FADE IN:
[CU: WILLIE CUTLER'S EYES & SWEATY BROW]
FADE TO
[CU: GUN]
(Willie Cutler raises the gun.)
FADE TO:
[WILLIE CUTLER]
(Willie Cutler fires twice.)
(EXTREME SLOW MOTION. The two bullets whiz through the air and across the room.)
(One of the bullets hits Brass in the chest, past the bullet-proof vest he's wearing. He grunts at the impact. His eyes grow wide.)
(Brass falls back to the floor.)
(Behind him, the door bursts open. SWAT runs into the room.)
SWAT LEADER: (distorted) Get the paramedics.
CUT TO:
[BRASS' POV]
(We hear the sounds of a heart-monitoring machine beating regularly.)
(Warrick leans over him, hovering next to the SWAT LEADER attending to Brass. He looks worried.)
(HOLD on Brass, his face filled with fear. The room breaks out into commotion, both on screen and off.
SWAT LEADER: Hang in there, Jim, hang in there.
SWAT LEADER: Right here. Right here. Good job.
(Warrick moves aside. Brass is surrounded by SWAT trying to help him. Someone presses a white towel to his wound.)
CUT TO:
(The paramedics arrive and are working on Brass. He's still on the floor, blood smudged over his face, his eyes glassy and in shock.)
VOICE: Sir, sir, can you see me?
VOICE: Sir, can you hear me?
(Brass' hand reaches up wildly in the air.)
(Brass is removed from the room.)
[BRASS' POV]
(The hallway ceiling moves as he is pulled through the corridor on the gurney.)
(Blurry flashes of the paramedics pulling the gurney.)
(Blurry flashes of the casino lobby's ceiling.)
(Blurry flashes of the ambulance as Brass is put in the back.)
(Blurry flashes of the paramedics working on Brass in the ambulance.)
DISTORTED VOICE: Sir, stay with me.
DISTORTED VOICE: Sir?
DISTORTED VOICE: He's got a pulse of 120.
(The paramedic shines a light in Brass' eyes.)
WHITE FLASH TO:
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - ER - TRAUMA HALLWAY - NIGHT]
BRASS' POV
(The ceiling passes by as Brass is rolled quickly through the corridor. His eyes are open and he's still conscious. He sees images of the paramedics and of people in the hallways as he's wheeled by.)
SMASH CUT TO:
RESUME TIME:
(The emergency doors burst open and the paramedics quickly fill in the physician and nurses on the situation.)
PARAMEDIC: (quickly) Fifty-five year-old male, GSW left anterior chest, entering at the level of the deltoid and ac joint. Minimally responsive. He's a cop.
ON BRASS:
(His vision's blurry and he's still conscious.)
PARAMEDIC: (echo-y) Tachycardic in the 120s, BP's 86 over 40 and dropping, 02 stats in the 80s with assisted ventilation ...
(The attending physician looks at him as everyone works on him.)
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Okay, we're losing a lot of blood here. (fades in and out) We need two large-bore IV's. Run the fluids wide, he's extremely hypotensive.
NURSE: We need to get a --
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Absent breath sounds on the left. Likely pneumothorax.
Let's put in a chest tube and pressors for that BP stat.
(Brass' raised hand suddenly falls. The heart monitor flatlines at zero.)
FADE OUT.
CUE SOUND: WHINE OF A DEFIBRILATOR POWERING UP
[BRASS]
(Brass's body lurches as the paddles are charged and pressed to his chest. The heart monitor continues to flatline.)
NURSE: Still in v-fib.
(The heart monitor is at zero.)
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Three hundred!
(The paddles whine as they're powered up.)
NURSE: Three hundred!
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Clear!
(Brass' body lurches again as the paddles are charged and pressed to his chest.)
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Come on. Come on!
(The physician waits for a response. Suddenly.)
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Three-sixty!
NURSE: Three-sixty!
ATTENDING PHYSICIAN: Clear!
(The paddles are pressed to his chest. Brass' body lurches. The heart monitor
starts beeping rapidly, the number at 192.)
NURSE: (o.s.) Out of v-fib.
(Brass gurgles. But he's breathing.)
BRASS: (v.o.) I envy these parents who live in ignorant bliss because ...
DISSOLVE TO:
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - BRASS' OFFICE - NIGHT -- FLASHBACK]
(Brass is talking.)
BRASS: ... I know how my daughter Ellie lives. I know the company she keeps and I know what she does to get by. And ... (he shakes his head) ... anyway, I mean, I'm ... I'm ... a couple of nights ago I'm in LA and sitting in my car on Hollywood Boulevard watching her work a corner and my eyes are playing tricks on
me because I don't see what she's doing, I see what she was. I see a little six year-old girl with a ponytail, playing with crayons ... singing a little tune to herself. It's ... I don't know, all I want to do is save her.
(Grissom is in the room, listening.)
BRASS: But the thing is, you know, if something happened to me ... I don't think Ellie would, uh ... care.
(He picks up the papers off the desk and hands them to Grissom to look at.)
BRASS: So I'm asking you to do me this favor. There's no one I trust more with my life, or my death ... than you.
RESUME SCENE:
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - ER - TRAUMA HALLWAY - NIGHT]
(The surgeon talks with Grissom. Undersheriff Jeff McKeen is there.)
SURGEON: Captain Brass was shot twice. First bullet lodged in his vest.
Second entered through his axilla, hit an artery, and is lodged near his heart.
He's has internal hemorrhaging.
GRISSOM: Any neural damage?
SURGEON: We won't know until we stop the bleeding. If we stop it. (then)
Have next-of-kin been notified?
GRISSOM: For, uh, medical purposes, I have his power of attorney.
(The surgeon nods.)
SURGEON: You may have a decision to make. (then) I'll let you know.
(The surgeon turns and exits. Grissom's phone starts ringing. He answers it.)
GRISSOM: (to phone) Grissom. Yeah. (long pause) Okay.
(Grissom hangs up and looks at McKeen.)
GRISSOM: DB in Henderson on the train tracks.
MCKEEN: I'll take the first watch. You go to work.
(Grissom turns and exits. He turns the corner and there are officers there in
the hallway also waiting.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. TRAIN TRACKS -- NIGHT]
(Grissom and Sofia Curtis walk down the train tracks toward the dead body.
Grissom is carrying his kit.)
SOFIA CURTIS: I just spoke with McKeen. I heard it's bad.
GRISSOM: Pretty bad. They're trying to stabilize him.
(They walk up to the headless body. David Phillips is there examining the body with Nick.)
SOFIA CURTIS: The last train passed through here an hour ago. The engineer thought he saw a body on the track, but couldn't stop on time. He radioed dispatcher, who called 911.
NICK: No ID. Probably decapitated by the train.
GRISSOM: Well, if scavengers nicked his clothes, they left a nice pair of riding boots.
