Chapter Text
Greg dropped onto the breakroom couch in defeat. Today marked the third anniversary of Anna's death. The woman he had loved for what seemed like a lifetime. He had finally started to sleep without waking up from the nightmares, stopped seeing her body laid out in the morgue. But last night he had realized the date and had not been able to sleep. He was still sitting there, head in his hands, when Morgan entered the room.
Laying a hand against his back, she dipped her head to meet his eyes. “Hey. You okay?”
“Yeah. Couldn’t sleep last night.” He looked up, giving her a half smile.
Since Anna’s death Morgan had been a constant source of comfort. Most days he was more than grateful for her presence, but today, it only served to remind him of what he had lost. Hesitantly Morgan held out a small padded envelope.
Hesitantly Morgan held out a small padded envelope. “This was delivered to the front desk for you.”
He took the envelope, turning it over and examining it. There was no return address, but the postmark was San Diego. As far as he knew the only person, he knew there was Nick, and he would have sent anything to his apartment, not the lab. There was something painfully familiar about the careful handwriting though, something that made his breath catch. Carefully, he opened the envelope, extracting a single sheet of paper filled with the familiar script. He read through the short letter twice, his eyes filling with tears as he tipped the envelope and watched as a pair of rings fell into his palm.
The white gold wedding band hugged the curve of the diamond solitaire engagement ring. It was a simple setting, but it had fit Anna’s personality perfectly. The day he first placed the engagement ring on Anna’s finger was clear in his mind as was sparkle in her piercing blue eyes and the feel of her lips against his moments after she breathlessly accepted his proposal. It was nearly as sweet as the day he had slipped the wedding band on her finger making the set complete. The day that they had promised that together they would make it through anything – together
“Greg. What is it?” Morgan asked, afraid of the anger she saw in his face. Greg didn’t respond, simply handed her the letter to read.
There was no signature, but there was no doubt who it was from, a woman who had been dead for three years. A woman she had seen in the morgue as Greg tearfully identified his wife’s remains. With trembling hand she handed the letter back. The implications of the letter scared her more than the anger she saw in Greg. They had been quick friends from the moment she moved to the Las Vegas crime lab, while she had wanted to be more than friends he only had eyes for Anna. Just recently he had asked her out to dinner and she readily accepted. They’d gone out a few times, but it was still awkward, everything still reminded him of Anna and the life they had started to build
“What does this mean Greg?”
He stood abruptly his fingers closing around the rings. His stride was purposeful as he made his way down the hall to Catherine’s office. He didn’t knock, just stormed in, slamming the door behind him before throwing the letter on to the desk
“Tell me everything!” He demanded coldly,
Confused and a little afraid, Catherine read the letter. She knew this moment was coming, ever since the trial had put Philip Collins in prison for life. After studying the letter for a moment, she slowly unlocked the bottom drawer extracting a manila folder and passing it to Greg. She waited quietly as he read through the case file, watching the emotions play across his face.
“You knew?” His voice was low and cold. “For three years you knew that she was alive, and you never said anything!”
Catherine took a deep breath. “I couldn’t, Greg. It would have put you and Charlee in danger.”
“Her name is Anna.”
“No, Greg, her name is Charlee. Charlotte Olivia Grissom. Anna Weston was the name given to her by the man who kidnapped her when she was ten.” Catherine met his gaze. “She had no way to prove who she was until we got a confession from Collins.”
“Grissom?” The revelation brought him up short. “As in Grissom, Grissom?” Catherine nodded. “How long have you known?”
“Not long after she started at the lab…but I knew her when she was younger. I helped Grissom work on her missing persons case long after it was declared cold.”
Greg ran a hand through his hair. “Eight years! You’ve known for eight years that she wasn’t who she said she was, and you didn’t say anything?”
“She asked me not to, Greg. The only thing she lied to you about was her name, she never lied about anything else about her. She genuinely cared about you, that’s why she had to go away.” Catherine handed him another, thicker, folder. “Philip Collins was getting closer to her. He had lost track of her when she was taken by CPS after her mother died. He finally caught up to her when she was at Stanford.”
“We met at Stanford.” Greg looked up sadly.
Greg listened intently as Catherine explained about Charlee’s kidnapping. She and then Sara once she came to Vegas, had spent years searching for any leads on Charlee whereabouts. It took a while, but she eventually got through everything Charlee had entrusted her with.
“Do you know where she is?” Greg sounded defeated.
“No.” Catherine apologized sincerely. “I’ve told you everything I know. I can call Sara and Gil, see if they know. But I don’t think she wants you to find her, Greg. She said she wanted you to move-on.”
“I can’t, Catherine. I thought I could…I’ve tried. I like Morgan, but I could never love her like I loved Anna…Charlee.” Greg’s shoulders sagged. “I need to talk to her…see her…”
Sighing, Catherine looked at her watch and then back at Greg. She opened her laptop and worked for a few minutes before standing. Taking Greg by the arm she pulled him to his feet and pushed him towards her chair.
“I shouldn’t be doing this, but you’re right, you do need to talk to Charlee.” She leaned over and pressed enter on the keyboard. “Just go easy on her…” Catherine quickly left her office softly closing the door.