Russian Roulette (3/16)
Previous Parts: Part One, Part Two
Part Three - Distractions/Plans
The next month disappeared in the blink of an eye. Lisbon felt like she was being pulled in all directions for that duration. Whenever she wasn’t working the Red John case, and specifically, the Fairweather murder, there were other, newer, cases plying for her attention. And when the cases weren’t keeping her busy, her boss was preparing her for her imminent promotion.
When she had first been informed that Agent Hart was due to leave for a higher position in Nevada, she hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. Last Friday, the man had said his farewells, packed away his belongings and left without much fuss. Today was her first day officially in charge of the CBI’s Serious Crimes Unit. Once they had been informed of the changes in leadership, Rigsby and Cho had both been thrilled. They had claimed that it couldn’t have happened to a better person and were confident in her abilities to lead the unit to bigger and better things.
Naturally, Lisbon was less sure. It still felt like it had been rushed and she wasn’t quite ready for the responsibility yet.
Unsurprisingly, the first order of the day was a meeting with Virgil Minelli. Lisbon arrived at a prompt five minutes to nine and found herself waiting beside his vacant office. Still, she consoled herself with the fact it was always better to be early than late. She wasn’t left waiting long; two minutes later, her boss arrived with a coffee in hand and swiftly ushered her inside.
For a brief while, Lisbon watched as he organized himself for the day ahead. Then, he silently handed her a couple of case files, ready for her perusal. Lisbon knew what these were; they were the first cases she was to deal with as lead agent. Quietly, she thanked him and scanned through the first page of them both. From what she could tell, it was pretty basic stuff or at least, as basic as murder could have been. However, she knew from past experience that looks could be deceiving. Either one of these cases - or both, even - could easily throw her and the team a curveball to take them off guard.
“How are you feeling, Teresa?” Minelli eventually asked.
“Fine,” she answered, surprised by his first question.
“Right. And how are you really feeling?”
She paused for a while and considered his question. Lisbon knew her boss well enough to know that he was genuinely interested and he wasn’t looking for a chink in her armor. Ever since she had moved to Sacramento, he had taken her under his wing and looked after her. He never said it, but she half suspected that he saw her as a surrogate daughter. Not a replacement for the one he lost to cancer a few years back, but just another one. He was also one of the few people who knew her troubled past; the deaths of both her parents at an early age. How she’d single-handedly brought up her three brothers.
How she’d escaped her past and made a name for herself as an up-and-coming cop in California.
He’d also admitted on a number of occasions that he saw potential to be truly great in her. That, she felt was an honor. She never felt like she was that great herself. Then again, that was probably due to her always seeing the worst in herself. That was a legacy of her upbringing, battle scars from her father. If she could change it, then of course she would. However, it was easier said than done.
Instead, she promised herself that she would do her utmost to repay Minelli’s faith.
“Nervous,” she eventually admitted aloud. “Excited. I just want to get on with it, I think.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” he said with a warm smile. “Your office will be ready in a few days. I hope you can do without for that time?”
She blinked; she had practically forgotten about getting her own private space. “Of course.”
“Good. You’re dismissed, Agent.”
When she got back to the bullpen, the others hadn’t yet arrived. However, Jackson Roberts was staring straight at her with a wry smile. He placed a coffee and a paper bag on her desk and nodded encouragingly at her. She frowned and sat down in front of her computer, eyeing him warily. Over the past month, he seemed to be attempting to catch her eye more, had made numerous offers of coffee or lunch and the like. However much she would have liked to accept it, she had always been too busy to do so.
“What’s this for?” she asked, when he sat down opposite her.
“If I can’t take you to coffee, I thought I’d bring the coffee to you.”
“Right. Thanks, I think.”
“And congratulations on your recent promotion.”
“You seem very well informed,” she answered suspiciously.
“I work in PSU, remember?”
She smiled slightly in response and took a sip of the coffee. It had been made just the way she liked it. Briefly she wondered how he knew that, but then again, she was already on good terms with the coffee cart guy. He’d probably just asked for whatever her favorite was. The same applied to the bear claw he quickly offered her before she had the chance to place the drink back down again. In a way, it was nice actually finally having the time to sit down and talk to him properly instead of snatched moments here and there. Still, she felt like she was on the back foot whenever she spoke to him; he always seemed far too informed about her whereas she only just knew his name.
