Title: Just Between You and Me
By: angstytimelord
Pairing: Greg Sanders/Ryan Wolfe
Fandom: CSI: Vegas/CSI: Miami
Rating: PG-13
Author's Note: Mentions of rape.
Disclaimer: This is entirely a product of my imagination, and I make no profit from it. I do not own the lovely Greg Sanders or Ryan Wolfe, unfortunately, just borrowing them for a while. Please do not sue.

***

"Ryan, what's wrong?" Greg asked as soon as the two of them were home and the door was firmly closed behind them. "And don't tell me it's nothing. You've been jumpy ever since you came back into that crime scene after you left for a few minutes."

Ryan sank down onto the couch, wishing that he didn't have to tell Greg what he'd seen, but knowing that he had no choice. He had promised not to keep any secrets from his boyfriend, and that was a promise that he firmly intended to keep.

"I .... I ...." He took a deep breath, closing his eyes and searching for some way to say the words that he didn't think would alarm Greg. "I don't really know how to say this," he began, trying to stall for time rather than just blurt out what he was thinking.

"Just tell me," Greg told him, sitting down next to Ryan and sliding an arm around his waist. "Whatever it is, even if it freaks you out, we'll deal with it together." He rested his head on Ryan's shoulder, snuggling close, not speaking, just offering comfort.

"I saw the guy from the Cuban mob in Miami," Ryan whispered, not knowing how else to tell Greg other than letting the words come out all at once. "The one who violated me with a gun. He was here. In Vegas. At our crime scene. Smiling at me."

"You don't think he could have had something to do with what happened there, do you? Using it as some kind of excuse to get you there?" Greg lifted his head from Ryan's shoulder, his voice sharp with alarm. "Ry, what would he be doing here in Vegas?"

"I hope he's not looking for me, but I can't be sure of that," Ryan said, his voice barely a whisper. "I don't want anything from my old life in Miami following me here, Greg. And I don't want you put in danger because the past tracked me down."

"You didn't leave Miami under a cloud," Greg told him, shaking his head. "You don't have anything to run from, Ryan. If this guy is following you, then it's probably because he feels like he can intimidate you. The crime lab isn't going to let that happen."

"Then why do I feel like I've got someone after me who's trying to track me down and throw me into a prison?" Ryan asked with a wry laugh. "No, it's not a prison he wants to trap me in. It's my own memories. He's trying to intimidate me. I know that."

"Don't let him do it," Greg said, his tone firm. "You can't give in to that, Ryan. I know your memories are awful, but you can't let them overpower you. If you do, then you're letting him win by default before you've even had a chance to catch the guy."

"I don't intend to let him get the better of me like he did last time," Ryan told him, trying to keep his voice strong and decisive. "But it's hard not to let those memories come back to me, Greg. And if they do -- then he's going to have an advantage."

Greg nodded slowly, looking worried as he did so. "Then we've got to figure out a way to keep them from coming back -- and to catch him before he can get to you." As the words were spoken, both men knew that they would be much more easily said than done.

"I think he's here because he wants to finish what he started," Ryan said in a hollow voice. "He wanted to do more than rape me with a gun, Greg. He told me when he was violating me that he wanted us to be .... closer. I don't have any doubt about what he meant by that."

The color drained from Greg's face, leaving him looking strained and shaken. "Well, he's not going to get closer to you," he said, obviuosly trying to keep his voice from shaking and not succeeding very well. "I'm not going to let him lay a finger on you."

"And you're not going to put yourself in danger to protect me," Ryan said, his tone stern. "I mean it, Greg. I've dealt with this guy before, and I can take care of myself if I have to. I'm not going to have you jumping in to try to keep me safe. I won't let you sacrifice yourself."

"You can't stop me from having your back," Greg protested, his brows drawing together in a frown. "I'm not going to let you put yourself in the line of fire, either. That's why we're partners, right? To keep each other safe, and to watch each other's backs. I intend to do that."

"He ran when he knew I'd spotted him," Ryan mused, trying to remember everything that had happened just a few hours ago. "That proves that he's just trying to give me some kind of warning. Or that he wanted to let me know he's here, to put me on edge."

"He's probably just trying to make you nervous and shaky," Greg agreed. "That's a good tactic, especially after what he's already done to you. I'm betting that he's counting on you having flashbacks and nightmares about what he did to you. He wants to throw you off your game."

"It's going to take more than just trying to intimidate me for him to do that," Ryan declared, squaring his shoulders and pushing back the fear and weakness he'd felt when he had first glimpsed his adversary in the crowd. "I'm still in the game, Greg. And I'm staying there."

Greg nodded again, though he still looked worried. "I just don't want you doing anything crazy, Ryan. Like trying to go after this guy on your own because you feel like you've got a score to settle. Promise me that you aren't going to do that."

Ryan didn't want to promise anything; he knew that if he happened to be face-to-face with the man who had tortured him, and he had the opportunity to exact revenge, he would more than likely do it. But he couldn't deny Greg what he was asking for.

Slowly, he nodded, sighing as he spoke. "All right, Greg. I promise you that I won't do anything crazy. Even if I've got a chance to take revenge on this guy, I'll let the system take care of that for me. But I will say this -- if the system lets him go, then all bets are off."

Greg regarded him for a few moments without speaking, then slowly nodded, his gaze not leaving Ryan's face. "Okay. I guess I can live with that. As long as I'm with you when you go after him. That is, if the system doesn't put him away. And I think it will."

"You can't be sure of that, Greg," Ryan told him, shaking his head. "I've seen way too many criminals get off scot-free in Miami because they either had good lawyers, or because they bribed corrupt politicians. And I'll be damned if I'll stand back and watch that happen here."

"This is Vegas, Ryan," Greg said with a sigh. "Things like that happen a lot more often than you might think. The police department does the best they can, but corruption is everywhere in this city. It's not as bad as it used to be, but it's still there."

"I guess things like that are always festering under the surface," Ryan murmured, a thought striking him. "Do you think that might be why he's here? Not because I came here, but because Vegas is an easy place for criminals to find a niche?"

"It could be," Greg mused, considering Ryan's words. "But that just seems like too much of a coincidence, doesn't it. I mean, you come here to get away from the memories you have in Miami, and all of a sudden, somebody who's a big part of them shows up."

Ryan had to agree with his boyfriend's assessment of the situation, but that didn't get him any closer to deciding what to do about it. "I'm going to have to tell Brass what I saw, and explain the whole situation in Miami to him, I guess," he said, sighing and closing his eyes.

"I don't think you should tell him everything," Greg said quietly. Ryan opened his eyes to look at the other man; he had never seen such compassion in anyone's eyes, or such concern. With a slight smile, he reached for Greg, pulling his boyfriend close against him.

"I'm not going to," he said softly, resting his cheek against the softness of Greg's hair. "There are some things about my life that are on a strictly need-to-know basis. And nobody needs to know about that but you. It's just between you and me."

Greg nodded, sighing and tightening his arms around Ryan's waist. "We'll find this guy, Ryan," he said, his voice soft and soothing. "No matter what we have to do, we'll find him. And he'll end up behind bars, where he belongs. Hopefully then you'll get some closure."

Ryan wasn't sure about that at all, but he wasn't going to argue with Greg. Closing his eyes again, he let himself relax into his boyfriend's embrace, hoping that seeing the architect of his most recent nightmares here in Vegas wouldn't bring them back to him in living color.

***