Eidetic - A Criminal Minds/Spencer Reid Story

Chapter Two - Not What I Expected

"Be sure to put your feet in the right place, then stand firm." - Abraham Lincoln.

*Vivian Santos*

The flight from Washington D.C. to Tucson took a little over six hours, and then we had to drive another two hours just to get to Thatcher. Needless to say, I was exhausted and ready for a nap, but I wouldn't be able to sleep or rest for a while. Once we had arrived in Thatcher, the team broke off and we all went on our separate assignments.

The first few minutes of the drive to the ME was awkward and silent. Neither of us said a word to each other, nor did we attempt to make any conversation whatsoever. However, after about five minutes of awkward silence, Reid cleared his throat.

"You whisper song lyrics to yourself when you're nervous," he said casually. I glanced at him briefly and then stepped on the gas when the light turned green.

"Pardon?" I asked.

"I noticed it on the plane too. You tend to quote Fall Out Boy and All Time Low," said Reid. "There was another agent we used to work with who did the same thing, only she did it with rap." I chuckled a little bit and then pulled into the parking lot of the medical examiner's office.

"Dr. Reid, you are not what I expected at all."

"Is that a good thing?" he asked. I smiled and opened the door of the SUV.

"Yes, it is a very good thing," I replied.

We walked into the office and were shown into the autopsy room by the receptionist. It looked like any other surgery room in the hospitals, except that the room had a more darker atmosphere to it. Right in the center of the room, there was an operating table where the body laid with a long, white sheet covering it. My nerves started to kick in when I realized I was about to see my first dead body. I must've zoned out for a few seconds because I jumped a little when I felt Reid's hand on my shoulder.

"Viv? Are you alright?" he asked. I put my hand to my temple and mentally told myself to get myself together. I was in the FBI for god-sake. I knew this was going to happen sooner or later.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Is the medical examiner here yet?" I replied quickly. There were footsteps coming down the hallway, approaching the room, and we turned around to see a woman in scrubs and holding a clipboard standing there. She was a little bit older than both Reid and I, but she was pretty. There were stress lines all around her face, but her smile was warm and welcoming.

"You must be from the BAU. I'm Dr. Gomez." She walked over to us and shook my hand, but when she went to shake Reid's hand, he waved awkwardly and directed his attention to the body. I smiled a little bit at how awkward he was and turned back towards her.

"I'm Agent Santos, and this is Dr. Reid," I said introducing ourselves.

"I just heard that another body was just found," she said.

"Yeah, we have other agents checking out the crime scene now," Reid replied. "What can you tell us about the other victims?" Dr. Gomez put on a pair of latex gloves and walked to the other side of the table. When she uncovered the face of Clara Wilcox, I felt my stomach drop. I almost felt a little guilty just looking at her and acting like she was just some tool to help us solve the case, but that was the job and it had to be done. I took a deep breath and pulled myself together as best as I could.

"All of the victims' eyes were removed post-mortem. The killer drained the victim's blood first, which is what killed them. There's also something else." She uncovered Clara's right arm and lifted it up so that we could see. The unsub had carved something onto the inside of her wrist.