Detective Reid (Criminal Minds / One Chicago FanFic)

Chapter 24

Detective Lauren Reid's Apartment, Chicago Illinois 

Lauren woke up before her alarm noticing she passed out in Mouse's arms again only this time neither of them were wearing clothes. The detective got up gathering her clothes looking at Mouse who was still passed out on her couch. Lauren went down the hall into her room grabbing a change of clothes for work before she jumped in the shower. 

Lauren shut the water off and wrapped herself in a towel drying off before she got dressed and left her room noticing Mouse was still asleep on her couch. The brunette slipped her shoes on and took her keys leaving the apartment to pick her car up from outside Molly's where she left it and head to work. 

Lauren walked for 20 minutes before getting to Molly's where her mustang was still parked. The brunette walked over and climbed in starting the muscle car and driving off toward the 21st district. 

Intelligence Unit, 21st District Police Department, Chicago Illinois

The entire drive to work Lauren kept thinking about hooking up with Mouse last night after half a bottle of wine. She didn't regret it but she also didn't wanna have the awkward morning after talk with Mouse after they hooked up. What if he asked her what this was between them? Lauren had no idea all she knew was that she had feelings for him and after last night she wasn't sure if she could bring herself to leave intelligence or the CPD. 

Lauren walked up the stairs into the bullpen with her shoulder bag over her shoulder and a coffee in the other hand. "Hey!!, look whose back!" Detective Halstead said with a huge smile as Lauren walked into the room. "Morning," Lauren replied smiling a little as Halstead walked over and pulled her into an embrace. "How are you holding up?" Lindsay asked her as Jay let her go and she set her bag and coffee down at her desk. 

"I'm okay" Lauren replied sitting at her desk as Mouse came bolting up the stairs. "Your late dude," Jay remarked as he walked in causing Mouse to send Lauren a look. "I overslept," he replied before he walked into the break room to get a coffee. "I'm sorry about agent Prentiss," Dawson said placing a hand on Lauren's shoulder. "Yea, me too," the detective replied still trying to wrap her head around the fact she saw Emily 3 weeks ago, and now she was just gone and she wasn't coming back. 

Mouse walked back into the bullpen as Voight walked up the stairs, "Mouse, Reid welcome back. Okay so Patrol found this body dismembered in an abandoned factory last night," Voight said putting a photo on the board of a woman missing her left arm from her elbow down and her right leg not to mention the pentagram carved in the woman's forehead, and chest. 

"Are those pentagrams?" Halstead asked, "You thinking Satanist?" Ruzek asked. "Why not ask the one with the masters in Satanology," Mouse suggested. "And where would we find them?" Atwater asked as Mouse just pointed at Lauren. "You have a masters in Satanology? what even is that?" Halstead asked surprised. "Among other masters yes, but it's essential the study of anything to do with satanist, cults, and religious rituals but that's more Demonology," Lauren replied. 

"Also that's not a pentagram, that's what the pagan community refers to as a pentacle it's essentially a talisman for evocation magick and was typically used to ward off evil," Lauren said rambling a bit. The room went silent, "I'm saying that satanist don't use this symbol it's a hoax made up by Hollywood for movies." Lauren said. "Reid can you just spit it out," Voight said, "What I'm trying to say here is this looks like someone wants us to think it's cult or religious based," the detective replied.

"What's with cutting off the limbs?" Burgess asked, "I mean Dahmer used to keep parts of his victims as trophies, and cutting off the limbs could be part of this guy's ritual. Not to mention to severe though the curetted artery in her leg and arm there would be way more blood on the scene, makes me believe this was just the dump site," Lauren said as she took a sip of her coffee.