out of his mouth, before Colby could stop them and Charlie looked at him surprised. “Lunch?”

 

The confusion in Charlie’s eyes made Colby smile. “Yeah, you know that’s the name for the meal you eat between breakfast and dinner...”

 

Charlie playfully slapped him, before he checked his schedule. “Sure, but let’s avoid the cafeteria.”

 

Not knowing what was wrong with the cafeteria, Colby followed Charlie through the labyrinth of corridors and squares to a nice little café. Charlie sat down at one of the tables and smiled. “Much nicer here, isn’t it?”

 

Colby smiled. “I didn’t mind the cafeteria, it’s better than what we get downtown anyway.”

 

Charlie grinned. “Yeah, but every time you join me there, I get dozens of questions afterwards asking who you are.”

 

“Me?” Colby didn’t understand Charlie’s reasoning and frowned slightly. Charlie grinned again and shrugged. “Hey it’s not that often that a handsome hunk like you visits these halls.”

 

Handsome hunk? Colby hoped it was too dark in the shade for Charlie to notice him blushing, but the grin that adorned Charlie’s face told him that it wasn’t.

 

---

 

“Hey it’s not that often that a handsome hunk like you visits these halls.” The moment he said it, Charlie wanted to bite his tongue, but instead of mocking him, Colby blushed. Saved by the other man’s modesty, Charlie moved the topic to the current case and soon he knew everything that the FBI knew.

 

The lunch passed quickly and as they walked back, Colby suddenly looked at him again. “How’s your work out going by the way?”

 

Charlie groaned silently. He had asked Colby to give him some tips as to a proper work out regime one day when he hadn’t know what to talk about and Colby had taken him seriously. They had gone to the gym together twice and Charlie had even purchased a membership, which he had immediately forgotten about.

 

“Not too well...” He saw Colby’s grin and shrugged. “Theoretically I’m going...”

 

Colby laughed and shook his head. “Charlie, working out in theory doesn’t work. You know Star Wars? Yoda? Do or do not...”

 

Charlie laughed, but before Colby could say anything else, his phone rang and he answered it with a curt yes. For a long time, he listened and then simply told the person on the other side. “I’ll be there ASAP.”

 

Looking at Charlie, Colby smiled again. “Can you call me, when you know which universities we’re talking about?”

 

“Sure, I’ll check it right now.”

 

Colby walked away and Charlie allowed himself a short moment of admiring the other man’s grace and body. Then he turned away and banished the forbidden thoughts to the back of his mind.

 

---

 

*Las Vegas*

 

Five days had passed since he and Danny had spent their second night together and so far Eric hadn’t freaked out. He had gone back to work the next day after waking up next to Danny and the first person to see him had been Warrick. His friend had taken one look and smiled.

 

Eric hadn’t told Warrick everything that had transpired with Danny, but Warrick was smart enough to understand what Eric hadn’t said and as they had driven to their crime scene, Warrick had turned towards him. “He hurts you, you tell me, ok?”

 

The look of amused horror on Danny’s face as Eric had told him about Warrick’s ‘threat’ had made them both crack up with laughter, before they had started to prepare breakfast together.

 

It was easy, Eric mused, as he drove over to the Montecito. Being with Danny was easy and wonderful. There was no awkwardness or hesitation, and Danny’s openness about his relationship with Eric had taken Eric by surprise. They had discussed it yesterday and as he parked the car, Eric flashed back to the conversation.

 

What are your friends going to think if I come over to pick you up? Danny had looked at him confused before he had grinned and said. Nothing, why?

 

It had only been when Eric had tentatively asked if Danny was openly gay that Danny had understood. He had shaken his head, but at the same time he had fixed Eric with his eyes. “I’m not going to lie about you, Eric. I won’t announce it to everyone and their dog, but if someone asks, I’ll tell them the truth.”

 

Eric remembered how relief had slammed into him at the answer and he still felt the same as he walked through the entrance hall towards the reception. The need to hide his relationship with Speed had been the one sore point; the one point on which he and Speed had never managed to agree on and it had caused many arguments between them. Eric hated hiding things from those he considered his friends, Speed on the other hand had claimed that if their friends didn’t figure it out themselves, then they weren’t real friends.

 

“Hi, how can I help you?” The stunning blond that suddenly addressed him brought Eric back to reality and he looked at her with a smile. “I’m looking for Danny McCoy.”

 

She looked at him and nodded slowly. “You’re Eric Delko, aren’t you? I’m Delinda Deline, nice to meet you.”

 

Delinda was probably the most beautiful woman, Eric had ever met and considering that he had lived in Miami that was saying something. Her body was perfect, her hair sleek and glossy and her eyes a deep dark blue. She looked like the perfect babe, but Eric saw the intelligence in her eyes and remembered Danny’s comments about Ed Deline’s daughter. So he was slightly wary as he responded to her friendly greeting in kind.

 

“Glad to meet you too.” She leaned down and kissed him quickly on his cheek in the French way of greeting someone. Eric tensed slightly and she withdrew immediately.

 

“Come on, I’ll bring you to Danny.” Eric followed her through the maze of casino floors to some hidden elevators. Delinda pressed the button and leaned against the elevator doors.

 

Eric saw the way she looked at him and knew that she was assessing him and smiled. “What do you want to know? Height, shoe size, favorite color?”

 

She laughed and shook her head. “If it’s somewhere written in a file, then you don’t have to tell me, cause I bet my father already knows. So I’ll ask you only one question; why did you hurt him?”

 

Eric shook his head and closed his eyes for a moment. When he opened them again he looked at her. “Sorry Delinda, but that’s too personal.”

 

“Does Danny know?” She didn’t look aggrieved at his answer simply concerned and Eric nodded. “Yeah, he does.”

 

Delinda looked at him closely again and then a warm smile appeared on her face. “I wanted to chew you out for running away, but I guess that would be hypocritical as I’m still running in a sense. And apart from that, Danny’s really happy now.”

 

Eric smiled, but before he could say anything, she walked over and hugged him quickly. “I’m glad he found you.”

 

---

 

“Why do you even think you could possibly understand what I mean?” Mike’s words resonated through the security room and Danny saw how several of the other staff members shook their heads. He knew that he had to address Mike’s behavior, especially Mike’s behavior towards him, but he hated the thought of pulling rank over his friend.

 

Seeing the annoyance on Mike’s face, Danny bit back the harsh response and simply pointed to the computer. “Just tell me, Mike.”

 

Mike started to talk fast and Danny knew that his friend deliberately tried to be incomprehensible. He felt anger rise in him at Mike’s attitude, but before he could say anything, the elevator doors opened and Delinda stepped into the security room followed by Eric.

