Chapter Forty One
Sara rolled over in the bed and reached for her
husband. Finding only the cool sheets,
she opened her eyes. She yawned as her
eyes focused on the piece of blue notepaper resting on his pillow. She pushed herself up and lifted the paper, a
smile forming on her face as she read his written words.
Sara,
I’ve
gone to pick Weevil up. Alex and Ant are
with me. You
were
sleeping and I figured you needed your rest.
We’ll be
back
soon. If you need anything, call my
cell.
Love,
Gil
Placing the short note on her bedside table,
she ran her fingers through her hair and glanced at the clock.
“
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Grissom placed Alex and Ant in the double
stroller, talking softly to them as he buckled them in.
“You ready to go get your big brother?”
Ant responded with a happy giggle while Alex
yawned. Grissom chuckled and stroked
Alex’s tiny hand with his fingers. Alex
looked up at his father and grinned brightly.
“Surely you’re not sleepy again, Alex…” He retied Ant’s shoe before he stood back
up. “Come on guys…let’s go get Weevil.”
He whistled a tune that had been playing on the
radio as he carefully pushed the stroller through the front doors of the
building. A smile crossed his face as he
recognized a woman leaning against the wall watching the children play.
“Hi Naomi…”
Naomi turned towards the voice, returning his
smile as their eyes met. “Hi Gil…” She motioned towards the children, grinning
as Grissom chuckled. “Looks like Michael
and
Grissom nodded as he watched his oldest son
with pride. Hearing the soft giggle
coming from the stroller, he looked down and smiled. “Do you see your big brother over there?”
Naomi smiled warmly at the two small boys
before redirecting her gaze on their father.
“Is Mikey good with them?”
Grissom knelt down and tied Ant’s shoe again
after his tiny fingers had pulled the lace free. “Weevil loves his brothers. He’s pretty protective over them too.” He looked up as he heard his oldest son’s
squeal.
“Daddy!”
Naomi laughed as
“It would appear so…”
Mikey ran into his father’s arms and began
chattering incoherently in his excitement.
Grissom shifted his crouch and pulled his son onto his thigh. “Slow down, son…”
Mikey took a deep breath and began again.
“We seed bugs on teebee!”
“Excuse me?”
“We seed a moobie and day was bugs on it!”
Grissom chuckled and placed a kiss in Mikey’s
soft curls. “What kind of bugs?”
“Beedles an’ ands an’ wurms an’…lots of ‘em!”
“What movie did you watch?”
The young boy shrugged his shoulders as he slid
from his father’s leg to talk to his brothers.
“Dunno. I wiked it doe!”
“I’m sure you did…” He laughed as he ruffled Mikey’s hair. As Mikey busied himself by talking to his
brothers, Grissom turned towards the young girl in Naomi’s arms. “Hi
Naomi and Grissom shared a laugh at Lydia’s
simple, but true, statement. Hearing the
giggles of the three boys, Grissom glanced down to find Mikey animatedly telling
his brothers about his day.
Suddenly, Mikey looked up at his father and
furrowed his brow. “Wearz Mommy?”
“Mommy was asleep when I came to get you, so
she’s still at home.”
“Wadin on us?”
Grissom smiled and nodded. “Yes son, she’s waiting on us.”
Mikey waved at
Grissom chuckled as he met Naomi’s eyes. “I think someone wants to see his mother.”
“Sounds like!”
She knelt down in front of Mikey and placed
“Is Widda?”
Naomi nodded as she looked at her
granddaughter. “Yes,
Mikey hugged
He looked up and motioned towards Naomi as he
looked at his father. “Tell Nomie bye,
Daddy!”
Grissom laughed as he looked at Naomi. “I think this is goodbye. Do you and Jim have plans for Thursday
night?”
She thought for a minute as she gathered
“We were thinking about taking you two out for
dinner…if you’re not busy.”
Naomi smiled.
“I don’t think we’re busy, but I’ll ask Jim later. Are you working tonight?”
“Yes…Sara and I both are.”
“Jess be dare?”
Grissom placed a gentle hand on the top of his
son’s head. “Yes, Jessie will be there
tonight.”
“Yay!”
