| Any comments, suggestions or questions can be directed to the author. Thank you for taking the time to read and I hope you found something that you could enjoy. Disclaimer: I do not own anything in relation to C.S.I., Alliance Atlantic, CBS, William Petersen, Jorja Fox or any other characters contained herein... I just like playing with them now and then while stretching my writing muscles. And if you think there's any money to be gained by suing me, you're in for a horrible disappointment. |
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| The continuing years of the Discovery Series storyline as the family gets ready for a big event. The family storyteller gathers up some photos and shares a perspective on the past. (including a "photo album" scrapbook) GSR/Yo!Bling/Etc. *Rated PG for Most Everyone. |
| LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY |
| Part 13 - Something Wicked This Way Comes |
| Seated behind a desk in the familiar office once belonging to his predecessors, Dr. David Phillips diligently filled out schedules for the coming month. A long way from body pickups and cleanup duty, as the assistant chief coroner his duties included a different form of body shuffling. He had to schedule the fourteen medical examiners for duty at the various facilities throughout Clark County. With seven of them working at the Metro Center Morgue, it was always something of a challenge. But there were two consistencies to every single schedule; his name appeared every weekday, and from Sunday to Thursday night the name of Dr. Lillian Grissom was repeated, without fail. Sitting back from the computer, David pushed his wire-rimmed glasses back up on the bridge of his nose and smiled from the side of his face. Having the daughter of Sara Sidle around served two purposes; the first of which was to make him feel incredibly old. The second was that he had a first rate, A number one, workaholic genius in his employee pool. Lilli Grissom was every bit of her mother and her father, with a dash of her godmother thrown in for good measure. David sat back further, lacing his hands behind his head as he stared at a photograph on his desk. A sea shell frame made by his daughter held the image of a group of women looking out on the surf as they prepared to subdue another batch of waves. |
| Stephanie O’Halleran was not just his boss, she was his friend, and somewhere along the way they had become family. She was at his wedding. She was there to congratulate him upon graduating medical school. When his wife Sandi failed to recognize she was in labor, Stephanie even helped deliver his son. And for every day in between, she was always there when he needed her. For an Air Force brat who never had more than his parents and a little sister to get by on, through his friendship with Steph, he was irrevocably brought into a huge extended family. He remembered fondly the day he had to explain to his son that Aunt Stephanie was not really one of his parent’s sisters. So strong was their bond, it was hard to see they were not blood relatives. Thankfully his wife saved him from total confusion when she explained, “Some family you’re born into, and some family you get drafted into.” David was broken out of his memories by a familiar voice. “Hey, Super Doc! Long time no see.” Michael O’Halleran trotted into his office with a beaming smile. “Mikey!” David stood up from his chair and walked around his desk to greet the young man. “It wouldn’t be such a long time if you’d stop gallivanting all over the globe so you’d have more time to visit.” Michael’s smile grew as they shook hands. “Yeah, well, if I wasn’t gallivanting all the time, I wouldn’t exactly be able to work, ya know?” David nodded with a smile to show his understanding. “And besides, you guys appreciate me more when I’m not around all the time.” His humor never failed to make David laugh. Michael was always a joy to have around, even when he was getting into trouble. And he was always getting into trouble. “Well, I’m sure you aren’t here to see an old man, and you most certainly know your mother isn’t here, so…” “Yeah, never could get anything past you, Doc. Like that time when we tried to switch the turkey out for Danny before everyone got to the table.” They both shared a good laugh at the memory. “I’m still not sure whose idea that was, because I seem to recall a very suspicious looking scout wearing pigtails in the living room that day.” David gave him a knowing glance, “And I’ve long suspected you and your brother weren’t nearly devious enough to come up with half the stuff you two tried to pull off.” Michael winked when he answered, “But after twenty eight years, I’m sure you’ve realized we aren’t snitching, either.” Shaking his head, David sat back against his desk and added, “Thick as thieves, the whole lot of you. But back to the real reason you came up here instead of going straight down to Lilli’s office…” “Yeah…that.” Michael checked the hall behind him nervously and then leaned in to ask, “I was wondering if you could arrange for Lilli to have off the two days after the party.” David smiled, knowing Michael had not changed very much. “And the purpose of this would be?” “Oh come on, Doc. I have to go back to D.C. that Monday, and I kinda wanted to surprise her with something before I go.” Michael clasped his hands together and gave him his best puppy dog eyes. Of course, with all the hair Michael was currently sporting, it was more like teddy bear eyes. But he smiled brighter that time and nodded to show his agreement. “I just happen to be working on the schedule right now. And I was noticing she