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Taplin Household
"Mrs. Taplin. I know this must be hard for you, but anything you tell us can help us find the guy who did this." Prentiss says softly.
"Marianne was a good girl. She didn't do drugs or go to wild parties. She was always home on time. She was going to go to college." Mrs. Taplin sniffles and blows her nose into the bundled up Kleenex in her hand.
"What about her boyfriend, Roy?"
"He was a fine young gentleman. He held the door for her, pushed in her chair, brought her flowers and chocolates. He was an ideal boyfriend."
"Did you know his parents?"
"Of course. We met a couple of times. They were nice too." Marianne's mom picks up a picture of her from the coffee table, "Why did this happen to my baby?"
"I don't know, but I'm going to figure it out." Prentiss pats her hand. "May I take a look at Marianne's room?"
"The police already have. They said they had what they needed." Her breathing quickens and her voice becomes shrilly.
"It's okay. I'm not going to take anything. I need to look for anything that will give me a clue as to why she was targeted."
"You think my baby girl was a target?" The mom is on the verge of sobbing.
"It's a possibility." Prentiss states simply, avoiding eye contact.
She stands up shakily and walks down the hallway, coming to a stop by the door on the right.
"Thank you." Prentiss turns the door handle.
The walls of the room are bare, painted a light blue that matches the comforter on Marianne's bed. A tall bookcase sits in the corner, packed with books. One of the shelves is jam-packed with just picture frames. Pictures of Marianne and what looks to be her dad fill every frame. The bed is made and the room is tidy.
Prentiss glances over her shoulder, checking to see if Marianne's mom is still watching. She's not so she slides open the drawer of the bedside table. A pink diary is in the far right corner with an assortment of gel pens and pencils surrounding it. Prentiss fingers it open.
Her eyes scan the paper, but she can't read the words; everything is coded. Prentiss shuffles through the rest of Marianne's belongings, but nothing else pops out at her. Hearing someone blowing their nose, she enters the living room.
"Mrs. Taplin. Do you think I could borrow this?" Prentiss sits on the couch next to her.
"Marianne's diary?"
"I think there might be something hidden in here that can give us a clue as to why she was-" She stops short, not wanting to say murdered.
"Go ahead." She blows her nose again.
"Just one more question. What happened to Marianne's dad?"
Marianne's mom swallows hard before answering, "He was killed by a drunk driver when Marianne was 13."
"Were they close?"
She nods, her sobs wracking her body.
Prentiss pulls her into a hug and holds her while she lets everything out. When Marianne's mom is under control again, Prentiss apologizes and thanks her for her help before heading back to the BAU.
….
Reynolds Home
"I'm JJ. I'm with the FBI. This is Special Agent Morgan. We would like to ask you some questions, if that's alright." JJ starts, but they don't reply. "Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds. I'm so sorry about your daughter and grandson." JJ holds onto Mrs. Reynolds hand.
Mr. Reynolds hangs onto her other hand. Neither respond, they just stare at the air ahead of them. Mrs. Reynolds eyes are glassy and unmoving.
"We're going to find who did this, but I need your help." Morgan tries.
She snaps out of her daze, her voice dry, "What do you need to know?"
"Is there anyone who would have wanted to hurt them? Any enemies?"
Mrs. Reynolds shakes her head, tears flooding her eyes, "No. Everyone liked them and they liked everyone."
"Did Kristy turn anyone away from her daycare center?"
"No, like my wife said, she was very friendly. She babysat for anyone who asked. And Blake, he did nothing wrong. He was just a baby." Mr. Reynolds explains. A few tears spill over and down Mrs. Reynolds cheeks and she wipes them away with haste.
JJ hands her the box of Kleenex, "You're sure?"
"Positive." Mr. Reynolds assures JJ.
"Did Kristy, by chance, have a list of the families she watched?" Morgan asks.
"No…" Mrs. Reynolds squints her eyes, deep in thought, "Yes. Yes, she had a list of emergency contacts. In case someone got hurt or something."
"That's very good. Where is the list?" JJ coaxes.
"She always kept it on her fridge for easy access. You think that one of her clients did this to them?"
"I don't but we have to check all possibilities. I'll be right back, if that's okay." JJ walks out the door after a consenting nod from the dad.
Morgan stays with the parents, comforting to the best of his ability.
JJ dials Will's number, "Will, was there a list of names and numbers on the fridge at Kristy Reynolds's house?"
"I don't think so, but I can have someone check it out."
"Okay. You do that. Bye." Will hasn't even responded when JJ hangs up.
….
Metropolitan Police Station
She just hung up on me. Will thinks to himself, bewildered.
"Will. We're ready to stake out the house. Are you coming?" A fellow officer asks him, bringing him back into the real world.
"Yeah, I'm coming."
Will and four other cops leave the station and head over to the vacated house. They use a key they received from the parents to enter the house. Before settling down, the team clears the house.
"The place is still empty." Someone informs Will.
"That's good. That means there is still a chance we can find them alive." He looks off into the distance. "Everyone stays inside. Watch from the windows, but don't be seen. I want this place locked down. Anyone tries to enter, take them down. We need this guy alive."
His team gives him an understanding nod.
"I'm going back to the station. Call me if anything happens. Shift change at one." Will drives off in an unmarked car.
….
Conference Room of the BAU
Reid asks for a map of the community and some sticky tabs. He sticks the markers at the homes of all three victims; two live on the same side of town and one doesn't. Reid draws a red circle encompassing the markers of the homes of the victims.
