"There are no facts, only interpretations" — Frederich Nietzsche
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THE MOMENT ALETHEA CONCLUDED HER SCHEDULED conference, she ran into her assistant.
"Oh! There you are," exclaimed Jan. "You have a call on line one. It's from the FBI."
Alethea's eyes furrowed in confusion. "FBI?"
Jan nodded in excitement. "Yeah, I think they're requesting for a consultation."
Alethea thanked Jan for informing her and made her way to her office. After setting down some files, she answered the phone.
"This is Dr. Alethea Gonzales speaking."
"Hello, I'm Section Chief Mateo Cruz with the Behavioral Analysis Unit," the man introduced. "If I'm correct, you're on the shortlist of consultants for the FBI."
"Yeah, I've assisted in a few cases," Alethea confirmed as she took a seat in her office chair. "How may I help you?"
"A poison gas attack on a city link commuter bus occurred in Los Angeles less than a few minutes ago. We believe that there's a possibility it's connected to the anniversary of another terrorist attack," Cruz informed. "According to a case file dated back to a couple of years ago, you helped out Homeland Security in finding a terrorist. I was hoping you could do the same for us."
"Yeah, of course. You're only a ten-minute drive from my office."
"Great. I'll inform the team."
Right as the call ended, Alethea dialed Jan at the front desk to instruct her to cancel any meetings within the next week due to the consultation. Afterward, Alethea grabbed her duffle bag and headed towards her car, texting her two friends an update.
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CONVERSATION IN THE BAU BRIEFING ROOM came to a halt as SSA Aaron Hotchner, and Penelope Garcia rushed in.
"Don't get comfortable," Hotch announced. "The plane's waiting for us."
"Ten minutes ago, there was a poison gas attack on a city link commuter bus in Los Angeles. Ten confirmed dead so far."
"Do we know what it was," Tara asked.
Garcia shook her head. "Hazmat just got on the scene."
Everyone began filing out of the room as SSA Derek Morgan began to speak. "Chlorine gas was used recently in Syria. Maybe it's connected."
"It also reminds me of the attack on the Tokyo subway," Spencer began as he followed his teammates. "Religious cult members carried plastic bags of Sarin and punctured them with umbrella tips."
"That was 1995," Rossi recalled. "It could be a 20th-anniversary event."
"We'll find out," Hotch stated as he opened the doors and made his way to the elevators where a brunette that seemed familiar to Spencer stood. "Everyone, this is Dr. Alethea Gonzales. She assisted Homeland Security in a domestic terrorist attack a couple of years ago, and she'll be assisting us in this case."
Rossi nodded. "I remembered that. They said they wouldn't have been able to find which clinic had the bomb without your assistance."
"We'll make formal introductions on the plane," Hotch said.
As Alethea followed closely behind Hotch, Spencer quickened his pace to walk beside her.
"Hey," Spencer smiled.
Alethea looked up, her face brightening at the sight of Spencer. "Dr. Spencer Reid. Who would've thought we would meet outside of that little coffee shop?"
"How'd you figure out about this case?"
"Oh, I received a call from your section chief who wanted me to assist," Alethea replied. "Hope you don't mind working alongside me."
"Of course not," Spencer grinned. "Quite the opposite actually. I think it'd be a learning experience to watch you work."
"Great," Aletha gleamed. "We'll talk more on the plane."
As Alethea walked ahead, Derek picked up his pace to walk alongside Spencer.
"Now, now, now, pretty boy," Derek teased in a whisper. "How do you know Dr. Gonzales?"
Spencer rolled his eyes at his friend. "I went to one of her seminars over the weekend. We talked a lot about micro facial expressions over a cup of coffee."
"Like a date?"
"More like a meet up to discuss a topic she is well informed in," Spencer stated, attempting to quiet an intrigued Derek.
"Sounds like a date," Derek countered.
"Last time I checked, we're in a hurry to get to this possible domestic terrorist attack," Spencer reminded, shutting down any more of their teasing.
Derek snickered as the two hurried on to the jet.
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"OH, CRIME FIGHTERS, I JUST GOT confirmation from the L.A. field office that traces of Sarin was found," Penelope announced through video chat.
"Sarin is the most volatile nerve agent there is," Spencer informed. "Symptoms are felt within seconds. Watery eyes, foaming at the nose and mouth, and convulsions, paralysis, and death within minutes."
Alethea was impressed. She had known that Spencer was a genius, but he seemed to always hold back when it was just the two of them. It was nice to see him let go.
Tara added on. "The last known use of Sarin was two years ago in Syria, near Damascus."
