Criminal Minds
The Reaper Rippling Effect 4
- Progeny -
He was laughing as he stood up from the couch, "I won't be but a few minutes."
"Oh yeah...I can't believe we're actually gonna sneak out to that party! Hey...what if your old man finds out?" He looked nervously.
"No worries, Pete. I have a plan." He left and headed to his dad's bedroom. "I've got a brilliant plan, my dad's old suits and ties. We're gonna look like a couple of suave college peeps."
"Are you sure we'll get by with that look?"
"Heck yeah! I mean, we're seventeen, I think we look pretty mature." He laughed. "Here, Pete...let's try them on." He handed his friend a couple of outfits.
"Oh man..." Pete's eyes gleamed, "Jenna's gonna lose her virginity over this." He quickly removed his shirt and changed his clothes in Jack's bedroom.
"I think the ladies won't recognize us at all." Jack laughed.
"Maybe we'll get lucky with the other college chicks...goodbye Jenna, hello cougars!" Pete whistled as he admired himself in the mirror, "Jack...check this out...I look good, damn good in your old man's stuff. Can't believe I'm saying it." He ran his hand over his hair. "Jack? Are you ready?"
No answer.
"Come on, Jack...don't screw this up." He poked his head out of the room. "Dude Jack! We're gonna be late." He straighten and looked at the clock across the wall from him. "Jack...this is ridiculous," he walked to Jack's father's bedroom. "I..." He turned around and saw him. "What the..."
…..
"Aaron, is Jack at your home?" Jessica called on the cell phone.
"He called, they're at Pete's place, studying." Hotch answered; he and his team had just returned from a case out of town.
"Oh." Jessica said.
"What's the matter, Jess?" Hotch looked up from his work.
"Oh, nothing, I thought the boys were at your place." She shook her head. "It's nothing...I probably misheard him. Good night, Aaron."
Frowning, "Okay...good night, Jess." He ended the call and placed his phone on the desk and was soon back to his endless files.
Suddenly, he stopped writing.
He felt a trickle of dread in the back of his mind as if something dark had waved past him.
"Foyet?" He whispered. He had not talked to him in a very long time; he had manage to silence him.
He thought he had conquer the Reaper.
Hotch told himself that he was no longer the Reaper. He was really dead.
It had been many years since he had killed.
The cases in Vicksburg, Virginia and two in Baltimore, Maryland had remained unsolved.
Since then, the Reaper had not surfaced.
Many people were glad, many thought he had died or moved away.
The BAU team had expected to hear from him in another state but he never reappeared.
Was he dead?
One could only hoped.
Hotch thought he had won.
Foyet in his mind, his ceaseless screaming had been excruciating but he was able to handle it.
Then one day, Foyet's screeching stopped.
It just did. As if someone had turned off the switch.
Hotch had looked about his office, it was a strange sensation, he thought for a moment he had gone deaf!
But he could hear the noise down at the bullpen; Morgan and Reid's usual banter while Prentiss tried to counter argue with them, fruitlessly.
No...his hearing was fine.
He then realized it was silence from his mind. The constant screaming from his head, Foyet had started screaming when he had refused to kill...Emily. He had spared Emily and in her stead, he killed her neighbor. It was an awful decision but he couldn't resist Foyet.
The urge was powerful at that time. Since then, he had fought that battle within him and so far he had won. It was a painful battle.
Day in, night out, he had Foyet's constant screams in his head.
For a long time, he had actually grabbed his gun and held it to his head but he thought of Jack.
Jack was his saving grace.
He recalled his promise to his late wife Haley; he'd taken care of him and showed him love.
And he had done it.
Jack was seventeen now. A tall strapping man he had turned out. Soon he would be graduating from high school and heading to college.
With the help of his ex sister-in-law, Jessica Brooks, they had raised him.
Now, Jack was ready to spread his proverbial wings.
He had been accepted to the University of Maryland, his major was forensics criminology.
Hotch was proud of him; Jack was following in his old man's footsteps.
His plans as soon as he graduated from college was the FBI Academy.
Yeah, his son was growing up. And Hotch could not be more prouder than him, his team of course were behind him all the way. They were like Jack's second parents.
Jack was his saving grace, indeed.
George Foyet could burn in hell for eternity, for all he cared. Hotch could take the pain, it felt like a damn migraine.
He focused on his son and his future.
But like a switch, it suddenly stopped.
It was an eerie feeling; on one hand, he was very grateful for the blessed peace and quiet, but on the other hand, he felt a foreboding, as if this silence was something he would regret what might come.
Hotch tried to return to his work, to his paperwork but he found that he couldn't.
"George?" He called out to him again. "Where are you? Answer me!"
No answer.
Foyet was gone from his mind.
Hotch knew he was not in his mind anymore.
Finally, he stood up and packed his paperwork and headed out of his office.
His team looked up, "You're leaving?"
Hotch nodded as he hurriedly walked out, "I've to get home...I have to check on Jack."
"But Hotch," Emily called out from her desk. "He's seventeen! He can take care of him..." but Hotch was gone.
The team exchanged concern looks, "What was that all about?" Morgan wondered.
"Paternal anxiety." Reid looked up. "I mean, Jack's graduating from high school next month and he's head to U of Maryland. He's never been gone so long before, and Hotch's going to be anxious for Jack."
Emily shook her head, "I don't think that's it, Reid. I think it's something else. I don't know, just something." She shrugged and returned to her work.
…...
"Jack?" Hotch called out as he entered his house. "Jack, Pete?"
No answer.
He looked around, there were no sign of anyone but he did noticed Jack's backpack by the couch.
He walked towards the hallways and into his son's bedroom and saw his clothes straw about the floor and bed.
