Grissom and Sara investigate when the body of a woman is found in the desert, covered with insects. Grissom uses entomological evidence to discover the time of death. Unfortunately their prime suspect - the husband - was out of town at that time, and to Sara's dismay, it looks like he is getting away with murder. Meanwhile Warrick and Catherine try to find out who stole a painting. Nick deals with a missing persons case when a woman's car is found at a bus station.
[EXT. VARIOUS LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) -- DAY] [EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY MOUNTAINS (STOCK) - DAY] [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. MOUNTAINS -- DAY] (We hear the crunching of footsteps on the brush.) Hiker Man: (o.s.) Isn't it great to get back to nature? (We hear more footsteps.) Hiker Man: (o.s.) You want to set camp here? (In the brush, we see two campers, ANGIE and a man. ANGIE has her legs crossed and shuffles from one foot to the other.) Angie: We can camp on the moon. Just give me the shovel. (HIKER MAN takes off his back pack and grabs the shovel. He hands it to her.) Hiker Man: Chill, chill. You got paper? (She grabs it and hurries off. The MAN laughs silently at her.) Angie: I have what I need. (ANGIE walks some distance away from her camping partner and tries to get the shovel open. We hear insects buzzing. She looks in front of her and gasps.) Angie: Oh, my god! Hiker Man: (concerned) Angie? (ANGIE is frozen as she stares at whatever it is she's looking at. When ANGIE doesn't answer him, the MAN turns to go look for her.) Hiker Man: Angie! (He runs toward her and finds her frozen at whatever she's looking at.) Angie: They're ... they're everywhere. Hiker Man: What the ... ? (In front of them, under the bush, is the body of a person.) Hiker Man: That's a person. (They both start coughing and gagging at the thought.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. MOUNTAINS - NIGHT] (Large lights are set up on the mountain side. SARA and GRISSOM make their way down toward the dead body.) Detective: Hey. (They walk up toward BRASS.) Brass: Hikers found her. Looks like a gunshot to the head. Grissom: Did you find a weapon? Brass: No. (GRISSOM and SARA approach the body. GRISSOM puts his kit down. and puts on the gloves. He brushes a few away. SARA looks wide-eyed at the flying bees.) Sara: I hate bees. Grissom: Just paper wasps. They're having too much fun to worry about us. (GRISSOM picks up his kit and walks closer toward the body. SARA stays back where she is.) Sara: I never get used to this part, you know when the bugs get going. (GRISSOM opens his kit.) Grissom: Just doing what god intended ... ... recycling us back to the earth. (GRISSOM looks down at the body. SARA takes out a pair of gloves.) Grissom: Hey, Officer Officer: Yeah? Grissom: Can I borrow some of your hot coffee, please? Officer: Sure. (The OFFICER hands GRISSOM the cup. SARA bats her hand at the bees. GRISSOM takes a couple of bugs off of the body and puts them in a container. He pours some coffee into the container. SARA has moves in nearer to the body.) Grissom: (to SARA) Preservation. (GRISSOM caps the container and puts it aside. Off the body, he takes beetle samples.) Grissom: John ... Paul ... George ... Ringo. Sara: Beetles. No alkali fluids in the dirt so she wasn't killed here. Whoever dumped her must have been in a hurry. Didn't take the time to bury her. What do you think? Grissom: You got any of that beef jerky you're always gnawing on? Sara: You can eat? Grissom: I want to keep these little fellas alive. They're our first witnesses to the crime. HARD CUT TO: END OF TEASER ROLL TITLE CREDITS [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - BREAK ROOM - NIGHT] (Everyone's in the break room waiting for GRISSOM and the assignments.) Warrick: Cath, you want some coffee? Catherine: Please. Cream with some of that fake stuff. Nick: There's nothing good to eat around here. (CATHERINE tosses NICK an apple over her shoulder. It lands in his hand. He looks down at it and smiles.) (GRISSOM walks into the room.) Grissom: Hi. Sorry I'm late. Catherine: Hey, how's the body with the bugs? (GRISSOM starts, then stares at CATHERINE.) Grissom: How do you know about that already? (He turns around and look over at SARA, who is on the other side of the room reading a book. She looks up and shrugs.) Sara: Hey, don't look at me. Nick: We, uh, played a hunch; checked with homicide. You were late. Catherine: What do you have for us? (GRISSOM looks at the assignment sheet.) Grissom: A Paul Sorenson ... (He hands the assignment sheet to CATHERINE.) Catherine: (reading) Missing since last night. Last seen at home of Richard Zeigler in - ooh -- Summerlin. Warrick: Summerlin ... rich folks. Grissom: Warrick, you can work this with Catherine. (CATHERINE hands the sheet to WARRICK.) Don't you have a court date coming up? Warrick: Yeah, the DA asked me to testify on chain of custody. Warrick: I could do that in my sleep. Grissom: Listen, juries need to have confidence in the evidentiary, process, so work with Catherine then break off when you have to appear. Warrick: Yeah. (WARRICK and CATHERINE head out the front door.) Catherine: Bye. Grissom: Good luck. Nick: Bye. Warrick: See you. (They leave. NICK looks at GRISSOM.) Nick: Need help with your homicide? Grissom: No. Sara's going to work with me. (NICK looks over at SARA, who smiles back at getting the dead body case with GRISSOM.) Grissom: You get a missing person. (reading) Sheryl Applegate. Her husband notified the police that she took the car and headed to L.A., but she never showed up. A few hours ago, P.D. found her car at the bus station. They requested a CSI. Nick: She took the bus instead. Case solved. (NICK smiles smugly at SARA. SARA laughs.) Grissom: Hopefully, you're right. But, until she's located treat her car like a crime scene. (GRISSOM holds out the assignment sheet to NICK. NICK sighs and takes the sheet from GRISSOM. He heads for the door. On his way out, he tosses the apple to SARA, who catches it.) (GRISSOM looks at SARA and points at the door. She stands up and they leave the room.