Adult-FanFiction.org : Television / Streaming

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
- 8
- 9
- 10
Weeeeeeeeee, my first review! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Hanjeu;
for your kind words! I�m glad you like this fic, and, as promised, here�s the
new chapter. And yes, a distraught Hodges is always sooo adorably cute, you
just want to comfort him. Among other things*cough*cough* Oh my, where�d *that*
come from? *blush*
Anyways, on with the story; there�s a storm brewing and heading towards
our poor trace tech. Blow-ups, break-ups, break-downs �you name it, we got it. Enjoy!^^

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

Dawn before the day

Everything
was dead quiet.
Since it
was a public holiday, few to none of his neighbours were up at this time of the
wee morning hours.
Traffic was
low and muted by his nigh on sound-proof windows.
Maru lay
asleep in his basket, twitching and mewing every now and then.
David just
stood in his bathroom and stared at his reflexion.
High
forehead, reclining hairline, steel-blue eyes, straight nose, small cleft in
his chin, strong jaw, obligatory wrinkles around his mouth and eyes.
�Past his
prime, but not unattractive�, as one might say.
�A haunted
man�s face�, were David�s thoughts.
There was a
weariness in his movements, a glint in his eye, he hadn�t seen since he had
moved to Vegas, nine years ago.
It was a
part of him he thought he had left behind in LA.
To realize
it had been with him all this time, buried deep within his apparent shallowness
and self-absorbed ignorance, was almost too much to bear.
A deep sigh
escaped his chest as David reached for the switch and turned off the lights.
Time to get
some sleep.
If he could
sleep, that was.

He awoke
precisely eight hours later, rested, but not refreshed.
One quick,
thourough shower, a cup of pitch-black coffee and a good shave later, Hodges
placed Kobayashi in his travel box, gave him a little treat and made his way
down to the parking lot, where his car stood. Using the remote on his key, he
unlocked it from some thirty feet away �and rolled his eyes, as he realized he
had left his laptop bag in the hall.
He turned
on his heel, pointed the key over his shoulder as he clicked the lock-
The ensuing
explosion shattered every window on the first two floors facing the parking lot
and could still be heard five blocks away.

�I�m
telling you, I didn�t see anybody on the grounds! For God�s sake, I came home
early from work today and haven�t left my appartment since three thirty this
morning!�
Clutching
the terrified Maru to his chest, Hodges yelled at the police officer
interrogating him.
It was a
good thirty minutes since his car had blown up, but for good luck, no one had
been injured.
Given, the
trace tech suffered a few bumps and scratches and the occasional singed spot,
where the still glowing debris had hit him, and there was a constant ringing in
his ears, but otherwise, all a-ok.
If one
chose to ignore the two dozen or so cars in various stages of demolition.
One burly,
dark-haired paramedic dribbled more ointment on the burn mark on David�s neck.
Who merely
narrowed his eyes in annoyance, then flipped his cell open.
�Who you
calling?� asked the policeman. Hodges flared his nostrils.
�My lawyer,
if you need to know.�
At the
startled man�s look, he snarled,
�I�m
calling my boss to say I�ll be running late, since I�ll be playing �20
Questions� over and over, till the showmaster get�s it right!�
�Willows.�
�Yeah,
Catherine, it�s Hodges. Listen, uh, I�ll be late today, there has been an�incident.
With my car. Don�t worry, I�m fine, Maru�s fine, nobody got hurt, it�s just
that I�ll�probably have to flag down a cab to work.�
�Wha-what,
wait, wait, Hodges, what are you talking about? What was that about your car?
Have you been in an accident or something?�
David
pursed his lips. From where he sat he could see the first OB-vans and other
press representatives approach from where the line of firefighters stood,
bystanders taking pictures and phoning�
�Somebody
rigged my car. I opened it on remote and �boom!�
There was a
short silence, then,
�I�ll send
over a team.�

Some
seventy-four hours later David sat in Nick�s office, facing both his
supervisors.
�Your
ex-wife, huh?�
The lab
tech merely nodded; looking par the worse. He pinched the bridge of his nose,
even as Nick said,
�You never
mentioned you were married, once.�
Hodges gave
a humourless snort.
�Believe
me, it�s not the kind of thing you want to remember.�
Catherine
leaned forward.
�Are you
sure it�s your ex-wife and not somebody else from your time in LA? I mean, you
do got proof, right?�
David
merely shook his head, hand over his mouth.
�No, none.
Well, except for that note she threw in my mail slot, but otherwise�no.�
Nick
huffed, Catherine sighed, then queried,
�You got a
picture of her? Even if it�s old, Archie can�� she paused, when she saw the
pained grin on Hodges� face.
�Please,
she�s from LA. She�s probably had so much plastic surgery, I wouldn�t recognize
her if she stood before me.�
�Then how
can you be so sure that we�re dealing with your former wife?� demanded
Catherine, more than a little exasperated.
David�s
face went completely emotionsless, his voice flat and gravelly, when he
croaked,
�Because
she still smells the same. Sandlewood, musk, magnolia, pachouli. It�s a scent
that has burnt itself into my memory. And I can�t forget that one, no matter
how hard I try.�

They had
moved him from the hotel to one of the police�s safehouses.
Catherine
and Ecklie had argued, if he should take a sabbatical, but David had refused,
insisted that he would go crazy hauled up in the small appartment with nothing
to do. Plus, he felt saver at night in a downtown crime lab stuffed with
uniformed men than in a lonely flat on the outskirts of Henderson.
It had been
utter despair which had made him leave Kobayashi Maru in Nick�s care; he had
not wanted to part with his little furred friend, but, considering the
circumstances, decided with a heavy heart to do what was best for the cat.
And Nick
had insisted that he come visit as often as possible, even going so far as
handing him his spare key, so David could check on Maru whenever he liked.
Which
Hodges did, much to both Nicks�and Maru�s pleasure.

�You were
married.�
Wendy stood
in the trace lab, glaring daggers at Hodges.
Who merely
blinked and nodded; not understanding the woman�s anger.
�Yes, I
was. So?�
The
brunette gave an offended gasp, then hissed,
�So? So?
You didn�t think it might have been worth mentioning it, before you started to
�to- show interest in me?�
David
straightened and sighed.
�Believe
me, Wendy, there�s nothing worth mentioning. We got married, we got divorce-�
�Like hell
there�s nothing worth mentioning! If there was nothing worth it, she wouldn�t
have tried to blow you up!� yelled the DNA tech.
She was
fuming, and Hodges tried to sooth her, reaching out with one gloved hand.
�Wendy,
please, I�m sorry, but when I left LA, I had already put her and anything
between us behind me. I started life all over again, and-�
�Don�t
touch me!�
The offered
arm was slapped away, leaving Hodges to stare at the livid woman he had come to
think of so much more than a friend.
�Wendy, I
�I�m sorry, I didn�t mean to hurt you�� he began, only to be cut off.
�You know,
I really started to �trust you. I thought, that maybe we �we could�� She
sniffled, fighting back tears.

�Now I find out I don�t know anything about you, that you lied to all of us,
and..and��
She was
crying now, silver pearls rolling down her reddened cheeks.
�I..I don�t
think I would want to be �associated with someone who keeps..lying to his friends.�
Incredulous,
shocked into immobility, David watched as Wendy left his lab, wiping away tears
with the sleeve of her coat, biting her lip as not to cry out loud.
And then,
anguish seeped into his eyes, as he realized that he had once more lost the
most important person in his life.