Grissom laughed as Weevil began jumping up and
down excitedly. He redirected his
attention back to Naomi with a smile on his face. “Ask Jim to let us know at work?”
“Of course.”
Naomi looked towards the room full of children and smiled. “I think Ellie wants to talk to you.”
“Oh…wonder what he did…”
“Doesn’t mean he’s in trouble, Gil.” She placed her hand on his shoulder and
laughed. “I need to get
“Alright.”
He smiled at the small girl in her arms.
“Bye,
Grissom took a deep breath as he watched
Eleanor approach him. She’s smiling,
so it can be too bad…right?
“Hello, Mr. Grissom…”
“Hello, Ellie.
Please, call me Gil.”
“Okay, Gil.”
She laughed lightly as Mikey wrapped his arms around her leg. “Are you ready to go home, Weevil?”
“Yup!
Mommy is sweep. Gonna wake her
up!”
Grissom looked down as Ant whimpered. He unfastened the webbed belt and scooped the
young boy into his arms. “What’s wrong,
Anthony?”
“Dat’s And Daddy!”
“What is Ant short for, Weevil?”
The young boy thought about it for a moment,
and then smiled at his father.
“Andonie!”
“That’s right…”
Grissom soothingly rubbed Ant’s back as he looked at Ellie. “I’m sorry, Ellie. You needed to talk to me?”
“It’s okay, I know how hard it can be…” Ellie smiled in understanding. “Actually, I just wanted to tell you what a
joy young Weevil is. He was very helpful
today…”
A look of panic crossed Grissom’s face. “Helpful?”
Ellie laughed as she watched the father
standing in front of her. “He knows a
lot about bugs, doesn’t he?”
“Uh…yeah…he does. I’m an Entomologist. I think he’s taken after me a little in that
respect.” Grissom smiled as Ant giggled
at his big brother. He knelt down and
placed his youngest son back into the stroller and strapped him in. “Weevil?”
“Huh?”
“Will you watch your brothers for just a
second? They’ve missed you today.”
“My bubbas!”
Grissom and Ellie shared a smile as Weevil sat
down on the floor in front of the stroller and began talking softly to his
brothers.
“So, he was okay today?”
“He was fine, Gil. Really.”
She chuckled as relief shone on his face. “He’s a very well-behaved little boy. And…quite verbal for his age…”
“Yeah…”
He shook his head in amusement as he glanced down at his sons. “He’s definitely a talker.”
“Will he be back tomorrow?”
Weevil stood up quickly and looked at
Ellie. “Yup! I be back damarra!”
Ellie crouched down and pulled Mikey into a
hug. “Okay, then I’ll see you tomorrow,
Weevil.”
“O-tay!
Bye, Ewwie!”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Grissom smiled as the front door opened as he
carried Alex and Ant up the walkway to the house. Weevil bounded up the two steps to the front
porch, giggling happily when he saw his mother.
“Mommy!”
“Hi baby!
Did you have a good day today?”
“Yup! We
seed a moobie wif bugs in it!”
“Did you?”
She laughed as her son nodded enthusiastically. “What movie did you watch?”
He shrugged his small shoulders as Sara picked
him up and walked into the living room.
“Dunno. It wuz a ‘toon doe!”
“It was a cartoon? Wow!
Aren’t you a lucky boy?”
“Wucky!”
She set Mikey down on the floor and reached out
to take Ant from her husband’s arm.
Grissom smiled as she leaned into him and placed a soft kiss on his
lips.
“Missed you…”
“I missed you too. You were sleeping so well…I didn’t have the
heart to wake you.”
“It’s okay.
Thank you for leaving a note…”
He smiled as he leaned in for another
kiss. “Come on…Weevil’s anxious to tell
you about his day…”
Grissom shook his head lightly as his oldest son
flipped his mashed potatoes off of his plate.
“Weevil, quit making a mess…”
“Taytas!”
Grissom wiped up the discarded mush and glanced at
Sara before focusing his gaze on Mikey.
“Yes, they are potatoes. You eat
them, not play with them.”
His son scowled at him and promptly pushed his hand
into the small pile of potatoes that remained on his plate. Lifting his hand, his scowl turned into an
expression of panic. “DADDY!”
Grissom fought to stifle his laughter as Mikey held
his potato-covered hand towards him. “What?”
