Amelia steps onto the sidewalk from her building, pressing the side button of her earpiece to turn it on. Looking down at her phone, she skims the contacts before clicking on the one she desired. As the phone rings, she begins to jog.
The line picks up, Amelia wastes no time in speaking. "Ellis, I need a favor from you." She states, lightly huffing as she jogs past crowds.
"A favor, sure. What is it Boss?"
"I need you to see if any information is still scrapped in the database as of August 13th, 2018."
There's silence on the other end of the call. "Five years ago? Why do you need information like that?" Ellis was questioning her, Amelia didn't like that.
Ellis was usually the one who didn't ask questions when she ordered her to retrieve something. Having her question now, was not a good time. Frankly, no time was a good time for Amelia.
She huffs, "Please Ellis, you're the only agent I trust to look into information like this. If I do it myself, I may seem suspicious."
"I won't deny your request, I'll look into it and notify you with what I can find." Amelia smiles, relieved as her legs continue to jog down the sidewalk.
"Thank you Ellis, your hard work will be given recognition."
Ellis chuckles, "It's nothing Boss, be safe."
There was one more thing she had to say before the call ended.
Amelia pauses, "And Ellis.."
"Hm?" The woman hums.
"If Dallas asks you why you're in that information. Don't tell him." Amelia huffs out, stopping at a crosswalk as the cars zoomed past.
As she stands and waits for the crosswalk to turn back to white, there's a long pause on the other end of the call. Although her chest rises and falls, she's the only sort of sound that can be heard. Cars zooming by, people chattering around her, the sound of her heavy breathing.
No Ellis, no confirmation. What did she have to think about, she gave the woman an order. Amelia was her boss, there was no way but to follow her direction.
"..Alright. Have a nice day Boss." Ellis finally responds slowly, Amelia sighing in relief.
"You too." With that, Amelia clicks the button on her earpiece just as the crosswalk is pushed with the dozens of bodies.
Now all she wanted to focus on was her jog, where her ending destination would be before she turned back around. Amelia always took some sort of exercise in her daily routine, to keep herself in shape. She wouldn't be able to catch the powerful people she did if not for her constant routine. Any sort of break for her was not allowed, she had to keep herself at the top of her game.
What Dallas said was bugging at her thoughts however. Holding his stare on her own eyes, showed he feared nothing when it left his lips. However, why did she feel there was something hiding behind the gloss of his eyes? Paranoia had set in, fear of betrayal festered under her skin.
Amelia shakes her head, jogging faster than her legs could take her.
That wasn't right, he was her partner. The man she slept next to for years, who kissed and cared for her wounds. He was there for every failure, every success, every moment in between. Dallas had done this to protect her, the paranoia had gotten to her to the point theories warped with reality.
A buzz pulls her from her thoughts, stopping her from her endless jog. Huffing, she clicks the earpiece in her ear. "Amelia Reston of the B.A.U speaking, please state your name."
"Honey it's me." Her eyes widened in surprise, she knew that voice anywhere.
"Dad, hey are you okay?" Her vice strains with worry. "You seem upset, or irritated. One of the two, I can tell from the sound of your voice."
Her father sighs on the other end of the phone, followed by the sound of footsteps. He was pacing, she knew how he acted when he was stressed.
"I need you to come over please, it's important." Charlie groans, "Urgent, I know you're the only one who can help me. These damn cops don't do anything around here."
She rubs the side of her head, confused as to what her father was talking about. Something had happened clearly, but he didn't go into any heavy detail about what had gone down in his presence. Amelia wouldn't ask questions over the phone, she would have to go see it for herself.
Charlie was her father, blood or not she would always be there to help him. He called her after all, he always trusted her.
"Alright dad, don't worry I'll be there soon. Sit tight, I should be there in about twenty minutes."
"Okay honey, thank you. I love you." Her smile pulls on her lips, lightly chuckling.
"I love you too dad, see you in a bit." Clicking the ear piece, the phone call ends.
Amelia's quickly turning on her heels, eyebrows furrowed over her eyes as she jogs back to her condo. Faster than she had started, in order to get back to her car and get to her father's home. He needed her as fast as she could get there, she would be there faster than he had expected.
Hopefully his situation was not dire, and that she could solve it with ease. If not, it was something else she would carry on her shoulders until it was solved. A day in the life of an agent was never done.
It's not long before she makes it to her car, not bothering to change even with the sweaty emulating off of her. Starting her car up and pulling out of the parking garage, she zooms off to her father's house.
He lived in the outer part of Los Angeles, in a larger house compared to her. Almost like a mansion of sorts, Dallas had helped her father get a house as he once had when he lived in New York. Charlie was pleased by the house when they had first arrived, and had stayed in it all this time.
Pulling into his driveway, she sees her father's figure in the front yard. His back is to her, but he's dressed in a t-shirt with sweatpants. She stops the engine, putting her car in park. Amelia exits the vehicle, to which the slamming of her car door catches his attention.
Amelia's eyes dark down as she fiddles with her car keys, placing them in her pocket. "Dad, I came as soon as I got your–" When she looks up, she stops in place.
Sprawled across the front windows of her fathers house, were blood letters in red spray paint. The words dripped down the front of the house, large lettering put together in neat detail. One single word: 'Shadow'. Amelia knew exactly what this word meant to her father.
'The Shadow' was her father's criminal alias, it was the way he had met her mother. Pulling her into a life of crime, a trauma bond formed between the two of them. Charlie had long since discarded who he was, for Amelia when she was born.
Seeing the bolded letters spelling a long forgotten name, it was clear this was a target on her father's back. They knew who he was.
Her head turns to her father, his eyes facing the direction of his windows. Eyes with a glare of anger, eyebrows burrowing over his eyes. Arms crossed over his chest, muscles tense.
Amelia was worried for her father, he was already stressed enough by the things she brought to his attention. What if this was her fault? "Dad..?" She mumbles.
"I believe you now, your suspicions. Amelia.." Charlie says softly, before looking at his daughter. "That son of a bitch, he-- he has no right!" He shouts, pointing towards the defiling of his property.
He was in no health to be as angry as he was, however, when he lost his breath. Coughing up a storm, Amelia's eyes widen. Quickly she puts her hand under her father's arm, holding him up straight. She knew that her father was getting older, and with old age came weakness.
Her face stretched with worry, holding onto her father as tight as she could. "Dad, please don't overdo it! You already know your health is deteriorating as it is.."
Their eyes meet, Charlie's expressions softening. He shakes his head, running his fingers through his hair. " I'm..I'm sorry I'm worrying you so much Amelia. You are my only daughter."
He worried about her even when he was the one slowly wasting away. It hurt her to know that this situation could be caused by her. Another person who had to deal with the affects of her existence. Her father was the closest, the most cherished person she had left. Amelia would not let anyone torment him because of her.
She shakes her head. "Dad, I don't care. Call me even if I'm dying." The statement was serious, eyes scanning over his face. "But dad, I don't think things are so black and white anymore."