“I think we need to celebrate this achievement.”
“We?”
“Why not?” Jackson answered, grinning widely. “It’ll be my shout.”
“Are you trying to ask me out on a date?”
“If you want to call it that,” he replied coyly.
A call of hello from Rigsby quickly pulled Lisbon back to reality. Her team was arriving and she couldn’t be seen flirting with the man from the Professional Standards Unit. If she was going to start her new job as lead agent properly, then she had to get rid of him and fast. Besides, she did have some cases to get on with. At least she already knew that neither of them should take her out of town in the immediate future. After hurried yes, an apology about having to get on and him proposing a date and location, Lisbon watched as he disappeared up the hallway.
He was gone moments before Cho and Rigsby joined her in the bullpen, patiently awaiting her first instructions as boss. Lisbon breathed a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t a moment too soon.
xxx
Red John scrutinized his appearance in the mirror one final time. He scowled as he plucked a stray thread from his jacket sleeve, then nodded, satisfied. It felt like a long time since he had last been on something that could have been labeled as a date and he almost felt excited. And nervous, too. He had been taken by surprise when Teresa Lisbon had suggested that this celebratory meal could have been seen as something more than just a casual meal shared between co-workers. It was a pleasing development, however.
It made things a hell of a lot easier.
That wasn’t to say he was planning to kill her in the immediate future. No, he had already decided that he wanted to play the long game with the lovely Teresa. She was a naturally suspicious sort; it was a cost that she had paid due to her job. However, that was what was going to make it all the more entertaining for him. There were other people he could dispose of in the meantime to quench his bloodthirsty nature. At the same time, he could be grooming her, ready for the spectacular fallout.
The murder of Senior Agent Teresa Lisbon was going to be his most audacious yet.
After all, she wasn’t your typical victim. Of course, she still was a victim nevertheless, but it wasn’t something that was easy to point out. He’d done plenty of research on her. He knew about her mother’s death in a car crash when she was barely a teenager. How her abusive father had committed suicide within four years of his wife’s death. How she was left to pick up the pieces. Naturally, it had left her with a chip on her shoulder. It also meant that she was a tough nut to crack and likely to push people away if they appeared too threatening.
Thankfully, he was used to working with tough customers. He’d also made acting amiable, friendly, trusting and just plain nice an art form in itself. Red John had reeled in many a woman before destroying every aspect about them in a heartbeat. However, preying on the obviously weak was getting a little tiresome. At least Teresa Lisbon would provide a break to the monotony of his usual victims.
Eventually, he nodded, satisfied with his general appearance. A neatly pressed shirt and his denim jeans suggested he’d made an effort, but not too much. He was clean-shaven and didn’t have a hair out of place. And to finish off the ensemble, he’d added just a dash of his favorite aftershave. If she wasn’t impressed by this, then… he’d have to try a little harder next time. It would just be a stumbling block in the road; it wouldn’t necessarily spell out doom and gloom. He certainly wouldn’t let it destroy all of the plans that were quickly formulating in his quicksilver mind.
Teresa appeared nervous when he picked her up from her place. He’d insisted, of course. It was the gentlemanly thing to do. Immediately, Red John suspected that it was the first time in a long while that she had actually decided to go on a date. She had been single for a long while, mostly relying upon one night stands to quell any desire or need for sex. He could even see her blaming her long-standing relationship status on the fact that she had an intimidating job description instead of the true root cause. No ordinary man would have wanted to feel belittled in the family home and if she was to be believed, her being a cop would do just that.
Of course, he was no ordinary man.
Naturally, he hoped that she felt the same way. Not just because it would make the process of reeling her in a hell of a lot easier, but also to quell a scratch at the pit of his brain. He wanted her to like him, to respect him, to think that he was ‘good enough’.
And not just because it would make the ultimate downfall all the more rewarding. That wasn’t going to happen for a long while anyway. Red John was more than aware that he was playing the long game with this specific woman.
The date, and celebration of her recent promotion, seemed to go well by his standards. She smiled warmly at him throughout and laughed in all the right places. The movie may have been crap, but that didn’t seem to matter to Teresa in the slightest. If anything, it was a blessing in disguise; it gave him ample opportunity to mock it over dinner. And at least the meal was of a superior quality, even if she argued back when he insisted upon paying.
As far as he was concerned, from the moment she took hold of his face to capture his lips, that was payment enough.