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. ZEIGLER RESIDENCE - NIGHT] (CATHERINE and WARRICK walk up to the front door. CATHERINE knocks.) Catherine: Is everything okay? You've been quiet all night. Warrick: Yeah. I got a call earlier today from Child Services asking about you and Lindsey. (CATHERINE shakes her head in surprised disbelief.) Catherine: I don't believe this. Warrick: They told me they'd notified you -- some investigation -- that Eddie had made a charge or something. Catherine: Yes. He's pissed off because I won't let him back into my life so he sics Child Services on me. (WARRICK understands now.) Catherine: (still upset) I never expected they were going to talk to my friends. Well, what did they ask? What did you say? Warrick: Well, I ... (The front door opens.) Richard Zeigler: Hello. Catherine: Hi. Sir, we're with the Las Vegas Crime Lab. We're here about a Paul Sorenson. Richard Zeigler: I'm Richard Zeigler. Cops told me you were coming. Here, please, come in. Catherine: Thank you. Warrick: Thanks. (He holds the door open for them. They walk inside.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. ZIEGLER RESIDENCE - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT - CONTINUOUS] (RICHARD ZEIGLER leads them into the living room. He stops and points to the wall in front of them.) Richard Zeigler: Well, this is, uh where the Sorenson was displayed. Catherine: Sorenson is a painting. Richard Zeigler: Paul Sorenson was an artist. Early 1900s. (RICHARD ZEIGLER steps past them and up to the empty wall. WARRICK puts his kit down.) Catherine: (shrugs) How dumb are we? Warrick: What's he know about the forensic analysis of a friction ridge? Catherine: Right on. Richard Zeigler: (doesn't hear & turns around) I think I may have surprised the guy while he was stealing it. (Quick flashback to: RICHARD ZEIGLER walks down the darkened stairs.) Richard Zeigler: (V.O.) I came downstairs to read and I heard a noise. (The plaster breaks and the wall hanger falls to the floor with some plaster.) (Cut to: The thief runs out of the living room with the painting. RICHARD ZEIGLER turns his head and notices the open door.) Richard Zeigler: (V.O.) By the time I got to the room, he was gone but the door was open. (End of flashback. Resume to present.) (CATHERINE and WARRICK reach into their field kits.) Catherine: Why don't we dust for prints? Warrick: Mr. Ziegler, one more thing. What about the security alarm? Richard Zeigler: Somebody disengaged it. (WARRICK nods his head. RICHARD ZEIGLER walks away.) Warrick: You thinking what I'm thinking? Catherine: Oh, yeah. Inside job. (CATHERINE reaches up and starts dusting the wall for prints.) Catherine: So ... was it a disaster with Child Services? Warrick: Disaster? What do you mean? (WARRICK reaches up next to CATHERINE and starts dusting the wall for prints.) Catherine: Well, my job does take me away from my daughter. Nobody knows that better than you. Warrick: Yeah, but you think I'd say that? Catherine: Well, not intentionally. (sighs) They just, you know, know how to ask questions. Richard Zeigler: Are you finding anything? Catherine: We're working on it, sir. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- NIGHT] (DR ROBBINS goes over the body with GRISSOM and SARA.) Dr. Albert Robbins: Your young woman from the mountains. Grissom: Do we know who she is yet? Dr. Albert Robbins: I gave her prints to homicide for ID. There's the blanket she was wrapped in. Whoever she is, last day on earth was not pleasant. .38 caliber gun, flush to the scalp. (White flash to Quick CGI: Gunshot is heard and the camera follows the bullet's path through the gun barrel and through the scalp. Camera backs up a little to show the entry wound. End of CGI. Resume to present.) Dr. Albert Robbins: Shot clean through, right to left. Bullet out the other side. (SARA leans in close and looks at the wound.) Sara: Stellate pattern and beveled wound confirms the proximity of barrel to scalp. No question this was an intimate killing. Grissom: "Full of sound and fury signifying" ... what, Doc? [Note: Quote from Macbeth, Act V, Scene V, William Shakespeare] (DR. ROBBINS turns and walks off to the side.) Dr. Albert Robbins: I took these. (They look at the x-rays up on the viewbox.) Sara: Let's see what we have. Fracture to the nasal bone, orbital bone, mandibular ... all facial fractures. Dr. Albert Robbins: (realizing) Typical for battered women. Sara: These aren't fresh, are they? Dr. Albert Robbins: The old fracture lines indicate this woman was in a long-term abusive relationship. Sara: Any idea how long she's been dead? Dr. Albert Robbins: The elements really got to her. Grissom and his insects are going to have to figure that one out. (DR. ROBBINS turns around and sees GRISSOM picking up a bug from the body.) Dr. Albert Robbins: Have we lost you, Grissom? (GRISSOM looks at the bug.) Grissom: (muttering) "The worms go in the worms go out / the worms play pinochle on your snout." [Note: Quote from "The Hearse Song", Nursery Rhyme.] Sara: Shakespeare again? Grissom: An old nursery rhyme. Dr. Albert Robbins: A very special insect, Dr. Seuss? Grissom: A muscid fly -- typical only in urban areas. Dr. Albert Robbins: But you found her in the mountains. (He smiles in agreement.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. ZEIGLER RESIDENCE - NIGHT] (CATHERINE questions RICHARD ZEIGLER.) Catherine: How many people have access to your home -- keys and security code? Richard Zeigler: Just my wife and my two sons and, uh ... my daughter. (Meanwhile, WARRICK finds something.) Catherine: Can you get them all here? They might be able to help us with evidence. Warrick: Hey, Catherine. Check this out. (CATHERINE turns around and looks at the wall.) Warrick: You see that? Catherine: Helix, antihelix, helix rim, tragus, antitragus. Warrick: I think the thief must have pressed his head against the wall to check if the painting was wired. Catherine: (laughs) Come on. An earprint? Warrick: Hey, a jury convicted a first-degree murderer based on a print just like this two years ago in Washington. Catherine: Yeah, I know, I know. I'd like to see that one on appeal. Well, photograph and lift. We'll have someone to compare it to soon enough. