Family Secrets - 22
Title: Family Secrets - 22: Vivian Johnson (Without A Trace)
Author: Beriaearwen
Word Count: 551
Crossover: Buffy the Vampire Slayer / Without a Trace
Rating: FR13
Disclaimer: The characters of "Without A Trace" belong to CBS, etc. Buffy the Vampire Slayer belongs to Mutant Enemy, etc. Both are used here without permission. No copyright infringement is intended.
Vivian Johnson (Without A Trace)
Taking a deep breath, Vivian tried to suppress her excitement. After all, a portraying a calm, cool, collected, professional demeanor meant bouncing on her toes had no place in the investigation. Still, this first foray into actual field work could only leave her excited. From the amused look on her partner's face, Vivian knew her attempts to hide her enthusiasm failed to be entirely successful.
They were currently at the site of what appeared to be the latest in a serial murder. Though she had covered much in her studies, one thing that no amount of research could prepare you for was the smell.
In class, they had gone and seen dead bodies in the morgue and even briefly on a training session, but the reality of having to get up close and personal with one of the dead bodies left much to be desired.
As she followed her partner onto the scene, she felt a chill run down her spine. It felt like she was stepping into something dark and horrible as they entered the building. Following the voices, she and her partner made their way through the house.
With each step, the smell became worse until they finally reached the room in question.
Her first look at it caused her stomach to sour and she swore she could feel the breakfast she forgot to eat begin to rebel. Opening her mouth slightly, she breathed in the air and focused on her partner's shoulder until she had herself under control once more.
Pushing away her emotions and attachments as she learned in training, she began looking at the scene with a more critical eye.
As she took it in, several aspects caught her attention. If she didn't know better, she would say three different crimes were committed in this place. There was a body lying on the bed as if it had been arranged - arms crossed over its chest and a lily placed within them. The only sign of violence, other than the blood splatter across the clothes, were two puncture wounds at the neck. They almost looked like a vampire bite from the old movies she used to watch in high school.
Blood and other viscera were splattered and scattered around the room with the majority of it located just outside a blackened circle on the floor. The circle itself looked like something out of a movie as well. There was a pentagram within it and all sorts of strange symbols. Black candles were placed equidistant between each point of the star and other objects had been placed on each point. The objects themselves would require the lab to figure out what they were.
Tracing the odd drawing, she noticed a break in the circle, as if someone had smudged it.
Vivian continued to stare at the circle. Some thought niggled at the back of her mind and she couldn't quite recall what bothered her about this.
She snapped out of her thoughts when the heavy hand of her partner fell on her shoulder. “Call back to the office and get the name of an occult specialist. This case just went beyond ugly.”
With a nod, she exited the house, took a deep breath to calm herself and then pulled out her cellphone. They had work to do.
End
Author: Beriaearwen
Word Count: 551
Crossover: Buffy the Vampire Slayer / Without a Trace
Rating: FR13
Disclaimer: The characters of "Without A Trace" belong to CBS, etc. Buffy the Vampire Slayer belongs to Mutant Enemy, etc. Both are used here without permission. No copyright infringement is intended.
Vivian Johnson (Without A Trace)
Taking a deep breath, Vivian tried to suppress her excitement. After all, a portraying a calm, cool, collected, professional demeanor meant bouncing on her toes had no place in the investigation. Still, this first foray into actual field work could only leave her excited. From the amused look on her partner's face, Vivian knew her attempts to hide her enthusiasm failed to be entirely successful.
They were currently at the site of what appeared to be the latest in a serial murder. Though she had covered much in her studies, one thing that no amount of research could prepare you for was the smell.
In class, they had gone and seen dead bodies in the morgue and even briefly on a training session, but the reality of having to get up close and personal with one of the dead bodies left much to be desired.
As she followed her partner onto the scene, she felt a chill run down her spine. It felt like she was stepping into something dark and horrible as they entered the building. Following the voices, she and her partner made their way through the house.
With each step, the smell became worse until they finally reached the room in question.
Her first look at it caused her stomach to sour and she swore she could feel the breakfast she forgot to eat begin to rebel. Opening her mouth slightly, she breathed in the air and focused on her partner's shoulder until she had herself under control once more.
Pushing away her emotions and attachments as she learned in training, she began looking at the scene with a more critical eye.
As she took it in, several aspects caught her attention. If she didn't know better, she would say three different crimes were committed in this place. There was a body lying on the bed as if it had been arranged - arms crossed over its chest and a lily placed within them. The only sign of violence, other than the blood splatter across the clothes, were two puncture wounds at the neck. They almost looked like a vampire bite from the old movies she used to watch in high school.
Blood and other viscera were splattered and scattered around the room with the majority of it located just outside a blackened circle on the floor. The circle itself looked like something out of a movie as well. There was a pentagram within it and all sorts of strange symbols. Black candles were placed equidistant between each point of the star and other objects had been placed on each point. The objects themselves would require the lab to figure out what they were.
Tracing the odd drawing, she noticed a break in the circle, as if someone had smudged it.
Vivian continued to stare at the circle. Some thought niggled at the back of her mind and she couldn't quite recall what bothered her about this.
She snapped out of her thoughts when the heavy hand of her partner fell on her shoulder. “Call back to the office and get the name of an occult specialist. This case just went beyond ugly.”
With a nod, she exited the house, took a deep breath to calm herself and then pulled out her cellphone. They had work to do.
End