September: Washington, DC
Following the Lewiston case, the entire team had a little bit of downtime; they all took advantage of it in their own ways. Tara spent some time with family, Rossi took advantage of an opportunity to go on a wine tasting festival. Matt and JJ set up a couples date, and somehow Prentiss managed to get herself roped into showing up where they were supposed to meet. How that happened Emily couldn't quite figure out; her best guess was that she figured even being the fifth wheel on a double date had to better than going to whatever geek movie marathon it was that Reid, Garcia, and Kevin were going to together.
It wasn't so much that Emily thought herself too cool for them; far from it, in fact. In many ways she was quite the nerd herself; but they were talking about costumes of their favorite characters, their favorite installment of the series, and who they would want to name their pets after. (Reid, who originally protested that he didn't do so very well with pets, was eventually persuaded by Garcia to admit he might consider naming a cat Hermione.) Emily decided that was not something she could even begin to keep up with. There was also the weird factor that particular grouping to consider; Penelope and Kevin used to date, and Reid was more of a solitary person when he was on his own time. Still, Emily supposed, it was entirely possible for them to have common interests in entertainment.
Giving her head a shake and setting her thoughts aside, Emily stepped into Little Miss Whiskey's Golden Dollar- almost certainly Will's choice, and not a bad one, either – which was where she was supposed to meet them. For some reason, she had an idea in her head that the other four were planning a set up of some kind; most likely one of them brought a guy along to try to pair her off with. It wasn't that she much minded that so much; it just meant she would have to put on her best face and then at the end of night do all she could to make it clear she was into keeping everything casual. Really the only full time man she wanted in her life was Sergio, her cat.
O my God, I'm the Crazy Cat Lady...
That was one of the things she liked about Sgt Joey Quinn of Miami, Florida. It was easy to keep things casual with him. She had her career here, and he had his there, and when opportunity struck they hooked up and had a good time. She had him pegged as the type who wasn't really into going for the long haul; maybe because he got burned going that way, or more likely because he didn't want to deal with the risk of grief and loss like he did after Debra Morgan got killed. She didn't mean to exploit him or anything like that; this was just a situation that worked out well for both of them.
Finding Matt and JJ, as well as Will and Matt's wife, she waved at them and made her way through the crowded trendy New Orleans themed bar towards them.
"Professor Snape," Garcia remarked, looking at Kevin's costume for the movie marathon once they and Reid had met at the cinema, "really?" Garcia herself was done up as Nymphadora Tonks; she even went so far as to dye her hair an almost violent bubblegum pink.
For his own part, Spencer had a hard time deciding between Remus Lupin and Albus Dumbledore; both were great examples of excellent teachers who were also strong father figures for the protagonist of the series (which he, the protagonist may have otherwise lacked – something which Reid often identified with), but had finally decided on Dumbledore; mainly because he found a very good replica of the Elder Wand. He was originally concerned there would be a lot of people with similar costumes (there were), but his was made unique in that as far as he could see, he was the only one with the Horcrux damaged hand as it was in the sixth book and movie. Now that he saw Garcia's costume, he was glad he didn't choose Lupin; otherwise people might think they were a couple. After so many years of friendship, that seemed somehow inappropriate.
"Always..." Kevin replied, in reference to the now famous movie quote.
Garcia rolled her eyes playfully. "You know I love you, Kevin, but Alan Rickman you are not." She said. "Seriously, though, I would have thought you'd be more of the Hagrid type."
"No way," Kevin answered. "Snape was, by far the most complicated and pivotal character in the whole series, other than the big three of course."
"He has a point, Garcia," Reid chimed in. "Dumbledore had a plan for bringing Voldemort down once and for all, and whether it worked or not all depended on if Snape could infiltrate the Death Eaters."
"I guess," Garcia admitted distastefully. "It doesn't change the fact he was a jerk and really creepy, though."
They were just about to enter the cinema when all three of them received a text message from Deputy Director Lisa Barnes. She wanted to see them; now.
"Uh-oh," Kevin said darkly. "I think I know what this is about."
"You think she's on to us and that Butcher thing." Garcia said. "Is this a bad thing? It feels like a bad thing. She's on to us and now she's calling us in to tells us off and shut us down."
"We don't know that for sure," Reid countered. "There are a lot of possible reasons she could be calling us in. It could be another case, for example. Or this could be one of her games with us as a team. The only way we're going to find out for sure is if we go in."
Disappointed as they were, the three of them got out of line and headed back towards their vehicles to get back to Quantico.
Smiling as warmly as she could manage, Prentiss greeted the two couples. So far it seemed like there wasn't another spare wheel; maybe her idea was wrong, after all.
"Let me guess," She said to Will once the standard hello's and how are you's were done. "You picked the place for tonight's festivities."
"I sure did." Will LaMontagne confirmed. "Though I bet you don't need to be a fancy profiler to put that one together. I just wanted a little taste of back home."
"I can see that," Emily said, looking around appreciatively.
"We let him pick because tonight is also about celebrating his promotion." JJ put in. She continued before Emily could respond. "Say hello to the Captain of DC Metro Homicide, my husband, Will LaMontagne."
