Sources

Chapter 12

Grissom squinted into the bright California sun before putting on his sunglasses. He watched Warrick finish the paperwork for the rental car and jog over to him, dangling the keys from his hand.

"I'll drive," said Grissom.

In the car, Warrick spread out a large map of the San Francisco Bay Area. The current address for Laura Sidle was listed as being in Walnut Creek. He charted a route easily, then stole a look at Grissom.

"Uh, you do realize it's almost time for our shift to start in Vegas."

Grissom grunted as he drove. "I don't care."

"Well, yeah, I don't care either, but I'm not the one who's gonna fry if the entire night shift doesn't show up for work."

"We are working. We're pursuing a missing persons case," Grissom said, annoyed. After a few seconds, he realized Warrick had a point. "I'll get Greg and Catherine to go in and cover any additional cases. If anyone calls, the rest of us are working on a missing person. Deal?"

"Deal."

Warrick saw Grissom's jaw tighten. "We've got to find her, War. If anything happened to her."

"I know, man. We'll find her."

They reached the rental home of Laura Sidle in half an hour. It was a small one-story house with a well-maintained yard. Grissom parked on the street, and they proceeded up the brick walkway to the front door. Warrick rang the bell twice before they heard a call from inside the house.

"Coming! Just give me a second!"

Warrick and Grissom stared at each other. The voice sounded just like Sara's.

The front door finally swung open. A tall woman with graying hair and chocolate brown eyes looked at them. "Hi," she said with an easy grin. "How can I help you boys?"

Grissom suddenly felt a dizzying pang of longing to see Sara. He wondered how this woman, with Sara's eyes and warm smile, could have possibly killed anyone, let alone her own husband.

"Ma'am, my name is Warrick Brown, and this is my colleague, Gil Grissom. We're with the Las Vegas Crime Lab."

Her smile faded at once. "Wh- what's happened to Sara?" Laura Sidle's eyes shone with fear. Grissom recognized that look. It was the same one he'd seen Sara wear on the surveillance tape.

"We don't know," Grissom said honestly. "She's missing. We're hoping you can help us find her."

She nodded, looking dazed. "Please, please come in."

Grissom felt an odd sense of déjà vu entering the living room, and realized that it was decorated almost exactly like Sara's. He closed his eyes briefly, steadying his nerves as they all took their seats.

"Mrs. Sidle, what can you tell us about what happened twenty years ago?"

Laura shook her head, uncertain. "Sara prefers that I not talk about it."

"There are some indications that it may be relevant to her disappearance. Please."

Reluctantly, she acquiesced. "I, uh. I'd been married to Michael for eighteen years. He was always very kind to me, but I wasn't in love with him. We ran our B&B and raised our kids, and I thought that would be enough for me. Then I met Bobby."

"Bobby?"

"Bobby Russo. He lived two houses over." She looked up at them uncomfortably. "I'd never been in love before. I'd heard it could make you blind, but I didn't know it would make me stupid."

Warrick leaned forward. "Stupid how?"

Laura frowned. "In spite of all the evidence, I couldn't see what he was doing to Sara. She'd walk in with a black eye and bruised wrists, and I suspected Michael. The first time, she wouldn't tell me who'd hurt her, and I think part of me was afraid to ask again. She's always been an observant girl, she knew I was head over heels for Bobby. So she kept his secret."

Grissom rubbed his beard. "What happened that night, Mrs. Sidle?"

Her face looked haunted. "I was washing dishes in the kitchen, and when I turned off the water I heard screams coming from Sara's room. I grabbed a knife from the drawer and ran up. Sara was cowering under the blankets while Michael beat Bobby senseless. I didn't realize." Her voice trailed off. "Bobby must have pulled his pants back up. There wasn't any indication that he'd been doing anything wrong. I'd suspected that Michael had been abusing Sara, and now he was trying to kill Bobby. So I ran at him with the knife. I thought I was saving them."

Grissom and Warrick watched her as she wiped the tears from her cheeks. "My husband was a good man. I should have known he'd never have laid a hand on Sara."

"Mrs. Sidle," Grissom said gently, "do you recognize this?" He placed the angel charm in her hands.

Laura smiled through her tears. "Of course. It belonged to Michael's mother. She was a devout Catholic. When Sara was twelve, her grandmother gave it to her to keep. She told her that she should always carry it with her, to protect her when Michael wasn't around."

"Grissom," Warrick said suddenly with wide eyes. "Saint Michael. The protector."

Grissom understood instantly. "Her father was the only person who tried to protect her from Bobby Russo."

He turned to Laura. "When was the last time you heard from Bobby, Mrs. Sidle?" She paled visibly, and he knew. "He visited you recently."

Laura nodded shakily. "A week ago. He found out I'd been paroled, and tracked me down. Said he still loved me and wanted to try to make it work. I told him to leave, to forget about me. I told him." She put her head in her hands.

"Told him what?"

"I told him. that I knew what he'd done to Sara. And I'd rather have a relationship with her than with him."

Grissom cocked his head in surprise. "You're in contact with Sara?"

"Not close contact," Laura admitted. "She called me on Mother's Day every few years while I was in prison. We'd only talk for five minutes, but it meant the world to me. She'd tell me about school or work, and I'd just listen. The first time she called, I tried to explain what had happened, why I'd killed Michael, but she stopped me and said I couldn't ever mention that night again."

"So she never knew that you thought you were protecting her."

"No, she never knew."

Grissom stared at Laura, understanding the pain of secretly loving Sara more than life itself.

"Mrs. Sidle," Warrick said, breaking the silence. "What did you say to Bobby about Sara?"

"I said that she had a wonderful life now, that she was an important investigator in Las Vegas and had finally moved on, and I wanted to do the same."

Grissom and Warrick looked at each other and stood simultaneously. "I'm going to call Catherine," Warrick said, stepping outside.

Grissom turned to Laura. "Mrs. Sidle, I know how painful this must have been for you. I assure you, you have been a huge help."

"You think it was Bobby." Her voice was flat.

"Yes, I think it was," he said carefully. He watched a tear slide down her cheek.

"Make sure you check the closets," she whispered.

He didn't understand. "What closets?"

"When you find Bobby, check his closets. Sara testified that Bobby used to lock her in her closet until she begged him to rape her. He knew she was claustrophobic and used it to his advantage."

Grissom felt his heart break. Laura looked up at him.

"She's mentioned you, you know. Several times. I hope you are treating her well."

He looked away in shame. "Like you said, love can make you stupid. But I swear to you, when we find her, I'll never let her go."

To his surprise, she gave him a quick hug. When she pulled away, both their eyes were wet.

"Griss." Warrick stood in the doorway.

"Right. We've got to go. Mrs. Sidle, I'll call you as soon as we know anything."

He and Warrick ran out to the car. "We've got a flight back home leaving in an hour," Warrick said as Grissom pulled into traffic. "Catherine's checking travel, rental car, and hotel records for a Bobby or Robert Russo."

"He won't be in a hotel," Grissom said with certainty. "He'd need a place where he could have privacy."

"Well, he was in jail for ten years after Sara testified against him. Maybe one of his old cellmates lives in Vegas. I'll put Greg on it."

Grissom nodded, driving as fast as he could without being reckless. He forced himself not to think about what would happen if they found Bobby Russo too late.

Warrick hung up with Greg and put his hand on Grissom's shoulder awkwardly. "We'll find her, boss. I promise, we'll find her."