Psychosis

Chapter 16- Back At It Again With The BAU

Isabel knew that her time was coming. The time when she could prove to her new team that she was fit to be one of them. Not everyone believed she had what it took, but she was going to prove them wrong today. Even after her little rendezvous with those men which ended up with her sporting a multitude of bruises, she could hold her own and catch the criminal in the end. As she fully woke up, she felt almost giddy, but the feeling dropped shortly after. She got out of her bed, but as she did, she discovered that someone was sitting near her, waiting for her to wake up.

"Frank. Go away."

"Now, Isabel, that's not a very nice way to greet an old friend, is it?"

"Yer not my friend. Why are ye here, anyway?"

"To tell you good luck."

"Stop the bullshit and tell me why ye're really here." Isabel wasn't having any of what the serial killer was saying. Not at this time in the morning, anyway. Couldn't he have given her a little time to at least properly wake up?

"You think I'm lying? Now, Isabel, you should know me better than that. I really am here to wish you luck. After all, you're going to need it."

"I don't need luck, Frank. I have all the skill I need."

"Oh, I'm sure you will be able to solve the case with your team expertly. I don't doubt that. What you need luck for is to not give in to your murderous impulses while you're there."

"I'm not going to do that," she said, but in the back of her mind, she had a slight inkling of doubt.

"Sure you won't. Well, Isabel, I'm sorry to say that this will be one of the last times I speak with you. Soon, another will be taking my place. What is his name again?" He stopped to think then, and Isabel rolled her eyes, wondering why she was even standing there in the first place. She should be getting ready for her day. She walked to her bedroom door, but just as she reached it, Frank spoke up again. "Oh yes, I remember his name now."

"Well? Get on with it. Might as well know who else I'm going to have the bad luck to speak with."

"I won't tell you his real name, but I believe most people know him as The Reaper."

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Ciara slowly woke up, a little confused by her dream. The last name that had been spoken sounded familiar, but she had no clue from where. She must have read it somewhere because she had no memory of hearing it anywhere. She let it go, knowing that there was more than likely going to be a case today. She went to rub her eyes, but as soon as she did, pain shot through one of them, reminding her of everything that had happened last night. She sighed, wondering what the team would have to say about it today. Would they be overly apologetic? Or would they pretend it never happened? Well, actually, it would be impossible to pretend it never happened. Not with all the bruises she was sure she had.

She slowly crawled out of her bed, her chest hurting dully when she moved. It would hurt at least for the rest of the day, if not into tomorrow. Her limbs also screamed in protest at her moving, but she knew she had to start getting ready for work. She peeked into Akilah's room to find her still asleep but decided she could wait a little bit to wake her up. Maybe she'd wake herself up. As she went to the bathroom, she heard Akilah's alarm startup, and after a minute of it going off, Ciara decided that Akilah was not waking herself up. Ciara picked up her toothbrush, starting the routine that she performed every day, making a note to herself that she was going to need to pick up toothpaste soon. She then grabbed her hairbrush, brushing her hair and putting it up into a loose bun. She ran her hand over the red X tattooed onto her neck, a small reminder that if things got to be too much for her today, she just had to listen to music and she'd be okay. Her hands then traveled to the mirror, knowing what she needed to do.