Hi all!

I am still working on More than Skin Deep, but this idea would not stop bugging me. I will continue to update both.

Disclaimer: I own nothing

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They fidgeted, scanning the unnecessarily spacious office with discomfort. Ecklie may have only been appointed Lab Director a few weeks ago, but he had wasted no time in making himself at home in here.

"What do you suppose he wants?" Grissom asked at last. Catherine, the less nervy of the two, offered a half-hearted shrug.

"I'm sure we'll find out in good time." She said, casting her eyes lazily over the bookcase to her right.

Sure enough, the door swung open and Conrad Ecklie stepped inside, taking a moment to appraise them both before slinking behind his desk and dropping into the leather chair.

"Thanks for coming, guys." He said, folding his hands on the desk. Grissom narrowed his eyes suspiciously, offering no response.

"What can we do for you, Conrad?" Catherine asked, straightening up in her seat.

He pursed his lips, flicking his gaze between the two of them for a long moment, before settling back in his chair, causing the aged leather to creak.

"You're both aware of what happened to Sandy Matthews."

It wasn't a question. The swing shift CSI's suicide had been the talk of the lab for weeks.

Catherine and Grissom both dropped their heads, nodding in agreement.

"In light of the circumstances surrounding her death, the Sheriff, Undersheriff and myself have been in regular talks regarding staff welfare within LVPD. Sheriff Atwater has been very clear: he does not want something like this to happen again within his police station or the lab."

"Nobody wants this to happen again." Grissom pointed out with a soft frown.

"No. And that's why the Sheriff tasked me with reviewing the current welfare procedures we have in place, with a view to instigating a new system that will allow staff to have more of an opportunity to speak up if there's something going on in their lives that they require support with."

"Sounds like a good idea." Catherine shrugged.

"I've already spoken to dayshift and swing supervisors and they're keen to go ahead with it." Ecklie continued as if she hadn't spoken. "So, effective immediately, we are going to be introducing RWRs – Regular Welfare Reviews. This will take place in the form of a weekly five-minute catch-up and a monthly half-hour meeting conducted one-on-one between the supervisor and each member of staff in their team. Guidance will be sent out to all of the supervisors today regarding how to structure these meetings and also advising them of the kind of warning flags to look out for and what to do if they have any concerns for a member of staff."

"Conrad," Grissom interrupted the tirade, holding up his hands. "Grave is always busy. When are we supposed to find the time to do this?"

"Make time." The Lab Director asserted firmly. "This has come down from the top, Gil. There will be no getting out of it and no sitting on it for weeks like you do with your evaluations. The Sheriff has already approved this scheme and he wants it to be a success."

"Sandy was on swing shift." Grissom pointed out tersely, as if that should make a difference.

"So what?" Ecklie placed his hands flat on the desk and fixed him with a stern look. "You're saying that something like that couldn't happen on your team?"

"No." Grissom squared his shoulders defensively. "It wouldn't. I know my guys."

Ecklie scoffed, shaking his head.

"Do you really?" He drawled sardonically, reaching into his In-tray and producing a folder. "As part of my review of the current system, I carried out an audit into all of the staff evaluations for the last five years."

Catherine felt Grissom shift beside her and shot him a concerned look, sensing what was about to come.

"And you know what I found?" The director continued, opening the file. "There are some serious gaps in your supervision of certain members of your team."

"What gaps..."

"Specifically," Ecklie continued before he could finish his question, "CSIs Stokes and Sidle."

Catherine shifted her gaze between the two men uncomfortably. Grissom's jaw was set and he was staring with such intensity across the desk that it appeared he was trying to set Ecklie's shirt on fire with his eyes.

"Grissom's a good supervisor." She jumped in, attempting to defend him before he could say anything foolish. "He's just not good at documenting it."

"Their files are abysmal." Ecklie spat, tossing the list of discrepancies he'd found in front of them. "There are whole sections of their health and welfare information that you've ignored. Sidle doesn't even have a next-of-kin recorded. What are we supposed to do if she's ever injured at work?"

"Okay." Grissom frowned, pushing his chair back. "I'll speak to them and get their files updated. Are we done?"

"No." Ecklie said sternly, halting the CSI's attempts to leave. "In light of your clear failings, I've made the decision to pull your supervisory authority over Stokes and Sidle."

"You're taking Nick and Sara off the team?" Catherine asked, startled.

"You can't do that." Grissom said, his voice unusually low and his blue eyes practically smouldering.

"Actually, I can." Ecklie countered. "But that's not what I'm doing. They will stay on grave, for now, but you are no longer going to be responsible for them."

"Then who is?" Gil asked, his expression softening almost imperceptibly.

Ecklie flicked his gaze to the other person in the room, who had already begun to put the pieces together and realised for the first time why she had been summoned to this meeting in the first place.

"Me?" She confirmed, raising an eyebrow.

"I know that you applied for the Day Shift Supervisor position and didn't get it." He said, barely disguising the smirk on his lips. "Well, now's your chance to prove your worth."

"You're giving Nick and Sara to Catherine?" Grissom scowled, the softness vanishing from his face once again. Ecklie shifted his attention from Catherine back to Gil.

"You will continue to head up the grave shift, so officially you are still their supervisor and for simplicity sake you'll still be in charge of assignments. But, for the time being, Catherine will take over direct responsibility for CSIs Stokes and Sidle. She will be in charge of checking their case reports, staff evaluations, updating their files with the correct information and carrying out any necessary disciplinary action." He explained. "She will also be responsible for the new Regular Welfare Reviews."

"What about Warrick and Greg?" Grissom asked.

"Their files were in better shape, so you can continue supervising them for now, and of course you're still Catherine's supervisor." Conrad sat forward, his eyes glimmering with something that Grissom couldn't quite read. "Take this as a warning, Gil. Any further discrepancies in your paperwork and I will pull the rest of your team from you as well."

Turning back to Catherine, he presented her with a paperwork-laden ring-binder.

"This has all the information you need regarding the supervisor role – it should provide you with everything you need to know about your new responsibilities; but if you have any questions, you know where I am."

"Thank you." She said hoarsely, accepting the file.

"Obviously, in light of your increased responsibilities, there will be a temporary adjustment to your salary, which has already been approved by the Sheriff. Keep an eye on your payslip and if there are any issues, just let me know."

"Okay." She nodded, resisting the urge to look at Grissom. She could feel his gaze burning into the side of her face, but she couldn't stand to see the hurt that was undoubtedly hiding behind the anger in his eyes.

"Good." Ecklie sat back, a satisfied smirk on his lips. "Any questions from either of you?"

"Why are you doing this?" Grissom asked, a mix of venom and bewilderment in his voice. Ecklie leant forward again, meeting his gaze.

"Sandy Matthews died because her supervisor was completely unaware of what was going on in her personal life." He stated, his smile fading for the first time. "This is my lab now and I will not let another CSI die needlessly because of poor supervision."