“OFF!” He shook
his hand, sending bits of potato flying in all directions.
Grissom gently grabbed his son’s arm, stopping his
movement. “Stop that; you’re making it worse.”
“OFF!” Mikey
screamed as tears began to well in his hazel eyes.
“Calm down, Michael.”
Grissom sighed heavily as he reached for the wet cloth that Sara handed
him. “Crying isn’t going to make it
better.”
His son’s lower lip quivered as the tears spilled down
his cheeks. “Off.”
Grissom quickly wiped Mikey’s hand clean of the food
and chuckled. “You know, if you hadn’t
decided that dinner was your new toy, that wouldn’t have happened.”
Mikey stuck his lip out in a pout and looked at his
mother. “Mommy.”
Sara smiled as she ruffled his hair. “See?
All better now. Daddy got rid of
it all for you.”
“Mess.”
“Yeah, you made a mess.” She lifted the young boy out of his
highchair. “Why don’t you go give Daddy
a big kiss for helping you, and then tell him that you’re sorry for making a mess.”
She placed him on the tiled floor and smiled as he
slowly shuffled towards his father.
Mikey looked up at Grissom with glistening eyes as he pulled himself
onto his father’s lap. Wrapping his arms
around Grissom’s neck, he sniffled lightly.
“Tank oo for hepping me, Daddy. I sowwy I maked a mess.”
Grissom felt his heart melt once more as Mikey placed
a sloppy kiss on his cheek. “Okay,
Weevil. You’re welcome. You just have to listen a little more closely
when I’m telling you something, okay?”
Mikey leaned back in Grissom’s arms and tilted his
head. “O-tay.”
“Why don’t you go in the living room and look at your
bug book while I help Mommy with the dishes.”
“Oo weed?”
Grissom chuckled as Mikey slid from his lap to the
floor. “Yes. I’ll read to you in a little while, okay?”
“O-tay!”
Grissom shook his head in slight amusement as Weevil
excitedly ran into the living room and grabbed his book.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The buglets were gurgling happily on a soft, fluffy
blanket on the living room floor as Grissom finished telling Weevil every
single detail of the chosen insect of the day.
Sara flashed her husband a warm smile as Weevil slid from the couch to
play with his brothers.
Grissom returned her smile as he tilted his head in
the same manner their oldest son had earlier.
“What?”
“He’s just like you…”
Grissom glanced at his three boys. “What do you mean?”
“The same excitement shows in his eyes when you talk
about bugs that I see in yours.”
Grissom blushed lightly, leaning over and pressing a
soft kiss to his wife’s lips. He pulled
back and gave her wink when he felt her start to deepen the kiss. “What are you doing?”
She shrugged her shoulders and grinned at him. A tiny hand tapping on Sara’s knee
interrupted the moment.
“Mommy!”
“Yes, Weevil?”
“Awec won’ wissen!”
Grissom’s brow furrowed quickly. “Excuse me?”
“Awec won’ wissen!”
Weevil repeated as he looked into the confused eyes of his father. “I tawk, he won’ wissen.”
Grissom chuckled lightly. “Alex and Ant are still too young to
talk. They’re not big boys, like you.”
“And wissens.”
Sara stole a quick glance at Grissom before speaking
to their son. “Weevil, what do you
mean?”
Weevil sighed heavily and turned back to the buglets
playing on the blanket. He walked up
beside of them and spoke Ant’s name. Ant
responded by looking up at his older brother and giggling. Weevil laughed and then spoke Alex’s
name.
Alex didn’t respond.
In fact, Alex didn’t even respond to the laughter from
his two brothers that was quickly filling the room.
Grissom’s jaw tightened. Sara’s heart lurched.
“See? Awec won’
wissen.” Weevil shrugged his shoulders
and sat down on the floor with his blocks.
Grissom swallowed the lump that had formed in his
throat and slid to the floor, with Sara following quickly. They knelt on the floor behind their youngest
boys. Taking a hesitant breath, Grissom
softly spoke Alex’s name.
Nothing.
He spoke a little louder.
Ant turned his head and smiled at his parents. Alex continued playing with the stuffed duck.
