Set Fire to The Rain
Disclaimer: I do not own the show Criminal Minds, or any of the characters. I do not own the plot of the show. I only own the storyline of this fanfiction.
A man is getting ready for work and is walking into his kitchen with his briefcase. His wife is getting their two sons ready for school that morning. He kisses his wife goodbye as they are heading out to the driveway.
Suddenly, an unexpected explosion occurs, forceful enough that it blows them all backward. Their whole world went black and the house went up in flames.
xxxxxx
The BAU team was gathered in the conference room going over the newest case. Media liaison, Jennifer Jareau, otherwise known as JJ, stood at the front of the room and put a picture up on the projection screen in front of her. The picture was of a man and his young son. "A string of strange bombings have been occurring in the suburban areas of Virginia. Two weeks ago, local PD reported that Brett Johnson and his ten-year-old son, Gavin, were killed when a bomb went off in their car," JJ began. "They were heading to Gavin's school to drop him off when the neighbors suddenly heard a loud explosion.
Just last week, thirty-seven-year-old, Julia Brown, was killed while heading to work. According to witnesses, the bomb went off at her front door, just as she was leaving."
Clicking onto a picture of a family of four, she continued, "The most recent victims were discovered this morning. The Castley family was found shortly after an ambulance was called to the residence after a neighbor heard the explosion. The father, Robert Castley, was leaving for work, while his wife, Amy Castley was getting their two sons, ten-year-old, Christopher, and sixteen-year-old, Scotty, ready for school. As they walked out the front door, the bomb went off, killing them immediately."
The team all listened thoughtfully, quickly trying to profile the entire situation. Derek Morgan was the first to speak. "There are no connections between the victims. It just looks like a killer on a psychotic break. It doesn't make sense."
"Were there any suspicious sightings?" Unit Chief, Aaron Hotchner asked, directing his question to JJ. "Well, the neighbors heard the explosions at each sight, but no one saw anyone around the houses previous to the explosions," JJ answered.
"The chance of this unsub knowing these victims is rare. Eighty-three percent of bombings are random attacks on people that have nothing to do with the unsub." Dr. Spencer Reid, spurted these statistics like he usually did. Everyone nodded to this and Emily Prentiss added, "The unsub probably faced some kind of tragedy that relates to the way these victims died."
"Yeah, but what?" David Rossi asked to no one in particular.
"JJ and Reid, I want you two to talk to Mrs. Johnson and see what she knows. Morgan and Prentiss, go to the Castley house and inspect the scene. Rossi, you and I will go talk to Julia Brown's family, since they live in the area." Hotch stated.
xxxxxx
Three hours later, the team was gathered together again. Emily began to tell the team what they had discovered. "The bomb had been placed in the front of the house and was big enough to blow up half of the house." Morgan continued by saying, "But somehow, the unsub knew the family would all be at the front door at the same exact time."
"The unsub might have been there at the time of the explosion and activated the bomb at the perfect timing," Hotch proposed.
"Mrs. Johnson was in shock over everything when we spoke to her. She told us that she watched her husband and son get in the car. As soon as they got in the car and closed both doors, she could hear a large explosion and only saw a burst of flames," Reid stated. "After that, she said everything went blank."
Hotch and Rossi weren't able to get anything from Julia Brown's family. They hadn't spoken to her in years and hadn't even heard about the killings.
"What was left of the bomb at the Castley's house was not a well-built explosive. It wasn't very detailed. It was big enough to cause a huge explosion, but wasn't one of an experienced bomber. The unsub, more than likely, really doesn't know how to make a bomb well and isn't familiar with them. Each bomb found was different, almost like he was experimenting and learning, every time, how to make a better bomb," Morgan informed everyone. "Let's give the profile." Hotch stated.