NICK: They probably didn't have time to finish the job before other trains roared through here.
SOFIA CURTIS: Well, the engineer isn't saying anything else until his union rep gets here, which ... could be a while. I'll let you know.
GRISSOM: Great.
(Sofia walks away while Grissom puts his kit down.)
NICK: You know, there's not a lot of blood on the ground for a decapitation
like this.
GRISSOM: Well, we don't know how far he was dragged. Where's the head?
NICK: I'll find it.
(Nick turns and walks along the tracks. Grissom looks around the area and finds
a toupee off the tracks.)
GRISSOM: Hey, Nick?
NICK: Yeah?
GRISSOM: I think I found a toupee. Our vic may be bald.
NICK: (dryly) Thanks, that will help me distinguish it from the other severed
heads I find out here.
(Grissom nods and heads back to look at the body. David is just unbuttoning the
man's undershirt and opens it to reveal an hour-glass figure.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: Whoa.
(Grissom shines his light on the victim's body.)
GRISSOM: What a waist.
SMASH CUT TO
END OF TEASER
ROLL TITLE CREDITS
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN:
[EXT. TRAIN TRACKS -- NIGHT]
(David inserts a thermometer in the victim's torso. He pulls the thermometer
out and marks the torso.)
GRISSOM: David, are you getting the liver temp or performing acupuncture?
(Sara arrives at the scene and puts her kit down. David sticks the thermometer
in again.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: Well, his liver's not where it's supposed to be.
(He pulls the thermometer out.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: Do you think this is some kind of birth defect?
(He turns and looks at Sara and Grissom. Grissom looks at Sara.)
GRISSOM: What do you think?
SARA: I think I feel fat.
(David inserts the thermometer in the torso and finds the liver.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: Yes. Got the liver.
(Sara sticks her hands in her pockets and thinks about it.)
SARA: Suicide?
(Quick flash to: [NIGHT] The victim puts his head on the railroad tracks. In
the distance, a train whistle blows and the train lights shine.)
SARA: (v.o.) A guy loses his shirt at the tables, decides to take a permanent
nap on the tracks.
(The train whistle blows, arrives at the site and runs over the body on the
tracks. The man screams.)
RESUME TO SCENE:
GRISSOM: Well, he died with his boots on.
(They turn and look at the body.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. LAS VEGAS SKYLINE - ESTABLISHING - DAY]
[INT. UPSCALE APARTMENT BUILDING - HALLWAY -- DAY]
(The super leads Catherine down the hallway. The guy is talking continuously.)
SUPER: You don't have to go through the dude's mail. Name's Manny Rupert.
He's a new tenant. Paid first and last in cash.
(Catherine doesn't say anything. The super continues.)
SUPER: We got a lot of party people around here. You know, so there's loud
music every night, but this dude was pumping tunes at seven in the morning. You
know, I knock on the door, I go in, that's when I see the dude all laid out on
the bed. Uh, figured I better step out, call in the big guns. That's you.
(They reach the front door and someone off screen greets them. They wave back.)
(Catherine turns to enter the room. The super stops outside the door, offended
by Catherine's lack of response to him.)
SUPER: Um, listen ... if my good citizenship is not going to be appreciated
here, maybe I just don't call the next one in, you know?
(Catherine pops back out of the apartment.)
CATHERINE: Just stay here and shut up. I'll be back to take your prints,
assuming they're not already in the system.
SUPER: Um ... okay.
(Catherine turns her flashlight on and enters the darkened apartment.)
[INT. UPSCALE APARTMENT - CONTINUOUS]
(Warrick is already inside looking at the various half-eaten food items on the
counter. Empty booze and beer bottles litter the countertops.)
(CUT WIDE: Catherine steps into the trashed apartment. The place looks as if
there was a wild party there. She heads for the body on the bed. Dr. Robbins
is already there examining the body.)
(Warrick snaps a photo of a white powdery substance on a glass plate, the joint
and pills on the countertop.)
(Catherine gets closer to the body on the bed and sees there's a plate of
cocaine lines and joints on the bed next to the body.)
CATHERINE: Which of the seven deadly sins are not represented here?
ROBBINS: Petecchial hemorrhaging. Could be from vomiting or asphyxiation.
(Catherine nods.)
WARRICK: This guy was rolling on all cylinders. He was bound to throw a rod.
CATHERINE: Or somebody threw it for him. Pillow or a hand on the face
certainly could've done the trick.
(Robbins tries to open the victim's jaw and finds it pliable.)
ROBBINS: Well, based on the lack of rigor, TOD's three or four hours ago; tell
you more after we clean him up and open him up.
(Warrick finds the victim's wallet on the countertop mess. He opens it and
checks it.)
WARRICK: Wallet's empty.
(Catherine looks at the broken mirror hanging on the wall and the glass on the
floor.)
CATHERINE: You know what they say, it's not a real party till somebody breaks
something.
(Catherine kneels down and checks the broken glass.)
CATHERINE: I got blood.
(Warrick finds a gun in the bedside drawer.)
WARRICK: I got a noisemaker.
(Catherine looks around as Warrick pulls the drawer out to snap a photo of the
gun inside.)
(Catherine looks at the wall.)
CATHERINE: Bullet holes. (She stands up.) Somebody shot out the mirror.
ROBBINS: No apparent gunshot wounds on the vic.
(Catherine takes her jacket off.)
CATHERINE: Let's get busy, boys.
CUT TO:
[EXT. TRAIN TRACKS -- DAY]
(Train #100 rolls down the tracks. The train whistle blows.)
(Up on the tracks, Nick walks along the bridge, holding his camera. He walks
off the bridge and climbs down the side toward the stream.)
(He peers inside a barrel with some still-burning contents inside. He snaps
photos of the contents. He looks inside and around. He picks up a metal pole
and uses it to pick up an item from the bottom of the barrel. He looks at it,
then puts it back inside.)
(He drops the pole and moves to the side of the stream, something catching his
eye. He kneels down and moves away some branches to expose a head.)
(Nick reaches down and picks up the head.)
CUT TO:
[INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY]
(Sara stands on a ladder and snaps photos of the headless body on the table
while David Phillips examines what he can.)
(He reaches over to the side and picks up the head. He matches the head to the
body.)
(Sara continues to snap photos.)
INTERCUT WITH:
[INT. CSI - LAB - DAY]
(In another lab, Nick uses a shovel and takes the barrel contents out and pours
them into a sifting pan on the table.)
(He sets the shovel aside and starts to sift the pan, the dirt falling out from
the bottom and onto another pan on the table. He sifts through it all and
fingers through the larger itemed content left in the pan.)
(He picks up a button and blows on it. He wipes it and sees the eagled-shaped
pattern on it.)
[INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY]
(Sara leans forward and looks at the torso through a magnifying glass. She
picks some fibers off the body and looks at it.)