 

Seeing Eric made Danny smile and for a moment he forgot about Mike. He turned towards his lover, and saw Delinda smile at him with approval in her eyes. He groaned lightly, but Eric simply grinned.

 

“Good to see you didn’t get lost.” Eric smiled at Danny’s words and pointed at Delinda. “I had a good guide.”

 

Danny led Eric over towards his office and inwardly groaned when Eric stopped in front of Mike’s computer. “Enhanced facial recognition, wow...”

 

Surprised, Danny looked at his lover. Mike had tensed and looked up coldly. “And you are?”

 

Danny stepped between them and after a moment of hesitation, he introduced Eric. “Eric Delko, he’s a friend from LVPD.”

 

Eric’s eyes locked onto his and Danny saw first confusion then understanding light up the dark eyes and inwardly he let out a breath of relief. He had told Eric that he didn’t want to hide their relationship, but at the same time, he didn’t trust Mike enough.

 

“Oh, you work for the police force. I guess, you’re working the streets then.” Mike grinned and Danny felt rage burn in his gut at the way Mike treated Eric. He tensed and wanted to say something when he felt Eric’s hand at his back. It was a quick gesture and yet it calmed him instantly.

 

“I’m with the CSI team, so I’m more a lab rat than a street rat.” Eric’s voice was light and teasing, but Danny saw that the smile didn’t reach Eric’s eyes and silently he saluted his lover.

 

Mike’s eyes had narrowed and now he looked at Eric with something between contempt and awe. “So you’re a scientist, now that’s interesting. At which university did you get your degree?”

 

Eric seemed to be bewildered at the attack, but he shrugged carelessly. “University of Miami. You done with the interrogation?”

 

Mike smiled coldly and sat down again. “Well, it’s not bad, but it’s not MIT, is it?”

 

Eric looked at Danny and shook his head, but Danny was too angry to speak and simply pulled Eric towards his office. Once they were there, he shut the blinds and immediately pulled Eric into his arms. “Sorry for that.”

 

“Is this guy for real?” Eric frowned. “What was that about?”

 

Danny sighed and rested his head against Eric’s. “He’s jealous, I think... I... We used to be good friends, but then Ed made me Head of Security and suddenly Mike changed. He...”

 

Eric’s hand on his face made Danny trail off. Eric was smiling tenderly and shook his head. “Not here, Danny, let’s head out somewhere and talk, ok?”

 

The simple fact that he now had someone to talk to, someone who cared about what happened at work and in his life made Danny’s head spin and he smiled at Eric. “Yeah, let’s head out.”

 

---

 

Eric watched silently as Danny sat down next to him on one of the flat stones. Danny still looked subdued, but slowly he relaxed and carefully Eric reached out and pulled Danny towards him. It felt good to be able to soothe his partner and as Danny turned his head and smiled at him, Eric felt his heart lighten up.

 

“Thanks for bringing me here.” Eric smiled at Danny’s words and he nodded slowly. “Warrick took me here once after a bad case. It’s so peaceful here.”

 

Danny moved so that Eric was sitting between his legs and Eric smiled as he leaned back and felt Danny’s muscular chest against his back. “Are you still scared?”

 

The murmured words were soft and Eric sighed. “Yes, sometimes... Sometimes I wake up and think that all this has been nothing but a dream. And then I realize that it’s real, that I’m not alone anymore...”

 

He trailed off, he wasn’t sure what he should say, but Danny simply leaned over and kissed his temple. “No, you’re not alone.”

 

Danny sighed and Eric knew that he was thinking about Mike again. “Don’t let him bother you. He’s jealous, because he believes that a university degree makes him somehow better than you are.”

 

Danny tensed and Eric’s heart broke a little at the insecurity he heard in his partner’s voice. “Well it does, doesn’t it?”

 

“No!” Eric had to reign in the anger he felt at the question, and calming down a little he shook his head. “Ed trusts you, doesn’t he? Danny, a degree is just a piece of paper and nothing more. It is your entrance card into a job, but once you’ve got the job, it’s what you do and how you do it that matters.”

 

After a second of hesitation, Eric felt Danny relax again. “I guess you’re right. It’s just that I sometimes feel like I lucked out getting this job, you know. I mean in the end I’m just...”

 

He trailed off as Eric turned around and silenced him with a kiss. They broke apart and Eric smiled. “You’re not ‘just’ anything. You’re doing a great job, Danny, cause if you weren’t Ed Deline would never trust you with his casino.”

 

“It’s Casey’s casino.” Danny grinned and nipped at Eric’s lips. Eric laughed lightly. “Yeah, sure.”

 

He shivered as he felt Danny’s hand slip under his shirt and softly caress his back. Danny leaned down and nipped at his lower lip.

 

“Is this a popular spot?” Dazed Eric looked at his lover and frowned. “Popular spot?”

 

Danny grinned wickedly. “Yeah, are we going to get arrested if we go any further now?”

 

Eric laughed and shook his head. “No, we won’t.”

 

He saw Danny’s eyes light up, but before his lover could say or do anything, Eric leaned over and captured his lips. He loved kissing Danny and as Danny slowly moved back so that he was lying on the ground with Eric on top of him, Eric smiled at the sight of his lover above him. Danny’s eyes had darkened and he smiled sensually.

 

“This is a wonderful way of spending a morning.”

 

Eric couldn’t agree more.

 

---

 

“Yes, and the master rules.” Greg grinned at Archie’s groan as he defeated him again. “That’s two nothing now, buddy, you better start winning or this is going to be a very short evening.”

 

Archie looked at him and after a moment of contemplation, an evil grin surfaced on his face. “I’m ready for round three, Sanders, bring it on.”

 

The microwave sounded and Greg got up to get the popcorn. When he came back Archie had set up the game again and handed him his console. They started playing immediately, but just as Greg was getting into the game, Archie suddenly spoke. “Grissom’s been weird lately, hasn’t he?”

 

The sudden comment threw Greg and he barely managed to avoid a demon hacking off his head. He glared at Archie who looked innocent and simply smiled. Greg shrugged. “He’s got a lot on his mind, I guess.”

 

Archie nodded and cursed as he lost one of his lives. Greg cackled. “One down, three to go. I’m so gonna whip your ass, Arch.”

 

“Maybe Grissom’s jealous, you know.” This time Greg did lose his head and torn between annoyance at the loss and confusion at Archie’s comment, Greg stared at his friend.

 

“Jealous?” Archie shrugged casually. “Well, you and Eric got along quite well for a while. Maybe he thought that he was really gonna lose you.”