The team stood in front of the local police department. "The person we're looking for is probably in his late teens to late twenties," Hotch began. "The bombs aren't constructed well. This killer is not very experienced, so he is, mst likely, young," Morgan added. "The bomber is big enough to be able to carry the bomb, but he is built and wears clothing that does not make him noticeable or stand out in any way," Emily stated. Rossi followed afterward, saying, "He drives a car that has enough room to transport the large explosive, but it's not big enough to draw attention to himself in a suburban setting." Reid finished the profile by saying, "The unsub probably suffered a trauma that has to do with family or something else so dramatic that it caused him to begin killing. We're probably looking for an unsub on a psychotic break."
xxxxxx
The team had called Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia to have her research something they thought could help. "Hey Garcia, can you look up any murders or deaths of families in suburban areas of Virginia that have occurred in the last four or five years?" Reid asked, as the team was gathered around. "There are none, Boy Genius." Garcia said, sadly. "Okay, what about any deaths of fathers and sons?" Reid asked, taking another approach, hoping to find something. "Only one." Garcia said, hope evident in her voice. "Two years ago, John Joelson and his ten-year-old son, Nicholas were killed in a car accident. They were heading to school. He left behind a sixteen-year-old son, Edward. He was put into foster care until he was eighteen."
"Where was his mother?" Emily asked. Garcia quickly typed away on her keyboard. She found the answer and stated, "His mom had left a year before the car accident. She left for work and just never returned." She said, with sadness in her voice as she said the last statement.
"This is just like the killings." Morgan pointed out. "The father and son heading to school. He used Julia Brown to substitute for his mother. He was 'stopping' her from leaving for work that morning. We have to find his mother. She's the target." He said, to the team. He turned back to the phone and said, "Garcia, what was his mother's name?"
"Katerina Tesman. She lives at 1513 Maple Drive in Fairfax, Virginia. I'm sending the address to your cells as I speak," She quickly said, just as Morgan's cell beeped, followed by the others.
The team immediately headed to Katerina's address and luckily found her there, safe. JJ led her out of the house and explained that she wasn't safe and told her everything that was going on.
Reid and Morgan quickly searched the upstairs and found it clear. They waited near the front door while Emily, Hotch, and Rossi went downstairs to check the basement. They expected Edward would be down there, hiding. Three local PD officers followed them downstairs as well.
Hotch opened the door and they stepped inside. There was a flash of light and then everything went black.
xxxxxx
Morgan and Reid heard the explosion coming from the basement and didn't hesitate to quickly run out of the house.
JJ saw the house go up in flames and instantly began crying. She was so worried that no one would be able to escape. She saw Reid and Morgan emerge from the house and breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't see anyone behind them and ran over to them. "Where's Emily, Hotch, Rossi, and the other three agents?" Morgan suddenly looked worried when realization hit and said, "They went to search the basement. That's where the explosion came from."
The firemen came and put out the fire. They inspected the house and confirmed the agents' suspicions; they had found six bodies. One woman and five men. Neither JJ, Morgan, nor Reid spoke. They just broke down crying.
One Month Later
Shortly after the loss of the agents, Edward was found. They realized he had began killing shortly after he had found his mother. He had shot himself in a police stand-off.
A funeral was then held for the six agents. They were finally at peace. But the rest of the BAU was far from peaceful.
Morgan was thrown into the role as Unit Chief. After the incident, the team slowly started to drift apart. They had all comforted each other at first, but slowly started to grieve separately. They began to feel the true pain that was left with the deaths. It was as if their family had died.
Morgan had lost three of his best friends. Emily was one of his closest friends and partners. He felt horrible taking Hotch's role because he knew no one could ever replace him. He could never lead the team better than Hotch did. He grieved for everyone they had lost that day. He grieved especially for all of the fallen agents' families.
Morgan kept thinking back to the last time a bombing had taken agents. That had caused Gideon to nearly go insane. He was never the same after that.
Morgan noticed the changes in everyone. Garcia rarely left her office and she lost her peppiness. The brightness of her outfits seemed to dim down drastically, day-by-day. Reid became silent and only spoke when he needed to during cases. This was the fourth time people he loved and trusted had left him. He absorbed himself in his work. JJ was in shock and took time off to be with Will and Henry. She needed family at that point. Morgan even began to question whether the job was even worth it anymore. Every day after work, each team member would leave to go home, only saying a quick goodbye. They would then rush home to grieve in their own private homes.
No one knew if they would ever get over this great tragedy. Nor did they know if they'd ever become close again. All they knew was that it wouldn't be happening anytime soon, if it ever did. Only time would tell.