[INT. CSI - LAB - DAY]
(Nick continues to go through the items in the pan.)
CUT TO:
[INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY]
(CAMERA MOVES across the monitor with the images of the head next to the body's
neck.)
(Grissom walks in the room to listen to Robbins' findings.)
ROBBINS: This man's organs were displaced. It's similar to the way a pregnant
woman's internal organs get rearranged to compensate for her expanding uterus.
(He points to a scar on the skin.) Some of these blisters are fresh. But
there's evidence of scarring and irritation going back years. It all suggests a
consistent long-term pressure on the waist.
(Robbins places the palm of his hand on the torso's stomach.)
(Camera zooms into the victim's torso to a CGI IMAGE of the organs inside the
rib cage. We hear squeezing sounds and see the organs shift and move upward to
accommodate the pressure.)
WHITE FLASH BACK TO SCENE:
GRISSOM: So what? Torture or self-inflicted?
ROBBINS: I don't know. But either way, it must have been agonizing.
GRISSOM: I'm beginning to sense that COD was not decapitation.
ROBBINS: (points) There's a bullet hole ... COD, shot to the head with this.
(Robbins hands Grissom a pan with a flattened bullet inside.)
GRISSOM: It looks like lead. .44 caliber is my guess.
ROBBINS: That's a cannon.
CUT TO:
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY LIGHTS (STOCK) - SUNSET]
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - CORRIDOR -- DAY]
(The surgeon talks with Grissom.)
SURGEON: We managed to stop the bleeding, but his condition is critical.
GRISSOM: What are the options?
SURGEON: We could try to remove the bullet.
GRISSOM: What are the risks?
SURGEON: If we go in, the vertebral artery could be impacted. He could bleed
out or stroke out. Permanent incapacitation.
GRISSOM: And without surgery?
SURGEON: The bullet could migrate into the artery and, again, cause a stroke or
kill him. Or it could stay there for years and do nothing. He might never wake
up.
GRISSOM: What are the odds?
SURGEON: Mr. Grissom, this isn't a casino. I don't give odds. It's your call.
GRISSOM: Do it.
(Grissom nods at him.)
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - BRASS' ROOM -- NIGHT]
(Brass is unconscious on the bed - heart monitors beep, ventilators extend from
his mouth, IV lines run from his arms. Nurses sit nearby charting and
monitoring his stats.)
(Camera pans across the room to the hallway window. Grissom is standing outside
and is on the phone. He's holding a yellow note.)
ELLIE: (answering machine) Hi, it's Ellie. You know the drill.
(The answering machine beeps.)
GRISSOM: (to phone) Ellie, this is Gil Grissom from the Las Vegas Crime Lab.
I'm a friend of your father's.
[CU: ANSWERING MACHINE]
(Grissom's voice continues over the machine, a pack of matches on the table
nearby.)
GRISSOM: (from phone) I'm sorry to have to tell you this, but your dad's been
shot.
(Camera pulls back and we see Ellie smoking a cigarette, listening to the
message as it records.)
GRISSOM: (from phone) And his condition is serious.
(She inhales, long and slow from the cigarette.)
GRISSOM: (from phone) I think you should come and see him. It would help him
a lot. Please call me at 702-555-0141.
(She exhales, a long cloud of white smoking streaming out her lips. She closes
her eyes and taps the cigarette ash into the tray.)
FADE OUT.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN:
[INT. CSI - HALLWAY -- DAY]
(Hodges reports his findings to Nick as they talk and walk down the hallway.)
HODGES: White residue on your guy's so-called waist was topical cortisone,
prescription strength.
(He hands the report to Nick to look over.)
NICK: The guy had an itch.
HODGES: He was doing more than scratching. Topical doesn't get absorbed into
the bloodstream. But Henry says that the guy's blood was flooded with
cortisone.
(They turn the corner and enter the Trace Lab.)
[INT. CSI - TRACE LAB - DAY - CONTINUOUS]
(Nick walks in and puts the report on the counter. Hodges follows.)
NICK: That makes sense, as much orthopedic pain as the guy was in.
(Hodges is silent. Nick catches him looking at him.)
NICK: Hey, you checking out my waist?
HODGES: I'm a 32-incher myself. Same as in college.
NICK: Oh. Congratulations.
HODGES: Women aren't the only ones who feel the pressure to look good. Time
was, having a rotund belly was a sign of prosperity and success. Now it just
means you're a lazy glutton, not getting any.
NICK: Fibers.
HODGES: The fibers from the victim's long johns are consistent with the fibers
found in the burned-up clothes.
(He points to the scope. Nick looks in the scope at the fibers.)
[INSERT SCOPE VIEW: FIBERS]
NICK: Means those were the clothes he was wearing.
HODGES: Raw wool, dyed grey.
NICK: Did you get a manufacturer?
HODGES: No one from my database. But I did find pomegranate berry extract used
to turn wool dye in the 1800s.
[INSERT SCOPE VIEW: DIFFERENT FIBERS VIEW]
NICK: There's insect activity all over these fibers. Maybe moths or mites.
Check it out.
(Hodges looks at the scope.)
HODGES: Means that the fabric was old. Vintage clothing, maybe?
NICK: Maybe. Did you analyze the bone fragments?
HODGES: I'm only one highlygifted person.
(Nick sighs. That means no. He leaves the lab.)
HODGES: I'll let you know.
[INT. CSI - HALLWAY - DAY -- CONTINUOUS]
(Grissom is walking through the hallway when Nick finds him.)
NICK: You been to the hospital?
GRISSOM: They're prepping him for surgery.
NICK: I'll keep good thoughts.
CUT TO:
[INT. CSI - LAB -- DAY]
(Henry Andrews reports to Warrick.)
HENRY ANDREWS: Mr. Party till I drop. His blood alcohol level was .28.
WARRICK: Point two-eight?! That's barely conscious for most people. That's
like falling down drunk.
HENRY ANDREWS: Drunk just gets you in the door. We're also talking cocaine,
opiates, barbiturates, methamphetamine, MDMA, THC. Serum was milky white with
triglycerides.
WARRICK: Wow. If it was illegal, fun or nasty, this guy was into it.
WENDY SIMMS: (o.s.) Yeah, I'll say.
(They turn and Wendy Simms walks into the lab with her own report.)
WENDY SIMMS: I just analyzed the secretion swabs you collected from his body.
WARRICK: Was there enough for DNA?
WENDY SIMMS: Oh, yeah. The donor's female. She's consistent with both the
blood from the mirror and the pubic hair from the victim's mouth. And then I
ran the profile through CODIS, and you got really lucky.
(She hands Warrick the file folder and photo.)
WENDY SIMMS: She's a local prostitute. She's in the system for a trick roll.
CUT TO:
[INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY]
(Robbins reports his findings to Catherine.)
ROBBINS: There's evidence of sexual activity in every orifice, including his
ears.