He reads over the four letters again and again, unable to decipher anything. Just when Reid is about to give up and leave the station, Prentiss shows up.
"Hey, Spencer. I have a journal here; it's all written in code. Do you think you could figure it out?" She hands him the pink book.
"Yeah I think so. I'm going to need some time, though."
"That's something we don't have a lot of." Prentiss mutters before leaving Spencer alone with the book.
Spencer's eyes skim the letters while his hand writes them on the board. When he finishes the first page, he looks up at the board and begins to decode the puzzle.
….
Home of the Evinns Parents
"Hi. I'm SSA Aaron Hotchner and this is Agent David Rossi. We're with the Behavior Analysis Unit of the FBI. We were wondering if we could ask you a few questions about your daughter, son-in-law, and grandson." Hotchner shakes Rachel Evinns dad's hand.
"Sure. Anything that will help you find our baby girl." He latches onto his wife's hand, holding it so tightly that his knuckles turn white.
"Did Rachel and Sean have a good marriage?" Rossi raises his eyebrows.
"What does that have to do with anything?" The wife looks up at Rossi accusingly.
"It has everything to do with their abduction." Hotch buts in. "We need to get to know the vict-them better so we know why he's choosing the people that he chooses."
The dad gives Hotch a confused glance.
"Let's say for example that the killer is killing people who have a bad marriage; then we can assume that he himself was in a failed marriage at one point. That helps us narrow down our suspect pool, making it easier to find the killer." Hotch clarifies in depth.
"We need to find a connection between the victims. So, did they have a good marriage?" Rossi asks again.
"Yes. They loved each other. Even when Sean was across seas, Rachel would send him letters every day, telling him how much Zack had grown. Sure they had their fights, but what couple doesn't." Rachel's mom looks away from Rossi and Hotchner.
"What were their fights normally about?" Aaron pushes for more information.
"I can't do this." The dad leaves the room.
"Mrs. Evinns?"
She looks longingly after her husband, but stays put, "They were normally when Sean was on leave. Rachel wanted him to come home. She wanted Zack to grow up with his father by his side, and I don't blame her. She wanted them to be a family again. A real one. Not one where she only saw him on leave and could only talk to him through her letters. He finally agreed a few months ago that it would be best for him to come home. He came home last week and now this happens." Mrs. Evinns buries her face in her hands.
"You and Sean were close?"
"Of course. He was like a son to me. Please find them."
"One more question." Hotch pauses. "Was Zack upset that his father was gone all the time?"
She bites her lip, "No. He never showed it, at least."
"Rachel would drop Zack off at his babysitter's house every day, right?" Rossi clarifies.
"Yeah."
"Why didn't you watch Zack when Rachel was at work? I mean he is your grandson."
"I used to babysit him, but one time, things got out of hand. I was chasing him around the house. He fell down a flight of stairs and broke his leg. Rachel still blames me. She said that he could have been paralyzed and it would have been my fault. Sean was always the reasonable one. The only time I got to see my daughter or my grandson was when he was home." Rachel's mom wipes the tears pouring continuously down her face.
"I'm sorry. We're trying our best to find them. As soon as we find out anything, we'll let you know." Hotch promises.
Mr. Evinns stands in the doorway, leaning against the frame with a bottle of water clenched in his fist, "Find them."
"We will." Rossi nods, acknowledging the dad.
….
Behavioral Analysis Unit
Everyone meets up with Reid in the conference room. His hand flies wildly over the board, trying to connect the letters into words.
"How's it going Reid?" Hotchner can feel a headache coming just looking at the jumble of letters on the board. He seriously wonders how Reid can look at it, much less figure it out.
Reid finishes a page and sets the journal down, turning to face Hotch, "I'm getting there. This girl was highly intelligent and secretive. There's something she didn't want anyone to find out about."
"Keep working on it." Hotchner orders, turning away from the board and sitting down at the round table with the rest of the team.
"What do we know about this unsub?" Rossi starts off the conversation.
"A sadist. He gets off on the physical beating of the victims." Morgan states.
"He felt remorse for the child. He didn't beat him." JJ speaks up.
"He probably sympathized with him. Felt some sort of connection." Rossi says, looking down at the picture of Blake.
"He probably stalks his victims and plans out their abduction." Reid looks back over his shoulder.
"What makes you say that?"
"He doesn't leave any clues behind. He knew that Sean was back from oversees. He knew their daily routine and when they would be home, which makes him highly intelligent and dangerous. I believe that he stalks them for at least four days prior to kidnapping them."
"That would mean that if the Evinns are dead, we have four more days to find this guy, before he kills again." JJ casts a glance around the circle.
"I don't think we even have that long." Spencer rotates to face the team. "I figured the code out, but I still have to translate-" Reid stops midsentence and his eyes get big.
"What, Spencer?" Hotchner asks in a concerned voice.
"Where is her letter?" Reid rushes forward, grabbing the paper out of Will's hand. "She wrote her letter in code too. Maybe she told us something about our unsub."
"Good work, Reid."
The corners of Reid's mouth twitch upward into a smile that fades quickly, "I don't think we have four days. The time between abductions is lessening. 5 days between the first two abductions. 4 days between the second and third abductions. I think we have 3 days at best, Hotch."
"We should all go home and get some rest. We'll come in tomorrow with fresh eyes." Hotchner insists, practically having to push the team out of the conference room. "Will. Have your men ready tomorrow. We'll be ready to give the profile then."
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