"We had recent threats of terrorism targeting major U.S. cities," Derek stated.
"A good amount of those threats are extremists who are all bark and no bite," Alethea chimed. "It's often a tactic for their groups to gain attention, which can be seen in the way they write their threats."
"Well, the religious cult responsible for the Tokyo subway attack twenty years ago is also still active," Rossi apprised.
As the team discussed the possibilities of how the religious cult was responsible, Tara asked about the casualties.
"Aside from the I.D.s, not much," Garcia answered.
"Well, it's six men and four women, age range twenty to sixty," Derek said. "Victimology seems to be pretty random."
Spencer began to speak. "Here's the thing— Sarin evaporates quickly, it's hard to control, and would thus be very difficult to target an individual."
"Collateral damage may mask the real target," Hotchner added.
"Maybe it's not about the victims but the bus itself," Alethea suggested. "It could be that it's a transportable biohazard. More potential victims to whoever's exposed."
"Garcia, look into the victims and also anyone online claiming responsibility," Hotchner instructed.
"Aye, aye, Captain!"
After discussing the case, everyone settled into their seats, preparing for the rest of the journey. Spencer mentally debated on whether or not he should join Alethea. Neglecting his negative thoughts, he got up from his seat and sat next to Alethea.
"Hey," she greeted. "You here to keep me company?"
Spencer chuckled, fidgeting in his seat a little. "Yeah, I guess I am."
Before he could say anything else, Spencer's eye catches a grinning Derek. This causes his smile to falter slightly, grabbing the attention of Alethea. She followed Spencer's gaze and saw the teasing smiles of his teammate. Seeing how it made him more nervous, Alethea acted as though she didn't notice.
"So, you got playing cards," Alethea asked, inducing Spencer to turn her way. "C'mon, you're born and raised in Vegas, and you don't have a set of playing cards?"
A playful smile tugged on Spencer's lips. "Actually, I happen to have some in my bag."
"Great. You okay with Texas Hold 'Em?"
"Whatever the lady requests," Spencer said.
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ALETHEA FOLLOWED DEREK, TARA, AND AARON out the elevator into the FBI Field Office in LA. A brunette walked to the entryway, greeting them as they stepped foot.
"Aaron Hotchner," she acknowledged. "It's been a long time."
Aaron grinned at the agent. "Natalie, congratulations on the transfer."
"Well, nice way to start a new job, huh?"
"Tell me about it," Tara stated.
"Agent Colfax, this is Dr. Tara Lewis, SSA Derek Morgan, and Dr. Alethea Gonzales. She will be consulting in this case," Aaron introduced.
"Ah, yes. I've heard many great things about your work," Agent Colfax said. "Thanks for coming out. So, based on victim toxicology, we know that sarin was used. We still can't find the source."
Agent Colfax led the four of them to the board in a different room. "Here's what we do know. City link bus 290 originated at the Red Line depot at 7 A.M. It made 6 stops before Logan park, which is where the crash occurred."
"What about the locals affiliated with the former religious cult in Japan," Derek inquired.
"They all claim they broke ties with their leader after he was sentenced and have denounced terrorism."
"That's a convenient thing to say when the FBI's questioning you," Alethea speculated.
"True. I may not be able to catch lies as easily as you do, Doctor, but they're also part of a subgroup that made the same statement publicly back in 2007. Plus all their alibis checked out."
"So Briarwood is the stop before Logan park," Tara asked.
Agent Colfax nodded. "Yes. We've been focusing on footage there. So far, all of the victims were alive on surveillance at Briarwood."
"One of them bring the Sarin I and then commit suicide?"
"I've examined all the bodies, and there's no physical evidence of that," Colfax said.
After Agent Colfax's phone chimed, she explained the newly found information on each victim. The last victim, Michael Hoffman, gained the interest of the agents due to his previous affiliation with Syria. They easily connected the deaths of many journalists during the Syrian civil war, providing a new focal point for them.
"In the meantime, we need to take a closer look at all the stops before Logan park, including the surrounding areas," Aaron advised. "Have them pull surveillance footage from ATMs, security, and traffic cameras."
"Yeah, will do," Agent Colfax responded.
"Dr. Alethea, I believe your expertise will be very helpful when reviewing these videos," Aaron said. "I need you to flag anyone that seems overtly anxious or has any indication that they're planning this."
Alethea nodded as she followed Tara into a conference room.
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Thank you guys for reading! I didn't think this story would get that many reads, so I was surprised people have commented and messaged me to update! I just finished my last final, so I should be able to be more active on Wattpad and update it more often!