(AN: takes place after season 1; episode 7 "Blood Drops").
A week before Thanksgiving found Emma Grace running around town trying to make sure that everything she needed for the next week was in order. Emma Grace was sitting at a coffee shop in town, taking a short break from all of her errands, when her cell phone rang.
Emma Grace had to fish around in her purse for a few minutes to locate her cell phone. I need to clean this thing out, Emma Grace thought as she hit the answer button. "Hello?"
"Emma, is this a bad time?" Jillian Stokes asked after she had heard the breathlessness in the young woman's voice.
"No, it's a good time Jillian. I was having a problem finding my phone. What's up?" Emma Grace took a sip of her coffee.
"I'm trying to get the headcount for Thanksgiving. Are you and Megan going to be able to come?" There was excitement in the voice of the matriarch of the Stokes family as she talked about the upcoming holiday.
"Megan won't be at the house; she's celebrating Thanksgiving with her boyfriend's family this year."
"What about you, Sweetheart?"
"Jillian, I'm not going to be able to make it to the house for Thanksgiving this year. I got an offer to go to India for the week and help out at a few local orphanages."
"Does this have anything to do with Nick coming home for Thanksgiving this year?" Even though Jillian asked the question, she was pretty sure she already knew the answer.
"Yes and no, but, Jillian, I can't pass up this opportunity. And I'm excited about going."
"I understand, Sweetheart. Will we see you tonight for dinner?" Jillian asked.
"It's meatloaf night! You know I wouldn't miss it!" Emma Grace teased.
"See you tonight Sweetheart." With that, Jillian Stokes hung up the phone.
Later that night, Emma Grace had to answer the tons of questions Nick's siblings bombarded her with about why she wouldn't be there for Thanksgiving. The family was slightly upset that Emma Grace wasn't going to be there, but they were excited for her too. After the questions of why she would not be there were answered to everyone's satisfaction, the questions about her upcoming trip came. Emma Grace didn't mind answering these questions, and her excitement for next week grew.
It was the day before Thanksgiving, and Bill Stokes was the one to pick up his youngest son, Nick, from the airport. Father and Son talked about their jobs and what had been going on back at home during the car ride.
Nick made it as far as the porch before one of his siblings came to greet him. "Nicky! I'm glad you're home!" Chris Stokes walked over the threshold of the door and met his baby brother with a hug on the porch.
"It's good to see you too, Chris," Nick said as he hugged his brother back.
"Were you getting ready to chop some wood? Do you need some help?" Nick asked when he and his brother separated and he got a good look at Chris.
"I am, but you better go on inside. Everyone wants to see you." Chris had a huge smile on his face as he patted his brother on the back. As Chris walked off the porch, their dad followed him to help. Nick smiled and made his way into the house.
"Nicky! You're home!" Lisa, who had been sitting in the living room with the nine youngest children, exclaimed with excitement when she saw Nick. She hurried over to him and hugged him. Nick laughed as his nieces and nephews followed Lisa's example, rushing to hug him.
"How have you been?" Lisa asked as Nick picked up Molly and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"I've been good. I'm still enjoying my job, I have some great friends, and I enjoy living in Las Vegas. But, I've missed Y'all, I've missed Texas, and I've missed all of this," Nick said spreading an arm out to take in as much of the house, and people in the house, as he could.
"What is going on in here? Y'all sound like a bunch of screaming banshees!" Sandra pushed the swinging door open that separated the kitchen from the living room. She was smiling, and when she saw Nick, her baby brother, standing there she cried, "Oh my!" Then she was in Nick's arms hugging him. "I'm so happy you're home!" Sandra choked out as she laid her head on Nick's shoulder.
"I've missed you, Sandy." Nick choked out as he placed a kiss on his oldest sister's head.
"Come on; everyone else will want to see you!" Sandra grabbed Nick's hand and hauled him into the kitchen. Nick was met with more squeals of delight as his three other sisters, and his mom greeted him.
"Nick, I'm so glad you're home," Nick's mom said as tears of happiness went down her face.
"Me too, Mom. Me too," Nick chocked out as his own tears of happiness came.
"How can I help?" Nick asked when his mom let go of him. Jillian handed her son a cutting board and asked him to slices the apples. It was a Stokes family tradition that the night before Thanksgiving was a pie night, and the family made all kinds of pies to eat. Nick's sister Gina was making Shephard's pie as the family's main dish for the night.