CATHERINE: You joking?
ROBBINS: No. We've got pubic hairs, vaginal secretions.
CATHERINE: Maybe he suffocated during oral sex.
ROBBINS: Would you care to move on to stomach contents?
CATHERINE: Guess we're done with the appetizers.
ROBBINS: Well, the main course was enough alcohol and cake to cater a wedding.
CATHERINE: Well, at least he went out in style, hmm?
(Quick flashback to: [APARTMENT ROOM] FAST FORWARD. The man and two women
gorge themselves on food, drink and drugs. They move to the bed. They move out
of the bed and back to the counter for more food, drink and drugs.)
BACK TO SCENE:
ROBBINS: Alone, maybe none of it would've been fatal, but taken all together
...
CATHERINE: ... means he died with a smile on his face.
ROBBINS: Among other things.
(Catherine and Robbins share a chuckle. The door opens and David Phillips
enters with a covered body on a gurney.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: (absently) Hey. Just came from the hospital.
(Suddenly, all laughter and levity dies in the room. Catherine stares at David,
her mouth open with shock and horror.)
(He looks at their reaction and realizes what they must be thinking.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: Oh. No, no. (points to the body) Traffic fatality.
(Catherine's eyes close with relief.)
DAVID PHILLIPS: Sorry.
(Catherine covers her eyes.)
CUT TO:
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - OR WAITING ROOM -- DAY]
(Camera pans across the room. Nurses move around inside. Out in the hallway,
Grissom turns the corner and sees Greg sitting on a chair.)
GRISSOM: Where's McKeen?
(Greg stands up.)
GREG: (joking) I sent him home. (then) Just kidding. He, uh, went to get
something to eat. Brass just went into surgery.
(There are other officers in the hallway waiting.)
GREG: You two have known each other for a long time.
GRISSOM: We've worked together ever since he came from New Jersey.
GREG: Just between you and me, does he always wear a suit? Like when you guys
go to dinner, the movies or whatever it is you do when you hang out. 'Cause I
got to tell you, thought of him in a sweater kind of freaks me out.
GRISSOM: We don't "hang out," Greg.
GREG: No kidding. (shrugs) I just assumed ...
(In the silence, voice off screen rises. Grissom turns to look.)
ELLIE BRASS: (o.s.) What do you mean consent was given? Nobody has asked my
consent to do anything, and I'm his daughter.
NURSE: (o.s.) I understand you're upset, miss, but there's no need to take
that tone.
(He turns the corner and sees Ellie Brass at the nurse's station. He walks up
to her.)
ELLIE BRASS: Look, I'm just here to see my father, okay? He's a cop.
NURSE: He's in surgery. The only thing you can do right now is take a seat and
wait until he gets out.
GRISSOM: Excuse me, Ellie?
ELLIE BRASS: What?
GRISSOM: I'm Gil Grissom. Thanks for coming.
ELLIE BRASS: So I guess you're the one who's in charge. How long is his
surgery going to take?
GRISSOM: Probably a few hours.
ELLIE BRASS: Look, I just got off a bus, I would really like to take a shower
and change and maybe get a little rest. Do you have the keys to his house?
GRISSOM: No.
ELLIE BRASS: Well, you're a cop, right? How 'bout you just let me in?
GRISSOM: You know, there's a motel just down the street. I'll get you a room.
ELLE BRASS: Do you want to check my arms? (She pulls up her sleeves.) Go
ahead. All right? It looks like Daddy already told you all about me. I don't
even know why I bothered to come.
(She grabs her bag off the counter, turns and storms away.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - DAY]
[INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE -- DAY]
(Grissom is sitting in his office looking through a book when Sara walks in
carrying a file folder.)
SARA: How's it going? You okay?
(She puts a hand on his shoulder. He looks at her.)
GRISSOM: I'm okay.
(She looks at him for a moment, assessing. She then looks at the book he's
flipping through. A book with picture ads for MADAME DOWDING.)
SARA: That's a ... man in a corset.
GRISSOM: Corset-training. A venerable practice.
SARA: Maybe for Scarlett O'Hara. Since when was it equal opportunity?
GRISSOM: In Victorian times, it was considered a staple of masculine attire.
Students in British boarding schools were encouraged to lose an inch a year from
the time they were 14 on.
(Sara takes a breath and sits down.)
SARA: I guess I should feel comforted that sadistic ideas of beauty aren't
restricted to women.
GRISSOM: Mmn.
(He flips to the next page - a photo of a man with a tiny waist. The headline
on top reads, "BODY PLAY.")
GRISSOM: It's called a wasp-waist, which is revealing. A wasp is from the
insect group hymenoptera. The notion of hymen indicates virginity. In
predacious wasps, the genitalia no longer function as a reproductive organ.
It's used as a stinger.
SARA: Go in for sex and get stung. Pretty much every man's fear.
GRISSOM: (nods) Mm. (beat) The victim was shot, body dumped, clothes burned.
(She gives him the file folder.)
SARA: The corset, too. The bone fragments that Nick found at the crime scene
were whalebone, which is what they used to make corsets out of. Where did you
learn so much about corsets?
GRISSOM: (enigmatically) I have my sources.
CUT TO:
[EXT. LAS VEGAS SKYLINE (STOCK) - ESTABLISHING - DAY]
[INT. ANTIQUE CLOTHING STORE -- DAY]
(CAMERA MOVES PAST an old sewing machine and trays of various items, stacks of
books, mannequins in old clothes. Victorian suits and dresses and other turn-
of-the-century items.)
MR. PHILLIPE: (o.s.) The embroidery is Chinese, silk. The lace is made from
hand-tatted linen thread. Ribs are pure whalebone. They don't make them like
this anymore.
(Mr. Phillipe is talking with Sara while showing her an antique whalebone corset
on a female mannequin bust.)
SARA: I'm sure the whales appreciate that. How many, if any, do you sell to
men?
MR. PHILLIPE: More than you'd think. Many men with back problems have remarked
how much better a boned-tabbed Elizabethan corset feels than a steel back brace.
SARA: Oh. Uh, let's focus on your customers that don't have back problems.
MR. PHILLIPE: Ms. Sidle, people's private lives are their own business. I
don't want to ...
SARA: (interrupts patiently) Mr. Phillipe, I have a dead man with a 19-inch
waist and no way to identify him. Any help at all would be appreciated.
MR. PHILLIPE: Do you have a picture?
SARA: I have a head shot.
(She opens the file folder and shows him the photo of the victim's head, cleaned
up and on the autopsy table.)
(Mr. Phillipe starts hyperventilating.)
MR. PHILLIPE: Oh, my God, that's, uh, that's, uh, Caleb Carson. He comes in
once a year for a re-stitch and, uh, reinforcement.
SARA: Is he into pain, masochism?
MR. PHILLIPE: I don't know.
SARA: How about cross-dressing?