To Part Four
Part Three - Distractions/Plans
The next month disappeared in the blink of an eye. Lisbon felt like she was being pulled in all directions for that duration. Whenever she wasn’t working the Red John case, and specifically, the Fairweather murder, there were other, newer, cases plying for her attention. And when the cases weren’t keeping her busy, her boss was preparing her for her imminent promotion.
When she had first been informed that Agent Hart was due to leave for a higher position in Nevada, she hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. Last Friday, the man had said his farewells, packed away his belongings and left without much fuss. Today was her first day officially in charge of the CBI’s Serious Crimes Unit. Once they had been informed of the changes in leadership, Rigsby and Cho had both been thrilled. They had claimed that it couldn’t have happened to a better person and were confident in her abilities to lead the unit to bigger and better things.
Naturally, Lisbon was less sure. It still felt like it had been rushed and she wasn’t quite ready for the responsibility yet.
Unsurprisingly, the first order of the day was a meeting with Virgil Minelli. Lisbon arrived at a prompt five minutes to nine and found herself waiting beside his vacant office. Still, she consoled herself with the fact it was always better to be early than late. She wasn’t left waiting long; two minutes later, her boss arrived with a coffee in hand and swiftly ushered her inside.
For a brief while, Lisbon watched as he organized himself for the day ahead. Then, he silently handed her a couple of case files, ready for her perusal. Lisbon knew what these were; they were the first cases she was to deal with as lead agent. Quietly, she thanked him and scanned through the first page of them both. From what she could tell, it was pretty basic stuff or at least, as basic as murder could have been. However, she knew from past experience that looks could be deceiving. Either one of these cases - or both, even - could easily throw her and the team a curveball to take them off guard.
“How are you feeling, Teresa?” Minelli eventually asked.
“Fine,” she answered, surprised by his first question.
“Right. And how are you really feeling?”
She paused for a while and considered his question. Lisbon knew her boss well enough to know that he was genuinely interested and he wasn’t looking for a chink in her armor. Ever since she had moved to Sacramento, he had taken her under his wing and looked after her. He never said it, but she half suspected that he saw her as a surrogate daughter. Not a replacement for the one he lost to cancer a few years back, but just another one. He was also one of the few people who knew her troubled past; the deaths of both her parents at an early age. How she’d single-handedly brought up her three brothers.
How she’d escaped her past and made a name for herself as an up-and-coming cop in California.
He’d also admitted on a number of occasions that he saw potential to be truly great in her. That, she felt was an honor. She never felt like she was that great herself. Then again, that was probably due to her always seeing the worst in herself. That was a legacy of her upbringing, battle scars from her father. If she could change it, then of course she would. However, it was easier said than done.
Instead, she promised herself that she would do her utmost to repay Minelli’s faith.
“Nervous,” she eventually admitted aloud. “Excited. I just want to get on with it, I think.”
“That’s what I like to hear,” he said with a warm smile. “Your office will be ready in a few days. I hope you can do without for that time?”
She blinked; she had practically forgotten about getting her own private space. “Of course.”
“Good. You’re dismissed, Agent.”
When she got back to the bullpen, the others hadn’t yet arrived. However, Jackson Roberts was staring straight at her with a wry smile. He placed a coffee and a paper bag on her desk and nodded encouragingly at her. She frowned and sat down in front of her computer, eyeing him warily. Over the past month, he seemed to be attempting to catch her eye more, had made numerous offers of coffee or lunch and the like. However much she would have liked to accept it, she had always been too busy to do so.
“What’s this for?” she asked, when he sat down opposite her.
“If I can’t take you to coffee, I thought I’d bring the coffee to you.”
“Right. Thanks, I think.”
“And congratulations on your recent promotion.”
“You seem very well informed,” she answered suspiciously.
“I work in PSU, remember?”
She smiled slightly in response and took a sip of the coffee. It had been made just the way she liked it. Briefly she wondered how he knew that, but then again, she was already on good terms with the coffee cart guy. He’d probably just asked for whatever her favorite was. The same applied to the bear claw he quickly offered her before she had the chance to place the drink back down again. In a way, it was nice actually finally having the time to sit down and talk to him properly instead of snatched moments here and there. Still, she felt like she was on the back foot whenever she spoke to him; he always seemed far too informed about her whereas she only just knew his name.
“I think we need to celebrate this achievement.”
“We?”