Grissom’s heart began to race. Sara’s warm hand on his arm didn’t calm
him. His eyes glistened as he once again
spoke his son’s name loud enough to distract Weevil from his blocks.
Ant giggled. Weevil
giggled. Alex’s fingers lost their grip
on the duck, but he still didn’t acknowledge his father’s voice.
“Oh, God…”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Brass glanced at the caller id on his cell phone as it
buzzed annoyingly. He chuckled and
flipped it open. “Dinner’s on for
tomorrow night. Thought I was supposed
to tell you that at work tonight?”
“Jim…”
Hearing the distressed tone in his friend’s voice, he
picked up the remote and muted the television.
“What’s wrong?”
“Do you know where Catherine is?”
“She took Lindsey to visit her grandmother, I think. Why?”
“I need her to work tonight.”
Brass chuckled nervously. “Good luck.
She’s had this planned for a couple of weeks. If I had to guess, she doesn’t have her cell
or her pager with her.”
“Shit…” The expletive
was whispered. The whisper was laced
with fear.
“Gil, what’s wrong?”
When Grissom didn’t reply within a few seconds, Brass took a deep
breath. “Is Sara okay?”
“Yeah…no.
I…uh…she’s okay.”
Brass narrowed his eyes. “What’s going on?”
“We need…to take Alex…to the doctor…”
Brass sat up quickly.
“What’s wrong?”
“He…he can’t…uh…he can’t hear us…”
“Gil…are you sure?”
“Dammit Jim! If
I wasn’t sure, would I call you looking for Catherine?”
“Calm down, Gil…”
“I have to call Ecklie.”
“Ecklie?”
Grissom exhaled forcefully, the frustration filling
his body. “I need to get a couple of
people to work tonight. Sara and I…we
can’t.”
“Let me…”
“What?”
Brass inhaled slowly.
“Let me call him. You take your
son to the ER, okay?”
“I…we…can’t leave until Jessie gets here.”
Brass nodded in understanding. “Give me 15 minutes. You and Sara get ready. I’ll watch Weevil and Ant until Jessie gets
there.”
“Are…are you sure?”
“Positive. I’ll
call Ecklie on the way over there.”
Brass heard the unmistakable sound of Sara sniffling
lightly as Grissom offered him a quiet ‘thank you’ and disconnected the
line.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“Conrad Ecklie.”
Brass buckled his seatbelt and backed out of his
driveway. “Ecklie…need a favor.”
Ecklie sighed dramatically. “What do you need, Jim?”
“Can we borrow two of your guys tonight?”
“Two? What the
hell for?”
Brass grit his teeth.
“Night shift is two short tonight.
Catherine is out of town…and…”
“Who’s not going in?”
“Does it matter?”
Brass gripped the steering wheel tightly and forced himself to remain
civil.
“Gil and Sara?
Again?”
“Look Conrad, they have to take one of their boys to
the hospital. You can either help out,
or I can talk to
A long pause followed.
With an extremely unhappy sigh, Ecklie informed him that he would have
two of his CSI’s work with Warrick and Nick.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Brass held Mikey in his arms as they watched the black
Tahoe back out of the driveway. Mikey’s
brow furrowed as he looked at Jim.
“Dim?”
“Yeah?”
“Is Awec sick?”
“I don’t know, Weevil.” Brass sighed softly. “We’ll find out soon.”
Mikey leaned his head on Jim’s shoulder and yawned
lightly. “Weed ta me?”
Brass smiled lightly as he walked over to the couch
and sat down. “Sure thing, buddy.”
Jim read to the young Grissom until Jessie
arrived. After briefing her on what was
going on, he said goodbye to Weevil and
Navigating through the night traffic on his way to
work, he inhaled deeply and hoped that he’d hear something from his friends
soon.
Sara looked up at her husband as Alex drifted
off to sleep. “Gil,
honey…stop pacing.”
He stopped and stared at her. Running his hand through his hair, he looked
down at his sleeping son. “This isn’t
happening…”
She sighed and motioned for him to sit down
beside her. His trembling hand lightly
stroked Alex’s head. Raising his gaze,
he looked into his wife’s eyes.
“Tell me this isn’t happening…”
“Gil, it could be nothing.”
His eyes darkened. “And it could be everything, Sara. How can you sit there so calmly?”
