Chapter 2
Rio Vidal had her life together.
At least, as much as it could be. She went through high school taking AP classes, then attended Penn State University for forensic science just to stay close to her family. She studied and worked so hard that she gained the attention of the Washington Police and was hired straight out of university.
Working in a big city already kept her busy; she couldn’t afford to make friends outside of work. She considered a few classmates and colleagues as friends, but she could only keep them when it was related to work or school. There was no point in dating since relationships never lasted long, and none of them could handle her work hours. They all tried. She tried too, but she never cared enough to make them last or sacrifice her time at work. Eventually, she gave up on the idea altogether, but that didn’t bother her. She was too focused on her career. She was practically married to her job.
The people who worked with her liked her enough that work wasn’t as bad as it could have been. Especially when you’re surrounded by dead bodies all day and working with police officers, she made the environment more bearable for her colleagues.
Like any other day in her life, she woke up in her bed at 4:45 a.m. The bed she had specifically requested because of course, if anyone worked as much hours as she did, the bed should be comfortable. The only other thing that took up her time was sleep, and of course, she was going to invest in that. Wasting no time, she went into the bathroom to get ready for the day, changing into a gray jumper and denim pants. She sat in her kitchen, waiting for the coffee to be done. Her apartment was organized and clean, looking as if it were a showroom. It was no surprise, as she barely stayed there long enough to make it feel like home. She briefly considered adding more things to make it feel lived in before the sound of the coffee maker finishing pulled her from her thoughts. She grabbed her coffee from the automatic machine before heading out to her car.
By the time she got to the lab, it was quiet except for the techs working the night shift. The reason she came to work so early was to enjoy the peace before the storm. Although only the technicians were around right now, throughout the day, police officers would come in, and the phones would be ringing with requests that would have to wait.
She went to her desk to go through emails for the day. As the day continued, she went into the lab and found her favorite colleague going over notes on a body. Without bothering to knock as her hands were in her pocket, she said, “Look who’s working so hard.”
The colleague jumped. “Rio! Why must you scare me?!” Her accent was thick.
Rio laughed as she entered the room, and picked up the paperwork beside the girl. “It’s fun watching humans squirm,” she said as she skimmed through the notes.
The girl, with long red hair tied up and her striking Eastern European features, was undeniably attractive.
“Might I remind you that you are human too? Although some people think you’re a robot around here,” Wanda said, almost finished with cleaning the instruments.
“Let’s go, Wanda. It’s past lunch, and I know you’re the only other one who hasn’t eaten,” Rio said, flipping through the pages.
“And here I thought you were a workaholic,” Wanda teased, taking off her lab coat before grabbing her purse.
“I am, but I need me some rice and beans to get through these demons of emails,” Rio said, slapping the papers onto the counter before she could get too invested in the notes.
The two headed out of the department and walked a few blocks to a Spanish restaurant. Once they sat down, Wanda watched Rio devour her food with slight disgust.
“When I fled my country, I didn’t think I would see any more horrors, but thank you. Where is the protein? Where does it all go? What are you?” Wanda asked, watching Rio finish her meal so quickly while she was barely halfway through her chicken torta.
Rio, already finished, was about to laugh. “Well, I am Death.”
Wanda squinted at her before throwing her wrapper at Rio.
“Ha ha ha, laugh all you want, but Death has a weakness, and I will find it out.” Both of them packed up their garbage into the bin. As they were leaving, Rio grabbed the thrown wrapper on the ground and, in one swoop, tossed it across the restaurant into the trash can without missing.
“Speaking of weakness, will you ever stop working and find someone? Or does the death of the crime lab already have someone? You’re just hiding them in your dungeon, waiting to free them,” Wanda said, knowing that the lab was practically Rio’s home.
“Work is the only love of my life, and if I could take her home, you would never see me for days,” Rio smirked.
Wanda made a face of disgust as they walked back to work.
“Rio, I know you’re joking, but in my life, I’ve learned that no one should have to be alone forever. I’m thankful to have Vision in my life every day. Work can only keep you busy. You should at least be able to cherish someone while you’re living,” Wanda said earnestly.
Rio was reminded why she liked Wanda. She had gone through hardships and made mistakes, yet she was still here. It might not have been where she wanted to be, but she had made it through.
“Wanda, I’m happy. I’m content with my life right now. I might not have a glamorous life, but I love my work, and that fulfills me,” Rio said, meaning every word as they entered the department and headed toward the elevator.
Wanda listened as the elevator doors opened. Before she could say anything, Rio interrupted her.
“Now I have to badger some uniforms about formalities for the crime lab,” Rio waved her hand dismissively as the elevator doors shut.
She pressed her forehead against the cold elevator door before heading to the stairs.
As the day continued, Wanda’s words stayed in her head. They lingered as she worked on a body that had arrived that day and while she sorted through paperwork. She worked as usual, but the thought was always there, resurfacing each time she completed a task.
She told herself she wasn’t lying. Her work made her happy. It had always been there for her.
Before she knew it, by the time she finished the last of the paperwork, it was already dark outside and it was summer. The thoughts still swirled in her mind as she arrived home. She knew she needed to go for a run. And she hated running unless something was bothering her.
She went into the bedroom to change before heading out.
An hour later, she quickly burst into her apartment, dropping her phone onto the bedside table before going straight to the shower, her exhaustion overpowering her hunger.
By the time she got out, she didn’t have the energy to make or order anything, and went straight to bed. Karma on her for pushing herself too hard on the run, but she could wait until morning to make something.
Even though she had exhausted herself, her last thought was that she was overthinking it.
She was satisfied with her life.
At least, that’s what she told herself.