MR. PHILLIPE: I seriously doubt that.
SARA: How come?
MR. PHILLIPE: Mr. Carson never spoke much, but he was the type of man who, when
he came into the store, if I were sitting down, I'd immediately stand up. He
treated me like a servant. And, truth be told, he actually made me feel like
one.
SARA: I'm going to need his address.
CUT TO:
[INT. CARSON RESIDENCE -- DAY]
(Sara and Sofia enter Caleb Carson's residence. They look around at the various
civil war memorabilia in the large room. Sofia stops in front of a portrait.)
SOFIA CURTIS: Colonel Caleb "C.C." Carson. 1864.
(They look at the portrait.)
SARA: Resembles the victim. At least from the neck up.
(They share a smile and soft chuckle.)
(They note the various photos on the fireplace mantle.)
SOFIA CURTIS: These are civil war-era photos.
SOFIA CURTIS: They didn't smile much back then.
SARA: Subjects had to hold completely still for five minutes. Otherwise, the
exposure would blur. It hurt to hold a smile.
SOFIA CURTIS: Bet these hurt more.
(Sofia looks down at the collection of guns and bullets in the display case.
She leans forward and looks at the bullets.)
SOFIA CURTIS: It's the same caliber killed the vic.
SARA: They don't make 'em like they used to.
FADE OUT.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN:
[INT. CARSON RESIDENCE -- DAY]
("Dixie" and gunfire play on recording in the background. The camera shows
various close-ups of various Civil War soldiers - both blue and the gray in a
recreation of a battle display. We see various views of the toy soldiers by the
light of a flashlight.)
(Grissom reaches down and picks up a toy piece and looks at it closely. Sofia
walks in.)
SOFIA CURTIS: Warrick just called from the hospital. They got the bullet.
GRISSOM: How's he doing?
SOFIA CURTIS: He hasn't regained consciousness yet.
GRISSOM: This fellow seems to have lost his way.
SOFIA CURTIS: Is this Gettysburg?
GRISSOM: You into military history?
SOFIA CURTIS: My dad was. Used to spend the summer touring Pennsylvania in an
RV, so I could learn things.
GRISSOM: You were a lucky girl.
(Sofia smiles.)
GRISSOM: Pickett's charge, I think. The Confederates advanced from this
position to Cemetery Ridge. They marched to their doom, but kept their honor.
Carson obviously was a son of the South.
[INT. CARSON RESIDENCE - BEDROOM -- DAY]
(Sara is printing the back of a corset on a mannequin bust when Sofia and
Grissom walk in.)
SOFIA CURTIS: Looks comfortable.
GRISSOM: Well, he was into discipline and self-denial.
SARA: This corset ties from the back, which means Mr. Carson couldn't have tied
the laces by himself.
INSERT: FLASHBACK
(Caleb Carson is in the bedroom wearing a corset as a second man tightens it for
him.)
SARA: (v.o.) He had to have help.
(He turns around and faces the camera.)
RESUME TO SCENE:
(Grissom looks down and sees a photo on the table. He opens the frame and
inside is an old photo of a man wearing a corset.)
(Sara tape-lifts the print off the corset. Grissom shows the photo to Sofia.)
GRISSOM: Seems to run in the family.
(He flips the photo over and shows it to Sara.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - CORRIDOR -- DAY]
(Warrick is walking outside and talking on the phone when he sees Ellie smoking
and waiting.)
WARRICK: (to phone) Oh, I don't really know. I ... you know what? Let me call
you back, okay?
(Warrick walks over to Ellie.)
WARRICK: Ellie? (She turns around and sees Warrick.) Hey. You know your
father's out of surgery.
ELLIE BRASS: Yeah. How's he doing?
WARRICK: It's a little too early to tell, but I know when he wakes up, he'll be
happy to see you.
ELLIE BRASS: You think so?
WARRICK: I know so. You look good.
ELLIE BRASS: Yeah, you mean I don't look like a crack whore anymore?
WARRICK: That's not what I meant, but no.
ELLIE BRASS: Does he ever talk about me? (Warrick remains silent.) That's a
no.
WARRICK: Look, what do you want me to say, hmm? It's not really about you
right now, okay? But the fact that you're here is saying a lot.
(She finishes up her cigarette, tosses it on the ground and smashes it out.)
ELLIE BRASS: Yeah, well, thanks for clearing that up for me.
(Ellie walks away.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. LAS VEGAS SKYLINE - ESTABLISHING - DAY]
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM -- DAY]
(OPEN on Catherine.)
CATHERINE: Remember that trick roll that you pled out last year?
(Catherine is interviewing Sindee, a hooker.)
SINDEE: I have no idea what you're talking about.
CATHERINE: Your DNA in our database says that you do. (beat) We found your
blood in Manny Rupert's apartment, with him lying there dead. (She swallows.)
If you Belushi'd the guy, maybe you didn't mean to. Now would be the time to
say it.
SINDEE: Look, I'm the victim here.
CATHERINE: Funny, you don't look dead.
SINDEE: (sighs heavily) Look, the whole night started out normal, okay? I
mean, he paid for everything. He was kind of fun.
WHTIE FLASH TO:
[INT. UPSCALE APARTMENT - NIGHT -- FLASHBACK]
(The champagne cork pops. In the background, Manny and Sindee are kneeling on
the bed as Manny pours champagne down Sindee's open mouth.)
SINDEE: (v.o.) ... and he was up for anything. I mean, there was champagne,
e, coke, cake.
(Cut to: Manny and Sindee are kissing.)
SINDEE: (v.o.) And he wasn't even badlooking.
(Cut to: The two continue to kiss, the bed creaking as they move.)
WHITE FLASH TO -- BACK TO SCENE:
CATHERINE: So, how did it go so bad?
SINDEE: Well, usually, a guy is good for maybe one or two. This guy wanted
more after six, if you know what I mean.
CATHERINE: No "off" switch?
SINDEE: No, not even close.
WHITE FLASH TO:
[INT. UPSCALE APARTMENT - LATER]
(Through the mirror's reflection, we see that Sindee is disheveled and in her
underwear. She gathers her things as she tries to leave.)
SINDEE: It's getting kind of late.
(Manny grabs her wrist and doesn't let go.)
MANNY RUPERT: No, look, you're not ... you're not going anywhere!
(She tugs her arm trying to get free from him.)
SINDEE: Okay, honey, you need to get some rest.
(She pulls her arm free. Manny reaches for the gun in the nightstand.)
MANNY RUPERT: No. I paid for the whole night!
(He fires. The bullets hit the mirror, smashing it.)
SINDEE: (screams) Ow. Ouch. Ow.
(Sindee heads for the door anyway, her bare feet stepping over the broken
glass.)
(CU: HER FOOT)
(She cuts her foot on the glass, leaving her blood behind.)