“If I were pacing back and forth like you, Alex
would still be awake.”
“Must be nice…”
He grumbled under his breath.
“Excuse me?”
Her eyes darkened as she stared at him.
“Do you think I’m not scared?
You’re wrong. So
wrong. I’m scared shitless,
Gil. But what is pacing going to do to
help? Tell me.”
His eyes softened somewhat as he inhaled
deeply. “I’m sorry, Sara. I didn’t mean to insinuate that this isn’t
bothering you…” He dropped his head into
his hands and closed his eyes. “I’m so
scared.”
She placed a hand on his back and rubbed
soothing circles over his spine. “Look
at me…”
She waited until his eyes were focused on hers
before she continued. “If it turns out
that he is deaf, and there’s nothing that can be done about it…will you love
him any less?”
His eyes widened as he shook his head
slowly. “No, of course
not. He’s my son. I’ll love him no matter what.”
She smiled lightly as she passed the sleeping
baby over to her husband. Her own panic began to subside as she watched
him cuddle Alex.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
A man, who appeared to be in his late 40’s,
walked into the examination room with a clipboard in his hand. He looked up as he closed the door behind
him.
“Mr. and Mrs. Grissom? My name is Dr. Rodriguez. It says here that there is a problem with
your child?”
Grissom placed Alex in Sara’s arms and sighed
softly. “We’re not sure he can hear.”
The doctor nodded, sat down on the stool and
rolled over to stop in front of them.
“How did you discover the problem?”
Sara smiled as Alex wrapped his hand around her
finger in his sleep. “His older brother
said he wasn’t listening to him…”
“Okay…”
He scanned down the short chart and looked at Grissom. “Any hearing problems in
the family?”
Grissom bit his bottom lip nervously as he
nodded. “My mother…and I…have
otosclerosis.”
Rodriguez watched the father carefully as he
asked the next question. “What treatment
did you have?”
“My mother had none. She’s completely deaf and has been for many
years. I had a stapedectomy performed a
couple of years ago.”
The doctor scribbled something on Alex’s chart
and lowered his voice. “And how is your
hearing now?”
Grissom’s eyes narrowed. “Fine. Can we talk about my son, please?”
“Mr. Grissom, I’m sure you know that
otosclerosis is normally a progressive disease.”
“I know about my disorder. I don’t know what’s wrong with my son’s
hearing. That’s why we’re here.”
Sara placed her hand on his forearm, silently
willing him to calm down. The doctor
noticed the motion and nodded. “I’m
sorry, sir. I’m not trying to irritate
you. I’m just trying to get as much
information before I examine the little guy.”
Grissom gave him a curt nod and covered Sara’s
hand with his own.
“How old is he?” Rodriguez asked quietly as he looked down at
the small boy.
“Four months.”
Sara responded as the doctor placed the tip of the otoscope into the
small
“Okay…the stapes look fine. No malformations.” He looked up at Sara and offered her a gentle
smile. “No fluid in the Eustachian
tubes. I would like to run a few x-rays,
though.”
“X-rays?” Sara glanced at Grissom quickly. “What do you think is wrong?”
“I just want to cover all of the bases, Mrs.
Grissom.” He smiled as the baby shifted
in Sara’s arms. “You can go in with him,
of course.”
Sara turned to Grissom, her eyes asking a
simple question.
Grissom nodded slowly and looked at the doctor
in front of him. “Okay…”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Grissom was holding his son and talking softly
to the smiling boy when the doctor returned with the film in his hand.
“Ah, he’s awake.”
Sara chuckled nervously. “Schedules…”
Rodriguez nodded quickly and then turned his
attention to the father. “Mr. Grissom, who performed your surgery?”
Grissom tilted his head slightly as he looked
at the doctor. “Glen Kanamori.”
“He’s one of the best specialists around. A very talented surgeon.”
Grissom nodded slowly as his brow
furrowed. “Yes. Yes, he is.”
The doctor licked his lips as he placed the
film on the lighted panel hanging on the wall.
Grissom glanced quickly at Sara as he placed a kiss on Alex’s forehead.
“Okay…”
The doctor pulled a pen from his pocket and pointed towards the
x-ray. “I can see something right
here. A small nodule,
of sorts.”
