𝗞𝗶𝘀𝗺𝗲𝘁 ~ 𝗘𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘀

Arcane

Arcane

(adj.) understood by only a few; a secret

My stomach churned as we pulled up to Emily's apartment. At first we tried to make small talk but it was impossible so we sat in thick silence.

"Need help?" Emily asked as I lifted my bag.

"No, thank you though." I replied softly. We walked up the stairs and I was so ready to take off my shoes until Emily stopped in her tracks. I almost ran into her back.

"What?" She just pointed at her door while her mouth fell slightly open. I poked my head around her frame to see a long box propped on her door. I dropped my bag and walked over to it. I could hear Emily telling me to stop but the urge to find out what was inside was overwhelming. I propped the middle of the box on my forearm as I untied the bow and drew back the lid. I froze at seeing what was inside.

"Emily...we need to leave." I looked up at her. Confusion fell over her face as she picked up my fallen bag and walked over.

"Oh no." Her face was right next to mine, her breath smelled strongly of coffee but I could only think about the contents of the box. A flower. But not just any flower, the flowers we planted in Ian Doyle's garden the day he was arrested. "I'm going to get Sergio, then we leave."

"Okay." I entered Emily's apartment, locking the door behind me. Emily disappeared into her room, there was some shuffling, I heard the toilet flush and Emily emerged from her room with her go-bag for work slung over her shoulder.

"Sergio!" She called out. The black cat came out of the shadows and leaped into her arms. "Let's go buddy."

—-

I walked into the bullpen the next morning without Emily, she woke up extra early, leaving me alone at our safe house, and left a note saying she had something to do and was going to meet me at work. I wasn't stupid I knew she was meeting either our team like we all did a few days prior - in that case she would have taken me - or with Doyle...

I spotted a newspaper sitting on a bench under a small tree opposite from Tsia, parallel to Clyde, and just out of earshot from Emily in the bustling plaza. I picked up the phone.

"Nice of you to join us Kira." Clyde's obnoxious voice boomed through the burner.

"You're lucky I made it. I had to sell my soul to my boss to get here."

"Since when do you have a soul doll?" Clyde pushed it.

"Can you two stop?" Tsia cut it.

"I agree we need to hurry this up. We both had to take a late lunch." Emily agreed.

The conversation continued about Doyle and how he was going to be dealt with, me and Emily apologized for Tsia having to miss Jeremy's funeral, and we dumped the phones.

...My thoughts were interrupted by someone calling my name.

"Kira!" I snapped my head up to see the worried Garcia looking down at me.

"I'm fine, just leave me alone." I brushed her off, like I had been since our blowing out. I rushed across the small catwalk to the conference room before I could get there though I was stopped.

"What's going on?" Hotch watched me and my expressions as he asked.

"I said I was fine Hotch and stop profiling me." I then went into the room taking my seat at the round table.

—--

We found someone who seemed to be the next target so me, Emily, and Morgan drove to his house to see what was up. Morgan was driving, Emily was riding shotgun, and I resigned in the back seat.

"What's up with you two?" Morgan broke the silence in the car as we sat at a red light. Me and Emily stayed stoic.

"What's up with you?" I acted as casually as possible. "I'm not sure what you mean."

"Your blow up with Garcia and how nobody will tell us what it was about, Emily you definitely haven't been getting sleep, and you both have either been coming late or coming in at the same time and you don't live together. It doesn't take a genius to see something is going on."

"Good to know Garcia can actually keep her mouth shut to someone." I mumbled as Morgan parked the car.

"Woah." He turned around to face me. "That's not cool."

"It's not cool to spill your friends secrets either yet here we are."

"Well Emily, why aren't you sleeping?" He changed the subject.

"Just got a cat he keeps me up, not a big deal and to answer your next question we carpool quite often."

"Alright then. Let's go inside to make sure this guy still has a pulse." The car filled with the sound of seatbelts unbuckling and doors opening.

I was out first and was halfway to the stairs turned around waiting for the other two.

"Hurry up." I called out to them. I looked between Emily and Morgan just as panic rushed over Morgan's face.

"Prentiss! Monet! Get down!" Emily jumped behind the car but before I could see what was happening behind me in the house two large men grabbed me by my arms. They got me out of the way and another started shooting toward my people.

There was nothing I could do with my arms being manhandled so I kicked my legs like crazy trying to get some sort of handle of my own body.

"Put me down you assholes." I fussed.

"Kira!" I heard Emily yell at me. I turned around to see her standing behind a car with her gun up. There was a moment where everything melted away, the men in masks, the gunshots, and the fact I was about to get thrown in a van all dissolved away. It was just me and her, until a shot shattered the glass next to her. She ducked down and I was chucked into the van.

One of the men was shot and before they shut the door they shot him up. I then realized what was going on and I reached for my gun, only to realize they had taken it.

Who are these people and why did they not kill me?

My mind was bouncing to every scenario that could play out but what did happen was not even close to what I was expecting.

There was a sharp pain in my thigh and I looked at one of the men shooting something into my leg. Before its effect took over my body he took off his mask. Ian Doyle.

"Hello Raya Lambert- wait she was killed in a hit and run you're Kira Monet."

"You son of a bitch." My words slurred, after that was darkness I fell over and was out before I hit the floor of the van.