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE -- NIGHT] (Camera opens on a certificate hanging on the wall from the "UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO", "SOCIETY OF VECTOR ECOLOGY" to "Gil Grissom", then pans over to the various bugs pinned to a white board. GRISSOM adds another pinned bug to the board.) (SARA sits behind GRISSOM holding the container with the 'preserved' beetle in it, the one with the caffeine.) Sara: Okay, bear with me. (GRISSOM walks over to the counter to pick up another container marked "evidence" with an insect inside.) Sara: I mean, you're one of ten guys in the country that understands this stuff. Grissom: I think there's at least fifteen, but go on. What don't you get? Sara: Insects arrive at a corpse in a specific order, right? Grissom: Like summer follows the spring. Sara: And you can pinpoint time of death based on the type and age of insects present on the body? Grissom: I watch the insects mature from eggs to larvae to adults and then count backwards. (Off SARA, out in the hallway, BRASS lingers in the doorway.) Sara: Linear regression. (GRISSOM holds up a bug and looks at it.) Brass: How old are those creepy crawlers? Grissom: They're not done maturing yet. Brass: Oh. Grissom: But when they are, I'll be able to tell you how old they were when I found the body. Sara: Which will tell us when the woman died. Brass: I ID'd her body through AFIS, and located her husband. Grissom: Let me guess. Downtown? The Fremont District? (BRASS' face falls at GRISSOM'S accuracy.) Brass: You know, I'm not even going to ask. Grissom: Synthesiomyia nudiseta is the Latin name. Sara: It's a muscid fly. Only breeds in urban areas but Grissom found one on our girl which means she was probably killed downtown and then carried into the mountains. Brass: Well, the neighbors heard a gunshot at their apartment five days ago. The "grieving" husband ... (BRASS looks down at his notes.) Brass: ... his name is Scott Shelton. (beat) Sara: What was her name? [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM -- NIGHT] (GRISSOM, SARA and BRASS interview SCOTT SHELTON.) Scott Sheldon: Kaye screamed at me a lot, that's for sure but I didn't kill her. In fact, I was out of town last week at a convention. Brass: Yeah, in New Orleans soaking up the gumbo. You told us. When was the last time you saw your wife? Scott Sheldon: Five days ago. When I came back from my trip she was gone. Brass: And you didn't think to notify the police? Scott Sheldon: I keep my personal business private. If Kaye had left me again, I wasn't going to broadcast it. Brass: So this neighbor lady who told me that she heard a gunshot and a woman scream inside your apartment ... what, she just imagined that? Scott Sheldon: It was probably our tv. (SARA slides the folder on the table toward GRISSOM. He leans forward to continue the interview.) Grissom: Mr. Shelton ... did your wife drive race cars? Scott Sheldon: (laughs) You're kidding me. Grissom: No. The two most common causes of facial trauma in adult women: Motor vehicle accidents and domestic violence. (GRISSOM opens the file folder.) Grissom: These are your wife's x rays. Sara: Every face and neck fracture your wife has sustained over the last six years is highlighted. Scott Sheldon: Kaye can get wild. If I came home late with friends I've wrestled her off me. I admit that. Brass: Three complaints against Scott for spousal abuse in the last two years. Scott Sheldon: Kaye was excitable. Like I said I've wrestled her off me, but I never, ever laid a hand on her. Sara: How about a gun? (SCOTT SHELTON looks at SARA, then turns to GRISSOM.) Scott Sheldon: (laughs) You have your hands full with her. Grissom: So do you. Sara: We're going to investigate your apartment. Do we need a warrant or are you going to play nice? Scott Sheldon: Come on over. I've got nothing to hide. Sara: We'll be the judge of that. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. BUS STATION -- NIGHT] (NICK makes his way toward the detective.) Nick: Detective Secula. Det. Secula: Mr. Stokes. Nick: What's up? Det. Secula: You got stuck on this one, too? Nick: (puts field kit down) Yeah, well, missing person -- could be interesting. (NICK pulls a pair of gloves out of his pocket and puts them on.) Det. Secula: Husband reports his wife missing and her car's at a bus terminal. Come on. Lady took a trip. Didn't want him to know where to. Not much of a mystery. Nick: Auto unit been by yet? Det. Secula: No. We just slim-jimmed. We checked for a body -- didn't find one. Big surprise. Nick: Yeah. (NICK takes a breath and points to the car. She beats him to the question with the answer.) Det. Secula: No. I didn't touch a thing. (NICK nods. He opens the door and looks inside.) Nick: Secula ... something wrong? (DET. SECULA looks at the inside of the car over NICK'S shoulder.) Det. Secula: We had dinner last week. I thought it went great. You never called. (He turns his flashlight off and looks at her.) Nick: That doesn't mean I wasn't going to. (NICK opens the trunk and looks inside. He finds some hair.) Nick: Is our missing person a redhead? Det. Secula: Yeah. Nick: Call in a tow to the CSI garage. This case is now officially interesting. (NICK takes out the camera and snaps a photo.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. ZEIGLER RESIDENCE -- MORNING] (CATHERINE looks at the ear print. She and WARRICK talk to the entire ZEIGLER family.) Catherine: It's just like a fingerprint ... for your ears. Richard Zeigler: Now, wait a minute. Are you thinking one of us did this? Catherine: Well, there's no forced entry. Someone shut off your alarm. That tells us that we eliminate the family first before we widen our investigation. Troy Zeigler: I'll tell you what. I'm not putting that crap on my ear. Warrick: Well, we can get a warrant. Richard Zeigler: Oh, no. Nobody's getting a warrant against this family. We'll humor them, and get this over with. (RICHARD ZEIGLER gets to his feet.) Catherine: Thank you, sir. (MRS. ZEIGLER takes off her earring.) Richard Zeigler: Tell me what you want me to do. (He walks up to CATHERINE.) Catherine: You're a good sport. Warrick: I'm just going to press this against your ear. See? (WARRICK