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Who is David Hodges?	By : Fel5 Category: CSI > General Views: 1917 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I don't own CSI or any of the related characters used in this story, nor do I make any profit of it, whatsoever.

Chapter List
- 5
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* whew* This was probably one of the most difficult chapters to write
for this story; there�s a little hurt, a little anger, lots of angst and somewhat
of a tearjerker. So please, grab a hankie and hang in there for the first major
plottwist. There is a chorus from The Lords� �Poor Boy� at the end of the
chapter, again, no copyright infringement whatsoever, it�s all theirs or
whomever it now belongs to.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Today, tomorrow

�Yeah.
Yeah. I understand, thank you anyway.�
Hodges hung
up his cell, then returned to the evidence clattering his desk.
He had
tried every single number in the district and had ended up with a huge, big
pile of nothing.
Sighing, he
ran the chromatograph and readjusted his microscope.
If nothing
else, he could a least take his mind off things by doing something useful.

Coming to
the break room had been a bad idea.
He realized
that the very second he stepped into the room and found Archie, Greg and Mandy
chatting away about one topic or another.
However,
all conversation died down when the eldest lab worker walked past the group
towards the coffee machine, aching for a shot of the black nectar.
Just as he
was about the pour himself a cup of the beloved hot liquid, Archie spoke up in
a manner to relief the tension,
�So, what
got your undies in a twist? You�ve been awfully quiet lately. Don�t tell me you
got the blues, man.�
Greg
grinned and added,
�Be nice to
him, Arch�, it�s not Hodges� fault his hamster ran away. Again.�
He burst
into laughter even as Archie and Mandy snickered along.
And then,
something inside Hodges� brain snapped.
The
ferocity, with which the cup was slammed down on the counter, was strong enough
to break the poor utensil in two, efficiently strangling the group�s hilarity.
In three
long strides David had crossed the room and came to stand �no, hover- over
Greg, who sat wide-eyed in the single recliner the lab owned.
For the
first time in weeks The Smirk returned full force; icy, sarcastic and sharp as
a razor�s blade, ready to cut the startled blond into tiny little pieces.
His voice
was barely above a rasp, when Hodges stated,
�Let�s
recapitulate, why don�t we? Warrick got shot, Grissom�s left, my mother has
been in a coma for the past three weeks and now I found some creep has
broken into my flat, snooped out all my personal files and managed to chase off
my cat, who just so happened to be the only true friend I had in the entire world!�
He bent
down, hands gripping the armrests tightly, effectly blocking Greg�s way of
escape, and growled,
�Happy
freakin� birthday, Mr. Sanders. Nice to see you find my dilemma so amusing!�
Whith that,
Hodges whirled around and stormed out of the rec room, throwing the door closed
behind him.
Stunned,
the others gaped at his departure, then an uncomfortable silence settled on the
lab workers and CSI.
Finally,
Greg let his head plop back on the headrest and groaned,
�Anybody
willing to do me the favour and shoot me?�

David
Hodges might have had many faults, but carelessness was not one of them.
So far he
had all locks to his and his mother�s appartments exchanged, replaced his old
harddrive with a brand-new one(he had spent three whole days transferring data)
and even gone through the trouble of selling his old car and purchaising a
slightly used 2005 Nissan Xterra.
The
thought, that the intruder might have copied his spare car keys and might steal
his Ford Hybrid and use it to commit a crime had him sweating cold.
No way he
was going to let that happen.
Since the
animal shelters had not been of any help regarding the whereabouts of Maru, the
trace tech had printed out a few dozen or so flyers sporting a picture of his
cat along with his new cell phone number(he was thourough) and the mentioning
of a reward.
Busy
hanging the notes all over town, Hodges almost missed the call.

