The entire team arrived at the scene of the fire around the same time. Lisbon flew from her vehicle, already barking orders, running up on the scene as though there was anything she could do. The entire house was up in flames.
"Masters," Cho wouldn't release the power lock. "Hey, look at me."
The nerve he had to delay their response to an actual house fire for the purpose of chatting absolutely blew her mind. "Cho, let me out."
"Not until you swear you won't do anything stupid."
They could hear the fire through the bulletproof confines of the CBI vehicle. "Fine, Cho, I swear. Let me out!"
The locks clicked.
Ronnie bolted out of the vehicle like a bat out of hell, just in time to see Rigsby bolt into the burning house.
That idiot. Her promise to Cho instantly forgotten, Ronnie took off after him, ignoring the shouts of the team behind her.
She knew the doorknob would be hot, but the wood of the door burned her hand all the same.
The smoke rolled in front of her, plunging into her lungs. Ronnie lifted her arm over her mouth, shouldering past toppled furniture.
Before her, Rigsby had Piller over his shoulder, headed back out the way he came. He looked shocked to see her, but was coughing too hard to tell her off for following him in.
Spotting a dining chair laying before a big bay window, Ronnie pointed. Rigsby followed her finger and caught onto her plan, quickly changing course. She grabbed the chair and hurled it out the window, shoving Rigsby directly out into fresh air.
The sudden influx of oxygen puffed flaring life into the blaze, billowing it up, big and bright, around her.
Careful of the glass, Ronnie threw herself out after Rigsby.
The hot, humid California air felt like a gentle ocean breeze compared to the inferno she'd escaped. Ronnie rolled onto her back, wheezing against the residual smoke, blinking away the ash that clung to her eyelashes.
Her lungs flared with irritation, an awful taste pouring over her tongue as she coughed up smoke.
A hand gripped her shoulder, awakening her abruptly to the realization that her shoulder had been burned. Lurching away, her blue eyes met brown ones, and she fell limp once more.
Cho eased up when she moved away in pain, but leaned back down to check her out. "Are you kidding me?" He demanded, turning her arm over and examining her blistering palm.
Ronnie sputtered, the taste in her mouth rancid. "Rigsby went in."
"Rigsby is a senior agent."
"Rigsby is an idiot."
Cho sat back on his heels, exasperation taking over the worry that had consumed him the moment she'd gone in. "Are you out of your mind?"
"I think so, yes." Ronnie sat up but found herself unable to support herself with her burned hand. "Gotta keep 'em guessing."
The MENTALIST
Van Pelt sat with a very drugged Rigsby, wrapping his busted arm while he stared longingly at her hair.
His filters were very quickly melting away.
Ronnie sat on the motel couch, wrapping her own hand. She listened to their barely coherent conversation with great amusement and moved on to treating her shoulder.
Her work blouse had burned through in a number of places. Taking it off and committing to spending the rest of the hot day in her black wife-beater tank top, Ronnie discarded the ashy garment.
Cho sank down on the couch next to her, watching her gingerly place a bandage over a big, bubbly burn.
"Stop breathing on it," She grumbled, tossing her bandage wrapper at him.
YOU ARE READING
Ronnie Masters | the MENTALIST
Mystery / Thriller#1 in MENTALIST [Cho x OC] [ONE CHAPTER REMAINING] It's The Mentalist but slightly to the left; shifting the spotlight to Kimball Cho and original character Ronnie Masters. Starts from S1E1, includes all casted characters with the addition of one O...
