Hello again. The suspense continues...!
Disclaimer: Criminal Minds is not mine.
"Thought I might find you here," the voice chuckled. It was a sound that struck fear into the hearts of the four young girls. "Thought you'd done with me, eh?" he said, looking straight at Reid, who was trying to put on his bravest face. Considering the lack of sleep and the pain he was already in, it was becoming harder for the young agent to pull off by the second.
"Jesus Christ!" Katie spat, now completely frustrated. "It's like a sadistic Energizer bunny--just keeps coming back to torture us more."
"I don't expect this lot to understand, Campbell," Patrick Kite hissed, waving a hand nonchalantly at the rest of the group, "but I expect you to understand…"
"Understand what? That you're some sort of overgrown bully who enjoys torturing anyone he can to make himself feel important?"
"Hardly. No, Campbell—here's the truth of it, plain and simple: we're the Kites."
"So?" countered Morgan, now well-and-truly pissed with this pathetic excuse for a human being.
"So, it means something around here." He motioned the group away from the riverbank with the barrel of the rifle held firmly in his grasp. "We Kites have a reputation to uphold—the stories, you know."
"You'd really kill us all just to keep that going?" Emily asked, as evenly as she could. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"Oh, I would. Be a shame to lose such a valuable woman, though. I might make exception," Patrick cooed, inching closer to Emily with every step. "Then again, those four would need to stay too," he said, considering each of the young girls as if they were chattel coming off a barge. "That little one there, she'd be perfect for one of the younger nephews…" Patrick's eyes stared straight at Elisha, who cowered behind Reid.
"Leave her alone," the young agent said, mustering up his own courage.
"Don't you people get it?" he shouted, waving the rifle like an extension of his arm. "You're not leaving. Not now, not ever!"
Suddenly, a shot rang out into the night. Patrick wobbled on his feet a little, and then looked down at his chest. A blossom of red began blooming out of a suspicious looking hole in his shirt. He turned to see where it might have come from, but before he could complete the circle, he collapsed onto the ground. His eyes, though pale and beautiful, were two blank polished stones, devoid of any expression.
"Someone will have heard that," came a voice out of the woods. "Best you lot get moving, before they come running."
"How?" called Hotch, stealing a look at the rushing river.
"Walk south about a half-mile—there should be a footbridge still there. Be careful, though. It's likely not in the best condition."
The voice seemed familiar, at least to two of the party standing on the riverbank. Katie stared into the treeline, and a shimmer of silver danced off a lock of dark hair. The figure retreated into the trees, its footsteps becoming softer with the distance.
"Let's go," she said to the group, who wasted no time following the directions they'd been given. "Hopefully that fire's raging out of control by now…"
As they left the corpse of Patrick Kite behind, Katie murmured something only Reid picked up on as they made their way to the dilapidated bridge.
"Godspeed, Cameron Kite. And good luck."
The fire was out of control. The water merely spread the flames farther into the encampment, and the Kite's efforts to contain the blaze were being hampered by the proximity of fresh wood to feed it, in the form of the outbuildings and shacks nearby. Each flame danced over whatever available source of fuel it had, eager to consume the next morsel.
"Thomas!" cried Mark. "The whole place is going up! There's nothing for it!"
Casting a look, Thomas Kite begrudgingly had to agree. "Everyone down the road, and get out of here! he shouted to his brothers and nephews.
"What about those girls? And those people the Campbell girl…"
"What about 'em?" said Thomas flatly. "They go up in flames, so much the better for us."
No one noticed that there were two Kites missing in the party as they bolted for the access road. As soon as the last Kite left, the metal pole that towered in the center became engulfed in flames, and a faint shimmer radiated off of it—just as it had some fifteen years before.
The bridge was nearly a ruin. Parts of the stone structure had sunken into the water, while others jutted out like sharp spikes that threatened to pierce them in several places.
"Come on," said Morgan, braving the structure first. Even with bare feet, he managed to find the right footholds that would get them across. Near the middle, there was a space that was a reach, even for him.
Maria followed close behind, still half-asleep but eager to finally go home. "Wait," she called out over the sound of the rushing water. "I can't reach!"
Behind her, Hotch picked the girl up and reached over towards the waiting Morgan, who caught her and set her gently down on the other side. They did the same with all of the girls, who were simply too short to make the distance. Carrie had offered to jump across, but the sharp rock fragments would have severely cut her feet had she tried.
"Now you, Miss Emily," said Katie, still looking out for more Kites to try and stop them. Without hesitation, Emily picked her way across the stones. Some of the rocks were sinking as they treaded on them, and the water was making a few of them a bit slick.
"Whoa," she cried out, nearly tumbling headfirst into the water. Only a lucky save by Morgan and Hotch on either end kept her from becoming swept into the strong current.
Finally there were only two left—Reid and Katie.
"Come on, Agent Reid," said Katie. "You first."
Part of Reid wanted to argue that point, but the larger part said 'get the hell out of here, and fast.' He gingerly worked his way over the slick stones, managing to breach the distance that had hampered the girls earlier.
"Good thing you're tall," Morgan murmured as Reid easily crossed the wide span of open water.
Katie began making her way across, taking Hotch's hand to help get her over the sinking stones. Many of them were now just barely underneath the water, making it difficult to concentrate on where to put her foot and plot the next step at the same time.
"It's all right," said Hotch, noticing the young woman was taking her time crossing. "We've got time."
"No, Agent Hotchner, we don't. The fire, remember?"
At the mention of that, six faces looked toward the sky. The column of black smoke was rising higher with every second.
Pressed, Katie stick her foot onto a smaller rock—one that had algae of some sort covering it. The green substance was slick, and the pressure of her foot bucked against the slop of the rock.
Hotch reached out and grabbed Katie in mid-fall, hoping to set the woman upright again. She was too far gone. With a splash, two bodies began struggling against the rushing current that threatened to carry them back to the specter of Kite Country.