presses the glass against RICHARD ZEIGLER'S ear and shows him the print.) (Cut to: WARRICK and CATHERINE dust the ear prints. of the glass panels in front of them.) (Dissolve to: CATHERINE blows the dust off of the glass for LISA Z.) (Dissolve to: WARRICK and CATHERINE continue to work on the ear prints. CATHERINE presses the tape against the glass. WARRICK works on his glass.) (Dissolve to: One by one, CATHERINE compares the ear print to the samples taken from the family. The family waits. CATHERINE finds a match.) Catherine: We got a match. (She stands up and shows it to WARRICK. Then, she shows it to RICHARD and MRS. ZEIGLER.) Catherine: What do you think? Warrick: Jason? Jason: What? Warrick: The earprint talking. (Quick flashback to: That night, JASON presses his ear to the wall as he lifts the painting away from the wall to get the hanger behind it.) (Cut to: RICHARD ZEIGLER walks down from the top of the stairs.) (Cut to: JASON rips the painting off of the wall. The hanger falls to the floor with bits of plaster. JASON turns around to face the camera.) (Cut to: JASON walks out the door carrying the painting. He runs.) (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Richard Zeigler: Why would you steal from me? Warrick: Sir, are you going to want to press charges? Richard Zeigler: No, no. God, no. No. I just ... we'll get help for Jason. I don't want court records. Catherine: Jason, do you still have the painting? Jason: What if I told you I sold it? Catherine: Well, that would be selling stolen property and you would be arrested, no matter what your dad says. Jason: Okay. Painting's in the trunk of my car. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. SHELTON RESIDENCE -- DAY] (SCOTT SHELTON offers them a drink.) Scott Sheldon: Can I get you guys something to drink? Soda, ale? Sara: (o.s.) No, thanks. (GRISSOM checks under the couch cushions. BRASS walks along the room. SARA checks out the items on the wall shelves. Most of the photos and items on the shelves are his.) Sara: Not a lot of room for Kaye. Scott Sheldon: She's shy. (SARA nods.) (BRASS kneels next to the bed and finds something. A holder with some bullets it in. SCOTT SHELTON sees BRASS pick it up. BRASS looks at SCOTT.) (SARA continues to look around the room. GRISSOM stands in the middle of the living room.) Grissom: Does it get cold in here in the winter? Scott Sheldon: Sometimes. Why? (GRISSOM finds some fibers on the couch. He picks it up.) Grissom: That's why you'd need a blanket on the couch, huh? A green one, I bet. Brass: (checks the gun) Looks like your gun's just been cleaned. Scott Sheldon: Yeah, I, uh, cleaned it before I left town. Took out the garbage, too. (flippant) Does that make me guilty of something? (GRISSOM puts the fibers in a bindle. He turns to look at SCOTT.) Brass: No bullets missing here. (BRASS checks the gun. He picks up the bullet holder.) Brass: Bullets missing here, though. Scott Sheldon: I fired them at the shooting range last month. I go there with a couple guys from work. Grissom: We're going to need to borrow your bullets. (SCOTT SHELTON takes a step back. GRISSOM looks around and sees SARA head down the hallway.) (She puts on some gloves and checks the floors and walls. GRISSOM checks on SARA. He watches as she picks up a green fiber from the floor and put it in a bindle.) (SCOTT SHELTON walks over behind GRISSOM to see what's going on. BRASS also walks over.) Sara: This back door lead to your car? Scott Sheldon: To a car. I drive a different demo every day. Perk of the dealership. (SARA sniffs.) Sara: You smell that, Grissom? Grissom: (turns to look at SCOTT) Did you do laundry back here today? (SARA starts to check for blood on the floor.) Sara: I got news for you, Scott. Bleach doesn't make blood disappear. You just can't see it with the naked eye. (After a thought, she also checks for blood on the walls. GRISSOM steps into the hallway and watches SARA continue to check for blood.) (SARA sprays the other wall and red streaks appear. GRISSOM and SARA look at SCOTT.) Scott Sheldon: I have no idea how that got there. Sara: (angry) It "got there" when you shot your wife in the head before you wrapped her in a blanket and you dumped her in the mountains! (SARA stands up and gets into SCOTT SHELTON'S face. He knocks her hand out of the way. SARA pushes him back.) Scott Sheldon: Get your finger out of my face, bitch! Grissom: Sara! (GRISSOM grabs SARA and pulls her back. Sara: You touch me again, you draw back a stump! Scott Sheldon: Look at her. Grissom: Sara! Scott Sheldon: Can't you control her? Grissom: Get him out of here, Jim. Scott Sheldon: I told you she was a handful. Brass: Come on. Sara: You don't know a handful! (BRASS leads SCOTT SHELTON back into the main room. GRISSOM looks at SARA.) Grissom: Hey. Hey. What is the matter with you? Sara: (more than upset) I am a woman, and I have a gun. And look how he treated me. I can only imagine how he treated his wife. (SARA turns and walks away.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI -- DAY] (WARRICK carries the painting into the office. CATHERINE stands at the counter as the clerk puts the forms in front of her.) Catherine: Thank you. (NICK walks into the room.) Nick: Hey. Warrick: Hey. Catherine: Nicky, how's it going? Warrick: What's up? Nick: Good, good. (he looks at the painting) Are you putting one of Lindsey's drawings into evidence? (CATHERINE and WARRICK laugh.) Catherine: If only her artwork brought in this kind of dough I wouldn't need to worry about her college tuition. Nick: Yeah, I heard your missing person was a "painting". (WARRICK scoffs.) Warrick: At least we solved our case. Nick: Oh! (NICK puts a hand to his chest as if wounded.) Catherine: Keep walking. (NICK laughs and leaves the room.) Warrick: Give me an evidence tag for this painting. Clerk: Sure. Catherine: Okay, now I know that these are rich people and it's just a painting and nobody died, but ... this just doesn't feel finished. Warrick: I know, every time you say that, I'm looking at more overtime. Catherine: I know. (WARRICK'S pager beeps. He looks at it.) Warrick: You know what? I got to be somewhere. Catherine: Court. Warrick: Yeah, right. Can you handle this from here? Catherine: Yeah. Warrick: Cool. I'll see you later. (WARRICK heads for the door. CATHERINE stops him.) Catherine: Hey, Warrick. Are you going to tell me? Warrick: What? Catherine: About Child Services? Warrick: Oh, I told them as far as mothers are concerned, you're the bomb. Catherine: Really? Warrick: Yeah. And I also told them your ex is pretty screwed up. (CATHERINE smiles.) No worries. (WARRICK turns and leaves the room.