Nick's five brothers-in-laws joined the rest of the Stokes family as they got off from work. The family enjoyed their meal of pies, and the fun spilled out to the living room where games of chess, Uno, and checkers took place. The family ended the night with a game of Charades, and Nick couldn't help being thankful to be home for the holiday.
Later that night, after all of his sisters had gone home, Nick sat in the living room with his brother and parents. Nick hadn't asked the one question that had bothered him since he had walked through the door. "Where's Emma Grace?"
Bill, Jillian, and Chris looked at Nick; they had known this question was coming, but none of them was looking forward to giving Nick the answer. "She's in India," Chris finally answered.
"Why is Emma Grace in India?" Nick felt his stomach clench. Nick had always been protective of Emma Grace; the four years that they had not talked had not changed that. The thought of her being somewhere where she could be in danger almost made Nick physically sick.
"Her job offered her the chance to go to India for the week and help out in some of the orphanages there. Emma Grace didn't want to turn that opportunity down. Cisco, you know she's always wanted to save the world." Nick's dad explained everything in a matter of fact voice.
"Did her choice to go now have anything to do with me coming home?" Nick could barely whisper the words; he had never wanted to hurt Emma Grace as he had.
"None of us honestly know the answer to that Nick. Emma Grace never gave any of us a yes or no answer when we asked." Jillian had a pitting look on her face as she answered her son's question; she hated to see him hurt.
No one said anything for a while. Chris was the one to break the silence when he asked, "Nick, don't get me wrong, I'm glad you came home, and I hope you come home for every Thanksgiving to come, but what made you decide to come home?"
Nick let out a heavy sigh. "I had to come home and see my family. The case the team and I wrapped up really messed with all of us."
"What happened, Cisco?" Bill was the one to ask the question, but all three of the Stokes family knew this was going to be tough to hear, but they were there for Nick.
"A family was massacred. The only people who escaped were the two sisters. The scene was horrific. The smell of the blood, the brutality, seeing the small body bags the sons were taken away in; it was a nightmare. Then, seeing that teenage girl upset and the younger girl showing no emotion broke my heart." Nick's voice was unsteady as he recounted what happened to his family. Nick was finally letting the emotions he kept at bay during the investigation take control.
Nick gave a humorless laugh as he continued to tell his family about the case that had caused him to come home; "Turned out the little girl is the teenage daughter's child. The teens father-um-abused her; then he tried to abuse his granddaughter/daughter. The teen had the whole family killed. She said her mom knew what was happening and didn't do anything to stop it. She had her brothers murdered because they didn't protect her." Nick sat on the couch not making eye contact with his family.
"Nicky, I'm so sorry. I can't imagine how hard that was for you, and I'm sure some hard memories were stirred up for you." Jillian said as she joined her son on the couch and hugged him. Nick let the tears fall as his mom, dad, and brother cried with him over the abuse to the little girl, but also over the memories, the case had stirred up.
Nick spoke up after everyone got their tears out; "There are problems within the team too. Grissom isn't getting along with Conrad Ecklie; he's the day shift supervisor. Normally they don't cross paths, but when they do the whole team has to deal with the aftermath. Catherine is having to deal with her no good ex-husband who's trying to claim that Catherine is neglecting her little girl, Lindsey. That's a lie; everything Catherine does is for that little girl, she loves her with all her heart. Warrick still isn't getting along with Captain Brass. Those two are a spontaneous combustion waiting to happen."
"How is Sara working out with the team?" Jillian asked noticing that her son had said nothing of the newest member of the grave shift.
"She's still finding the balance of being a part of the team. She and I have worked on a few cases together. She's still like a dog with a bone when she's on a case. We make a good team though. She and Catherine have had this- understanding, I guess- since they worked together to find Holly's killer; they get along. Sara and Grissom have this weird connection that I can't explain; sometimes it's like they can read each other's' minds. As for Warrick and Sara, right now that's another spontaneous combustion waiting to happen too," Nick explained to his family.
The four Stokes family members talked for a little while longer before they called it a night and went to bed. When Nick laid in his old childhood bedroom, he fell asleep almost immediately; it was the best sleep he had gotten since solving the case concerning the brutal murder of that family.
Thanksgiving Day was a busy day in the Stokes household. Cooking started early in the morning, and everyone in the family helped at some point. The children were in charge of making the decorations for the table, so glue, brightly colored paper, and glitter were everywhere! Chores still had to be done, and the dogs and horses had to be fed. A few games of football were played in the yard, and laughter filled the house.