 

Greg frowned at the comment and forgetting all about the game, he stared at Archie. “Lose me?”

 

Archie looked at Greg, and shook his head. “Don’t tell me that you haven’t realized it yet, I mean come on the entire lab knows...”

 

“Knows what?” He could kill Archie, Greg thought and hide the body, maybe Hodges would help him. But before he killed him, he had to know what he was talking about. “Knows what, Archie?”

 

The jingle of another life lost quickly brought him back to the game, but he dismissed it with a shrug and focused on Archie. “Grissom’s in love with you.”

 

Greg froze completely. His heart was beating faster and he heard the sound that indicated his death on screen, but he didn’t care, because all he heard were the words Archie had just calmly spoken.

 

Grissom’s in love with you.

 

“No, he’s not, he can’t be...” Greg shivered as he remembered his confrontation with Grissom about Nick, and like a movie he saw himself standing in Grissom’s office again.

 

“Do you love Nick?” Grissom had tensed at Greg’s question and Greg had been sure that he’d hit the spot, but instead Grissom had looked at him with so much pain in his eyes and answered softly.

 

“No, not in the way you mean. I’m not in love with Nick. But I think of him as a friend, someone who’s been through too much already.”

 

Greg had felt terrible standing there and accusing Grissom, but what if Archie was right? What if Grissom really was in love with him?

 

“Oh god” Greg remembered the pained look in Grissom’s eyes every time he had flirted with Eric, remembered how proud Grissom had been when he’d passed his proficiency and with every memory his heart clenched a bit more. “Please tell me it’s not true.”

 

Archie looked concerned and abandoned his console to grab Greg’s shoulder. “Greg, you’re scaring me here. Shit, I just wanted to distract you.”

 

The words made Greg look up sharply. “So you invented this stuff? Did you? Or did you tell me the truth?”

 

His voice was wild, but he couldn’t help it and Archie sighed. “I didn’t invent it, but I lied when I said that the entire lab knows. I don’t think anyone does, well Nick probably, and maybe Sara, but no one else.”

 

Nick knows and again memories of talks with Nick appeared in his mind. “You’ll find someone, Greg. One day you’ll open your eyes and he’ll be there.”

 

He had always found it a weird way of phrasing it, but had never thought about it. Now though it suddenly made sense.

 

“Greg?” Archie’s eyes were full of concern and it was obvious that he too had forgotten everything about their game from the sound of another death on screen. Archie didn’t move, instead he shook his head. “I thought you knew. Really I’m sorry.”

 

No, Greg thought, he hadn’t known. But now he did and the question was what should he do now?

 

---

 

*Los Angeles*

 

There were moments, when Megan loved to be a profiler and observer. Right now as she watched her team react to Calleigh walking towards them was one of those moments. Calleigh was a beautiful woman and it was obvious that everyone in the meeting room was aware of that fact.

 

Megan let her eyes trail from one team member to the other studying their expressions and looks. It was amazing how different people were, she thought as her eyes rested on Don. He had an intense look in his eyes, and there clearly was interest, but it was tampered by respect and friendliness. He might be interested in Calleigh as a woman, but Megan could clearly see that he wouldn’t make a pass at her. Maybe it had something to do with him respecting her or maybe it simply had something to do with Calleigh’s reputation as a top shooter.

 

Colby, on the other hand, looked surprisingly unaffected, in fact, Megan noticed suddenly that he was looking much more intensely at Charlie than at Calleigh. Interesting, and certainly something to think about later, but right now, Megan was much more interested in David. David openly looked at Calleigh with a smile and admiration and a lot of interest in his eyes.

 

Megan clearly remembered how David had protested against Don’s decision to let the LAPD lab handle the evidence and she also remembered how David had insisted on being the one to go to the lab and see what they had found out. He’d come back silent and deep in thought and at Don’s questions he’d simply said that the lab was handling everything well. Megan had wondered at the change of heart, but as she now watched David watch Calleigh, she understood that it hadn’t been the lab that had changed David’s mind, but the woman who seemed to be in charge.

 

Yes, Megan thought, her team’s reactions were definitely interesting.

 

---

 

*Las Vegas*

 

Ed had watched Danny and Eric for a few weeks now. He had seen how devastated Danny had been after Eric had run following their first night together, and for a moment he had wanted to smash Eric’s head in for hurting someone he considered almost a son. He had waited, though, and when Eric had called Danny and they had sorted out their differences, he’d been relieved and happy to see Danny so full of joy and love.

 

And yet, he was Ed Deline and he was a suspicious bastard, and so he had done his research. What he had found had been astonishing and yet disturbing enough to make him want to talk with Eric, and so he found himself at the CSI lab one night asking for Eric Delko.

 

The woman who led him to Eric’s lab disappeared, and for a moment Ed watched Eric work diligently and carefully. He still hadn’t made up his mind whether or not Eric was good enough for Danny, but before he could think about it more, Eric spoke without turning around. “Are you going to say something, or do you just want to watch?”

 

Ed admired courage above everything else, and Eric’s cold voice made him smile lightly. “We need to talk.”

 

Eric tensed for a moment, before he turned around and looked at Ed calmly. “Talk.”

 

Eric’s voice was flat, and there was a slight challenge in the dark eyes that made Ed respect the other man even more. “You and Danny are serious, aren’t you?”

 

This time it was a wry smile that crossed Eric’s face, but his eyes were serious as he nodded. “You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t think so, would you?”

 

Realizing that Eric was a good judge of people, Ed nodded and walked closer. Eric was taller, but Ed knew that the younger man would be no match for him should it really come to a fight. He hoped not though, not for Eric’s sake, but for Danny’s.

 

“If you hurt him, I’ll know.” He didn’t have to say anything else. It was enough, and Ed watched with a certain satisfaction how Eric swallowed hard. He didn’t avert his eyes though, and that again earned him Ed’s respect.

 

“I can’t promise that I’ll never hurt him. No matter how much he means to me, I’m bound to hurt him some day.” Eric’s eyes clouded over for a moment, but they cleared again and he continued. “But I can promise that I’ll never intentionally hurt him.”

 

Danny’s lover was a smart man, Ed thought and with a smile he reached out and clasped Eric’s shoulder. “I trust you.”

 

Eric’s smile was honest now and for a moment he hesitated, before he reached out too and pressed Ed’s hand. “You’re a good man, Ed Deline, no matter what everyone says.”

 

There was something in the way Eric said it, that made Ed narrow his eyes. He had promised Danny not to do a background check on Eric, but he had looked into some files and knew about the sister he had lost. He also knew about the trip Eric and Caine had made to Brazil, and the implications behind it made him edgy, although he understood the underlying sentiment and thirst for revenge only too well. Ed watched Eric closely as he spoke the next words. “I read about your sister. I’m sorry.”