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - HALLWAY -- DAY] (SARA, GRISSOM and BRASS discuss the case.) Sara: What do we need to nail him at trial? Brass: The neighbor puts him in the apartment five days ago. You tell me she's been dead five days and a jury is going to jump all over that coincidence. Grissom: The post-mortem insects will tell me when she was killed. BRASS; No, all I'm saying is five days is what I need. Grissom: Jim, please don't try and compromise my end of the investigation. Brass: Good luck. (BRASS hands the evidence bag to SARA and leaves. SARA heads down one way, GRISSOM the other.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY] (DR. ROBBINS puts the sheet back over KAYE SHELTON. He closes the storage door with the label: GUNSHOT VICTIM / KAYE SHELTON.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE -- DAY] (Using the Christopher Columbus, GRISSOM looks at the bug.) [SCOPE VIEW of bug] (GRISSOM writes in a log book.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI -- LAB] (SARA looks at the evidence bag with the green fibers in them. On the table is the blanket that KAYE SHELTON was found in. SARA looks at the scope.) [SCOPE VIEW of green fibers] (SARA writes down in her notes: "Cotton green dye #24 / double loop stitching".) (Dissolve to: GRISSOM pins another bug up on the white board. He looks at them carefully.) (Dissolve to: GRISSOM studies the bugs on the desk.) (He measures the beetles then checks the computer print out which reads: [NAME 12 HRS 18 HRS 24 HRS 36HRS 48HRS 60] LAGIIDAE* .21MM .32MM .41MM .52MM .65MM .70 (LONG-JOINTED BARK BEETLES) LAMPYRIDAE .22MM .32MM .41MM .54MM .61MM .63 (LIGHTENING BUG OR FIREFLIES) LEIODIDAE .12MM .22MM [.32MM] .41MM .56MM .69 (ROUND FUNGUS BEETLES) LEPTINIDAE .51MM .74MM .86MM .99MM 1.23MM 1.71MM (MAMMAL-NEST BEELTES) LUCANIDAE .32MM .485MM .58MM .74MM .92MM 1.72MM (STAG BEETLES) [SCENE_BREAK] (SARA lifts her head from the scope. She picks up one of the bullets and looks at it. She writes on the side of the envelope: For Trace.) (Dissolve to: GRISSOM checks the containers full of insects.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE] (GRISSOM examines the insects. SARA walks into the office and reports to him. GRISSOM doesn't look up.) Sara: The bullets from Scott's gun are unusual. (GRISSOM looks up at SARA.) Sara: Since we didn't find the spent bullet I sent one from the box over to trace. Everything else stacks up. He killed her. (GRISSOM looks back down at his bugs.) Sara: What did you get? (He sighs.) Grissom: She's been dead three days. Sara: (shocked) Are you positive? Not five? (nods) Grissom: Three. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - INTERVIEW ROOM -- DAY] (GRISSOM, SARA and BRASS present their findings to SCOTT SHELTON and his lawyer.) Public Defender: My client was in New Orleans three days before his wife's body was discovered on that mountain. He couldn't possibly have killed her. Unless I misunderstand what you've explained to us, Mr. Grissom -- your "linear regression." Grissom: You understand it. Sara: Okay, forget time of death. How does your client explain Kaye's blood all over his apartment wall? Public Defender: Quite simply. Scott has three prior complaints for abuse. What's to say the blood didn't get there during one of those altercations? Sara: "Altercations" ... upgraded from "wrestling"? Brass: This is good. Admitting to prior abuse to cover up actual murder. Public Defender: My client and I are leaving. (They stand up.) Public Defender: And, Mr. Grissom, thank you. (SARA watches them carefully as they leave the room. As soon as the door closes, SARA falls forward and hits her head against the table. GRISSOM watches her frustration.) HARD CUT TO BLACK. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - DAY] [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - HALLWAY -- DAY] (GRISSOM walks through the hallway. In passing he bumps into CONRAD ECKLIE.) Conrad Ecklie: Hey, tough luck about the, uh, wife abuser getting released. Grissom: There's no secrets around you, are there, Conrad? Conrad Ecklie: You think I wanted you to whiff out on that? Your reputation as an entomologist elevates this entire crime lab which elevates my stature by association. Grissom: Well, then, you must feel very small today ... by association. (GRISSOM turns to leave, but ECKLIE stops him.) Conrad Ecklie: You're dropping the ball in other areas, though. Administratively? Grissom: Did I miss one of your status meetings? (ECKLIE looks around, then lowers his voice.) Conrad Ecklie: Warrick Brown had one of my guys sub for him in court. Grissom: So? I'm sure something came up. Conrad Ecklie: Hey, he told my guy it was an emergency but I have it on good authority that he was gambling. (GRISSOM turns to leave. But that stops him.) Conrad Ecklie: At the Monaco. Grissom: What? Conrad Ecklie: That's right. On CSI time. I don't like him using one of my guys as a cover. I figure if he brings anybody down with him it should be from your shift. Don't you think? (ECKLIE turns and leaves. Camera holds on GRISSOM'S stern look.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI -BREAK ROOM - DAY] (In the breakroom, SARA is sleeping with her arms folded and head resting against the table. The kettle starts whistling. SARA'S eyes open.) (GRISSOM picks up the empty tea kettle off of the burner.) Grissom: Sara? (SARA wakes up.) Grissom: (softer) Sara? You okay? Sara: Fine. Yeah. Grissom: Did you sleep here? Sara: I was working till 4:00 A.M. I combed every demo Scott's driven. Zilch. What's up? Grissom: I need you to do some background for me on Warrick without letting him know why. Sara: Oh. Warrick -- your favorite CSI. Grissom: That's why I want you to handle it, so that Ecklie can't accuse me of favoritism if it turns out that Warrick's clean. Sara: What do you want to know? [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - OFFICE -- DAY] (WARRICK holds up the painting. CATHERINE is on the computer.) Warrick: This painting's a forgery? Where does it say that? Catherine: I was reading up on Sorenson, and I found a site that says that 15% of all museum art is fake. Warrick: It's not our job to authenticate art. Case is closed. Catherine: You're so right, but if this is a forgery, we've got a new crime. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI -- DAY] (JESSICA LOVETT, the tech, explains how to test the painting for authentication.) Jessica Lovett: This electrothermal atomizer is set at the excitation wavelength for titanium which was not used in oil paint before the 1950s. Catherine: So, an authentic Sorenson would be titanium-free. Jessica Lovett: If it's present, the canvas will fluoresce and we've got a forgery. Hit the lights. (The lights turn off. JESSICA turns the light on and uses it on the painting. It fluoresces.) Jessica Lovett: Mm-hmm. No doubt about it -- it's a fake. (They turn the lights back on.) Catherine: Okay, so if the owner purchased this painting from a reputable auction house, they would have run a similar test to this? Jessica Lovett: Absolutely. Warrick: So, the kid stole the original painting from his pop and gave us back a forgery. (cc) No wonder he copped to it so easy. Catherine: This kid's in college, right? Let's check his dorm room. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GARAGE -- DAY] (NICK vacuums the back of the car. DET. SECULA appears behind him. He sees her and turns the vacuum off.) Nick: There's no more hair. Not even a trace. No signs of foul play. Det. Secula: And the carpet's clean. Nick: Yeah. Yeah, too clean ... ... which begs the question ... Det. Secula: What lies beneath? Nick: Hand me the phenothaline, please. (She turns and hands it to NICK.) Det. Secula: You're checking for blood? Nick: Well ... I am checking ... to see why someone scrubbed this carpet so clean. If there is blood present ... ... we'll know why. (He takes a sample and tests it. It tests positive. NICK smiles.) Det. Secula: Looks like our missing person might be a homicide. Nick: Right. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE] (GRISSOM is in his office working. SARA appears in the doorway and leans against the door frame. GRISSOM looks up.) Sara: Hey. Grissom: Did you find out anything about Warrick? Sara: Um ... I'm-I'm here about something else. You ... you know how you say, "We're the victim's last voice"? Grissom: Mm-hmm. Sara: I thought it was our job to speak for Kaye Shelton. Grissom: You don't crunch evidence to fit a theory. Sara: What if you hear the victim's screams? In the car, at the store. Grissom: You have empathy for her, Sara. You want someone to pay for what was done to her. That's normal. Sara: You want to sleep with me? (GRISSOM freezes. He puts down his food and takes off his glasses.) Grissom: Did you just say what I think you said? Sara: That way, when I wake up in a cold sweat under the blanket, hearing Kaye's screams ... you can tell me it's nothing. (beat) It's just empathy. (Having said her piece, SARA turns and walks away. GRISSOM stares at the doorway. He leans back in his chair, thinking. Then something occurs to him.) (Something, they might have missed.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - EVIDENCE VAULT] (GRISSOM empties the bag of evidence onto the table. The large green blanket KAYE SHELTON was found wrapped in tumbles out of the package. GRISSOM sets the package aside, then turns to the blanket.) (He opens the blanket up slowly, looking for anything.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. -- NIGHT] (The Secure Cold Transport Truck drives away. BRASS leans against the wire fence while GRISSOM is busy preparing the experiment.) Brass: (calls out) So, you planning a little late-night luau? Roast pig? Grissom: It's an experiment. Maybe Kaye was dead five days. Brass: I thought your bugs never made mistakes. Grissom: They don't. People do. The victim was wrapped in a blanket. Normally a blanket or clothing doesn't impact insect maturation. The insects usually fight their way in anyway. But I examined the folds in Kaye's blanket. She was wrapped tight -- maybe tighter than I realized -- which would have decreased the corpse's exposure to insects. Brass: So it took longer for the insects to get in there? Grissom: And deposit their eggs. Maybe two whole days. I've wrapped porky here pretty tight. Brass: Well, let me ask you this. You killed a pig just for this? Grissom: This poor ham was already on its way to someone's Christmas dinner table. Brass: I mean, wouldn't a rabbit be easier? Grissom: Got to be a pig. Interestingly, they're the most like humans. Brass: Yeah, I've been saying that since I was a rookie. You're on your own pal. (BRASS turns and leaves.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. -- NIGHT] (GRISSOM checks the camera and sets it up to record.) (Dissolve to: In the cold outdoors, GRISSOM sits and watches the progress. He writes in his log book.) (Dissolve to: GRISSOM snaps a few photos of the bugs on the pig.) (Cut to: GRISSOM secures his jacket tighter around himself as he writes in his log book. He looks up.) (SARA walks up to him, an appreciative smile on her face. She puts her kit down next to his open one. Without a word, she puts her bag down and takes the seat next to GRISSOM.) (GRISSOM takes off his glasses and SARA hands him the thermos. He uncaps the thermos and she takes out a fresh blanket, which she opens and wraps around his shoulders.) (He looks at her and smiles.) Sara: (quietly) Thanks. (Short time cut to: The camera pans across the area outside the fence and rests on the sign: NO TRESPASSING / VIOLATORS WILL BE - PROSECUTED. Inside the fenced area, GRISSOM and SARA sit and keep watch over their pig.) [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT. LAS VEGAS CITY (STOCK) - DAY] [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - OFFICE -- DAY] (DET. SECULA lingers in the doorway and calls inside.) Det. Secula: How's the case