�-simple;
they linked the bomb to the lock. They didn�t even had to drill a hole or
remove the casing, but just set the bomb underneath the seat, make sure the
wires were connected and hidden from view, then close the door. The moment it
was unlocked, the bomb was charged, and when you reactivated the remote
control..�
David drove
one hand over his tired eyes.
He was
always tired these days; lack of sleep and constant alertness taking their toll
on him.
Raymond
looked up from the sheet he used to explain the machinations behind the
explosion.
�Hodges,
you okay? If you want me to stop-�
�No, no,
it�s ok. I�m just beat, is all�, mumbled the trace tech. Langston gave him a
hard stare.
�I know,
I�m probably way out of line saying this, but..have you considered a
therapist?�
David gave
a dark chuckle.
�What�s
with everybody wanting to send me to a shrink? It�s not like she could heal a
broken heart anyway, so what�s the use?�
He leaned
forward, idly playing with the model of the bomb Langston had prepared for
visual reference.
�Stupid
fuckers don�t know shit one about anything, but act as if they�re Freud in
person. Damn assholes.�
Raymond�s
jaw dropped a little; while he was used to the occasional stray curse or swear
word coming from Hodges, he had never heard the man use such foul language. This
time he looked Hodges over more carfully.
The trace
tech looked..unkempt, as if he didn�t care about his appearance anymore; he had
lost several pounds, dark circles underneath his eyes and an apparent stubble.
Given, he was the type who could wear it, plus, it altered his looks, making
him look like a college prof rather than a lab worker.
Still,
Raymond was worried. He tilted his head to the side and asked quietly,
�Hodges,
are you drunk?�
David made
a noise that might have been a laugh; bitter and callous.
�I�d love
to, but sadly enough, I don�t get drunk. I can down a bottle of whisky and a
sixpack and drive from here to Reno, you would never guess.�
Raymond
glowered.
�Don�t tell
me you tried hat out.�
�Once. In
college. Before I..I��
He sucked
in a deep breath and crossed his arms before his chest; tucking his hands into
his armpits.
A slight
shiver ran through his body, making him tremble uncontrollably.
The doctor
was clearly concerned now; reaching over he placed one large hand on David�s
forehead, then checked the pulse at the other man�s neck.
The trace
tech didn�t even flinch.
Raymond�s
hand came away covered with sweat.
Cold, and
by his quick judgment, David�s heart was beating a good one-fifty a minute.
�How long
have you been having this tremors?� he asked quietly, and Hodges shook his
head.
�Dunno..somewhere
around the funeral�it�s gotten worse since..since the bombing..� he stuttered,
quivering even more.
Raymond
opened his mouth to retort, when his cell phone went off.
Never
leaving Hodges out of his sight, he flipped it open and replied,
�Langston.
Yeah. Yeah. Ok, where? Uh-huh. Hn. Fine, I�ll be there.�
Huffing, he
hang up and stuck the phone back into his pocket as he turned to David.
�We got a
DB in West Charleston. Looks like a homicide.�
He drew a
deep breath, released it and then stated,
�Listen,
Dave, I don�t want you to misunderstand, but, I�ll have to report this to
Catherine. You�re in no condition for work. You show all symptoms of a nervous
breakdown and still processs evidence. You should be in a hospital bed, not
sitting behind the microscope!�
�I�m
perfectly capable of doing my job! I�ve only got a cold, that�s all. And if the
police would work a little harder on finding Debbie, I wouldn�t be so damn
nervous either. Besides, you�re not my supervisor.�
The last
bit came out as a pout, and Raymond frowned. Pointless to be gentle with
Hodges.
�No, I�m
not. But Catherine is. And she sure isn�t going to take no for an answer, once
she knows about the state you�re in. Listen, I�m going to examine the scene,
and when I come back, I�m going to report you to Catherine, unless you decide
to do it yourself. It�s either a sabbatical or a suspension, but if I were you,
I would go for the sabbatical. First, it looks better on your yearly report,
second, you get paid.�
His tone
grew softer, when he addded,
�And, it
gets you away from Wendy.�
David
looked up, eyes wide and startled, then automatically turned his head to where
he could make out the brunette�s figure past the various glass walls.
The
friendly pat on his shoulder shook him from his pain-filled trance.
Raymond
gave him a reassuring smile.
�Come on.
It�s for the better.�

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

Don�t get me wrong, I love Wedges; in my opinion it�s the
ultimate CSI pairing. But the Stodges-coupling gets my slash/yaoi-fangirl-side
all giddy! The two just go so well together; it�s always funny to watch their
interactions and little spites, even if Hodges seems more lenient towards the
Texan than to the rest of the team.
As for the car bomb; I looked it up, but when you
start searching too many specififc details on the web, you got the federals
storming your flat before you can hit the back button.
And is it just me, or is Dr. Langston like a
Grissom-Warrick-hybrid? I mean, Lawrence does an excellent job at portraying
the doctor, but he�s just so�uncanny, he�s almost too good to be true. He does
martial arts, takes all sorts of extra courses on his own expenses and free
time, spends almost as much time in the morgue as in the field, speaks fluent Mandarin,
is quiet, nice, correct and compassionate�sheesh, gimme a break! How perfect
can you get?
- 8
- 9
- 10
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Who is David Hodges?

Dawn before the day