He shook his head, "Typical kid." He muttered as he sighed and walked out and to his own bedroom, it was then he noticed something; the closet door was opened.
He quickly glanced and saw that there were a couple of clothing items missing; suits and ties that he had not worn for a long time that he had pushed them into the back of the closet...and something else...
"Shit!" he muttered suddenly when he saw a particular set of bag missing!
He slid his suits all the way over and looked around.
It was missing!
"Damn it! Jack!" He called out as he stepped out from his walk-in closet and looked around, and it was then he saw his son's clothes on the floor by his bed.
And the black duffel bag Hotch had hid all the black clothes he had worn all those years ago, including the mask!
"Shit! Shit! Shit!"
Pulling out his cell phone, he pressed a number; his speed dial to Jack's cell phone.
It went straight to voice mail.
"Jack, this is your dad, pick up your phone!" He said angrily. "Call me at once when you get this message."
He hung up and began to pace about his room, every now and then glaring at the duffel bag.
"Why didn't I get rid of the stuff?" He kept asking himself.
Because you couldn't.
Hotch stopped pacing and closed his eyes for a moment as he heard his own voice; because he couldn't do it.
When he had killed Emily's neighbor for that one last time, he had sworn he would not kill again. He had a chance, no, he had several chances to get rid of everything that related to the Reaper, and yet he didn't.
When he returned home that night, he stuffed his clothes and the mask into the duffel bag and tossed it into the back of his closet, and there it had remained for many years.
Until now.
Now, his son Jack has it. Jack was now wearing the Reaper's clothing and his mask.
That was why Foyet was gone from his mind.
Foyet had found his Reaper, in his son.
He recalled all those years ago, before he did his first killing in Vicksburg, Foyet had vowed to him that his son would be his target.
Well, Hotch had not let that happened, instead he resisted Foyet.
But he had never expected the bastard to do this to him, he had somehow managed to transfer his psyche into his son!
His son was no longer a target, he had become a victim, just like Hotch had been!
Suddenly, his cell phone rang!
"Jack!" He called out.
"Er...no, it's JJ."
His heart beat slowed slightly as he felt disappointed, "What is it, JJ?"
"I'm sorry to call you, Hotch but we got a call from Georgetown University campus police."
He swallowed hard, "What's going on there?"
"You won't believe it...the Reaper has struck." She pronounced ominously.
"Roger that, let's get everybody and we'll meet over there."
"Will do, Hotch." She ended the call.
…...
The murder scene was not a pleasant sight; of course, when was one? Hotch could not believe his son had wrought such havoc!
The hallway of the second floor of the co-ed dorm was bloodied.
The BAU team, as well as the forensics team, were having trouble finding areas along the hallway that was somewhat clear of contaminants.
It was bad enough that the local campus police staff had tread on the crime area and the FBI forensics were horrified when they saw them standing in the midst of the dead students' blood!
Photographs had to be taken of them individually for posterior use, as well as they had to identify each of them for processing and elimination, and hopefully to eliminate them from suspicion of current crime.
The long night had turned longer for them, all of them.
"Hotch, isn't this …?" Rossi stared at the face of a young man. He turned his face at Hotch.
"Yes, it's Peter Nathan, Jack's best friend." Hotch confirmed before he walked away.
Rossi paled, "Dear god...what about Jack, we have to find him."
Hotch turned back, "Tell the others to look for what the Reaper had left behind..the earrings from the last crime scene."
"And where are you going? Aaron, shouldn't we be looking for Jack?" Dave called out as he watched Hotch hopping onto the SUV but he had already left. "What's going on?"
Morgan and Reid rushed towards Rossi, "Hey...where's Hotch going?"
"I wish I know, Derek, but something tells me we're about to find out later. In the meantime, he wants us to look for the pair of earrings the Reaper had left."
Emily who had joined them, "Er...Rossi, it's not the earrings the Reaper had taken previously, it was a gold bracelet." She held out a plastic evidence bag containing the gold bracelet. "Hotch knew about it."
"What the hell?" Dave uttered as he watched the retreating SUV. "Dear god...Hotch is the Reaper..."
Emily shook her head, "No, it can't be. This crime scene," She spread her hands at the current murder scene. "This happened while Hotch was still at the BAU tonight, we were there with him."
Morgan, Reid, and JJ nodded. They were in shock with Rossi's pronouncement, but the evidences seemed to stacked against Hotch.
"There's a second Reaper, besides Hotch?" Morgan's eyes widened. "Who is it?"
"We have to go to his house." Emily suggested with dread.
Rossi nodded, "Prentiss, you and I will head out there." She nodded. He turned to the rest, "For now, let's not say a word to anyone." He saw Morgan's expression and shook his head. "Not a word, we don't know for certain. We're gathering evidences..." He was interrupted by their cell phones ringing at the same time.
It was a text message from Hotch!
Effective immediately, I am resigning from my position as Unit Chief of BAU. SSA Derek Morgan will be replacing me.
I have notified Section Chief Mateo Cruz of my current situation and the reason of my resignation from the FBI.
"His resignation!" JJ uttered as she looked at the team. "But why? Is he really the Reaper?"
The text continued, I am sorry to reveal to my team that I am the Reaper and have been for the past several years since George Foyet's death.
And now, the most regrettable thing is that my beloved son, Jack has followed the Reaper's footsteps because I had refused to succumb to Foyet's urged to kill.
I know it is hard for you to digest how this is possible. I will in time, inform you of how Foyet was able to inhibit in my mind all those years, and how I had become weak and became his pawn.
Do not come for me, I have gone underground. I am going after Jack, and will endeavor to hunt him, and capture him, and hopefully bring him to you.
I will not rest until this work is done.
Your servant, Aaron Hotchner.
"This really sucks." Emily stared at them before she walked away.
…...
The End