WHITE FLASH TO:
BACK TO SCENE:
SINDEE: He was whacked out, but he was alive when I bolted.
CATHERINE: Well, that's a great story, but it doesn't sound like it was worth
the ten g's that we found in your purse.
SINDEE: I earned that money.
CATHERINE: Don't take it personally, but you are not a $10,000-a-night girl.
CUT TO:
[INT. CSI - PRINT LAB -- DAY]
(Warrick enters to find Mandy Webster at the monitor surrounded by latent lifts.
She appears busy.)
WARRICK: Are you finished processing those prints from Manny Rupert's
apartment?
MANDY WEBSTER: Does it look like I have? (off his nod) So far, the decedent's
prints are everywhere. Got them on liquor bottles, drug paraphernalia, the gun,
the dishes. Are you looking for something in particular?
WARRICK: We're looking for anything the hooker might have touched. We're
thinking she might have slipped him something that pushed him over the edge.
(Mandy looks at the file folder with photos and matching print lifts.)
MANDY WEBSTER: Uh ... I got her prints off of the bedpost, the chair, and a
soda can. She didn't touch the booze or pills. Maybe she's in AA.
WARRICK: Hmm. Maybe she's not a killer.
(Warrick turns and leaves.)
CUT TO:
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM -- DAY]
(Sofia Curtis interviews Gregory Kimble.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: I just can't believe it. I've been with Mr. Carson for years.
SOFIA CURTIS: How do you mean?
GREGORY KIMBLE: Nothing like that. I was his driver. I take it you got my
fingerprints from my work card?
SOFIA CURTIS: That's right. They were on one of Mr. Carson's corsets.
GREGORY KIMBLE: I was also Mr. Carson's dresser.
SOFIA CURTIS: What did that entail?
GREGORY KIMBLE: In the 19th century, a dresser's job was to help gentleman
soldiers with their equipment.
SOFIA CURTIS: So, you dressed him in rebel drag.
GREGORY KIMBLE: If you're asking, did I lace his corset, of course. Every
morning.
SOFIA CURTIS: Did it hurt?
GREGORY KIMBLE: Absolutely. But he controlled the pain.
SOFIA CURTIS: When was the last time you saw him?
GREGORY KIMBLE: Yesterday morning.
SOFIA CURTIS: At the house.
GREGORY KIMBLE: No. At a duel.
SOFIA CURTIS: A duel? Where?
GREGORY KIMBLE: Gettysburg.
CUT TO:
[EXT. BATTLEFIELD ON OUTSKIRTS OF VEGAS -- DAY]
(Soldiers line up, their guns raised. Smoke billows around them as they fire.)
(On the other side, cannons fire. A man screams as he's thrown in the air.)
(Camera pulls back to reveal a Civil War re-enactment - two sides of soldiers in
Civil War uniforms, the blue and the grey, waving guns and firing smoke.)
(The war re-enactment continues.)
(Grissom and Sofia interview a Union Soldier, his arm in a sling. Behind him,
another soldier stands nearby listening.)
SOFIA CURTIS: If all you do is Civil War recreations, why were you and Caleb
Carson having a duel?
UNION SOLDIER: Ugh! Apparently, I offended him.
INSERT: FLASHBACK
[EXT. BATTLEFIELD - SEVERAL DAYS AGO -- DAY]
(During the middle of a re-enactment, the Union Soldier leans casually against a
cannon while talking on his cell phone.)
UNION SOLDIER: (to phone) Honey, I'm right in the middle of Cemetery Ridge
here. I care what we have for dinner. Well, check the cupboards ...
(Caleb Carson walks up to him and knocks the phone out of his hands.)
CALEB CARSON: Sir! You dishonor the dead.
(The Union Soldier leans down to pick up the phone.)
UNION SOLDIER: Damn it, Caleb, that was my wife I was talking to.
(He hangs up.)
CALEB CARSON: My great-great grandfather spilled blood on this hallowed ground.
UNION SOLDIER: Oh, really? (scoffs and looks around) I didn't know Gettysburg
was in Nevada.
CALEB CARSON: I demand satisfaction.
(He takes out a white glove and slaps the Union Soldier's cheek.)
CALEB CARSON: I challenge you to a duel, sir!
(The Union Soldier sighs heavily.)
UNION SOLDIER: Okay. Fine. Let's do it.
(He turns and walks away.)
WHITE FLASH TO:
BACK TO SCENE:
UNION SOLDIER: I'd never reenacted a duel, so, uh, we agreed to meet on the
field of honor with our pistols.
GRISSOM: And real bullets?
UNION SOLDIER: No, no, not in my gun. No, I figured we were just going to
blast some powder and then go out for pancakes. Caleb wanted a little more
authenticity.
INSERT: FLASHBACK
[EXT. BATTLEFIELD - DAWN]
(The two men stand back to back. On the side, their seconds stand watching.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: Guns at the ready and ...
(The two men start walking in separate directions.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten.
(Caleb Carson stops, turns and fires. The bullet hits Union Soldier in his arm.
He screams and falls to the ground.)
WHITE FLASH TO:
BACK TO SCENE:
(The Union Soldier lifts his elbow in his sling.)
UNION SOLDIER: Look, this isn't a recreation, you know. He really shot me.
Almost nicked the bone. It's a good thing my second was there.
(He points to BUGLE BOY standing behind him.)
UNION SOLDIER: He's a male nurse.
(BUGLE BOY shrugs and nods. Grissom smiles and nods back.)
SOFIA CURTIS: A man shoots you, and you don't call the police?
UNION SOLDIER: He shot me 'cause I was taking a cell phone call. What do you
think he was going to do if went to the cops? When that bullet hit me, I ran
for my life. I jumped in my car and got the heck out of ...
SOFIA CURTIS: What about him?
UNION SOLDIER: Oh, we-we carpool.
(Grissom nods at the gun hanging from Union Soldier's belt.)
GRISSOM: Colt .44?
UNION SOLDIER: (pats the gun) Yeah.
GRISSOM: Is that your dueling pistol?
(Union Soldier nods.)
GRISSOM: We're going to have to take that with us.
UNION SOLDIER: Why?
GRISSOM: I, too, demand satisfaction.
(Grissom looks at him. He turns and looks back at Bugle Boy.)
(The Civil War soldier continues to play fighting.)
FADE OUT.
(COMMERCIAL SET)
FADE IN:
[EXT. BATTLEFIELD -- DAY]
(Sara and Grissom are back to back. Sara lifts up her camera.)
SARA: Ready?
(Grissom lifts up his camera.)
GRISSOM: Ready.
(They start counting their paces as they head in opposite directions.)
SARA/GRISSOM: (both) One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine,
ten.
(They both whirl around. Sara snaps her camera first. Grissom snaps his
camera.)
(They grin at each other.)
(Sara turns and starts looking at the ground around the area. She finds blood
on some leaves on the ground.)
