A/N: Sorry for neglecting this story so much. I was caught up with the other one I'm writing. Anyway, I would appreciate any support to help me get back on track with this.
Since I haven't updated this in a long time, a summary of the main key points has been added to the end of this chapter. So, if you don't remember what has happened so far, you can scroll down to read it first.
Chapter 12: Gifted
A sour and pointy smell burnt her nose, slowly pulling her out of the heavy smog that weighed around her head. She groaned, though it was a brittle sound. Her limbs felt frail, as if her blood had stopped welling through them. Her consciousness slowly dwelled her skin; rough, solid surface rubbed against her skin and palms. She kept her eyes shut; too weak to open them still.
Vivid images penetrated her conscious like the points of sharp blades. A waddle in a dimly lit path, a door fixed on a white wall, a sudden sting in her shoulders as she felt the presence of a figure in the darkness.
Vega's eyes fluttered open, meeting the surface of a brown tarnished floor, a faint light dancing on its surface. Alarm jolted motion into her bones. She pushed herself off the floor, flinching slightly at the pain that burst in her spine. Metal jiggled at the movement, drawing her attention. Her heart kicked at the sight of thick, heavy chains tying her wrists to the wall opposite her. Her fist curled around one of them. She studied the length and the lock on the wall, then pulled with all of her strength. The chain protested louder than before. She gasped and after a moment, abandoned the task. Carefully, she shuffled to a sitting position and cast a glance on her surroundings.
The impression of a small room formed before her eyes. Close to where she sat, a table threw its shade on the floor; the flicker of a fat candle blazed on top of it. A narrow grey door etched the far wall. There was also a tray with a bottle of water, two apples, bread and chocolate lying next to her.
The phrase "like a sheep to the slaughter" crossed her thoughts.
She smelled the air again, trying to determine the source of that salty odor that had awakened her. It reminded her strangely of the sea. She turned around to search in the rear of the shack.
Her heart rate staggered to a halt. The air hitched in her lungs as she took sight of the boy lying unconscious a few feet away from her. His boyish features rested in a nearly deadly silence, lacking their usual spiritedness; his limbs were tucked clumsily around him.
She stretched across the floor and snatched the bottle of water. Her chains rattled furiously, as she crawled toward him. Reaching his side, she cradled his shoulder.
"Jason!" she urged. His complexion was pale, a thin sheet of sweat lining his eyebrows and hairline. She shook harder. "Jason!" She pressed two fingers at the side of his neck. There was still a pulse. She unscrewed the lid of the bottle and flicked some water on his face. Finally, he gasped out of his sleep, coughing loudly.
"Jason!" she exclaimed in relief.
His eyes flew around until they gripped hers in horror. She pressed on his shoulder, carefully inspecting his face. "Are you okay?"
"Michelle", he mumbled.
He shuffled on his arms, grunting with pain, and wiped his face at the lapel of his shirt. It was his turn to notice the manacles around his hands. Just like her, he pulled them back to release himself.
"Don't. I already checked. They're too strong", she remarked.
He raised his gaze to her, then examined her wrists. He seemed too stricken to form speech for a moment.
"You okay?" he asked her then.
She nodded. "How did you-?" she started, then changed the question. "Did you come after me?"
He closed his lips, his eyes haunted.
"You were taking too long and I felt worried, so I followed the path you took, until I stumbled upon a blond woman hauling your body into the back seat of a car". His voice was charged, as if he was holding back the actual terror of all he had witnessed. She waited for him to continue. "She was surprised to see me there", he reflected, "I tried to stop her, but she must have hit me on the head, because I don't recall anything after that".
She listened in heeding silence, meanwhile gathering her own memories of the incident. It was strange; it was like trying to discern the bottom of a blurry lake. She barely remembered anything.
"I was hypnotized", she realized.
"Cho, what's happening?" Lisbon demanded, her voice a strange mix of worry and practicality. She was sitting on the edge of her chair, in tune with the noise that stemmed from the other side, her wide greens ablaze. Jane shared her concern, bent forward in his chair, his elbows resting on his knees, one finger fiddling with his ring.
There was plenty of crackling, murmuring and thumping, mixed occasionally with the voices of their colleagues. Cho, Rigsby and Abbott were all engaged in the chase, while Van Pelt stayed with Minelli in Abbott's car, parked just outside of the restaurant.
The groan of metal suddenly predominated over all the noise. Jane thought of the hatch that covered the underground vault where the electric power of the street was managed from. He imagined the agents break in with flashlights.
"FBI, who's in here?" Abbott shouted.
"Reveal yourself now!" Rigsby followed.
Time froze. Jane could literally hear a pin falling on the ground. Finally, Cho's voice sounded blunt and weary.
"Nobody's here".
