Chapter Text
Emily Prentiss leaned over Spencer Reid’s desk as he fiddled with the Rubik’s Cube in his hand. His fingers were a blur as he twisted and turned the cube, his focus solely on the object in his hands.
“And… done.” He announced, setting the completed puzzle on his desk and raising his arms.
“Wow, 24 seconds!” Emily laughed, “that’s impressive.”
It meant the world to her that he was willing to share some of his favorite pastimes with her, especially since it had taken a while for him to warm up to her after she’d returned from Paris.
“And a personal record,” he added, “although the current world record is 6.65 seconds.”
“Someone completed a Rubik's cube in less than 7 seconds?” She asked, incredulous. But before Reid could rattle off some other fact, Aaron Hotchner appeared in the bullpen and she straightened, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Everyone to the conference room, we’ve got a case.”
Penelope Garcia walked into the room, her mouth set in a grim line.
“The body of a woman was found last night in Eloy, Arizona,” she announced and clicked a button on her remote. “This was the fourth body found in the last three weeks.”
“Why’d it take them so long to call us in?” Derek Morgan’s eyebrows knitted together in confusion. “
The area is no stranger to accidental overdoses and the ME didn’t connect the cases until Tiffany was found.” Garcia said before continuing with the presentation.
“Safiya Noor, 25, was the first one to be found. 27-year-old Courtney Landings was found five days later. Five days after that, the body of Savannah Lindstrom, age 30 was found. And finally, the body of 26-year-old Tiffany Chen was found last night. Each body was found in a different alley.”
The faces of the victims popped up on the screen: four young women who had their entire lives ahead of them. From what was on screen, victimology was all over the place. The only thing similar about any of these women was the fact that they were all between the ages of 25 and 30. No matter how long Emily had worked at the BAU, the pictures always haunted her.
“Cause of death was originally accidental overdose but the ME ran a tox screen and found traces of Rohypnol and barbituates in each of the victims."
"So we're looking for a poisoner." Rossi declared.
Garcia sucked in a breath before continuing, “the unsub also… branded each of the women on the shoulder with this symbol.”
“That’s the Eye of Horus which has historically represented protection and health.” Reid interjected.
“Statistically...”
“The unsub…”
Emily Prentiss’ laser focus drowned out their words. She sat, fixated on the close-up image of the brand on the screen. It was on all of the victims’ shoulders, barely larger than a quarter: the Eye of Horus. The memory of burnt flesh was brought to the forefront of her mind and in response, she felt pinpricks where the crudely drawn clover sat on her chest. She took a deep breath before squeezing her eyes shut, hoping the vivid pictures would disappear.
“Prentiss?” Morgan’s voice brought her back to reality and she gave him a noncommittal smile, realizing that the table was now empty except for the two of them. “You okay?’ He asked, his voice laced with concern.
She cleared her throat, “yeah. I’m just tired.” The lie came effortlessly, but she couldn't tell if he believed her or not. Morgan looked at her strangely but shrugged and exited the room, the door slamming closed behind him. Through the haze, she had caught the part where Hotch had announced wheels up in 20 so she hurried to grab her go-bag from underneath her desk and meet everyone at the tarmac. She was sure that nobody knew about the brand, except maybe Hotch and JJ, and she was going to keep it that way. She’d finally made headway with her team and things were slowly starting to return to a new normal. She wouldn’t be able to function with their concern and their whispers if they’d found out Ian Doyle had branded her as if she were an object that belonged to him.