“Why not?” Jackson answered, grinning widely. “It’ll be my shout.”
“Are you trying to ask me out on a date?”
“If you want to call it that,” he replied coyly.
A call of hello from Rigsby quickly pulled Lisbon back to reality. Her team was arriving and she couldn’t be seen flirting with the man from the Professional Standards Unit. If she was going to start her new job as lead agent properly, then she had to get rid of him and fast. Besides, she did have some cases to get on with. At least she already knew that neither of them should take her out of town in the immediate future. After hurried yes, an apology about having to get on and him proposing a date and location, Lisbon watched as he disappeared up the hallway.
He was gone moments before Cho and Rigsby joined her in the bullpen, patiently awaiting her first instructions as boss. Lisbon breathed a sigh of relief.
It wasn’t a moment too soon.
xxx
Red John scrutinized his appearance in the mirror one final time. He scowled as he plucked a stray thread from his jacket sleeve, then nodded, satisfied. It felt like a long time since he had last been on something that could have been labeled as a date and he almost felt excited. And nervous, too. He had been taken by surprise when Teresa Lisbon had suggested that this celebratory meal could have been seen as something more than just a casual meal shared between co-workers. It was a pleasing development, however.
It made things a hell of a lot easier.
That wasn’t to say he was planning to kill her in the immediate future. No, he had already decided that he wanted to play the long game with the lovely Teresa. She was a naturally suspicious sort; it was a cost that she had paid due to her job. However, that was what was going to make it all the more entertaining for him. There were other people he could dispose of in the meantime to quench his bloodthirsty nature. At the same time, he could be grooming her, ready for the spectacular fallout.
The murder of Senior Agent Teresa Lisbon was going to be his most audacious yet.
After all, she wasn’t your typical victim. Of course, she still was a victim nevertheless, but it wasn’t something that was easy to point out. He’d done plenty of research on her. He knew about her mother’s death in a car crash when she was barely a teenager. How her abusive father had committed suicide within four years of his wife’s death. How she was left to pick up the pieces. Naturally, it had left her with a chip on her shoulder. It also meant that she was a tough nut to crack and likely to push people away if they appeared too threatening.
Thankfully, he was used to working with tough customers. He’d also made acting amiable, friendly, trusting and just plain nice an art form in itself. Red John had reeled in many a woman before destroying every aspect about them in a heartbeat. However, preying on the obviously weak was getting a little tiresome. At least Teresa Lisbon would provide a break to the monotony of his usual victims.
Eventually, he nodded, satisfied with his general appearance. A neatly pressed shirt and his denim jeans suggested he’d made an effort, but not too much. He was clean-shaven and didn’t have a hair out of place. And to finish off the ensemble, he’d added just a dash of his favorite aftershave. If she wasn’t impressed by this, then… he’d have to try a little harder next time. It would just be a stumbling block in the road; it wouldn’t necessarily spell out doom and gloom. He certainly wouldn’t let it destroy all of the plans that were quickly formulating in his quicksilver mind.
Teresa appeared nervous when he picked her up from her place. He’d insisted, of course. It was the gentlemanly thing to do. Immediately, Red John suspected that it was the first time in a long while that she had actually decided to go on a date. She had been single for a long while, mostly relying upon one night stands to quell any desire or need for sex. He could even see her blaming her long-standing relationship status on the fact that she had an intimidating job description instead of the true root cause. No ordinary man would have wanted to feel belittled in the family home and if she was to be believed, her being a cop would do just that.
Of course, he was no ordinary man.
Naturally, he hoped that she felt the same way. Not just because it would make the process of reeling her in a hell of a lot easier, but also to quell a scratch at the pit of his brain. He wanted her to like him, to respect him, to think that he was ‘good enough’.
And not just because it would make the ultimate downfall all the more rewarding. That wasn’t going to happen for a long while anyway. Red John was more than aware that he was playing the long game with this specific woman.
The date, and celebration of her recent promotion, seemed to go well by his standards. She smiled warmly at him throughout and laughed in all the right places. The movie may have been crap, but that didn’t seem to matter to Teresa in the slightest. If anything, it was a blessing in disguise; it gave him ample opportunity to mock it over dinner. And at least the meal was of a superior quality, even if she argued back when he insisted upon paying.
As far as he was concerned, from the moment she took hold of his face to capture his lips, that was payment enough.
To Part Four