going? (NICK turns around and sees her.) Nick: Hey. Dead end. How about you? Det. Secula: Just got a hit on one of our missing lady's credit cards. A motel. (She takes a step back out into the hallway. She and NICK head out.) Nick: Her abductor sold her card or is using it himself. What motel? Det. Secula: Four Aces. Nick: That's right around the corner from where we found her car. Det. Secula: I've got some uniforms meeting us there. Nick: (smiles) Good job. [SCENE_BREAK] [EXT./INT. FOUR ACES --] (NICK stands with the police outside the motel room door. They open the door.) Officer: Las Vegas police! (The officers enter the room. NICK is the last to follow.) Officer: All right, don't move! OFFICER: Put your hands where I can see them! (Outside the sounds of helicopter blades are heard overhead. NICK rounds the corner and freezes at what he sees. He glances over at DET. SECULA who doesn't say anything.) Nick: Are you Sheryl Applegate? (On the bed is a woman handcuffed to the side. She nods.) (The OFFICERS push a man in a towel back into the motel room.) Michael: Oh, whoa, man! Ow! Oh, what's going on here? Sheryl Applegate: Michael, shut up! Det. Secula: (amused) Las Vegas police. Your husband reported you missing. Sheryl Applegate: Can she put that gun away? (DET. SECULA puts her gun away.) Nick: You, uh ... you haven't been abducted have you, Mrs. Applegate? Sheryl Applegate: Not really. Nick: We found evidence of blood in your car. Sheryl Applegate: I saw an injured dog last week and drove it to the vet. (DET. SECULA clears her throat.) Det. Secula: Uh, Nick, let's get out of here. (NICK nods and clears his throat. He turns to leave the room.) Sheryl Applegate: Wait! What are you going to tell my husband? Nick: That you're okay. (laughs) You're going to have to fill in the blanks. (They leave the room.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI -- GRISSOM'S OFFICE] (SHERIFF BRIAN MOBLEY looks through the photographs of the pig.) Sheriff Brian Mobley: So the pig's insects matured at a rate consistent with a five-day-old corpse? (In the office, GRISSOM, SARA, and BRASS talk with SHERIFF BRIAN MOBLEY.) Grissom: (nods) Once I took the blanket into account. Sheriff Brian Mobley: Your initial computations were wrong. You went back, adjusted conditions, and proved actual time of death. Grissom: Five days, not three. Sara: Which places the victim with her husband who's already guilty as sin. Sheriff Brian Mobley: Captain Brass do you understand Grissom's insect evidence? Brass: (nods) To a degree. You know ... in a general way. Sheriff Brian Mobley: Do you think a jury will understand your "adjustments"? Or do you think they'll realize your "conditions" can make the evidence say anything you want it to say? Grissom: I can make a case to any jury against Scott Shelton for the murder of his wife. Sheriff Brian Mobley: Your arresting officer can barely understand it. I read the file. Other than bugs is there anything else? (GRISSOM shakes his head.) Sheriff Brian Mobley: Get something a jury can understand or move on. (The SHERIFF leaves the office. Camera holds on SARA.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. ZEIGLER RESIDENCE -- DAY] (CATHERINE and WARRICK walk up to the front door.) Richard Zeigler: Hello. Catherine: Hello, Mr. Zeigler. (He sees the painting.) Richard Zeigler: Oh, good. You brought my Sorenson. (Inside the house, JASON watches.) Catherine: Yes. Richard Zeigler: Good. I'm glad it's back. Warrick: Nice campus you got there, Jason. Jason: (off guard) What? Warrick: We were by your dorm earlier with the police here. Catherine: We'd like to ask a favor of you Mr. Zeigler. A private viewing of the painting. SHORT TIME CUT TO: [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. ZEIGLER RESIDENCE - DAY -- CONTINUOUS] (CATHERINE tests the painting. RICHARD ZEIGLER recognizes the test immediately and reacts to the results.) Richard Zeigler: My god, my-my ... my Sorenson's a forgery? Warrick: That's not all, sir. Richard Zeigler: Wait. I have $10 million worth of forgeries? Warrick: No, sir. The police recovered your originals from Jason's dorm room today. Richard Zeigler: What? (RICHARD turns and looks at JASON, who still hasn't said anything.) Richard Zeigler: I don't even know you. Warrick: What, did you have an art major do your fakes for you, Jason? Catherine: Robbery checked with your school. They actually teach classes in how to copy the Masters. (JASON nods.) Jason: My friends helped me out. They didn't know what I was doing with the copies. Richard Zeigler: And what exactly were you doing? Warrick: Your son stole all your originals replacing them with forgeries. Catherine: But, the other night, his little scam was interrupted. (Quick flashback to: The painting is ripped off of the wall. The hanger and some plaster falls to the floor.) Warrick: (V.O.) He didn't have time to make the switch. (Close up of JASON looking behind him at the sound of his father walking down the stairs. He puts the painting down on the floor next to the "fake". He slides it aside and picks up the fake. Cut to: JASON runs out of the room with the fake.) (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Warrick: If the hook hadn't dislodged from your Sorenson you would have spent the rest of your life admiring fakes. Jason: (laughs) And you never even knew the difference, did you, dad? You're right. You don't know me. Where are your pictures of me? You're too busy staring at your masterpieces, and they're not even real! I'm right here, dad. You don't even see me! Catherine: (quietly) The police are going to want to know if you're pressing charges this time. (RICHARD nods.) RICAHRD ZEIGLER: I am. You want my attention, Jason? You got it. [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - HALLWAY OUTSIDE FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- DAY] (GRISSOM is leaning against the wall and reading a file. SARA walks up to him.) Sara: I heard you were going into an autopsy. (upset) How can you just move on to another case? They're laughing at us. You know that, right? They think we're a couple of 'science nerds'. They threw out our findings. (DAVID walks up to GRISSOM.) David Phillips: That body