So, here is the next chapter. I do not own any of the main characters.
Criminal Minds: Broken or Evil?
Chapter 2
He who desires the light has to go in the dark.
He who increases the harm lets the salvation embark.
Where the sense is lost there starts ruling the sense.
Where the footpath ends is the path's incipience.
Unknown author
Everybody sat in the flying airplane, thinking about the case or reading the case file.
"We definitely have to call a press conference. It's a small town, everybody knows everybody, the people can't believe something like this happens in their peaceful hometown. We have to avoid a panic.", Luke explained.
Jack nodded. "The UnSub seems to know the area and especially the woods very well. He hid the victims at secluded places where almost only hunters go to. They were even far apart from footpaths. He has to be a native."
"So our UnSub is a native hunter?", Lucy asked.
"Hunter…", Henry mumbled.
"Do you want to tell us something?", Finn wanted to know impatiently.
"Yes, that's it!", Henry exclaimed. "I thought about the hanging, it was so unusual. But what if the UnSub didn't want to express his contempt for the victims? What if he did exactly what is to expect by a murderer like him? Some predators, for example leopards, carry their preys on trees to avoid that other animals eat it or take it away. The UnSub wanted to make sure that his victims were difficult to find: deep in the woods, hid between the leaves of the trees. Moreover if he for example had buried them they would have gotten dirty. But in the air and in the trees they are relatively safe."
"Oh, our genius had a brainwave!", Finn teased provocatively.
Henry fend him off. "I'm not a genius. I'm just more intelligent than people like you."
"You have to admit that's not very difficult.", Lucy laughed.
"Well, screw you, guys!", Finn retorted angrily.
"Calm down, Spade! Instantly!", Jack demanded annoyed. Such a firebrand! Jack knew Finn was a good guy, he just wasn't able to control his temper.
"That sounds very obsessive.", Ella ignored the little fight and noticed: "It seems like the killer is obsessively clean. Furthermore his attraction towards little girls… He is absolutely noticeable, surely someone of the people in the town recognizes his behavior. In towns like this one nothing happens without being noticed."
"When the killer hides his victims so elaborate… what if there are more corpses? Somewhere in the woods?", Finn suggested.
"Possible, since his sexual like surely isn't new for him and he surely had it already before the trigging incident.", Jack answered. "But remember, it's a small town. We would know if there were more missing girls."
"But I'm sure these girls weren't his first victims. He is way too organized. If it's true what LaMontagne said he first had to develop his special modus operandi.", Finn responded convinced.
Luke flipped open his notebook and their bubbly technical analyst Emmy appeared on the monitor. "Hey guys, how are you?", the blonde greeted them cheerfully. Emmy was a very small and very slim person but nevertheless one should never underestimate her: she was really clever and knew exactly how to get what she wanted. Moreover it was surprising how there could be so much energy in such a little body!
"Hey Emmy, did you find anything?", Luke wanted to know from her, smiling slightly at her like always good mood.
"No, sorry, I have to deceive you. There is nothing unusual neither about the little girls nor about their families. But it's scaring, in this town everybody is connected with everybody somehow. There are so many intrigues! The one's daughter is married to the other's son. Their fathers were arrested because they had a fight. One father's neighbor stole him a garden chair whereupon the neighbor's dog died. Poisoned. Another time said neighbor and another man had a car crash because they drove drunk. The man with the poisoned dog has a daughter who was arrested because of having stolen alcohol. But fortunately he is a car dealer. Soon the sheriff had a brand new car and the daughter escaped punishment. And so on and on. Terrible." Emmy shook her head disgustedly.
"The typical suburban community. Many bondings, many secrets, many lies.", Lucy explained.
"Okay, Emmy, please go on with searching. Oh, and can you search for men with prior convictions because of sexual harassment?"
"Of course I can.", Emmy piped. "But this is much too vague. I have plenty hits."
"Okay, only the hunters.", Jack demanded.
"Still too many hits. This town is surrounded by woods. What do you think how many hunters there are?", Emmy stated.
Jack frowned. "We have to make a complete profile before we can limit it further."
"Okay, have there been more missing girls in the past or something like this?", Finn chipped in.
"Wait a minute… no missing girls.", Emmy informed them. "Oh wait, but there is an eleven-year-old girl that died five weeks ago. But it was a natural death."
"Very good work, Autumn!", Jack praised. "If you're right, Spade, this could be our first victim. Or it was the trigger." Then he addressed Emmy: "Look if you can find more about this girl or his family."
"Aye, aye, Sir!", Emmy said before the screen went black.
