Psychopathy

Chapter 12- Shockingly, Part One

A/N: Ayo, listen, I'm sorry about being completely MIA. Two jobs and school are absolutely kicking my ass. Hopefully I start making enough money to quit one of my jobs. Just hang with me until then, okay?

"What an interesting sight," the redhead said, and Isabel opened her eyes just a sliver. She closed her eyes again until she heard a loud crack. Her eyes flew open and she immediately got to her feet, trying to find the source of the noise. When she spotted it, her jaw dropped and her breath caught in her throat. "Do you see it now? I can't tell if it's beautiful or horrifying."

"It's... it's both, I guess? Can it be both?" Isabel asked, getting as close as she could to her pole. It wouldn't keep her safe, but it was something solid. And if the storm coming her way was as nasty as it looked, she would need something solid to ground herself with. It was out by the boiling lake, so she had time to prepare. But even with the distance, she could feel the electricity crackling in the air. The rolling storm clouds were dark, and sprouting from them was what seemed like thousands of lightning bolts.

"Have you ever seen anything like this?" the redhead asked, and Isabel shook her head. She had seen photos of lightning storms but had never seen one in real life. There had never been any storms there; she wasn't exactly sure what it meant that there was one now. Especially one that looked this severe.

She reached her hand out towards the storm, every hair on her arm standing on edge. Her ears were starting to ring with the continuous claps of thunder, but she couldn't quite look away. There was another sharp crack, and before Isabel even had time to pull her hand back, a lightning bolt shot by mere inches from her fingers. She looked behind her to see that a large boulder had been completely shattered. If the lightning could do that to a boulder, she'd hate to think of what it could do to her.

She turned towards the redhead, only to see her looking back with an evil grin. She pointed towards the storm, and Isabel turned towards the ever-growing natural monster. Before she could react, a lightning bolt shot straight out of the storm and struck Isabel straight through the heart.

****************

Reid slung his satchel over his shoulder as the jet came to land. He felt someone touch his shoulder, and he looked up to see Akilah beside him, already packed up and ready to go. She gave him a raised eyebrow, and he nodded, knowing exactly what she was asking. She wanted to know if he was okay, and for the moment, he was. He was okay now that he was about to go home to his apartment, his safe place. He was okay now that he was back in D.C. and away from that city that brought back memories he'd rather not remember.

Omaha, Nebraska. Population 408,958. Founded on July 4th, 1854, 12 years, 7 months, and 25 days before Nebraska was admitted as a state in 1867. Birthplace of Warren Buffett, Gerald Ford, Malcolm X, and Rainbow Rowell. Home to the Henry Doorly Zoo, the Joslyn Art Museum, and the Old Market District. It was also home to Ciara Isabel Marie Byrne and the city where I first met her.

Damn it. There he went again, thinking about her. He hadn't wanted to. When he had learned they were heading to Omaha, he had promised himself that under no circumstances would he think about her. They were going to solve the case, catch the murderer, and they would come home, and he'd just keep Ciara out of it.

At first, he did well. He managed to get through the entire ride on the jet without a single thought of Ciara. He even managed to get through landing at Eppley Airfield and getting assigned to set up shop at the Omaha Field Office. But it was when they drove past the University of Nebraska at Omaha that Reid had broken. When they had driven by, all Reid could think about was how nearly exactly four years ago, in an apartment on that campus, he had found a scared young woman that had escaped one cage just to be placed in another.