Working the Case

18

♥︎𝙴𝚟𝚒𝚎♥︎

When I was twelve, my mother took me to her work. It was only for less than half the day before she learned she had a new case.

My dad was beyond pissed when he picked me up that day. Half because he had to leave work early to drive all the way to Quantico, half because I was there in the first place.

It wasn't a fun field trip. There just wasn't anyone at the house to stay with me.

I sat in the round table room that I now work in for hours. She left me there on my own, surrounded by crime scene photos posted up on a board.

She told me to keep my head down and warned me about looking, so I did my best not to look at the boards. While I tried to distract myself, I made the mistake of looking in one of the case files beside me.

When I came running to my mother, crying about what I'd just seen, she simply reminded me that she warned me.

Which, she did. She did warn me.

I didn't see my mom for nearly a month afterwards. My dad refused to take me back until he was ordered to by the courts. Afterwards, I went back to my mom's work. A few times. And the same scenario played over and over, only I didn't look in the files anymore.

You'd think I'd be desensitized to it by now. Unfortunately, it seems I've only gotten worse at seeing these things.

I blink a few times reflexively at the chirp of a quick ringtone. Adler reaches over to answer the call.

"Guys!" Coleman shouts as soon as the call gets answered. "I found something."

We all sit up at that. "What do you have?" Adler questions, his eyes stuck on the phone.

"Okay, so I got curious about that date Hopkins talked about." He declares. "How do you plan a date? You text. So, I went though Hannah Gibbs's phone."

"And?" Adler impatiently coaxes.

"I found an unnamed number."

Beckett squints. "Did you trace it?"

"Of course, I traced it." Coleman scoffs, offended he even asked. "This guy planned a date with her. Dinner, ice cream, and a walk."

"You have a name?" Mills glances around the room in anticipation.

"Not yet."

We all groan in unison. Adler doesn't because he's not much of a team player even though he's basically our coach.

"I know, I know." Coleman murmurs. "But, in my defense, it's a disposable cell." He offers.

Jennings cocks her head back. "Premeditated?" She looks up to the rest of us.

Beckett shakes his head. "No, we profiled blitz attacks." He argues. There's no way all of that was premeditated. It would've been a more put together scene.

"Maybe that's just how he goes." Mills suggests. "Disposable cells are functional. Maybe he just doesn't need all the extras."

"Weirdo." Coleman grumbles. Nobody argues.