�-worse
about an hour ago. We tried to restimulate her, but in her crytical condition,
there�s only so much we can do�, wheezed the neurosurgeon, as he tried to keep
up with Hodges.
He had seen
this too many times to count; a comatose patient first gradually regaining
conciousness, just to fail on the last hurdle.
And it
pained him every single time.
Though not
as much as this man was hurting; the doctor was certain Mrs. Hodges� son had
broken about every traffic law to make it from the Strip to the Desert Palms
Hospital in under fifteen minutes.
Frantic,
almost on the border of panicking, David all but ran through the halls; he
hated hospitals with a vengeance.
The cold,
impersonal sterility of the faculties, the superficial empathy and fake
hope..it all disgusted him.
Today,
however, was different; his heart raced at a mile a minute and his mind tried
to cope with the news, as the aisles and doors rushed past him.
Sounds,
pictures, words, people, feelings, nothing made sense.
The only
thing he was certain of was the unmistakable scent of death that intertwined
with the countless odours wafting through the hospital, underlaying the
cascades of fragrances like the deep, sonor tone of an oboe.
He came to
his mother�s room �and stopped dead in his tracks.
All of a
sudden, he felt the lack of air ins his lungs and he fought to catch his
breath, nigh on hyperventilating in the process.
And almost
jumped six feet out of his skin when a bony hand came to rest on his shoulder.
�I�m sorry,
I didn�t mean to startle you�, the surgeon apologized, as he withdrew his hand,
�I know,
that this is a difficult time for you, but, if you need anything, I am glad to
see to-�
David shook
his head, sweat on his brow, eyes flitting about anxiously.
�No..no,
I..I�ll be ok. Thanks.�
The doctor
nodded in understanding, even as Hodges took a deep breath and pushed the door
open.

She looked
so frail; her usually plush cheeks hollowed, the skin brittle and with a
sickeningly pale, grayish hue.
David
swallowed once, hard, then closed the door behind him and stepped closer.
For a
while, he merely took in the picture before him; the unmoving body of his
mother, the various apparatuses and machines, wires, tubes and infusions
attached and leading to and from her.
He
shivered, suddenly feeling utterly cold and alone, then pulled the visitor�s
chair next to her bed and sat down.
Again, his
adam�s apple jumped as he fought for words and control.
�Hey mom�,
he rasped, choked and sniffled.
�Sorry, I
didn�t make it earlier, but I�ve been looking for Kobayashi Maru. Remember, my
cat? Well, he�s still missing and��
A single
tear rolled down his cheek, as he took his mother�s hand in his own, rested his
forehead on it and began to pray.

��see Your
daughter Alicia Filonilla Hodges to her final rest,
we pray that You, in Your unwavering love and kindess, will seat her at Your
side, and��
Everything
was muted.
Sound,
color, touch, emotions�
David
felt neither the drizzle nor the cold wind pull at his hair and coat; he was
like sleep-walking.
Only
he knew that he couldn�t wake up.
Just
like his mother didn�t, would never again.
Automatically
he lay the bouquet of pink carnations, blooming dark crimson roses, daffodills,
rosemary and dill down on her coffin, threw the first shovel of soil, spoke a
few words of farewell and gratitude and accepted the condolences, handshakes
and well-meant advises without so much as a flicker of acknowledgment.
It
was then when a woman about the age of his mother walked up to him, paper hanky
in one hand, and mourned his loss.
He
was just about to reply, when she sighed,
�Too
sad your lady friend couldn�t make it. But I�m sure her heart and thoughts are
with you in this darkest of hours.�
Hodges
furrowed hs brow in confusion, brought back to senses.
�I�m
sorry, come again?�
The
woman before him apologized and introduced herself being one of the nurses who
had been in charge of his mother.
Only
now did he recall seeing her frequently fretting about the care ward, and he
nodded in understanding.
�Yes,
well, I am sure sure she would have loved..too�� he trailed off, as her words
finally registered in his brain.
Something
didn�t sit right; something did not match.
Neither Wendy
nor Jacqui had been at the hospital to see his mother; Wendy, because she
didn�t know and Jacqui hadn�t made it in time, what with her attending various
hearings and lectures throughout the east coast and barely being able to
wrestle a moment free for a change of clothes and shower, leave alone food and
sleep.
And Hodges
was absolutely certain that no one of the crime lab would have visited without
asking him in advance.
So, who
might the mystery visitor have been?
Puzzled,
David leaned closer to the nurse and queried,
�I�m sorry,
I�m a little confused, but �did that friend of mine leave a name? Or do you
remember what she looked like? I mean -she told me she dyed her hair, because
people often mistake her for her sister, so I just want to make sure I get the
right one, so that I can ..thank her on behalf of my mother.�
The elder
woman sniffled again and cleaned her nose, before she said,
�Well, she
is quite a beauty, isn�t she? I mean, those long, chestnut locks and the big
green eyes along with the perfect comple-sir? Mr.Hodges, are you feeling well?
Mr.Hodges?�
The trace
tech only gave a curt nod, as he tried to regain his balance and hang on to his
stomach.
It wouldn�t
help for him to be violently ill at his mother�s funeral, but he couldn�t help
the bile rising in his throat.
His hands
turned clammy in an instant, and all of a sudden he felt as if his tie and suit
were constricting, strangling, suffocating him.
This was
not happening.
It just
couldn�t be.
Could it?

