When Mac and Stella unlock the vending machine at the museum, they rifle through the money and find a $20 bill with chocolate smeared on it. Mac figures out it belongs to the boyfriend of the victim's sister.
The child was the illegitimate son of their union. Since the boyfriend was in prison, the victim told her sister not to tell him she was pregnant. The promise was simple to keep until the boyfriend came back into the sister's life. What she did not know was his heroin addiction made him sterile and he would never have any more children. When he tried to get his son back, the victim tried to stop him. He grabbed the first weapon he saw, which was a knife displayed in a case nearby. He stabbed the victim to death.
After tonight's episode, I have a question: has Mac Taylor ever had kids? It's obvious he's good with them (he should be, Gary Sinise has three). For a while, Mac was grieving over the death of his wife in the 9/11 attacks. At the end of last season, he went to a restaurant to meet a woman he met at Mac's favorite diner ("What You See Is What You See"). Only once have I heard him say anything about a child, and that was in passing. He did not elaborate further, so I was not sure exactly what he meant.
Article comments
1 - Brent
I suppose that the obvious answer to your question would be that Mac's wife was pregnant when she died. I'm not sure I'd like that - I watch the CSI shows to see something other than the obvious answer and for the most part I'm rewarded.
2 - NancyGail
I'm not so sure the obvious answer is right either in this case. Mac did mention something last season which made me think a child had died, or just remembering happier times. Of course, we could both be wrong and Mac and wife never had children.