Profiler

Dreaming of You
By Elizabeth Vega

~ Late at night when all the world is sleeping
~ I stay up and think of you
~ And I wish on a star that somewhere you are
~ Thinking of me too…

Samantha Waters lay awake in her bedroom. It was a chilly October night and yet she was still pacing about in only a thin, white nightgown. Her thoughts wandered, mainly on work. The new case involving ritualistic and possible cannibalistic murders intrigued her mind. But it seemed she always settled her thoughts on her co-worker and close friend, Bailey Malone.

Sam didn’t know how it happened but her feelings for her partner had intensified in the last few days. Maybe it was all the extra time they were spending together at the office working the increasing workload resulting from the violent world that always seemed to be resting on their shoulders. The higher ups were pushing them for a better “case closed” ratio and harassing them on their over-drawn budget. All the added pressure had brought them more together, relying on one another for moral and emotional support.

She couldn’t help but remember a night about two days ago. They had both worked into the wee hours of the night and were getting ready to pack it up and head home. Bailey called her into his office as she was gathering her stuff to leave. She obediently followed him, too tired to question him. He asked her to take a seat on the comfortable couch in the middle of the room while he fetched something from his desk.

“How can you have so much energy at two in the morning?” she had remarked on his eagerness as he searched through his cluttered drawers.

“Ah-ha! Found them.” He had said, slipping something behind his back as he approached her.

“Bailey, I’m really tired. I don’t-“ Sam had started as Bailey revealed what he had been hiding: two cigars and a lighter. Sam smiled through her tiredness.

“Care to join me?” Bailey had asked her in his deep, husky voice. How could she resist?

“You know I don’t smoke…but I guess just this once, if it’ll make you happy.” She started to laugh as she took the cigar from his hand. He leaned in close and expertly lit her cigar and then his own. They sat there in a comfortable silence, just puffing the night away…

“Sam?” came a voice from the doorway. It startled her at first until she recognized the familiar voice. Angel.(had ya fooled!)

“What are you doing up?” Sam asked her best friend and roommate.

“I thought I heard a noise and got up to check on Chloe. I saw that your light was on so I came to see what was up.” Angel replied.

“Just thinking.” Sam said, somewhat absently.

“Oh. See, personally, I’ve given up on thinking. Leads to even more problems, very overrated.” Angel joked. They both started to laugh.

“Want me to keep you company?” Angel asked Sam.

“Sure. It’ll be like old times, when we were kids and needed each other to sleep.” Sam replied, now focusing on her friend.

“Except now the reason we can’t get to sleep won’t be because there’s a boogeyman in the closet or a monster under the bed.” Angel joked again. “Come on, lay with me on the bed.” Angel added as she got under the covers and motioned for Sam to do the same.

Sam climbed into the bed with Angel and rested her head on her friend’s chest. Angel slowly stroked Sam’s hair as she said, “You want to talk about what’s bothering you, it may help you get to sleep.”

“It’s Bailey.” Sam blurted out, wanting to confide in someone, and who else better than her best friend.

“Ah, I should’ve known it involved a guy.” Angel remarked. They both smiled. “Continue”, Angel said as she continued to caress her friend’s hair.

“I’m so confused. I’m getting this feeling about him and I don’t know if it’s friendship love or more than that.” Sam told her.

“Have you considered talking to him about it? Maybe he’s as confused as you are.” Angel posed a solution.

“Are you crazy?!? I’m sure he’s not in love with me.” Sam said.

“Oh come on Sam, I’ve seen the way he looks at you, he loves you.” Angel told her.

“You think so?” Sam asked unsure.

“I know so.” Angel said reassuringly. “Now get some rest. These are way too deep of issues to be contemplating at 3:45 in the morning.” Angel added.

“Thanks Angel.” And with those words, Sam shifted her embrace on Angel and fell asleep peacefully hugging her friend around the waist. Angel carefully reached for the lamp, not wanting to disturb the rest she knew Sam direly needed, and she switched off the light as we fade into black…

~ ‘Cause I’m dreaming of you tonight
~ ‘Till tomorrow I’ll be holding you tight
~ And there’s nowhere in the world I’d rather be
~ Than here in my room, dreaming about you and me

Sam was sitting in one of the black leather chairs surrounding the main conference table at the VCTF command center. She had started out flipping throughout the crime scene pictures on the main computer, but now she was sitting motionless, daydreaming. She didn’t notice the disturbance behind her as the rest of the team made their way to the meeting center. Sam didn’t even stir when Bailey took a seat right next to her until she heard his voice.

“What have we got, team?” Bailey’s manly voice boomed. A tingling rush came over Sam at that sound. She could smell his aftershave so close, it seemed to overpower her, alert all her senses.

“I can’t deal with this,” she half-muttered under her breath.

“Did you say something Sam?” Bailey asked and stared at her until she replied. Sam froze for a second, shocked that he might have heard what she’d said.

“Umm…,” she tried to get her focus back onto the pictures in front of her. “Well, look at this. On the first victim the knife gashes are sloppy and sporadic, spur of the moment. He probably didn’t want or intend to kill her. George, switch to victim two. See, there? Now the slashes are more uniform and meant to kill, slit across the throat taking out the windpipe and major veins and arteries. But there’s also more mutilation on the rest of the body. After he kills them, he taked out his anger on them. And the mutilation gets more intense and increasing with every victim. Like an ongoing stressor,” she paused to take a breath.

“And then there is the removal of the fingers on each victim which we speculate is used in some cannibalistic ritual due to the symbols carved on the victims’ bodies.” Sam babbled on, trying to relax a bit.

“Lady fingers? Too ‘fava beans and Chianti’ for my taste.” John remarked. Sam shot him one of those “John, quit acting stupid” grins from across the table. She turned to George who was operating the computer controls.

“George, have you deciphered the symbols yet?” Sam asked. George maneuvered the mouse and zoomed in on some of the symbols on victim three’s body.

“Nope. They’re like nothing the computer has ever seen before. I’ve sent a sample down to research. We’ve got a new research intern who specializes in glyphs. If they are decipherable we should have them by later today,” George replied.

“Great. Hmm…I think I’d like to see the last crime scene again, see if I missed something.” Sam told Bailey.

“Ok, John you’re with me. Sam and Grace follow (I dunno why Gracie’s going either. Maybe some last minute forensic wrap-up…). We roll in five minutes,” Bailey ordered as the team broke.

“John?” Sam called as he started to walk towards his desk. “Umm…here,” she said handing him her keys. “Why don’t you take my car and Grace out to the scene. She already has all her stuff loaded in it.” Sam told him.

“Ok…” John said questioningly, wondering why the change of plans. He shrugged it off and handed her his keys. “Bailey’s already down in the garage waiting. I just need to grab my badge…” John said and turned around to find Sam already gone.