Lisbon's lashes fell shut and she shook her head lightly in disappointment. Fierce denial prevented his heart from leaping down his stomach. He wasn't used to seeing his plans fail.
Just then, a new, different voice arose.
"She's here. I've got her. I'm three blocks down the street", Van Pelt said breathlessly.
There was a moment of shocked silence. Lisbon's gaze eased in his, a million questions glaring in her eyes, held in reserve from her outward daze.
A grin tugged at the corner of his lips, as he himself had been equally taken by surprise.
She?
Jane strolled into their makeshift interrogation room, noting the rigid figures occupying the narrow space. Lisbon briefly freed her eyes to glance at him from her standing position near the entrance. His chin tugged toward her; his gaze brushed hers-just long enough to take an essence of her thoughts and her reassurance. She was nervous, but drew confidence in his presence, as much as he drew in hers. His attention returned back to the center of the room. He pulled the old crappy chair next to Abbott-it creaked in protest against the hard floor-and feasted his eyes on the eerie woman that sat across the table, her wrists handcuffed. He crossed his hands on the surface and tilted his head, studying her. Her piercing light blue eyes regarded him with that familiar look of wise superiority most sociopaths carried. Her hair glared almost white under the light, matching the color of her work uniform.
"Mrs. Regina Ivers", Abbott started in his firm, robust voice. "It is very nice to meet you", he jeered. "Needless to say that if you try and use your mojo on us, we will know. Mr. Patrick Jane here", he flicked his head toward him; Jane flashed a brief smile at her, "has the same abilities as you, if not better".
A few creases split Regina's forehead, her eyes inspecting him with sudden interest. Jane regarded her in calm amusement.
"Now, here's how this is gonna go", Abbott continued, "I'm gonna ask you questions. If you answer them honestly, we're gonna lighten your charges. If not, you're looking at lifelong prison at best, a death penalty at worst. It's your choice".
Regina jerked her eyebrows up, her expression uninterested. She shrugged. "Death doesn't scare me". Her voice was deep and smooth.
"Who are you working for?" Abbott urged on, ignoring her comment.
"I don't know what you're talking about", she said enigmatically, "my job is at the restaurant, as you well know".
Cho stepped forward next to Abbott, his hands straight like a pencil at his sides.
"He's talking about the serial killer you're hypnotizing innocent girls for", he raged.
Regina's eyes shot at him. Her gaze levelled his glare. "That's absurd". Cho's hands shook slightly. Jane waited patiently for the play to take an end. After a moment in tensed silence, Regina's lips opened to a broad smile. "I'm just messing with you". She drew her gaze at Abbott. "There is a certain mistake to your question, though. See, I don't work for anyone. My abilities privilege those whom I consider worthy of my charity", she claimed.
"Why do you consider him worthy?" Cho intervened.
She pushed out her lips. "I have my reasons".
Lisbon slowly paced to Jane's side. She nudged her chin, "Where did you take our colleagues?" Her tone was calm, but somehow held more power than Abbott's and Cho's growls.
The blond woman eased her gaze at her. Jane noticed how her eyes sparked as she regarded Lisbon for the first time. He tensed slightly in his seat, but decided not to show any sign of it, curious to see what she would do.
"Sorry, that's not my secret to share", replied the woman, pouting her lips. She unfurled her hands and folded them the other way, then rubbed her handcuff to the table.
Lisbon leaned across the table. "Trust me on this", she said. "When your charity case finds out you've been arrested, he won't care whether you kept his secrets or not. He will do to you exactly what he did to the other girls without a minute's hesitation".
Regina's eyes grew wide. "I guess you shouldn't have arrested me then". She held Lisbon's gaze firmly. Jane then caught a gleam of the light that bounced off the woman's handcuffs. He instantly realized what she was trying to do, as she subtly moved her hand so that it would manage the right angle to Lisbon's eyes. Before he could react though, Lisbon dipped her head lower, levelling Regina's gaze.
"If you're trying to hypnotize me, lady, you'll need to do a little more than that", she said, her tone aggravating.
Regina blinked in shock, her hands freezing on the table. She glanced at Jane through the corners of her eyes. Jane couldn't help a smile, partly due to Lisbon's choice of words and partly because of the expression that shaped Regina's face now. Lisbon pulled back, her side brushing lightly on his face. Part of his brain remained sensitive to her aroma and touch, despite his intent focus on Ms. Ivers. Lisbon folded her arms across her chest. Regina, who had been avoiding his gaze, now slowly turned to face him, fear looming in her eyes.
"So you truly have the gift then", she remarked, her expression shadowed.
"Not a gift—a skill", Jane dictated, getting irked at the woman's illusions of majesty.
She crouched, her spunk visibly fading, then stuck out her chin. "If you're so skilled then, why don't you just hypnotize me to force the truth out of my lips?" she challenged.
Jane's lips quirked in amusement.