should be up in a few minutes, Mr. Grissom. Grissom: Thank you, David. (DAVID leaves.) Grissom: You know, there was a murder recently in a village on the other side of the world. Every man in the village denied having any part of it. The victim's throat had been slashed with a shovel. So this one guy -- I guess you could call him a "science nerd" -- asked all the men in the village to bring their shovels to the center of town and hold them spade-side up. And he waited. Eventually, flies started showing up on one specific shovel looking for microscopic bits of blood and flesh. (SARA nods.) Sara: "First witness to a crime." Grissom: The investigator got his murderer, and... Sara: ...and forensic science was born. Sung T'su, 1235 A.D. You call 800 years ago recent? Grissom: To an astronomer, it is. (pause) But then people forgot about forensic science, didn't they? And they had to be reminded again by Francesco Redi in the 1600s. Sara: And again by Bergeret D'Arbois in the 1800s. Grissom: Every civilization learns what it needs to know and the next one forgets it. The sheriff ... well... it's not personal. Sara: We're part of the cycle. Grissom: Yeah, they laughed at fingerprints 70 years ago, and now it's law. Sara: Except somebody had to push for prints. And you're standing there saying "all things in their own time." Grissom: You're confused, right? Sara: (shakes her head, then nods) Yes. Grissom: That's the best place for a scientist to be. (Behind SARA, GRISSOM sees someone approaching.) Grissom: My body's here. (The Coroner's Assistant pushes the gurney between GRISSOM and SARA toward the door. GRISSOM reaches over and lifts up the sheet. SARA looks down.) Sara: (smiles) Kaye Shelton ... (She looks at GRISSOM. He smiles at her and motions to the door.) Grissom: Shall we? (They push the door open and walk inside, the body on the gurney right behind them.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY -- CONTINUOUS] (GRISSOM, SARA and DR. ROBBINS work on the body.) Sara: Gave her a bath, huh? Dr. Albert Robbins: Routine cleaning. We had to do it sometime. Grissom: Doc, what's this blue mark here? (GRISSOM looks a the blue mark around the bullet wound.) Sara: Why didn't we see this at the autopsy? Dr. Albert Robbins: It was under a gallon of blood. But the blue's embedded; it won't wash away. Grissom: Didn't you say the suspect's ammunition was in trace? Sara: Yeah. (SARA turns to follow it up.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - LAB] (SARA opens the envelope from Trace. She removes the report and looks at it.) Sara: "Lead, copper, zinc ... teflon." (thinks about it) Teflon? (Cut to: SARA takes out a bullet and looks at it.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - BALLISTICS LAB] (SARA test fires the bullet.) (Camera follows the bullet in slow motion as it fires out of the gun and impacts its target. Resume to normal.) (SARA walks up to the target and checks it. There's blue residue around the hole.) (Cut to: SARA looks into the scope. And smiles.) (GRISSOM walks into the lab. SARA stands up and points to the scope.) Grissom: And? So? Sara: Strand of hair from our lady in the mountains. (GRISSOM sits down and looks into the scope.) [SCOPE VIEW of hair with blue stuff on it.] Sara: The blue dust from around her entrance wound -- that's from the bullet's impact. It's made of teflon. Now look at the next specimen. (GRISSOM stands up and moves to the next scope.) [SCOPE VIEW of bullet] Sara: The bullet is from Scott's personal ammo supply which I test-fired. See, the teflon disintegrated into blue powder at the moment of impact. (Quick flashback to: KAYE SHELTON is slammed against the wall.) Scott Sheldon: You're gonna leave me? Is that what you think?! Kaye Shelton: No, Scott, no! (SCOTT grabs KAYE from behind.) Scott Sheldon: And all the guys are gonna see a woman walk out on me? Kaye Shelton: (screaming) No! Scott, no! Scott Sheldon: You just try... (He puts the gun up against her temple and fires.) (Camera follows the bullet through the gun barrel and up to the temple where it leaves a smoking hole.) (Cut to: SCOTT grabs the blanket off of the couch and wraps KAYE'S body in it, leaving a small piece of fiber on the hallway floor. He wraps her in the blanket.) (Cut to: SCOTT drags her down the floor.) (End of flashback. Resume to present.) Grissom: You did very good. (SARA beams.) But this is just more circumstantial evidence. We're a long way from a conviction. Sara: But we can bury him under evidence. You're the one who's always saying it's better to have one piece of forensic evidence than ten eyewitnesses. Grissom: (stares at her) What, do you tape everything I say? (SARA shrugs.) You still have to educate the jury. Sara: (counters) On bullets. It's got to be easier than bugs. (GRISSOM smiles) (beat) Less Latin. (SARA smiles. It's too contagious. GRISSOM smiles, too.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. POLICE DEPARTMENT - HALLWAY -- DAY] (BRASS puts the handcuffs on SCOTT SHELTON.) Brass: You know, I been waiting three days to do this. No, make that five days. Let's go. (BRASS escorts SCOTT SHELTON out the door. GRISSOM watches from the side. THE PUBLIC DEFENDER looks over at GRISSOM.) (Satisfied, GRISSOM leaves.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - FORENSIC AUTOPSY] (Under DR. ROBBINS' watchful eyes, SARA puts the sheet back over KAYE SHELTON and pushes her body back into storage.) (DR. ROBBINS closes the door.) (SARA stands there and watches as DR. ROBBINS tapes the note onto the storage door: RELEASE FOR BURIAL DATE OF BIRTH: 9/24/72 DATE OF DEATH: 12/ 6/00 DATE OF RELEASE: 12/15/00 (Camera holds on SARA.) [SCENE_BREAK] [INT. CSI - GRISSOM'S OFFICE] (GRISSOM is going through his things when SARA walks into the office.) Sara: Hi. (He looks up at SARA.) Grissom: Hi. Sara: I checked out Warrick. His story about missing court was, uh ... lame. I got this surveillance tape from the Monaco. He was in the casino. (SARA gives the tape to GRISSOM.) Sara: I'm sorry. (GRISSOM looks at SARA, then looks back down at the tape.) Grissom: Thanks. (SARA turns and leaves the office. GRISSOM slowly sits down in his chair with the tape in his hand.)
s*x, Lies and Larvae