"Look, Hotch, we all know what this meeting's about. Filling Gideon's office." Morgan said, fixing the team leader in his piercing gaze.
The team was assembled in the briefing room, the air stagnant with reluctance and anger. It had been a tense three weeks since Gideon's resignation had been formally announced. It was obvious that Hotch had been dragging his heels filling the replacement.
"I am pleased to inform you that Gideon's office is not going to be filled by an outsider; rather, one of you will be moving into his place and we will be having an agent on special assignment to one of the team positions. Morgan, I'd like you to take the supervisory position."
"What?" Morgan and JJ said simultaneously. Emily set down her coffee and pursed her lips.
"Hotch, you can't do this. Pull a senior agent in." Morgan protested.
"The chain of command is looking for an excuse to reassign the members of this team. I'm doing what I think best in order to give Strauss less of an excuse to break us up."
The Team fell silent, each brooding at a different place in the room.
"If anyone has any solid objections, please say them now. If not, we should expect our new transfer within the week." The room was quiet.
"Alright then." Hotch said, taking his exit.
"You know, he's making the right choice for us." Reid offered the rest of the team.
"It just feels... off. I guess. I don't know. Back to the grind." Morgan said, patting Reid's shoulder and making his exit as well.
"You know, the statistical likelihood of a person being kidnapped during their life by two different unsubs is surprisingly high, I- oops! Pardon me." Spencer bumped into someone on his way across the bullpen. The unfortunate victim of his clumsiness tripped and spilled an armload of papers on the floor.
"Reid!" Hotch barked from his office doorway.
"Yes?" Two voices replied. Spencer did a double take to the woman crouched over the spilled papers.
"Uh, sorry. Not me." She turned back to the papers.
"Your last name is Reid as well?" Spencer inquired as she straightened up, tucking a strand of long blond hair behind her ears. She fixed him in a cool blue gaze.
"SSA Peyton Reed. Nice to meet you." She said, extending her hand. Spencer took it, mouth half open.
"Did you say SSA?" Emily Prentiss asked, watching Spencer absently continue to shake Reed's hand.
"Yes. I just transferred from overseas. I was on assignment with the IRT until I was informed that there was need for a profiler stateside." She pulled away from Spencer and offered her hand to Emily, who shook it.
"So that means..."
"Reed!" Hotch barked again, striding across the bullpen now.
"Yes?" Both Reid and Reed answered again, eliciting a titter from Emily.
"I see that this is going to become confusing. Forgive me, but I will have to begin using first names." Hotch said, shaking hands.
"SSA Peyton Reed." She replied.
"Peyton. Good to have you here. Unfortunately, I can't give you much of a welcome as we have a case. Prentiss, Spencer, the conference room please."
"What's this?" Garcia and Morgan said in stereo upon entering the conference room to see Peyton sitting in the chair next to Hotch. "This wasn't the plan, Hotch."
"Penelope Garcia, Derek Morgan, this is SSA Peyton Reed. Agent Reed is on leave from the BAU's IRT and will be taking the supervisory role that we have been lacking."
"Wow. Okay, wow. This is way too sudden." Garcia said, flustered.
"Excuse me." Peyton said, flushing to the roots of her hair. Spencer cleared his throat.
"Ohhhhh that's funny. Agent Reid and Agent Reed." Penelope was pointing between Peyton and Spencer, a calculating look on her face.
"I have already suggested the use of first names to avoid confusion." Hotch said.
The door opened again and the last member of the team, J.J., stepped in.
"Good morning, good to see you all. Welcome, Peyton. Good to see you again."
"And you, Jennifer." Peyton replied.
"Glad to see you are previously acquainted. I would give more time for introductions, but time on this particular case is running out." J.J. nodded and swiped a couple buttons on her tablet, sending it to the viewscreen.
"Baltimore, MD. An hour ago, Ellie Murson's husband woke up to find their bed saturated in blood, Ellie's blood. Match turned up at the crime scene. No body, no signs of a stuggle even, but there is a chance she is still alive. No ransom or contact from the abductor yet."
"That much blood is likely fatal..." Prentiss said.
"The human body contains 1.5 gallons of blood, it looks like a liter of blood or more on the sheets. I agree that it's likely she bled out." Spencer chimed.
"No blood trail? How did the unsub get a body bleeding that heavily out of the house?" Peyton asked.
"Excellent question. I've arranged for the Baltimore chief of police to meet us at the scene to help with a thorough canvas of the area."
"To the jet." Prentiss said.
"To the jet." Hotch echoed, standing and casting one last look at the grisly crime scene. "Welcome to the BAU, Agent Reed."
"Thank you." Both Spencer and Peyton said again, looking at each other in surprise and then quickly away.
"Whooo boy." Derek Morgan said under his breath. Hotch gave them both a tight smile.