 

Eric tensed again before he consciously relaxed. “She was at the wrong place and in love with the wrong man.”

 

Eric’s words were hard and so were his eyes. There had been no clear reports on what had happened in Brazil, and the fact that Danny might be in love with a killer bothered Ed more than he liked, even if he knew that it made him a hypocrite. He didn’t really think that Eric could kill someone in cold blood, and yet he was sure that there was more to Eric than the handsome, stylish man he presented at first glance.

 

“I didn’t kill him, in case you wanted to know that.” Eric smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Ed swallowed hard and nodded. “I didn’t think you had. But I’m glad you didn’t.”

 

Eric’s next words shocked him though. “I loved Marisol and she was my sister, but I wouldn’t go as far as killing someone for her.”

 

Ed didn’t need to be a mind reader to hear what Eric didn’t say. “But you would for Danny.”

 

“I would do it for Danny.” Eric hesitated for a moment before he spoke again. “I wanted to kill when my last lover died.”

 

That hadn’t been in the file, and Ed winced at the pain and hatred in the hard words. “Who did you lose apart from your sister? Who was she?”

 

Eric smiled bitterly and shook his head. “It wasn’t a she, it was a he. Speed was my partner, my lover. He died three years ago, he was shot in the line of duty.”

 

Ed paled, not only at the words and the grief behind them, but also because of the cruelty of fate. “You sister was killed because she was with your boss, and your lover died in the line of duty? Good god, it’s no wonder you left Miami.”

 

He only realized how bad that sounded when the words echoed through the room. Eric though, nodded only. “Miami took the two people I loved most in my life. Why should I stay and protect the city?”

 

A shiver ran through Ed at the bitter words, but as sudden as the bitterness had appeared, Eric smiled again and shook his head. “When I accepted the transfer to Vegas, I had no idea how different from Miami it would be. I just wanted to get away from my memories. I never expected to fall in love again.”

 

Looking up, Eric met Ed’s eyes openly and honestly. “But I had no defenses against Danny. And you know what, Ed? I’m glad I didn’t.”

 

The light in Eric’s eyes when he spoke of Danny, proved to Ed that the younger man really loved Danny and looking at Eric fondly Ed smiled. “Welcome to the family.”

 

---

 

*Chapter 11 – Just a normal day*

 

*Las Vegas*

 

Brass was asleep when his phone rang and it took a moment until he realized that he wasn’t in his own bedroom. Groaning he moved away from the warm body next to his to get his phone. Immediately an arm shot out and pulled him back and smiling lightly, Brass removed the arm and slipped out of bed.

 

“Where you going?” Conrad’s voice was gruff and hoarse with sleep and Brass’ heart constricted with emotions for a second, before he replied quietly. “I’m on call.”

 

Conrad groaned, but Brass saw that he was awake now and he felt Conrad’s eyes on his body as he listened to the message and sighed. “Domestic turned deadly... I’ve got to go.”

 

He turned around and looked for his clothes, but before he could get dressed, he felt Conrad’s arms around him and for a second he gave into temptation and leaned back against his lover.

 

“Take care.” Conrad’s voice was soft and Brass turned around to look at him.

 

“It’s just a normal call.” Conrad shrugged and replied with a soft smile. “No reason not to be careful.”

 

Smiling Brass turned around and finished getting dressed before he returned to his partner and leaned down to kiss Conrad softly. “I’ll see you in a few hours.”

 

---

 

The crime scene was a house in a lower or middle class neighborhood on a quiet street. When Grissom drove up to the house, he saw several officer cars were parked along the street, their lights flashing and casting an eerie light in the darkness. Brass was already there and looked at him with a sad smile. “Just another domestic violence case...”

 

Inside the house, Al already stood there and as Grissom watched he examined the dead woman on the floor. She was lying dead on the living room floor, a nightgown thrown over her body, her head resting in a large pool of blood.

 

Brass pointed at the dead woman and read from his notes. “Janice Cutler.  Shot in the mouth.”

 

Grissom motioned Warrick to take pictures while he watched David and Al prepare the body for transportation. Al looked at Grissom with a sigh and pointed at the dead woman. “Judy and I deal with our marital problems a little differently -- counseling, separate vacations once a year.”

 

Al’s dry voice resonated through the silent room accompanied by the almost rhythmical sound of Warrick’s camera. Grissom shook his head and picked something up lying next to the dead woman, Robbins looked at him again and continued his lonely tale. “She's never pulled a gun on me yet.”

 

Grissom looked around and saw Warrick picking something up. Warrick held it against the light and met Grissom’s eyes. “I got a shell casing.  Nine millimeter.”

 

“Where's the husband?” Warrick’s question was answered by Brass who shrugged. “Well, there was no car in the garage. We can broadcast out for him.”

 

Looking around the room, Grissom’s eyes took in the neatness of the setting, the almost pristine way everything looked and he nodded silently before he spoke. “There's no other signs of disturbance in here. How many domestics have you seen where someone got shot in the face and nothing else was disturbed?”

 

His question was met with silence, but then Brass called from outside that he had organized a broadcast for the husband and Warrick started to process the scene.

 

Grissom watched his team for a moment, before he walked over and went to look at the perimeter. He saw something lying on the pavement and bent down to grab it. It was a cigarette butt and with a shrug he packed it into an evidence bag before he got up again. Immediately he felt dizzy and squatted down again. His hands were shaking and for a moment he closed his eyes wishing for the moment of weakness to be over. Slowly he got up again and sighed. He hadn’t slept much in the last couple of days, and his use of pain killers had increased almost dramatically.

 

Grissom shivered a bit as he calmly listed the symptoms he’d been showing lately. He was no doctor, but he knew enough about the human body to know that he was running fast towards the edge of a cliff. The problem only was that he had no idea how to stop.

 

---

 

Conrad woke slowly and immediately he reached out to search for Jim. His hands met cold sheets and he recalled the phone call and groaned. He had looked forward to a leisurely breakfast with Jim before work. Still Conrad had been with law enforcement for too long now and he knew the drill. So he didn’t mourn the lost breakfast and instead, Conrad got out of bed and walked to the shower.

 

The warm spray woke him completely and he leaned back to get the last bit of tension out of his neck while he contemplated his renewed relationship with Jim. It had happened unexpected and fast when Jim had shown up at his place two weeks ago with a pizza in his hand and a smile on his face. They had had dinner together when Jim suddenly had looked up and taken Conrad’s hand. “Why did we split?”

