Darkness and Light

She stood on the corner, staying in the shadows, staring at the building where he worked. She had followed him to this city, Las Vegas, City of Lights. She didn’t expect to find him here, but she was proven wrong. Smiling wickedly, her plans began to form in her mind.

You will be mine again, she thought as she walked away.

She would bide her time before she showed herself to him.


~*~


Greg sat in the briefing room, his thoughts on last night. He had a hard time keeping the smile off his face.

I’m going to be a father, he thought as the rest of the team filed in. I’m going to be married to Sara. It’s a dream come true.

The sound of someone clearing their throat brought him out of his thoughts. He looked up as Sara sat next to him. He smiled at her and she returned it.

“Were you daydreaming?” Sara asked in a whisper. “You were smiling like the cat who ate the canary.”

Greg laughed and leaned closer to her.

“I was planning our wedding,” he whispered.

Sara shook her head at him, but she smiled. His heart skipped a beat and he couldn’t wait to see that smile for the rest of his life. Grissom cleared his throat to start the meeting.

“There’s a robbery at a jewelry story on Freemont. Greg can go solo on this one.”

“Really?” Greg asked surprised.

He sat up straighter, his heart racing at the prospect of doing a case alone.

Grissom handed him the assignment sheet as he nodded.

“I believe you’ve earned it.”

Greg beamed as he took the paper. He glanced at Sara, who smiled at him. He wanted to kiss her then, but now wasn’t an appropriate moment, so held himself back. He could wait till later when they were both at home.

Grissom handed out the rest of the assignments then the group left the room. Greg headed to the locker room to get his kit.

Once inside, he was stopped by Sara. He smiled at her as he retrieved his kit from the locker. She gathered him in her arms, kissing him soundly. He wanted to continue the kiss, but he had a scene to get to. He reluctantly pulled away from her.

“Good luck,” Sara said.

“Thanks,” he said, kissing her once more before leaving the room.


~*~

Greg arrived at the jewelry store several minutes later. He stepped out of the SUV, grabbed his kit from the back and headed into the store. He was greeted by Detective Vega, who didn’t waste any time filling him in.

“At 5 pm, Laura Harrison was about to close up when a man wearing a ski mask barges in, forces her into the back room at gun point then proceeds to rob the place. A few minutes later, she hears a shot. She runs out of the room to find this.”

Greg stared at the mess before him. Lying on the carpeted floor was a woman, a gun shot wound in her chest. His gaze moved to the broken cases, some with missing jewelry.

“The victim’s name is Jane Peterson, 45,” Vega mentioned.

“Inventory?” He asked as he set the kit down and pulled on his gloves.

“Laura’s getting a list now,” Vega said.

Greg nodded and took a closer look at the body. Blood darkened the carpet and he swabbed it.

“Time of death is around five-fifteen,” David said as he wrote on his pad.

Greg took pictures of the body before David removed it from the scene. The flash of the camera lit up the room as he took pictures of the cases and the broken glass on the floor.

Laura returned with a list of all the jewelry and Greg quickly read through it. He thanked the woman then handed the list to Vega.

“Let’s hope he still has the stuff on him when we find him,” Greg said as he placed the camera in his kit.

He dusted the cases for prints and smiled when he found one on the side of a case. It looked to be half a palm print and he envisioned the thief leaning against it as he grabbed for the hard-to-reach jewelry in the back of the case.

“Gotcha,” he whispered as he lifted it.

He placed the collected palm print in his kit and with one last look around, closed it and stood.

“I’m heading back to the lab,” he said. “See what Mrs. Peterson can tell me.”

Vega nodded, “I’ll see if anyone on the street saw a man running out of the store. Then check all the pawn shops, see if he sold the jewelry, yet.”

Greg left the store and headed toward the SUV. He placed his kit in the back and closed the doors. A prickly sensation crawled up his spine. He spun around, staring into the shadows.

“Who’s there?” He called as he slowly backed away toward the driver’s side door. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, his heart racing.

A breeze blew through his hair as he fumbled for the door. He yanked it open and a slip of paper fell to the ground. He stared at it, wondering who had put it there. He shook his head and picked it up. He searched his surroundings, contemplating if who ever left it was still around.

Greg opened the note and stared at what was written. A chill went up his spine as he recognized the hand-writing.

“I found you.”

“Kristine,” he whispered as memories came flooding back to him.

He crumbled the paper as he scanned his surroundings again. If she had found him then he wasn’t the only one in danger. Sara would be a target as well. Kristine was the jealous type, not to mention possessive. It was one of the reasons why he had left. He hadn’t expected her to try to find him.

Greg climbed into the SUV and started the engine. He wasn’t about to let Kristine frighten him away again. He had too much to lose and he wasn’t going to let her take it from him.


She watched as he drove away from the store. She smiled, enjoying his reaction to her little love note. She knew he was angry and she liked him that way. It sent her senses soaring and her mouth watering.

“I’ll have you soon,” she whispered as she walked down the street. “You won’t get away this time.”