hasn’t really taken any time off the last couple months, so I was looking at a forced holiday anyway.” Michael immediately reached out to shake his hand in gratitude. “Thanks a million, Doc. This means a lot and I really want to surprise-” Popping her head in the door, Lilli interrupted them, “Hey, Doc. I posted the reports for the drunk driver, and we’re just waiting on Tox for the final.” Without missing a beat David asked, “How can you declare him a drunk driver if you’re still waiting for the toxicology reports?” Lilli shrugged as she stepped into the office and punched her cousin in the arm. “Easy… I pulled about half a liter of undigested rot gut whiskey from his stomach, so I’m willing to bet the other half of the bottle was already thinning his blood and frying his brain.” “Fair assumption,” David nodded and pushed his glasses back up on his nose. “But I’d still rather wait for the toxicology report.” Shaking her head, Lilli chuckled, “Spoken like a true administrator.” She turned to Michael and looked for backup. “What do you think?” Michael shrugged and then smiled, “I think it sounds like something I really don’t want to get in the middle of.” “You’re no fun.” David watched as Lilli swatted Michael with the folder before handing it over to him. “Have you got anything else for me, or can I break the shackles of tyranny today?” With a roll of his eyes, David dismissed them both, “The shackles of tyranny will await you another day. Get out of here you two, before you get some crazy idea and I have to fill out more paperwork…again.” David watched the two troublemakers leave his office and he had to laugh when he overheard Lilli asking her mischievous cousin what he was up to, and he knew the playful banter that would follow. As he sat down behind his desk he was grateful for all the things in his life, but most especially for the amazing family he had been fortunate enough to be drafted into. |
| Entering the house through the garage, Michael could hear the roar of laughter coming from the kitchen and knew to avoid the women currently inhabiting it. To his right he could hear the television playing some sporting event and knew to steer clear of Bethie if she was watching TV. Television was what she did when she was brooding about something and he just had too much to do to get into that kind of fight. The person on the other end of his phone brought him back into the moment. “That’s perfect. As soon as you get there have him give me a call so I can finish making all the arrangements…” He quickly made his way up the stairs, not paying any attention to the mop of red hair following his progress. “Yeah, like I said, this is a once in a lifetime chance to work on a government project without getting ‘escorted’ out of the country by armed soldiers when they switch governments or just decide you’ve found something they want more.” Michael peeked in his little brother’s room to see if he was there, and finding it empty, he continued to his room. “Hey, anytime, brother… When I found out about you getting ousted in Argentina, I immediately recommended you for this one. It’s perfect for you, plus I knew you were trying to find a more stable gig after Merridith came up preggers…” He shuffled through a stack of papers on his nightstand as he waited for the other man to finish giving him hell. “Are you kidding? Project manager with health bennies, and a non-revolutionary country for the next eighteen months… What self-respecting environmentalist with a kid on the way could turn that one down?” He laughed at the man’s answer and then concluded, “Not to mention you don’t even have to come within a thousand miles of a college classroom…what more could you ask for, dude?... Hey look, I’m glad you took the job, man. Now, just tell the guy you’ re replacing to get his sorry carcass back stateside, so he can deal with his own family business.” Michael was busy digging in the closet for a shirt as he finished up his phone call, and he missed the fact that Danny was standing in the doorway. “Good deal… I’ll talk to you in a couple weeks, once we’ve both gotten settled in again… Yeah, I’ve gotta do some dinner thing on the base with Geoffrey tonight, and all this party stuff for my Mom, plus the rest. I just need to get a few things off my plate before we can talk turkey about roach population statistics in the Americas… Talk to you in a couple weeks, brother. And enjoy the new digs… Bye, Neil.” He hung up the phone and turned to toss it onto the bed when he finally caught sight of Danny. “Jesus, Danny! Stop that, man.” Michael clutched his chest to recover from the shock. “Not my fault you were too caught up in the phone call…” Danny leveled him with a comically raised eyebrow, “Which sounded suspiciously like someone plotting again.” Michael grabbed the shirt he was looking for and then grabbed up his toiletry bag from the nightstand as he passed Danny in a hurry to the bathroom. “Why would you think something like that?” “Because you’re my older brother, and I know damn well that you’re ALWAYS up to something.” Danny followed him to the bathroom. “Well, you couldn’t be more wrong…this time.” Michael shot him with a devilish wink to show he acknowledged his reputation as a mischief maker. “Just doing an old friend a favor.” “What old friend would have you wheeling and dealing to pass off a project lead spot?” Danny was still not convinced. “Well, the friend is more of a professional acquaintance and…” Michael paused as he ripped his t-shirt over his head and tossed it on the counter. “He happens to be a leading climatologist, as well as being in charge of research at one