SARA: (shouts) I got blood drops. Heading way from Mr. Carson. Consistent
with the duelist's story.
INSERT: FLASHBACK
(A gun fires. A man screams and the two men run from the area.)
RESUME TO SCENE:
(Grissom looks down at the ground and finds a larger circle of red-colored
leaves.)
GRISSOM: I got something here, too. This could be the blood that we didn't
find at the train tracks -- it's a lot of blood.
(Sara kneels down to work. Grissom raises camera and snaps photos of the bloody
leaves.)
GRISSOM: Maybe Carson was killed here?
(Sara looks back at Grissom. Grissom raises his camera to take more photos.)
WHITE FLASH TO:
[EXT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL (STOCK) - DAY]
[INT. HOSPTIAL - RECOVERY ROOM -- DAY]
(Brass is in recovery. Out in the hallway, Ellie watches through the windows.
Behind her, Nick watches Ellie. He turns the corner and continues his phone
conversation.)
NICK: (to phone) Yeah, she's here. Been drinking a ton of coffee and going
outside for smokes; on her cell. Not real sociable, you know? You want me to
keep an eye on her?
GRISSOM: (from phone) It sounds like you already are.
NICK: (to phone) Nah. I'm off the clock. I'll stick around for a while, let
you know if there's any change.
INTERCUT WITH:
[INT. CSI - HALLWAY - DAY]
(Grissom is moving through the hallway.)
GRISSOM: (to phone) Thank you, Nick.
(Grissom hangs up and heads to the Ballistics Lab.)
[INT. CSI - BALLISTICS LAB - DAY - CONTINUOUS]
(Grissom enters the lab while Bobby Dawson works.)
GRISSOM: Did you compare the bullet from the victim to this pistol?
BOBBY DAWSON: Uh, no, not yet, but, boss, I don't think that's your murder
weapon.
GRISSOM: And you know this how?
BOBBY DAWSON: Uh, here, I'll let Hawkeye show you.
(Bobby slides the borescope down the barrel of the Colt. Grissom looks at it.)
INSIDE THE BARREL:
( -- is coated with a residue.)
GRISSOM: What is that?
BOBBY DAWSON: Well, Hodges will have to confirm, but I'm pretty certain it's
cream of wheat.
(Grissom stands up.)
GRISSOM: So he's a cereal killer.
BOBBY DAWSON: (amused) Snap, crackle and pop. Uh, the dried powdered wheat
particles actually augment the smoke, and, uh, seal the gunpowder in the
cylinder.
GRISSOM: Which would be perfect for Civil War re-enactments.
BOBBY DAWSON: (nods) Yeah. I don't think that Colt's fired a real bullet in
quite a while.
CUT TO:
[INT. CORONER'S OFFICE - AUTOPSY ROOM - DAY]
FROM INSIDE THE MORGUE DRAWER
(Dr. Robbins pushes Manny Rupert's body back into the drawer.)
WARRICK: (v.o.) Miss Rupert, as far as we can tell, your brother died from
diabetic shock.
(Dr. Robbins shuts the drawer door.)
CUT TO:
[INT. CORONER'S OFFICE - HALLWAY -- DAY]
(Warrick is talking with Darcy Rupert, who is devastated by her brother's
death.)
DARCY RUPERT: What? How?
WARRICK: Well, it seems that he went on a bender. He consumed a great deal of
alcohol, sugar and narcotics. Did he party like this a lot?
DARCY RUPERT: No. No. He was just diagnosed as pre-diabetic.
WARRICK: So he was aware of his condition.
DARCY RUPERT: (nods) Yeah.
WARRICK: Do you think that this was self-induced?
DARCY RUPERT: (sighs) You know, our family has a history of heart disease and
diabetes. Both our parents died of heart attacks in their forties. Two of our
grandparents, too. Well, Manny turned forty last week and he acted like it was
a death sentence. You know, but he ... he always said, "You can't fight bad
genes." You know, he had a vasectomy when he was 22.
WARRICK: Hmm.
DARCY RUPER: Never got married, just didn't see the point.
WARRICK: So he just ... gave up? He quit?
DARCY RUPERT: You don't know what it's like to live with a death sentence
hanging over your head.
WARRICK: No. You're right, I don't.
DARCY RUPERT: No.
WARRICK: But I've seen what it's like to not have a choice. And he did. He
could have fought it, but he just chose not to.
DARCY RUPERT: You know, I just lost my brother, and you're judging him? How
dare you.
(Warrick takes a deep breath and stops.)
WARRICK: I'm-I'm so very sorry for your loss.
(He walks away from her.)
CUT TO:
[INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE -- DAY]
[COMPUTER MONITOR]
Medical Research
Gunshot Wounds
-- arterial access to a part of --
-- or debris in the arterial b--
-- embolus is most frequently--
[NEXT SCREEN]
data suggests, that in --
post-operative strokes --
in sixty -two percent of --
In thrombotic --
(Grissom sits at his desk and is reading on-line information about Brass'
injuries.)
(Sofia walks up and knocks on the door before entering.)
SOFIA CURTIS: Am I interrupting?
GRISSOM: No.
SOFIA CURTIS: I just got a heads up from a friend in Payroll at PERS. Ellie
Brass just called about Jim's pension. She wanted to know how much there was
and was she a beneficiary.
(Grissom pulls his glasses off.)
SOFIA CURTIS: This girl is circling like a vulture. Jim doesn't need this kind
of energy around him now. Now ... Ellie's been in a lot of trouble with the
law. It wouldn't be difficult to chase her out of town.
GRISSOM: Well, I'm sure he'd appreciate the offer, but I don't think he'd want
you to do that.
(Just then, Wendy Simms enters.)
WENDY SIMMS: Excuse me. I got the DNA results for your decapitated Civil War
corset victim, and the blood from the field is a match to Carson ... but the
epithelials on the toupee from the train tracks are not. So, were any of your
suspects wearing a rug?
SOFIA CURTIS: I can think of one.
CUT TO:
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM -- DAY]
(Sara and Sofia sit facing Gregory Kimble as he removes the hairpiece.)
(He puts it in the bag Sara's holding open for him.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: Please be careful. That's a very expensive piece.
(Sara seals the bag.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: I don't understand why I'm here again. It's not a crime to
lose your hair.
SOFIA CURTIS: Depends on where you lose it.
SARA: If it's on the train tracks near a decapitated body with the victim's
blood on it, it's usually a crime.
SOFIA CURTIS: Mr. Kimble, would you like to revise your prior statement?
SARA: Or would you prefer to wait in a cell while we match toupees?
GREGORY KIMBLE: It was an accident.
SOFIA CURTIS: Which part?
GREGORY KIMBLE: I suppose mostly the part when I shot him. I could see the
insanity in his eyes.
