CSI:New York : Who Are You? (Don Flack/OFC fanfic)

Chaos Reigns

After finishing upstairs, Olivia and Danny had only one more room to process - Eli Sheridan's private study. If it was anything like the rest of the house they would be done in no time and on their way back to the lab to begin the lengthy job of processing their evidence. And maybe enjoy a strong cup of coffee while they were on.

It was safe to say the entire house was immaculate - showhome immaculate. And not just because the killer had been extra careful to clean up after him. Even before the tragedy that had happened here tonight, it was clear that Anna Sheridan kept a home to be proud of. Each of the CSI's who had worked the scene hadn't been able to find a single dust void anywhere in the house, not a speck of dirt, nor a piece of dirty cutlery. There wasn't a thing out of place. The only exception being the family room - where Danny and Hawkes had found the blood spill - it was the one room where chaos had been allowed to reign. It only made it all seem even more poignant.

The bathroom, Olivia had discovered, was the cleanest she'd ever seen. To the point of hospital sterile. Neither a single hair nor a blob of toothpaste in the basin. The sparkling white suite could have been fitted that very day. Which was why when Danny pushed open the door to Eli Sheridan's private domain and flicked on the light switch, the two CSI's were shocked by what greeted them.

The room looked like a tornado had just ripped through it.

The cushions from the deep green leather sofa had been upturned and were tossed into the four corners of the room and the large oak desk that stood before the picture window overlooking the backyard had its drawers pulled out, their contents tipped all over the floor. Even the sleek metal filing cabinet to the left of the desk had its drawers removed. Folders and papers, books and files were strewn carelessly around the room.

Danny and Olivia shared the same stunned look.

'Maybe we should've started in here first,' Danny said, stating the obvious. 'We'll be greeting the sun at this rate.'

Olivia sighed heavily and slowly nodded her head in agreement. She could feel the beginnings of a headache pricking behind her eyelids. She needed to rest. But after tonight she wasn't sure she'd be able until whoever had done this was behind bars.

'Well,' she said, carefully stepping into the room, 'I'm going to take a stab. Whatever it was our killer was after, most likely it was in here.'

'Copy that. Let's get busy.'

Slowly, after taking detailed photos of the room, the two CSI's began to sift their way through the paper chaos. While Olivia stepped over files and important looking documents, stopping every now and then to snap off photos and to take a closer look, Danny answered his cell phone, which was ringing somewhere inside his navy parka. Taking the phone out he saw it was Mac.

'Boss,' he answered.

'Finding anything?' Mac asked.

Danny rubbed a hand over his chin. 'You know that saying, I think it goes something like, don't count your chickens or something, well, we were doing just that and then boom,' he said, staring helplessly at the pile of papers and whatnot surrounding him and Olivia.

Mac thought he sounded frustrated and tired. 'What happened?'

'Thought we were almost done, ready to roll back to the lab and we walk into the mutated version of Mount Xerox. Eli Sheridan's study, Mac...it's like a bomb went off. Whatever our killer wanted was in here.'