of the largest environmental foundations in the world. So, doing him this favor is good for me all the way around.” “What exactly are you doing?” Danny handed his brother a fresh towel from the linen closet as he spoke. “Um, he got stuck manning this big research project for the military out on Guam when his last guy up and quit just before the MPs were gonna bust him on a drug charge.” Michael flipped on the water and waited for it to achieve the right temperature. “So, Laurie got stuck out there until he could find a replacement and he’s got all this family stuff going on right now. Poor guy was desperate enough to ask me to take on the project, just temporarily.” Finishing his explanation, Michael proceeded to wash his face, and wet all the hair on his head. None of which was a small undertaking. “Okay, I guess that makes sense. But I thought you said it was a guy?” Danny waited for his brother to sop up the excess water with the towel before getting his answer. “What?” At first Michael looked confused and then he understood. “Oh right, ‘Laurie’ is short for Laurent. Dr. Laurent St. George. He’s originally from one of those islands where they speak some version of French.” With a black comb, Michael began coming through his insanely thick beard in an attempt to bring some order to his appearance. “Great guy, though. He served on the review committee for my first doctorate.” Danny took the towel from the counter and dumped it into the clothes hamper. “And helping him is likely to pay off for you with grant money and maybe even an easier course for your current doctorate?” “Hit the nail on the head, brother dear.” Running a grooming brush through his much shorter hair, Michael checked to be sure every hair on his head was going in the right direction. He lowered his hands and checked his reflection in the mirror once more. “What do you think?” “You look like a schizophrenic mountain man.” Michael rolled his eyes at his brother’s declaration. “Okay, maybe not that bad… How about a hippie with a bad hair cut?” “I like this hair cut, what’s wrong with it?” Michael affected a slight pout at Danny’s insult. “It’s the beard, dude. All that hair totally wrecks the whole thing, and most definitely your face.” Danny was having a good time chiding his brother. “Look who’s talking, Ronald McDonald… Can I get some fries with that, Clown Boy?” The two enjoyed their clever banter, but they also had some good points. “Fair enough… So, if I cut my hair, you’ll shave your beard?” Danny’s question sounded like a challenge, perhaps even a dare. Michael sized him up and down and then said, “High noon, Gambino’s Barber Shop? The chicken has to wear a dress to Uncle Gil’s party?” The gauntlet had been thrown down. With his hand held out, Danny sealed their fates, “You’ve got a deal.” |
| “Okay, Aunt Kirsten. I’ll make sure someone’s at the airport… Oh crap! Yeah, could you bring that with you, please?... Thanks a million!... See ya next week!” Beth hung up the phone and shook her head in amusement. “Forget something?” At Danny’s words Beth nearly jumped to the rafters in the high ceilinged living room. “Jesus, Danny! Don’t sneak up on me like that!” Danny just laughed as he plopped down in the armchair with a medical journal in his hands. Beth, still breathing heavy from the shock swatted at his mass of red curls. “I hate the way you do that.” “It’s got nothing to do with me. It’s all you, kiddo.” Danny chuckled as he began to flip through the pages. Her hand planted on her hip, Beth asked, “And how do you figure that?” “To paraphrase the little green dude,” from behind his journal Danny’s voice changed and he comically squeaked out, “‘All her life has she looked away... to the future, to the horizon. Never her mind on where she was.’” When he was met with silence, he explained, “You never pay attention to what’s going on around you, because you’re too busy worrying about the next step, the next move, the next thing. You’re always at least two steps ahead of where you are in your head, Squirt.” “And just what’s wrong with that?” Danny dropped the journal to find Beth glaring at him. “Nothing…if you want to miss all the good stuff. Like the fact that you missed breakfast with Mikey and Lilli because you were too busy trying to figure out what you and Duncan were gonna do tonight. Or when you totally missed out on going to prom with Tyler Mackenzie’s little brother because you were too caught up in going to that military academy formal.” Danny shrugged his shoulders and returned to reading when he flipped out one last comment. “But if that’s how you wanna roll, it’s your business.” Crestfallen by her brother’s analysis, Beth made her way into the kitchen where her mother and Aunt Cath were having a chat. An obvious pout on her face was immediately recognized by the matriarchs and it was not left alone. “Good grief, Bethie, you look like someone just smudged your microscope. What’s up, Squirt” Aunt Cath was never one to mince words. “It’s nothing. I just hate Danny right now.” Beth took the milk and the chocolate syrup from the fridge before reaching for a very large glass. “Drowning your sorrows in chocolate milk won’t solve anything… What happened this time?” Her mother took the glass from her hand and put it down on the island as she put an arm around her shoulders. “Spill it…then we’ll decide on the milk.” “Well, he said that I miss out on everything because I’m too far ahead of where I’m at. Like I don’t see what’s there because I’m too worried about where I’m going.” Beth leaned into her mother’s side as she pulled her in closer. “And the worst part is…I think he’s right.” Her