WHITE FLASH TO:
[EXT. BATTLEFIELD - DAWN -- FLASHBACK]
(At the duel, Caleb Carson whirls around, points, aims and shoots the Union
Soldier. The Union Soldier screams and falls to the ground with a thud.
Gregory Kimble turns aghast at Caleb Carson.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: Mr. Carson, you shot him! You really shot him!
(Gregory Kimble heads over to Caleb Carson. Bugle Boy turns to help Union
Soldier.)
(Caleb Carson cocks his weapon again and points it.)
CALEB CARSON: And I intend to kill him.
(Gregory Kimble reaches him.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: Don't shoot.
CALEB CARSON: Get out of my way!
(Gregory Kimble wrestles with Caleb Carson for the gun as the Union Soldier and
Bugle Boy run away.)
GREGORY KIMBLE: Please!
(They struggle for the weapon and it fires. Caleb Carson falls backward.)
WHITE FLASH TO:
BACK TO SCENE:
GREGORY KIMBLE: He was really going to kill that man.
SOFIA CURTIS: If it was an accident, you should have called 9-1-1.
GREGORY KIMBLE: I couldn't let him be found like that. His corseting was
private.
SARA: You're right, it's much better to have his body found stripped and dumped
on some train tracks.
GREGORY KIMBLE: His great-great-great grandfather died trying to stop a Yankee
train from entering Virginia. Legend has it he stood square on the tracks
firing at the engineer until the train ran him down. Mr. Carson spoke of it
frequently. He said it was an honorable death. I was just trying to give him
the same.
CUT TO:
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - HALLWAY]
(An officer escorts an irritated Ellie down the hallway. She pulls her arm out
from Officer Metcalf's grip.)
ELLIE: All right, look, are you guys arresting me or what?
OFFICER METCALF: Hey, don't get in my face. All he told me was bring you here.
(They stop in front of Brass' office.)
[INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - BRASS' OFFICE - CONTINUOUS]
(Grissom greets her.)
GRISSOM: Hi. Come in.
(Ellie shrugs and steps into the office. She notes the nameplate on the desk.)
GRISSOM: This is your dad's office.
ELLIE BRASS: Yeah, I can read.
GRISSOM: Have a seat.
ELLIE BRASS: Why?
GRISSOM: Why not?
(Ellie moves around the desk and sits on the desk. She props her feet on the
corner of the desk.)
(She looks over and finds a framed photo of a blonde-haired girl on the desk.
It's her. She chuckles as she seems to remember.)
ELLIE BRASS: Oh, wow.
GRISSOM: That's the reason we asked you to come in.
ELLIE BRASS: That's like loving a puppy. That's easy. You know, did you ever
think that maybe he's better off just lying there and not waking up? A lot
easier.
CUT TO:
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - HALLWAY -- NIGHT]
(Dr. Stewart pours himself a cup of coffee as he talks with Catherine. They're
both standing in the lounge looking at Brass through the window.)
DR. STEWART: Every patient is different, but for now, no change is good news.
(Catherine's phone rings; she answers it.)
CATHERINE: Excuse me. (to phone) Hi, Lindsey. I know, I told you that I
might be a little while. No, I said that we could try and see a movie. Hey,
you know what? I've got a friend here who is fighting for his life. I would
appreciate a little understanding. I will talk about this with you later. Good-
bye.
(She hangs up.)
DR. STEWART: How old?
CATHERINE: Fourteen. Supposedly.
DR. STEWART: I got one of those in high school myself. World's pretty small at
that age.
(The alarms start ringing.)
CATHERINE: It feels pretty small to me right now, too.
VOICE: (over PA) Code blue. Code blue.
(The doctor leaves the room as the crash cart is pushed and brought to Brass'
room.)
(Grissom and Ellie walk in to stand next to Catherine and watch.)
(The nurses and personnel work on Brass.)
(As they work, Ellie grabs Grissom's sleeve. It's a tense moment as they watch
the nurses and physicians work.)
(The heart monitor comes down.)
NURSE: He's coming back. That's an improvement.
DOCTOR: Okay, we're back.
(The crisis is over.)
(Brass stirs on the bed, his eyes open and he sees Ellie.)
(Ellie stares.)
(Brass raises his hand, his finger reaching for her.)
(Ellie shakes her head and slowly backs away from the window. She backs away,
turns and leaves.)
(Grissom looks at Brass. He turns and looks at the empty space next to him
where Ellie was standing. She's gone.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL (STOCK) - NIGHT]
[INT. DESERT PALMS HOSPITAL - BRASS' ROOM - NIGHT]
(Brass is awake and off the ventilator. Grissom is standing next to him.
Behind him in the hallway, officers look into the room through the window.)
BRASS: Hey.
GRISSOM: Hey. Have some water.
(Grissom lets Brass drink from a cup and a straw.)
BRASS: Thanks for not pulling the plug.
GRISSOM: Your, uh, fan club is here.
(He turns and indicates the second window in the hallway where the CSIs and Dr.
Robbins wait, smile and wave to him.)
(Brass nods and waves back.)
(Catherine smiles, turns and hugs Dr. Robbins. Sara is hugging Warrick, who has
a hand on Nick's shoulder. Greg turns around and hugs Catherine.)
(Brass smiles.)
(Grissom looks at Brass and sighs.)
CUT TO:
[EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY LIGHTS (STOCK) - NIGHT]
[INT. BEDROOM -- NIGHT]
(CLOSE-UP ON Grissom as he lounges on the bed in a blue and white shirt,
pondering death. The camera slowly pans around him, picking up various clues
from the bedroom - warm lights, photos and other knick-knacks on the bed stand
behind him.)
GRISSOM: (thoughtfully) I don't know. Most people want to die in their sleep,
I suppose. Never know that it's happening.
(Behind him we see pale cream and sage-colored pillows in front of the
headboard.)
(Grissom continues to think out loud.)
GRISSOM: Like a crime scene. Surprise, you're dead. I'd prefer to know in
advance that I was going to die. I'd like to be diagnosed with cancer,
actually. Have some time to prepare.
(On the second night stand, we see more photos, knick-knacks, flowers and an
alarm clock.)
(Grissom sighs as he stares off in the distance and continues to ponder death.
The camera continues to pan around Grissom.)
GRISSOM: Go back to the rain forest one more time. Re-read 'Moby Dick.' Possibly enter an international chess tournament.
(The camera stops behind Grissom and on the connecting bathroom doorway. From the angle, we see the waist and legs of a woman in an off-white knee-length robe exit the bathroom. She enters the bedroom and heads toward Grissom.)
(He continues to ponder death and good-byes.)
GRISSOM: At least have enough time to say good-bye to the people I love.
(Sara kneels down in front of the bed, her arms reaching out along the bed cover. She shakes her head and smiles as she responds.)
SARA: I'm not ready to say good-bye.
(Camera holds on Grissom as he smiles at her.)
FADE TO BLACK
THE END.