Jack ordered: "As soon as we landed Spade and Dunham go to the place where the last victim was found. LaMontagne, Monroe, you question the parents of the last victim and case the house. You know, how the killer got in and so on. Wilder, you and I go to the police station and after that we question the parents of the potential first victim. Afterwards we all meet at the police station." Everybody nodded and they were quiet for a time.
"Every time I think I got used to all the cruelty the next case hits me again. Incredible a human being can do something like this.", Luke muttered affectedly.
"We do what we can and everything else is out of our hands. Terrible things happen and you have to accept that if you don't want to be ruined by your job.", Ella told him with her usual pretended coldness she used to show to protect herself from the sorrow around them, but also with a hint of compassion and understanding.
Luke didn't answer and just looked thoughtfully out of the window.
Finally the plane landed and everybody divided to obey Jack's orders.
Jack and Luke entered the town's police distinct. Luke shook the hand of the sheriff and introduced them: "I'm SSA Wilder, we talked at the phone. This is SSA Jack Hotchner."
"Sheriff Carrigan. Thank you for coming.", the Sheriff greeted them and shook their hands.
"That's our job. We are happy that we can help.", Jack answered.
"Come on, I'll show you the room where your team can work.", the Sheriff told them and Luke and Jack followed him. They passed a group of police officers who glared at them cloudily. "Some of the people aren't sure if it was a good idea to call the FBI.", the Sheriff explained vaguely, seemingly not very convinced of the idea by himself.
Jack said friendly but firmly: "We offer our help, that's all." His and Luke's glances met shortly. It would be difficult to make the people of the town help them.
Finn and Ella drove together with a young, blonde and a little bit chubby Deputy into the woods to examine the place where the last body was found. They left the car at a wayside before they followed the Deputy deeper into the forest.
They climbed up a small acclivity and the young deputy reached out his hand to help Ella but she pursed her lips and ignored the hand. "I'm a big girl, I don't need help. Thank you.", she said harshly.
Finn couldn't hide his laughter. "Chill, Dunham! He just wanted to be friendly!" Ella shot him a dark look. The Deputy looked bewildered from one to another.
Finally they arrived at a big oak tree that was surrounded by crime scene tape. Finn held the tape up for Ella to slip through. He grinned teasingly when she glared at him.
"Do you see the big limb up there?", the Deputy pointed into the gigantic tree. "That's where we found the corpse hanging."
"That's very high. The killer has to be very strong and a good climber to not only climb up there but also carry a body with him.", Finn explained thoughtfully.
Ella nodded affirmatively while she approached the big tree with the dense canopy of leaves. Suddenly she said soundlessly: "Oh my god. Finn, you have to see that!"
"See what?", Finn asked curiously.
Ella pointed at something in the wood of the tree trunk a little bit above her. Finn examined the little spot that was exactly in front of his eyes. The bark was removed there and…
"Oh my god. You are right, that's really oh my god!", Finn exclaimed ironically. "There is something written! Who cares?"
Ella looked at him annoyed. "Not just something! It's the name of the last victim. Claire Grayson."
"Oh my god.", Finn said, now serious.
"Just what I said.", Ella retorted.
"He really cares for them.", Finn remarked.
"Oh yes. It's almost like… a grave.", Ella said cloudily.
"Oh my god.", Finn exclaimed.
"Is that your new favorite sentence, or what?", Ella asked him sarcastically.
Finn retorted: "Are you in a bad mood today, Dunham?"
"I don't know what you're on about.", she grumbled. "Focus please!"
"Bad mood, indeed.", Finn said low but he knew better than to provoke her even more. Louder he continued: "The girls meant something to the UnSub, so he saw someone in them. Maybe a daughter?"
Ella regarded pensively at the tree in front of her. "Possible. You know, it seems strange to me he carved the victim's name into the wood and not the name of the person he sees in her."
"Yes, as if he wanted to give them back a little bit of dignity with preparing a kind of grave for them.", Finn picked up her thought.
Ella nodded. "And that indicates he felt remorse after having murdered them."
"What a crazy guy! Of all things he had to show that with hanging them up!", Finn exclaimed angrily and punched against the tree trunk.
Ella ignored his outburst. "We have to check the places where the other bodies were found."
Henry and Lucy had gotten a black SUV to drive with and now parked besides the big house of the victim's parents.
"Rich.", Lucy remarked at the sight of the modern and large property. "They are rich, that's for sure. What about the other victims?"
"As far as we know their parents had only average earnings.", Henry answered.