 

Conrad had not had an answer, he had never understood why their relationship had broken apart, and for his part had never stopped feeling a lot for Jim. Right then his heart had leaped at the emotions in Jim’s eyes and without another word he had leaned over and kissed his former lover. Jim’s response had erased all of Conrad’s doubts about Jim’s seriousness and waking up next to Jim he had felt complete for the first time in ages.

 

They had spent much time together since that night and yet not enough. Their schedules were working against them and more than once, Conrad had been tempted to ask Jim to change shifts so that they were on equal schedules. He hadn’t asked though, not because he didn’t think Jim would do it, but because he knew how much Jim enjoyed working with Grissom and his team.

 

Stepping out of the shower, Conrad groaned as his attention moved from his lover to Grissom. The nightshift team was a constant factor of worry  and annoyance for him. First it had been the competition between his dayshift and Grissom’s team, then the entire team’s disregard of rules and administrative requirements, and yet as long as their performance was as good as it was, he could overlook the constant overtime and bending of rules. They still were one of the best if not the best forensic teams in the country and after having watched the team fall apart in the wake of Stokes’ abduction, he had been hesitant to put too much pressure on an already fragile construct.

 

Stokes... Conrad smiled sadly. Losing Stokes had changed the dynamics and Conrad himself had mourned losing him. Not because they had been friends or because he and Stokes had a good rapport, but because Stokes had brought the human element to a team that tended to be too scientific for its own good.

 

He frowned as he poured his coffee and thought about the call from Stokes’ supervisor a couple of weeks ago, Taylor had sounded like a good man and Conrad knew that he was highly regarded in the forensic world. He seemed to have a good team and Conrad didn’t doubt that with the addition of Stokes the NY lab soon would climb up in the country’s ranking.

 

Conrad grabbed his keys and walked to his cars as his thoughts refocused on the nightshift team. The team had re-formed around Eric Delko and Conrad was glad that the transfer from Miami had been successful. He had been warned against hiring Eric, but he had decided not to listen. Now Conrad was glad he hadn’t. If only his other concerns about the nightshift could be alleviated as easily, he thought.

 

Gil Grissom and Conrad had a strained relationship and that was putting it politely, Conrad grinned at his wording, but sobered up quickly. Grissom’s refusal to play the political game and his sometimes blatant disregard for rules had annoyed him more often than not. On the other hand, now that he was Grissom’s supervisor Conrad had learned to appreciate the other man’s diligent work.

 

Over the years Grissom had annoyed him even to the point of vengefulness, but right now it was neither Grissom’s success nor his lack of political interest that had concerned him. No this time it was Grissom himself. He was too pale, too frail looking and Conrad knew instinctively that Grissom was on the verge of a break down.

 

He stopped at a traffic light while he contemplated the problem. He wasn’t a friend of Grissom, but he respected the other man and didn’t want him to burn out. He also knew though that Grissom would never talk to him.

 

Jim would be perfect, he thought suddenly. Jim was one of Grissom’s few friends and he could address what Conrad couldn’t. And yet, he didn’t want to pull Jim into the uneasy truce between Conrad and Grissom. Sighing silently, Conrad decided to talk with Jim when they saw each other again.

 

Maybe his lover had a better idea, and if not then Conrad had to come up with something because the last thing he wanted was that for Grissom to collapse. He respected the other man way too much for that.

 

---

 

*Los Angeles*

 

Calleigh smiled as she saw Megan walk out of the FBI building. The other woman had called her this morning and spontaneously asked her for lunch. Calleigh had been surprised at herself when she had agreed despite being busy, but something about Megan had made her think that she might find a friend in the other woman.

 

“What do you fancy?” Megan blinked in the sunlight and searched for her sunglasses in her purse. Slipping them on she smiled at Calleigh and answered her question with a shrug. “There’s a nice Thai place over there, it’s fairly quick and nicely priced.”

 

It sounded reasonable and soon they sat in a corner sipping some green tea. Calleigh watched Megan watch her and grinned. “You just can’t not profile someone, can you?”

 

Megan laughed. “Caught. Yeah, I guess it’s a bit of a deformation professionelle. I was just wondering what made you swap Miami with LA.”

 

Calleigh’s smile vanished as she reflected on the decision that had brought her to the other side of the country. “It’s a long story, but in the end, I just felt that I needed a change.”

 

Megan’s eyes were friendly and prompted Calleigh to continue speaking. It felt good to talk about her decision to someone who wasn’t involved and with a sigh she looked outside. “I woke up one day in Miami and realized that I’d stayed there for over ten years and in that time I had lost a friend in a gunfight, had another friend kill himself in my lab, watched my boss’ wife die from sniper bullet and finally said good bye to another good friend when he moved to Las Vegas... And you know every time something happened it only concerned me in the periphery, it was not my boyfriend that got killed or my wife and it was never me that got seriously injured always someone close.”

 

Calleigh struggled for words to explain what had gone through her mind on that fateful morning, and as her eyes met Megan’s she faltered for a moment feeling tears well up in her eyes. Megan covered her hand quickly and smiled gently. “Just take your time.”

 

Calleigh smiled wanly before she continued and for the first time since she had left Miami she explained the real reason for her leaving. “I was just afraid that I was the next, you know... I mean it’s irrational, but I looked around the team and saw Eric who had lost his lover, H who’d lost his wife. Ryan who’d been injured so badly and I suddenly felt as if I was in the crosshairs of a rifle. Something told me I was next and I panicked.”

 

“Do you feel safe here?” Megan’s voice was calm, questioning and Calleigh thought about the question for a long time. Did she feel safe?

 

“Yes, I do or as safe as I ever felt, I guess...”

 

Megan smiled and her eyes lit up. “Then you made the right decision.”

 

The waiter served their food and the topic changed to a lighter tune, but Megan’s words continued to resonate in Calleigh’s head. “The right decision...”

 

It had been, she thought as she looked at the woman across her and thought of the work that waited for her. Leading a team was a huge challenge, and her goal to turn the lab into a top facility an even bigger one, but it made her happier than she had been in Miami and in the end that’s what it all was about.

 

---

 

*Las Vegas*

 

Eric looked around the crime scene and shook his head. Two people shot dead and one injured and they had not a single idea who was responsible. Walking over to the next room, he immediately noticed the huge banner that said ‘congratulations’. Greg was already working diligently and barely looked up when he squatted down next to him. He shrugged and pointed at the desk next to them.  

 

“ That's the vic's desk. He was getting a promotion.” Greg’s words made Eric smile sadly and he shook his head. “Well, at least his day started out on a good note.”

 
Greg shrugged and looked at the gun before he sighed. “It’s been wiped clean, no prints I guess.”
 
