Twisted Reality

Chapter Four

 The group of agents return from lunch, each with a to-go box of leftovers and a coffee of their choosing. Tim is standing in the lounge when the team steps off the elevator. He seems irritated as he says, "Everyone to the conference room. Now." His voice has the sort of defined control that makes everything sound like a life-or-death matter. Anthony looks around, slightly alarmed by the nervous faces around him.

"What's this about?" Serena asks him in a hushed tone. It is clear that this isn't a daily, or even weekly, occurrence by Tim's nearly panicked tone.

"It's probably about a case," Anthony whispers back before they all make their way into the conference room. They sit down and wait for Tim to start talking.

"The New York PD just made an arrest based on the profile we released to the media concerning our latest case," Tim says, not sharing the happiness the news should bring. Everyone looks at Tim, waiting for him to continue. He looks at them, waiting to see if the celebration that should follow is coming, but he goes on when he's only met by nervous glances and shifting in the uncomfortable seats around the conference table. "The suspect they arrested has a validated alibi for the estimated times of each kill. They arrested the wrong man."

There's a collective groan and Anthony begins to silently run through every choice the team has made about this case. "Is this being reflected back to us?" Cynthia seems the most upset about the wrongful arrest and her pained expression makes Anthony's heart ache in sympathy.

"No," Tim says sarcastically with a roll of his stormy brown eyes, "It's not being reflected back on us, the team that made the stupid mistake, in the slightest." He laughs a dry laugh, "Cynthia, where is your head? Because it's most definitely not on this case. Profiling in being chocked up to pseudoscience and the suspect's lawyer is wanting to sue us." Cynthia groans the same groan the team's psychologist, and head profiler, Martha groans. "Unless we can prove we have probable cause, we're all going to be facing disciplinary action, or worse."

Anthony blinks away the shock and frustration that Tim's words bring about, mind going straight to strategies to lessen the damage done to this team's image.

"Does Kate know?" Olivia, affectionately known as Liv, the team's top public relations agent, asks with a concerned tilt of her head. Her caramel brown hair is pulled into a loose up-do that makes her seem younger than the thirty-something-year-old actually is. Her amber eyes have a look of unsureness in them that only serves to make her seem less competent than she actually is.

"If she doesn't know now, she will soon," Cynthia says, sounding particularly dejected, before she turns her chair to face Martha, "Are you absolutely sure your profile is right?"

Anthony hears the fight in his partner's voice, sees the pain in his eyes, and he opens his mouth, planning to stop the soon-to-be argument before he starts, but he stops himself, shaking his head. He's always jumping in and rescuing Cynthia when she says something poorly thought-out, but this time, this mess is her own.

"Yes," Martha responds simply with a sure nod.

"Martha," Tim raises his eyebrow, tone gentle and unassuming.

"I'm sure my profile is right. I mean, yes, it was a difficult one, but all the pieces fit," she turns to look at Tim, eyes sharpening and growing more intense at the unexpected challenge from her best friend.

"Princess," Tim says softly, moving to stand behind Martha, "Is there any way you're wrong?" He rubs her arms and rests his chin on the top of her head. He presses a chaste kiss there with a sigh.

"It's possible," she whirls around to face him, "Just like it's possible for an asteroid to hit Earth and wipe out life as we know it."

Serena looks at Anthony and raises an eyebrow, expression hinted with laughter, as she wonders