Author's Note: When I logged in this morning and saw this story had a couple of reviews, I was pleasantly surprised. I hadn't been expecting anything on my first day, quite the opposite, in fact. To a writer testing the waters of her abilities, it both pleases and encourages me, so thank you for the kind reviews thus far, I appreciate it. I'm glad you all find it interesting, so I will try to keep it so. The hardest part about writing fanfiction is trying to come up with something that hasn't already been done. The idea for this was born after I contemplated the dynamics of Red and Elizabeth's relationship for literally an hour, and have been watching dvr'd episodes for inspiration. For curious minds, I'm not trying to set this up as a RedxLizzy thing (though I am cautiously shipping them, it's a guilty pleasure of mine). I'd prefer to keep the dynamics between them as presented in the show, but we'll see as the story moves along. Now on to Chapter 2~!
Walking into the ground floor of the parking garage was like walking into a cave - a dimly lit cave. The afternoon sun had no reign here, save for a few dusty shafts of light. There were no cars, trucks, or vans. The walls and concrete columns were decorated with graffiti, and trash, cigarette butts, and empty bottles of beer littered the floor. The light fixtures had long since fizzled out and stopped working. It was a kingdom of desolation and ghostly afterimages - dark and dank.
"Nice place," Elizabeth commented dryly as she glanced around.
"It's actually perfect for Emile," Red replied. "It's abandoned, remote, and not a whole lot of people come here. I imagine this is where he makes his bombs. Probably a few floors up."
Elizabeth bit her lip, thinking on it. "You're probably right. I'm going to look around down here for a few more minutes before heading up."
Red watched her for a moment before addressing her again, "Lizzy. I'm going to go check something out. It's better if we split up - we'll cover more ground."
"Alright. If you happen to see Ressler, ask him if he's found anything and radio me your location." Elizabeth was about to walk past him when he grabbed her by the arm. She spun around, her expression quizzical, her eyes questioning, to which he fixed her with his usual intense gaze, very direct, all-seeing and all-knowing.
"Be careful," Red murmured. As soon as the words left his mouth, he released her and retreated from view into the clandestine shadows of the old building. Becoming one with the darkness was one of his best talents. That and disappearing. Elizabeth should have been worried, but she really wasn't. Raymond is a grown man. He can definitely take care of himself. And he specifically requested to come with us, so there isn't any need to worry about him disappearing, like after..Anslo Garrick..
A shudder. Elizabeth pushed the unpleasant memories to the farthest corner of her mind. In truth, she had worried because she thought of him every day while he was "missing", wondering where he was, what he was doing, if he was okay. Elizabeth hated to think of what could have happened to Red after she lost the ambulance. She had seen the warehouse, the chains, the chair, the dead body of Garrick. What had he suffered for my sake? He hadn't been lying at all when he told her he'd do whatever he had to to keep her alive, even if that meant sacrificing his own well-being.
This, and the fact that he was generally right about his hunches, led Elizabeth to believe the truth of his convictions, except where Tom was concerned. That was another matter entirely, although at this point even she herself felt the constant presence of an ever-growing doubt. All the same, Red's warning made Elizabeth rethink the current situation. If he was suspicious, then she would be extra cautious. Satisfied with her sweep of the first floor, Elizabeth made her way towards the flight of stairs and began her ascent to the second floor.
Five floors up, Emile paced back and forth in front of a long work table, materials for a new bomb spread out across its surface. A couple of minutes before, he had stopped to take a break in its construction, and walked over to the far edge for a breath of fresh air. Looking down, Emile watched as a car pulled up on the other side of the street, and three people stepped out. Two men and a woman. He had been curious until all three crossed the street and headed toward the parking garage, and experienced a flutter of panic. Who were they? Just regular people? No, he thought he had seen something that looked like a holster for a gun on the blonde man. Local law enforcement? No, they'd be in uniform. Detectives? The FBI?
Well whoever they were, they were a threat to his operation and freedom. He needed to finish this bomb today, and heaven help him if he were caught. Emile's calloused fingers twitched nervously, and sweat began to bead on his forehead. He rushed to the table and hastily began packing the materials into a large bag. When he finished, he swept a hand through his dark hair, trying to think of what he should do. If it were only one person, I could have easily dispatched him or her. But three dead bodies found here would be very suspicious, and I'd have to relocate. Escape, then, was the preferable method. And if I happen to run into one of those three, I have a couple of tricks up my sleeve. Tricks up his sleeve. Emile grinned. They didn't call him the Wizard for nothing.