It seemed that Isabel had been running for hours when she finally stopped for a breath. It could have been hours, but it also could have been minutes, she wasn't sure. Where she was, time didn't exist- at least, not in the way she was used to. Here, time wasn't linear- it curved and widened and narrowed and looped in upon itself with no rhyme or reason. So all she knew was that when her captor had forgotten to put the shackle back on her ankle, she had started running, and she hadn't stopped until she collapsed.
She had ended up in a room of sorts, one without any doors or windows, but hey, geography didn't play by the rules here, either. Upon looking around the room, she found that there was nothing inside of it but a body mirror on the other side. Hmm. Hadn't she seen a room like this before? She slowly walked over to the mirror, cautious about what she might see. She wasn't so much afraid of her reflection, but rather, afraid of what might spring up behind it, or even worse, what might be looking back at her from the other side.
When she got to the mirror, all she saw was herself. She tilted her head, studying her reflection intently. It truly was just herself, no tricks added- even all of her bruises were still the right color and in the right place. Was this supposed to be a test of some sort? If it was, it wasn't a very good one. It could at least give her a clue as to what she was supposed to do or what lesson she was supposed to be learning.
Just as she started to culture an idea, though, the surface of the mirror started to ripple, and when the ripples settled, Isabel gasped. On the other side was one of her teammates, the one she had been getting the closest to. She stared at the mirror, too afraid to speak- she had so much to say, but she feared he wouldn't be able to hear her. And even if he could, the things she wanted to tell him... well, those were better said in person and not through a mirror.
He slowly put his hand up to the mirror, and after a moment of careful deliberation, she put her hand against the glass, as well. Isabel frowned slightly when all she could feel was glass under her fingertips- infuriatingly solid glass. If the mirror could ripple, it could at least let her have even a semblance of human touch. She sighed sadly, and based on the look on his face, he must have been feeling the same disappointment she was.
But then the glass started to ripple again, and when the glass settled, she sucked in a breath, fear taking over her body. On the other side, her teammate was gone, and in his place stood her captor, his hand up to the glass in the same fashion. It wasn't a test after all- it had been a trick. To lull her into thinking she had escaped, and then to rip the rug right out from under her.
Before she could even react, he reached out, wrapped his hand around hers, and pulled her through the mirror.
*****************
She's alive. She's alive. She's alive. Those two words were the only thing running through Reid's head as he rushed to Garcia's office, the technical analyst hot on his heels. It was mere coincidence that he had already been on his way to talk to her when she had come looking for him. He had been wondering whether or not she had been able to find anything new when she had come rushing down the hall, looking for him.
That was when she had told him about the livestream of Ciara, and without waiting for another word, he had taken off. Garcia was still behind him, trying to warn him of what he would see, but Reid didn't care what shape Ciara was in. Well, okay, he did care- he absolutely cared- but he cared more about seeing her alive. All that mattered was that she was alive- dealing with the shape she was in could come later.
Garcia told him that Ciara could hear them, but she couldn't see them, and Reid's mind suddenly went into overdrive, trying to decide what the first thing he would say to her would be. He briefly thought about finally admitting how he felt, but the thought left as quickly as it came. Now was not a good time. She was dealing with the emotional turbulence of this dreaded thing finally happening to her and worrying about how to stay alive- adding another emotional conundrum on top of that really didn't seem fair to her.
YOU ARE READING
Psychopathy
Fanfiction(A Criminal Minds Fanfic {Dr. Spencer Reid}) Book 2 in the "Psychosis" series. As long as the members of the BAU have known her, Ciara Byrne has kept a wealth of secrets- secrets that seemed to destroy her even as she held tightly onto them. After...
