People always talked about the comfort of home, never the delicate politics of it.

She turned the corner to see Bellisario stepping into the box of the elevator. He smiled, putting out an arm to hold the door open. It was hard to believe his timing was a coincidence. It was much easier to believe he had waited for her, gauging her reaction to being back in the building.

“So, who is he?” Ruby said as she hit the elevator button.

A smile ghosted Bellisario’s lips.

“Not another rookie, I hope,” Ruby continued, sensing Bellisario wasn’t going to give anything away without prodding. He enjoyed stringing her along too much.

“No, not another rookie,” he conceded. “His name’s Gabriel Ruiz. Transferred from the Oregon field office.”

When did Oregon have its last big serial killer? The early 2000s? It wasn’t that Ruby wanted more killers in the world, but she did want a partner who knew how they worked.

The elevator stopped, the doors spreading open. Bellisario gestured out.

“Good luck. You know what you’re doing,” he said.

For lack of something witty on the tip of her tongue, Ruby shot him a quick, playful glare before stepping out onto the floor.

She strode into the bullpen, half-expecting there to be some tangible difference. The only major change was that someone unfamiliar had decided to sit on the corner of her desk to hold a conversation. He continued talking even as she came right up to him.

His skin was darkly tanned with an outdoorsy gradient to it, tan lines peeking out from under the hem of his t-shirt sleeves. Clean shaven, strong jawline, clothes that emphasized his athleticism.

He had a stance that suggested discipline, probably military training, but something about him also gave Ruby the impression of a college jock. Ruby immediately noted the cross around his neck.

“You’re sitting on my desk,” Ruby said pointedly.

The chit-chat stopped abruptly, the other agent offering a wry smile before moving along to do some real work.

Ruby was left with this new broad-shouldered Latino.

“You must be Ruby Hunter,” he said, holding out a hand. “Gabe Ruiz. Nice to meet you.”

“I must be,” Ruby said. “I guess we’ll be working together, Ruiz.”

“You can call me Gabe.”

Ruby shrugged noncommittally before shooing him off her desk. He hadn’t earned the right to his cavalier attitude, perched like a high school teacher trying to be cool for his students.

Gabe got up, backing off when it finally seemed to click that she wasn’t joking.

Ruby looked him up and down, taking stock of what she had been given to work with. He had the kind of build that suggested he aced all his physical qualifications, and possibly worked through his stress at the gym.

“I thought you'd be...” Gabe let himself trail off.