Will raised a glass, the others raised theirs with him and toasted as they downed their bourbons.
"Congratulations!" Emily smiled as she took a seat at the table. "If this is a promotion party, I guess I better get in on the action!"
The others all cheered agreeably as Will waved down a cocktail waitress and ordered another round.
"Thank you, chere." He said to her as the round came to the table; Emily couldn't help but be impressed with how prompt the service was. "The trouble is," Will said, mostly to Emily, "now my old position of L.T. is vacant. Now what everybody is expectin' o' me is to promote the current Sarge, and there ain't nothin' wrong wit' dat, she's a great detective and all, but then the next up for the Sarge spot is a clown. So I'm thinkin' maybe I should keep her as Sarge and find me a new L.T. from someplace else; maybe another division or even some other department. I know I got one guy lookin' to transfer from out of town."
Will was getting drunk. Though his Cajun accent was ever present, it always got particularly noticeable after he had a few.
"What's this other guy's record look like?" She asked, once again getting the feeling that this was some sort of set up.
"It looks good." Will replied. "He's the Sarge in his current Homicide Department, and has been instrumental in number of high profile cases. See, what I'm also thinkin' is maybe DC needs a new pair of eyes, see? That way, we can look over some t'ings and maybe he'll catch somet'ing we 'all been missin', right?"
Emily had to admit; he had a point. Sometimes getting someone new and totally impartial can help. "You say he's already a Sergeant, right?" She asked. Will nodded the affirmative. "Then how about this," she offered, "promote your Sergeant to Lieutenant, and offer this new guy Sergeant with a pay raise. This way, your department gets what they expect, you avoid a discrimination suit, and that clown you mentioned stays in his place. Not only that, but you get your new eyes."
Will gaped at her, wide eyed. "I never even thought about the possibility of a discrimination suit." He said, suddenly sounding completely sober. "I mean, I got all caught up thinking about that clown Tyler Woods being Sergeant it never occurred to me that Lizzie Barrett would claim something like that."
"Is that the one I met?" JJ asked.
"Yeah, you met Lizzie." Will confirmed. "She don't seem like the type to go there right off the bat, but maybe if she felt she deserved the promotion, then I guess anything is possible. And she does deserve it, so..." he raised his glass "To unit chief Emily Prentiss of the BAU, for helping me solve my first political quagmire."
They all toasted and drank to that.
Quantico
Reid, Lynch, and Garcia entered the office of the Deputy Director and were met with an awkward silence. Once the three of them filed into the office, Lisa Barnes simply regarded them reproachfully. Reid found the silent treatment rather off-putting. Based on the faint whimper that Garcia made, he wasn't alone in that finding. The look suggested to Reid that she was about to do something significant; perhaps she was on to them and their private review of Frank Lundy's final official case. Despite the fact that Barnes' predecessor declared the case closed and solved regardless that Lundy himself had indicated he had reservations, there were details to that case that just didn't add up – to borrow from Rossi's lexicon. Considering how much Administrative type disliked when the conclusions of the Bureau got second guessed – even from within, odds were good that the three of them were about to face some kind of reprimand. That would also make sense of why the rest of the team was not called in. In fact, that was the one positive Reid could make of the scenario; at least the fallout was limited. It was unfortunate that Garcia and Lynch were being dragged into Reid's trouble.
"Uh, please excuse the unusual attire, Miss Barnes," Kevin spoke up. "We were on some downtime and were just about to go into a movie marathon, see, and opted get here as promptly as possible when you messaged us."
Reid and Garcia exchanged glances. It had not occurred to either one of them that Barnes might be looking at their costumes. It was virtually impossible for Reid to forget they were in them, but the idea had never occurred to him. Self-conscious, he took off the wizard hat and half-moon spectacles. The extra-long beard was held on with sprit gum, so that would take some work to remove.
"Never mind the costumes," she said with surprising warmth. "In fact, I have a niece and a nephew that are both huge fans."
"Oh, wow," Garcia exclaimed. "That's good to know. Those stories are really mysteries disguised as fantasies, you know. Even more importantly, while all fantastical, they all have a lot of valuable messages for kids to learn about love and tolerance..."
"You know, that topic is certainly one worth exploring," Reid interrupted as politely ass he could. "but I'm sure Miss Barnes had a reason to call us in other than the topical themes of the works of JK Rowling."
"Thank you, Dr. Reid." Barnes acknowledged. She moved behind her desk and shuffled a number of files, carefully shielding the names of them until she settled on one of them to leaf through. "As it happens, I do have something to address." She confirmed. "It has come to our attention that you three have been, shall we say, double checking the work of the now departed Agent Frank Lundy in regards to the James Doakes case in Miami, Florida."
Reid noted that both Kevin and Garcia flinched slightly, as if they were concerned that perhaps they have missed some small detail in their research techniques which gave their movements away. Interestingly, he also noted that Lynch had the better poker face in this regard. Personally, Reid saw no point in denying anything. After all, they weren't really doing anything illegal.