Nodding at his words, Eric looked at the crime scene markers and at the recovered shell casings. At one side of the room a door was closed and had a pink rod sticking out of a bullet hole. “So Willie Cutler must have been standing along this line when he was grazed by the bullet.”
 
It was consistent with Cutler’s statement and looking at Greg, Eric smiled bitterly. “So what do you think, Greg?  Is Willie Cutler the luckiest guy in the world or the unluckiest?”
 
Greg didn’t reply and Eric started to process the desk where Cutler had been hiding under. He tried to focus on the job, but every time he looked at Greg he felt a stab of guilt. He still hadn’t told Greg about Danny. It wasn’t that he was obliged to tell him, and yet Eric knew that he had hurt Greg when he had rejected him and now he was with Danny.
 
“Eric?” Greg stood next to him and Eric startled. Greg grinned at him and shook his head. “Where were you mate?”
 
Smiling back, Eric looked around and noted that they had finished the scene and packed up. “Back to the lab?”
 
Greg nodded and Eric waited until they were in the car, before he looked at Greg from the side. “I need to talk to you.”
 
Frowning Greg looked at him and Eric silently prayed that he wouldn’t hurt Greg too much with his next words. “I wanted you to know before someone tells you. I’m in a relationship with someone...”
 

---

 

“I’m in  a relationship with someone...”

 

Greg waited for the hurt to set in, but to his surprise Eric’s words didn’t hurt instead he felt happy for his friend. Relieved he punched Eric in a friendly manner. “Who is the lucky guy?”

 

Eric relaxed immediately and Greg swallowed hard as he saw the brilliant smile that now crossed Eric’s face. It was both making Greg happy and envious because although he knew that he had only been infatuated with Eric and not in love with him, he still wanted something like Eric had.

 

“Danny McCoy” Greg had heard the name before and now frowned a bit as he tried to put a face to the name. Eric smiled and explained who his new lover was. “He’s the head of security at the Montecito.”

 

Now Greg had a face to go with the name and he nodded appreciatively. “Got yourself a good looking man there, Eric.”

 

Eric blushed and nodded. “He’s a good man.”

 

Greg noted the difference in what he had said and what Eric said and it made him smile softly. Seeing a diner at the other side of the street he pointed at it. “Let’s get something to eat and you tell me everything about this guy, ok?”

 

They ordered fries and burger and for a while simply sat there in silence until Eric started to speak. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”

 

Seeing that Eric was genuinely uncomfortable, Greg grinned and shook his head. “Eric, honestly it’s ok. I’m happy for you. We said that we are friends, didn’t we?”

 

Taking a deep breath Eric nodded. Their food arrived and Eric grabbed the ketchup. Greg reached for it at the same time and their hands collided. Six weeks ago the touch would have sent sparks up and down Greg’s body but today he simply laughed at their missing coordination.

 

“Gosh, you can tell we’re scientists. “ Eric’s comment made Greg grin and he handed the bottle over.

 

“So how did you meet?” Eric rolled his eyes and grinned. “On a case, do you remember the fake chips case at the Montecito? That’s when we met. We went out together once the case was closed and we...”

 

Greg had to suppress his chuckle as Eric trailed off embarrassed. “Is he good?”

 

Eric gasped and went beet red despite his darker complexion. Greg shook his head and patted his friend on the back. “Come on tell me. How is he?”

 

“He’s great, ok? Now stop asking.” Eric’s words were mumbled but his reluctance to speak woke all the devils in Greg and leaning over eagerly he smirked at Eric.

 

“Is he into naughty stuff? Latex, leather and spanking?”

 

Eric stared at him wide-eyed and Greg almost doubled over laughing. “No, well then at least he uses cuffs and toys, doesn’t he?”

 

This time Eric swallowed hard and Greg realized that his friend was honestly embarrassed. “You should see yourself, Eric, come on, you can’t be that vanilla, can you?”

 

“I’ve never played with things like that.” Eric mumbled more than he spoke and somehow his behavior reminded Greg of Nick.

 

“You have?” Greg shrugged at Eric’s question and nodded. “Yeah, I have. Not really deep into the whole scene, but sometimes it’s fun. Depends on the partner though.”

 

Eric shook his head and shrugged before a wicked grin passed over his face. “You just got me some ideas. Maybe I need to take my cuffs home one night.”

 

Greg grinned and returned to his food. He was happy for his friend, happy that Eric had found someone, but to be completely honest all this talk about cuffs and spanking had left him quite horny. Maybe it was time he found himself a partner again. Greg thought about the club he had used to go when out of the blue Archie’s words resonated through his mind.

 

Grissom’s in love with you.

 

He had tried to avoid thinking about it, had pushed all thoughts away whenever they had entered his mind, but right now as he was contemplating going out to pick up a lover for a night, right now as he craved not the gentle contact but the harder domination, right now Greg couldn’t push the memory away. The thought of Grissom being the one to tie him up made his breath catch and he shivered.

 

It was more though, Greg suddenly realized more than finding the thought of Grissom as his master appealing, more than simply being horny. And finally giving into the thoughts he had avoided ever since Archie had uttered those fateful words, Greg looked at Eric.

 

“Eric, I need a friend.”

 

---

 

Greg’s words were heavy and a huge difference between his former bantering and teasing. Eric sobered immediately and forgot all his half-formed thoughts about tying Danny up and torturing him with whipped cream.

 

“What’s wrong?”

 

Greg looked down at his hands and Eric could see the tension in the set of his shoulders. For a long time his friend was silent, but when he looked up his eyes were haunted and instinctively Eric reached out and pressed Greg’s hand. “Greg, what’s going on?”

 

“Promise me to tell me the truth and that you won’t tell anyone, please.” Greg’s words were almost whispered and Eric nodded immediately.

 

“I promise.”

 

Greg swallowed once before taking a deep breath. “Archie told me that he thinks that Grissom is in love with me, well he actually told me that the entire lab thinks that.”

 

It took a moment until Eric understood what Greg had said and his first reaction was to say that he hadn’t noticed anything, but within seconds his investigator mind took over and he mentally went through every interaction between Grissom and Greg that he had witnessed. There had been nothing specific that stood out, but thinking more about it, he realized that Grissom was more forgiving towards Greg and sighing lightly he looked at his friend.

 

“Certainly not the entire lab, I never heard a rumor or anything.”

 

His words seemed to relieve Greg, but Eric could still see that his friend was worried. “Greg, what about you? Do you like him?”

 

Helplessly shrugging, Greg let his head fall into his hands. “I don’t know. I never thought about Grissom that way, but ever since Archie...”

