Samaritan

~Part 1~

Malcolm woke up to Sunshine's chirps. He had gotten a refreshing three hours of sleep, which was decent by his standards. He rolled out of bed, letting Sunshine step onto his finger and placing a small kiss on her head. "Good morning, Sunshine." he said, gently setting her back in her cage while he got her food. Once he'd given Sunshine her breakfast, his attention was pulled to his door. "Malcolm!" Ainsley called.

"Coming!" he said, making his way to the door. He let his sister in. "Morning, brother." she greeted, pushing past him to the kitchen. "I come bearing food." she told him, getting plates and cups out for the two of them. "Ains, you know I don't eat-" he started. She gave him a lighthearted glare. "You do today. I bought breakfast, and Mom insisted I check on you before I go to work this morning." she interrupted him. 

He sighed, taking a seat on the barstool. He slid his pill bottles to the side, helping Ainsley unpack the assortment of breakfast foods she'd purchased- all from Malcolm's favorite bakery. "Ainsley..." he started. The words died on his tongue, though. He wasn't the only one who struggled with today. Perhaps Ainsley needed this, too. "Thank you." he said, giving a small, sad smile. Ainsley smiled back somberly. 

Malcolm managed a few bites of a croissant, but avoided eating any more than that. Ainsley gave him a small smile. "Why don't we go for a walk?" she suggested, already getting her jacket. Malcolm gave a small nod. He took a few minutes to change in the restroom, since he had yet to change out of his pajamas from the previous night. He returned after a few minutes. He didn't bother with his hair, since it wasn't likely they'd be seen anyway- all he'd done was run his hand through it to make it look like less of a bedhead. He got two bottles of water from the fridge, handing one to his sister as they left the apartment.

"Are you okay?" Ainsley asked, breaking the silence they'd had for the first three minutes of their walk. Malcolm took a swig of water, looking out at the river to avoid eye contact. "Am I ever?" he answered, vaguely. Ainsley rolled her eyes. "I miss him too, Malcolm. He was my friend..." she started, being cut off by a conveniently-timed phone call. She spoke for a few moments before hanging up, slipping the phone back into her pocket. "That was work. I have to go- are you going to be okay?" she asked. Malcolm gave a small nod. "I'll be fine. Go." he told her. Ainsley nodded, leaving in a hurry. 

Bright wandered for a few minutes before making his way back to the loft. He got a call from Dani as he walked inside. "Dani!" he said cheerfully, answering the call as he entered the staircase. "Hey, Bright are you okay? You've been acting strange this week- I mean, more than usual and...you know you can talk to me, right?" she said, her tone laced with concern. 

"I'm okay... just- tired... but I'll be fine." he told her. Dani could tell he wasn't. "Bright, have I ever told you how bad you are at lying?" she asked. This made him smile, just slightly. "I-" maybe Ainsley was right. Maybe he should confide in someone... he started to suggest meeting Dani for tea so they could talk, but as soon as he reached his floor, he knew something was off. "Um... I have to go- I'll call you back." he said, ending the call abruptly. "Bright-" Dani started. She was about to call him back when Gil called her. 

'Don't do anything stupid.' she texted Malcolm, before leaving for the crime scene. It didn't help her worries that he left her on read, but for now, her only option was believing he was okay until she could check on him.

The call from Gil was a crime scene- a beheading. Gil had already arrived. JT pulled up at the same time as Dani, handing her a coffee as they approached the body. "Thanks." she said, giving him a small smile. He nodded in response. "You okay?" He asked. "Yeah... hey, Gil is Bright not working this case?" she asked, approaching the lieutenant. Gil shook his head. "Not this time. Actually, I'd appreciate if we didn't mention this to him... not yet, anyway." he told them. Dani and JT glanced at each other momentarily, but neither questioned their boss on the matter. The killer had left behind a lock of hair from the victim, and placed it on the chest. The head had been taken, likely as some sort of trophy. The body was positioned with the hands crossed neatly over the victim's stomach, and lying flat on his back. He held a red rose in his hands, and was dressed in business-style clothing... everything about the scene was done with a careful intention. Bright would've been profiling away if he were here, but Gil was insistent about keeping him off this case.

Malcolm had arrived home to find his door standing open. Against better judgement, he stepped inside. He thought it was a burglary, seeing as he didn't have the best home security. He looked around. At first, nothing seemed out of place or missing... until he saw the rose petals left on his kitchen counter. His heart sank as he walked closer to it. The petals had been arranged in a half-circle around a note, with several small drops of blood. The letter gave no information, aside from a time and place. Central Park, 5:30. Above the note, was a small, green feather... Malcolm's head turned as fast as it could. "Sunshine-" he said sadly, making his way to the open birdcage. He knew things had seemed too quiet when he walked in, but he didn't think anything of it until now...

Sunshine was missing, and Malcolm knew who was behind it... someone he'd thought- hoped had died a long time ago... 

Malcolm took a seat at the counter, dialing Ainsley's number. She stepped aside, taking his call. "Malcolm?" she said, knowing it wasn't common for him to call during the work day. "Ainsley... he's back." Malcolm said, his voice nearing a whisper as he spoke. Tears welled up in his eyes as he processed the situation. Memories he locked away in the back of his mind, over a decade ago began flooding back to him and he couldn't control it or begin to put a stop to it. "The Samaritan is back."