"Then that's no hint for the victimology.", Lucy said. "I hate it when children are the victims. From all people of this world they at least deserve such a fate."
"I know.", Henry answered but continued without hesitating to suppress his own discomfort. "But it's a signal for the killer becoming more brave. To break into a house that certainly has an alarm system is very risky."
"That's a difference to the other victims. The first girl was kidnapped on the way home from school on an empty road. The second disappeared while going for a walk with his dog.", Lucy explained.
"What happened with him?", Henry wanted to know.
"With whom?", Lucy asked confused.
"The dog!", Henry declared.
Lucy looked at him strangely. "No idea! And that's completely unimportant!"
Henry cringed. "Sorry. What do you wanted to say?"
Lucy glared at him one last time before continuing. "Seemingly the killer knew how to abduct them without anyone noticing it. That shows he observed his victims. Maybe for several days before abducting them."
While talking the two walked on a pavement that was fringed by colorful flowerbeds up to the house and rang. A red-haired woman in the mid-thirties with a tearstained face opened the door.
Lucy smiled at her compassionately. "Hello. My name is Lucy Monroe and that's Henry LaMontagne. We are from the FBI." Both Henry and Lucy held up their badges.
"Oh, FBI? Um, well… What do you want?", the woman responded, obviously not in the mood to talk.
"We want to find the murderer of your daughter, Mrs. Grayson. But for that we need your help.", Lucy explained carefully. "We want to ask you a few questions."
The woman surveyed them mistrustfully. "We already told everything the police."
"We know, we won't bother you for long. May we come in?", Lucy asked as friendly as she could.
"Okay.", the woman, Mrs. Grayson, answered reluctantly, but opened the door so Lucy and Henry could enter. She shouted into the house: "Michael! The FBI is here!", whereupon a bald middle-aged man came down the stairs.
Michael and Sarah Grayson led the agents into the living room and they sat down on the couch.
"We would like to ask you a few more questions.", Henry began but was interrupted by the upset woman.
"Why are you here? What do you think you can find out that can't be done by our police?"
Henry answered soothingly: "We are from the Behavioral Analysis Unit. We try to find the killer by putting ourselves in his shoes, by understanding him."
The woman got angry and screamed: "That's an ill pervert! If you understand someone like him you are not better than he is! Why don't you just leave and let our sheriff do his work! We don't need you!"
Lucy shot Henry a killing glance before trying to defuse the situation. "Please calm down, Ma'm! We just want to help."
The appalled husband said: "Sarah, if you can't keep your temper, leave the room!"
Mrs. Grayson jumped on her feet and ran out of the room, shooting one last killing look at the agents.
"Please forgive my wife.", Mr. Grayson said desperately. "It's really hard for us."
"Of course, no problem. We understand that.", Henry said sympathetically. "We are sincerely sorry for your loss, Mr. Grayson."
"Do you mind us asking a few more things?", Lucy asked gently. Mr. Grayson shook his head and signaled her to continue. "Do you have an alarm system?"
Mr. Grayson nodded. "Yes, but it failed in the night when… my girl disappeared. It was broken." Lucy and Henry looked at each other meaningfully. "Why of all things that night?", the poor father asked desperately. "Why?"
"I'm so sorry.", Henry said sadly.
"Could we see the backdoor through which the killer came in?", Lucy wanted to know.
"Of course.", Mr. Grayson answered and pointed out to the other side of the living room. "There, behind the curtains is the terrace door."
Lucy and Henry stood up to examine it. Lucy pulled away the curtains. Behind them one could still see the hole in the door that had been beat into the glass.
"The failure of the alarm system certainly was no coincidence.", Lucy stated.
"No, he planned everything and is absolutely organized.", Henry agreed. He opened the terrace door and stepped into the garden. Behind the small garden that was fringed by a low fence the deepest forest stretched for miles.
"Okay, I'm the killer." Henry pretended. "What do I do after having abducted the girl?"
"In case we do a role play you should better be the girl and let me be the killer. That fits better.", Lucy laughed.
Henry shot her a killing glance before continuing. "I feel safe in the woods. I have to escape as fast as possible. Why not into the woods since they are right behind my victim's house?"
"Maybe he has a small house somewhere in the woods where he keeps the girls imprisoned.", Lucy considered while gazing into the woods.
"He is organized. And daring. He knows what he does and behaves very self-confident. That fits perfectly to a hunter.", Henry summarized.
Lucy added bitterly: "With the peculiarity that he hunts humans. In short murder is his element."
I hope I can continue to write soon but I don't have that much time right now so it can take a little bit longer.
Please tell me what you think!