 

Eric knew that Greg meant and he completed the sentence for his friend. “Ever since he spoke about Grissom and you, you see Grissom in a different light, and suddenly you find yourself wanting him.”

 

Greg stared at him wide-eyed and Eric smiled lightly. “It was like this with me and Speed. We were out together when a friend of mine commented on what a cute couple we made. I thought I was straight, but I couldn’t get the thought of Speed out of my mind. About a month later we happened.”

 

It was the first time that he could talk about Speed without feeling the stabbing pain of loss, Eric was surprised that instead he felt warmth at the fond memory. He saw Greg look at him and smiled. “It doesn’t have to happen like this for you and Grissom...”

 

“How do I find out if I’m just curious or if I’m really attracted to him?” Greg’s question made Eric ponder his answer because the last thing he wanted was to give his friend a false idea.

 

“I don’t know.” Greg’s eyes fell again and he looked forlorn as he spoke. “I just don’t want to hurt him, you know. I mean if it even is true.”

 

Seeing that Greg had finally come to the heart of his concern, Eric didn’t say anything but waited for Greg to continue. “What if I do something and it isn’t true? What if Archie was joking?”

 

Eric could see the fear in Greg’s eyes and slowly shook his head. “I don’t think he is. Who did he say knows about it too?”

 

“Sara, him and...” Greg trailed off as hope lit up in his eyes and with a stronger voice he continued again. “And Nick.”

 

“Well, Archie wouldn’t have told you that Nick knows if he were leading you on, he knows you and Nick would eventually talk about it and you’d find out.” Eric simply stated facts that Greg already knew. Still sometimes it helped when a third party confirmed those facts and as he watched Greg smile softly, Eric understood that this had been one of those times.

 

“And what do I do now?”

 

Greg’s question made Eric smile and he shrugged. “You’ll know when you see Grissom again.”

 

---

 

“Brown” Light laughter floated through the phone and Warrick frowned. He was busy and didn’t need games, Catherine and Brass were already waiting for him and he had a head ache from staring at the evidence for too long.

 

“It seems as if our intervention is not needed anymore.” The voice on the other end was female and had a sultry tone that made Warrick shiver slightly.

 

“Who is this?” The answer to his inquiry was again that light laughter, but before he could say anything else, the woman answered. “I’m disappointed that you don’t remember me, but I’ve been told that you’re a busy man. It’s Delinda Deline.”

 

Her comment from before made sense now, and Warrick smiled as he thought of how happy Eric had been lately.

 

“Then I agree with you, we’re certainly not needed.”

 

And boy was he grateful for that, he thought as he remembered Delinda’s plan of making Eric and Danny admit their feelings for each other.

 

“Well, since we’re obviously lousy matchmakers, maybe we can have a drink one day?”

 

The offer shocked him, but Warrick was no idiot, Delinda Deline was one of the most beautiful woman he’d ever met and if the short chats they’d had were anything to go by then she was quite probably also one of the more intelligent ones.

 

“I’d love to.”

 

“10 A.M. tomorrow? I’ll pick you up at the lab.”

 

Taken aback, Warrick chuckled. “You want to go for drinks at 10 am?”

 

Her answer came immediately. “Hey, I didn’t say what kind of drinks... See you!”

 

The click on the other side told him that Delinda had ended the call and for a moment Warrick stared flabbergasted at the phone. Slowly though a big smile spread over his face and he shook his head. He had a date with Delinda Deline.

 

---

 

“You have to talk to Mary.”

 

Danny smiled at Delinda, but inwardly he froze. He knew that she was right, but that didn’t make the idea of telling his childhood friend that he was gay and had a boyfriend any easier.

 

“I know.”

 

Delinda shook her head. “Danny, she can’t find out about this from someone else. You have to tell her.”

 

“She’s in love with me, Delinda and I just don’t want to hurt her.” Delinda shook her head at his words and frowned. “Danny no matter how you tell her, it will hurt. And yes, she’ll be angry that you never told her about your preferences and yes, she’ll think you used her, but all that will only be worse if you don’t tell her yourself.”

 

“I don’t want to lose her.” Danny met Delinda’s eyes as he said it and she reached out to press his hand. “You won’t lose her over this. She’ll be upset and hurt, but you know that she had no issues with gays. Please Danny, talk to her.”

 

Danny sighed. “I talk to her, ok?”

 

Delinda nodded and leaned over the coffee table to kiss him on his cheek. “Do it soon, Danny, before you lose your chance.”

 

Danny watched her leave and closing his eyes he hid his face in his hands for a moment, before he looked up again and stared in his coffee. Delinda was right, he thought, he really needed to talk to Mary. If he wanted his relationship with Eric to work, then he had to make sure that Eric was a part of his group of friends, just as much as Danny needed to meet Eric’s team. He dreaded that too. Oh, he had met the famous nightshift before, but always at work and never for any other reasons. Eric had told him that he wanted Danny to meet Warrick.

 

Danny paid his coffee and walked to his office when his phone buzzed.

 

“Danny, it’s me. We’ve got a multiple homicide, I probably work a double today.”

 

Eric sounded both exhausted and pumped up and Danny smiled without noticing it. “Don’t worry, just come around to my place if you’re done ok? What happened?”

 

“A woman killed in her own home and then three guys shot at the workplace of the husband. Right now, we’re nowhere but if your wife and your colleagues are killed the same day, you either have a very bad day or you’re involved. So we want this solved or at least cleared before anyone else dies. I’ll call before I come round, ok? And Danny thanks for not minding.”

 

Danny felt something melt inside him at the soft words and he wished Eric was here so that he could kiss him. Instead he answered tenderly. “Don’t worry about it. Just be safe, please.”

 

He wasn’t really sure why he had added that last bit, but for an unknown reason Danny felt fear at the thought of Eric working a case that had already cost four lives and just because he felt like it, he repeated the last words again. “Be safe, love.”

 

---

 

“Be safe, love.”

 

Eric responded to the words with a smile. “I will be, thanks.”

 

It was only when he put the phone down, that the words really registered in his brain. “Be safe, love.”

 

Eric swallowed heavily. Danny and he had never spoken about love even though it was clear to both of them that there was more between them than simple lust. Eric knew that he felt a lot for Danny and yet the simple endearment floored him. Had Danny even realized what he had said? Had it been a conscious wording or just a slip of the tongue?

 

“Hey, you won’t believe what Vartaan and I found when we spoke to the cab driver!”

 

Greg bounded into the lab tearing Eric’s thoughts away from Danny and back to the case. He could see the excitement in Greg and with a shrug encouraged his friend to tell.

