Psychopathy

Chapter 66- Possession

Isabel looked in the mirror, something she hadn't been able to bring herself to do thus far. And now that she was looking, she remembered why she didn't want to. In some ways, her time in hell hadn't affected her at all. Her skin tone, hair color, eye color, they were all the same. Her face was the same shape and everything was in its rightful place.

But then, in many other ways, she'd never be able to escape the memories.

So many scars that she would never be rid of. So many marks that the devil had left on her. And as she stared at herself in the mirror, unable to look away, she felt his hands on her shoulder. His breath was in her ears and his body pressed against her back. He told her that she'd never escape him, not in this life or the next. For when she died in this life, he said, she'd be brought right back down to hell. And then she would be his for all of eternity.

He only faded away when she felt the lake in her mind, that familiar rocking in her veins. But even that couldn't comfort her right now. She placed her hands on the counter, holding herself up as the tears fell down her face. He was right. She'd never escape him. Even as she approached a normal life, he'd always be there in the back of her mind. He'd always appear when she was at her weakest. The scars he left on her body would never go away.

She had escaped hell, but not before it had laid its claim on her.

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"Ciara, please, calm down and let me-"

"Calm down?! How can I calm down when this fecking thing is still on me?!" Reid took a deep breath, plotting in his head. He had to find a way to calm her down so he could just explain why she had the collar on. Her eyes were wide as she gripped the collar, her chest heaving as she took in sharp, erratic breaths. She was panicking, and Reid didn't entirely blame her. He also knew, though, that panicking would only make the situation worse and wouldn't allow them the clear headspace to come up with a plan.

"You... you didn't notice that you still had it on?" he asked, and she whipped around to face him, nearly knocking over the chessboard.

"No, I didn't notice! If I had noticed, I would have taken it off!" she argued. Reid had to admit, she had a point. But still, though, she seemed to calm down slightly as she ran her fingers along the plastic part in the front. "I guess I got so used to wearing it that I... I just didn't think about it. It's like a watch, sort of. Ye wear a watch every day, and eventually, ye just stop thinking about it. It's just there. Ye only notice it when ye need the time, and even then, ye really don't think too much about the watch itself."

"See, that's what we thought was happening. But you hadn't brought it up, so we didn't, either. We thought for sure that you'd bring it up when you were ready," Reid explained, and Ciara sighed, putting her face in her hands. Before she was panicking, and now she just seemed... broken all over again. Reid wanted to reach out and give her a hug, but he was still holding true to his promise of not touching her without clear consent first. Though, judging by the way her shoulders were starting to shake, asking if she needed a hug wouldn't be that amiss.

"Why didn't y'all take it off when I was sleeping? Why did ye leave it on me?" Ciara asked, her voice heavy with unshed tears.

"Dr. Rivera thought that when you woke up, you'd be disorientated and confused, which you were. He thought you'd need something familiar, if not necessarily pleasant, and that we'd take it off when you were ready. But then you never said anything about it, so we just... didn't mention it. Until today, that is," Reid explained, and Ciara looked over at him, her brows furrowed in thought.

"Good intention, questionable execution," she said, before wiping her eyes. She reached for the back of her neck, gently fingering the clasp that kept the collar on. "But it can't be changed. All that can be done is to take it off now. Ye can put it in the same bag that Akilah put that terrible outfit he made me wear. Maybe we can just burn all of it. Everything connecting me to Halsey."