mother laughed a little at her final conclusion, but Aunt Cath only shook her head and clucked. “I swear to you… I really think you guys are related somehow.” “Oh come on, Cath. We’ve been through this for thirt-” “I don’t care how many times we’ve been through it. The kids weren’t even around him when he was like that and they’re doing it, too!” Her Aunt Cath was obviously complaining about Uncle Gil again, but Beth was too distracted to pay it any real attention. “I don’t care about all of that. I just want to know how to fix it!” Beth was not in the mood for one of her Aunt Cath’s tirades. Her mother quickly came to her rescue. “You just have, sweetie.” When Beth gave her a confused look she chuckled and squeezed her tighter. “You’ve recognized the problem, and that’s the biggest part. Now all you have left is to do something about it.” “But what do I do?” “Well, now that’s the hardest part. You’ve got to figure out how to slow down some parts of your life, without sacrificing the others.” Beth hated those kinds of non-answers from her mother, when they all boiled down to one thing; you figure it out. “Gee, Mom… Thanks. That’s so much clearer now.” That time her Aunt Cath was the one laughing. “What’s clearer?” With the entrance of her Aunt Sara, Beth decided that it was apparently not her day. “Oh great… Can I just go to my room now and think about what I’ve done? You know, since that’s exactly how this conversation is gonna end up.” Beth dropped her head and arms to the island counter with a thud. “I’ve walked into the middle of something, haven’t I?” Sara looked between the two women trying to hold back their laughter. Stephanie laid a hand on Beth’s head and explained, “Bethie’s upset because Danny told her she’s missing out on the important stuff because she’s too busy looking ahead all the time.” “Oh…that.” Sara rolled her eyes as she hung her purse on the back of a chair. “Been there, done that…I think I still have the t-shirt.” Her voice muffled by her arms and speaking into the counter, Bethie asked, “Really?” “Oh honey, in this family, it’s almost a prerequisite.” With Stephanie’s words, Beth began to lift her head out of her arms. “I think it’s some weird by-product of being an over-achiever.” “Well, what did you do to break the habit?” With Beth’s question, Cath barked out in laughter. “What?” Cath tried to wave her off as she regained her composure. “I’m still not convinced she has, kiddo. I just think you all and your Dad caught up to her.” “Okay, then how did you figure it out?” Beth was upright again and challenging her aunt to the truth. “Honestly?” Cath girded herself for the challenge. “I realized Lindsey was suddenly a teenager and I couldn’t remember how she got there. And worst yet, I didn’t even recognize her anymore.” “What did you do?” Beth was genuinely interested in her answer. “I changed my priorities. Stopped worrying about what I wasn’t getting out of life and focused more on what I had. And somewhere along the way I managed to get it all.” They all watched as Catherine lovingly turned the ring still on her finger as she recalled the turn in her life. “That’s cool. But I don’t think that’s gonna help me very much.” Beth smiled with just a hint of sadness behind it. They all missed her Uncle Warrick, but no one could understand the depth of sadness her Aunt Cath felt over his loss. Turning to Sara, Beth asked, “So, what did you do to break it, Aunt Sara?” They all watched as the blood drained out of Sara’s face with Beth’s question. “Um, well, Bethie, really it’s kind of something that everyone, has to, you know, figure out for, um, themselves.” Beth watched as her aunt stumbled through a really bad non-answer, but it was her mother’s tightly concealed amusement that struck her curiosity. “Okay, there’s obviously another family story hidden in there…” Beth struck a defiant pose and demanded, “And I’m not going anywhere until I hear it.” Stephanie laid an arm around her daughter’s back and chuckled, “Bethie, honey. You aren’t old enough for this story. So, let’s just say that in this particular area…your Aunt Sara is NOT the star pupil, and she had to learn this lesson quite a few times before it finally sunk in.” “Aw, man. You guys have all the good dirt, and you suck at sharing.” She grabbed up the milk, syrup and glass before turning to leave. “And if you won’t help me, then I’m drinking the whole thing, so there.” The three women giggled at her indignant departure from their midst. Once she was well out of ear shot, Stephanie offered, “You should have told her something.” “Like what?” Sara was serious about not divulging any of her personal experience with the problem. “Let’s see… Getting blown up? No, not exactly recommending that one. How about almost getting a DUI? No…Way!” Catherine and Stephanie shook their heads at Sara’s explanation, knowing it was true, but it was also not the whole truth. “Oh, I know, practically having a nervous breakdown and nearly getting fired… That’s a good one, right? And I am not about to recommend the last one to a sixteen year old, either.” Stephanie scrunched up her face as she tried to figure out what the last one was. “What are you talking about?” Sara never got the chance to answer her when Catherine spoke up, “Being green with jealousy over some fresh faced kid and then spending an entire weekend boffing her brains out with her boss, before getting married and knocked up all in the same year.” There was a moment of silence that followed Cath’s incredibly blunt summation of the turn in Sara’s life, and then the howls of laughter broke out, spreading through the entire house. |