 

“Well, the killer called a cab company from the Cuttler house and we spoke to the driver. He said that the guy had him drive around for five, six hours and then stop at an office place. And guess what, the cab has a camera.”

 

Eric looked at the picture from the surveillance camera and looked at Greg. “Cuttler?”

 

Greg grinned. “He called himself Sammy, but hey we know he’s Willie.”

 

Eric agreed and together they started processing the evidence that he had found at the travel agency. The work required Eric’s full attention, but still in the back of his mind, he kept hearing Danny’s voice telling him to be safe, calling him his love.

 

---

 

“So, Willie Cutler had an older brother, Sammy.  Sammy did time in Chino for grand theft auto.” Brass watched as Grissom looked at the report that he held in his hand. He knew what his friend was seeing as he had read the report too and promptly, Grissom pointed at something.

 

“Willie had a vehicle-related felony on his record, too.”

 

Trust Grissom to spot that, but then Brass had noticed it too and done his research. “Yeah, the same incident.  See, Willie was a first-time offender, so he pled out. But Sammy had a record, so the judge gave him a hard time.  So he got in trouble on the inside. He did an extended sentence.  He got out six months ago. I got a fax from the cab company I want to show you.”

 

As he walked over towards his office, Brass felt his cell phone vibrate and frowned. He never received text messages, he had a phone to get calls and not letters after all. Still he checked it and was surprised when he simply found a smiley on his screen. His phone rattled again and this time there were some words.

 

‘I just wanted to make you smile. Take care, C.’

 

Surprised at his partner’s insight and thoughtfulness, Brass smiled for a moment, before he noticed Grissom’s look and turned serious again. He didn’t really want Grissom to find out about him and Con, not because he was ashamed of his relationship with the other man, but because he knew about Grissom’s strained relationship with Conrad.

 

Finally at his office, he handed Grissom the fax that had come in from the cab company. “Check it out. They get called out to that office park where the shooting took place. Driver said the fare was a no-show.”

 

Grissom studied the fax as if it would start talking and reveal the universe’s secrets and as the paper remained silent he shifted his head to the left side. "Requested destination -- Lucky Dragon casino."

 

Brass had been working with Grissom for long enough and still sometimes he couldn’t figure him out. Like right now as Grissom shook his head and folded his hands in front of his eyes. “You know, this could be a revenge story. Willie gets a life, Sammy goes to prison. Sammy gets out, tries to get even.”

 

Grissom’s theory made sense, but for Brass it wasn’t good enough. “Well, if Sammy was trying to get even, why did Willie keep quiet about it?”

 

“He’s his brother's keeper.” Grissom’s words seemed to resonate in Brass’ office and Brass simply raised one of his brows as he looked at Grissom. Grissom on the other hand smiled innocently. “It's in the Bible.”

 

Yes, Brass thought, sometimes, he really didn’t understand Gil Grissom.”

 

---

 

Standing at the side of the room, Warrick watched the casino floor on the monitors at the wall of the security room at the Lucky Dragon. A part of him was glad that he could watch from here and didn’t have to be down at the floor around all the gambling going on. He knew that he would never play for money again and still he could feel it tingling in his fingers just from watching all the tables.

 

The security guys were running Sammy Cuttler’s face through their facial recognition programs, but so far nothing had come up. The casino was busy and there were many people wearing caps. Looking for their suspect was a little bit like finding a needle in a haystack.

 

A sudden scuffle on the screen brought Warrick out of his musings and he pointed at the man. “That’s Willie Cutler, Sam’s brother. What’s he doing?”

 

In almost fascinated horror, Warrick watched as Cutler disarmed the guard and shot him twice in the chest. He could hear the surveillance director speak in his microphone, directing his people to the scene. “Shots fired. Main floor. BJ pit three “

 

Warrick felt helpless as he watched Cutler run across the casino floor and towards the elevators. “He’s trying to go to one of the rooms.”

 

The security director nodded and directed his men towards the elevators, but before they got there, the elevator doors opened and a young woman stepped out and directly in front of Cutler. Warrick tensed expecting the killer to shoot her, but instead the other man grabbed her and pushed her back into the elevator. Warrick heard the director groan and he could only agree. It had been a dire situation, but it had just gotten worse. Now, their killer had a hostage.

 

---

 

*Los Angeles*

 

“Calleigh, you’re from Miami, maybe you can help us.” Megan’s voice was both excited and exhausted and Calleigh frowned a bit before she answered. “How can I help you?”

 

“Do you understand anything about hurricanes?”

 

The question took her aback and she laughed surprised. “Well apart from the fact that when it hits you better get the hell out of dodge, not much, why?”

 

Megan chuckled before she started to explain. “We found some kind of formulas for geothermical math and Charlie said that one university where they teach that kind of stuff is the University of Miami. So I thought, instead of talking to someone there, I try you first.”

 

It was good thinking, Calleigh had to admit, but she was certainly not qualified enough to understand the makings of hurricanes or tropical storms. “Sorry, but as I said, I was there for the clean up and for the crimes that were committed during the hurricanes, but apart from that, I can’t help you.”

 

Her mind was running through the people that would know and with a slap to her head she laughed. “But a friend of mine has a secondary degree in that stuff, so maybe you can give him a call, if you want to talk to someone who’s law enforcement.”

 

“Sure, why not, what’s his name?” Megan seemed almost desperate to call someone outside the university and Calleigh wondered why it was. It wasn’t her place to ask though and so she gave Megan the name. “Eric Delko, he’s with Las Vegas PD now, but he might be able to help you.”

 

“Ok I’ll give him a call, thanks for your help. By the way, we’re having drinks with the team on Friday, why don’t you come around?”

 

The invitation astonished Calleigh and for a second she wanted to decline, when out of the blue Agent Sinclair’s face appeared in front of her eyes. She still hadn’t gotten over the agent’s comments and looks and maybe it was time to show him who he was up against.

 

“I’d love to come, if work permits it.”

 

“Great, just give me a ring when you can make it.” Megan sounded almost smug and Calleigh frowned a little as she put the phone down. Could it be that Megan had a hidden agenda?

 

Laughing at herself, Calleigh shook her head. She was really was getting paranoid.

 

---

 

Brass pulled his gun out and looked at the officer next to him. The SWAT team member met his eyes unflinchingly as Brass handed him his gun. “The kill word is ‘Jim’.”

 

The officer nodded and Brass walked towards the door. “Willie, this is Jim Brass, will you let me in? I just want to talk to you. I’m unarmed, you can see me through the peephole.”

 

For a long time there was nothing but silence and then slowly the door opened and Brass walked into the room.

 

---

 

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