David
couldn�t remember anything afterwards; neither the luncheon nor the drive home.
It wasn�t
until he slipped his key into his lock, halfways expecting Maru to circle
around his legs as he always did when Hodges got home, that this one realized
that his life had been forcibly turned upside down in the worst of ways.
Kicking the
door closed behind him, he threw his mail on the cupboard dominating his
miniscule hall, took off his shoes and coat and-
His nose
tickled, all the bells in his head went off at once and without a second
thought Hodges threw himself sideways into a corner as if being targeted.
Then he
just sat there, huddled beneath his coat, shivering like in a fevered pitch.
That scent,
than unmistakeable, wretched, hated perfume!
Where did
it come from?
Was it
possible, that person was here, in his appartment?
It took the
trembling Hodges several attempts just to gather enough courage to rise and
inch down the corridor to the living room, his legs shaky and his hands
unsteady, as he quietly withdrew an umbrella from the stand and made his way
through the appartment.
Given, an
umbrella is not the ideal weapon to face a possibly armed intruder, but David
needed something to hang on to, and be it but a bundle of wires and cloth.
Cautiously,
he checked all rooms, paranoia striking deep enough to make him open wardrobes
and shelves for any hints of a hidden foe.
Nothing.
Yet, the
scent remained, and for a second, Hodges worried if grief had finally shattered
his already troubled sanity.
Until he
returned to the hall.and was once more attacked by the smell.
Looking
around in confusion, his eyes finally came to rest on a tiny enveloppe that lay
on the floor just beneath his mail slot.
Hodges
moved one white-knuckled fist to his mouth, biting down hard, before he closed
the distance to the ominous postage.
Even before
he heeled to pick it up, he was assaulted by that all too well-known mixture of
musk, sandlewood, magnolia and something else that had always reminded him of
poison ivy.
He
inspected the plain, white wrapper from all sides before tearing it open.
A single,
folded paper slid into his hand, and he stifled a gasp has he recognized the
handwriting.

Dear
David,

My, it has been a while, hasn�t it? It sure took me some
time to find you, since the

LAPD
wouldn�t hand out your new whereabouts. For good luck I kept in touch
with
your old friends- as they were- and kookie-koo! here I am! Too bad your
mother
was, well, unaccountable, otherwise she would have surely called ahead
�and made sure you had everything ready for my
visit. Don�t mind, though,
I did
make myself comfortable; you have a very nice couch and a surprisingly
well-stocked
fridge and bar. And obviously haven�t parted with your stupid
Dukes of
Hazzard-collection. So sad, really, but then again, unsurprising.
Guess,
I�ll be seeing you around, oh, and I�m sorry about Momma; even though
we
didn�t get along well, I�m happy you were with her in her final moments.

Be
seeing you around

Debbie

P.S.
Your cat got hit by a car; it�s alive, but injured. I took the freedom of
driving
it to the next veterinarian, some Dr. Roley. You might want to check on him,
though,
he didn�t look too good �the cat, I mean, not the doctor.
Poor
boy.

Poor
boy, poor boy, you must know,
That
life is a hard road
Poor
boy, poor boy you must say
Life his
very hard these days.

A giggle, faint and uncontrollable, bubbled up from
David�s throat as he drove one hand over his tear-brimmed eyes.
Deborah.
Why on earth was she showing up, all of a sudden,
after all this years?
Wasn�t it enough that she had controlled and ruined
his life once?
Had all the pain and suffering and humiliation she had
caused him not been enough to satisfy her need for vengeance?
Why of all people to stalk him had it to be his
calllous, belligerent, covetous ex-wife?

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Whoo,
surprise �well, sort of. In all honesty, I rewrote the funeral scene six times
until I decided �whatever!' And stuck with this version. Since I like to do a little
selamik(or flower language), every flower and plant in the bouquet that David
lays down on his mother�s grave has a specific meaning.
In
alphabetical order:

Carnations(pink)
�I�ll never forget you
Dill- Joy, courage, strength and life, these gifts of
love you gave to me
Rosemary - Remembrance
Rose(dark crimson) � Mourning
Roses(Bouquet of full bloom) � Gratitude
Daffodil -Respect

As for
Deborah�s name..it just popped into my brain when I was sketching out her character.
She sure will be making her appearance some time soon�
- 5
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Who is David Hodges?

Today, tomorrow

My, it has been a while, hasn�t it? It sure took me sometime to find you, since the

My, it has been a while, hasn�t it? It sure took me some
time to find you, since the