The Thanksgiving meal was delicious, and the dinner table was filled with conversations and laughter. In Stokes family fashion, Thanksgiving night ended with the family in the living room playing board games, watching football, and just enjoying each other's' company. Nick was content. The only thing that could have made the day better was if Emma Grace had been in the house, but Nick knew he had made the right choice to come home this year; he had needed this time with his family.
Friday morning, the day after Thanksgiving, was Nick's last day in Texas with his family. All of his siblings and their children and spouses had stayed the night at the Stokes home. The living room was filled with blankets, pillows, and a blowup mattress or two. Nick and Chris were in the kitchen with their father cooking breakfast. A few of Nick's brothers-in-laws were setting the dining room table while the others fed the horses and dogs. It was a Stokes family tradition that the Stokes men cooked breakfast the morning after Thanksgiving because the Stokes women had spent so much time cooking the day before.
"Megan's stopping by later today," Kimberly announced during breakfast. Nick froze with his fork halfway to his mouth. Megan was Emma Grace's best friend, and even though Nick and Megan had always gotten along pretty well, Megan had turned cold toward him in the four years that he had come home to visit from living in Las Vegas.
"Great." Nick meant the remark as sarcastic and quickly took a bite of his food so he couldn't answer any questions his sisters might have about his comment. However, after four years of witnessing the hostility Megan had towards Nick, no one was surprised by his reaction.
Nick was outside playing football with his brothers-in-law, brother, and nephews when a car pulled up. A woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes stepped out of the driver's side. She had on a simple black sweater, blue jeans, and cowboy boots, and if looks could kill Nick would be dead by now.
"Hey, Megan." Nick knew he would have to talk to Megan eventually, he might as well get it over with.
"Nicholas. What? You didn't bring any Las Vegas bimbo home to meet the family?" Sarcasm oozed from Megan's tone.
"Megan Marie Summerall! I can't believe you!" The remark came from Chris, and his face showed his shock of how Megan was acting.
"Are you really that shocked Chris? After all, you dated her for almost two years; you know how witty Megan can be." Nick stole a quick glance at his brother. Then he addressed the woman in front of him, "Don't worry Megan when I do bring a Las Vegas bimbo home I'll make sure she gives you some tips on how to start acting classy."
The only response Nick got was a smirk and a "hump" as Megan walked past him and headed into the house.
"Man, the two of you are going to have to put your differences aside if you and Emma Grace are ever going to be on talking terms. She can't play referee between you two all the time, and quite frankly I'm going to let Gracie have it when she gets home for leaving me to play referee between you two now!" Chris shoved the football at Nick as he walked pass making his way to the house.
Nick stood in the yard for a few minutes gritting his teeth and preparing himself for the confrontation that might ensue once he was in the house with Megan.
Megan ignored Nick while they were in the house. Nick ignored Megan, but he did listen to her conversation with his sisters, trying to get a hint of how Emma Grace was doing, and if she was seeing anyone.
Two and a half hours later Nick was on the porch drinking a cup of coffee and watching some of his nieces and nephews play with the dogs in the yard. He heard the door close and looked over to see Megan coming out of the house. Megan walked past where Nick was sitting, and Nick knew she was going to leave without saying anything to him. That would have been fine, except Nick had something on his mind that he had to make clear to Megan.
"I was never leaving her," Nick stated loud enough for Megan to hear. Megan stopped in mid-step and just stood on the porch for a minute.
When Megan turned to face Nick, there were two emotions on her face; anger and pity. "You never told her though. To her, that was leaving her like everyone else had."
Nick would be lying if he said those words didn't feel like a punch to the gut; he knew he had handled everything wrong four years ago, but to hear someone voice what they all knew Emma Grace thought sill hurt.
Megan was halfway down the porch steps when Nick voiced his next question. "Has she moved on?"
Megan stopped again. When she turned around this time, her lips were set in a tight line. Nick could tell by the look in Megan's eyes that there was an internal battle of loyalty to Emma Grace but wanting her friend to be cared for happening. Nick sat statue still as he felt a small flicker of hope.
Megan opened her mouth to speak. "She's trying to Nick. But, just remember, you screwed up; big time." With that, Megan walked to her car, got in, and drove away. Nick sat on the porch with the feeling of hope that he could at least get Emma Grace's friendship back, but remorse at the pan that he had caused her. He had to somehow, let Emma Grace know he never meant to hurt her.