Sara attempted to swallow her panic. “A nodule?”
Dr. Rodriguez nodded slowly as he watched
Grissom place his arm around his wife’s shoulders. “It could be something…and it could be
nothing. I’m just not sure.”
Grissom held his son against his chest as he
placed a comforting kiss on Sara’s temple.
He turned his glistening eyes back towards the doctor. “What do we do now?”
“Well, I’m going to write out a referral for
Alex to see Dr. Kanamori.” He smiled lightly as Grissom continued to
stare at him. “That’s why I asked who
performed your stapedectomy. I thought
you may be more comfortable taking your son to see a doctor that you know.”
Grissom nodded slowly and tightened his arm
around his wife.
“I can go ahead and call his answering service
and set up an appointment, if you’d like.”
Sara inhaled deeply and looked at Grissom. Grissom swallowed nervously as his vision
became hazy through the unshed tears in his eyes. Not willing to trust his voice at the moment,
he merely nodded his consent.
Dr. Rodriguez offered a soft acknowledgement
and left the room to make the necessary phone call.
A tear slipped down Grissom’s cheek as he took
hold of Sara’s hand and stood up.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Sara turned to look at her husband as he
silently drove through the streets towards their home.
“Are you okay?”
“We should call Jim and let him know. He’s probably worried…”
She placed her hand on his thigh and gently
squeezed. “Gil…”
“We were there for a while. Jim will know who to tell and who not
to. I trust him with that…”
“Babe…”
He lifted his shaky hand and absently wiped his
eyes.
“Honey, pull over.”
“We need to get home…”
She lightly stroked his cheek as a tear
fell. “Please, pull over…”
He nodded silently and pulled into the parking
lot of a gas station. He killed the
engine and laid his head against the steering wheel.
Unbuckling her seatbelt, she leaned over and
ran her fingers through his hair. “It’s
going to be okay, baby…”
“Nodule…”
Her heart ached as she heard his soft whispered
word. “A nodule could be anything…or
nothing. You know that.”
He lifted his head and looked into her dark
eyes. “How can you be so calm right
now?”
She offered him a comforting smile and glanced
into the backseat. “Because…he’s
our son.”
“You’re scared too…”
She nodded slowly and caressed his
shoulder. “Petrified. But, look at him, Gil…”
She waited until he looked over his shoulder
and saw his young son sleeping peacefully in his carseat. “How gorgeous is he?”
“Completely…”
She smiled lightly and turned his face towards
hers. “There’s no pain, Gil. He just can’t hear.”
“Can you drive home?”
She wiped a remaining tear away. “Of course…are you okay?”
He nodded as he smiled softly. “I thought I’d give Jim a call on the way
home…and…watch him sleep.”
She inhaled deeply as he opened the door and
slid out of the driver’s seat. She
climbed out as well and, as they met in front of the black Tahoe, she placed
her hand on his chest.
“I love you, Gil.”
He bent his head slightly and placed a kiss on
her lips in a silent reply.
As Sara pulled out of the parking lot, Grissom
pulled his cell phone out of his jacket pocket and dialled the familiar number.
Jim Brass pulled his phone out of his pocket and,
after gruffly directing his officers to finish their jobs, flipped it open as
he slid into the driver’s seat of his unmarked cruiser.
“Brass.”
“Hi, Jim…”
“Gil…” He
closed the car door quietly and switched the phone to his other ear. “How’s Alex?”
“He…well, he has a nodule.” He felt Sara’s hand on his arm as he sighed.
“What’s that mean?”
“We’re not sure.
He has an appointment with Dr. Kanamori in the
morning…”
Brass leaned his head against the headrest and inhaled
slowly. “Kanamori?
Isn’t he the doctor who fixed you up?”
“Yeah…” Grissom
turned his head, a soft smile tugging at his lips as he watched Alex sleeping
peacefully in the backseat. “He can’t
hear. But…he’s not in pain. We’ll just have to wait and see what Kanamori has to say…”
“What time is the appointment?”
Grissom glanced at the paper in his hand. “
Brass quickly thumbed through his planner. “Okay…no court, no meetings…” He closed the binder and placed it on the seat. “Want me to come over and watch after Weevil and A