"We both know that that is not how it works. You'd have to be subconsciously driven to spill it in the first place", he returned, not missing a bit.
Her mouth sealed, her upper lip quivering. Jane saw a rip in her armor and proceeded with force. He unravelled his hands and opened them on the table, his palms flat on the surface. His eyes cornered her like a prey.
"See Regina, hypnotism is not the only thing I'm skilled at. Your gift would probably draw some awe from the audience at a circus, but it is nothing compared to what I am capable of. And you cannot even begin to imagine how I tend to use my abilities to protect those I care about." His voice was an undercurrent of menace and compressed anger. Regina's eyebrows curled up with discomfort. Her silence urged him on. "You wanna know what I think?" Her expression remained fixed. "I think the reason you offer your services lies in your pathetic need to be needed and useful. You pretend to be your own master, but the truth is that you're worriedly dependent on those who treasure your abilities. You're afraid of having no one to cherish you other than yourself. And that's the only reason you're stuck with this serial killer of yours. You don't consider him worthy", he wrinkled his nose, his lip twisting up, then smoothing out his expression, "He's just the only one who seems to appreciate you".
Regina's face paled, all arrogance vanished. Her lips formed a thin line above her chin. Jane admired his product and moved on to give the final brush.
"Too bad this appreciation is going to be short termed". He pushed his chair back and rose on his feet, adding a dramatic touch to it. "You can release this woman, Lisbon. She's going to be of no use to us".
Abbott turned to him, his eyebrows drawing together. "Release her? She's been working with a major serial killer. She ain't going nowhere", he protested.
Jane pushed out his mouth. "Well, she is useless to me anyhow". He turned around and headed to the door. He had hardly reached the threshold though, when Regina's faint, quiet voice sounded.
"Wait", she said. He paused and smiled at the door, before swerving around. Her expression was careful, her eyes conferring. She took a deep breath and faced Abbott. "I will agree to reveal the location of your friends, if you promise to grant me full amnesty for my past crimes".
Abbott thought about it for a moment. "How about you tell me where my friends are, and I guarantee your safety?" he negotiated.
Regina sucked in her lips, hesitating. "Fine", she subsided.
The door buzzed; Wylie's gaze stuck straight ahead, sweat trickling down his forehead, as Vega whirled around. The frame clicked softly inwards. Time stretched in a slow torture, as the door opened wider. Boots squelched on the hard floor. Wylie and Vega's eyes eased up, filing in a slim figure wrapped in a black dusty coat, his face clad in a gas mask. Vega's breath caught in her throat, her hand clasping Jason's. The man spoke in a mechanically enhanced voice.
"Time to move out".
A/N: This summary turned out a lot longer than I planned it to be, but I needed to include all the important things. So, here we go:
PREVIOUSLY ON MESSAGE IN THE RAINBOW
There's a new serial killer in California with his own unique game of murder: he plants two colors-two places-in which a girl he's kidnapped can be found. The girl is always hidden in a metal container under water. There is one container at each place he indicates. One is empty and one holds the girl. The player can choose only one of the two containers. If that one is the empty one, the girl gets instantly drowned. Then a mechanism lifts her corpse out of the water. It's then the killer comes to take a photo of his victim and plant his next two locations.
Jane tried to play his game in his own rules, but that only resulted in another dead victim and a new photo displaying the colors of violet and indigo. He is now afraid that the killer will take an interest in him and especially, his new girlfriend. Abbott sees right through him and suspends both him and Lisbon, so as to protect the team from Jane's unpredictability.
Meanwhile, Volker has been released from prison under license. While serving his probation, he plans his revenge against Lisbon, the woman who ruined his life. Then, he accidentally met both her and Jane in the old CBI building, while the duo had visited the place to recall past memories. There, he threw his bugged phone into their car.
The team followed a new lead and that was the connection between the chosen victims. They found out that they were all engaged to be married. More specifically, they had visited a wedding venue near Los Angeles. Wylie and Vega visited the possible list of venues as a pretend-couple, while at the same time, Jane and Lisbon enjoyed their free time at one of them. In a fit of panic, Jane realized the possible danger they were in and ran to the bathroom to find Lisbon. Eventually, Wylie and Vega got kidnapped, which forced Jane and Lisbon back into the case. However, it also brought back some of their old CBI friends; no other than Rigsby, Van Pelt and Minelli.
Jane then discovered that the killer has an accomplice who works at the venue and hypnotizes the girls to lure them back there. Old and new team cooperated to uncover the identity of the hypnotist. Jane developed a situation that would force the accomplice to try and use his abilities on Minelli while they had their eyes on him. That led them to finding out that the hypnotist uses a sudden flash of light as a trigger.
The last chapter ended with Lisbon ordering Cho to get to the electric board that controls the street lights, where the hypnotist most certainly is.