"That's true." He admitted. "If you want to know, the interest in the case all started with me during the Jacob Elway case; I began reviewing the Doakes case files because it was immediately apparent that Elway was copying the means and method of the Original Bay Harbor Butcher. At first in method of his kill as well as victimology and disposal, although he began to devolve into several personal touches shortly after we began our investigation. You see, Jacob Elway chose to mimic the Butcher in order to lure his final target out of hiding; that target being one Hannah McKay, whom he became obsessed with after she escaped custody. Now it was actually Sgt. Joseph Quinn that finally managed to name Elway as the Copycat, but what caught my attention was the fact that there was no apparent reason to connect McKay to Doakes, so why did Elway think staging the return of the Butcher would serve his purposes of luring her out? That's why I wanted to review the original Doakes case more closely; especially since Lundy himself had some reservations about trying to convict James Doakes..."
"That's enough, doctor." Barnes said with remarkable patience. "We – that is to say the Director and I – both agree that the case warrants a thorough review, and want you three to spearhead that review since you already have a head start on it."
"You're giving us the green light?" Garcia asked, not sure if she was hearing correctly. "You're not reprimanding us for working around you?"
"That is correct, Agent Garcia." Barnes confirmed.
Reid was about to start going over how it seems the only person who is remotely connected to both cases, in particular with both James Doakes and Hannah McKay, is former Blood Spatter Analyst Dexter Morgan; who was thought to be dead since Hurricane Laura in Miami up until he reappeared just days after Miami Metro's technical analyst Astor Morgan –who also happened to be Dexter's adoptive daughter – discovered one of Elway's victims named Arthur Mitchell of Kentucky. Of course, this victim was not to be confused with Miami's Arthur Mitchell; also known as the Trinity Killer. Which again leads to Dexter Morgan, as he was involved in that case too; by his own claim he was masquerading as Kyle Butler in order to prove a case against Mitchell and provide the evidence he found to his sister, Debra Morgan. In fact, there was a multitude of things, all apparently incidental and circumstantial, that pointed to Dexter Morgan being the Prime Suspect as the Original Butcher. Reid knew it, but he couldn't prove it. One thing that had to be said for Dexter Morgan; if he was a serial killer, he was a master at disposing of any evidence. It was almost as if the clean up part was the important part; that getting away with murder was actually the thrill for him and therefore more important than the kill itself.
"...Are you still with us, Dr. Reid?"
"I'm sorry...?" Reid snapped out of his thoughts after Barnes asked him.
"Agents Lynch and Garcia were just saying that there is indeed a suspect, but the issue is coming up with sufficient evidence." Barnes summarized the part of the discussion that he had missed. "Apparently your suspect as the correct UnSub is very adept at covering his tracks."
"Yes, ma'am" Reid confirmed.
"The Director and I agree that it seems apparent that no small part of this would have to show an outstanding ability to cover any digital trail, if he is able to conceal himself from two of our best." Barnes said.
Garcia beamed. "Thank you, ma'am" she said. "That is assuming, of course, that he's working alone."
"Penelope and I..." Lynch started, and then hesitated. "I mean, Agent Garcia and I think he might have back up to deal with at least some of his online activity." He added.
"We agree," Barnes replied. "I'm very happy to hear we are already beginning to fall into synch on this matter. It seems obvious to both the Director and I that your suspect most likely would have this accomplice living in or near the Metro Miami area; probably someone that was involved in the original case."
"You see, there we have another problem." Reid spoke quickly. "Most of the original investigators on that case are now deceased. Those left surviving are Deputy Chief Matthews, Captain Angelo Batista, Lead Forensics Officer Vincent Masuka, and as we learned during the Copycat case, former Blood Spatter analyst Dexter Morgan. Morgan is not in Miami; we don't know where he is. None of the other three are likely to be talented enough online to evade both Lynch and Garcia at the same time."
"Well good, then," Barnes retorted, an edge of impatience coming out of her vocal tones. "Then when you and Agent Lynch go to Miami to track down which of those three is the accomplice, it should be quick work. Find the accomplice, the accomplice will lead you to the suspect."
For once, all three of them managed to hold their tongues and not say that was an obvious observation. Reid guessed it was because they realized that on this one case, Barnes was actually on board with them. For him, at least, it seemed prudent to play nice for now.
"That's good advice." He said, hoping he sounded courteous even though it sounded dry to his ears. "Thank you. So I guess I'll just contact the team and get them all caught up to speed so we can go to Miami to look into..."
"No, Dr. Reid; the team will not be joining you three on this particular endeavor." Barnes insisted. "For the time being, this is a review, not a fully fledged case. We are just making sure that no mistakes were made. You and Agent Lynch will indeed be proceeding to Miami, and Agent Garcia will liaise from here."
"But..."Garcia started to object with a tiny voice and a look of mild hurt in her eyes.
"I assure you it is not a personal slight against you, Agent Garcia." Barnes said. "It's just that the rest of your team may be called to a case, and then we will need you to work with them."
"Well," Garcia replied equivocally, "I guess that makes sense..."
Barnes produced a pair of flight coupons and handed them to Reid and Lynch. "Your flight departs tomorrow morning at nine am." She said. "I suggest you get packed and get some rest."